Chapter One: The Spider at 5:17 A.M.

The warehouse smelled of diesel. Through a broken window, he used his camera's viewfinder to scout. Two men. One guarded the door while the other poured gasoline around wooden crates. The boy was tied behind a pillar. A digital clock read 05:48. “Fourteen minutes,” Lu Chen whispered. He kicked over a metal drum. The guard came out with a baton. Lu Chen blinded him with his flash and drove an elbow into his jaw. It was an ugly victory; the baton still tore open his shoulder. The second kidnapper heard them and struck a lighter. Every hair on Lu Chen's neck rose. The world slowed. With his eyes closed, he could somehow perceive the wrench flying from behind, the bottle rolling toward his foot, and the path of fire crawling along the gasoline.