Fight Fire With Fire. Amy J. Fetzer
rocked. Riley paused till it settled, then headed for the Jet Ski tied up at the end of the pier. He slid onto the seat, and drew his penknife to start it, then saw the key on the floorboard. Irish luck is shining, he thought.
The engine purred as he pushed the throttle and swirled away from the dock, taking it slow and staying as close to the shore as depth would allow. He was less than a half mile away riding around a jetty when he saw the chopper fly inland. Riley gunned the ski onto the sand, abandoned it, then climbed the slope to the crumbling service road.
Red painted buildings crowded the shore and reeked of rotting shellfish. A cannery, he thought and walked closer to the structure. He heard the beat of blades, saw the smoke trail. Stopping at the edge of the building, he saw their target further upriver; a parking lot for small craft launching. The tide sloshed on the ramp, deserted for the evening. He hurried alongside the building back to the street, noticing exits and wondered just what he could do right now, outnumbered and outgunned.
Leaning against a shop wall to catch his breath, he pressed the mic on voice activate and hailed Sebastian, but couldn’t get a signal. He tried it again before he moved away from the wall, nearly in the street, yet when he looked farther up the avenue, he glimpsed the rear of the motorcycle before it disappeared between buildings.
He forgot about the signal and followed the rider.
Sebastian hurried around the dented cars and fractured glass. The smell of gasoline boiled in the heat, the sun punishing and low in the sky. People scattered. He prayed the bad guys didn’t spray the place with random fire again, and signaled Max. They bolted, drawing attention to themselves and not the locals, but as they reached the side of the bridge, he realized the ATV pair were turning back. So did Max.
“Now what do they think they’re doing?”
“Not a clue, they’re boxed in,” Max said, straightening from a crouch.
From the Malaysia side, the blue lights of the Singapore border police raced closer and he could hear sirens from somewhere in the city behind him.
“So are we.” Max left his hiding place and walked into the open, ignoring Sebastian’s calls, then looked back at him. “They’re ditching over the side.”
Sebastian frowned. “Not unless they have ropes there.” It was a hundred foot drop into a depth that was debatable given the weather. He hurried to stop them when the men split apart and climbed the railing. “Oh crap.” He ran to reach the closest, but the guy simply met his gaze, then smirked sadly. He turned and jumped.
“No!” Sebastian lurched, grabbing a fistful of shirt, and held on. The fabric ripped. The weight nearly took him over the side and he jammed his knees between the steel rail slats and felt the painful pressure on his thighs. The man dangled, made no effort to reach him. Then he yanked at his shirt buttons.
“Don’t do this, man, it’s not worth it!” Sebastian shouted, his arm feeling ripped from the socket. “We can help you!”
The man looked up, his expression almost relieved. “I am already dead.”
With both hands, he ripped the shirt open and slid out of the sleeves. As he fell to the water, he twisted his body so he’d hit headfirst. The splash was abrupt and Sebastian turned his face away, but caught the burst of red in the murky green water.
“Dammit. Who’s got these guys so scared?”
He hurried toward Max on the other side of the bridge. He had a hold of the other guy, keeping him back from the edge. Then the man leveled his weapon at his face and Max let go, backing away. Instantly, the guy ran to the side and jumped. Max hurdled the rail onto the walkway to look over the side.
“It’s deeper. He’s alive.” He hopped back to the road. He headed to the the only thing running, the ATV. “You get that asshole, and I’ll get us some wheels and block escape.”
“How do you expect me to get down there?”
Max hitched the backpack and shrugged. “Jump. He made it.”
Sebastian groaned, looked down. The river was a sewer. “It’s going to take me forever to clean this gun.” He swung over the side.
Safia heard sirens. At least the injured would get help.
“Raven, give me status, please.”
She heard the fear in Ellie’s voice. “I blew it. One of them spotted me and he’s on my tail.” And that wasn’t all, Safia thought, tumbling her suspicions over in her mind.
“Can you lose him?”
“I’m trying,” she said as she found a space and rode between it. “He doesn’t matter right now.”
Barasa was going to leave the country, she could feel it. He wanted the blond man enough to risk this spectacle and that need alone put the target on the side of darkness. He’d go underground and locating him would be nearly impossible. He had all those low friends in skuzzy places and she didn’t expect the GPS to be on his car long. He was paranoid enough to sweep the restaurant, he’d certainly do double duty on the car. Then he’d know how closely he was watched. No, this mess won’t be good.
She angled the bike up the street, weaving around pedestrians and cars, and generally pissing off the locals. Buildings were emptying for the day, people hailing cabs and boarding buses. But the accidents on the bridge brought the artery to a standstill.
“Base, did you get the license on that green truck?”
“ It’s a rental. Signed by Maxwell Renfield. I bet he’s lost the deposit now. U.S. passport, by the way.”
“An American ? Great.” She just crashed a fellow countryman’s truck. The handcuffs should have been enough of a clue. Though she never knew terrorists to use cuffs, there was always a first time. The possibilities weren’t looking good, but she’d trusted her instincts till he shot his own captive in the butt.
“It doesn’t get better.”
Figures. “Spill it.”
“The bill went to the U.S. Consulate.”
“Well…this day is going downhill nicely, isn’t it?”
She didn’t want to get into a political exchange. Firing her weapon would do it though. Diplomat Security along with all the others were stinkers for behaving by the international rules when other countries ignored half of them. Singapore was nothing if not corrupt.
She bent over the handlebars, shooting between two trucks and jetting ahead. The chopper rode the skies like a Frisbee, rocking violently. The doors were shut, the windows tinted dark, but the curls of smoke were obvious.
“Do you have SAT to track Barasa?”
“No, we’re out of range. I’m silent.”
Damn. “Hop onto Singapore Air Force frequency, and don’t give me lip about authorized.”
“Yes ma’am.”
She couldn’t risk losing him and slowed the motorcycle, then shut off the engine and coasted it between a coffee shop and a printer service. She stretched, then left the bike behind a couple of overflowing trash cans and wildly growing palms. She moved toward the water side behind the buildings hemmed in dense grasses and sandwiched herself between a small dozer and a pit. The air was rank, but after a minute of working off her helmet, she was used to the odor. Cement formed a box where fishermen deposited their catch. The cannery didn’t export outside the country. The fisheries around here were nearly spent and the unkempt grounds said the industry wasn’t doing well.
She looked to the sky as the chopper struggled in the air. Smoke rolled from under the pilot’s position, then a sharp loss of power sent it crashing the last ten feet to the ground. The pilot bailed first, rushing around with an extinguisher, spraying the hull.
Safia smiled, appreciating that at least that round went