They’d been set up.
“You two, go back,” he said. “Burn the school down.”
The two men grabbed the gas cans from the back of his truck and trudged up the hill toward the open gate, while the others got to work changing the tires.
He took out his phone, calling Dayo down at the farm. “The hostages got away. Don’t let them get past you.”
“We won’t.”
He disconnected, then watched his men pull the front wheel from Pili’s SUV to put onto his truck, wondering how it was that so small a girl had done this on her own.
Impossible. No doubt the Fargo woman had directed her every move.
Didn’t matter. He was through working with Tarek. Once he got his money, he was going to kill them both.
CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
A leader who does not take advice is not a leader.
– KENYAN PROVERB –
Remi gripped the steering wheel, driving as fast as she dared around the sharp hairpin turn. She checked the side mirrors, grateful that they were no longer being followed.
“I could’ve driven,” Nasha said. “We’d have gotten away quicker.”
“I know,” Remi said, looking over at her. Had it been the Land Rover, there was no doubt. The cab of this much larger truck was an entirely different matter altogether. Remi doubted the child could even reach the gas pedal. Still, the fact she’d single-handedly set up the spikes in front of the kidnappers’ cars and stolen the keys amazed Remi. Thanks to Nasha, Remi figured they had at least a ten-minute head start. The kid was barely tall enough to see over the dash—and was, at the moment, trying not to be strangled by the shoulder strap of the seat belt. “But these roads aren’t smooth like ones in Jalingo. And driving a Land Rover is a lot easier than this big truck.”
“Maybe.”
The vehicle hit a pothole, the bump jarring her insides, rattling her teeth. “See?” Remi said.
“I would have missed that.”
Smiling, Remi checked her mirrors again. Still clear. After another ten minutes, she pulled over.
“Why are we stopping?”
“We need to come up with a plan.”
“We can’t go to the farm, can we?”
Remi looked at her. Nasha had already experienced her share of separation and death and that made her far more astute than the other girls. “Do not tell Zara what you’re thinking, okay?”
“Mr. Fargo will know what to do.”
“I hope so.”
She and Nasha got out of the truck. Remi looked up the steep mountainside, unable to see any headlights through the trees above. They walked to the tailgate and Remi pulled up the canvas, saw the girls huddled next to Amal in the back.
As soon as they saw Nasha, they surged forward, jumping out of the truck, hugging her.
“Quietly,” Remi reminded them and drew Amal to the side. “How are you holding up?”
“I didn’t have a seizure,” she said. “I was worried about Nasha. I just felt I had to do something to distract them.”
“Nicely done, then. It worked.” She looked up the hill again, listening. So far, nothing to suggest they were being followed—yet. “We’re going to need a lot of luck. With only one road in and out to the main highway, we’d need a way to get past Zara’s farm. I’m not sure we can risk it.”
“So how do we get out of here?”
“Our best bet may be going out on foot, through the forest.”
“I’d rather take my chances with the forest than kidnappers.”
“I have to agree with you. Let’s talk to the girls.” Remi told them what she was hoping to do, that they’d all be setting out on foot.
Zara lit up. “If we go farther down the road, we can warn my father.”
Remi and Amal exchanged glances, Remi saying, “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?” the girl asked.
“You saw the guns those men had?”
She nodded.
“I don’t think they’d hesitate to kill anyone who got in their way.”
“But they didn’t kill us . . .” She looked over at the other girls, perhaps hoping for some agreement.
Remi reached out, clasping her hand. “Only because we were supposed to be their hostages. I can’t say that about anyone who helps us. If we leave the truck behind, we can set out on foot and maybe find a different way. To the village. Or at least help.”
Zara’s eyes welled up, but she nodded, saying, “My father says the footpath could take someone all the way to Cameroon.”
Maryam added, “It crosses the road leading up to the school. There’s a sign warning to watch for hikers.”
They all turned toward Remi, waiting for her to weigh in. “If they come searching, that sign’s going to make it easy to find us. And leaving the truck there is like putting out an even bigger sign saying Here We Are.”
Nasha looked up at Remi. “What about the dirt trick? Like you did when the Kalu brothers came after us? We could pretend to go one way, then go the other?”
Remi was about to explain that the only reason that had worked was because they’d only needed a short space of time to hide in order to defend themselves—never mind that she and Sam had both been armed. This was . . . different.
Or was it?
“Maybe we can trick them. Gather round, girls. I have an idea.”
CHAPTER FORTY
If you have escaped the jaws of the crocodile while bathing in the river, you will surely meet a leopard on the way.
– AFRICAN PROVERB –
Pete stood in the dark, his ear to the air vent, listening. The goats had settled, though he heard an occasional bleat. What he didn’t hear was the sound of men tromping across the gravel. Or talking. All of that had stopped after the shouting, the roar of their vehicles as they sped off.
Still, he waited, wanting to make sure. He wasn’t about to risk anyone’s safety.
Wendy moved behind him, putting her hand on his shoulder.
He reached up, grasping her fingers in his. Though the two had been dating exclusively ever since they’d started working for the Fargos, once the girls had moved into the school, they’d both agreed that any displays of affection in front of the young and impressionable students were best kept to a minimum.
“Anything?” she whispered.