Dead Six

terminated. Dead Six is being disbanded. We’re all going home.”

The chow hall erupted in clapping and cheers before Hunter could even finish saying it. Sarah leaned over and hugged me tightly in my seat. I could scarcely believe it, even though I’d sort of known this was going to happen. I was going to have to call Ling and tell her we wouldn’t be needing her assistance after all. A big smile formed across my face.

“Okay, okay, listen up!” Hunter shouted. “Getting home is going to be a long and painful process, folks. There’s going to be out-processing, nondisclosure agreements, and more paperwork than you can imagine. We’re still working on getting all your pay problems straightened out, too. Worse, you’re not leaving Zubara on a plane.”

“How are we leaving then, Colonel?”

“The situation in the Zoob has deteriorated enough that they’re not willing to risk our jet. Tomorrow night, around midnight, a boat will be coming for us. It’ll moor at the dock on the north side of the fort. You’re all going to board that vessel, and you’ll be on your way. Before ten people ask, I have no idea where that boat is going. I won’t be on it.”

I barely listened to the rest of Hunter’s briefing. He went on about how we needed to pack our stuff and start breaking down everything in the fort as quickly as possible. Instead my attention was focused on Sarah. She was beaming at me, a bright smile on her face. We were going to have to have a long talk about the future, about us. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy, either. But after everything we’d been through already, I knew we could make it.

As it would turn out, I didn’t know anything.

LORENZO

May 11

My phone sat in the middle of kitchen table, and I just watched it . . . waiting. The others had joined me, and the four of us were in a circle, kind of quietly looking at that phone like it was a magic oracle that was going to spit out the answers in a rhyming riddle or something. We had spent the last week preparing for today. Our equipment had been checked and rechecked. My crew was ready for anything. I didn’t know what the Fat Man’s message would bring, but I knew with dead certainty that he would call. Big Eddie’s people were extremely reliable.

And punctual. The phone buzzed. I pushed the button for speaker phone.

The Fat Man spoke. “Dead Six is supposed to leave Zubara tonight. They will be told to gather in the old Fort Saradia compound to await evacuation. A boat is supposed to pick them up at midnight.”

Reaper was already pulling up a map of the area and getting details on the old British fort. “How many men?” I asked.

“Approximately twenty-five remaining combat personnel and a dozen or more support staff. They will have all their equipment, and they will be alert. The last of them have been recalled already. Fort Saradia was their base of operations. All of their personnel will be on-site before sundown. They will need to be inside before the curfew to avoid suspicion.”

Reaper turned his laptop so I could see the fort. It was a big square of tall mud-brick walls on the coast just west of the Ash Shamal peninsula. A single road led to it, weaving through encroaching housing and terminating right at the front gate. The fort itself was big enough to fit a football field inside and had several interior buildings. That was a lot of area to cover. “Do you know where the box is being kept?”

“I do not have that information.”

Of course. “Anything else you can give me?”

“I would strongly suggest that you accomplish your mission before midnight. You do not want to be there after midnight.”

“What happens then?”

“I cannot tell you, but Dead Six will be dead by dawn. Do you understand me, Mr. Lorenzo?”

I hope you choke on a pancake and die. “Tell your boss I’ll get the box.” I hung up. The group was quiet as I studied the satellite photo of the fort. Something was going down, something huge.

Tonight I would bring the fight to Dead Six.

VALENTINE

Fort Saradia National Historical Site

May 11

1500

I found myself alone in my room, packing my belongings. Almost all of my clothes were stuffed into my duffel bag. In the short time I’d been in the Zoob, I’d somehow managed to acquire a second duffel bag’s worth of crap, and I was busy sorting through it all.

All of the gear I’d been issued was on my bed, laid out for sorting. We were told to just throw away the various fatigues and other clothing we’d used. Colonel Hunter told us to keep our body armor and weapons with us until we were on the boat and out of Zubaran waters. The situation downtown had rapidly deteriorated, and there’d been sporadic fighting throughout the tiny country. Rumors were flying about the emir’s son planning a last-ditch attempt to retake the Royal Palace. We all figured Zubara would be a war zone before the night was out, and we wanted to be ready in case anything spilled over onto our doorstep.

So the Mk 17 SCAR-H carbine I’d claimed back in February was lying on my bed, complete with grenade launcher, weapon light, and ACOG scope. I hadn’t yet reassembled it after giving it a thorough cleaning. That rifle and I had been through a lot together, and it hadn’t let me down. I wished I could keep it.

My body armor and load-bearing vest were on the bed as well. The armor still had Rafael Montalban’s .357 slug buried in it. My vest was stocked with ammunition and even a couple of grenades. The colonel had been adamant about us being ready to fight in case something bad happened, and none of us argued with him. There was no sense getting killed on your last night in-country.

I’d lined my various souvenirs up on the metal shelf that sat against the wall of my room until I figured out where I was going to pack them. The strange wooden puzzle box that I’d found in Adar’s safe was there, and I’d managed to sort of put it back together. Next to it was Rafael Montalban’s elaborate Korth revolver. I’d found my harmonica, too, which I was happy about. I hadn’t played it once since I’d been in the Zoob and had actually forgotten I’d brought it.

On the floor next to the shelf was a backpack full of money. It was my share of the loot we’d stolen from the man named Lorenzo. We’d split it four ways between Tailor, Hudson, Wheeler, and myself. Hudson was taking Wheeler’s share. He said he’d make sure Wheeler’s parents got the money. I had no doubt in my mind that he’d honor that promise.

I’d planned to use that money to pay Exodus for safe passage out of Zubara. Happily, I wasn’t going to need their services now, which meant I could keep the money. My share amounted to about a hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars’ worth of British pounds. I also had, stashed somewhere else, a smaller pouch with my half of the money from Adar’s safe. The spoils of war . . .

I called Ling on the phone she’d given me and told her the good news. She congratulated me but said that if the situation changed I could still call her. We’d made a deal and she’d honor it, she said. She told me that her people would be in Zubara for a few more days, though they were still leaving earlier than planned because of the looming civil war.

There were two quick knocks on my bathroom door, and Sarah came into my room. I smiled as soon as I saw her, and her eyes lit up. We embraced and kissed.

“Hey, you,” she said, looking up into my eyes. “Getting all packed up?”

“You know it,” I said. “I can’t believe how much crap I’ve accumulated since I’ve been here. I hope they don’t charge us for luggage.” I laughed.

“I wonder how long it’ll take us to get home?” Sarah said. “I mean, this boat could be going anywhere.”

“It could be weeks,” I suggested. “Or longer. Who knows? Hell, who cares? The