Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
The village was smaller than Ethan had expected, a cluster of tile-roofed buildings, a few dozen at most, strung along a road that had been paved once, a long time ago.
Studying it from the top of a hill—one of the many he’d traversed since he’d left Mei Lin hours before—he doubted he’d find a coffee shop, no matter how much he craved a large cold brew.
He approached from the trail and headed for a lane that ran parallel to what looked to be the main street, stepping around a sleeping dog that smelled like it hadn’t had a bath since…
ever. A woman, hanging laundry on a line stretched between her house and a skinny tree stared at him as he passed.
They probably didn’t get many six-foot-something white guys in this neighborhood.
He smiled at her, keeping his pace easy and his head down slightly. He hadn’t spotted any cameras, but that didn’t mean they weren’t there.
There were still zero bars on his phone when he located a single-room shop that carried a little of everything: shelves of canned goods and dried things in bags, a glass case at the front with cigarettes and batteries and phone accessories.
A television mounted high on the wall played what sounded like a cooking show, the volume loud enough to be distracting.
The man behind the counter watched him through narrowed eyes. Maybe foreigners came through occasionally, hikers and the like, but probably not this time of year.
Ethan nodded a greeting, then perused the shelves. He found two flashlights and a small nylon backpack. He found a box of bars that he hoped had protein. Wasn’t like he could read the labels.
Dinner would be trickier. He grabbed a bag of noodles. The Chinese characters on the canned goods weren’t helpful. He studied the pictures and settled on what looked like a bean and pork situation. He added a package of crackers and a small bag of dried fruit.
After selecting batteries for the flashlights and checking to make sure they worked, Ethan scanned the candy display and chose a handful of White Rabbits, Mei Lin’s favorite.
He paid, and when the clerk had handed back the change, Ethan pulled out his phone and held it up so the screen was visible. “Service?”
Looking at the screen, the man said something in Mandarin and gestured vaguely toward the north, pointing up.
“Higher?”
The man repeated the gestures as if that said it all.
“Okay. Thanks.” He transferred everything into the new backpack and slung it onto his back, then headed north.
He found a rise in the center of town and climbed it toward a small temple, keeping off the road in hopes of avoiding cameras. It wasn’t that high, but it got him above the rooflines. He edged along the side of the building, watching his phone. One bar, then two, then three.
His phone dinged multiple times when it connected. The cousins’ Signal thread had continued without him. He scanned the last few texts:
DW
Hey E, heard you’re in mountain man mode. My money’s on you. Also Bryan says hello.
BW
Hello.
GW
Do you have a gun? If not, a knife will work in a pinch. Find one.
BW
Surely you’re not running around, stabbing people?
GW
If they’re asking for it, so tread carefully, brother.
That last comment had gotten a bevy of Haha emojis.
Ethan exhaled a small laugh. He didn’t know these guys, but he looked forward to meeting them. Assuming he ever did.
He dialed Michael, who answered before the first ring had finished.
“You’re alive.” Michael’s voice was alert.
“I’m in a village. Don’t even know what it’s called.”
“Hang on.” The line went quiet for a few seconds, then he said, “You with us, Gavin?”
“Ethan?” Gavin sounded even more intense than usual. “You’re okay? Mei Lin?”
“We’re both fine. We found a place to hole up, and she’s there, resting.”
“I’m glad you’re safe.”
“Yeah, me too,” Michael said, clearly done with the pleasantries. “I’m running out of contacts over there, so I’m working on finding—”
“How’s Han?” Ethan asked. He’d been worried about the man he’d abandoned at the hospital.
“He was arrested,” Gavin said, “and released.”
“How? How did that—?”
“Money might’ve changed hands.” Gavin seemed to brush that off as unimportant. “I’m working on finding someone to extract you.”
“I have an idea.” Ethan had been thinking about this all the way down the mountain. “My in-laws know a lot of people. Their village is a few hours away, but their church has a network. The problem is, I don’t know their phone number, but you could call the hospital—”
“I have your phone,” Gavin said.
It took a second for Ethan to process that. “Wait. How? I left it in Changsha.”
“I got it. Grabbed your suitcase too.”
“You were in China?”
“Still am. If you tell me your passcode, I’ll get your in-laws’ numbers.”
Gavin was in China? How had he gotten access to Ethan’s hotel room? And…why?
“Passcode?” Gavin prompted.
Ethan gave it to him, and Gavin said, “Under Chen?”
“Yeah.”
A moment passed, then, “Got both their numbers. I’ll call as soon as we hang up.”
“If they don’t answer, try the hospital.” Ethan should’ve called them days ago, but he hadn’t wanted to get their hopes up. “Neither one of them answers their phones when they’re on duty. She works in billing. He’s in IT. I haven’t told them anything, so give them time to process.”
“I can be sensitive,” Gavin said.
Michael scoffed, and Ethan almost chuckled.
“Apologize for me, would you?”
“I’ll tell them you’re rescuing their daughter,” Gavin said. “They won’t need any apologies.”
“It’s a plan.” Michael was all business. “Ethan, you’re going to need to get to a place where someone can meet you.”
Ethan looked at the mountains surrounding him. “We have no car, no scooter. Not even an e-bike.”
“Have you ever stolen a car?”
“No.” Ethan blinked. “Have you?”
“The point is, it’s an option. I can walk you through—”
“There’s got to be a better way.” Gavin’s voice was sharp. “Ethan, you two are both wanted by the police after the break-in at the hospital. If you’re seen, you’ll be taken into custody. Stealing a car isn’t an option.”
“Then what do you suggest?” Michael asked. “We don’t even know where they are.”
Ethan said, “I can send a pin—”
“No—”
“—Don’t do that!”
They’d both yelled at the same time.
Noted. Sending a pin was on the list of things not to do.
“If you were in a city, it would be different. You’ll be too easy to find in a village.” Michael seemed to set his argument with his uncle aside. “Get moving in the morning. When you have service again, and you’re in a populated area, contact me.”
“By then,” Gavin said, “I’ll have a plan.”
Ethan stared up toward the mountains, toward Mei Lin. “We’ll figure it out.”
“Avoid cameras,” Michael said. “Avoid main roads and big cities, where the surveillance net is thick.”
“So I need to avoid cities,” Ethan clarified, “and also, to be in a city?”
Gavin chuckled.
“Just not a tiny village,” Michael said. “But remember, small towns have surveillance, too, so don’t get complacent.”
“Great.” Was there enough sarcasm in his tone? “Easy as pie.”
“You’ve got this, son.” Gavin’s voice was kind. “You’re intelligent, logical, and capable. You can do this.”
He closed his eyes and let his father’s encouragement roll around in his mind, looking for a place to land. “I’ll reach out tomorrow. Tell Mei Lin’s parents she’s healthy and eager to see them.”
“We’re all praying,” Michael said.
“Your whole family,” Gavin added.
All of them? Even his half sisters? He didn’t have time to dwell on that question, even if he hoped it was true. “Okay. Thanks.” He ended the call and powered down his phone.
The climb down had been harrowing because the ground had been slick. The climb up was difficult because it was steep, but at least the sunshine had dried much of the path. The trees thinned as he gained elevation, and the light went from dim to dimmer by degrees.
He hoped Mei Lin had gotten enough rest, because ready or not, they were coming down this mountain in the morning.