“No,” Zara said, near tears. “The only reason anyone was in there was because I was too tired to wake up. And then we heard the gunshot and—”
“It’s no one’s fault,” Remi said, looking over at them. “And we’re going to get out of this.”
“How?” Amal said.
“I’m not sure. Yet.”
One of the men looked at them. Amal waited until he turned away, then whispered, “Do you think they’re Boko Haram?”
Remi thought about the attack on the road and the men who’d been hiding in the back of the white pickup. The road spikes would have disabled their vehicles, which meant they weren’t in it for the truck, the rental car, or the cargo. At least not the cargo meant for the school. Undoubtedly, they’d been after hostages. These men had enough firepower to ensure that anyone they came up against would quickly surrender without a fight. “I have no idea. But whoever they are, there’s no doubt they’re holding us for ransom.”
Zara looked at her in alarm. “My father doesn’t have any money. Who’ll pay?”
“My husband will.” But only as a last resort—that, Remi kept to herself. Right now, she needed the girls to remain calm. “Everything’s going to be fine. I promise.”
Her words sounded hollow even to her. A loud crash, then another and another, all coming from the dorm, startled the girls as the men ransacked the school.
“What are they doing?” Maryam asked, her voice shaking.
“Looking for the others.”
“But where are they?”
“Not here,” Remi said.
The answer seemed to confuse the girls, but Remi didn’t have time to come up with a plausible explanation. Noises came from every direction as the men searched. “Makao,” one of the bandits called out from the cafeteria. He walked over, looking in the door, the two talking intently. Remi wondered what they’d found that was so interesting.
“Look,” Tambara whispered. “At the shed.”
She turned to see Nasha peering out the door, watching the men standing by the mess hall. As much as Remi wanted to call out to her, tell her to stay there, she didn’t dare make a sound, even when the girl slipped out, ducking behind one of the planters. A moment later, she belly-crawled to the edge of the wooden box, looking out through the long tussock of grass that grew up at the corner of the bed.
Zara took a breath. “What’s she doing?”
Remi shook her head at Nasha, warning her away, but the girl darted toward them, scrambling into the space between Remi and Zara just as Scarface looked back to check on them. He watched them for several seconds, and Remi leaned forward, trying her best to block his view of the girl.
Apparently not realizing they’d gained an extra hostage, he returned his attention to whatever the man was telling him about what he’d seen in the mess hall.
Remi glanced over at Nasha, relief mixed with worry. If Makao connected her to the missing girls . . . Knowing they might have only seconds, she said, “Do you remember how to send a picture on a phone?”
She did. “Amal showed me. The button with the little white cloud. And then I press the camera button.”
“Good. I dropped my phone somewhere in the shed. If you find it, I need you to send a message to Sam. But you have to unlock the phone first.”
“How?”
“You’ll see the numbers when you press the round button at the bottom. Seven-one-two-two.”
“Seven-one-two-two.”
“When the screen comes up, take a photo and send it to Sam.”
“How do I find his number?”
“Unless someone else texted me, it should be the top number on the messages.”
“What do I say?”
“Help. Do you think you can do that?”
She nodded.
“Good girl. If he calls, tell him they have men watching down near the farm.” From the corner of her eye, she saw Zara look over at her in alarm, tears clouding her eyes. “He needs to know.”
“Okay.”
“And no matter what happens, don’t let them see you. I want you to hide.”
Nasha looked at the other girls, then Remi, her chest rising in defiance. “No. I won’t. I might be just a girl, but I want to fight.” She lifted her chin, daring Remi to refuse her.
Remi searched the girl’s determined face, knowing without a doubt that if she didn’t give the girl some direction, Nasha would engage the enemy on her own. She seemed to fear nothing, which was what worried Remi. If she turned into a mini rogue agent, doing whatever she wanted, chances were good she might be caught. Far better to keep her safe so that if all else failed she could warn Sam. “You can help, if you promise to do exactly what I say. If it’s too dangerous, you have to hide.”
“I promise.”
The other girls looked from Remi to Nasha, their eyes filled with uncertainty. Remi outlined her plan, starting with her pack hidden beneath the towels between the hampers. Nasha listened intently, nodding, as Remi told her what she wanted done. “If you can’t get to my pack, don’t worry. What’s more important is the road spikes we found. They’re in a box in the shed.”
“I know where they are.”
“Good. You’ll have to get the box out without them seeing or hearing. Maybe the girls and I can create a distraction.”
“Like the boys do when we pickpocket?”
“Just like that. If we can’t make one, you need to wait. I’m going to try to get us moved to the office. That will be closest to the truck and the keys. There’s a window in the office bathroom.” Remi, about to tell her that the window should be open, glanced over at Makao, shocked to see him looking their direction.
His eyes locked on hers and he drew his gun, then stalked across the courtyard toward them.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
An army of sheep led by a lion can defeat an army of lions led by a sheep.
– GHANAIAN PROVERB –
Within seconds he stood in front of them, pointing his weapon at Remi’s chest. “There are twenty trays and food in the cafeteria, waiting to be served. Where is everyone?”
“I told you. Gone. Some of the kids were sick. We were worried it might be contagious, so we did an emergency evacuation. They won’t be back.”
“The food—”
“You’re welcome to wait, but it’ll be a long one.”