The Zulu Virus Chronicles Boxset (Books 1-3)
Page 67
“Not from what I can tell,” said Fitzgerald. “Just stopped shooting.”
“I don’t like this,” said Hoenig. “Watch the flanks.”
“We’re watching. No signs of movement so far,” said Fitzgerald.
A helicopter screamed overhead, bathing him in dust and rotor wash. For several moments, Hoenig thought that was the end of them, but the Black Hawk kept flying south—without firing at them.
“What the hell was that all about?” said Hoenig.
“Reconnaissance?” said Fitzgerald.
“What are my chances of getting to your position without getting shot?”
“As good as they were before,” said Fitzgerald.
“Funny.”
“I’d stay put for now,” said Fitzgerald. “This looks like a pretty static situation. You could scan the stalks for us with that sniper rifle if you’re bored.”
“Yeah. I’m really—”
A ground-shaking, explosive crack bounced off the trees, reaching him from every direction. Despite the false reports, he could tell right away it had come from the south.
“What was that?” said Fitzgerald.
“I’m seeing some smoke through the trees,” said Mitch. “Over the cornfields. Trailing west.”
“Jesus. Do you think they actually shot down one of the helicopters?” said Fitzgerald.
“I don’t know,” said Hoenig. “But it sounds like the other two are taking off. Getting louder.”
The steady rhythmic thumping that had been their background music for the past several minutes had intensified with the change in the helicopters’ main rotor pitch. They were beating air to get those beasts off the ground.
“Sounds like Larsen and his friends stirred up a hornet’s nest,” said Fitzgerald.
“And we’re about to get stung,” said Hoenig. “Everyone, get ready to pop smoke grenades between you and the hostiles. If the helicopters come down the road for a gun run, you’ll need to shift behind the trees, exposing yourself to whatever’s left in the forest. The smoke should make it hard for them to hit you.”
A series of staccato explosions echoed through the forest, causing him to press into the forest floor. What the hell? It didn’t matter.
“Get the smoke out now,” said Hoenig. “That might have been Larsen’s people taking hits.”
“I don’t think so,” said Fitzgerald. “The helicopters sound erratic, like they’re maneuvering.”
“I have more black smoke out there,” said Mitch. In the direction of the road. Whoa! Just caught a glimpse of a tail rotor spinning. Totally wrecked.”
He peeked around the side of the tree, his attention drawn to two growing clouds of red smoke in the forest. Marking grenades. Shit. They were marking their line for the helicopters. If even one of the Black Hawks was operational, they were in trouble. The best he could do was make it hard for the minigunners. Thermal sensors could see right through the smoke, but by the time they effectively coordinated with the gunners, their gun run would be over.
“Shift the smoke screen east,” said Hoenig, removing a cylindrical grenade from a pouch attached to his vest.
“Gary, they’re using the smoke to retreat,” said Fitzgerald.
Hoenig took another look, seeing a few crouched figures through the thickening smoke. They were headed for the cornfields. A few seconds later, when the helicopter rotor noise didn’t radically change, he felt comfortable holding off on the smoke screen.
“Cancel the smoke screen. Cancel the smoke screen,” said Hoenig. “Engage ground targets, but don’t waste ammo.”
Sporadic gunfire erupted along his line as his security team found targets through the smoke. Hoenig raised Roscoe’s sniper rifle and steadied it against the tree, searching for payback. Sweeping slowly across the cornstalks, he found a target scanning in his direction with binoculars.
“For Roscoe,” he said, pressing the trigger.
The 7.62mm rifle bucked into his shoulder. When he zeroed in again on the area where he’d seen the target, the man was gone; a bright red spray pattern had been blasted onto the green cornstalks where he’d appeared. He ducked behind the tree and rubbed his face, shocked at how easy he’d found it to kill that man. There was no time to think about that. It was kill or be killed right now. He could worry about his humanity later, when nobody was trying to murder him.
His phone buzzed as he prepared to peek around the other side of the tree. He set the sniper rifle against the tree and answered the unknown number. Looked like a satellite number to him.
“Larsen?”
“The one and only. We caught a huge break with the helicopters. All three of them are making emergency landings. One went down hard,” said Larsen.
“That’s great news,” said Hoenig.
“How are things on the ground?”
“The group attacking us just retreated into the cornfield south of the tree line,” said Hoenig. “We had them dead to rights when they walked in here. I don’t think they were expecting much from us. My best guess is that six made it back into the cornfield—out of fifteen or so.”
“Sit tight,” said Larsen. “We’re going after any leadership that survived the helicopter crashes.”
“We have a lot of wounded people here that need medical attention immediately,” said Hoenig. “I can’t get through to the hospital, and it’s going to take David too long to get down there.”
A few seconds passed as a muted conversation took place on the other end of the connection.
“We’re in a stolen police car,” said Larsen. “There’s some concern that this might not be received well.”
“Then don’t be here when the ambulances arrive,” said Hoenig. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You guys seem pretty damn resourceful.”
“Copy that,” said Larsen. “I’ll make the call over the police dispatch net.”
“Thank you,” said Hoenig. “And watch your back out there. The guys that retreated from the forest have disappeared.”
“Will do, Gary,” said Larsen. “Sorry about Roscoe.”
Hoenig bowed his head, struggling to find any words.
“Those people out there got lucky with you. Roscoe. Howard. All of you,” said Larsen.
“Thank you,” said Hoenig, disconnecting the call.
He sobbed uncontrollably under the tree, praying they didn’t lose anyone else today.
Chapter 14
Karyn Archer reached for the seat belt strap dangling above her, tapping it with her finger and causing it to swing a few inches.
“Damn it,” she mumbled, unable to grab the belt.
She pushed off the elbow underneath her, lifting her body as high as possible under her own power, almost managing to hook the belt end with one of her fingers.
“Next time,” she said, knowing that wasn’t true.
The pain in her arm was unbearable. She let her body sink, rolling off the elbow. The forearm below the bruised elbow was broken clean through the skin—and that was the least of her problems. She still had no feeling in her legs. There was no way she was getting out of here without help.
“Hey! Anyone!” she said, not expecting an answer.
She’d been calling out for help nonstop since she had come to after the crash. Nobody had responded. Nobody had made a sound. Not surprising given what she’d witnessed. Without a doubt, the pilot and copilot were dead. The rocket had vaporized the cockpit area. There one second. Gone the next. The explosion did surprisingly little damage to the rest of the helicopter’s interior, momentarily leaving her with the mistaken impression that they might survive the hit. That euphoria had lasted less than a second as the helicopter spun violently out of control.
The dead gunner had slid out as soon as the helicopter tilted, his body sailing out of sight into the sea of green below. Weatherman, the wounded Valkyrie operator, tumbled out next, catching one of the seat supports bolted to the helicopter deck. He held on for a few seconds before letting go and vanishing. The
y were pretty close to the ground at that point, so he might have survived. She had no idea where the other gunner had gone. She’d lost consciousness before he disappeared.
Archer had woken on a crushed bed of cornstalks, staring up at the empty troop compartment that was now her prison. She had no idea how long she’d been out. The helicopter had settled on its left side, leaving her with a view of the clear blue sky beyond the other cargo door when she woke up. At least the helicopter wasn’t on fire. That was about the only good news she could muster at the moment. She wasn’t going to burn alive. Not that she’d let that happen. The pistol strapped to her thigh would ensure that.
She stared at the belt buckle for a few seconds before shaking her head. What was she thinking? Even if she could grab it, there was no way she could pull herself up by one arm. This was her new home until one of the other helicopters arrived. The instant she formed that thought, she finally grasped what had been bothering her from the moment she woke up. She didn’t hear the other helicopters—or any shooting.
Was it possible that they had shot down all three helicopters? Judging by the sound of things, they’d either left or had been shot down. Most of her hoped they had been shot down. The fact that they weren’t here already was inexcusable. She’d have the pilots arrested as soon as she got out of here. But how? Maybe Ecker was still out there. Unfortunately, she wouldn’t know until he arrived. Her headset dangled even higher than the buckle.
“Has to be another—” she started to mumble. “Fuck. Staring me right in the face.”
Archer grabbed the tablet still velcroed to her thigh and yanked it free. She’d been so distracted and confused, she’d forgotten about her lifeline to CHASE headquarters and a whole slew of immediately available assets. She activated the device and accessed the EMERGENCY window, quickly navigating to the bright red icon labeled BROKEN ARROW. Broken arrow was the category for a critical field emergency requiring an immediate response. It was an option reserved for incident zone commanders to prevent capture or destruction of Valkyrie teams in the field. No other CTAB besides hers featured the option.
Unlike other screens, BROKEN ARROW featured a plain text area in addition to the press-button information buttons. Fortunately for Archer, the plain text area was voice enabled, a feature that would make this a hundred times easier. She’d struggled to keep the CTAB upright on her chest to access the basic menu.
“Command helicopter shot down with some kind of missile. Crashed in cornfield. Crew dead. Send help immediately,” she said, reviewing her message and sending it.
The reply was nearly instantaneous.
What is the status of other helicopters and ground team?
“Helicopters status unknown. I don’t hear them anymore. Ground team status unknown. All shooting has stopped,” she said.
Did you see the missile being fired? Guided or unguided?
Shit. They were worried about sending more helicopters.
“Yes. The missile was fired from a police SUV. There were two. I think they were unguided,” said Archer, transmitting the voice translation.
Two police cars?
Come on!
“Two missiles. Rockets. One missed,” she said.
Barely missed. It had flown right in one side of the troop compartment and out the other, leaving a hot trail of gas in its wake. She’d barely registered what happened when the second struck.
Understand. Two rockets fired from one police vehicle. Any sign of the police vehicle?
“I can’t see around me. I’m trapped inside the helicopter, which is on its side.”
Stand by.
Stand by? What the hell? They needed to get her out of here immediately. If she was captured—well, shit—everyone knew that wasn’t an option. They were probably weighing the risks of sending more helicopters versus a two-thousand-pound guided bomb. Wouldn’t that be ironic? It sure would solve their problems a lot faster and easier. They knew her exact position thanks to the CTAB. She wondered if they’d even tell her. Probably not.
“I’m not going anywhere. Pretty sure I’m paralyzed from the waist down. And my left forearm is broken,” she said, not sure why she added details that wouldn’t make a difference in their decision.
It felt like an eternity before they responded.
Are you capable of shutting down IZ14HQ, or do you require immediate hospitalization?
Good question. She wasn’t bleeding to death—externally. Internally? No idea. The compound fracture wasn’t life threatening. No arteries had been nicked or severed. A splint could stabilize that wound. The biggest unknown was her inability to move her legs. She had no idea if this was back trauma induced, temporary paralysis, or a permanent lower spine injury. It probably didn’t matter. If she was paralyzed from the waist down from a spine injury, there wasn’t anything they could do for her. Archer decided to see this whole operation through as far as possible. Show them she wasn’t a quitter. She’d sacrificed everything to rise this far in the Ajax organization. Bowing out now would put her at risk of losing everything—including her life. They didn’t like loose ends. Not with this much at stake.
“I can shut it down.”
Sending medevac and armed helicopter escort from Grissom. Will treat you in-flight and transport you to Incident Zone One-Four HQ. Notify us if your situation changes.
“Understood. Still quiet out there,” said Archer.
She didn’t get a response. Staring up at the sky, Archer wondered if she’d see the bomb if they decided she wasn’t worth the risk. The “colonel” would undoubtedly be scrambling right now to shift satellite coverage to her position. Just in case the same people who had fired the rockets found her first. She couldn’t imagine the SUV had survived the encounter. Not with two more helicopters in the air. Then again, where were the helicopters? She didn’t like her chances.
A faint snap drew her attention away from the tablet. She held her breath, listening intently for any signs that someone was approaching. Another faint crack confirmed she hadn’t been hearing things. She reached for her thigh holster and drew her pistol. Thankfully, Ecker had insisted that she chamber a round before they left. There was no way she could pull the slide back with her injuries. All she had to do was aim and press the trigger. Not as easy as it sounded.
A hushed male voice broke through the silence. She didn’t hear what was said, but it sounded like he was addressing someone else. Archer thought about the CTAB. Two thousand pounds of high explosives might be a better option than what lurked near the wreckage.
“She might still be alive,” said the voice. “We have to check.”
Ecker? It had kind of sounded like him. She resisted the temptation to call out for him. Not until she was one hundred percent sure it was him.
“Doesn’t matter. I have strict instructions to retrieve her CTAB if she’s killed or incapacitated,” said the voice.
“What it is with these fucking CTABs?” said a different voice.
“Sensitive shit,” said the first voice. “Just give me a boost so I can look inside.”
Definitely Ecker. “Ecker?”
“Ma’am?” yelled Ecker.
“I’m inside the helicopter! I think I’m paralyzed. My arm is broken, too.”
“Hold on, ma’am!” said Ecker.
Something clanged against the bottom of the helicopter, which was now the side of her prison. She kept the pistol aimed upward, just in case. A hand appeared at the edge of the deck above, followed by a second hand.
“Lift me up!” said Ecker.
A moment later, Ecker’s face appeared, followed by most of his torso. He struggled to pull himself onto the helicopter, finally stabilizing himself in an awkward position straddling the deck above her.
“We need to move, ma’am,” said Ecker. “Only six of us managed to break out of the forest. We heard the explosion and pulled back immediately. I don’t think they followed us, but I can hear a vehicle out there.”
“What happened to the other
helicopters?” she said, holstering her pistol.
“I think they’re all down,” said Ecker. “We heard some smaller explosions right after the big one. I haven’t seen any in the air since you went down.”
“How long have we been down?” said Archer.
“Just a few minutes,” said Ecker.
“How are you going to get me out of here?”
Ecker glanced around the helicopter, pausing a few times to look down at her. “Honestly, ma’am, we might be better off defending the crash site. Do we have reinforcements on the way, or are we on our own?”
“Medevac and armed escorts are launching from Grissom,” said Archer.
“That’s thirty minutes, at least,” said Ecker. “If they launch them right away. How long ago did you call them?”
She held up her CTAB. “Maybe a minute before you showed up. I can ask them for an ETA.”
“With that?”
“That’s the only way to contact them,” said Archer.
“We’re moving you away from the helicopter,” said Ecker. “It’s too risky here. Thirty minutes may as well be two hours.”
“Just get me out of here.”
“Right away,” said Ecker.
A second figure appeared next to Ecker, his face not immediately recognizable. He held a pistol-like device aimed in her direction.
“What the fuck?” she said, suddenly recognizing the Taser.
“Sorry, ma’am,” said Ecker. “I’d like to see my family again.”
Before she could respond in any way, her body locked up, and she started to convulse uncontrollably.
Chapter 15
David sped north on Route 3, the small forest rapidly approaching on the right. He eased the car into the opposing lane to avoid a sizable piece of scorched metal that must have fallen from one of the helicopters. He’d been forced to use the dirt shoulder a hundred yards back to avoid a wide band of twisted debris. How Larsen and the others had managed to disable three helicopters almost simultaneously was absolutely mind-boggling. Chang had mentioned that Rich and his people were legends in some circles. That circle had just expanded to a small group of survivors in central Indiana.