Rajiv glanced over his shoulder at them, then looked at J.L. He bent over and started cutting more leaves.
“I should teleport you out of here,” Gregori whispered.
“Don’t you dare.” Abigail pulled her arm from his grip.
Another gong sounded.
The villagers slipped their knives back into their belts and turned south. They moved quietly down the rows. The men picked up the baskets and carried them.
Rajiv hesitated.
One of the guards shouted at him.
He turned south and moved slowly.
The guard shouted again.
He dropped his leaves in the basket, then picked it up and walked down the row like the other villagers.
J.L. glanced back at the rest of the team on the crest of the hill. He pointed at a thicket of trees to the south and mouthed the word teleport.
Gregori was tempted to whisk Abigail back to base camp, but he knew she’d be furious if he decided what she wasn’t allowed to do, so he teleported her to the spot J.L. had pointed to. Russell materialized with Howard.
They were now at the south end of the field, and from here, Gregori could see the gong. The large brass circle was sitting on a red lacquered table. There were three guards there, and they were busy filling wooden cups with a dark liquid and setting them on the table.
The villagers approached and dumped the contents of their baskets into a large brass bin. Each one was handed a cup. They drank, then turned and went back to work.
“That must be what’s sustaining them,” Abigail whispered. “Instead of food.”
Rajiv was last in line. His eyes widened at the sight of one of the guards, and he ducked his head. He dumped his basketful of leaves into the bin, then accepted the cup.
“Don’t drink the Kool-Aid,” Gregori muttered.
A guard yelled at Rajiv. He turned away, still holding the cup. The guard strode toward him and yanked him around.
The guard stiffened. “You!”
Rajiv glared at him. “Sawat! Why you here? I thought you still in San Francisco, looking for your balls.”
J.L. winced. “We’ve run into Sawat before. I’ll grab Rajiv and we’ll all teleport back to base—”
Russell zoomed down the hill and pointed his rifle at Sawat. “Where is Master Han?”
Another guard grabbed Rajiv and pressed a knife to his neck. The cup tumbled to the ground.
“Dammit.” J.L. teleported behind the guard and smashed the butt of his pistol against his head. As the guard crumpled to the ground, J.L. grabbed hold of Rajiv. “We teleport now!”
“No!” Russell cocked his rifle and yelled at Sawat, “Where is Master Han?”
Sawat shouted something in Chinese. A guard drummed on the gong till the air vibrated with the metallic sound. The villagers turned and drew their knives.
“Master Han, Master Han,” they chanted as they advanced on Russell.
“Holy crap.” Howard raced down the hill and grabbed Russell.
Gregori pulled Abigail close. She was trembling.
“Teleport!” J.L. shouted, then he vanished with Rajiv.
Gregori teleported back to the beach with Abigail. J.L. and Rajiv were there.
“In here.” J.L. rushed inside the cave and lit one of the kerosene lamps.
Gregori led Abby into the cave and winced at how pale and frightened she looked.
“Where’s Russell and Howard?” she asked, then spun toward the cave entrance when the two men strode inside.
J.L. stalked toward the ex-Marine. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
Russell’s eyes narrowed. “I’m going to find Master Han.”
“And what?” J.L. yelled. “If you had learned his location, would you have taken off and left Howard behind? We don’t work that way!”
“I can take care of myself,” Howard growled.
“Hey!” Gregori interrupted. “Our first priority is keeping Abigail safe.”
“Exactly.” J.L. took a deep breath. “We keep her safe, find her plants, and get the hell out.” He glared at Russell. “That is the full extent of our mission.”
“I have her plant.” Rajiv pulled out the branch from under his shirt and handed it to Abigail.
“This is it! The Demon Herb.” She fumbled in her backpack for a plastic bag. “Thank you, Rajiv.”
Gregori wondered why Master Han was collecting so much of the Demon Herb.
“Excellent work, Rajiv,” J.L. said. “Let’s move on to the next base. Everybody, pack your essentials. Don’t worry about sleeping bags. The other base is already supplied. Howard, keep watch outside.”
“Will do.” Howard lumbered outside and jammed the bamboo door back over the entrance.
“I’m going to stay here,” Russell said quietly.