Part 7
Asad found himself praying again as he searched from one end of the street to the next. Some of the buildings had windows. Some didn't. Ayaan texted him. VAN WENT IN 37 PARK STREET. THE DOOR CAME DOWN AS YOU TURNED THE CORNER.
Asad texted back. THX! SEND BACKUP, BUT NO LIGHTS, NO SIRENS AND HOLD OFF ENTRY UNTIL I GIVE YOU THE GREEN LIGHT. THERE'S A BABY IN THERE.
And so was Zoya, most likely. The thought of her being hurt nearly ripped him in two. When he'd seen her kissing that guy on the porch, it had hurt worse than any wound he'd sustained in the field. And it had infuriated him. When he'd finally calmed down, he'd realized she had every right to move on. He'd left without a word. What else did he expect?
He'd been greatly relieved when she'd explained what he'd seen. But he regretted all the time he'd lost with her. He would put things right. Just as soon as he got her and the baby out of the building alive.Please, Allah, help me. Keep them safe. I want a life with her, and I need your help to have that.
At 37 PARK Street, Asad looked for security cameras or an alarm system. A camera above the front door. And one above the garage door the van had used. Okay, no going in the front door. He examined the fire escape. Looked like he was going up.
***
Zoya continued to slide along the wall toward the stairs. Suddenly, Imraan stood and walked near the door. She sucked in a breath and froze. Adil said, "Where do you want me to sleep?"
Imraan turned to answer, and Zoya darted to the nearest pillar. It wasn't very wide, but she wasn't, either. As Imraan answered , Zoya took advantage of his distraction and slipped to the bottom of the stairs.
She crouched, hoping the railing would disguise her ascent. On hands and knees, she started up. Finally at the top, she rounded the corner and leaned against the wall. Four deep breaths later, she had her nerves under control enough to look around.
No lights were on, but she thought she saw a flicker or a glow down the hall. Narrowing her eyes, she moved carefully, desperate not to make any noise that would alert the men below to her presence.
More offices lined the upstairs area.
She picked the first one and tried the door. Locked.
The fourth office opened and she breathed a sigh of relief as she slipped inside.
She grabbed the phone and lifted it to her ear.
A hard hand clapped over her mouth and she went rigid with fear.
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Asad leaned over and whispered, "Shh. It's me."
Zoya went limp and he removed his hand. She sank to the floor.
"You scared me to death," she whispered back.
He lowered himself beside her. "Why did you get in the van?"
"He took Arhaan. You were right about everything. Adil was the one who killed the guy in the bathroom. Actually, that was an accident. The guy fell on his own knife. But everything else... I really hate that you were right." The dull monotone in her voice pained him.
He pulled her into his arms and kissed her until she relaxed against him. When he lifted his head, he tried to see her expression, but the faint light filtering from downstairs didn't reach the floor of the office.
She shivered. "What was that for?"
"I've missed you."
"And you're telling me this now?"
"Yes." He kissed her again. "Now tell me you missed me."
Something wet splashed onto his hand. She sniffled. She was crying? "I did, Asad, I missed you so much," she whispered.
"Good. We'll talk about this later. Help's on the way."
"Thank you, Allah." He could feel the relief coming from her in waves.
He heard the whir of the garage door from below. Asad let her scramble from him and followed her to the balcony. She eased to the railing to look down. Three other men had entered the building.
Asad stepped silently to stand beside her. "What are they doing?" she whispered.
"I don't know."
"They're coming for the stairs," she hissed. "Where's your backup?"
He grabbed her hand, pulling her down the hall and back into the vacant office. He shut the door with a light click and twisted the dead bolt. "Get down behind the desk."
She obeyed and he joined her. He pulled his phone from his pocket and his weapon from the back of his waistband.
Quickly, he found the appropriate screen on the phone and hit the top number. Ayaan answered immediately. "We're trapped in an office upstairs. The baby and others are downstairs. Don't move until I verify the baby is safe. I don't want any bullets flying."
"Do they know you're there?"
"I don't think so." The office door shook hard enough to make the room vibrate. Zoya gasped and flinched. The hall lights came on, illuminating the glass-encased office. Asad gritted his teeth and aimed his weapon at the door. "Uh, make that an affirmative. They know we're here."
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Zoya shook hard enough to make her teeth chatter. "Now what?" She nearly choked on her fear. Asad slipped the phone into his pocket and the weapon back into his waistband. She blinked. "What are you doing? Don't you need that?"
"We can't start a shooting match with these guys. They have more firepower, and we'd lose. That's not going to help Arhaan."
"Come on out," the tall one yelled. He held a semi-automatic like he knew how to use it.
Her breathing came faster and her blood hummed with all the adrenaline racing through her. "How did they know we were in here?"
"I'm not sure."
"What if they decide to shoot us the minute we step out there?"
The tall guy yelled again, "You've got ten seconds, then I'm blowing holes in this door!"
Asad stood and pulled her up next to him. "I'm hoping that won't happen. The goal is to buy time, get Arhaan safe and let Ayaan and the other cops come to the rescue."
"I want to go with Plan B."
"What's that?"
"Anything that doesn't involve surrender."
The phone rang and Zoya jerked. Realization dawned on her through the fog of her terror. "That's how they figured out we were in here."
She pointed to the lights on the phone.
"Answer it."
She picked it up. "Hello?"
"Get down here, now."
"You're a traitor, Imraan. How could you do this to us?" She couldn't stop the wobble in her voice.
"I don't have time to talk about it. Now get down here, Zoya."
"And if I don't?"
Silence echoed over the phone. "Then I kill you all, including little Arhaan."
Tears formed. "You could do that to a baby?"
"Yes." The quick, cold answer convinced her.
"And if we come out?"
"You'll still die, but Arhaan will go home with his new mommy and daddy and grow up to be a fine young man."
She lifted her gaze to Asad who'd been listening, his ear pressed to hers. He nodded. "Let's go."
"Fine." She hung up, taking satisfaction in that small act of defiance. Then she faced reality. "He's going to kill us," she whispered.
"He won't do it here, or they'd have already shot their way in. We have a little time."
"How much?"
"We're going to find out."
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