Cliff Ryder - The Ties That Bind

"How do you know that?" Tanuk asked.

"Trust me," he said, sighing. "I just know."

Jason heard the tones of the keys and her door springing open from its lock.

"What's the code for your door?" Tina asked as she ran to open it.

He gave it to her.

She punched in the code and the door swung free.

"So was that you guys making the ruckus in the hallway?" he asked.

"Yeah, but it should be clear for a little bit," Jesse said.

"Let's not count on that," Jason replied. "If it weren't for bad luck lately, I'd have no luck at all."

They moved to the long hallway, but had only taken a few steps when the first guard stepped into their path. Jason wasn't about to get stuck in that cell again, but as he tensed for action, Jesse reached forward, placed a firm hand on his shoulder and stepped in front of him.

"Hey, Paul," he said.

"Christ, Jesse! You scared the hell out of me. I thought those guys were loose for a minute," he said.

"I've got it under control," Jesse replied. He stepped forward and placed a hand on the Mini MAC-10 the guard had pointed at them. Paul started to lower the weapon and Jesse yanked the gun out of his hand and in one quick move, smashed it against the side of Paul's head.

The man dropped, hitting the floor with a thud.

"Will that do?" Jesse asked.

"Not all that subtle, but I like it," Jason said.

They made it to the front door and Jesse stuck his head out, then signaled for the others to follow. A small group of guards was approaching the building. Jesse raised his hand to wave, but they opened fire.

"I don't think they believe that you are taking us to see Boris again," Jason said. "Find cover!"

They ran for the other side of the building as Jesse laid down a burst of covering fire while they moved. A moment later, he was crouched next to them.

In his shoulder holster, Jason saw that Jesse had his Glock.

"Hey, that's mine!" he said.

"I thought brothers were supposed to share," Jesse said.

Jason reached forward and pulled the pistol from the holster. "Mine!"

He leaped forward, moving into view and drawing the fire of the guards. Adrenaline and anger surged through his veins, and four well-placed shots later, the rain of gunfire dissipated. He took cover on the other side of a truck and waved for the others to join him. Jason and Jesse covered their movements, using any guard foolish enough to pop his head up as target practice.

He felt a tugging on the back of his shirt and glanced to see Tina behind him. "Time to go," she said. "Better to run and live to fight another day and all that."

He nodded. "All right." He fired one last burst, then turned to run and almost tripped over Tina, who he'd expected to already be moving. She was staring wide-eyed at the new group of men running at them from the Quonset building.

"Holy shit! That's it!" she exclaimed. "We've got to move."

"That's kind of what I'm trying to do," Jason said, promising himself that if they got out of this, Tina was going to be answering a lot of questions. "Get going!"

Startled into action, she ran for the SUV where everyone else was already seated. It started moving and they ran alongside and jumped in. The engines revved and the whine and ping of bullets could be heard as the guards opened up completely.

Jason was barely in his seat when Jesse tossed a grenade into his lap. He looked at his brother.

"Well," Jesse said, "you do know how to use the damn thing, don't you?"

Jason waited until the gang that was following got a little closer, then popped the pin and counted off a few seconds. Leaning out the window, he threw the grenade, which landed directly beneath the pickup that was in pursuit. It detonated, tossing the truck into the air. It landed on its tailgate, spilling out the guards in a heap on the ground.

Jason laughed and sat back down as Tina's grandfather drove into the frozen wilderness.

A few miles later, Jason said, "We've got to stop. I need to find where they're keeping my stuff. There are things I'm going to need."

"It's not a problem, little brother," Jesse said. "I've got it all here." He jabbed a thumb in the direction of the SUV's cargo area.

"What the hell is going on here?" Jason asked. "I didn't see you being all helpful when the bald beauty was kicking my ass. Could have used a little support then, bro. What's with the sudden change of heart?"

"Look, Jason, I told you the first time we met that I wasn't looking for family, and I meant it. But I suddenly realized I have no choice in the matter. Like it or not, you're family and that's it."

"Bullshit," Jason said. He could tell from Jesse's body language that his brother wasn't exactly lying, but he wasn't saying everything, either. "That's not what changed your mind. I want the truth."

"What are you, some kind of fucking psychic?" Jesse asked. "Fine, you're right. That's not what changed my mind. I didn't like what they were doing, but I needed to make a living and the pay was better than good. I didn't see a whole lot of other options."

"There are always other choices," Tina said.

"Yeah, well, I didn't see one. At least not until I got to Jason's cabin in town. Sheriff Giles was dead on the floor and Chris was there, getting ready to do a little inventory on your stuff. He told me to gather it all up and bring it to base and then he kicked Giles's body and told me to be sure and take out the trash before I left. That's when I realized it wouldn't be too long before he decided I wasn't worth any more than Giles had been."

"So you're bailing out?" Jason asked.

Jesse offered him a hard stare. "Listen to me. If I'd wanted to leave you in that cell to rot and taken off, maybe left the country, I would have. But sooner or later, they'd find me. Boris and his boss have a very long reach. I'd be a dead man walking." He broke the eye contact and stared out the window. "Guess I figured that if I'm going to die, it may as well be for doing something right for once in my life."

"We're here," Tina said as the SUV rolled to a stop.

"Where is here?" Jason asked. He looked around and couldn't see anything but the brown tundra grass and a few small birds in the distance.

"Things are not always what they seem," Tina said.

She marched forward and walked around in an area that was covered with grass. Then she came to sudden stop and pulled on a chain that was attached to a sliding door in the ground.

Peering into the darkness inside, Jason momentarily hesitated, but Tina scampered down the ladder, and the others followed behind. They all stood in one corner while Jesse lit several oil lamps to give them light. He went to work getting the generator cranked up.

Jason looked around at the crates that were scattered throughout the room. The labels were in several different languages, most of which he knew. Munitions, guns and other items were being stored underground.

"This one of your warehouses?" Jason asked Jesse.

"Not mine," he said. "This one belongs to Tanuk."

"Grandfather!" Tina gasped. "How could you? You told me you were out of the smuggling years ago!"

"All due respect to your grandfather, but, Jesse, you're using a guy that is like nine hundred years old in your smuggling operation?" Jason asked. "It can't be that tough to get good help out here."

Tanuk chuckled quietly. "No one looks twice at me. I am a very old man and I make a good cover for the operation."

Jason looked at Tina and raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess," he said. "You didn't know. Are you sure about that, Tina? Or is there some other name I should be calling you instead?"

She grabbed him firmly by the arm. "Come with me," she said. "We need to talk."

He allowed her to guide him farther back into the cavern. The crates made for crude hallways and seemed to go on almost endlessly until the space opened up into a much larger space the size of a basketball court.