Pavant poked his head around. 'What's wrong?'
'Ahead,' Seronga said.
'I see them,' Pavant replied. 'Do you want me to get the night-vision goggles and intercept?'
'Not yet,' Seronga said. He regarded Maria. 'Who are they?'
'Two of my associates,' Maria replied.
'What do they want?' Seronga asked.
'They're here to help.'
'To help who?' Seronga pressed. 'You?'
'No. To help you and your people survive the night,' she replied. Her voice was chilling in its calm prediction of disaster.
Seronga looked ahead. The Jeep remained stationary.
'How did they know we were going to be here?' Seronga demanded. 'Do you have a signaling device of some kind?'
'That isn't important,' Maria replied.
'It is to me,' Seronga insisted.
'What matters is that there is an elite Spanish unit searching for your leader's camp,' Maria told him. 'These people may
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have news about them. I suggest we hear what they have to say.'
Seronga saw Finn running his hands anxiously along the wheel.
'It's going to be all right, Njo,' Seronga said.
'I'd like to get out of the truck,' he said. 'I need to get out.'
'It will be all right, I promise,' Maria assured him. 'But you had best trust me quickly.'
Seronga raised the gun. He let Maria see it but did not put it on her. The woman was obviously a skilled fighter. In tight quarters like this, it would be easy for her to neutralize the weapon by moving close to Seronga. He also did not want to risk firing wild.
'We'll all get out,' Seronga said. 'We'll go to the Jeep together. Pavant?'
'Yes?'
'Do you see anyone watching from the sides or back?' Seronga asked.
Pavant looked around. 'No. There's no place to hide,' he replied.
'All right. You stay where you are and cover us,' Seronga said. He cracked the door and eased out. His shoes crunched on the rocky terrain. 'Let's go,' he said to Maria.
The woman slid out beside him. Seronga stepped back. He allowed her to walk several yards ahead. Finn jumped out on the other side. Seronga was glad the driver did not have a gun. He was a good and loyal man, but he had never been in cornbat. He had not trained extensively for it. The damn thing was, Seronga had not expected to be in combat, either. This was supposed to be a peaceful revolution. A war of ideas, not bloodshed.
The three walked toward the Jeep. Seronga did not even think to doubt what the woman had told him, either about the Spanish soldiers or that the people in the Jeep wanted to help them. It was a remarkable individual to command that kind of trust having said so little.
Finn stayed close to Seronga, behind the woman? Seronga
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watched for signs of movement. He wondered if the occupants of the Jeep were as cool as their comrade.
He knew he was not. Although he did not show it the same way as Njo Finn, he was afraid. Not for himself but for the cause. At the same time, he had a thought that was also new to him. It was not so much a whisper of hope but a challenge.
If the Vodun gods existed, this would be a very good time for them to make themselves known.
FIFTY-THREE
Washington, B.C. Friday, 3:10 P.M.
'Chief, we've got some weird stuff going on.'
The call from Bob Herbert came while Paul Hood was checking in with the rest of the staff. There were other divisions of Op-Center that functioned independent of the core crisis management group. There was a small budget office, a human resources center, and a communications group that worked directly under Bob Herbert.
They monitored fax transmissions, cell phone calls, and satellite activities in regions where Op-Center personnel were working. Hood was lucky to have a great group of young gogetters and veterans working under him. Each learned from the others. Their briefings were always reassuring. As Bob Herbert had once put it, half joking, 'They're the bedrock on which us big ol' titans do our striding.' Hood was just happy to have a group that really supported him. That had been a big change from being mayor of Los Angeles. Unlike the city council and various
