Chapter Two #2
“This isn’t the time to be a good citizen,” Iona said. “Use the combat driving skills you learned in the Sand Box.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
The vehicles raced along what passed for a secondary road leading away from the Mexican jungle. The potholes told the tale of little money and less time spent on road maintenance.
Riley sat up straighter, eyes narrowing when she spotted the sets of twin lights behind them and closing fast. “Company.”
Noah glanced in the rearview mirror and scowled. “Not what I wanted to see.” He tapped his earpiece. “Seth, we have bogies on our six. Looks like three vehicles with an unknown number of occupants.”
“We have three vehicles heading toward us as well. Somehow, the terrorists circled around to come at us from the front, or they had soldiers covering exits in case of an escape.”
“I don’t see how they could have known about us, and they don’t seem the type to plan that far in advance. I’m going with option one. Orders?”
“Take them out. We’re under orders to get the boy safely to the US using any means necessary.”
Riley exchanged glances with Andre. Brent Maddox rarely turned his operatives loose without clear guidelines of what was acceptable and what was not.
Christopher looked at Andre. “What’s going on? Is something wrong?” His voice trembled.
“Yeah, we have a problem.” Andre rested his hand on Chris’ shoulder. “Can you handle bad news?”
The boy squared his shoulders. “I’m not a baby. I’ll be fine. Just tell me.”
“We have three vehicles following us and three vehicles in front of our lead SUV coming straight at us.”
“The terrorists are coming after me?”
“Yeah, bud, they are, but you don’t need to worry.”
“You said the terrorists were coming after me.”
“That’s right. We’ll take care of them and you. Do you trust me?”
Christopher nodded his head.
Andre cupped the boy’s nape. “They won’t take you again, Chris. You hear me?”
“Yes, sir.”
“We won’t let them take you. Do exactly what we tell you to do for your own safety. We’ll take care of the rest.”
“I’m scared.”
“I would be too. We’ve got you, buddy. You have my word.”
“Okay.”
Noah glanced at Andre in the mirror. “They’re inching up on us. We need to take them out before they cause too much trouble.” Take them out before they got close enough to harm the boy.
Grant glanced at Noah. “Go. I’ll cover Chris.”
“Thanks.” Andre climbed over the backseat into the cargo area. He rolled onto his back and kicked the back window out. Humid tropical air drifted into the interior of the SUV.
Riley wrinkled her nose. She would be so glad to get out of Mexico.
“Riley.”
She glanced at Noah. “Yes, sir?”
“You’re Andre’s backup.”
“Copy that.” She looked down at the ambassador’s son. “I’m going into the back with Andre. Grant will take good care of you, all right? Follow his orders like you would Andre’s or mine.”
When the boy nodded, Grant climbed over the seat and settled beside Christopher.
Riley handed Andre his Go bag, then grabbed her own and slid into the cargo area beside him. She unzipped her bag and picked up her rifle. After checking to make sure the weapon was ready, Riley grabbed a few magazines in case she and Andre ended up in a firefight.
Hopefully not. The last thing they needed was bullets flying into the SUV if the terrorists didn’t back off.
She glanced through the windshield and spotted her teammate Teagan sitting on the window frame, rifle in hand. Riley turned back to the vehicles bearing down on them from behind.
Andre motioned to the right. “You take the right. I’ll take the left. Let’s get these goons off our tail.”
“You got it.” Riley settled the barrel of her rifle on the window frame and lined up her shot. That’s when she realized how much of a problem the potholes were. “Is there a smooth stretch of road anywhere on this strip?”
Andre snorted. “Don’t hold your breath. Somebody spent the money for road maintenance, but I don’t think the road crews were the beneficiaries. We have plenty of ammunition. Don’t be afraid to use it. Grant.”
“I’ve got him. Chris, you need to lie on the floor, buddy. I know it’s not comfortable, but it’s the safest place for you.”
The boy slid to the floor without a word.
Grant lowered the window on the left side and prepared to engage the terrorists if they slipped past Andre and Riley.
The vehicles closed the gap, and from each vehicle, at least one passenger opened fire on the operatives’ SUV.
Noah growled. “Get them off our tail.”
“Aim for the driver.” Andre adjusted his aim. “If we take him out, the vehicle will crash.”
“Copy that.” Riley shifted her aim, sucked in a breath, let it out halfway, then pulled the trigger. The windshield spiderwebbed, but the SUV kept coming toward them.
Scowling, she adjusted her aim again and fired four shots in a row, shifting to the right after each shot. On the fourth one, the driver lost control of the SUV and ended up in a ditch with the front end crumpled and the vehicle on its side.
“Nice job.” Andre fired rapidly at the vehicle on the left.
The driver jerked the wheel to the right, scraped the side of the middle vehicle, then overcorrected and slammed into an abandoned truck on the side of the road.
“Two down. One to go. The last vehicle is moving up fast. Take him out, sweetheart. I’ll shoot out the windshield.
You take the driver. If I have time to target a passenger, I’ll take the shot. ”
“Copy that.” Man, Riley hoped she lived up to his faith in her. She could hold her own on a firing range. Out in the field, in a moving vehicle on a crap road, was something else.
Andre fired multiple bullets at the banged-up white SUV creeping up on them. Although the windshield blew out, the vehicle kept coming. With a growl, Andre dropped the empty magazine, slammed another into place, and fired at the two men hanging out the windows and firing on her and Andre.
Riley pulled the trigger in rapid succession, her target the driver. The fifth shot hit the driver in the chest. She followed up with two more shots to the chest.
The enemy’s SUV veered off the road, slammed into a rock wall, and burst into flame. No one fled the incapacitated vehicle and escaped the flames.
“Good job.” Noah looked in the rearview mirror. “Stay in position in case more company tries to cause trouble.”
“Yes, sir.” Andre glanced over the seat to the floor where Christopher huddled. “You doing okay, buddy?”
“Yeah,” came the response. “It was noisy in here.”
The operatives chuckled. “You’re right. My ears are ringing.” Andre grinned at Chris. “Do you mind staying on the floor for a while longer?”
“Nope. It’s not too bad.”
Riley’s eyebrows rose. No way that was true. This SUV had terrible shocks. The potholes were so jarring, Riley might have to schedule a visit with her dentist for him to check her fillings.
Ahead of their SUV, Teagan and Elias took out the three SUVs bearing down on them. Both operative drivers sailed past the wrecked vehicles and picked up speed when they were safely past them.
During the rest of the journey to the private airstrip, the operatives remained on alert but didn’t encounter resistance.
Riley frowned. She didn’t like that. Was something wrong with this picture? Or was it possible that Fortress had taken out all the terrorists? “There should be more resistance.”
“Yep.” Andre looked puzzled. “Makes you wonder, doesn’t it?”
Noah skidded around a curve. “Problem?”
“For wanting to keep Christopher as leverage, the terrorists have given up too easily.”
Grant turned. “You and Riley took out at least six terrorists, possibly more. So did Teagan and Elias. That’s twelve. I lost count of the men we took out in and around the compound.”
“They shouldn’t know where we’re headed.” Noah’s expression was thoughtful. “If they do, Maddox might need to look into Matteo Garcia, our inside man.”
Riley stared. “You think the terrorists got to him?”
“Perhaps. We’ll see.” Noah’s phone signaled an incoming call. “You’re on speaker. Go.”
Seth’s voice filled the cabin of the SUV. “Are you clear?”
“Yeah.”
Silence, then, “Be ready for resistance at the jet. Jordan reports unusual activity in the area.”
“Do you think Garcia’s compromised?”
“Don’t know, but I don’t like this. My gut is telling me trouble is waiting for us.”
“Same. We don’t have a choice but to go to the airstrip. If Jordan tries to take off without us, the terrorists will know we made them and they’ll fire on the jet. I don’t want to face Maddox’s wrath if we allow catastrophic damage to his pride and joy.”
Seth groaned. “Enough said. Park as close to the jet as you can. Your job is to get the package on board the jet in one piece.”
Noah shook his head. “You don’t have enough firepower on your own. You need at least one couple with you.”
More silence. “All right. Who?”
Andre glanced at Riley, eyebrow raised. She nodded. “We’ll go if Grant and Rayne will handle the package.”
“Grant?”
“No problem, sir.”
“Copy that. Noah, park behind me on the tarmac. The rest of us will do our best to keep the enemy off Grant and Rayne long enough for them to transport the package to safety.”
“Yes, sir.” Noah glanced at the operatives. “Check your gear. Make sure you have extra magazines and that your comm device is working. If we’re right about us driving into an ambush, we’re in for a tough fight. We’ll need every advantage we can get.”
Riley and the other operatives slid multiple magazines for their rifles and pistols into their vests. Since Noah was driving, Violet grabbed his extra magazines from his Go bag and slid them into place in his vest, then she filled her own vest.
“One minute,” Noah warned.
Ahead, the private airstrip was dimly lit. Good for hiding the jet but bad for seeing if there were enemy combatants lurking nearby, waiting to attack.
Noah skidded around the corner and floored the accelerator. The SUV surged ahead, following closely behind Seth’s vehicle. “Watch for trouble.”