THE FLIGHT TO THE ALPS
1130 Words
The plane touched down in Zurich at 7 AM local time.
Declan stared out the window at the snow-capped mountains, the gray sky, the unfamiliar landscape. He'd never been to Switzerland. Never wanted to go. But the children were here. The facility was here. And he couldn't stay home while they suffered.
Reyes sat beside him, reviewing the files on her laptop.
"The facility is about two hours from here. In a remote valley. No roads. No towns. Just the building and the forest."
"How do we get in?"
"Helicopter. Interpol is providing transport and backup."
"And the children?"
"We don't know how many. The files suggest at least thirty. Maybe more."
Declan's jaw tightened.
"Thirty children. Hidden in the mountains. For years."
"Some of them were born there. They've never seen the outside world."
"Then we're going to show it to them."
---
The helicopter ride was cold and loud.
Declan wore a headset to block out the noise, but he could still feel the vibration in his bones. The mountains rose around them, peaks covered in snow, valleys filled with mist.
The facility appeared through the clouds.
A large building, gray and windowless, surrounded by a high fence topped with razor wire. Security cameras on every corner. Guards at the gate.
"It looks like a prison," Declan said.
"It is a prison. For the children. For the researchers. For everyone inside."
The helicopter landed in a clearing a half-mile from the facility.
Interpol agents surrounded them, heavily armed, faces grim.
"We go in fast," the lead agent said. "Secure the perimeter. Locate the children. Neutralize any threats."
Declan nodded.
He wasn't armed. He wasn't a soldier. But he was the only one who had seen this before. The only one who knew what they were walking into.
---
They approached the gate.
The guards raised their weapons.
"Stop! This is private property!"
"Interpol!" the lead agent shouted. "We have a warrant to search this facility. Lower your weapons."
The guards exchanged glances.
Then they opened fire.
Declan hit the ground as bullets flew overhead. Agents returned fire. The chaos was deafening, the air filled with smoke and screams.
One guard went down. Then another.
Then silence.
Declan looked up.
The gate was open. The guards were dead.
"Move!" the lead agent shouted.
They ran.
---
The facility was a maze of corridors and locked doors.
Declan followed the agents, his heart pounding, his breath coming in short gasps. He'd been in places like this before. The basement. The hospital. The cabin.
But this was worse.
This was a factory of suffering.
They found the first child in a room on the second floor.
A girl. Maybe ten years old. Dark hair. Dark eyes. She was sitting on a bed, her arms wrapped around her knees, her face blank.
"Hello," Declan said. "My name is Declan. We're here to help you."
The girl didn't respond.
She just stared at the wall.
---
They found more children in the other rooms.
Dozens of them. Boys and girls, ages five to seventeen. Some were crying. Some were screaming. Some were completely silent, their eyes empty, their bodies still.
Declan's hands shook.
"Who did this to them?" he asked.
"Dr. Heinrich Vogel. He was Elias's partner. He's been running this facility since Elias died."
"Where is he now?"
"We don't know. He's not here. He must have been warned."
"Then we find him. We track him down. We bring him to justice."
"We will. But first, we need to get these children out."
---
The rescue took hours.
Each child had to be evaluated, documented, prepared for transport. Some were too weak to walk. Some were too scared to move. Some had to be carried.
Declan helped where he could.
He held a boy's hand while a medic checked his vitals. He carried a girl down the stairs when she couldn't walk. He sat with a teenager who wouldn't stop crying and told her that everything was going to be okay.
He didn't know if it was true.
But he had to say something.
---
The last child was a baby.
Maybe six months old. Lying in a crib in a room at the end of the hall. Alone. Unattended.
Declan picked her up.
She was light, fragile, her eyes wide and confused.
"It's okay," he whispered. "You're safe now."
She didn't cry.
She just looked at him.
---
They loaded the children onto helicopters and ambulances.
Declan watched as they were flown away, one by one, to hospitals and shelters and temporary homes.
Reyes stood beside him.
"How many?"
"Thirty-four. That's how many we found."
"Thirty-four children. Hidden in the mountains. For years."
"Some of them were born here. They've never seen the sun."
"Now they will."
Declan looked at the facility.
"What do we do with this place?"
"Burn it. Bury it. Make sure no one ever uses it again."
"I'll light the match."
---
They set the charges at dusk.
Declan stood at a safe distance, watching as the building exploded, flames shooting into the sky, smoke billowing over the mountains.
Another piece of Elias's legacy destroyed.
Another nightmare ended.
Reyes handed him a cup of coffee.
"You did good today."
"We did good. All of us."
"What now?"
"Now we go home. We hug our families. We try to forget."
"Will we?"
"No. But we'll learn to live with it."
---
Declan flew home the next day.
The plane was quiet. The other passengers slept. He stared out the window at the clouds, the sun, the endless sky.
Claire was waiting at the airport.
"You look terrible," she said.
"I feel worse."
"Did you save them?"
"We saved them. All thirty-four."
Claire hugged him.
"I'm proud of you."
"I didn't do anything special. I just showed up."
"That's what makes you special."
---
Finn was waiting at home.
He ran to Declan and wrapped his arms around him.
"Dad! Did you save the kids?"
"We saved them, buddy."
"Are they okay?"
"They're scared. They're hurt. But they're alive. And they're getting help."
"Like you got help?"
"Like I got help."
Finn looked up at him.
"Can we go to the park now?"
"Of course we can."
---
They walked to the park, hand in hand.
The sun was shining. The birds were singing. The world was turning.
Normal things.
Beautiful things.
Declan sat on a bench and watched Finn play.
His phone buzzed.
A text message.
Unknown number.
Dr. Heinrich Vogel is in South America. We have a lead. We need you.
Declan stared at the screen.
Another facility.
Another doctor.
More children.
He put the phone away.
Tomorrow, he would fight again.
But today, he rested.
With his son.
With his family.
With the people he loved.
- Writer
