Choke Point

SIXTY-NINE

Hamid and Delgado were heading toward the fishing boat rental place on the north coast, and Ross called for the Seahawk to land on the beach. He and Pepper headed out to board the chopper.

Meanwhile, Rugg called to say that his Marines had captured eleven men who’d surrendered and that the others were either wounded or dead. Sadly, he also mentioned that five of his Marines had been killed, while another fourteen had been wounded.

‘You sure you’re okay?’ Pepper shouted above the rotor wash as they climbed into the Seahawk.

Ross gave him a vigorous nod and thumbs-up, and once they were off the ground and had donned their headsets, he issued his instructions to the pilot.

Meanwhile, the wounded were being evacuated on to the Sea Stallion, and Rugg called to say he was making sure that Ross’s people were taken good care of for the trip back.

‘Guess it’s up to us old guys to finish this off, huh?’ asked Pepper.

‘Age and treachery,’ said Ross.

Pepper smiled, thought a moment, then said, ‘Going back for 30K … that was something.’

‘You didn’t think I had it in me.’

‘I won’t lie.’

‘It’s okay. So now you know.’

‘Yeah. I sure as hell do.’

Hamid was limping, and Delgado was clutching his left elbow with his rifle slung over his shoulder as they came out of the mangroves on the east side of the beach and stepped on to the rickety wooden pier leading out to the score of fishing boats.

Their escape involved more than just stealing an old boat. Mitchell reported that a helicopter had landed on a tiny sand island less than a kilometer off Rupat’s northern coast, and surely Hamid and Delgado would fire up one of the outboards and race out to meet it.

But before they reached the end of the pier, they froze and squinted in horror through the darkness –

As the air shimmered and fluctuated to expose Ross and Pepper, rifles trained on them, eyes burning.

‘Don’t move, Hamid,’ Ross ordered in Arabic.

‘And you, too, Señor Delgado,’ Pepper said in Spanish.

Hamid took a step forward and leaned toward Ross, straining to get a better look at him. ‘Who are you?’

‘That doesn’t matter. Why we’re here is more important.’

Hamid contemplated that, his face stoic. He glanced back to Delgado. ‘Do you know who they are?’

‘Yes, he does,’ said Ross. ‘Don’t you remember us, little man? Back in that coke lab in Colombia? We saved your ass, and you told us you were a taxi driver.’

Delgado’s gaze drifted past them, as though he were already searching for an escape route. ‘I don’t know you.’

‘All right, listen to me,’ Ross began. ‘Put your rifles on the dock. You do it right now; otherwise I’ll make the pain a lot worse.’

Hamid kept his rifle trained on Ross.

Standoff.

‘Well, I thought it was gonna be a gunfight,’ said Pepper, who slowly set his rifle on the pier. ‘I surrender.’

‘Sergeant, I wasn’t talking to you,’ Ross said in disbelief.

Pepper raised his palms, looked at Ross, winked. ‘It’s okay.’

And before Ross could react, Pepper charged toward Hamid, the man opening fire until Pepper reached him and tore the rifle out of his hands, bringing it around to clock him in the head with the AK’s heavy wooden stock –

While at the same time, Delgado brought his rifle around and was about to fire, but Ross shot him in the hip, knocking him back into the water.

‘I got him,’ cried Pepper as Hamid crumpled on to the dock and Pepper reached into his web gear for a pair of zipper cuffs.

Ross ripped off his pack, set down his rifle and jumped in the water after Delgado, whose head had barely broken the surface. Ross reached him, grabbed the back of his collar, and began a modified combat sidestroke back to the sandy shoreline, and once he could stand, he continued to drag Delgado all the way to the beach.

The man was barely conscious, leg bleeding badly, as Ross got on the radio and called back the Seahawk for an immediate evac. Seeing that the little man wasn’t going anywhere, he crossed on to the dock and dragged himself over to Pepper, who was resting his back against Hamid and just breathing.

‘Chopper on the way?’ Pepper asked.

‘Yeah.’

‘Good.’ Pepper grimaced and suddenly stiffened in pain. ‘He shot me up pretty good. Plates caught a few, but I got one in the shoulder, maybe the leg, too. Yeah, I can feel it …’

‘Dude, what were you thinking?’

‘I don’t know. I just got no patience for that shit.’

Ross was so dumbfounded he had to laugh. ‘Next time you give me some warning.’

Pepper was about to reply, but the Seahawk had swooped down toward the beach and landed.

Ross leaned over and cried in his ear, ‘We got him, old man. We got him!’

Pepper nodded and forced a smile as the crew chief, along with Rugg and two of his Marines, came jogging up the pier.