Dead Man's Hatch

Dead Man's HatchA Trouble Thriller Matthew DoggettFive Brothers Publishing Copyright © 2023 by Matthew Doggett All rights reserved.No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law. Contents Dedication Get Your Free Novella 1. Chapter 1 1. Chapter One 2. Chapter Two 3. Chapter Three 4. Chapter Four 5. Chapter Five 6. Chapter Six 7. Chapter Seven 8. Chapter Eight 9. Chapter Nine 10. Chapter Ten 11. Chapter Eleven 12. Chapter Twelve 13. Chapter Thirteen 14. Chapter Fourteen 15. Chapter Fifteen 16. Chapter Sixteen 17. Chapter Seventeen 18. Chapter Eighteen 19. Chapter Nineteen 20. Chapter Twenty 21. Chapter Twenty-One 22. Chapter Twenty-Two 23. Chapter Twenty-Three 24. Chapter Twenty-Four 25. Chapter Twenty-Five 26. Chapter Twenty-Six 27. Chapter Twenty-Seven 28. Chapter Twenty-Eight 29. Chapter Twenty-Nine 30. Chapter Thirty 31. Chapter Thirty-One 32. Chapter Thirty-Two 33. Chapter Thirty-Three 34. Chapter Thirty-Four 35. Chapter Thirty-Five 36. Chapter Thirty-Six 37. Chapter Thirty-Seven 38. Chapter Thirty-Eight 39. Chapter Thirty-Nine 40. Chapter Forty 41. Chapter Forty-One 42. Chapter Forty-Two 43. Next in Series Sample Also By Matthew Doggett About the Author For Dan. You the man. Get Your Free NovellaGET YOUR FREE TROUBLE novella by heading over to MatthewDoggettAuthor.com/Trouble Not only will you get a free Trouble story, but you'll also join my epic email list. I send regular freebies and exclusives, and only email two or three times a month. WU WĚI QÍ DIDN’T think he’d been followed. He checked his phone as he walked down the dim gray alley. Beijing roared around him, and he had to sidestep several people on motorbikes as he made his way to the hotel. Pausing in front of the building, he looked right and left into the bustling crowd that moved like a river under the neon lights of the garish neighborhood. With so many people around, it was impossible to tell if anyone had followed him. But he’d taken precautions. As always. He stood there, across from the Qianmen Courtyard Hotel, watching the flow of people shuffling in and out of cafes, haggling with street vendors, or just passing through on their way to parts unknown. His dark overcoat and briefcase made him look like a dozen other men in the alley. And at thirty-eight, he didn’t have to try to look the part of an overworked businessman. He didn’t notice anyone paying particular attention to him as he pretended to message on his phone, glancing up from time to time. The faces changed, as far as he could tell. None of them stuck out. So when rain started to fall out of the night sky, Wu Wěi qí decided it was time to go in. He hurried across the alley and in through the red doors. True to its name, the hotel had a small, covered courtyard area that doubled as a restaurant. Potted plants hung from wooden beams above tables, each of which had a red-and-yellow People’s Republic of China flag in the middle. Three of the six tables were occupied—all Chinese people like himself, from the looks of them. He followed signs in Mandarin through the courtyard to a desk that had an elderly female clerk perched behind it. He used cash to pay for a room for one night, giving the woman enough yuan for incidentals. He used the name on the fake passport the Americans made for him. He’d never used the passport for official travel, but he’d recently grown accustomed to using it for things like hotel rooms. Key in hand and room number in mind, he moved past the desk to a narrow staircase that led upstairs. He entered the room, which was on the third and top floor, and set down his briefcase. He then used his phone to send a text message. Two minutes later, a soft knock came at the door. “Hello, David,” he said as he opened the door to reveal two white men in suits. “Hello, Silas.”“Heya, Wu,” David, the taller and older of the two said, stepping inside. Silas, a younger man with fashionable facial hair and dark eyes, followed, nodding at the Chinese man. Wu noted the laptop bag in Silas’s hand as he shut the door and stepped into the now-cramped room. There was a single bed and one chair with a desk. David was sitting on the corner of the bed, and Silas stood next to him. “Take a seat, Wu,” Silas said, gesturing at the desk chair. Wu turned sideways, scooted past the men, and sat in the chair.“Where’s your phone?” David said. “The one you gave me, or my phone?”“Your phone,” David said. Silas was still standing, but he’d turned to face Wu, his back to the stubby hallway and the door. “I left it at my apartment,” Wu said. “Just as you told me to.”“Good,” David said, smiling. “You’ve brought it?” Silas asked. “Yes,” Wu said. “I have brought it. In my suitcase.” David twisted around on the bed and grabbed the suitcase. He propped it on his knees and popped the latches. “The portable hard drive,” Wu said, leaning forward to look into his suitcase. Silas turned around to face the bed as he unzipped the laptop case. He pulled out a slim, expensive-looking computer and opened it up. Then he knelt in front of the bed as the screen came alive.“Any problems getting it?” David asked Wu as he handed the hard drive to Silas.Wu scoffed. “Yes. Many problems,” he said. “I will surely be suspected when they find out. My strange behavior will be noted.” “Okay, okay, calm down, Wu,” David said. “I told you we’d take care of you. We will. But there’s no way they’ll know exactly what you took, will they?” “I do not know,” Wu said. “If there was additional security I did not foresee, they may know already.” David shook his head while Silas worked on the laptop, the hard drive plugged into a USB