Luke Miller

By Martin Hughes

An action-packed read that offers plenty of excitement.
-Kirkus Review

The plot is intriguing and original, and it unfolds at a quick and even pace. Even the most minor characters are imbued with unique personalities, faults, and foibles.
-Foreword Clarion

Luke Miller had it all. Good looks, intelligence, a perfect family! But his frequent run-ins with the school bully, Jaxon Torres, the sudden break- up of his parents and getting suspended from school leads to him running away from home only to get lost in the great Everglades wilderness after a hurricane hits. After weeks of wandering he is found, barely alive on a remote tree island. However, he finds himself trapped by a gang of hardened criminals along with Adam, the boy who found him, as they await their chance to escape. Will Luke make it out alive? Will he ever see his family again as he gets embroiled in a spiral of events that could get him killed?

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Feb 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9781504996662

Martin Hughes

Martin Hughes was born in Ballybay, County Monaghan, Ireland. He has lived in Bahrain since 1988 and is currently the music and drama teacher at Naseem International School. This book is the sequel to his first successful publication, HOMETOWN.

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© 2016 Martin Hughes. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 02/22/2016

ISBN: 978-1-5049-9664-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5049-9665-5 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5049-9666-2 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

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Prologue

R yan sighed, looking down in thought. ‘You saved my life back there, Kim. You’ve nothing to be sorry about. Oh, and we did get p aid …’

Kim looked at him in confusion. ‘What do you mean? None of us got anything, not even for the Oman job. Stefan withdrew the funds and closed the accounts after the bank issued the statements. I have a good friend in banking in Amsterdam. She’s also a corporate lawyer, and she did some digging for me.’

Ryan lay back on the grass and gave a long sigh before he spoke. ‘Well, in Oman, after Marco’s accident, while we were waiting for the chopper, Marco and I had a few minutes alone. He grabbed me by the wrist and wanted to talk. I couldn’t understand him with his jaw broken and the blood.’ Ryan stopped and looked out to sea at the thought of his friend’s despair. He sniffed back blood that began dripping from his nose and sat up before continuing. ‘Marco wiped his finger in the blood from his mouth and wrote the code numbers on my forearm to access his money that he’d stashed in the Bank of Costa Rica five years ago. He said to me during our long and boring days walking in the Wadi, that he didn’t want it going to the government if he died. He wanted me to take it, because I was his friend and I cared. Said he knew he was going to die …’

‘My God,’ Kim whispered, also looking out to sea. ‘The poor man …’

‘Well, that he wasn’t! He left over $2 million in a safety deposit box, and it’s ours now.’ They looked at each other and smiled briefly.

‘You mean yours,’ Kim said.

Ryan put his hands to her cheeks and held her face close to his. ‘No, Kim, I mean ours. Everything! Always’ They kissed tenderly even though they were now trembling from the cold.

After five minutes, they stood up, and Kim helped Ryan as they limped their way to the Jeep. The doors were wide open, and the keys were in the ignition. ‘I think things are finally starting to go right,’ Ryan said with a smile. Kim returned the smile with tears in her eyes. It was finally over, and the relief was overwhelming. They hugged for a long time before getting into the huge Jeep. The seats were so comfortable, and Kim put the heat on full blast to get some warmth back into their bodies. She drove, and Ryan quickly fell into a deep sleep, long before they reached the road and turned towards a town, any town, and their future together.

1.

A vast mist rolled silently through the marshlands like a midnight black-and-white Hitchcock classic. Every tree and plant seemed to sag as the intense humidity draped itself over everything for hundreds of square miles. The blanket of mist slowly swirled and rolled along with what looked like tentacles reaching out as it moved with the faint breeze. Everything was void of human form and the reeds and shallow waters that usually teemed with breeding frogs and insects were strangely hushed in the dark moonless night. There were regular splashes as alligators and fish snatched prey from the water’s surface on their nightly patrols. A spotted owl sat silently on a nearby branch and surveyed her territory for something to eat. She was tense, though, and she fluffed her damp grey plumage to shake off the moisture. Her large head moved from left to right as she stared down. Even she was having trouble focusing through the mist. Something strange was moving in the water and reeds that she had not seen before. She could sense it from where she sat, and she was going to stay on her branch and watch and wait.

Not far from the owl, a man moved purposefully but slowly through the shallow water in a crouching position to keep as much of his body hidden as possible. He was wearing black khakis. It was hard work on the thighs, and he frequently lost his balance and compensated by having to put his free hand out in front of him into the murky water. Every time he did so, he braced for the possibility that he could get bitten, or worse, by any of the dangerous creatures that teemed this vast area. Suddenly, his earpiece engaged, and he was given his next instruction from his superior, positioned only ten yards away but invisible to him. Half an hour later, the eight men were finally closing in on the house, having moved for two hours from an outer semicircle. They had only one job to do – kill everyone and steal what they could. That was all they knew. They had each been paid double the contracted amount for this job by a friend of a friend in Miami. As he crawled through the mud towards the house he hoped there would be no kids involved with the kill. Reality kicked in, and he felt a sudden rush of panic as he looked around. All was clear. He checked his Browning handgun at his thigh and his knife in its sheath on his calf. His main weapon was his IMI Mini Uzi; each man was carrying one. It almost felt like a toy – it was so compact and small, but its killing power and accuracy in short-range combat were second to none. The house was estimated to be over a hundred years old and was built by Colonel James Jordan sometime after the drainage began of the Everglades in 1901, undertaken to create more farmland. The house had had several owners over the years, all of whom had eventually moved on. It was very well hidden, almost invisible even from an aerial view. Because of years of neglect, the outer walls were completely covered in moss and vines, which left it damp almost all year round. The small gardens in the front and back were actually part of the dry tree island and had some very old bay trees with several willows standing here and there. An enormous cypress was right near the front door. There was one small dirt road from the house going north that eventually joined US Route 41 that ran all the way to Miami. The road flooded twice a day due to tides, so access was limited.

The men closed to within fifteen yards of the house, but they were on edge as there were no lights anywhere they could see. They had been informed that there were always guards on duty and at least five people in the house at any one time. The leader signalled them to move in regardless and to be on high alert.

From the upstairs window, a hand moved the curtains ever so slightly. There was no need to do this, but the touch of the lace and the old habit felt good to her. The screens and monitors were all functioning correctly, and everything was in place for the guests. She took a quick glance over at the equipment and was delighted to be getting a chance to test it all out. She hated all the bullshit that went with purchasing these products and always found it difficult to trust anyone. She was sweating a little and licked her lips in anticipation. She then spoke softly into her headset. ‘Switch on the recording and standby. We’ve got about a minute to go, boys, I would think.’

The team leader, JJ, was nervous and excited at the same time. It was his first command, and right now, he felt invincible. They had spent days on the approach to the house, and all they had to do was to eliminate everyone in and around the house. He had already planned what he was going to do with his money from the job – one week in a five-star hotel in Las Vegas with his favourite casino on the floor below his suite. How perfect was that? It was good that JJ was having such good thoughts because as he lifted his hand to signal the run for the house, a red laser light appeared on his shoulder. Just before he stood, a yellow-tailed dart struck him. It caused him minor pain, but before he could even remove the dart, he passed out. Within the next five seconds, three more of the intruders were hit. Each had heard the muffled shots, but each thought the shots were from their own team’s silencers. The others had a few seconds to realize something was wrong and make the decision to abort the mission. The round of shots ceased almost as soon as they’d begun, but they knew to keep running and get back to the meeting point a mile away. It was too late for them as well. They had been followed from a 120 yards out by night-vision, heat-sensory cameras. The men had been allowed to pass through four security traps and silent alarms to get right up to the house, but as they now retreated, they ran straight into them. They were either hit with the yellow-tailed darts or caught in traps that had been set on the bottom of the swamp just ten inches deep. As they ran over it, a motion trigger was released, and they were swooped into the air. Then, they too were darted. After the all-clear, the lady smiled a little but was disappointed that the action was over so quickly and with such little resistance. ‘Typical amateurs,’ she thought. This group thought they were so drilled and prepared, and they were taken out so simply. She thought of the fun that awaited them when they woke the next morning. At that, she dropped the lace curtain back into place and turned into the darkness of the room.

2.

E mily Miller finished her morning chores by tidying the beds. As she did so, she hummed her favourite Whitney Huston song. She didn’t really like the work or being referred to as a housewife, although the mornings flew by when she kept busy. She recalled her childhood and how she used to be made help her mother around the house. It was in those years that she had learned about cooking and baking, and she had been doing so ever since. She did love the flow of compliments she received any time they had friends around for dinner, which was quite often these days. Her cheese sauces were a particular favourite. Emily paused and stood up as she held the duvet cover in her arms. She looked out the bedroom window, across to the northern end of the lake, and over the dense everglade mangroves. She smiled at how blessed she felt with her present life. Her husband, Albert, had been a captain with American Airlines for the past ten years, and her two children, Luke, fourteen, and Erin, ten, were both at school where they were doing very well. Luke always achieved excellent marks. She had high hopes for them both.

In the past year, however, Luke had been in trouble several times at school for bullying, and he had developed quite an attitude. She hoped that it was just the teenage thing every child went through. She knew Luke had a good heart and would come through it and make them all proud. Emily finished the bed in Erin’s room and soon forgot her worries about Luke as she remembered that Albert would be home on Saturday for Luke’s birthday, a double celebration. She had already picked out Luke’s present and hoped he would like it. She increased her tempo as she gave the living room the once over, even though it didn’t need it. Just as she was putting the TV remotes in line on the oak coffee table, the doorbell rang. She knew who it was immediately and checked herself in the mirror. She was very proud of her looks and knew she was often gossiped about. She greeted her neighbour Jenna Clark at the door and put the kettle on in the kitchen. They chatted as they went upstairs to the spare room where Emily did all her tailoring. She had taken up Jenna’s curtains and added trim around the base in matching colours. ‘Oh, they’re just gorgeous, Emily. Thanks!’ Jenna said with sincerity. She was truly impressed with the transformation as well as the fact that Emily would not take any payment for the work. ‘You’ve got such a talent with your hands and that Singer machine, but I wish you’d take something for it. I feel so guilty.’

Emily smiled at her friend. ‘I know what you mean, Jenna, but really, it’s my pleasure. Buy me a glass of wine – or a bottle – the next time we’re out,’ she said with a laugh. The two women sat back with their coffees on the deck and gossiped happily until lunch time.

3.

A t six-thirty the next morning, JJ woke up with a start. The first thing that hurt were his eyes. It was glaringly bright, and he had to squint as he tried to look around. His next thought was, ‘ Where am I?’ He could see the mud at his knees and realized he was kneeling in it. Then the smell of faeces hit him. He remembered this smell from his farming years as a teenager. He was kneeling in pig and other animal faeces. He tried to move but realized that his arms were tied.

He groaned with the pain across his back and looked left as he heard another of his men awake and then speak as he came to. ‘What happened? Where the hell are we, JJ?’ Then it all came back.

‘We’re still at the house. I think we were hit by darts last night, but I can’t really remember. We were caught and damn it all to hell.’ By now, they were all waking up and trying to move their aching limbs. Their arms were tied in the crucifix position over a single stainless steel railing that ran the length of the small enclosed yard. They had all been stripped to their underwear and were neatly and evenly spaced with about a yard between each of them.

‘What the hell’s going on?’ one of them asked.

‘Yeah and where’re the others?’ another asked. JJ shook his head in despair.

‘Sorry, guys, I don’t know. We all got the same orders – to kill everyone and get back to Miami without detection.’ JJ was struggling for breath as his weight was pulling him forward. He tried to bring his knees up under his body a little, but they kept slipping farther behind him. ‘The only thing I was told over you guys was to take extra caution, and that’s what we did.’ It was then that they heard the clank of a steel door being forced open somewhere behind them and then the growing roar of fifteen large size pigs running and squealing through a caged tunnel that led them to the pen where the men were caged and into another enclosure directly next to theirs. Three men were walking along with them on the outside of the framed enclosure. Each one had a battery pack with a standard cattle prod, and they were being quite excessive in giving each and every pig a serious jab of high-voltage, low-current electricity as they raced into the yard.

Ben was studying the pigs and realized that there were more boars than pigs. These were usually larger than their female counterparts and often more aggressive. That was not what was worrying him, though. He decided to ask JJ since he knew he had worked on farms before. ‘They’re big animals but do you notice how thin they are, JJ?’ Their fur was matted, and many of the animals had running sores across their bodies. All were bleeding at the mouth from eating stones and gnawing at roots. This got everyone’s attention, but few of them made the connection or knew their wildlife facts.

‘Don’t worry about it, Ben. We’ll get outta here as soon as the chance arises.’

‘What’s the problem, JJ?’ Robert asked. ‘Who gives a shit about how the animals look? We need to see how we’re going to get out of this mess right now.’ The men were looking around, trying to take in their surroundings as best they could. They could just about see the side of the house approximately forty yards away as the morning sun caught the windows and reflected the light. None of their captors spoke to them, and they kept prodding the pigs through the bars of the enclosure. This seemed to make them more and more angry as they began to snap at each other. The squealing was continuous. Just then, they heard a shot in the air behind them. Everyone stopped. Even the boars ceased their squealing.

‘Good morning, gentlemen,’ a woman said as she climbed over the gate with ease and dropped into their enclosure. She walked around to face them. ‘Well, well, look what we have here,’ she said with a smile on her face. She looked each of them over, making firm eye contact. ‘So, my burning question, boys, is what …’

‘We don’t give a shit what you question is, bitch,’ JJ interrupted angrily. ‘Two of our men got away last night, and by now, I’m sure they’re on their way here with backup.’ The lady smiled even more broadly and walked right up to JJ’s face. She was tall. JJ could see this even from his kneeling position. She was also very beautiful and smartly dressed in a pale yellow blouse and narrow grey trousers that disappeared into black riding boots.

Ignoring his obvious lie, she continued. ‘As I said, my burning question is what brought you here last night. What do you want with my little home?’ Nobody answered. ‘Oh, and by the way,’ she continued, ‘none of your men got away last night. We have heat sensors, and you were all captured in more ways than one.’ The lady then walked over to one of her men who handed her a long, thin knife used for trimming fat off dead animal carcasses. Another man climbed the fence into their enclosure and was handed a large bucket through a half-gate opening that was securely closed after him. She approached the men again with the blade hanging loosely by her side. Now the men were scared. ‘Wait, there should be eight of you, right?’ She walked to one end of the group and brought the blade up to the first man. ‘One,’ she said as she sliced the blade gently across his chest. He screamed out in pain as the blood flowed freely. Then she did the same to the next man. ‘Two, three, four, five, six, seven. Yes, there’s one missing.’ The men groaned as the blood ran down their chests. JJ now knew they were going to die a terrible death. ‘Ah,’ she said. ‘Now I remember.’ At this, she went back to the first man and stroked the blade across both his thighs, drawing more blood.

‘The man you think got away is actually dead.’ She laughed at this as she moved up the line of men, cutting each in exactly the same place. ‘He got shot in the ass last night, and the tranquilizer must not have kicked in and he did make an escape. However, the idiot ran straight into the south swamp over there where there’s a lovely deep water pool. It’s where I feed my toothy friends when I’ve got an overload of bad meat. And here’s what’s left.’ The man next to her lifted out a bloody soaked ball of rags. The men could see pieces of flesh dangling through the clothes. ‘Is that your friend?’ Nobody spoke. The woman was now standing at the end of the line of men again. She put the blade to the man’s chin. ‘And what’s your name, sonny boy?’ He didn’t answer. ‘Oh, not the talking type. Okay.’ She then swung the blade and ran the blade over the arm of the man next to him, cutting deep into his shoulder muscle. The blood flowed out in a steady pulse. He yelled out in agony.

‘Okay, okay. Adam,’ he said with defeat.

‘Good boy, Adam. That was easy, yes? I think you’re quite cute. How old are you?’ Again, Adam would not reply. This time, she surprised him by kicking at lightning speed and striking him on the side of the head. ‘Answer me, you dog, before I run you through with this blade.’ Adam looked at the others and kept his silence. ‘Take him away,’ she said to her helper, who immediately released the chain and wrapped it around Adam’s neck. He was then dragged through the mire and over to the gate and chained to the outside of it. ‘You can watch from there, sweetie,’ she said with a laugh.

‘I’ll get out, JJ. I’ll bring help, okay?’ Adam shouted. By now, the woman and her helper crossed to the other gate and climbed over on either side of the enclosure that was holding the boars.

‘I don’t think so, sweetie,’ she said to Adam. ‘You’d have to be very fast. Last chance, guys,’ she said to the remaining men. ‘What did you want here at my house?’ None of them had a proper answer.

JJ finally spoke. ‘We wanted you dead as well as all the other scum you have here in this hole.’ The lady thought for a moment and then made her decision. ‘They know nothing, just amateurs kept in the dark,’ she thought.

‘Get them going again,’ she said to her men. As JJ watched, the three men began prodding the boars again, and the angry squealing resumed. They banged at the bars of the pens in an attempt to get out. They could also smell the blood and were going crazy in expectation. The lady walked around the fencing to where Adam was tied and put her arm around his shoulder. ‘Enjoy the show, darling.’ As she walked away, she shouted back, ‘Give ’em their breakfast.’ At this, one of her men released the latch on the gate, allowing the boars to flood into the small yard. They ran straight for the men tied in front of them and literally tore them apart. They had done this before. Their sharp tusks ripped flesh from bone, and the more blood they tasted, the more of a frenzy they went into. Ben was at the end of the line and remained untouched. He watched the scene and screamed in his mind for a whole ninety seconds before he too was gored through the stomach and consumed like his comrades.

4.

L uke was having a tough day at school. It was the fifth period, Phys Ed class. They were on the athletics track doing laps, long jump, and high jump. Luke loved running and was pushing himself hard around the track to burn off his pent-up anger. He had just had another nightmare class with the new English teacher, Ms Clarke. She did so much poetry and prose and insisted they learn everything by heart. ‘ Typical old-school British standards ,’ he thought. She also insisted on absolute silence in class, even though they were supposed to be allowed time to sit in groups and brainstorm. Luke couldn’t understand why the principal didn’t do something about it. Perhaps admin wasn’t aware. She also set crazy deadlines and had already taken a dislike to Luke and two other boys. Luke knew he could be a pain with all his questions, but most of the time, he really did want to learn. Why should he not inquire? It was drilled into them from the lower grades, and the more he realized Ms Clarke didn’t like it, the more he questioned. Now, he was deliberately asking silly questions just to bother her. He also couldn’t understand how she was such a popular teacher among staff and students alike. But he didn’t care. Luke Miller was almost fifteen years old. He was tall for his age and of a thin, athletic build, just like his father. Luke had an average face, but what made him striking was his almost jet black eyes. In the right light, you could catch a hint of deep mahogany. Often, Luke had to suffer his aunt’s deep debating at family gatherings about which side of the family he got his eyes from, which drove him crazy with embarrassment and boredom. Luke had short, tousled dark