“What’s he doing?”
“Looks like they’ve got him tied up to something.”
“I’ll cut him free, and we’ll get the hell out of here for real this time.”
“But—”
“Save it,” Hawk growled. “You take the keys to the truck, and I’ll meet you there.”
Samuels reluctantly took the keys from Hawk’s hand as they broke ranks. Keeping his head down, Hawk walked swiftly over to Hendridge and cut him free in one smooth motion.
“Keep your hands behind your back like you’re still tied up,” Hawk said, yanking Hendridge to his feet. “We’re going to make it out of here this time.”
Hendridge followed Hawk’s instructions and marched across the grounds another thirty meters until they reached the row of transport trucks. Hawk found Samuels sitting in the driver’s seat of one.
“Ready to go?” Hawk asked.
Samuels nodded and attempted to insert the key into the ignition, but it didn’t fit.
“Damn it,” Samuels said. “This is the wrong truck.”
Hawk opened the driver’s side door and slapped at the visor up above. The keys slid down and into Samuels’s lap.
“How did you—?”
“Lucky guess. It’s what I should’ve done last time.”
Samuels turned the ignition, and the truck sputtered before it roared to life.
“Now let’s the hell outta here,” Hawk said as he shoved Hendridge toward the back of the truck. They had barely finished piling in before Samuels jerked the truck into gear and started rolling.
Despite the activity around camp, several soldiers noticed the truck moving and began yelling. Then shots were fired.
Hawk ducked as he pushed Hendridge’s head down in an effort to keep them both safe below the tailgate. Shots pinged off the truck, and more men yelled as the truck increased speed. After a few more seconds, Hawk decided to look up and see what was happening. When he did, the scene wasn’t one he expected.
Three men were less than a meter away from the back truck and were preparing to grab hold of the gate and climb aboard. Hawk wasn’t having any of it. He shot two men before the third guy managed to get onto the truck’s bumper and kick the gun from Hawk’s hand. The man climbed aboard and whipped out a knife.
The truck continued rambling forward, bouncing up and down as Samuels struggled to avoid the pothole-laden stretch of road. Both Hawk and the attacker fought to maintain their balance, while Hendridge slunk into the corner near Hawk.
“Just stay there,” Hawk said to Hendridge, pointing at the corner while focusing on the man.
The man lunged at Hawk, who managed to sidestep the charge. Hawk pushed the man backward, sending him stumbling toward the side of the truck. Once he regained his footing, the man charged Hawk again. However, Hawk slid to the side, only this time, he seized the man’s arm, forced it down in an effort to shake the knife loose. When that didn’t work, Hawk spun around behind the man and wrestled him, forcing the blade to point at the attacker. The Al Hasib operative resisted for nearly half a minute before Hawk succeeded and drove the knife into the man’s midsection.
He screamed and relinquished the knife in an instinctive attempt to stop the bleeding. That was all Hawk needed to finish the man off and give him a quick death. Snatching the knife off the floor, Hawk slit the man’s throat and hurled him out of the back of the truck.
“Are you okay?” Hawk asked Hendridge.
Hendridge nodded. “I thought that was the end.”
A faint smile appeared on Hawk’s face. “We both got lucky today.”
A distant buzzing sound froze Hawk in place.
“What is that?” Hendridge asked.
Hawk held up his hand and craned his neck to hear. It was a distinct sound he knew all too well.
“Drone strike,” Hawk said.
“Drones?” Hendridge said. “What if we were still there?”
“Casualties of war—but thank God we’re not.”
Twenty minutes later when they reached the docks, Hawk convinced a man to take them back to the mainland with the promise of a handsome payday. At first the man wasn’t interested, but Hawk doubled his offer once they reached land, convincing the captain to change his mind.
Once they were back in Kuwait City, Hawk and Samuels took Hendridge to their safehouse to meet up with Alex.
“Thank God you’re okay,” Alex said. “After I lost contact with you, I wasn’t sure what happened.”
“Did you give Blunt our position?” Hawk asked.
She nodded. “He told me he had someone who could help us out, maybe get an extraction team in there.”
“Well, I have a bone to pick with him then because someone sent a drone strike to the camp.”
She slammed her fist on the table and let out a string of expletives. “Every time I think Blunt is on our side, he pulls some stunt like this.”
“Agreed,” Hawk said. “Let’s get the bastard on the phone right now.”
Alex dialed Blunt’s number and handed the phone to Hawk.
Hawk dispensed with any pleasantries when Blunt answered and put the call on speaker. “What was the meaning of sending in a drone strike to our location?”
“Drone strike? What the hell are you talking about?” Blunt asked incredulously.
“Samuels and I were stuck in an Al Hasib camp when a drone strike was called in. Fortunately, we were on the way out of there when we heard the buzzing.”
“Sonofabitch,” Blunt muttered. “That Frank Stone.”
“Did you tell Commander Stone where we were?” Hawk asked, his voice rising.
“I gave him your coordinates because he said he could get an extraction team in there to pull you out. I had no idea he’d—”
“Be careful around that guy,” Hawk said. “I don’t trust him.”
“I don’t trust him fully, but I didn’t think he’d pull something like this,” Blunt said. “But never mind that for now. Catch me up to speed on the status at Verge.”
“I think the threat has been averted for now,” Alex said. “Al Hasib managed to inflict some damage, but from the reports I was able to gather, it won’t keep the oil production down for more than a couple days. From the
