Beyond The Shadow

Chapter 10

The road felt longer than it was. They didn’t say where we were. They didn’t have to. The chain at my ankle told me everything. I sat pressed against the wall of the prison van, wrists locked to the rail. The guard across from me kept one hand on his rifle. He looked at my face like he wished he had a mask to hide behind.

Rain beat the roof. The driver’s radio crackled now and then with short calls I could barely hear. Every few minutes the van bounced and my shoulder hit metal. I stared at the bolts in the floor. One looked loose. It didn’t matter. I had nowhere to run to.

I kept waiting for the first sign. A sound that didn’t fit. A light in the dark. My ears caught it before my eyes did. A hum that didn’t match the wheels. The guard shifted in his seat. The radio crackled again but no one answered.

I tried to look through the small side window but the rain made it impossible to see anything. Then came a sharp hit, like someone threw a rock at us. The guard flinched. Another hit, harder. The van swerved. I felt my shoulder slam the cage. The guard shouted at the driver. I braced my boots against the floor.

A blast. Metal cracked behind me. The whole van jolted sideways and the chain cut my ankle raw as I slid against the rail. The driver lost it for a second. Tires squealed. Then the van slammed something hard and stopped moving.

Smoke filled the back. Cold air poured in through the hole that used to be the rear door. I coughed once. Then they came. Shadows first. All black. Faces covered with black masks with a white question mark design. No words. One grabbed the guard by his vest and slammed him to the floor. Another pulled the chain on my wrists and cut it free. I tried to speak but a hand covered my mouth.

They dragged me out into the rain. The road was dark except for a few headlights half buried in smoke. I heard more engines behind them. Three black trucks sat across the highway, blocking everything. One of the men jerked my cuffs hard and pushed me forward.

They shoved me into the back of one of the trucks. I hit the cold metal floor chest first. My arms were pulled behind me again. New plastic ties bit my wrists tighter than the cuffs had. Someone put tape over my mouth. I felt it catch my split lip.

Engines roared. I heard gunfire behind us. Short bursts. Police sirens answered in the distance. The truck lurched forward. My head bounced off the floor. I tasted blood on the tape.

I tried to lift my head. A boot pushed it back down. I heard a voice but couldn’t see the face. They spoke into a radio. Calm, steady. Another voice replied through static but I didn’t catch the words.

The truck swerved sharply. Tires squealed. I felt the weight of the others moving around me. Someone checked my ties. Someone else c****d a weapon near my ear. I felt the barrel brush my shoulder for a second.

A burst of light flashed through the small window. Blue and red. Sirens. We were not alone anymore. The engine growled louder. The truck slammed over something metal. I felt it bounce under us. The gunfire behind us sounded closer now.

The road turned rough. We hit a side road or maybe dirt. Rain turned to mud under the tires. I heard another car behind us, then a loud hit. Metal hitting metal. The truck jolted so hard I thought the axle would rip off.

The man near me spoke one word into his radio. Then the driver shouted something back. I heard tires peel out beside us. Another engine joined ours. Then came the chopper. I heard the blades first. Then the searchlight hit. The back of the truck glowed white.

The man holding me moved away then I heard a hatch open. A hiss of air, a thump then muffled blast. The truck swung right so hard my side scraped the floor. The searchlight moved but stayed on us. I heard more shots and at this point, I knew all I could do was cling to the floor as hard as I could.

Someone yelled up front then the truck cut left. The spotlight swept the trees as we crashed through brush. Branches scraped the roof. Rain and leaves fell through an open gap in the side wall.

I saw a glimpse of blue lights behind us, flashing through the trees. I heard more engines, maybe three or four cars. The men moved around me fast but calm. I saw one set up something that looked like a small launcher. He pointed it up. A flare shot out, bright enough to blind me for a second.

The chopper shifted. The truck gunned it again, straight through a fence and I could feel and hear wood snap under us. We hit open road again. The other cars weren’t right behind us anymore. The chopper pulled back, spotlight dancing over trees.

The man near me pulled my head up by my collar. He checked my face. No words. He let go. My head hit the floor again. I tasted metal in my teeth.

I heard more voices on the radios. Short, clear. One man said, “Switch.”

The truck slowed and the door opened behind me. Rain poured in. I felt hands on my arms. They lifted me like an heavy bag, carried me out into the wet night. They didn’t care that my feet dragged through the mud.

They dumped me in the back of another truck. This one smelled like fuel and wet rope. The doors slammed shut. The engine started again. I heard tires spin, then grip. We were moving.

I tried to roll but something pressed my chest flat. Another zip tie looped around my ankles. The tape over my mouth held tight. The floor under me vibrated as we picked up speed.

I heard a man speak near my ear. Quiet, not angry. “Do not say a word and do not move”

The chopper was gone now, the sirens too. Only the sound of rain and wheels on wet road remained. I kept my eyes on the gap under the door.

I didn’t know who they were. Not police. Not Sombra’s men. Not mine either but something about them felt familiar, likeI've seen those masks before. Just hands and masks and quiet orders. They moved like they had done this a hundred times before. They didn’t tell me I was safe. They didn’t say my name.

They just took me. And that was it.