At seven seconds past ignition, both wings exploded internally. Bits of fuel tank and wing covering were blown so high that they didn’t return to the ground for forty-two seconds.
If the wings had broken free, the fuselage might have survived.
Instead, they kept spilling fuel and feeding the fire now building along either side of the fuselage.
Captain Dimitri Voskov’s last act fully damned the plane.
He stood hard on the brakes for an emergency stop.
It worked.
The Antonov AN-124-150 Condor squatted in the middle of its own fire and burned.
Directly below the cockpit and crew area, the armament on the Mil “Havoc” heated past critical.
An Ataka-V anti-tank missile was the first to go. The blast ignited the three other missiles in the rack as well as the five smaller weapons in the S-13 rocket pod. This in turn triggered the Product 305 air-to-air missile that the West had yet to inspect.
The combined blast was sufficient to separate the already weakened connection between the cockpit and wing assemblies. As the sides of the hull blew outward, the cockpit section was blown upward.
Because its attachment at the nose held longer than at the wing, the sixty-foot-long section swung upward like a giant second hand, trying to fly one last time before breaking free and landing on its back ahead of the fire.
It didn’t matter. There wasn’t anyone left alive in the inverted cockpit assembly that now lay on Runway 23 at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. The acceleration of the explosion had snapped Dimitri Voskov’s neck, the last survivor aboard. His final thought hadn’t been about his beloved Antonov Condor or Valery’s amazing body. All he knew was how much his neck hurt.
Of the helicopters, not so much as a single instrument of Russian technology survived intact.
As always, Major Eleyna Kasprak had gotten her man.
Miranda’s phone interrupted her attempt to make the others say, “Ewan McGregor.”
It was Charades, but she didn’t know who Ewan McGregor was.
When she’d asked Holly for help—it was guys versus girls—she’d whispered “Star Wars” as if that explained anything.
“Timer’s still running,” Mike called out as she stopped to answer the call.
Good. Maybe it would run out before she was done with the call. No, Mike was tipping the tiny hour glass onto its side to stop the running sand.
“Hello?”
“Where’s your team?” Miranda had always appreciated that General Drake Nason didn’t waste his time on unnecessary niceties.
“Holly’s on the coach, Mike is in my mother’s armchair,”—Mike looked down as his seat as if that was somehow shocking—“and Jeremy’s sitting on the floor by the coffee table.”
Drake’s soft laugh made no sense. “Okay. Where are all of you?”
“At my house.”
“Where is that, Miranda?”
Oh. “I live on Spieden Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington State, United Sta—”
“Yes, I know that Washington State is in the US.”
“—States. Okay, well that’s where we are.”
“How fast can you get to Kentucky?”
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About the Author
USA Today and Amazon #1 Bestseller M. L. “Matt” Buchman started writing on a flight south from Japan to ride his bicycle across the Australian Outback. Just part of a solo around-the-world trip that ultimately launched his writing career.
From the very beginning, his powerful female heroines insisted on putting character first, then a great adventure. He’s since written over 60 action-adventure thrillers and military romantic suspense novels. And just for the fun of it: 100 short stories, and a fast-growing pile of read-by-author audiobooks.
Booklist says: “3X Top 10 of the Year.” PW says: “Tom Clancy fans open to a strong female lead will clamor for more.” His fans say: “I want more now…of everything.” That his characters are even more insistent than his fans is a hoot.
As a 30-year project manager with a geophysics degree who has designed and built houses, flown and jumped out of planes, and solo-sailed a 50’ ketch, he is awed by what is possible. More at: www.mlbuchman.com.
Also by M. L. Buchman
* also in audio
Thrillers
Dead Chef
One Chef!
Two Chef!
Miranda Chase NTSB
Drone*
Thunderbolt*
Condor*
Ghostrider*
Romantic Suspense
Delta Force
Target Engaged*
Heart Strike*
Wild Justice*
Midnight Trust*
Firehawks
Main Flight
Pure Heat
Full Blaze
Hot Point*
Flash of Fire*
Wild Fire
Smokejumpers
Wildfire at Dawn
Wildfire at Larch Creek
Wildfire on the Skagit
The Night Stalkers
Main Flight
The Night Is Mine
I Own the Dawn
Wait Until Dark
Take Over at Midnight
Light Up the Night
Bring On the Dusk
By Break of Day
and the Navy
Christmas at Steel Beach
Christmas at Peleliu Cove
White House Holiday
Daniel’s Christmas*
Frank’s Independence Day*
Peter’s Christmas*
Zachary’s Christmas*
Roy’s Independence Day*
Damien’s Christmas*
5E
Target of the Heart
Target Lock on Love
Target of Mine
Target of One’s Own
Shadow Force: Psi (coming soon)
At the Slightest Sound*
At the Softest Word*
White House Protection Force
Off the Leash*
On Your Mark*
In the Weeds*
Contemporary Romance
Eagle Cove
Return to Eagle Cove
Recipe for Eagle Cove
Longing for Eagle Cove
Keepsake for Eagle Cove
Henderson’s Ranch
Nathan’s Big Sky*
Big Sky, Loyal Heart*
Love Abroad B&B
Heart of the Cotswolds: England
Path of Love: Cinque Terre, Italy
Where Dreams
Where Dreams are Born
Where Dreams Reside
Where Dreams Are of Christmas*
Where Dreams Unfold
Where Dreams Are Written
Science Fiction / Fantasy
Deities Anonymous
Cookbook from Hell: Reheated
Saviors 101
SF/F Titles
The Nara Reaction
Monk’s Maze
The Me and Elsie Chronicles
Non-Fiction
Strategies for Success
Managing Your Inner Artist / Writer
Estate Planning for Authors*
Character Voice
* * *
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www.mlbuchman.com
Copyright 2019 Matthew Lieber Buchman
Published by Buchman Bookworks, Inc.
All rights reserved.
This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the author.
Receive a free book and discover more by this author at: www.mlbuchman.com
Cover images:
Warthog making a ground desert strike © Jacetan | Depositphotos
Desert © Subbotina | Depositphotos
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Thunderbolt Page 27
