The Eye of Shiva

CHAPTER 63

Selena watched Nick moving through the woods ahead of her. It was hot under the trees. There was no breeze. Tiny insects swarmed and bit her, drawn by her sweat. Her shirt was already soaked through. It felt strange to be doing this in civilian clothes. No boots, no armor. The last time she'd gone into a fight without armor it hadn't worked out well. At least she was wearing jeans and her Nikes. A skirt and regular shoes would have been impossible here.

She'd gotten better over time with the art of moving quietly but she still felt clumsy compared to Nick and Lamont. They made no noise as the team worked their way up the ravine.

She was careful not to dislodge any of the loose rocks in the wash. That's all she needed, kick loose a rock and have Nick give her one of his looks of disapproval.

Damn it, why did she care so much about what he thought? Sometimes she felt like she'd never be able to equal what these men did. They had years of specialized training in warfare she could never match. On the other hand, she could whip both of them in hand to hand, though she wouldn't want to take both on at once. Still, she could kick Nick's butt if she had to.

That thought brought a smile.

They came to the end of the ravine. The land sloped up for another twenty feet and leveled out. Nick held up his hand to stop.

He signaled Lamont. Go left, then up. He pointed at himself and up. I'll take the center. To Selena, he signaled right and up. He pointed at them and at his eyes and then himself. Watch me. Follow my lead. He gestured ahead. Go slow.

She began working her way to the right, the rifle cradled under her chest. The hard metal pressed against her breasts. The ground scraped her elbows. She reached a point where she could look over the edge. Nick was behind her to the left and beyond him, Lamont. She risked a glance toward the tunnel.

The staging area was fifty or sixty yards away from where they lay. She saw a dark shape move under the trees, a man walking down the slope toward the valley floor. She ducked back and looked at Nick, pointed toward the base, held up one finger and pointed toward the stream below. One hostile, moving down.

He nodded, held up two fingers, pointed.

Two more, she thought.

She got ready to fire. There was little cover. If they were seen, they'd try to get off the first shots. Those were the ones that counted.

Better if they weren't seen. Selena wished she was wearing clothes that blended in with the landscape. Not blue running shoes and a pale blouse. She tried to scrunch down behind a dead limb lying on the ground. It wouldn't stop a bullet but at least it gave her some psychological comfort.

Nick signaled. Back to the ravine. He looked at her, touched his lips. Quiet. Then he smiled.

Smartass, she thought. He's like a big kid sometimes. Playing war. Except the bullets are real.

They crawled backwards down to the ravine. She had a dry, metallic taste in her mouth, the taste of fear. Off to her right she heard someone step on a dry branch and curse.

They waited. The air was still and hot. The only sound was the whine of insects and her heart pounding in her ears.

Noise shattered the silence. Diesel engines starting up, big ones. There was only one possible explanation for that. Cobra was moving the missiles out of the tunnel.