DARK HEARTED (The COIL Series)

by Telbat, D. I.

  Crawling, Corban headed south while men crashed through the forest to the north. As soon as he was clear, he jumped to his feet and jogged south. They would know he was a professional by now. Only a pro would double back and ambush a superior force. Though they would surely track him down again soon, they'd not be so careless next time.

  A mile later, he stopped and scoped his back trail. The forest was thick here, the snow barely hiding debris that would make it too dangerous to ride a four-wheeler through the trees too fast. For now, they were far behind, but surely reorganizing. They certainly knew better than he did that there was nothing but winter wilderness and then farmland to the east, and a couple of towns over ten miles away to the north and south. To the west was the autobahn that connected Berlin to the Baltic Sea. The enemy would be all over the highway. He considered doubling back to the castle again, maybe even sneaking inside the walls. No, he should never have come alone in the first place. Nathan was so close, as was one of his other agents, held in captivity and near death, but Corban had to be patient.

  Digging into his pocket, Corban palmed his satellite radio and set the frequency for all channels.

  "Bruno, Scooter, come in. Come in, Flash and Bang."

  "This is Brauch. Talk to me," a familiar voice said in German.

  Corban smiled in the night. It was so like his team to be fast asleep, warm in bed where he should've been, but the local spook to be wide-awake.

  "Oh, praise the Lord! How fast can you get to your car and get to the castle? Over."

  "I'm about three minutes out. Over."

  "Three minutes from climbing into your car? What? Over."

  "No, three minutes from the castle. You're not invisible as long as you're carrying that radio. Where do you want me? Over."

  Being vague, Corban gave him directions where he could meet him, but not so close that Brauch would be in harm's way. He switched off the handheld, stuffed it into a pocket, and started jogging east. Chloe was certain to be behind Brauch's coming to the castle, and her clear thinking may have saved his neck!

  After a mile, Corban turned south again. Suddenly, he came upon a feldweg, a dirt road that led to a square patch of cleared land where homesteads and farms were stationed by the government. Stopping, Corban listened and watched the road for a couple of minutes. His vantage point in the trees wasn't clear enough to see far down the road, but he sensed danger.

  Cautiously, he walked up to the edge of the snow-packed, dirt road. There were no fresh tire tracks, at least not since the last snow, but that didn't mean they weren’t nearby. Surely, they would have driven ahead to cut him off. He couldn't stay there forever, waiting for them to show themselves. After dashing across the road, he reached the trees on the opposite side and looked back at the road. They should've started firing already if they were there. Xacsin had too much at stake to allow an intruder to slip away.

  Jogging southward, Corban weaved through the trees and leaped over logs. Only rarely did he deviate from his heading to skirt a frozen creek bed or small clearing. It wasn't long before he came to another feldweg. Though less traveled than the last, it was no less dangerous. And since this was the forest road on which he'd told Brauch to meet him, it was even more dangerous. While watching what little he could see for five minutes, he kept his ears perked for the slightest sound. Against his wishes, he was putting Brauch in harm's way. He assumed the castle guards would have tried to close the net around him by now or stop chasing him. The castle was miles behind him.

  Starting forward, he was about to cross the road when he smelled tobacco. Smoking during the hunt? Xacsin's men were careless. Corban spotted the shape of a man standing next to a tree on his side of the road about twenty yards away. The smell of tobacco drifted on the clean, morning air.

  Not moving, Corban was surprised that he hadn't already been noticed and killed. And if there was one of them, there was certain to be another. Pairs. That's how Xacsin worked. But where was the second man? With Brauch certain to be coming up the road to give him a ride out of there—and the other castle guards following his tracks through the snow from behind—Corban couldn't wait forever.

  He slowly raised his scope to his eye. The ambusher was motionless and stared directly north. Corban could've cleared his throat and gotten the man's attention, but the man turned his head away from Corban and nodded. Nodded! Scoping beyond the nearest man, Corban hesitated to attack without knowing exactly where the other man was. It was also possible there was another pair nearby, perhaps across the road in the trees waiting for him to cross. But try as he might, he couldn't find the second man, and he dared not move another step for fear of detection.

  A branch snapped a distance behind Corban, close enough that he could hear one man curse and another apologize for his clumsiness. They were on his trail, tracking him faster than he had anticipated—so confident in their tactics that they were making careless noises. One then two flashlights came into sight, bobbing through the trees, then disappearing behind a thicker stand of timber, swiftly approaching on his tracks. Though reckless, they'd be upon him in seconds.

  As now, Corban had been in tight situations before, and most of those times he was outnumbered and outgunned. However, he would be a fool to be unconcerned. His experience told him that if he had live rounds, he could permanently take out these men, yet he was not that kind of man any longer. It wasn't his place as a man of God to kill others. He took his faith seriously, even if he had to keep it hidden or concealed at times.

  There seemed no choice but to attack and expose his position. His selector was still set on five round bursts. That was perfect for the NL-3 until the enemy closed on him. Then, he would bring the shorter NL-2 into action. It was the only plan he had.

  Carefully, he aimed at the visible ambusher's neck. The men on his trail were thirty seconds away now, which left little time to take this pair out and brace for those approaching. Gently, he squeezed the trigger.

  Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa. The soft clicking of the NL-3's action seemed loud in the quiet forest. His target toppled over and squeezed off a burst of his own rounds into the base of a tree as he faded into unconsciousness.

  That was all it took for the forest to come alive. Corban saw the second man rise up forty paces away. Too quickly, Corban aimed his rifle as SKS assault rounds spat fire at him. He pulled the trigger, but his pellets were wide and to the right. Sensing danger close by, he rolled in the snow and heard boots running on the road—besides those in the forest behind him.

  Rising to one knee, he fired at a prowling shadow no more than five yards away on the road. The man was too close to miss, but the pellet's vapor had that dangerous second or two time delay that sent Corban scrambling into a bank of snow as a live round screamed through the skin above his temple. Sprawled on his belly, he landed on his rifle with the stock stabbing into his gut. The barrel buried itself into the frozen ground.

  Another man loomed on the road, sweeping with his rifle for a target. Rolling to his back, Corban fired up at the man, but the NL-3's pellets were compacted into the snow and soil stuck in the end of the barrel. Corban rolled over again and threw the rifle at the enemy. The man ducked under the weapon and straightened up to aim at Corban, but Corban had already leveled his NL-2. He pelted the man with a dozen pellets straight in the face.

  With his position now compromised, Corban heard three or four men from two directions rushing toward him. Instead of fleeing, he ran straight at the closest foe, firing before they saw him. Ducking a blow from a fist, Corban gripped the man's gun hand, and forced it down over his knee. The man's machine gun clattered against a snowy boulder. With a grunt, Corban hooked his arm around the man's neck and twisted around to fire the NL-2 at two men running abreast toward him.

  Searing fire ripped through Corban's coat and across his ribs on his right side. Not once did he think about using the man he held in his arm as cover. He simply kept firing at the aggressors. They fell as they charged, one running face-first into a tree
and another falling headlong into a ditch.

  Corban turned in a circle, dragging the man hooked in his arm with him, but the woods were quiet again. Hurling the man onto the ground, Corban posted a heavy foot on his chest and aimed at his face as the man caught his breath from the chokehold now released.

  "Snake, come in," a muffled earpiece in the man's ear crackled loud enough for Corban to hear. "Snake, you there? I heard gunfire. Come in."

  Keeping his foot and weapon on the man, Corban reached down and forced the man's left sleeve up his arm. A snake tattoo.

  "Answer him," Corban whispered.

  The man hesitated, then raised his right hand to his ear.

  "Yeah, this is Snake."

  "What's going on? It sounds like a battle out there!"

  "We…ran into an ambush. Everyone's down, I think, but me."

  "How many were there?"

  "Eight, maybe ten. Mr. Xacsin, I think they're still out there."

  "All right. Stay where you are. I'm coming to you with reinforcements."

  Corban calmly stared down at the man, then sighed, took his foot away, and offered his hand to Snake.

  "James and John," Snake tested before he accepted the hand.

  "Sons of Zebedee," Corban responded in code.

  Snake took the hand and Corban pulled him to his feet. The agent was several inches taller than the veteran spy was.

  "You'd better get out of here," Snake suggested. He pointed across the road. "There's a couple ATVs over there. Go east. Another unit's coming from the west by way of the highway. I'll call you if you are who I think you are."

  A vehicle engine sounded in the night air. Brauch was right on time, especially since Corban was injured too badly on the head and side to continue on his own.

  "Just tell me this much, Snake—did I send you to the right place?"

  "It's worse than you even imagined. Shoot me now, and wipe out the tracks in the snow here that show we stood together."

  There was so much Corban wanted to ask him, but there was no time.

  "We're praying for you, Snake."

  Firing a burst into Snake's chest, Snake took a deep breath of vapor, then fell to one side. Catching him, Corban laid him gently on the snow. Using a tree bough, he brushed out the snow tracks before dashing toward the road, scooping up his disabled NL-3 as he ran.

  Thankfully, a town car crept up the narrow road—a vehicle that didn't belong in the forest. The window was down and Brauch held an NL-3 out the window. He leveled it at Corban until Corban was close enough to identify. Corban fell against the car as it came to a stop.

  "We have to leave the car," Corban said, pointing to the west. "Xacsin is sending men up this road from the highway. Come on. You'll have to help me get back to Berlin. I'm a little banged up."

  Stepping out of the vehicle, Brauch shouldered a small pack. Armed with an NL-2 and NL-3, Brauch appeared to be prepared for the elements. As Corban waited against the hood of the car, Brauch opened the car's gas cap and shoved a rag into the hole. He used a lighter to light the rag on fire, then went to Corban.

  "Which way do you want to go?" Brauch asked, as he supported Corban.

  "There are a couple four-wheelers across the road, there." Corban pointed, feeling weaker by the moment. "We'll have to take only one of them, though. You'll have to use my belt to tie me to you. I won't be conscious for the whole ride, I'm afraid."

  Brauch half-dragged Corban into the trees where they found the two ATVs. Behind them, the car exploded with a burst of heat and light.

  "Was that really necessary?" Corban tried to chuckle, then gripped his side.

  "That'll give Xacsin something to explain if anyone asks questions. Besides, we needed a little light to do this."

  It took the two of them only a couple of minutes to fasten Corban securely to the back of Brauch as they straddled one of the four-wheelers. Sticking a knife in the tire of the other ATV, Brauch then drove their ATV onto the road. With the car burning behind them, they sped east, deeper into the forest.

  **~~~**

  Chapter Twelve

  "I would like to speak to Mr. Dowler, Chloe," Eve Patters requested sternly.

  Before Chloe could get around her desk, Eve was marching toward Corban's office. Unlike last time when Joseph and Fon had accompanied her, Eve was alone, and in her loneliness, she seemed bolder, or maybe desperate. She obviously missed her husband.

  From her desk, Janice Dowler watched as the wife of Jesse "Milk" Patters gripped Corban's office door handle, but it was locked. Chloe caught up to Eve.

  "He's not here, Mrs. Patters. That's what I was trying to tell you. Please, let's go somewhere to talk. It's time for me to take a break, anyway. How about we go—"

  "Just tell me where he is, Chloe!" Eve fought to keep a sob under control. "I'm tired of your lies and patronizing! I want to know what's going on! What's being done for Jesse!"

  Janice could see Chloe's face start to turn red in frustration, which was rare. Chloe was quite familiar with frustrated men and stubborn operatives, but here was a hurting woman making demands. And adding to the discomfort was the fact that many in the suite were watching and listening. Biting her lip, Chloe took a deep breath.

  While her daughter was at the school for the blind, Janice often used the COIL office to coordinate medical supply drops overseas. But she saw another need now, and rose from her desk.

  "Perhaps I can help," Janice offered.

  "It's okay, Janice," Chloe said, excusing her.

  "It's not okay!" Eve shouted, her voice breaking. "I have to go back to Ohio in the morning to continue chemo, and my trip here hasn't made one bit of difference! Six months! That's how long I've been waiting for something! Anything!"

  "Eve, let's go into the waiting room to talk. Usually it's empty this time of day."

  "No! Do I have to find Jesse myself? Tell me what Corban Dowler is doing for him! Tell me right here! What's being done?"

  "That's enough!" Janice ordered sharply, shaking her finger at the troubled wife. She glanced at Chloe. "Chloe, I'll handle this, okay?"

  "Janice, no offense," Chloe said, "but you don't know what's going on."

  "Oh, don't I? I may not be one of your operatives, but I've lived with one since you were in diapers, so I know a thing or two." Then Janice softened her voice. "It's all right, Chloe. Go ahead."

  Chloe forced a smile, took a breath, tucked her head, and returned to her desk.

  Taking Eve by the arm, Janice led her to a chair against the window, then Janice sat down, facing her.

  "Now, your name is Mrs. Patters?"

  "Yes, Eve Patters. I want to speak to Mr. Dowler, even if it's over the phone."

  "My name is Janice Dowler. I'm Corban's wife. Why don't you tell me what's going on?"

  "Don't you know about the men who went missing in London? They were COIL employees."

  "I heard about it because Corban asked me to pray for them. You have to understand that our men and women are being killed or kidnapped all the time around the world as they help others. But tell me, one of them was your husband?"

  "His name is Jesse," Eve answered, nodding. "They call him Milk. And he wasn't only another agent, either. He was on Mr. Dowler's lead extraction team. So, I don’t understand how you can help me, Janice, if you don't know what's going on."

  "You said you're going through chemotherapy right now, too?"

  "That's right."

  "Wow, you're certainly dealing with a lot. But, young lady, being unreasonable toward Chloe isn't going to help anything."

  "But she never—"

  "No, let me talk. Believe me, I understand more than you think. I've been married to Corban for twenty-three years. And I didn't even know he was a secret agent for many of those years, but we have a sense as women when something is…off, right?"

  "Yes, we do."

  "COIL has so many enemies that our men have to keep things secret, sometimes even from us, their wives. That's not out of spite, Eve. It
's to protect us and to protect those in the field, men like your husband."

  "Except Corban won't even tell me if Jesse's alive! Neither will Chloe."

  "Did they tell you he's dead?"

  "No."

  "Well, it seems reasonable to assume they don't know, then. Do you want them to make something up to satisfy your demands?"

  "Of course not, but he's responsible."

  "You know better than that, young lady! Or are you just looking for someone to blame? Both of our husbands knowingly put their lives at risk every day to help others. It's been particularly crazy this past year. We've been attacked on a personal level, my family more than anyone's has. Did you know that I was abducted last year? My daughter and I? But I can't get into that right now.

  "I don't have any confidential information about these circumstances, Eve, but I can tell you that a large operation is underway overseas right now. This situation has been a priority of Corban's for months. Coming here is usually the only way for me to see my own husband because he's been putting every hour into this. You wouldn't believe the resources he's drawn from other departments to address it, meaning: he's doing everything he can to bring your husband home in one piece. I don't mean to be short with you, but how can your stubbornness help anything? There's no conspiracy to keep you in the dark, Eve. Chloe's only doing her job. That's what Jesse would want, right?"

  "But I…" Eve choked on a sob and leaned forward. Janice was there to embrace and hold the young woman as she cried. "I want to know if I should…hope or not. It just hurts so much…"

  "Oh, sweetie. Knowing my husband pretty well, I'd say if he hasn't told you that Jesse is dead, there's every reason to hope."

  "Do you really think he's getting him right now? There's nothing in the news about American hostages being paid for or traded or anything."

  "No one will know anything for sure until they all come home together, okay? Now, you need to listen to Chloe. Her job is to protect our husbands and us. Their job is to protect those who are delivering the gospel of Jesus Christ. Sometimes, because of all the danger, we can't know much of anything. It's frustrating, I know, but we must be patient.