The Bone Labyrinth (53 page)

Male and female . . .

He sensed he was close. He struggled to find other polar properties inherent in the mystery presented here. He picked up another of the metal spheres and rolled it next to the first one. They clicked and stuck together.

His eyes widened. “They’re magnetic.”

He stared at the marble in his other hand.

And the crystal ones are not.

It was another set of opposites.

He closed his eyes.

But what’s the significance?

As another gong sounded, he ran everything he knew about the past two days through his head. His breathing grew more labored. Knowing he was running out of time only added to his tension. What was it about opposites that kept slipping out of his grasp?

Then his eyes snapped open.

Not just opposites . . .

He stared down at the skeleton, at this blend of male and female, the two sides of the same coin.

“They’re mirrors of each other.” He turned to the others. “I think I know what to do.”

Seichan looked dour. “You’d better be right. Something tells me this is a pass-or-fail test.”

The room rang again, definitely louder and faster now.

Gray studied the pattern atop the pillar.

What if I’m wrong?

1:58
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“Where did they go?” Shu Wei asked the boy, looming over his small frame.

His left eye was already beginning to swell from where Major Sergeant Kwan had pistol-whipped the kid. Her second-in-command held the same weapon against the temple of the old tattooed tribesman, who knelt beside a pool of water fed by a cascading stream.

Her strike team had ambushed the pair after sweeping through the forest, following the trail of her four targets. Her group had traveled dark, only using night-vision gear. They had no trouble tracking the others through a forest riddled with mists. The ground was perpetually damp, making it easy to follow their footprints.

Still, once her team had arrived, they had discovered the tracks had vanished at the river’s edge. Her team’s best hunters—Zhu and Feng—had searched the far banks, attempting to pick up the trail again, but they had returned and reported no sign of the others.

While the two had been gone, she and Kwan had done their best to extract information from the pair of natives. But their captives had proved stubborn. She had quickly come to realize the elder did not speak English, so she had concentrated her attention on the boy.

Tears streamed down his face now, but his eyes shone with defiance. She pulled out a dagger from her boot and drew its dull side along his cheek—then reversed the blade with a flick of her wrist.

“I’ll not ask again so politely,” she warned.

The old tribesman spoke from the riverbank. The boy glanced over to him and answered, sounding angry. The gaunt man repeated his words in a commanding tone.

The boy sagged, closing his eyes for a moment, then opening them again. He pointed to the far side of the pool, toward the shoulder of a high cliff.

“They went there,” he said. “Down into the forbidden place.”

Shu searched but saw only sheer rock. She hefted her dagger higher. “Is this a trick?”

The boy sighed in exasperation and waved toward the water’s surface. “Cave . . . at the bottom.”

She squinted, then spotted the flooded entrance to the mouth of a tunnel. “They went in there?”

He nodded his head, then lowered his chin in shame.

She grabbed him by the shoulder and dragged him to the riverbank. “You’ll show us. Take us.”

He pulled free, his fear making him strong. “No. Too dangerous.”

“Show us or I’ll skin the old man while you watch.”

She nodded to Kwan, who drew out a filleting knife. She knew from firsthand experience his skill with such a blade. The knife had freed many tongues—both figuratively and literally.

The boy visibly swallowed, looking at his toes.

She dropped to a knee and lifted his chin with the point of her dagger. She softened her voice, turning it silky. “We do not wish to hurt either of you. Once this is over, we’ll leave your forests. You can go about your lives as if nothing has happened.”

The boy took a deep breath. It didn’t look like he was convinced, but he turned his gaze guiltily to the pool. “I will take you.”

Good.

She stood and faced Kwan. “Leave Zhu here with the old man. To ensure the boy’s continuing cooperation.” She nodded across the pool. “We’ll dig the others out of that hole ourselves.”

He nodded.

She pointed to his filleting knife. “Keep that handy.”

Her aunt—Major General Lau—demanded that she learn what the others knew before dispatching them. She intended to do that.

And to allow the Black Crow to collect his trophies
.

23

May 1, 12:22
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Beijing, China

At least Chang Sun did as we asked.

Monk searched the stretch of dark hallway ahead of them as their commandeered truck raced down its length. Only the occasional glow from an emergency beacon illuminated their path.

After learning where the Chinese were holding their captives, Monk had ordered Chang to cut the power to the facility—both to add to the confusion and to help hide their passage through the underground facility. Additionally, as instructed, the lieutenant colonel had diverted any search teams away from their vehicle’s path.

Still, not trusting Chang, Monk kept everyone focused. In the open bed behind him, the Shaw brothers guarded their flanks, while the smallest of their team, Kong, crouched with his assault rifle balanced on the tailgate, watching their rear.

“We’re almost there,” Kimberly reported. She held up her satellite phone, the screen aglow with a schematic of the subterranean lab complex. “Take the next right turn.”

Sergeant Chin nodded from behind the wheel and leaned hard as he took the sharp corner into a narrower passageway.

“There should be a ramp ahead that’ll take us down to the level where they’re holding Dr. Crandall and Baako.” Kimberly looked grim. “But we’re still a good way off from where Chang said they’ve caged Kowalski. Some place called the Ark.”

Monk pointed ahead. “Maria first, then Kowalski.”

Chin pushed their truck faster, as if sensing Monk’s fear.

I hope we’re not too late
.

Gunfire suddenly erupted from up ahead, explosively loud in the confined hallway. Rifle flashes flared out of the darkness. The truck’s windshield splintered as Monk grabbed Kimberly and pulled her low. Chin began to slow their vehicle, but now was not the time for caution.

“Floor it!” Monk hollered. “Keep going.”

Answering gunfire chattered from the truck bed. Monk leaned out the passenger window with his sidearm clutched in one hand. He aimed toward the enemy. He didn’t know if this was a trap set by Chang or if their truck had accidently stumbled upon a search team.

Either way, Monk knew this ambush would cost them valuable time.

That is, if we survive it . . .

As he began firing, he cast out a silent command to those he had come to rescue.

Hold out a little longer, guys
.

12:24
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Kowalski tugged on the handle of the giant steel sliders that trapped them in the vivisection lab. They refused to budge—then a horrendous rip of metal and glass drew his attention back over his shoulder.

A massive dark shape loomed beyond the observation windows. A furry hand gripped the frame of the smaller casement window and tore it completely out, taking most of the surrounding pane along with it. The sudden release caused the gorilla to lose its precarious perch. As it fell, it took more of the window with it.

Through the wide opening, the rank musk of the habitat flowed into the lab.

Maria huddled against the wall next to Kowalski, holding Baako’s hand. The rest of the surgical staff cowered on his other side.

A scraping and scrabbling echoed to them as the fire hose twanged and vibrated. More were coming, scaling the rock wall toward the large opening.

Kowalski searched the lab, eyeing the smaller stainless cages, but the bars were too thin to offer any protection. He had witnessed the strength of these monsters. They’d tear into those cages as if they were made of cardboard.

A beast roared, sounding right below the window.

Maria grabbed his arm, her eyes pleading with him to save her and Baako.

He squeezed a fist, knowing he had to do something, even if it only delayed the inevitable. “Stay here,” he ordered everyone.

“What are you—?”

Kowalski didn’t bother answering Maria, afraid that if he explained it would only make his plan sound even more futile. He pushed away from the doors and back into the lab. He rushed along the row of surgical tables to the abandoned site of Baako’s operation and snatched a tool from the instrument table. With weapon in hand, he dashed next to the tautly strung fire hose. Its length continued to jolt and shiver.

Here goes nothing
.

He flicked the switch on the battery-powered bone saw, relieved to hear it buzz to life in his hand. He had noted the tool earlier. It wasn’t all that different from the cordless reciprocating saw he had in his garage back home.

He raised the oscillating blade and sheered into the rubber and woven fabric of the hose. Once through, the hose snapped, and its end snaked away, vanishing through the shattered window. An aggrieved howl followed, accompanied a moment later by a satisfying heavy thud from inside the habitat.

Kowalski grinned, imagining the beast’s surprise at being cut loose. Still, his effort would buy them only a little time. The habitat’s rock walls were pitted enough to make them scalable, especially for beasts with such simian strength and agility.

He turned away, hoping it was enough.

A loud huff of aggression drew his attention back around. A monstrous hand rose into view and grabbed the lip of the broken window. Even under the meager light, Kowalski recognized the lighter hair on the back of that clawed mitt.

It was the silverback.

Oh, hell no . . .

12:28
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With a fist pressed to her throat, Maria watched as Kowalski lunged toward the windows. He lifted the stolen bone saw and slashed the small blade across the large knuckles.

A thunderous yowl exploded. The beast yanked its sliced limb away—but not before grabbing hold with its other hand. Still perched, the silverback reared fully into view, filling the expanse of windows, looking even larger up close. It balled its injured hand and drove its arm like a piston into the window, smashing through the neighboring pane, widening the opening even more.

The blow knocked Kowalski down, sending him skidding on his backside. Still, he kept hold of the bone saw. He waved it defensively at the bloody fingers while scooting away on his rear, pushing with his legs.

Baako let go of her hand and bounded to his aid.

Maria chased after him.

Baako reached Kowalski first. He grabbed the back of the man’s collar and dragged him farther away. But the giant paw groped deeper and caught hold of Kowalski’s boot. The silverback yanked hard, throwing the man onto his back.

Kowalski swiped with his saw, but its buzzing had died. When he had hit the floor, the battery pack had been knocked free.

Maria snatched it from the floor as she closed the distance. “Kowalski! The saw!”

He understood and slid it toward her. His face looked desperate as he tried to kick his way free. All the while, Baako hung on, trying to keep Kowalski from being dragged through the window.

Maria slapped the battery pack in place, powered it on, and stabbed it down at the fingers. The blade sliced deep, hitting bone with a grinding complaint. As blood spattered, the fingers loosened and batted at her. She dodged the blow, but the saw jolted from her grip and skittered across the floor, sliding under a neighboring set of cages.

Kowalski used the moment to roll to his feet, snatch Baako by the upper arm, and head away from the windows. Maria kept alongside them. All three reached the giant sliders and slammed into it. They rolled around to face the consequences of their action.

It wasn’t good.

The silverback gripped both sides of the window and thrust half its body through the shattered opening. The beast howled at them, with jaws stretched wide and fangs bared. As spittle flew, the roar deafened her, the breath reeking of meat and blood.

My God . . .

It began to claw its way inside.

Knowing this was the end, she pressed her back against the steel slider—only to feel it shift behind her. Startled, she fell forward and turned. The giant doors continued to glide along their tracks.

Kowalski pushed her toward the opening. “Go!”

She tried to obey, but the surgical staff had the same idea, crowding forward in a desperate attempt to escape. Then a single shot rang out, and Dr. Han came stumbling backward, breaking out of the group, looking confused and stunned. He fell to his knees, then to his side—exposing a bullet hole through one cheek.

A clutch of Chinese soldiers stormed inside. Maria spotted Jiaying Lau standing with Dr. Arnaud out in the hallway. The major general held a smoking pistol in her hand. She looked stunned, gaping past Maria.

By now, the silverback had dragged its bulk fully into the lab. Shaking with fury, it rose up onto the knuckles of both stiff arms. Behind it, more shadows rose into view.

Jiaying finally shouted, her voice rising on a note of panic. The soldiers opened fire. Another grabbed Maria’s arm and hauled her out the door with the rest of the surgical team. She knew her rescue was not out of humanitarian compassion, but merely an attempt to protect an asset.