Chapter Five

After some minutes of fast driving, the car veered sharply to the right and the speed was much slower going forward. John knew they were off the road and from the sounds he heard of the things brushing against the car, he guessed they were going through a bushy path. Try as he might, he could not see his surroundings. The windows were opaque and the partition offered no view of the front. John had been anxious throughout the journey, but now that they were slowing down, he felt more confident and mentally calm. In fact, he had resigned himself to fate and steeled himself for whatever was to come. The van moved unsteadily and roughly for a few yards before coming to a sudden halt. Before John could think of what next to do, he heard the front doors open and from the sound of feet touching the ground, he knew that the other person who occupied the front passenger seat had just alighted. He could not hear another sound of landing feet, but there was no way he could be sure that Nico had not alighted too. Suddenly, the back door of the van was also pulled open and the occupants promptly jumped down. No word had been spoken yet. They all seemed to be following some set procedure that they must have been used to from experience. The man that occupied the front passenger's seat was the one who opened the back door. He was tall, dark and somewhat bullish. John noted a resemblance between him and the ruffians, but he seemed to look like a superior thug. The man wordlessly moved away from the back of the vehicle and went toward the front. The rest followed and John with them. There were about twelve of them and John wondered what was going on in each individual's mind. Were they as anxious as he was? Were they scared, worried or was this a routine activity? As they reached the front of the van, he could see that the headlights were turned on and their bright glare focused on a small clearing in front of the van. Just outside the ring of bright light thrown by the vehicle's headlights stood Nico, legs a little apart and hands behind his back like a soldier listening to a superior officer, but in this case, he was the superior officer. Sighting him, the group stopped and waited. He didn't seem to notice, but a moment later, he picked up a shovel from somewhere behind him and struck it into the ground in front of him. Seeing him do this, the men rushed forward to where they had seen him pick up the shovel and John went with them, quite surprised with the proceedings so far, but when he got to the spot, he was a little more surprised. There were over a dozen shovels stuck into the ground. Each man picked one and John had to act accordingly. When he had taken his shovel, he turned around to find that the rest of the group, Nico inclusive, was digging at the clearing in front of the vehicle. The group of thirteen men surrounded the clearing and dug away as hard as they could. There were still no words spoken yet. Few minutes later, Nico suddenly stopped and drove his shovel into the ground. He rubbed his hands and put them behind his back. The men continued with the digging, but John, as he dug, watched Nico from the corner of his eye. The whole business perplexed him, but he was now more curious than anxious about it all. Nico, his hands behind his back, had started walking around the circle of working men. He passed behind them, his feather-light footfalls totally inaudible. John felt sickened by the movement. It felt like a ghost silently creeping up on him. He could not help feeling a little startled when he suddenly felt Nico's presence behind him, just when he was wondering where he might be. Suddenly, Nico came to a halt and the next thing they heard was his booming voice. It sounded strange and powerful in that wild and quiet place. Even though it was not night, the surroundings were quite dark since they were deep in the forest and the sun was hardly up. The state of the environment did a lot to increase the effect of Nico's unfriendly voice. "We're digging a grave, gentlemen," he announced loudly as if it was something to be proud of. Nevertheless, the men continued digging. By now, most of them were beginning to sweat, but none of them, John inclusive, showed any signs of letting up. After a slight pause, Nico continued his announcement. "One of you here is a cop!", he suddenly shouted in a tone that sounded far from nice. Immediately, all the shovels stopped in mid-action. Everyone was stunned. There was silence everywhere. But after a second or so, the digging continued and Nico went on with his silent walk. The issue seemed to have been forgotten, but one had to be there among the men to know that it was far from that. Fear was written on most of their faces and many shovels scooped more air than sand. Hands were shaky and the atmosphere was tense. John suddenly felt overwhelming heat and his mind went blank. He had no idea what to think or do. He was stranded in the middle of nowhere with savage men and their more savage master who seemed intent on burying someone before the day even fully began. From the little he knew about Nico, he was sure that he was the unpredictable type. Anyone could be the unlucky victim and John especially could not hope to count himself out. "Keep digging, boys!", Nico ordered, startling the men into vibrant action. John again resigned himself to fate and kept digging with the rest. It couldn't be helped. There was no means of escape. Someone like Nico would make double sure of that. He was completely helpless and annoyed at his helplessness. As Nico shouted more orders, his anger fueled him to dig faster and harder such that those around him were forced to join in the competition. In fact, they tried to dig their fears away. Bang! It was the sound of a gunshot. Again, everyone was stunned. The unfinished grave had suddenly been occupied! They all shivered involuntarily as Nico released two more shots into the lifeless body lying in the hole. "Cover him up," he ordered. The men quickly fell to work and covered the body as fast as they could with the sand they had dug out. After they had covered the body totally and stamped the grave flat with their shovels and feet, Nico led them to the van. The men climbed in with their shovels and closed the back door. Nico started the van and pulled out of the jungle. In the back of his van, there were twelve men who were still shaken, but very relieved to find themselves living and breathing. In a few minutes, they were on the main road and heading fast toward the villa. There was total silence in the vehicle. Even breathing was done quietly. ** By the time they reached the villa, the sun was up and shining brightly. The van had hardly come to a halt when the back door was pulled open from inside and the men jumped down. Each hurried in his own direction, some crossing themselves in the Catholic fashion as they went.