reupted from the cover of the forest. Bullets spat around him.
The chopper came slipping out of the sky toward him. It was coming in low, the rope flying like a slinky tail. Behind him, the forest went strangely silent. No gunfire. He didn't stop. He leapt for the rope, his gloved hands catching hold, the jerk so strong it nearly pulled his arms out of their sockets. Still, his enhanced strength allowed him to hand on while the chopper began to climb.
He was twenty feet up when he felt the sting in his thigh, and his heart stuttered with instant awareness. He glanced down to see a dart protruding from his muscle and knew why the terrorists' weapons had gone silent. They had a sniper, and he wasn't armed with a bullet. He was armed with a virus. If Draden went up into the helicopter, he was condemning everyone in it to the same death as those in the village. Without real conscious thought, he let go of the rope, dropping out of the sky and back to earth.
Virus injection. It was the best information he could give them, so they would know to leave him behind.
Malichai was staring down at him, their eyes meeting as he fell away. He saw Malichai practically dive from the helicopter, but Diego caught at him, holding him back. Draden landed in a crouch, his enhanced DNA allowing his legs to act like springs and absorb the shock. He somersaulted forward and stood up, facing the forest, his arms spread wide. Let them shoot him if they wanted, but if they didn't, he was infecting the bastards. He began walking toward the edge of all the trees and brush.
Draden. What the hell happenned? Joe's voice slipped into his mind. It was faint, as if the distance was already too far. He heard the helicopter circling back so Joe would be able to reach him. He pictured Joe holding a weapon on the crew. He could get that intense.
By the time he reached the trees, the MSS had faded away, leaving him to die however the villagers had. He'd seen the reports the Indonesian government had shared with the WHO. It was one of the reason his team had been in the region. Two team members were two of the leading scientists developing treatments, therapies and pharmaceuticals in the fields of viruses.
Infected with the virus.
Draden had taken the time to finish both his doctorate and MD, to be an asset to others on his team. He'd dabbled in biochemistry but finished his undergrad with a BS in genetics. Stanford offered a dual MD and PhD program and he'd taken advantage of that. He'd gotten his MD as an infectious disease doctor and his PhD in microbiology and immunology. He found it ironic that he would be dying of a weaponized virus after all that work to earn his degrees. Determinded to be of some use, he decided to record everything he could about his symptoms, along with any suppositions he ight have before he put a bullet in his head. He'd leave final conclusion for them.
Tell Trap and Wyatt I'll leave behind a recording. Don't know if they can use whatever I find, but they should be able to remotely access my recorder without touching the device.
I'm sorry, man. Trap and Wyatt may have ideas.
Draden knew, just from the earlier reports, that their ideas would be too late. The virus acted too fast. He would be dead before Joe had time to make it back to the States.
I'll torch the village. He hoped he'd get that done fast so he could hunt the terrorists who were infecting people and using them as bait to kill more. He wanted to kill as many of the bastards as possible before the virus took hold and left him too sick to go after them.
He could hear the chopper circling back aroung a second time. Hope you didn't put a gun to their heads. He injected humor he wasn't really feeling into his voice.
Maybe if we get you back we can find the treatment before it's too late, Malichai said.
Too fast-acting. Can't chance infecting all of you. We all signed up for one-way ticket when we joined the GhostWalkers. It's just my turn.
Fuck! Gino hissed.
I'll take out as many of the cell as I can before I go down, Draden said, meaning it. He was going to make sure as many of them were dead as possible. Not because