Sabotage Read Online Free Page B

soldiers, what happened to them?"
     
    Jim ignored the question. "Once they were on the ground, militia forces engaged the target."
     
    "Tell me they didn't shoot them."
     
    Jim shrugged slowly. He was in no rush to get to the punchline. If they hadn't been in public, McKnight might have grabbed the man by the front of his shirt and shaken him. Maybe a couple slaps would do him some good.
     
    Then Jim said, "Both pilots were killed."
     
    "And the soldiers?" McKnight asked again.
     
    Now, Jim frowned. "Well, that's the damnedest thing. Wouldn't you know, as soon as the troops went in to get them, a downpour started. They actually explained it was some kind of monsoon, that they couldn't see anything, and by the time it cleared the two guys were gone. They're looking for them as we speak."
     
    McKnight felt his chest tighten. He'd expected good news, had seen it in Jim's eyes, but he'd been fooled. The relationship had been contingent on the operators being captured.
     
    "Where does that put us with our friends in Beijing?" McKnight asked, then realized he had asked the question a little too quickly. He didn't want Jim knowing that he was worried. He added, "Not that they can renege on our deal now."
     
    Jim gave a slow shrug, as if the details didn't matter. "They're pissed off, of course, but they're blaming the men on the ground for not finding them. You're off the hook for that part, but they did insinuate that the full amount wouldn't be delivered until a package arrived on their doorstep."
     
    "What do they want me to do," McKnight grilled, "fly to Africa to find them myself?"
     
    "That's way above my pay grade, Congressman," Jim said. "I suggest we sit tight and let the militia goons find them." He gestured his head over to the bus. "Shouldn't you be on your way now? Your schedule shows your next stop is in thirty-seven minutes."
     
    McKnight was about to ask the man how he knew that specific detail, but then he saw that Jim's eyes were twinkling. He was yanking his chain again. Despite his discomfort, McKnight grinned, held out his hand, and said loudly for anyone nearby to hear, "Thank you again for coming, sir. I look forward to your vote in November."
     
     
     

Chapter 4
     
     
    Vince Sweeney recalled hearing once that water was the great equalizer. In his professional opinion, he’d always thought it was snow and ice. There were plenty of tough guys that, once they got plopped down on the top of a snowy mountain, would cry for their mamas and quit.
     
    He’d never minded the cold much, but then again, he'd always packed the appropriate gear to keep him warm, and his athletic lungs hadn’t ever had much difficulty acclimating to the high altitude. But now he had a new understanding of the toughness of those crazy SEALs and the training they endured—spending days in the water, ringing that bloody bell in Coronado. Cold and wet was his new hell. It wasn't that he was about to quit. He was far from that point, but the last thing he'd expected in Africa was to be cold and wet. It probably had something to do with the exhaustion and dehydration. His body was more susceptible to slight temperature changes; it was imperative to find shelter and rest soon.
     
    "Did you happen to pocket an extra bottle of whiskey before we disembarked the plane?" Karl asked. His voice was low in the darkness, and Vince could barely see his friend next to him so deep was the smoky night.
     
    "No," Vince said, "But I've got a couple Cubans, if you want one."
     
    Karl chuckled and Vince thought he detected a shiver in the man's laugh; so he was feeling it too. Though neither he nor Vince would complain, but good God, was it cold. They'd both stripped down to their boxer briefs, tying their pants and shirts around their necks. They might not need them now, but once they got back to civilization, they'd need to look a little more presentable.
     
    Luckily, they hadn't seen a soul for hours. They'd headed for the