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Chapter 11
Laila focused on the rough voice to translate the man’s words. He was sending someone crawling down the tunnel.
Shivers rippled up her spine. Whoever did the job would see the slit and realize he could get past it. What would Jase do to keep them from being caught?
Voices swirled in the background, and she listened carefully. Their survival might depend on what those men were saying. She tried to concentrate on the voices and ignore the rasp of clothing and boots over rock that got steadily closer.
Suddenly a voice far too close said, “It’s too tight. No way anyone can get through this space.”
An answering voice farther away said, “Are you sure?”
“Positive. It narrows to a tiny slit.” The speaker’s voice cracked, and he sounded very familiar.
Laila frowned. Gasped when she realized who it was. Bahram. She’d listened to him for hours in the car and recognized his voice. Why would the boy who’d clearly aligned himself with the Taliban lie about the passageway in the tunnel?
Maybe he hadn’t looked closely enough. Maybe he was at the place the tunnel turned and hadn’t looked beyond the bend.
She held her breath, waiting to see if Bahram advanced. But a shout came from the far end of the tunnel. “Get back here. We need to move on to the next cave.”
Holding her breath, Laila listened intently. The scrape of clothing and boots became fainter as Bahram backed out of the tunnel. Finally, the same rough voice demanded, “You sure you saw nothing?”
Bahram said, “Nothing to see except rocks and dust. A rat could get farther into that tunnel. Maybe a cat. But not a person.”
She couldn’t stop thinking about Bahram’s lie. Was it because the dark, enclosed tunnel terrified him and he wanted to get out as fast as possible? Maybe. If the leader trusted him, no one would bother to double check.
Or was Bahram trying to protect her? And why would he do that after he and Feroz had sold her out to the Taliban?
She wanted to talk to Jase about it. See what he thought. But she pressed her lips together and swallowed the words. Stared into the darkness as she listened to the sound of the men retreating from this cave.
She didn’t move, even after the voices had completely faded away. She’d take her cues from Jase and sit here silently as long as he did.
Finally, after what felt like hours but was probably only a handful of minutes, a boot scuffed against stone at the far end of the tunnel. A light shone into the darkness.
Laila froze. Held her breath as long as she could.
Maybe they hadn’t trusted Bahram.
That didn’t bode well for the teen. Laila wondered if he realized that.
She wished she could warn Nahira, Bahram and Amira’s mother, that Bahram might be in trouble. But if the Taliban took over Al Kamen, the whole family would be in trouble.
The Taliban wouldn’t care why he’d lied. He’d be punished. And everyone in Afghanistan knew the penalty for betraying the Taliban was death.
She wanted to crawl over to Jase. Curl close to him and tell him what she suspected. But she forced herself to stay frozen in place. Listen for any further noises from the outer cave.
The silence pressed down on her, as heavy as the stone surrounding them. The only sounds were her breaths and Jase’s. Finally Jase crawled over to her. Even though she couldn’t see him, she smelled his fresh air scent as he got closer to her. Heard the brush of his tactical pants on the stone.
When he was close enough that she felt the heat emanating from his body, he reached his hand down to her. It brushed her shoulder, then her breast, and she couldn’t stop the shiver that rushed through her.
Fumbling for his hand, she curled her fingers around his and stood up slowly so she didn’t make any noise. She felt rather than saw Jase stand, as well.
Jase put his mouth to her ear. “I haven’t heard anything since that last graze of a boot. I think it’s safe, but let’s stand here for a few more minutes.”
She nodded, then realized he couldn’t see her. So she squeezed his hand instead. Jase pressed close against her, and she leaned into him, welcoming his warmth. His strength. His toughness.
They stood close for a long time, neither of them speaking. The only sound in the darkness was the regular in and out of his breath and hers.
Finally Jase turned the flashlight back on. After sitting in total darkness for so long, she squeezed her eyes shut against the glaringly intense beam.
