“Step onto the train,” the man ordered, his nasally accent making the command slightly more sinister.
Sean wanted to retort with something witty, but now wasn’t the time. “What’s your plan? You think no one is going to notice you and your cronies holding us captive?”
“It’s a risk we are willing to take. Now, get on the train or one wave of my hand, and the girl dies right now.”
From the feel of the long tube pressed into his back, Sean knew they had sound-suppressed weapons. Most of the passengers wouldn’t notice the low-level pops if one of the men fired their weapon inside the train. Sean had to pick his battles, and right now wasn’t the time to fight.
“Fine,” he said and started shuffling toward the door at the end.
“That’s better.”
Sean’s eyes scanned the escalator, wondering where Tommy was. He should have been here by now, but his friend was nowhere to be found. He must have been stuck in the ticket line.
The announcer came over the loud speakers again, letting the travelers know that the train would be departing within the next minute.
Sean gave one last glance up at the top of the train station. He hoped Tommy was there, but wasn’t sure what his friend could do about the current situation, even if he was. At the moment, the odds were against them.
The Frenchman ushered Sean to a seat in the back where the man in the brown coat was waiting with an empty seat and a hand inside the folds of his outerwear. It seemed like everyone had a gun. Sean wondered if the men knew he was armed, but that was something he’d keep to himself for now.
Frisking him and Adriana in broad daylight in a public place would hardly be subtle. He would have done the same thing had their situations been reversed. He figured the Frenchman and his cohorts would wait until they were alone to disarm them.
The man in the trench coat pushed him down next to the guy in brown and sat across from the two of them. Adriana and her captors were likewise positioned a few rows ahead, under watchful eyes. A ding came from overhead accompanied by a warning that the doors were closing. The mechanical doorway slid closed, and a moment later, the train began to ease out of the station.
Sean glared at the man in the trench coat across the way as the city of Copenhagen began to pass by in the window behind him. He wanted to ask questions, but he knew these types of men weren’t the kind to give answers. They were hired guns, nothing more. All they cared about was being paid and making sure they survived.
Trench coat kept one hand on the weapon in the folds of his jacket while he retrieved a cell phone from another pocket. He punched a few buttons and then put the device to his ear. A couple of seconds passed before he spoke.
“We have them,” he said in French. Sean’s French wasn’t great, but it was good enough to understand the guy was reporting to his boss. “We will be in Helsingor within an hour.” He waited for a moment, listening to whoever was on the other end, probably getting instructions. “We’ll see you there,” he said finally and put the phone back in his jacket.
Sean felt his own phone vibrating in his pants pocket, but he didn’t dare reach for it. He wondered if it was Tommy calling. He hoped his friend was okay. He figured Tommy was fine, probably stuck at the station. The gears of Sean’s mind started turning. He needed to figure a way out of this mess. He’d been in pinches before, and this scenario wasn’t dissimilar. Except that before he’d been on his own. Now he had Adriana with him, and that made things vastly more complicated. Risking his own life was one thing; risking hers was something he wasn’t willing to do.
“Relax,” the Frenchman said across the aisle, interrupting Sean’s thoughts. “It will all be over soon. Monsieur Dufort just wants the relic. Once he has it, he said you and your friend are free to go.” He made the statement with a toothy grin.
Sean knew what that meant. “Free to go.” Dufort wouldn’t have allowed his minion to mention his name unless he had the intent of killing his captives.
“You know that we don’t actually know where we’re going, right?” Sean asked. “I mean, we know there is something around the area of Kronborg Slot, but we don’t know exactly where or what it is we are looking for.”
The statement caught the other man off guard for the briefest of moments, but he quickly regained his composure. “I suppose that means you will have to figure it out. If you’re of no use to us, there’s no reason to keep you around. Is there?”
Sean realized he’d slow-pitched that one to the guy and wished he hadn’t said it. Too late now and no time for regrets. He looked up at the train’s map near the doorway. The transport began to slow down, nearing one of its many stops on the journey to Helsingor.
“Osterbro,” the conductor’s voice came through the speakers.
Sean knew he only had about forty-five minutes to come up with a plan, and he wasn’t sure that was enough time.
Chapter 32
Tommy ducked behind an enlarged map of the city at the top of the escalator. He peeked around the other side and watched as the men escorted Sean and Adriana onto the train. His heart told him to rush in and catch the men off guard, but it was four against one, and he didn’t like to play against the odds. That was more of his friend’s deal.
Still, he had to do something, but what?
The speakers announced that the train was departing shortly. Could he catch another ride to Helsingor? He shot a glance at the schedule board and saw that the next train to that destination wasn’t leaving for another forty minutes.
He couldn’t wait that long.
“The train to Helsingor will be leaving in one minute,” the speakers said loudly.
“Crap,” Tommy said to himself. The four men with Sean and Adriana disappeared into the rear train compartment. He didn’t have a choice. He had to get on that train.
Tommy lunged out from behind the kiosk and jumped onto the escalator. Fortunately, the conveyance was empty at the moment, so he was able to hurry down without being slowed.
Wary that the men who had his friends might see him, Tommy circled around the old-fashioned clock and several benches, acting as if he were waiting for another train. The timer in his head told him he only had about thirty seconds before the doors would be closing.
He kept his head low as he weaved his way between several bystanders, checking back to see if anyone in the rear compartment was looking his way. Fortunately, from what he could tell, the men were focusing all of their attention on Tommy and Adriana, their backs turned to the windows.
Fifteen seconds, he thought. Tommy turned at the fourth bench and picked up his pace, crossing the span of the platform toward one of the middle train cars. Even though the distance was probably only twenty feet, it felt like a hundred yards, exposing him to plain view of any menacing eyes.
“The doors are now closing,” the speaker announced.
Tommy saw a green light over the doors turn red as he neared the edge of the gangway. Last chance. He leaped through the air with legs at full stretch, barely sneaking through the doors as they slid closed. His trailing foot clipped the rubber seal on one of them as he landed inside the compartment. He took a deep breath and looked around to see if anyone had noticed his dramatic entrance, but there were only a few people in the car, and they were facing the other direction.
His phone started ringing as he cautiously rounded a metal pole and slipped into a seat. He reached into his pocket and pulled it out. The caller ID told him it was Tara.
“Hello,” he answered the phone, looking out the train window at the platform going by, turning into city buildings.