Monsoon.
What now? Slay asked, as they crouched, watching the launch come in, the pilot jump to the pier to the step. Khazid joined him, paused to light a cigarette, then walked toward the police post, the pilot following, opened the front door and entered.
That was Khazid, the chief of police, Slay said.
Excellent, Holley said. And as he s just over from the dhow, he ll be able to tell us exactly what s going on out there.
He ran toward the police post, flung open the front door, and rushed inside. Khazid was handing out cigarettes to his pilot and four others, and they all turned in alarm.
Who are you? What is this? Khazid demanded in Arabic.
Holley took a step toward him, pulled the Walther from his pocket, and struck him across the face. Khazid cried out and fell back across a desk.
We ve come for the English woman, Holley said. She only arrived an hour or so ago, so tell me the truth or I ll kill you. That his threat was delivered in Arabic made it even more impressive.
Khazid, fear of Ali Selim heavily on his mind, moaned and said,
What are you talking about? This is madness. Captain Slay, why are you mixed up in this?
One of the policemen at the back of the group made a move to draw his pistol from its holster, and Slay knocked him back against the wall with a blast from the Uzi. It was enough, and those unharmed put their hands on their heads.
Tell him, someone called.
So Khazid did. What was happening on the Monsoon, who was on board everything. Someone passed him a towel, which he held to his broken face.
Holley said, This is how it goes. You and your pilot will take us to the dhow in the launch and we ll go on board to retrieve the woman. The slightest thing you do wrong, you die. Is this understood?
We will do as you say.
We ll have three of those police oilskins so we look right on the launch. You and the pilot will handcuff the others, put them in leg irons and then lock them in a cell. Anyone who causes trouble will be shot instantly.
The pilot, a wild young man, looked angry, but Khazid put a hand on his arm. Do as you are told and help me, Abdul, that s an order.
The pilot nodded reluctantly. If you say so, Colonel.
The gunplay so far had been with silenced weapons, so there had been no cause for alarm for Captain Ahmed, the three sailors and four policemen standing at the rail, watching the launch come in.
One of the sailors said, The colonel appears to be bringing more police with him.
I don t see anyone I know, Ahmed said.
Who are they?
It was at that moment that Abdul, the pilot, angry and dissatisfied with the turn of events in the launch, grabbed for the very light signaling pistol that hung by the open starboard window. He reached out, raised the pistol and fired, the flare soaring into the night sky, illuminating everything in harsh white light.
He shouted at the top of his voice, They come for the English woman! Slay and his friends!
Captain Ahmed ran away along the deck, and Holley clubbed Abdul across the side of his head, and, as he went down, Slay grabbed the wheel. There was still some way to go, and shots rang out, and a bullet punched through the windshield.
Keep down, he said to the others. I ll go in fast, then swerve up close. A couple of grenades might give them something to think about.
You re on, Dillon said.
They all crouched, Dillon pulling Khazid down, and Slay pushed the launch as hard as it would go, aiming for the landing platform, turning at the last moment so Dillon and Holley could lob over two pineapple grenades. There were cries of dismay, men running to get away from the carnage. Slay brought the launch in again, bouncing against the landing platform. Dillon and Holley jumped to the deck, guns blazing, cutting some of the police and crew down, while others, shocked by the ferocity of the attack, turned and fled. Slay leapt on to the platform, the painter in one hand, and looped it over a hook to hold the launch ready against their departure.
He turned to see Khazid cowering back in the boat and shouted to him, Get up here now!
Suddenly Khazid was knocked out of the way by Abdul, the pilot, blood on his face and the signaling pistol in his right hand. As he raised it, Dillon, above him at the rail, fired a long burst with his Uzi that knocked him back over the side of the launch, the pistol discharging so that the flare glowed white hot under dark water for a moment before being extinguished.
Slay grabbed Khazid by the front of his tunic and said again,
Get up here.
Khazid was half sobbing, and Dillon reached down and pulled him up. Someone was firing from along the deck, AK-47 shots that you could hear. Together, he said, as he scrambled up with Holley and Slay, and they loosed off long bursts, sweeping the decks clear toward the prow.
There was only silence up there now and Holley pushed Khazid in the direction of the stern. You know where we want to be, so just take us there, if you want to live, that is.
The sound of shooting had everyone at the dining table jumping to their feet, and Ahmed burst in through the door from the deck.
Captain Slay is here Slay from Hazar with others. They say they have come for the English woman.
A burst from Dillon s Uzi drove him headlong to his knees at the end of the table, and the police there fired back with their AK-47s. One of them fell sideways to the floor close to Henri Legrande, who drew his Beretta.
He said to Owen, I shouldn t imagine we d get anywhere shouting, I surrender to these people. Are you armed?
I ve never had to be.
Henri leaned down and pulled a Makarov from the dead policeman s holster. He passed it across. Nine shots, make them count.
At that moment, Slay, on the deck outside, fired through a porthole window, a sustained burst that hurled both men back across the table, killing them instantly.
Ibrahim was at the deck entrance with his AK-47, Ali Selim firing a pistol he had produced from under his robe. Seeing what had happened to Owen and Henri, he turned to Ibrahim, taking another magazine from his pocket and reloading.
The women, Ibrahim, into the owner s quarters. I ll follow you. We can get away from this mess in the stern launch.
Fatima hurried ahead, pulling Sara behind her, and when she tried to struggle, Ibrahim gave her a heavy slap across the side of her head. Fatima got the wide mahogany door open to the bedrooms and pulled Sara in, Ibrahim at their heels.
The police and crew at the far end of the dining table had taken heavy casualties, and now Greg Slay, Dillon, and Holley rushed in low, sweeping the room, the men who were still standing dropping their weapons and raising their hands. Only one man was still on his feet with a weapon in his hand, and it was Ali Selim.
He leveled his pistol at Dillon and shot him twice in the chest, which because of the nylon-and-titanium vest Dillon was wearing only succeeded in knocking him down. Holley, in turn, emptied the magazine of his Uzi into him, throwing Selim backward and close to the open door to the owner s quarters, where Ibrahim, Sara, and Fatima could see him as he fell.
He s dead, Ibrahim said, kicking the door shut, as Holley and Slay pulled Dillon to his feet.
Fatima cried out as Ibrahim locked the door. No, you can t leave him like that, she cried in Arabic.
He knocked her down with a punch to the face. She rolled over, then got to her feet, a small pistol in her hand. Without the slightest hesitation, he pulled a Makarov out of his sash and shot her dead.
He turned to face Sara, a figure of total menace, and spoke in English. The small door in the corner opens to steps leading down to the stern. A launch is moored there, which is how we shall depart. He went and opened it. Lead the way.
There was a kick on the other door. She said, Like hell I will.
Ibrahim slapped her face, his fingers tightened on the hair, and he pulled her close. You will obey me by the
