body. What remained of Richard Kilmer collapsed in a dead heap and lay twitching for several seconds. Then he drew his last breath.
“It’s your choice, Terry,” Rafie yelled over the din of rumbling tanks and sirens, still blanketing the frenetic commotion all around. He was pointing his gun at Ventura now, who stood frozen by the unexpected discovery that Rafie was an undercover federal agent. “Think it through, Terry,” he paused. “Two other shots hit Richard from the front and from behind. You’re surrounded.”
No one could have predicted what happened next. The Lincoln Navigator, with its windshield peppered and headlights shot out, suddenly plowed nonstop into the back of the Peterbilt, hitting it with such force that everyone standing lost their balance. The airbags deployed, hiding the identity of whoever might have been driving but there was no subsequent movement from the vehicle. It remained wedged underneath the back of the trailer, steam hissing from its ruptured radiator.
The Navigator’s surprise impact caused Rafie to divert his attention momentarily to this unanticipated new threat. Terry Ventura seized the lapse in concentration to settle the score with the traitorous secret agent. He raised his gun to shoot both Rafie and Conrad but before he could take the shot, an unknown shooter’s bullet cut him down. From the way he was hurled backward, it was clear that an expert marksman with a high-powered weapon was systematically picking off the assailants-and it wasn’t anyone associated with the Navigator.
Agent Henry had joined Palmer outside the vehicle. He grabbed the spotter’s scope and was relaying vital information on the distance and direction of each shot. He had a perfect vantage point to identify misdirected shots and to offer alignment corrections.
When Palmer’s first shot went high and wide of the mark, he suggested aiming lower left to compensate. The second shot was centered but too low, hitting the target in the stomach. “Stay left, rise up two clicks, and you’ll hit center mass,” he said and watched confidently as the third shot drilled the shooter in the middle of the chest.
“Jesus-H…good shot, man, you tore him a new one. Rafie got off a head shot at the same time; the guy’s down for keeps.”
Henry kept the spotter’s scope steadily trained on the actions surrounding Rafie. All of a sudden, the Navigator rocketed into view. “Holy shit,” he exclaimed. “Marshall just slammed into the trailer. He rocked ’em hard. Damnit…didn’t see brake lights…he must’ve been hit. Stupid bastard!”
Although he saw the Navigator’s impact momentarily destabilize the trailer, Palmer never hesitated. The target’s knees buckled but quickly recovered, looking to shoot at Rafie. “Yeah, I see it,” he calmly replied, keeping his emotions in check. There was nothing worse than too much adrenaline when steadying a rifle. He placed the scope’s crosshairs on the target and said, “Okay, second shooter…shot’s away.” He took a slow, deep breath, held it, and pulled the trigger.
Palmer lost site of the hit from the rifle’s powerful recoil but could see from the way the man flew backward he’d hit his mark.
“Bull’s eye! Good shooting, ace!” Henry said, slapping his hand on the hood of the car. “Another direct hit… you’ve got the sights dialed now.”
“That’s it…let’s get in there,” Palmer said, stuffing the rifle back in the car. “Rafie has no clue he’s got backup. We need to make contact.”
“Agreed,” Henry said, keeping the spotter’s scope steady on the unfolding events before them. “It looks like the professor is trying to get off the truck. I don’t see the other two men,” he added, scanning the open field where they were last seen. “They must have bugged out. Let’s roll!”
Colt Hamil and Sully Metusack witnessed the aftermath of both Kilmer’s and Ventura’s execution. They were lying in the brush about halfway between the trailer and the depository. Neither of them could believe that Rafie was somehow involved with the failure of the mission, but they knew instinctively they were finished. To engage further was both pointless and stupid, but surrender was considered dishonorable.
“Our odds are better if we split up,” Sully said. “We’ve got about three hours before sunrise. Keep your head down, Colt. Good luck.”
“You too, Sully. Be cool.”
They crawled away in opposite directions and would never see each other again.
SIXTY-NINE
Fort Knox army base
Jarrod Conrad was appalled by the violent bloodbath all around and almost retched when he caught sight of Richard Kilmer’s lifeless, dismembered body. Even though he loathed the man and everything he stood for, he found it difficult to summon any emotion other than pity for the calamity that became of Kilmer’s life. The sight of severed body parts strewn about made it especially difficult to focus anywhere without viewing the carnage.
The antigravity generator was still bucking and straining against the heavy mounting bolts, but the gravitrons seemed to be reconstituting within the matrix of the core. The thermonuclear critical mass he feared was somehow averted. His biggest concern now was for the driver of the vehicle that had slammed into the trailer. Whatever the consequences, he needed to determine who was in the car, seized by a haunting premonition that it was probably Ryan. He decided to break away, pulling free from his newfound ally, Rafie Nuzam.
“Professor! I ordered you not to move,” Rafie shouted exasperatedly as Jarrod jumped down from the trailer. “Christ man, can you follow orders… just once? ” His alarm turned to panic when Jarrod ran to the car wedged beneath the trailer. Rafie’s singular objective was to assure Conrad’s safety. If he were harmed in any way, Freeman would skin him alive. Son-of-a-bitch!
Jarrod acted instinctively, his intuition leading him forward. “Sorry, can’t do, mister,” he yelled back, running to the car. “Someone’s tried to help us…I can’t just ignore that.”
All of a sudden Rafie’s attention was diverted from Conrad as scores of camouflaged soldiers emerged like ghosts from the darkness. They were fully armed for night combat and ready to engage any suspected enemy. Within moments the trailer was completely surrounded.
“Don’t shoot! I’m with DOD! Don’t shoot!” Rafie shouted. “There are two shooters still in the mesa,” he yelled again, pointing, cognizant that Colt and Sully were still at large.
A captain leading the charge recognized Major Nuzam’s rank and yielded his authority. “Where were the men last seen, sir?” he questioned, ready to redeploy his troops.
“About 200 yards northeast of this location,” Rafie replied, pointing in the general vicinity that Colt and Sully were headed.
Rafie looked gravely concerned. He glanced back at the generator. “Captain, radio the command center. We need to get everyone away from this trailer. There’s nuclear material aboard. It’s probably unstable. Get your men back… move! ”
“Yes, sir. I’ll report your findings, but my orders are to secure this unit, dangerous or not.”
Their conversation was cut short when another vehicle came roaring onto the scene amidst a cloud of dust. Major Nuzam and the captain drew their weapons and looked suspiciously at the two men who jumped from the vehicle, hands held high.
“Easy, Rafie. We’re cleaners,” Jason Henry said, thinking this would get his attention more quickly than anything else he could say. He stood his ground but stretched his hands higher to emphasize they were not a threat.
They could see from the shocked look on Rafie’s face that he couldn’t quite comprehend how his two old partners mysteriously showed up. It took more than a few seconds before Rafie could comprehend what was happening.
“Stars and stripes forever,” he proclaimed, baffled and astounded all at once. “Wonders never cease.”
Rafie secured his weapon and motioned for the captain to do the same. “It’s okay, Captain, I know these men. I’ll take it from here. Redeploy your men…and find those other shooters,” he ordered.
Rafie hustled over to his erstwhile buddies and the three of them exchanged a quick bear hug. “How in hell did you guys get here?”
“We’ll explain later,” Henry hurriedly replied. “It’s a long story, Rafie. Freeman sent us in to observe and
