Chasing the White Lion by James Hannibal (best free e book reader .TXT) 📗

get his soldiers’ attention. “Good. Now, load up the girls. New boss. New orders.”

The men shouted and shoved. Most of the girls complied. The implications did not sink in for Thet Ye until the first of them climbed onto the tailgate.

One truck.

Girls only.

They were taking Hla Meh, and there was nothing he could do to stop them.

A few girls failed to move, too dazed to understand. Hla Meh was among them.

“Round up the stragglers. We have a schedule to keep.”

Perhaps to make up for his previous failure, the teen soldier moved in to help. He grabbed Hla Meh by the wrist. “Move it!”

At the force of his jerking, her eyes found focus—and Thet Ye. He saw no blame, only a cry for help. With her free hand, she reached for him. “Thet Ye!”

He needed no other call.

Thet Ye bolted from the line to catch her hand. Their fingers were a hair’s breadth apart when the teen soldier punched him in the chest and sent him sprawling back.

He lay there in the gravel, unable to breathe, unable to speak, watching them drag his best friend kicking through the dirt. “Thet Ye! Don’t let them take me!”

In seconds, she had disappeared into the darkness beneath the canvas. As the teen soldier slammed the gate into place, the air returned to Thet Ye’s lungs. “I’ll find you,” he called in his hoarse whisper, feeling tears on his cheeks for the first time in days. “I promise, I’ll find you.”

CHAPTER

SIXTY

MILOS NATIONAL AIRPORT

MILOS, GREEK ISLES

THEAIRFIELD’SONLYTUGOPERATOR took his sweet time towing the AS2 out of the hangar. He was working on a Greek island clock, which seemed to match the pace of island clocks Talia had experienced in other parts of the world.

Without Mac, Tyler was forced to take the helm of the AS2. “Run the briefing,” he called as he taxied the jet toward the runway. “I’m listening.”

“Copy.” Eddie saluted, even though Tyler wasn’t looking. “First item is the new White Lion message.”

Seated beside him, Talia blocked his finger to keep him from touching PLAY. “Are you sure it’s safe?”

Pell laughed at her from across the aisle. “You do know that we’re still on the ground, right? What’s the worst that could happen?”

“You weren’t here for the last one.”

Her tone cowed the chameleon.

“It’s fine.” Eddie moved his tablet out of her reach and his fingers flashed over the digital keyboard. “I brought this message in before we boarded, and it’s clean. Worms, Trojans, polymorphs—I’ve scanned for every malicious file you can imagine, and a few you can’t. Besides”—he finished typing, and the laughing lion materialized in three dimensions over a black ring resting on one of the jet’s oak tables—“I’m no longer using the aircraft display system.”

“You brought your holographic generator,” Talia said.

Eddie grinned.

The laughing faded, and the word Congratulations floated around the lion in gold metallic print. Bubbling champagne glasses appeared. “Well done, panther. You’ve reached the top of the food chain. Now you have a new challenge.” The bubbling champagne, the floating text—everything on the screen but the lion—turned blood red. “The Frenzy.”

Val pushed a strand of hair back over her ear, and Talia saw a tissue concealed in her hand. Marco’s departure seemed to have hit her hard. She hid it well, a cavalier frown on her lips. “Last time, Boyd told us to kill someone. Let’s see what he says now.”

The whole team fell back against their seats as Tyler pushed the throttles up for takeoff. The AS2 left the runway within seconds, and the video played on.

“How good are you, panther? Time to find out. Take your shot at one of the Jungle’s top five positions.” The lion’s whiskered snout contorted into a smirk. “Even mine.”

The video changed to an aerial shot of Bangkok. The camera flew between a pair of ultra-skyscrapers Eddie had shown the group before. “This year’s location is the Twin Tigers complex in Bangkok. As always, anonymity holds primacy. Bring no phones or computers. Be warned. The Frenzy competition is as cutthroat as it gets. Opt out, if you wish. Join us at your peril.”

Voices whispered in the background. Law of the Jungle. Kill or be killed.

“Eat or be eaten.” The camera turned, and the video settled on the towers and the white marble square below. “Once you set foot in my lair,” the lion said, appearing as a ghost before them, “you are committed. That is all.” The image faded to black.

“All?” Pell stared at the empty space in the holographic sphere. “He didn’t tell us a thing. How does the Frenzy work? What are the rules?”

“Eat or be eaten, yes?” Darcy said. “And somehow, I do not think this is a métaphore.”

“Hang on.” Eddie held up a finger. “The message has a text component. Val and Talia, now Panthers Eight One and Eight Two, are to report to the lobby of the western tower tomorrow night—Val at eight p.m., Talia at eight oh five.”

“What else does it say?” Tyler stood in the narrow hallway between the cabin and the flight deck. Concern creased his brow. He waved off a question from Pell before the chameleon could get the words out. “The autopilot’s doing fine, Pell. Trust me.” As he spoke, the AS2 leveled out on its own. The engines throttled back for cruise.

Eddie shook his head. “Nothing. They each have a seven-digit number. I assume they’re entry codes.”

Talia read the worry on Tyler’s face. Their adversary had given them too little to go on.

Val echoed the same concern. “How do we run the last con if we won’t know the rules of Boyd’s game?”

“We remain flexible,” Tyler said. “We keep the plan fluid and focus on knowns instead of unknowns.”

Pell raised a hand. “We know the time and place, right? And you’ve got contacts. Have the Thai police storm the towers. End of story.”

“Too risky. Bangkok cops are notoriously corrupt. They’ll tip Boyd off. And the tower chopper pads make for an easy getaway. If we want to go in hard,