Mark Young - Off the grid

He took another sip. “That part I can’t share. Kane’s orders.”

She pursed her lips. “I know you left Kane on bad terms in Vienna, Gerrit. Dad called me yelling and screaming. Not a smart move. I urge you to reconsider. Kane is a man who has our best interests at heart.”

Gerrit stared back, not believing what he was hearing. “Do you know anything about this man? Do you have any idea how he conducts business?”

She met his gaze. “I know he plays for keeps. That he is a man you just don’t want to cross. Tell him you are on board. Tell him you’ve reconsidered and agree with his point of view. Before-”

“Before he kills me? Is that what you’re trying to say?” For the first time, he saw fear in her eyes.

“Gerrit, I’m begging you. Don’t dig in your heels on this. This will be good for both of us if you work with him. There will be no limit where you can go.”

“Good for both of us? And if I don’t?”

Marilynn lowered her eyes, fingering her wine glass. “Time is running out, Gerrit. Make the right choice.”

He crossed his arms. “My mind’s made up. I can’t work for a man who’d jeopardize our country’s interests for his own agenda. I would think you’d feel the same way.”

Slowly, she folded her napkin and placed it on the table before rising. “I’ve already made my choice. If you are not smart enough to see what must be done…” She left the meaning for him to figure it out. “I need to get back to the office. Call me if you change your mind.”

A moment later her car door slammed shut and the engine roared to life. Her tires slipped on loose gravel as she rapidly drove away. He began collecting the dishes, carrying them to the kitchen. Once he finished the dishes, he remembered the package Marilynn mentioned. He found it on his bed. He carried it into the office and sat at his desk as he tore it open. Inside, he found a DVD and a note.

Just a reminder of what might happen if you don’t cooperate. Give me a call.

No name. Just a telephone number.

He slipped the DVD into his computer’s disc drive. Surveillance footage from Adleman’s apartment building leaped onto the screen, with dates and times stamped in the lower-right corner of each camera shot, four fixed locations that showed the exterior and interior entryways, elevator, and the hallway leading to Aldleman’s apartment.

He saw himself emerge on the first screen as he approached the building, and the cameras documented his path through the building to the scientist’s apartment. A time lapse cut in, and the cameras followed him as he rushed from the building after finding the body.

Angrily, Gerrit reached for the phone and dialed the number given. Kane answered. “Got my present?”

“You set me up.”

“You have a decision to make. Do you want to help us help the world, or are you going to start running? Because if you are not on our team, Gerrit, the police will start looking for you as a person of interest. We will leave just enough clues to make sure your world turns upside down.”

“Forget it, Kane. There is nothing you can do to change my mind. This was a setup, and I will prove it.”

“Good luck,” Kane said, before the line went dead.

He slammed down the phone and began pacing the room, considering all his options. Call his supervisor and spill everything about his contact with Kane? Sit tight and see what happens? Running was not an option. He must face whatever Kane threw at him and try to prove his innocence. Work it like any other case, only Gerrit was the one who might be facing charges.

Agitated, he walked to the kitchen to make some coffee. It would be a long night, and he had to try to figure out a game plan. As he crossed the dining room, he heard his sliding glass door open. He glanced up and saw two dark-clad figures emerge.

He started to move to his gun on a table about five yards away but stopped when he realized he’d never reach it. Not enough time. He glanced back at the intruders and braced himself, preparing to go hand-to-hand with them. Both wore black wet suits, dripping on his rug. The first person through the doorway ripped off a black neoprene hood.

Alena.

The next person was much bigger, a giant of a man carrying another person over his right shoulder like a sack of flour. Motionless flour.

Alena held up her hand as if to silence him. She placed her index finger across her lips. The giant carried his burden into the bedroom and threw it on the bed. Gerrit moved closer and saw the person sprawled on the bed was chalky white.

They just dumped a dead man on his bed.

Gerrit edged toward the coffee table to arm himself.

Alena silently motioned for him to remain quiet. She snatched up a pad of paper and began writing. Once finished, she held it up for him to read. Kane ordered you killed. They are listening. This house is set to blow at any moment. Follow us into the water-now.

She motioned for her partner to leave through the glass door before turning back to him. Waving her hand, she beckoned him to follow her. He balked as he saw them exit. A moment later, Alena stuck her head through the doorway and mouthed the word please, urgently signaling him to leave.

Reluctantly, he followed. Worst-case scenario, his house would be blown to bits. Best-case scenario, Alena was wrong and he would get really wet. The only thing he risked by going with them was he might wind up with a cold. If he stayed…

He scooped up Bones and dashed toward the door. Slinging the dog out into the lake, he dived in and began paddling. Bones paddled alongside him-not heading back to shore. Good. He followed Alena and her partner through the water, spotting the silhouette of a blacked-out motorboat about one-hundred yards away.

He got about twenty yards offshore when night turned to day in a flash. Gerrit glanced back and saw a huge, fiery ball where his home once stood. The concussion hit as the blast swept over him. He felt a secondary heat wave microseconds later, debris raining down on him.

He saw parts of his house falling from the sky. Then blackness.

A roar of an engine woke him up and he started shaking. He found himself struggling to breathe. Alena held him in her arms, her warmth warding off the chilly night. He tried to get his bearings.

She glanced at two others on the boat. “He’s awake. Get us out of here.”

He tried to sit up but felt woozy, pain knifing through his brain.

She pushed him down. “Stay still. You got knocked out and almost drowned. Just rest for now.”

Bones edged over and licked his face. The dog was a survivor.

The motor craft’s bow rose in the air when the motor roared to life. They must have dragged him to the boat. “What happened?”

Alena looked back toward where his house had been. “They rigged your place to blow up on command. A chunk of your house must have struck you in the head. We have to get you out of the area before others come.”

He lay back for a moment, her arm cradling his head. “Who are you people?”

She looked over her shoulder again. “Be patient and we’ll tell you everything. Right now, you need to disappear while there’s still time.”

He tried to raise himself again, but the exertion almost caused him to pass out. “I’ve got to get something I shipped from Vienna. I need to get to it tonight.”

Alena shook her head. “We’ve got to get out of the state. Immediately.”

Once again he tried to sit up. He almost threw up. “I’m not going anywhere until I get my hands on that package. It must not fall into Kane’s hands.”

She let out a breath, obviously annoyed. “Okay, then we get you to safety. Agreed?”

He nodded and lay back down.