A Price Above Rubies

Chapter Twenty-One

Hell smells of blood and shit. Leon remembers the scent well from the war. All that's missing is the blinding sting of gun smoke and canon. Still, his body breaks out in sweat from the memory. The stifling heat below contributes to his sweat as well and within minutes its sliding down his back, dampening his shirt. How can anyone bear it down here? he wonders. Not just the prisoners. He can hear a number of groans and coughs, the occasional string of Turkish and Greek cursing. But how can the guards stand it down here as well? 

"Where the hell is this place?" The prisoner Otrav is holding demands, squirming to turn around but Otrav has a grip on the man and a gun against the back of his neck. 

The man Leon is holding struggles as well. 

"No, no, please!" 

Guilt surges inside Leon but he forces it back. He can't do anything to help the man. Not yet. 

The long hallway opens up to a large room and the scent grows even stronger. Leon rears back and coughs, bile rises in his throat and he just manages to keep it down. There are at least fifty men laying on mats on the floor. Dirty, sweating, in clothes stained with their own blood and shit. 

It's inhumane, Leon thinks in rising anger. Four guards, two on each side, stand watch over the men. What on earth for? Leon thinks. These men can barely move. 

He jumps when beside him Otrav slams the butt of his gun against the back of his prisoner's neck and the man slumps unconscious to the floor. 

One of the guards steps forward and it's then that Leon notices the chains on the floor. The man Leon is holding struggles in earnest as they both watch the guards chain the unconscious man to the floor with steel cuffs around his feet and one of his wrists. 

"No! Please let me go! Please!" 

Leon can't stand the man's begging anymore because it makes him sick with guilt so he silently begs the man's forgiveness and knocks him out as well. 

"New blood?" A cold voice asks in the darkness and Leon notices Otrav stand at attention next to him. The man steps closer and he's in full uniform. A colonel's uniform. Leon swears there's something familiar about his face but he's almost certain he's never met this man before and it's hard to see much in the dim light. 

Otrav salutes him and by instinct Leon does the same. It's not Colonel Dario so not their superior but Otrav speaks to the man with such reverence it's clear he holds the man in much higher regard than his own colonel. 

"Yes, Colonel," Otrav says proudly. 

"Hmm. Good. Very good." He turns and points to the corner. "You can take that one. He's dead." 

Leon struggles to make out his brother among the heaps of nearly lifeless men. Otrav leads him to the dead body and Leon sees that Otrav has the keys to the cuffs among the ring he carries. They unchain the dead man and Leon hears a groan behind him someone shoves against his leg. 

"Watch where you're fucking stepping, asshole." 

He's stepped on something… someone. Leon barely catches the urge to apologize when recognition of the voice and his heart leaps into his throat. Ali Kemal! He just manages to stop himself from turning around risking his brother recognizing him and sending the plan to shit. 

"Watch your mouth!" The Colonel snaps and kicks Ali Kemal in the stomach, making him roll onto his other side with a groan. 

Leon bites the inside of his cheek so hard to keep himself from slamming his fist in the colonel's face. At least there's no risk of his brother recognizing him if he's facing away from him. Leon fights the urge to kneel down and gather his brother in his arms and carry him out of this hell right now. Leon's eyes burn with the threat of tears but he forces himself to blink them back. Any sign of emotion now could mean death for him and his brother.