Huddled Masses

Chapter 11

Miguel nearly screamed as a strong hand gripped his shoulder and shook him awake. His eyes flew open and he clawed at the fingers that were over his mouth. He flailed in the dark, trying to free himself from the arms that held him down. Then he remembered where he was. He relaxed and felt the arms release him, the hand uncovered his mouth.

Miguel's eyes scanned the murky dark and made out Antonio's silhouette. The man held a finger up to his lips and then leaned in close. "You good?"

"I thought you were someone trying to kill me!" Miguel hissed.

Antonio's shadowy figure shrugged. "Sorry."

The man stepped back from the bed and Miguel rolled out of the bed, landing on the balls of his feet. He listened to the sleeping men that surrounded him and, confident that he hadn't woken them, reached his hand inside his mattress. His fingers completed the search quickly and he pulled out the cutters.

Miguel crouched down and delicately placed the cutters on the ground. Then he picked up his shoes and quietly placed them on, making sure the laces were tied tight and wouldn't cause any unfortunate mishaps during the escape. He picked up the cutters and then crept towards his fellow operators.

Gio was kneeling over the space heater that occupied the center of the tent. After some fidgeting with the box, he stood and gave a thumbs up. Héctor gave him a pat on the shoulder and then stepped close to Miguel, his mouth pressed to his ear. "Gio has the heater primed. Count off five minutes after we leave and then stuff the napkins inside. Soak them with this."

Miguel felt a small, metallic bottle pressed into his hand. He recognized it as lighter fluid and wondered where the man had gotten it from. There was no point in asking, Miguel opened the nozzle and began to marinate the napkins in the fluid.

Antonio held back while Héctor and Gio went to the entrance of the tent. He placed his hands on Miguel's shoulders and gave them a squeeze. "You got this. We'll see you on the other side of that fence."

"What did Gio do to the heater?" he whispered.

"He made it so that it would over heat." Antonio laughed. "He's an engineer," he said, taking the cutters from Miguel and exiting the tent.

So he isn't an idiot after all, Miguel thought. He immediately began his mental stopwatch and paced, his anticipation growing with each second that crawled by. His skin tingled and his senses had sharpened. He heard the gentle breathing of every man in the tent. He smelled the musty body odor mixed with the sharp scent of lighter fluid. He even saw the exposed stuffing of his mattress. His fear was eclipsed by his confidence, not just in the plan, but also in his own determination to escape.

Survive. Survive and help others survive.

Miguel halted his pacing at the five minute mark and went to the heater. He could hear the internal mechanism working in overtime and the metal gave his palms a painful, hot kiss when he picked it up. He let out a painful hiss and readjusted his grip. Carefully, he brought the heater over to his bed and placed it in the space between the frame and the tent. He faced the grate towards the canvas and stuffed the napkins inside. The effect was almost immediate, with the napkins pulling inward like gnarled hands before smoking and tossing out flames that licked the side of the tent.

Miguel crept his way to the opposite side of the tent. He stopped at the tent flap and turned around; the flames of the heater were now visibly reaching over his mattress.

Please don't let anyone get hurt.

Miguel turned from the tent and stepped outside. His body went still as he listened, his ears picking up the occasional gust of wind and snore but no sign of passing guards. If Antonio was right, which Miguel trusted he was, there was only one guard on patrol, and at this moment he should be stopping by for a Snickers in the security booth.