The King's Tomb

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Shouldering their weapons and gear without complaint, the ECHO team left the Suburban and set out for the top of the mountain. The day was already hot and the sun beat down on them as they made their way to the coordinates. Their destination was well away from any of the paths used by hikers and tourists in the area.

Over the last hour or so the terrain had become dry, dusty and rocky with scree. One misplaced foot could mean a fatal fall, especially considering how loaded up they all were with equipment, guns and ammo. Highlighting their isolation from the world, a black kite screeched in the blue sky high above them.

Hawke glanced up and saw several others join the bird of prey, circling on thermals and wheeling patiently in the sky as they waited for one of them to tumble in a ravine and die. He pulled his hood up over his head to protect it from the glare of sun. “No way those bastards are having me for dinner.”

He turned his gaze back to Lea, Scarlet, Reaper and Devlin who were now several hundred meters ahead of them up the slope. Looking at Lexi, he said, “When they reach that break on the ridge they should be able to see the rift further to the north. We’ve got some serious pounding ahead of us before we get to the coordinates though.”

“I love it when you talk dirty, Joe.”

He gave the Chinese assassin a lingering look, studying her eyes and lips for a fleeting moment. They had once been lovers, but Zambia was a long time ago — and yet… sometimes the way she looked at him made him wonder. He said nothing but laughed and pushed on up the slope. Behind them, Ryan and Camacho were straggling at the back and arguing over the best poker hand.

Time marched on, each minute full of thoughts of Kruger and where he and his army were. There was no sign of them yet — the air was still and silent and no one could hear any helicopters or Jeeps, but they all knew he was out there somewhere and would never give up until he was dead.

Hawke puffed out a sigh and paused to take another drink of water from his canteen. The dry, scrubby grassland had given way to trees and thick coniferous woodland now dominated the landscape. Pine-covered mountains stretched to every horizon as far as they could see in any direction. Here, among the trunks and undergrowth of the Pangaion Hills, they joined together again and took a short break.

Kim pulled open her backpack and started dishing out supplies. “I got cookies, I got nuts, I got chocolate…”

“Gimme everything,” Devlin said. “I’m so hungry I could eat the fleas off a dead dog’s arse.”

“Mmm, yummy!” Scarlet said. “Thanks for that image, Danny.”

“You’re welcome.”

They tucked in, drinking plenty of water and replenishing their energy reserves before the final push. There would be no time to reenergize and rehydrate if they stumbled on the enemy in a place like this.

One more punishing hour and they found themselves approaching the coordinates Ryan had extrapolated from the shield. Hawke felt the sweat trickling down his back and took in the sky once again. Clouds had blown in from the east and now the pure, blazing blue was mottled with gray and the humidity was increasing.

“Holy crap,” Kim said as she reached the rise and scanned the slope. “We made it!”

With a stormy-looking sky stretching to every horizon, they worked as a team to clear the scrub and scree away from the entrance until they were left with a single boulder blocking their way.

Hawke looked at it with satisfaction. “What time is, everyone?”

They called back in unison. “C4 time!”