Chasing Gold

CHAPTER FORTY

That terrible cry and those hellish words changed everything.

Alicia felt bombarded, stunned. For a moment the world turned, and people screamed but she couldn’t think of anything to do. The terrorist choppers were already swooping away. The police choppers were drifting in. The coastguard vessel was alongside.

Agents were standing all over the deck.

She couldn’t imagine how bad it would be.

We’ve always been a step behind. This leader, this Ricci, has planned every last detail; even the ones that may go wrong.

After so much chasing… it would end so hard.

Vino was already on the airwaves, warning the choppers and the coastguard. It was the abrupt change in the helicopter’s engines that spurred Alicia’s brain into action. That, and Russo’s shouting in her ear and, more importantly than any of that; the shocking, unprecedented slap on the ass that Russo suddenly dealt out.

“Earth to Alicia! Get a fucking move on!”

On any other day she’d have taken pleasure in breaking the offender in two, but today she understood immediately why Russo had done what he did. He knew it would get through to her, simple as that. He knew her rather well.

They raced for the closest railing and peered over. Alicia took the time to check on Caitlyn and Austin, saw them balancing already on the second rail of the three-rail safety barrier. Agents were leaping to the left and right of them, arms outstretched in the air.

Russo paused at the edge. “That’s a long bloody way down.”

“Think yourself lucky it’s not a proper tanker. They’re twice as high.”

“Still it’s… a hundred feet?”

“Who gives a fuck? Jump, Robster, jump!”

She barely slowed, running at and then leaping onto the second rail, seeing the choppers swooping low and away to her right and the coastguard ship desperately coming about and speeding away. She vaulted from the second rung and, still running, sprang out into thin air.

Russo was a second behind.

Falling fast, she made sure to tuck her feet and arms in and to angle her body for the best entry. Hopefully, Russo would remember to protect his nuts. If not… well, it was not like he used them anyway.

With these thoughts Alicia slammed into the ocean; the impact jouncing every bone in her body. The breath whooshed out of her; pain slammed in from all directions. The water rushed up her nose and flooded her mouth. As soon as she could, she rolled and scissored her way back to the surface.

Took a huge breath.

Time to get the hell away…

And then the tanker exploded in dramatic fashion. Muffled reports came from deep inside, distant at first but gradually growing closer. There was a moment’s stillness before a far heavier explosion appeared to split the vessel in half. The front end lifted; fire belched out of the tears in the metal, and then the rear end fell away, wrenched apart. Fire detonated up through the deck toward the still-bright skies. The front end settled suddenly, displacing an incredible volume of water and then started to sink.

Alicia saw most of it and then ducked under the Pacific, swimming strongly away. She hadn’t seen Russo and hoped he’d landed well. A surge of water pushed past her as if someone had shoved her roughly in the back, making her lose momentum and curl up in the water.

Russo?

Kicking her way to the surface, Alicia remained acutely wary of what might be up there. Slowly, she breached the waves and looked around. The tanker was listing at the back, sinking at the front. Flames licked the air all around it. Some spillage had entered the water and was pooling away, burning at the same time. Debris littered the area for miles around.

She didn’t see Russo. She took a moment, turned a full circle, and waited a little longer. Still — no Russo.

“Shit.”

Taking her best approximation of where the big man had entered the water, she swam back and then dived underneath. It was clear for some distance under here, a sapphire and green shade. Not knowing how deep it was, she swam powerfully toward the bottom.

A minute passed, and she saw him. Russo was unconscious, drifting lower and lower. She kicked her legs strongly, sweeping down and down, the water parting in front of her eyes. When she reached Russo, she saw his eyes were closed. She put her shoulders under him and heaved, propelling him back toward the surface. The going was hard and slow. Several pieces of heavy wreckage sank around them, luckily not close enough to impede her progress. Russo lay heavily against her upper torso but finally she managed to break the surface.

She held him up, swam to face him and then started slapping, holding his nose and breathing into his mouth. The slapping was therapeutic, but not the rest. Water splashed and sluiced up over and between them, making her choke and blink and cough. Minutes passed. Swimming and trying to breathe life into a man was one of the hardest things she had ever done.

They drifted steadily back toward the stricken tanker, pulled by the waves.

She took hold of Russo, swam him away for a few seconds and then tried again. Her own reserves were failing, her limbs becoming leaden and chest growing tight. But she’d never give up. Her breath was Russo’s for as long as she had it to give.

It was the helping hand that shocked her so badly she temporarily lost her grip on Russo. Caitlyn’s voice then filled her ears.

“Here, over here.”

Alicia grabbed Russo and then turned in the water. Caitlyn, Austin and four agents had jumped into one of the boats and made their way around the devastated oil tanker. Now two of the agents caught hold of the drenched Russo and hauled him into the boat.

At last, he fell in, and Alicia followed.

Crouched in the bottom of the boat, dripping sheets of water, she elbowed away all forms of help and continued to try to resuscitate Russo. He couldn’t go this way — not her big, dumb friend. Jumping off a boat couldn’t be an ending for Rob Russo.

She neared her limits without success. Men and women shifted all around her. The engine roared as they pulled away from the tanker and drove around the front to check on the escaping terrorist helicopters. Alicia didn’t know what else had happened. She was just… focused… on one…

Russo heaved a sudden, wracking breath and sat up so quickly he headbutted her right on the nose. Alicia flinched away, seeing stars, but she grinned. Her entire body calmed, and she managed to fall back onto her haunches, shoulders slumped.

“Did you kiss me whilst I was out?” Russo managed between coughs.

“Why? Is there a stirring down below?” She wiped blood away.

“The opposite,” Russo said. “I feel weird. Maybe it wasn’t you. To be honest it felt like a fish was kissing me.”

She gave him the finger then, feeling strength return to her body, she turned around to evaluate their position.

“The choppers are headed for the island of Molokai,” Caitlyn told her. “It’s fifteen miles off the coast of Oahu so, subtracting what we’ve already covered, it’s a five-minute flight away for them.”

“And for us?”

“A fifteen-minute boat ride.”

“What’s on Molokai?”

“Not a great deal. It measures thirty eight by ten miles, so it’s small. Old leper’s colony. There’s a forest reserve, a volcano and the highest sea cliffs in the world. There are a lot of places to hide.”

“Hide?” Alicia looked up. It didn’t sound right. “Ricci hasn’t hidden once during this entire chase. If you can say one thing about him that isn’t bad, he’s a clever, proactive son of a bitch.”

“He also wants to record a video,” Caitlyn reminded her.

“What happened to the…” Alicia surveyed the skies and saw all the police choppers had made it to safety, though two appeared to be in difficulty. They were currently hovering in place, probably trying to decide what to do. Her own radio had suffered water damage, so she couldn’t contact Vino.

The coastguard ship had taken on a load of water and was being attended to by its crew. Not in danger, but out of the chase.

“What next?” Austin asked.

Alicia pointed a finger in the direction of Molokai. “Don’t slow down. Take it to them like we have been doing since DC. They’re running scared, they must be. Molokai’s a friggin’ island. Let’s move and take them down on the beaches.”

Russo sat upright. “I’m ready for that.”

All four agents nodded.

Alicia held on tight as the boat accelerated hard, and Caitlyn thumbed her own radio to inform Vino what they were doing.

“We’re right behind you,” the agent said.

Alicia looked to the horizon.