The Venezuelan scowled, insulted, and put one hand on his sidearm. ‘They will do what I tell them. I have a gun.’
‘They’ve got two.’
‘I have authority from the President himself! I am in charge here, gringo.’
He started towards the plaza, but Eddie held out an arm to block him. ‘Seriously, mate. Bad idea. We should get back to the Jeeps and you can call your people from there.’
Valero pushed him away. ‘Wait here. I will deal with this.’ He headed into the open.
‘Fucking idiot,’ Eddie growled, watching from the corner. So inattentive were the soldiers that they didn’t notice the approaching militiaman until he was barely twenty feet from them – at which point they reacted with a start, fumbling for their rifles.
Valero drew his gun. They froze. He spoke commandingly in Spanish as he strode up to them, no doubt demanding to know what they were doing. To Eddie’s surprise, they responded, if uncertainly; it seemed that he had been the domineering kind of chef. One of them pointed towards the temple. Valero instinctively turned to look—
The other soldier whipped up his rifle and viciously clubbed him in the head.
Valero staggered, and the soldier hit him again, knocking him down. His companion slammed a kick into his stomach, then grabbed the fallen man’s pistol before kicking him once more.
‘Shit!’ Eddie hissed, torn between two instincts. He didn’t want to abandon Valero, but he needed to warn Nina and the others. The soldiers would assume that the intruder wasn’t alone, and either start hunting for the archaeological team or call for backup—
The decision was made for him as one of the soldiers spotted him lurking in the alley. The man shouted and raised his gun.
Eddie turned and ran as bullets cracked off the stonework behind him.
10
Nina whirled in horror at the sound of gunfire. The echoes of the first burst faded away, the cries of frightened birds replacing them – then came another harsh rattle of shots.
Nearer.
‘Get back over the wall!’ she shouted to the others.
‘Where are you going?’ Kit demanded as the explorers rushed for the ruined stairway.
‘To find Eddie!’ She charged down the alley.
Becker, closest to the steps, was the first to begin his ascent. Osterhagen followed, picking his way up the broken section. Loose stones rattled under his weight. ‘Come on,
Cuff was right behind him, practically barging his team leader aside as he tried to claw his way up the broken stairs. ‘Move it, move it!’ he yelled. ‘I don’t wanna—’
A block burst loose under his foot. He tripped, chest thudding against the hard-edged stones, and fell back down to the ground. The entire base of the stairs collapsed, stones crashing after him. Osterhagen almost slipped as part of his footing disappeared.
‘You idiot!’ Kit shouted at the winded American. ‘You almost brought the whole thing down!’ Above, Becker hauled Osterhagen to safety. ‘Macy, I’ll pull you up.’
‘What about Nina and Eddie?’ she protested.
‘You can’t help them – you’ve got to get out of here!’ He jumped to grab the surviving part of the stairway as another burst of fire rolled through the ruins.
Eddie raced through the crooked streets, swatting greenery out of his path. Only one soldier was pursuing, the other holding Valero, but the AK-103’s firepower meant that he was completely outmatched. His only chance was to draw his pursuer away from the rest of the team, then either lose him in the maze or stage an ambush—
‘Eddie! Eddie, where are you?’
Nina, somewhere ahead. Shit! So much for leading the man away from the others! ‘They’re soldiers! Get back!’ he yelled, rounding a corner to see her running towards him. Another three-round burst cut through the air behind, chipped stone spitting at his head. Nina hurriedly reversed direction, disappearing from view.
He only had a short lead – shorter than the stretch of the alley before him. The soldier would have a clear shot at his back . . .
A gap between two buildings to his right formed a small courtyard, a five-foot-high wall at its rear. Eddie swerved into the space just as the soldier saw him and fired again, bullets hissing through the air in his wake. He leapt at the wall, slapping his palms down hard on its top to vault over it—
The ivy-covered stones broke away beneath his hands.
Thrown off balance, he hit the wall and tumbled over it, realising too late that the drop on the other side was much higher . . .
All that saved him from serious injury as he slammed to the ground twelve feet below was the centuries-old build-up of dirt – and even that couldn’t prevent a bone-jarring landing. The metallic taste of blood filled his mouth as he bit his cheek.
He groaned and spat out a crimson glob, levering himself upright. Footsteps slapped through the alley above. The soldier was right on him. The only way out of the sunless pit was through a narrow passage.
He ran for it.
