He had no idea that trouble was already on its way to him in body armor and tactical gloves. By then, Sam had calmed down some. Every so often he glanced in the rearview mirror at the dozing operators and felt a quiet sense of pride.
For the first time in all his years driving these roads, he felt completely safe. He kept thinking about Boar’s face when the man first saw who was on that bus. That expression alone was worth every bad night Sam had ever had behind the wheel.
“Appreciate you boys,” he murmured under his breath. Stone, sitting right behind him, opened one eye and smiled. “Just keep it between the lines, sir,” he said. “Long way to town yet. Who knows what else the night’s got planned.”
It was a long night, and for the men in the luggage bay it was getting longer by the mile. The bouncing, the exhaust smell, and the uncertainty wore on them harder than the arrest itself. Boar tried to work the tape loose with his teeth and only managed to scrape up his lips.
He kept replaying the whole thing, wondering how he’d missed the signs. The bus had been moving too steadily, too confidently. Then the vehicle began to slow, and his whole body tensed.
Had they reached town? Or were they about to be dumped in the middle of nowhere? His heart pounded. The bus came to a stop. The air brakes hissed. Outside, he heard heavy footsteps.
The metal luggage hatch opened with a groan, letting in a rush of cold air. A bright tactical flashlight hit the prisoners in the face. “Out,” came Major Warren’s voice. “End of the line.”
To the gang’s surprise, they were not in town. They were in a dark clearing deep in the woods. The men were hauled out and brought to an open patch of ground lit by the headlights of their own SUV.
The prisoners were made to sit in the wet grass. In front of them stood five operators with their masks off. Their faces were hard, calm, and focused.
Warren stepped up to Boar and ripped the tape from his mouth. “All right, Nick,” he said, holding up the phone that had started vibrating again. “Your boss is persistent. Wants to know where his money is. So what are we going to tell him?”
The road gang’s tough guy was shaking now, from the cold, from fear, and from the realization that he had no leverage left. “I’ll tell you everything,” he stammered. “Everything. I’ll give you names, stash spots, whatever you want.”
Warren gave him a flat look. “You’ll talk, sure. But first, we’re going to use you.”
The major laid out the plan in short, clear terms. “You answer the phone. You tell him the vehicle broke down. You tell him you scored big, but you’re stuck on the road and need help.”
“You want to lure them out here?” Boar asked, eyes widening.
“We want them to come to us,” Stone said from nearby. “Makes the evening easier.”
Warren held the glowing phone to Boar’s ear and hit accept. “Keep it simple,” he said quietly. “And don’t get creative.”
Boar swallowed and spoke into the phone with a shaky attempt at confidence. “Yeah, boss? It’s Boar. We got the score, but the truck’s acting up. Blew a tire, engine’s missing. Good haul, though. Send the guys out to mile marker forty-five by the old sawmill. We’ll wait there…”
