The Edge of Armageddon

CHAPTER THIRTY TWO

Torsten Dahl left several clean-up crews to take care of the area around Times Square and drew his team deep into the shadows offered by a narrow alley. Here, it was quiet and free of life, the perfect place to make an important phone call. He first rang Hayden but when she didn’t answer he tried to contact Drake.

“Dahl here. What’s the latest?”

“We’re in the shit, pal—”

“Balls deep again?” Dahl interrupted. “What’s new?”

“No — neck deep this time. These mad bastards broke, or were broken out, of their cells. Ramses and Price are gone. The fifth cell is — or was — twelve strong. Mano says they got three.”

Dahl picked up on the inflection. “Mano says?”

“Yeah, mate. They got Hayden. They took her with them.”

Dahl closed his eyes.

“But we still have a little time.” Drake tried the positive side. “They wouldn’t have taken her at all if they wanted to detonate immediately.”

The Yorkie was right, Dahl had to admit. He listened as Drake went on to explain that Marsh had now been removed as the Prince of Darkness and replaced temporarily by one called Gator. Homeland had just managed to identify this man as an American sympathizer.

“Really?” Dahl said. “To what?”

“Pretty much to anything than can cause anarchy,” Drake said. “He’s a merc for hire, only this time he went super ballistic.”

“I thought Ramses always kept his business ‘in house’.”

“Gator’s a New York native. He would have been able to provide invaluable logistical knowledge for the op.”

“Yeah, it makes sense.” Dahl sighed and rubbed his eyes tiredly. “So what’s next? Do we have a location on Hayden?”

“They ditched her cell. They must have taken at least some of her clothes because the tracker sewn into her shirt says she’s under a table at the Chipotle Mexican Grill, which we’re just confirming is bullshit. Surveillance cameras are working but the receivers at our end were mostly knocked out by the attack on the precinct. They’re piecing together what they can. And they just don’t have enough manpower. Things could go real bad from here, mate.”

“Could?” Dahl repeated. “I’d say we were already past bad and heading up the street of horrific, wouldn’t you?”

Drake was silent for a moment, then said, “We’re hoping that they continue with the demands,” he said. “Every new requirement give us more time.”

Dahl didn’t have to say they had made no headway so far. The fact was self-evident. Here they were depending on Homeland to discover the nuke’s location, running around like forewarned Christmas turkeys, only so Moore could pinpoint the exact spot, but the whole enterprise had failed.

“All we’ve done is neutralize a few expendable cells,” he said. “We haven’t even come close to Ramses’ real plan, and especially his endgame.”

“Why don’t you guys come down to the precinct? Might as well be together when the next lead comes in.”

“Yeah, we will.” Dahl waved at the rest of his team and figured out the right direction to take them towards 3rd Avenue. “Hey, how’s Mano holding up?”

“Guy took a big hit from a wall of shelving. Don’t ask. But he’s raring to go, just waiting for somebody to give him a target.”

Dahl broke into a run as they ended their call. Kenzie pulled up beside him and nodded. “Bad call?”

“Considering our position I suppose it could be worse but, yes, that was a bad call. They abducted Hayden. Took her to where the bomb is.”

“Well, that’s great! I mean don’t all you guys have hidden trackers?”

“We do. And they threw it away along with her clothes.”

“The Mossad imbed under the skin,” Kenzie said softly. “Good for them, but not for me. Made me feel ‘owned’.”

“It would.” Dahl nodded. “We all need to feel that we’re in control of our own fate, and that each decision is essentially free. Not a manipulation.”

“These days,” Kenzie fingers flexed and then bunched into tight fists, “you manipulate me at your peril,” then she gave him a breezy smile. “Except you, my friend, you can manipulate me anytime, and anywhere, you like.”

Dahl looked away. There was no stopping Bridget McKenzie. The woman knew he was a married man, a father, and yet still poured on the temptation. Of course, one way or another she wouldn’t be here much longer.

Problem solved.

Smyth and Lauren also jogged together, passing quiet comments. Yorgi brought up the rear, tired and speckled with debris but loping along with game determination. Dahl knew it had been his first real experience of frantic, unsystematic battle and thought he’d coped well with it. The streets flashed past and then they turned left onto 3rd Avenue, heading up toward the intersection with 51st.

It was a weird few minutes for Dahl. Some parts of the city were unaffected and although many shops remained open and people walked inside a cloud of trepidation, others were deserted, practically devoid of life. A few streets were cordoned off with SWAT vehicles and four-wheel-drive army vehicles strewn about. Some areas shrank with shame at the presence of looters. For the most part the people he saw seemed unclear as to what to do, so he added his voice to what he imagined would be the authorities’ and suggested they find shelter anywhere they could.

And then they reached the precinct where Drake and the others waited and hoped and planned for the rescue of Hayden Jaye.

Only a few hours had passed since this day began. And now they searched in desperation for a way to find the nuke. Dahl knew there would be no turning back, no running away or hiding in bunkers. The SPEAR team were in this to the end. If the city did perish today it would not be for the lack of heroes trying to save it.