Hawk scooted close to Nettles and rooted around in his pockets for the keys. Upon locating them, Hawk worked quickly to release his feet first and then his hands. He snatched Zisk’s weapon and grabbed a flash bomb, which he dropped on the road next to their vehicle. Hawk covered his head in a fetal position and waited for the device to detonate.
Once the explosion rocked the road, Hawk burst out of the vehicle and sprinted toward the trailing Humvee. He climbed inside and took off. Several bullets hit the back of the armor-plated vehicle and fell harmlessly to the side.
Hawk jammed his foot on the accelerator and stared at the road ahead of him, taking glances in the rearview mirror at the fireball engulfing the middle of the highway.
Nice work, Alex.
But Hawk still had plenty to do if he was going mitigate the disaster that Michaels had created due to his giant ego. Hawk could already imagine the video feed of him being frog marched into court and the national media smearing his good name. Tom Colton and Colton Industries would be brought into the story as well, leading to a revival of narratives about American weapons exports and how it was ruining the world. Eventually, Blunt and Alex would get dragged into the fray as well, embarrassing their families and sullying their character by one Michaels administration lie spoon fed to the media after another.
Hawk determined not to let any of that happen. He didn’t want Michaels getting an ounce of credit for taking out Al Hasib or its leader, not for personal reasons but out of principle.
Any man who tries to arm the enemy for political gain doesn’t deserve the slightest bit of praise.
However, Hawk knew if he didn’t catch Ray in the truck before he reached the port, stopping such treasonous activity would be far more challenging if not lethal. He narrowed his eyes as he bore down on the first vehicle he’d encountered since leaving the scene of his getaway. As Hawk drew nearer, he recognized the same truck he’d been confined to for hours. And while Ray drove with purpose, Hawk could tell the former Navy Seal wasn’t anticipating any hostiles on the road.
Pulling alongside Ray from the left-hand lane, Hawk rammed his Humvee into the side of the truck. Ray’s vehicle swerved off the road but maintained its speed. Hawk glanced to his right to see Ray glaring back before jerking his wheel to the left and bumping Hawk. However, the Humvee held stout. Hawk whipped back into the truck and bounced back. He repeated this maneuver three more times before the last hit sent Ray out of control.
Ray’s truck hit a rock and bounced high in the air, fishtailing for about a thirty meters before spinning out into the desert. Undaunted, Ray turned the truck around and headed back toward the highway. Hawk, who’d stopped to watch for a moment to see what Ray would do, restarted the collision protocol. Ray weakly tapped Hawk first before he retaliated by laying hard into the side of Ray’s truck. On the second series of exchanges, Hawk only needed two hits before he knocked Ray off the road—only this time Ray didn’t come back.
Teetering from side to side, Ray’s vehicle lost its center mass and toppled to the ground, skidding along on the passenger’s side for about fifty meters. Hawk decided against watching from afar and roared up next to the crippled truck.
The driver’s side door flung open, revealing an armed Ray. Clutching a pistol in his right hand, he climbed out and staggered to the ground. A gash on his forehead resulted in a fresh stream of blood that marred his face. His shoulder also drooped as he winced every time he reached over and touched it.
Meanwhile, Hawk was already braced against the hood of the Humvee, his rifle trained on Ray.
“This is the end of the line, Ray,” Hawk said.
“What are you gonna do, Hawk? You gonna shoot me? Killing me won’t solve anything. Michaels will just trot out some other lackey to accomplish his agenda.”
Hawk shrugged. “I’m not trying to stop everything that lame excuse for a leader is going to do. But I am going to make sure nothing happens tonight.”
Ray chuckled. “And this from a man who suggested just giving working weapons to Al Hasib.”
Hawk shook his head. “Wanna open up the back here and make a little bet?”
Ray didn’t flinch.
“I bet you that there isn’t a single sabotaged weapon in that entire shipment there,” Hawk said. “You know I’m right, don’t you?”
Ray remained quiet.
“I figured it all out, Ray. It all dawned on me, this whole ruse you and Ackerman were running.”
“This wasn’t the original plan,” Ray said. “But Ackerman knew that Michaels was after you.”
“And how did he know who I was? Did you tell him, Ray?”
“The moment you showed your face, I let him know what was up.”
“So, I did that whole Chuck Pearl routine just for his own amusement?”
“Pretty much,” Ray said. “He’s got a twisted sense of humor.”
“So do you. You were the one who made a mockery of me, blew my cover, delivered me to the clueless Rangers. This was all one very big elaborate setup.”
“We were just gonna deliver the weapons. No one would’ve been the wiser.”
Hawk nodded. “You’re right. No one would’ve been. But you and Ackerman are opportunists, aren’t you? Just like Michaels.”
“I’m not going to apologize for anything. Never look a gift horse in the mouth, right? Plus, I still hold you accountable for what happened that night in Jalabad. You checked out on us—and it nearly got us all killed.”
“We all deserved to die that night for what we did.”
“Everything isn’t always neat and tidy as you want it to be. Sometimes, the only way you can get what you want is to step over the
