Beauty in the Broken

I point to the blueprint. “There’s a trapdoor here. We get onto the terrace and enter through The Grill. Then we use the trapdoor to access Heinrich’s through the ceiling.”

Russell rubs his chin. “The trapdoor will make noise. It puts us at risk for a few, unprotected seconds, but it could work if we check Dalton’s position on the infrared before we move.”

I check the time on the screen. Still twenty minutes before we get there. We need to get to the top of that tower. Pronto. “What were your air-borne plans?”

“Helicopter.”

“Too much noise.”

“We don’t have an alternative.”

“What has radar picked up?”

“Nail bombs at the ground floor entrance, but no other explosives.”

“Wired?”

“Worse. Heat sensitive. Anyone who dares it inside will end up like a voodoo doll full of needles.”

“Then we climb up from the outside.”

He shifts in his seat. “You’re out of your mind. The ladder is metal.”

“What’s your point?”

“Metal, Damian. You’re a mine magnate. You know better than anyone what that means. Rust, erosion. Need I say more?”

“We’ll just have to take our chances.”

“We won’t have a safety rope.”

“I won’t. You will.”

“What do you mean?”

“I climb up and attach the rope at the top. We use an electric harness to pull you up.”

“It’ll take too long. I won’t make it up on time.”

“Then I’m on my own.”

“Fuck.” He leans his head back on the headrest and closes his eyes, seeming to think. After some time, he regards me warily. “Can’t let you do it. I’ll go up. You wait at the bottom.”

“She’s my wife.”

“Exactly. You can’t be as levelheaded as you need to be.”

“Neither can you.”

Rubbing his temples, he blows out a long breath. “It’ll be stupid for both of us to risk our lives on the ladder. I’ll stay at the bottom, but if you don’t make it up, I’m calling in the helicopter and the sniper.”

“If I don’t make it up alive, I swear to God I’ll haunt you if you don’t get her out, do you hear me?”

“I’ll get her out.”

He will. Russell is a good soldier. More importantly, he’s a good man. If I don’t make it, I hope he’ll hang around for Lina. She’ll need someone. I’m not going to jinx myself by saying it out loud, though. To hell with that. As long as I’m alive, I’m the only man she’ll have.

Russell calls the waiting unit and gives them instructions before briefing me. A few armed men in civilian clothes are hanging around the tower, pretending to be beggars. I’m pretending not to be sleep-deprived and going insane. I’ll happily give the mine and everything else I own if I thought I’d get her back, but Russell is right. I can’t trust Dalton. This isn’t something he sucked out of his thumb yesterday. It’s a well thought out and premeditated plan. He must’ve been hiding in that tower, perfecting his scheme, for the two weeks I’ve been searching for him.

Maze’s men wait at the bottom of the tower with the equipment I need when we park. The security company has cordoned off the area and is waving around guns big enough to scare away curious spectators.

“What did you tell them?” I ask the man who hands me a backpack with the harness and rope, a smart wristwatch, ear pod, and pistol.

“Contamination.”

“Good.”

There was a soil contamination issue at the gasworks not far from here a few years ago. It made a lot of noise. No doubt people still remember the scare.

My phone pings with an incoming email. Both Russell and I still. My gut churns as I open the message. It’s from my lawyer. Dalton returned the contract. He’s waiting for me to sign. I don’t think twice. I drag my finger over the screen, signing my name at the bottom before handing the phone to Russell.

“Don’t send it a minute before the agreed time.”

He nods.

I strip my suit on the street and dress in the cargo pants, T-shirt, and heavy-duty boots from the security company before pulling the goggles over my face to protect my eyes against insects and wind.

Russell pats my shoulder. I give him a nod before I put a foot on the first bar of the service ladder fixed to the side of the tower. I wiggle the tip of my boot to find my footing and shift my weight onto the first step. The metal groans.

To his credit, Russell spares me the worried look. Instead, he tests the link to my watch and ear pod, making sure both are connected before giving me the thumbs up.

The ladder rattles under my weight. The steps are far apart and the space between the ladder and wall just big enough to fit the toe of my boot. The backpack is heavy and the ascent grueling. The wind doesn’t help. Aside from the noise in my ears, my body is rocked every time a gush of air rushes through the skyscrapers. It’s a typical autumn day with a clear blue sky. The sun reflects directly off the concrete, making it feel as if I’m mounting an oven. By the time I’m a quarter of a way up, my T-shirt is drenched with sweat despite the cooler morning temperature of fifteen degrees Celsius that my watch shows.