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Chapter Forty-Three
Muriella
I had beeninside the bank countless times performing drills with Daniel in case of emergency. Well, this was an emergency. After I’d had my eyes and fingerprints scanned as if I were in some sort of spy movie, we’d made it to my vault, where I’d finally been able to communicate my location by pressing the panic button.
I was never so grateful to Daniel as I was in those moments. All the practicing had made this process second nature. I didn’t panic, because I had a series of tasks to perform. I knew in what order to do them and completed each one with calm and composure. We’d even practiced down to the arrival of the security team Daniel had put in place to come rescue me. But unlike in the drill, they didn’t arrive.
I tried not to panic as my father and brother scooped the money, rolled-up paintings, and rarities into the black bags stored inside the vault. It seemed like only seconds before they had everything packed up. This wasn’t supposed to go this fast. The rescue team should have shown up by now.
I reminded myself as we exited the private room that the plan was still in place. Daniel had prepared me for what to do under every foreseeable circumstance.
When the team wasn’t there as the elevators opened into the basement garage, a trace of panic crept through me, but my determination was stronger.
If anyone was going to save me, it would have to be me.
There was a car parked in a designated spot I could reach with my eyes closed. I knew where the exits to the garage were, both on foot and by vehicle. Now I just had to get to it.
The General, my father, and Carlos were occupied with loading the car. I’d pretended the bags were too heavy for me to lift, so my father pushed me out of the way, just as I’d hoped he would. It almost seemed too easy as I quietly slid away into the shadows. I stayed low, certain I’d hear footsteps chasing after me, but there was only the slam of bags being slung into the trunk of the SUV.
I made it to the stairwell and quietly reached up to push the door open. Once inside, I straightened and darted up two flights of stairs. I had directed the General to park deep in the bowels of the garage, just as I’d been taught. My getaway car was parked closer to the exit. The two extra floors they’d have to climb would give me that much more time.
It was tempting to burst out of the stairwell and sprint to the parking spot where my shot at freedom was, but I remained stealthy, checking the area before jogging to the wall and into the shadows, out of the fluorescent lighting.
I had almost reached the car when I heard the squeal of tires on the concrete ramp. I dropped out of sight immediately, balancing on one of the parking stones so they wouldn’t see my feet if they stopped to look. The sound of an engine running came close, then doors opened, and feet hit the ground, the echo loud as it bounced around the garage.
Three cars were all that separated me from escape. It was a risk to move, but the garage wasn’t large. If I stayed put, I’d certainly be found. On my hands and knees, I crawled toward the car, pausing at the sound of footsteps when I was just behind it. They seemed to stop when I did and start again as I inched forward. I reached up into the rear wheel well and found the car key, just where it was supposed to be. Daniel had had the car backed in to make it easier to pull out, and he’d even disabled the lights that flashed when the car was unlocked. I was grateful for his forethought now, remembering on more than one occasion how I’d thought it was all overkill. I wished he wasn’t a half a world away, but in a strange way, I felt him with me. I felt Vivian and Stone too, encouraging me to fight.
Strengthened by thoughts of the people I loved, I crept to the driver’s side door and opened it. The car had a keyless ignition; if I had the key on me, the doors unlocked at my touch. The dome lights inside the car had also been disabled, so it stayed dark even when I didn’t fully shut the door. Making any kind of noise was too risky.
Through the windshield, I saw my father’s vehicle parked in the middle of the ramp, the back doors wide open. The General was still in the driver’s seat, ready to move in an instant. Carlos yelled something to my father as he jogged up the ramp from the lower level, throwing his hands up. Their faces were bright red. Their resemblance to each other and the similarity of their mannerisms were uncanny. That alone triggered my doubt of Carlos.
It’s now or never.I pressed a button near the steering wheel and the engine roared to life. Three heads snapped in my direction. Throwing the car in drive, I peeled out, heading toward the exit, which was mercifully in the opposite direction of my father. As I rounded the corner, I slammed on the brakes after nearly colliding with a Suburban attempting to back into a small spot. There was no room to go around, so all I could do was wait.
Carlos pressed his face against my window, and I jumped as he pulled violently on the door handle. “Trust me,” he mouthed.
A glance in the rearview mirror revealed my father fast approaching. The Suburban was still trying to back into the parking spot. I looked into Carlos’s eyes and made a decision.
I pressed the unlock button.
“Move over,” he commanded in a rough voice, and I crawled over the center console as he climbed in beside me. “I’ve got her,” he shouted to my father, and my heart sank. I pulled on the passenger door handle, and he clamped down on my thigh. “Trust me.”
My father approached and rested his hand on the top of the open driver’s side door as he caught his breath. “What were you thinking, Camila? Your insolence is intolerable.” He glared. “Get her back to the car,” he said to Carlos.
“She’s secure in this one. We should take it,” Carlos reasoned.
“All right. I’m riding with you, though. The General will follow.” By this time, the Suburban had parked, and the General was right behind us. My father went to inform him of the change of plan.
“When we get to the airport hangar, I’ll give you a signal and you run. Do you understand?” Carlos whispered to me. “You are not getting on that plane.” I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. He reached behind him, into the waistband of his pants, and produced a gleaming black handgun, which he placed in my hand. “You remember how to use this?”
”Yes.” Our father had insisted upon hours of target practice after our mother’s abduction and ultimate death. It was a habit I hadn’t been able to break. The metal was warm from his skin, and I slipped it in the waistband of my jeans, pulling my sweater down to conceal it. I opened the glovebox, searched under the driver’s manual and paperwork, and found the knife hidden there. I handed it to him. He gave me a strange look, shaking his head as he hid it where the gun had been.
My father climbed into the back seat of the car. “Go.”
Without consulting a GPS,Carlos easily navigated the streets as if he knew them by heart. I stared at the familiar buildings and got a gut punch when we passed a billboard with Stone on it. The panic button hadn’t worked. No one knew I was missing.
I was calm. I could fight back, unlike when I was a child. Perhaps my father would ultimately win, but he wouldn’t escape without severe damage.
As I looked over at Carlos, I realized I had missed him very much. Our mother was gone. My father I cursed. But Carlos…it was as if he was this person I didn’t know, and yet I did.
