Hail Warning

Rond Point Port — Aboard the Hail Proton

“We’ve got some more activity on the stairs,” Jason Wilson announced. Both Seagulls’ and Turtles’ cameras zoomed in on the stairs. Four big men were descending the stairs. Two of the men were carrying the black cases. The two men in the lead appeared to be Diambu and Kornev. Hail and Hail Proton’s crew watched the men negotiate each flight as they twisted and turned their way down to the beach. After about thirty seconds, the group reached the bottom of the stairs and began to trudge through the path’s deep sand.

“Arm Turtles,” Captain Nichols ordered.

Hail allowed the C-4 charge to be armed, but he added, “I want to wait until we know what’s going on.”

Hail secretly desired to allow the group to pass just in front of Turtles and blow them up, including the missiles. But there were many reasons to wait this out, for the time being. First, if Hail disintegrated these men, he wasn’t sure if Kara would be hurt or killed in the blast. The wad of C-4 was encased between dozens of half-inch ball bearings. All it would take is one rogue projectile to make its way to the beach where she was sitting, and it would be lights out. There was no way to definitively determine the footprint of the blast. Second, he had promised the CIA he would not kill Kornev. Hail had told the Russian that he would be allowed to live if he became an informant. Going back on that deal right now would be counterproductive. Hail would erase all the political gains he had made with the CIA and the president.

“They are almost there,” Nichols told Hail.

“Scrub it. Secure the drone,” Hail told the crew.

For a second time, Sarah Starling removed her finger hovering over the top of the icon that would make a hole in the beach. Instead, she pressed the icon next to it labeled SAFETY ON.

Frustrated, Hail watched the men approach the drone.

Hail told Starling, “Sarah, I want you to freeze the video on my mark.”

The first two people who passed in front of the drone were Afua’s soldiers. Trailing behind those two men carrying the black cases was Afua Diambu and behind him, Kornev. At least, Hail thought it was Afua Diambu.

Hail ordered, “Freeze it,” and Starling touched the pause icon on the video feed. The gray sweat pants Diambu was wearing had ridden up high enough on his ankle to show the wide and jagged scar.

“That’s our guy,” Hail said, circling the scar on the monitor with his finger.

“And there goes our guy,” Nichols commented, watching the men pass in front of Turtles and continue further down to the beach. The monitor next to the frozen screen was being shot from Seagulls. It showed the men leaving the narrow path and walking onto the wide expanse of beach.

Captain Nichols asked, “Why are they taking the missiles down to the beach?’

Hail shook his head. “I have no idea. Maybe a boat is meeting there to transport the missiles. We should get Foreigner in a ready state so it can follow the boat.”

The pilot who was responsible for flying Foreigner began running pre-flight diagnostics on the drone.

The drone, Seagulls, watched the group make its way to the beach. The group of men stopped when they reached Kara, who was still sitting in the sand. The crew saw Kara look up and exchange words with Afua Diambu and then Victor Kornev.

The soldiers set the cases on the ground next to Kara. She got to her feet and stood behind Kornev.

Hail watched the video feed and saw Kara stand on her tiptoes, pressing her mouth up to Kornev’s ear.