The Hunters

Six men down, but his historian/interpreter was still alive.

Cobb knelt beside her and pressed two fingers behind Jasmine’s inner left ankle. It was an acupressure technique he had learned in the service, intended to help her recover. A few seconds later, her eyes fluttered open. Her pupils were clear and her flesh was pale in the streetlight, but she appeared okay, at least physically. And she would benefit from this experience: the next time she felt that fear, she would know it, confront it, and hopefully get past it.

That was how combat worked.

Jasmine looked up at Cobb in wounded wonder.

‘What happened?’ she croaked.

Cobb put his hand on Dobrev’s shoulder. ‘You survived — thanks to your friend.’

‘Really?’

Cobb nodded. ‘Really.’

She smiled at Dobrev and thanked him in Russian.

McNutt had heard the confrontation through his earpiece, but he never had a clear view from his vantage point across the street. And he felt sick about it.

‘Chief,’ he said sincerely, ‘I didn’t have a shot. I’m sorry.’

Cobb waved off the apology. ‘It’s all right.’

‘I’m coming now. Two minutes out.’

‘Don’t. We don’t need you … Sarah?’

‘Ready,’ was all she said.

McNutt slowed to a halt. ‘Instructions?’

‘B to A,’ Cobb said quietly. ‘We’ll pick you up as soon as we can.’

‘Outstanding,’ McNutt replied.

Over the intercom, Papineau pleaded with the team, hoping that someone — anyone — would recognize his authority. ‘See if you can get back upstairs. Tell Andrei that Jasmine needs a drink. If you do that, see if you can get the coin. We-’

‘Shut up,’ Cobb said.

‘Boss man,’ Garcia said fearlessly, ‘it would be a big help if I was able to laser-scan it.’

‘A painful process, if I shove that coin up your ass,’ Cobb growled.

He practically heard Garcia’s mouth snap shut.

Cobb helped Jasmine and Dobrev. He was angry with himself for having assumed Kadurik was among the initial gang of three. That was a mistake that could have cost them dearly.

‘Now what?’ Jasmine wondered.

‘You hear that?’ Cobb asked.

‘Hear what? My ears are ringing.’

‘Sirens,’ he said calmly. ‘Someone must have seen the fight and called the police. We need to go before they arrive.’ He pointed at Dobrev. ‘Tell him that.’

Jasmine did, and Dobrev replied sadly.

‘He understands,’ she told Cobb. ‘He said he’ll keep our names out of it if anyone asks.’

Cobb smiled. ‘He doesn’t get. I mean we all have to go. Now.’

Papineau objected from afar. ‘Jack, what are you thinking? We don’t know this man. His presence puts everyone in jeopardy if-’

Anger flared in Cobb’s eyes. ‘Another word and I terminate. Got that?’

Papineau’s response was heavy breathing. The only reason Cobb was still listening at all was because he needed to stay in touch with the other team members. On most missions, this was the point when he pretty much stopped giving a damn about what the bottled-water-drinking bastards back in their ops tents thought, said, or did.

But Papineau wasn’t the only one objecting to Dobrev’s inclusion in their escape. Dobrev himself was arguing with Jasmine, shaking his head and pointing to his apartment.

It was obvious that he intended to stay.

Jasmine translated for Cobb. ‘He says he’s not leaving without the coin. He left it in the open, and he’s afraid he might never see it again if he doesn’t go get it right now. I think he’ll come with us if we just let him run upstairs and-’

‘There’s no time for that,’ Cobb replied.

The sounds of the sirens were growing louder.

‘Sarah, you copy?’ Cobb asked.

‘Heard it all,’ Sarah answered.

‘Good. Smash and grab,’ Cobb instructed. ‘Two minutes. Then get down here.’

‘Two minutes?’ Sarah repeated. ‘In two minutes we’ll be two blocks from here.’

‘Prove it,’ Cobb challenged.

25

Sarah jumped backwards over the edge of the rooftop directly above Dobrev’s apartment. Her rappelling gear held fast, preventing a quick plummet to her death. In a mere fifteen seconds, she had dropped several stories to Dobrev’s locked window. A quarter-minute more, and she had popped the latch that anchored the window to its sill. She climbed inside the apartment then unfastened her harness, leaving the rope dangling down the side of the building.

She would need it again in less than a minute.

Darting through the apartment with the grace of a ballet dancer, she deftly avoided the floor lamp that cast a dim light on the apartment’s only chair. The scene struck her as sad, and she couldn’t help but wonder how many nights the old man had sat alone in the dark, staring at his treasure. But it was a thought she quickly dismissed when she spotted the coin on a small wooden table near the door, right next to the closet where Dobrev had grabbed the saddle-bolt spanner from his toolbox. With gloved hands, Sarah tucked the coin into a zippered pocket, then scampered back to the open window. She reattached her harness to the rope, closed the window behind her, and began her descent.

Anyone who happened to be looking up at the side of the building as Sarah made her way down would have been forced to choose between two, equally unlikely scenarious: Catwoman exists, or the laws of gravity had changed. Dressed from hood to booties in another black catsuit, Sarah literally ran down the edifice. The muscles in her arms burned as she pulsed her grips to keep her pace. It was not a beginner’s move; it required practiced balance and unbelievable strength. But once Sarah had gotten the hang of it, she preferred it over the standard, backwards dismount. Today it actually served a purpose, as it was the fastest way to reach the ground … other than a freefall.

True to her word, it had been little more than a minute since Sarah had entered the apartment. As she hit the ground, she reached inside her suit and withdrew a credit-card-sized remote control. Sliding back the cover to reveal the buttons beneath, she entered the combination. On the roof, the electromagnet that held the loop of rope in place around the fire escape ladder decoupled instantly. Sarah could feel the slack, moments before the full length of the rope hit the pavement. It was the latest in climbing technology, a gift from McNutt.

This is too easy, Sarah thought as she spooled the rope around her arm.

‘How we doing?’ Cobb asked as he slammed the door of the SUV behind Jasmine and Dobrev. She was doing her best to keep the old man calm.

‘Satellite says you’re clear for about forty seconds,’ Garcia said in everyone’s ears. ‘Cops are converging from the north and east.’

‘Look to your left,’ McNutt said.

Cobb glanced and saw a glimmer of light where the roadway curved. It could have been a small mirror, a pair