Chapter 3 – The Rescue
The night air was still warm as Salty approached the east gate of the Integration Centre. The city hummed around him – Garda drones buzzed overhead, scanning for curfew breakers. Neon adverts flickered against the concrete towers: “Your future. Your AI. Your Ireland.”
Salty pulled his hood low over his face. His heavy boots barely made a sound on the cracked pavement as he moved into the shadows beside Block 17. Sarah was already there, pacing nervously, her blonde hair tied up in a messy bun. She wore a loose grey hoodie and dark leggings, blending into the shadows, but her wide curves still drew his gaze for a moment before he focused on the mission.
“You came,” she whispered, relief in her voice.
“Course I did,” he muttered. “Where is she?”
Sarah pointed to a dimly lit annex at the side of Block 17. “They moved her there after evening meals. Two guards inside. One outside.”
Salty scanned the area. The guard at the door was a young man, barely twenty, scanning his tablet lazily. Two electric stun batons hung from his belt. Inside, through the grimy window, he could see another guard leaning against the wall, scrolling on his comms. The girl was curled on a cot in the far corner, thin arms wrapped around her knees, her head buried in a dirty pillow.
“What’s the plan?” Sarah asked, her voice shaking.
Salty clenched his fists. “We don’t have fancy gadgets or drones. We do this old school.”
He picked up a small loose stone from the gutter and tossed it down the alley behind the annex. The clatter echoed off the walls. The young guard flinched, turning his head toward the noise.
“Go check it out,” Salty growled, stepping out from the shadows. Before the guard could speak, Salty slammed a fist into his gut, knocking the wind out of him. The baton clattered to the ground. Another quick punch to the jaw sent him collapsing to the concrete.
“Quick,” Salty whispered, dragging him behind a skip. Sarah grabbed his ID badge and stuffed it into her pocket.
They slipped inside. The room smelled of sweat, bleach, and despair. The second guard barely looked up before Salty was upon him, one hand clamping over his mouth, the other gripping his throat. He choked and flailed, but Salty squeezed harder until the man sagged unconscious. He lowered him gently to the ground.
Sarah ran to the girl. “Hanin,” she whispered in Arabic, shaking her gently. The girl looked up with wide brown eyes, streaked with tears. Sarah stroked her hair softly. “It’s okay. We’re here to help.”
The girl blinked, hope flickering across her exhausted face. She stood shakily, clutching Sarah’s hand.
“Let’s go,” Salty ordered.
They moved back into the humid night. In the shadows of Block 17, Salty led them through alleys and service corridors, avoiding drone searchlights. The smell of hot tarmac and rotting rubbish filled the air. They passed rows of Integration Centre windows, yellow light glowing behind steel bars.
Finally, they reached a derelict building on the outskirts of the complex. It was an old distribution warehouse, half collapsed, long forgotten by authorities. Salty kicked open the rusted side door and ushered them inside.
Sarah hugged Hanin tightly, tears falling freely down her cheeks. “You’re safe now,” she whispered. The girl clung to her silently.
Salty paced, scanning the darkness for threats. “We can’t keep her here long,” he said. “Tomorrow, when the docks open, I know a contact. He owes me. He’ll get her on a container ship to Spain. From there… she’ll be safe.”
Sarah looked up at him, eyes shining with gratitude and exhaustion. “Thank you, Salty. I couldn’t have done this without you.”
He shrugged, suddenly uncomfortable under her gaze. “She’s just a kid. Someone’s gotta stand up for them.”
Sarah walked over to him, placing a gentle hand on his chest. “It’s not just her you saved tonight,” she whispered. “It’s me too.”
For a moment, the tension between them was electric – the dim moonlight catching her blonde hair, her lips parted slightly. But before either could speak, Hanin whimpered softly, curled up on a pile of old blankets.
Sarah knelt beside her, stroking her hair until she fell into an uneasy sleep.
Salty sat down against the cold concrete wall, staring out into the dark Dublin night. Sirens wailed in the distance. Drone searchlights flickered across the blackened clouds. The country felt broken beyond repair, but for tonight, they had made a small difference.
He closed his eyes, letting the fatigue wash over him, knowing that tomorrow would bring new dangers – and perhaps a chance to reclaim the honour he thought he had lost forever.
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