Eventually, she spoke. “Holy shit.”
The world had become a scene from an apocalypse movie. Smashed vehicles, rubble, broken trees, pieces of metal and bits of people’s broken lives had been washed into massive piles. Power lines, snapped like twigs, now criss-crossed the road. People milled around in small groups, disorganized, most of them either injured or in shock from the storm. Our stolen car was gone or destroyed beyond recognition.
“When do we have to be in Singapore?” Blaire asked.
“Less than twenty hours.”
“How are we going to make that happen?”
Even if there was a working vehicle somewhere, the roads were impassable. We had at least a six-mile walk to Tonko’s place, and I had no realistic plan to get out of this city, much less to Singapore. It was an impossible feat, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell her that I had failed.
“I need a phone.”
I could sense her looking at me. “Who are you going to call?”
“Drake.”
She didn’t even question why. I think she could sense we were up shit creek, but she was too polite to ask me how far. Which, somehow, made me feel worse. If I didn’t figure this out, Andrusha and Olivia would lose their lives. So would Blaire’s grandfather. If we weren’t successful, I was fairly certain Drake would try to eliminate us, too.
“Maybe Tonko has a working phone,” she suggested hopefully.
Tonko didn’t believe in phones, but I didn’t remind her of that. “Put on your pack and your hat. We need to move.”
She didn’t argue, and for the first time she worked fast—locating her hat and her sunglasses.
Less than a minute later she said, “I’m ready.”
Due to all the debris on the road, it took us nearly two hours to walk to Tonko’s place. We had to avoid live power lines, sharp metal objects and piles of wreckage. Twice I saw a human foot emerging from beneath the rubble, but I didn’t point them out to Blaire, and she didn’t notice.
When we finally arrived, Tonko’s street was almost unrecognizable. Even worse, most of it was still under at least two feet of surge water. I thought of all the things that could be in that water.
“Careful,” I told Blaire. “Follow directly behind me.”
From the street, we stood and stared at what was left of Tonko’s home. Most of the huge garden wall was missing. Half of the roof of his row house was caved in, and the front door and part of the foyer were gone.
Together, we approached the front door.
“Tonko,” I yelled from the doorway. “Tonko, it’s Pushka. You in there?”
“Maybe he left,” Blaire whispered from behind me.
I hoped, for his sake, that he had left. On the walls, the watermarks were only inches from the ceiling. We stood, listening, but I heard nothing but the sound of water sloshing. I needed to make sure Tonko wasn’t trapped in this mess. If he had survived, he would have moved upstairs. I needed to search there first.
I stepped over the threshold and positioned her just inside the front foyer. “I’m going to check upstairs. I need you to stay here.”
“I want to come with you.”
I wasn’t sure about the structural integrity of the house and I didn’t have time to argue. “Stay right here. Shout if you need me.”
“How long are you going for?”
“Just for a few minutes.” I couldn’t understand my patience with her, but she was so scared she was shaking. “Be brave for me.”
She nodded with wide eyes.
I started up the steps. “Don’t go outside under any circumstances.”
Most of the roof was caved in upstairs, but I found no signs of Tonko. I lifted up large chunks of material, every time expecting to see a body, but the place was clear. I was just about to head downstairs when a high-pitched scream tore through the air.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
A few minutes earlier
BLAIRE
I watched as Viktor slowly moved upstairs, testing each step before he put his full weight down. And then he disappeared from sight.
I could hear him moving things around and calling out Tonko’s name.
Be brave. Just stand here and be brave.
I heard splashing coming from the main floor. Standing still, I listened hard. I heard the noise again. It was coming from Tonko’s work room.
“Tonko?” my voice echoed around me.
Another sound, this time a very light bump.
“Viktor,” I called out, hearing the fear in my voice.
I could hear his footsteps above me, but he didn’t hear me.
The bumping sound happened again. What if Tonko was struggling under some furniture? What if he couldn’t call out?
I took a few steps into the foyer and called out again. “Hello? Tonko, is that you?”
No response. I could feel my knees shaking. What if I just stood in the doorway of Tonko’s room and peeked in? I would still be within view of the staircase.
Viktor had just told me to be brave. This was my moment.
I tiptoed through the water, across the tile foyer, and peered around the corner into Tonko’s workspace. The organized room I remembered, filled with special teapots and high-tech equipment, was gone. All of Tonko’s furniture was smashed and destroyed, and the floor was immersed in water. An overturned box gently bobbed against a table.
Then I saw Tonko’s slipper and his leg. Without thinking, I rushed forward into the cold water, wading up to my knees through the dank water. I moved around the debris. “Tonko!”
A scream ripped through me as my brain tried to process what I was seeing.
Tonko was draped backwards over the table. Unseeing eyes stared lifelessly into some faraway future. His mouth gaped open, as if he were still trying to speak. He looked puffy and bruised, and his skin was cold gray, his lips and nose stained a dark blue.
I could hear Viktor’s feet pounding down the steps, but I didn’t want him to see his friend like this.
“Blaire,” he shouted.
I rushed to the door, around the corner, and straight into his arms. He spun me behind him and, in the same motion, withdrew his weapon and pointed it in the direction of Tonko’s office.
He spoke in a harsh voice over his shoulder. “Are you alone?”
“Yes.” I put my hand on his broad back and spoke quietly. “I found Tonko. He is… He’s…” I couldn’t bring myself to call him dead. That made it too real.
He holstered his weapon and pushed me against the wall with one hand. “Stay here.”
I leaned against the wall, listening to him splash through the water. I squeezed my eyes shut when I heard him angrily swear. Feeling overwhelmed, I couldn’t be bothered to wipe the tears that leaked down my cheeks. I thought about Tonko, a man I didn’t know but who had showed me kindness by serving me tea and making me laugh. I couldn’t believe he was gone, his life snuffed out in a senseless death. He was a stark warning of how fragile we all were, and it reminded me of the insurmountable danger of this trip. I could feel myself become defeated again. All of this seemed so impossible.
More tears leaked down my face. I quickly wiped them away when I heard the splashing of Viktor’s approach.