Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Foster didn’t hesitate and reached up, pulling the mask off the guy. It was a calculated move. One he hoped paid off.
The man struggled against Foster, then tried to remove the equipment strapped to his waist. Foster couldn’t let the guy drop everything he was carrying, so he balled up his fist and hit the guy in the belly. It was enough to force air from the man’s lungs.
The guy seemed to panic and started trying to kick to the surface. Foster didn’t want him dead, not yet, and took hold of the man’s arm and hauled him to the surface.
When he broke surface, he saw a boat nearby. The man he’d ripped the mask from was coughing as he ineffectually struggled against Foster’s hold. Seconds later, T was there, hauling the guy into the boat.
Foster dove in, seeing Kevlar struggling with the other man.
He rushed over and grabbed the terrorist from behind before ripping his mask off.
That one act ended the fight, and he was able to haul the man to the surface.
They had two of the guys in custody along with all the equipment the men were carrying.
Flash had taken control of the terrorists’ boat. They had their evidence now. He was sure both men would try to weasel out of taking responsibility for their actions. That’s how it always played out.
Once Foster was back in the boat, T told him that five of the other targets had been caught. Only one got away.
“We need to find him.”
“Right now, we need to get these men to the station so we can question them.”
“The Carabinieres are letting us take lead?” Foster asked.
“Yes.”
They didn’t go back to the marina where they’d picked up the boats, instead they headed to a spot near the Naval Station where the terrorists had been headed.
The explosives were photographed and then dealt with by a couple of bomb techs. With the explosives neutralized, they took their captives to a secure building at the station.
Foster changed back into regular clothes and joined his team. They were discussing who would question the terrorists first when Kevlar came in with a couple of officers. The man didn’t look pleased.
“Hey, what’s up?” Wave asked.
“The group who was in Diego Garcia heard that Kaya was traveling to Indonesia. They tried to catch up with him, but he got away. They don’t know where he is.”
“So he’s in the wind?” Foster said. “Dammit, we need to catch him and end this bullshit.”
“Based on what Preacher and MacGyver said, I doubt these men know much about Kaya. The one guy they captured started talking right out of the gate and he knows basically nothing.”
Foster stared at the video monitors they had set up for the interview rooms. All the men had been held separate so they couldn’t talk amongst themselves. He wondered if these guys were the same ones who’d set off the charges targeting the Vinson.
“Did these guys do the Vinson?” Foster asked.
Talk around the room quieted. Kevlar stepped forward, tapping the screen of the second room. “I want to talk to him first.”
“Good call,” Wave said.
“We’ve got maybe two hours before someone else shows up to question these people. I don’t want to waste any time.”
Foster and T were tasked with recording the interrogations. They needed to transfer the recordings to somewhere that they wouldn’t lose access.
Foster found a phone and called Thario. It was middle of the afternoon in California, so he wasn’t waking up their buddy. For a moment, Foster thought the call would go to voicemail, but the call picked up. Thario said nothing, probably because Foster was calling from an unknown number.
“It’s Foster. I need to send you some files. They will be big, and I need them to be saved so we have access after someone else takes over interrogations.”
“That private email I told you about.”
“Got it. I remember the login information.”
“I’ll send a link. Just attach the files to the link and I’ll take care of the rest.”
“Thanks, man. I’ll owe you.”
“How many of you are over there?”
“We’re in Italy, Naples. It’s us and Kevlar’s team.”
“I heard Kaya is in the wind. I’ll be looking for him.”
“Thanks, Thario.”
“Anytime. We’ve got you covered.”
He ended the call and told T what was going on. They only had about twenty minutes left before someone from one of the alphabet agencies showed up. Based on what these guys had said so far and the explosives they’d found with them, they’d planned on sinking more than one Navy ship.
He wondered if Kaya had gone on the run to escape before the explosives went off, sinking the Navy ships.
Kevlar’s team ended their interview and came out. They looked angry and tired. Heck, they were all exhausted.
“Any hope of finding the sixth guy?” Jump asked.
Kevlar shrugged. “Maybe, if we had unlimited time. The Carabinieres sent out a team to look for him. Maybe they’ll catch up with him.”
Foster focused on sending the files to Thario. He knew his buddy would keep them safe. They could go back later and listen to the interviews if they needed.
“The guy I was in with knows nothing about Kaya,” Preacher said.
“I’m not sure if any of them know much,” Flash said.
The doors opened and four people walked in. They weren’t military, probably CIA. The files had uploaded, so he didn’t need to worry about that.
“Whoa,” one of the CIA guys said as he paused taking them all in. “What are all of you doing here?”
“Just debriefing after the mission,” Kevlar said.
“Well, we’re here to question them now. You can leave.”
Wave lifted his chin then hooked his thumb over his shoulder. “We need to refuel and catch a few hours’ sleep.”
Kevlar nodded. “Good idea. Let’s eat then crash.”
They filed out, not looking back. The prisoners were someone else’s responsibility now. They’d gotten all the information they could from the five men they’d captured. The Italian government would probably come in and take custody of the five in the next few days.
They’d done what they could, now they had to trust that whoever had custody of those men would force them to face the consequences and not let them off with a slap on the wrist.
The world would never know about the tragedy they’d prevented.
They’d saved hundreds of lives today and spared the Navy from more pain.
If these men had been allowed to complete their operation without anyone stepping in, who knows what they could have done, who they would have killed.
Now they just had to catch Kaya and end his campaign of terror against the US military.