Biowar

34

“Stinking Air Force is never on time,” said Karr, glancing at his watch.

“First thing you said since you got here that I agree with.”

“You know what your problem is, Foster? You look at a glass and you see it’s half-full.”

“I look at a glass and I wonder who was drinking out of it,” said the Marine, who was sitting on the rocks next to the stream.

Karr laughed.

“What do we do if they don’t come?” asked Gidrey. “These guys are going to roast us after all your promises.”

“Wait…. Listen—”

“You talking to yourself again?”

“No, listen.” Karr put his hand to his ear. The drone of an MC-130 could be heard in the distance.

Foster and Gidrey didn’t react until the Special Forces cargo plane was nearly overhead. Guided solely by an onboard GPS system — Karr had fed the coordinates to them via the Art Room — the four-engined transport rode practically into the jungle canopy before rolling its load out the ramp at the rear of the plane. By the time the plane roared away, Karr and the Marines were hustling toward the crackling trees where the large skids of gear had come down. Six members of the Thai Army followed. One of the skids had landed at the edge of the water; the other leaned against a tree.

“Come on, let’s get going,” said Karr. “There’s supposed to be steak in here somewhere.”

Karr walked to one of the skids, taking out his knife to hack away the netting and plastic protecting the gear. Foster went to the other, and soon the Thai soldiers were donning body armor and passing out new weapons — Minimi machine guns and enough new M4s for everybody in the squad. The M4s were essentially short-barreled M16s, and the Thais had no trouble exchanging their older, worn-down rifles for them; the shorter length and lighter weight made them easier to handle and carry. The Minimis added firepower to the squads; though theoretically the weapons could be fired from the hip, as a practical matter the lightweight machine guns demanded either prone firing positions with the attached bipod or the use of a heavier tripod for accuracy. Gidrey gave a quick demonstration that emphasized the loading of the boxes that slapped into the underside of the gun; they held 200-round belts and were clear enough so a shooter could get an idea of how much ammunition he had left. Magazines from M16s could also be used in a pinch.

Meanwhile, Fisher and Karr continued sorting through the dropped supplies. There were several crates of M72 antitank missiles, night-vision gear, grenades, and radios.

And one sixteen-ounce porterhouse, packed in ice.