The Cup

CHAPTER 11

The raid was on, but Forsberg had been warned in no uncertain terms against creating an international incident. If there was trouble and the government needed a scapegoat, he was going to be it. He'd decided the best way to head off potential problems was with a show of force.

Nick and the others had been allowed on the raid as observers. They still had no weapons. They were not allowed to enter the center until the Swedes had secured the building.

It was three in the morning, dark and cold. The air felt raw and smelled of coming snow. Nick, Selena, Ronnie and Lamont sat in a car parked three blocks away from the center, behind two Plasan sand cats carrying the Swedish SWAT teams. The SWAT vehicles had been designed in Israel and carried eight men each. The Plasan was basically an armored box slapped onto a shortened Ford F-350 platform. It was cheap, rugged and effective.

The cold seeped into the car in spite of the heater. The windows had fogged up with condensation.

"He's going to go in there hard," Ronnie said. "Did you see those guys? They're wired to the eyeballs."

"You would be too," Lamont said, "especially if it was your first time going into action."

"You think it's their first time?"

"Most of them look like they're about eighteen," Lamont said. "They don't have the look. You know what I mean?"

"What look?" Selena asked.

"The look that comes after you've been in shit up to your ears with people trying to kill you. You never noticed it in your mirror? "

"There might not be any real trouble," Nick said. "The Swedes are carrying assault rifles. You'd have to be stupid to go against those with pipes and knives or whatever you can find lying around."

"I don't think the people in that building are the brightest bulbs on the Christmas tree," Lamont said.

"There were grenades in one of those cases at the barn," Selena said.

Forsberg had given them a handheld radio. Now it crackled with final comm checks. The two SWAT vehicles would head for the front of the building. A third group was on foot, concealed on the other side of the soccer field behind the center. The plan was for all three units to converge at the same time. Nick and the others had been ordered to stay back until the all clear.

Forsberg's voice came over the radio. "All units, execute."

"Here we go," Lamont said.

The two vehicles moved out in front of them. Nick cursed at the condensation on the windshield and wiped it away, then followed behind. In less than a minute they'd arrived at the refugee center. Men in black tactical gear carrying Heckler and Koch MP5s poured out. They split into three groups and headed for the entrances.

Nick pulled up and parked. They got out of the car.

"Sure wish we had our weapons," Ronnie said.

The doors to the building were locked. Battering rams came out. It took just seconds to smash the locks. There were shouts from inside the building as the men started in.

The sound of a pistol cut through the shouting like a hot knife. There was an answering burst of automatic fire, the unforgettable signature of a three round burst from an AK-47.

"That's torn it," Lamont said.

More gunfire came from the building. Nick heard the familiar sound of the MP5s, the hard bark of a heavy pistol, then two more AKs joining in. Windows shattered in the front of the building. Rounds whistled overhead.

They ducked down behind the car. The sound of an explosion rocked the night air, then another.

"Flash bangs," Lamont said.

There was another, different explosion.

"That was a grenade," Ronnie said. "They've got their hands full in there."

Selena pointed at the end of the building. "Someone's down there."

Three men carrying guns came around the corner and moved in a crouch toward the entrance where Forsberg had gone in. Two of them had pistols. The third cradled an AK. They weren't Swedish.

"I thought the back was covered," Ronnie said.

"Probably came out a side window," Nick said. "If they go in that door, they'll be behind Forsberg's and his team. We have to stop them."

Ronnie nodded in the direction of the building. "They don't know we're here. We can take them."

Nick tugged at the scarred earlobe on his left ear.

"Let's do it. Get their weapons."

The three men were intent on reaching the nearest entrance, twenty feet away. Nick and the others were almost on them when the man carrying the AK saw them coming. He shouted a warning, aimed the rifle at Ronnie and pulled the trigger. Nothing happened. He'd forgotten the safety.

Selena knocked the gun from his hands and beat him to his knees with a flurry of blows, then kicked him hard under the chin. His head snapped back with a sharp crack as his neck broke. He fell to the ground like a puppet with cut strings.

Nick grabbed the second man's pistol as it came up. He wrapped his hand around the slide, grabbed the forearm with his other hand and pushed the gun and arm in opposite directions. The sudden movement twisted the gun sideways and bent the trigger finger at an impossible angle. It broke. The man screamed in pain. Nick kneed him in the groin and punched him on the back of the neck as he folded over.

The last man fired as Lamont knocked his arm away. The round went wide. Lamont head butted him and kicked him in the head after he was down.

The fight was over.

Three Swedes came out of the building, followed by Forsberg. He looked at the three men lying on the ground and the weapons lying beside them.

"What happened?"

Nick pointed. "Those three were getting ready to go in behind your guys. We stopped them."

"I wasn't going to bring you along. I'm glad I changed my mind. Thanks."

"Sounded like you had a hard time inside."

"They were waiting for us. Someone tipped them off."

He took out a cell phone and dialed, spoke briefly and hung up.

"Ambulances are on the way. Three of my men are down. At least a dozen foreigners."

"Hussein?"

"Dead." Forsberg took off his headgear and wiped away sweat. "This is a real mess."

"What about his buddy, Gabriel?"

"No sign of him."

Selena said, "Why turn this place into a war zone?"

"They're terrorists. They don't need an excuse."

"Maybe. Or there's something they didn't want you to find here."

"Besides the weapons they had? If there is anything, we'll find it. Do you read Arabic?"

"Yes."

"Come inside with me. There's something I want to show you."

"I'm gonna stay out here. I need the air," Lamont said.

"Likewise," Nick said.

Sirens sounded in the distance.