by John Sneeden
His senses on high alert, Zane continued down the wall and entered an area darkened by overhanging limbs. He paused, scanning the heavy fog for any signs of movement. As far as he could see, the street was empty. Whoever had made the noise must be gone now.
As he stood, he heard something directly overhead. Someone was on top of the wall.
He turned just in time to see a shadow coming toward him. He was hit with a force so strong that it knocked him out into the street. As he tumbled, the Glock flew out of his hand and clattered across the ground.
As Zane rose to his knees, he saw a shadow moving toward him. He turned his head slightly then froze. The silhouette of a massive man towered overhead. He had to be well over seven feet, with the girth of a body builder. It might have been the largest man Zane had ever seen.
Before he could react, the giant grabbed his hair and lifted him into the air. The man then used his other hand to punch Zane in the abdomen, knocking him back on the ground. Zane rolled into the fetal position, groaning in pain from the powerful blow.
The man picked him up again, this time grabbing his neck with a meaty paw. Zane was close enough to see the attacker now. He had Asian features, and his squarish face was the size of a cinder block. In fact, it was so wide that it pulled his features apart, giving him a frightening appearance. He looked more cyborg than human.
The man gave Zane a cunning smile then slung him violently back toward the side of the street. Zane flew through an opening in the wall, tumbling across a tangle of tree limbs and vines in the old garden beyond. He rolled to a stop then slowly rose to one knee. Despite the pain, he realized this might be the opportunity he’d been looking for. If the giant had continued to pummel him in the street, it might already be over. The toss had knocked the wind out of him, but it also gave him the chance to regroup.
Heavy footsteps approached through the gap in the wall. As Zane waited for the man to arrive, he thought of how he might turn the tables.
Think, Zane. Think.
The giant’s shadow appeared, coming toward him through the fog.
Suddenly he remembered something the Oracle had told him years ago. Some fights require unconventional weapons. When your life is in danger, you win using whatever means necessary.
Zane extended his right hand and patted around in the dark. It soon brushed over a rock. He closed his fingers around it. It was time for Goliath to go down. As the giant neared, Zane launched the rock at his head then bull-rushed him. The projectile glanced off the giant’s skull with a sickening thud, causing him to reach up reflexively. That exposed his midriff, which bore the full brunt of Zane’s charge.
The two went to the ground with Zane on top. He pulled back and began punching the man’s midsection as hard as he could. It didn’t take long for him to realize the futility of hitting the equivalent of a cement block.
Ignoring the punches, the giant reached up and grabbed Zane’s neck. His grip was like that of a hydraulic vice, and Zane coughed as his breath was pinched off. He tried to pry the man’s hands free, to no avail.
Zane’s vision began to swim. If he didn’t get out of the man’s grip, he would pass out soon. He probably had less than a minute. And if that happened, he was as good as dead.
As Zane turned to look for something to use as a weapon, he noticed a dark-red spot at the upper edge of the man’s massive forehead, where the rock had made impact. Zane knew what he needed to do. With only a few more seconds of consciousness, he pulled his head back, using his strong neck muscles to draw the man’s hands and arms outward. When he reached the point where he could pull no more, Zane whipped his head forward, surprising his opponent.
Zane’s head made direct contact on the wound. Screaming in pain, the giant reached for his head, giving Zane the opportunity to roll away.
He searched around until he found another rock. It was small, but it would have to do. He lifted it in the air then brought it down toward the man’s head. This time the giant got an arm up, causing the rock to strike a glancing blow on his jaw.
The monster of a man growled and rose to his feet, much more quickly than a man his size should be able to. As he stood, Zane could see that he was frothing at the mouth. There would be no more playing around. Now there was murder in his eyes.
As the giant lunged toward him, Zane stepped to the side and launched a right uppercut at the wounded jaw. The man seemed to expect the move, reaching out quickly and grabbing Zane’s arm. His speed was shocking. With a grunt of anger, the man flung Zane against a nearby tree. His head struck the trunk cleanly, nearly knocking him out. Sparks splashed across his retina as he tried to maintain consciousness.
The giant appeared a few seconds later, looming above him. Despite the swirling fog, Zane could see that he was now clutching a large stone about the size of a basketball, but he was handling it as though it were a piece of Styrofoam.
“Now you die,” the giant said.
Zane knew it would be senseless to put up an arm. A rock that size would pulverize any body part that got in its way. At this point, his only hope was to try to move at the last minute.
With a sneer, the giant lifted the rock into the air. As Zane watched, he noticed movement in the foliage past the man’s head. Something, perhaps an animal, was moving around on one of the limbs.
The giant growled and started his arm forward. As he did, the figure leaped out of the tree, landing on the man’s shoulders. The giant teetered, a look of confusion spreading over his face. Suddenly an arm wrapped around the giant’s head, pulling it back and exposing his neck. A knife flashed in the darkness, and there was a loud grunt as the giant swayed slightly then fell to the ground.
The man with the knife moved toward Zane, the blade flashing at his side.
Zane waited. If this one was also an enemy, then he was likely going to die.
Soon a face appeared out of the darkness, and it was one that Zane knew well.
CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR
ROD BENNETT SCANNED the area from his perch high in the tree. Other than a few rats scurrying amongst the stones, his thermal imaging visor showed no signs of life. The Chinese might be somewhere in the village, but they weren’t here.
Grabbing the limb he was sitting on, he dropped to the next one below. After gaining his balance, he looked around one last time. From here on down, he’d no longer be protected by the tree’s dense foliage. Look twice, move once.
As his eyes panned the slope above, he caught a brief flash of orange about fifty yards away. He moved his eyes back quickly, but it had already disappeared. The heat signature had been a mere sliver, which confused him.
Careful to maintain his balance, he brought the binoculars up once again, training them on the area of the flash. He turned the focus wheel slowly then stopped. A man was crouching there, hiding behind a pile of rocks. He rotated left and saw another man crouched a few feet away.
He frowned and lowered the binoculars. Why didn’t they show up on thermal imaging? The only thing he could figure was that they were wearing some sort of protective outerwear.
But could they see him? Since they were facing in his direction, he assumed the answer was “yes.”
His heart racing, Bennett looked down. Unfortunately, his rifle was leaning against the crumbling wall near the base of the tree. He had a pistol, but that wasn’t going to help with long- range targets.
As he weighed his options, Bennett heard soft footfalls on his left. Another attacker was moving toward him.
The soldier grunted in frustration. He’d stayed in the tree too long. If he’d left immediately after getting orders from Zane, he’d be back at the rendezvous point by now. Instead he’d taken a couple of minutes to look for the craft, time enough for the Chinese to lock in on him.
So what now? There was really only one option. He needed to get down to his rifle as quickly as possible. After taking a deep breath, he grabbed the limb under his feet and swung down to the next limb below. He heard the spit of two rounds c
oming from the left. One round ripped through the limb he’d just been standing on, while the other sizzled past his ear.
Bennett jumped. The drop was longer than he’d remembered. When he hit the ground, he tumbled backwards before rolling into a crouch. As more shots were fired, the Green Beret retrieved his rifle and placed it on top of the wall.
A shadow moved in the distance, dropping behind a cluster of plants. Bennett took aim and fired. The bushes shook, and there was a faint cry of pain. Bennett squeezed off two more shots, silencing the attacker permanently.
There was more movement along a line of small trees to his left. Seconds later, an attacker broke free, rushing toward him. In one smooth motion, Bennett brought his rifle around and fired two shots. The man spun, his gun misfiring into the air as he crumpled to the ground.
Two down. If his count was right, that meant there were only two left. Assuming no more had arrived.
Suddenly the sound of footsteps reached his ears. They seemed only a few feet away.
A voice spoke in heavily accented English. “Drop gun.”
Bennett thought of turning and firing, but now he could hear others approaching as well. He’d been trapped. He’d been so focused on the slope above him that he hadn’t paid attention to who might be approaching from behind.
“Drop gun!” the man shouted.
Bennett tossed his rifle to the ground and lifted his hands.
“Now turn… slow!”
Bennett stood then turned and faced his captors. One of them clicked on a flashlight and directed the beam into his eyes. Despite the glare, Bennett was able to count three men standing in front of him.
Two of the soldiers stepped forward. One stopped a few feet away and raised his weapon. The other kicked Bennett’s rifle away then approached and removed the pistol from his belt. Bennett could see that this one was older, probably the commanding officer.
“Where the other ones?” the old man asked, tossing the pistol out into the darkness.
Bennett gave him a confused look. “What other ones?”
The old man kicked Bennett’s knee from the side. Bennett cried out in pain as he tumbled to the ground. He knew immediately a ligament had been torn, effectively crippling him.
“You lie.”
Bennett rose up slightly, pain still searing up his leg. He debated whether to answer truthfully. But it would be silly to try to convince them that he was acting alone.
Finally, he wobbled to his feet and said, “We spread out to search the village, so I don’t know precisely where the others are.”
The commander looked back at one of the other men, apparently confused. The soldier uttered something that was likely a translation of what Bennet had said.
“That is the honest truth,” Bennett said.
The commander suddenly lowered his head and lifted a finger to his ear, apparently hearing something in his headset. He spoke for a couple of minutes then turned and barked an order at one of the other soldiers. The soldier turned off the light, plunging the area into darkness.
Seconds later, Bennett heard the sound of footsteps. He looked up to see three men approaching. Once they arrived, the flashlight was turned on again.
Someone spoke in American English. “What the…?”
Bennett stiffened at the sound of the voice. It was familiar, but yet the fog of the moment prevented him from recognizing who it was.
The commander turned toward the American speaker and said, “He not know where the others are. You kill him.”
“Look, that was not a part of our deal.”
Bennett’s blood froze. He realized who was speaking now. It couldn’t be true.
The Chinese commander grabbed the man by the shoulder and shoved him forward. A wave of shock passed through Bennett as he saw the face of his fellow soldier, confirming what his ears had already told him.
After a long moment of silence, Bennett asked, “What the heck is going on, Landon?”
Tocchet’s mouth trembled slightly as he spoke. “It wasn’t supposed to work like this, bro. I swear, I—”
“What wasn’t supposed to work like this?” Bennett shouted.
Tocchet’s eyes darted toward the Chinese commander. “They… they just wanted access to whatever it was we found down here. I—”
“Shut up,” Bennett said. “You disgust me.”
“I had no idea they were going to attack. I just figured… if there are aliens here, then why shouldn’t the world have access to that knowledge? It’s not like I was giving away state secrets.”
Bennett felt his own face flush with anger. “How much did they pay you? How much money are they giving you to betray your uniform?”
“It wasn’t just about the money!” Tocchet shouted. “I got cold feet, and then they threatened to harm Kate. That’s the honest—”
“Enough!” shouted the Chinese commander. He pointed a pistol at Tocchet. “I told you to shoot. If you don’t, then I shoot you.”
“Go ahead… do it, Landon,” Bennett hissed. After a long moment of silence, he continued. “I’ll die with pride, knowing I served my great country with distinction.”
Tocchet approached to within a few feet, his eyes moist with emotion. “Didn’t you hear me? They said they’d kill Kate. At that point I wanted out, but I couldn’t let my own wife die. It was Kate for some information… you would’ve done the same thing.”
“We could’ve helped you. No way they could’ve gotten to her had you sought help.”
Tocchet’s lip quivered slightly. “By that time I wasn’t thinking straight.”
“Shut up!” the Chinese commander screamed. “You have three seconds, or I kill you!”
Tocchet turned his head slightly and fixed his gaze on the commander. Bennett thought he saw a flicker of something in the soldier’s eyes.
“Do it,” Bennett said.
Finally, Tocchet took a couple of steps back. A tear ran down his cheek.
The commander waved his pistol at Tocchet. “One…”
Tocchet raised his gun. Bennett noticed the barrel was shaking slightly.
“Kill,” the commander said.
Tocchet looked at Bennett. It was a blank stare, devoid of any emotion.
“Okay,” Tocchet said, sliding his finger over the trigger.
Bennett closed his eyes and waited. His thought only of his boxer, Ava.
“Two!” the commander screamed.
The cough of several suppressed shots rang out. Bennett grit his teeth, but the pain never came. He heard bodies falling and a few grunts.
There were two more shots, then silence.
Bennett opened his eyes slowly. Tocchet stood a few feet away, a curl of smoke twisting out of the barrel of his gun. The Chinese soldiers were sprawled out on the ground around him.
After a long pause, Tocchet spoke without moving. “I… I was having financial problems. I never thought I could…”
“We all have our own demons,” Bennett said. “You don’t have to explain.”
Tocchet turned and faced Bennett. “Please tell Kate I did it for her.”
Bennett frowned.
Tocchet dropped the rifle then pulled a pistol out of his pocket, turning it at an odd angle.
“No!” Bennett shouted, lunging toward him.
But it was too late. Tocchet shoved the barrel in his mouth and pulled the trigger.
CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
OSAK SLID THE knife back into his loincloth then extended his hand.
Zane smiled at him.
The boy helped Zane rise to his feet. He staggered for a moment, still woozy from the blow to his head. Osak grabbed his arm to steady him.
“Good grief.” Zane looked over at the Chinese soldier, who was lying a few feet away. Even though he’d known the man was large, the distraction of the fight had prevented him from seeing how truly massive he was.
Osak pointed and said something Zane didn’t understand.
“I agree,” he replied facetiously. �
��He’s the biggest man I’ve ever seen too.”
Osak stepped over and pushed at the body with his foot, as if making sure he was truly dead.
Zane walked over to the boy and laid a hand on his shoulder. “Thank you.”
Osak met his gaze, and there seemed to be understanding in the boy’s eyes.
Zane looked at his watch then frowned. He was running late. Looking around, he realized he’d lost almost everything during the fight. His visor, his gun, his pack.
“Come.” Zane gestured for the boy to follow him.
Zane passed through the gate and returned to the street. He turned in every direction, but the fog and rock piles would make it almost impossible to find any of his belongings. As he started to walk off, his foot struck something, sending it skittering across the ground. He moved in the direction of the sound then crouched and patted the ground. Soon his fingers closed around the barrel of a pistol.
“At least I’ll have something.”
He stood. He could probably find his pack and rifle if he took the time, but time was the very thing he didn’t have.
He turned to Osak. “Follow me.”
Osak’s brow furrowed in confusion, but he fell in behind the operative.
Several minutes later, they arrived at the rendezvous point. Zane motioned for Osak to join him under the cover of a tree with low, overhanging branches. He didn’t want to take the chance of getting ambushed again.
Once they were hidden, Zane looked at Osak. “We wait for Brett, Bennett, and Jorge.”
“Jorge,” Osak said with a smile.
Zane turned back toward the street. Nothing moved. The only noise came from the jungle about a hundred yards away. It concerned him that none of the other three were here yet. Had they misunderstood his instructions? That didn’t seem possible. The radios had been functioning well when he’d given them, and they’d all agreed to meet back here in fifteen minutes.
