Operation Hell Gate - Marc Cerasini [54]
He kicked his legs again, rose a few inches — and then stopped. Something sharp had caught the pocket of his Levi's. No matter how he squirmed, he could not free himself. Lights appeared at the end of the tunnel, reflected off the dirty beige tiles.
At the opposite end of the tunnel, a Number 2 train roared into view.
10
THE FOLLOWING TAKES PLACE BETWEEN THE HOURS OF 6 A.M. AND 7 A.M. EASTERN DAYLIGHT TIME
6:05:08 A.M. EDT
Hoyt Street Subway Station
The motorman sounded the train's horn, activated the emergency brake. A shrieking squeal filled the subway station, but the train was too fast and too heavy to stop on a dime. Its continuous forward motion bore down on the terrified boy dangling off the platform.
Liam kicked wildly but couldn't free himself from whatever had snagged his clothing. "Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee..." In seconds the train would cut him in half. Liam closed his eyes. "Jesus, God, help me."
Strong brown hands gripped his forearms.
"Come on!" a deep voice boomed over the roar of the approaching train.
Liam felt someone pulling him upward. There was a tearing sound and he was suddenly freed. The man who'd tugged on his arms stumbled backward, dragging Liam onto the platform and out of the path of the steel monster a split second before it crushed him.
Trembling, Liam lay on the platform, hugging the concrete. From what seemed like very far away, he heard the train stop, then a voice over the chugging noise of the idling motor.
"You okay, son?"
In mild shock, Liam lifted his head, stared blankly at the black man speaking. The Transit Authority policeman took Liam by the shoulders and lifted him to his feet. The officer's brown eyes were wide with concern. Sweat stained his bronze-colored, pockmarked cheeks.
"I'm okay." Liam's voice was strained, even to his own ears.
"He okay?!" called the train's conductor from the open window in the middle of the Number 2.
"Yeah," called the cop. "Kid's okay." The officer turned his attention back to Liam. "Man! For a second there I thought we'd have to scrape you off the wall." The policeman smiled, his relief evident.
"Thanks... thanks for helping me," Liam muttered, knowing full well how inadequate his words sounded.
"What the hell were you doing down there? Did you slip? Or did somebody push you?" The transit cop glanced around the deserted platform.
"I lost my case and I had to get it back." Liam pointed.
The officer saw the scuffed and dented case lying on its side. He brought the case to Liam. The boy snatched it back, hugged it to his chest.
"Thank you, sir," he said quickly.
He felt the cop's searching gaze, refused to meet his eyes.
"What the hell's so important about that case that you'd risk your life for it?" the officer demanded.
Liam could hear the peeler's tone was a little less friendly now. Still dazed, Liam searched for an answer, but his mind drew a blank. Finally, he stammered, "It... it's my laptop computer."
The policeman studied the boy's expression, then the attache case. "Is that right? Okay, then maybe we should open that case up and see if your 'laptop' is damaged."
* * *
6:08:36 A.M. EDT
CTU Headquarters, Los Angeles
Tony Almeida handed his prisoner over to an armed detention team.
"Take him to room eleven. Prepare him for interrogation."
"What's with the third degree, man? So my visa expired. So what?" Saito cried, squirming against his cuffs. "This is America. Even illegal aliens have got rights."
Captain Schneider fell into step with the guards. "I'm going with them. I don't want to let Saito-san here out of my sight."
The Japanese man smirked. "I'll bet you've got great gams under those Hepburns, missy. Put on stiletto heels and you can punish me any time."
The guards dragged the young man away. Tony signed his name on