The Assassin's Daydream || Mitch Rapp

Chapter 52

It couldn't have been more than five minutes. The trunk opened and they were on him. Mitch couldn't tell how many, but it was more than two and fewer than five. The punched, grabbed, and pulled, finally yanking him from the space and throwing him to the floor. Mitch tried to block the blows as best he could, but they were coming from too many directions, and besides, the goal was not to show them how skilled he was at fighting, it was to play possum. To that end, Mitch started screaming and begging them to stop. He was then thrown into the trunk of the car that he had just been yanked from. The vehicle started up again. "Why are you doing this? I have been authorized by my government to negotiate with you."

Ali squatted on his haunches. He held out Mitch's Beretta. "Why do you need this to negotiate?"

Mitch shrugged. "This is a dangerous town ... I don't know."

Now the men hadn't really recognized him because well Sayyed didn't exactly tell them about Mitch Rapp nor did they know how he looked like. Plus Mitch was in disguise with his massive beard and colored contacts

Ali slapped him hard across the face. "I think you are a liar."

"Sorry."

"Shut up!"

"But the money..."

Ali slapped him again.

"I'm just a messenger."

"And what do you have to offer?"

"Money. Lots of it."

"How much?"

"A million dollars."

Ali roared with laughter. "I think it will cost you a lot more than that."

"Maybe I can get more money?" Mitch said hopefully.

"And maybe we will sell you to the Russians with the others."

"I can get you the money."

"I don't care about the money. And besides, you do not seem like you would fetch a very good price." The other men nodded and laughed. Ali was suddenly curious about this man. He had to be very low-level. "Why were you chosen to negotiate their release?"

Mitch shrugged and didn't answer.

Ali slapped him and one of the other men kicked his legs and screamed, "Answer him."

"I volunteered. Please don't hit me."

"And why would anyone volunteer for something like this?"

Mitch spoke softly into the floor.

"Speak up!"

"I said I am related to one of the men."

"Related? To who?"

"Stan Hurley."

"We don't have a hostage named Stan Hurley."

"Yes, you do. Hurley is his real name. You probably know him as Bill Sherman. That's why I volunteered. Please don't hurt me," Mitch pleaded. "I mean you no harm, I just want to get these men released. I promise we will not bother you again - "

"How are you related to this Stan Hurley?"

"He's my dad."

Ali could hardly believe his luck. They might not be able to kill Bill Sherman, but Sayyed had said nothing about his son. Ali stood. "Let's go," he announced to his men. "Tape his wrists and toss him in the trunk."

Mitch was as passive as he could be while they wound the duct tape quickly around his wrists. He counted ten times and noted that they didn't bother to tape his ankles.

"I can make you guys rich," Mitch pleaded as they tossed him in the trunk of a different car. The trunk was slammed shut and then they were off. He had no idea where they were to begin with, so the twenty-odd-minute drive that they went on through the city was unnecessary. Just before they stopped, however, things became noticeably quieter. Almost as if they were in the country. When the trunk popped again, Mitch was hit with a blast of sunlight. Two big men yanked him roughly from the trunk. Mitch's bare feet hit the rough ground and he realized they were in an alley. Before he could take in anything else he was rushed into a building and down a flight of stairs. He was immediately hit by the smell of raw sewage. He almost gagged, and this time it wasn't for effect.

The men who had him by the arms yelled ahead to the guards to open the first door. They removed the padlock from the latch and swung the door open. With a good enough head start Mitch thought he might be able to bust the latch off.

"Please," Mitch pleaded with the men. "I'm only an analyst. I can't do this. Please let me call Washington. I'll get you your money."

They tossed Mitch into the room like a rag doll. Then the door was closed, and he was again enveloped in darkness. Mitch rolled onto his side and started digging through his thick hair. The fact that they hadn't covered his head with a hood worried him. He found the small blade and placed one end in his teeth. He set the blade against the top edge of the tape and began slowly moving his hands back and forth.

Mitch chuckled lightly and thought to himself, "they have no idea whats coming"