Brothers in Arms

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

Just as the dawn rose, a sprawling convoy of vehicles hit the highway hard. The rising red hues painted their dark colors crimson, marking them red, as though tinged with blood. Drake and his team were racing to intercept them in three separate Humvees. Hayden and Kinimaka shared the first, Dahl and Komodo the second, with Drake’s partner being Alicia. When they closed in on their prey and the convoy spotted them, the race was well and truly on.

Drake shook his head at the excessive procession. It was being led by a black supercar, what looked to Drake like a new custom-specced Viper. Behind it ran a trio of SUVs, a Ford F150 with an open bed, a shiny chrome Mack truck and, somewhat bizarrely, a stretch limo.

“That’s the Korean.” Drake flicked the comms open so everyone could hear. “In the limo. Gotta be. And Kingston will be in the Viper. The rest is pure firepower.”

Dahl raced up alongside him, eyeballing him as the two cars sped along inches apart. “Are you quite ready for this?”

Drake gunned the Humvee, inching ahead. “Stop poncing around, mate. Mai’s still on the island and this is our last chance.”

“I find sometimes in moments of extreme stress it helps to set a little wager. What do you think?”

“What do you have in mind?”

“Simple. Count bad guys. The one who takes out the most wins.”

“I’m in,” Alicia said instantly, grinning.

Drake chewed his lower lip. Hayden remained notably uncommunicative.

Dahl said, “Scared you’ll lose, Drake?”

“Nope. I just don’t want to see you sloping off to Sweden with your tail between your legs when you get pounded. I’m in. Winner takes all.”

Dahl’s Humvee roared ahead, rapidly closing the gap between himself and the last SUV in line. At the same time, Drake saw the heavily tinted SUV windows being rolled down and weapons come bristling out as if the vehicle had suddenly raised its heckles. The huge Mack truck swerved over two lanes as its rear doors were flung back.

Four men stood in the opening, sub-machine guns ready.

Men popped their heads up above the F150’s high sides just as the sound of cop car sirens and the thud of approaching helicopters hammered the air.

Drake wasted no time slamming the accelerator through the floorboards. “Game on.”