pressed her body against his in an attempt to conserve warmth.
Her touch sent a jolt of electricity through him, but right behind it came a crashing wave of guilt.
Christina was an extremely attractive woman. She was also lonely, and in part vulnerable—like him. No doubt, if they had both agreed, they could have had each other right there. But that wasn’t what Harvath wanted. He wanted Lara and she was gone.
He stood with Christina for several more minutes until they both started to warm up. Then, he gently stepped away. Things were complicated enough without adding to the confusion.
The only thing he wanted to be thinking about was getting them both out of Russia alive.
CHAPTER 61
* * *
* * *
Not in the dark,” Aleksi translated. “Not on a lake he has never landed on before. We have to wait until morning. In the daylight, he can conduct a flyover and inspect the area to make sure there are no obstructions.”
Haney had worked with plenty of bush pilots. He knew the drill. That didn’t mean he liked it.
Harvath was so close. They could be on top of him in less than half an hour of flight time. The old Pilatus airplane the Russian pilot kept in the hangar outside was capable of carrying their entire team. It was outfitted with skis so that it could land on ice or snow, exactly like the Skibird the United States had repositioned from Greenland. The Pilatus, though, was much smaller and classified as a STOL—Short Takeoff and Landing—aircraft, which meant it needed even less runway.
Even so, based on the new coordinates Nicholas had provided, the lake Harvath was at now was too small. There was another, longer lake a few miles away that would work perfectly. Harvath, though, would have to get there. That’s what Haney and the rest of the team were worried about.
“So what are we going to do?” Staelin asked, as he and Haney stepped to the other side of the room to talk.
“We wait.”
“Wait? That’s bullshit. We need to get moving. Now.”
Haney looked at him. “You’re the guy who was bitching about skiing all the way to Nivsky.”
“But we’re not going to Nivsky,” he said, pointing at the map. “We’re linking up with Harvath here. If we leave now, we can be there in two hours. Two and a half tops.”
“If you were skiing hard, over flat terrain and minimal snowpack—none of which you would be. Then there’s Wagner and their Mi-8. The minute you get picked up on any sort of imaging system, it’s game over.”
“They’ll be too busy looking for Harvath. They won’t expect us to come in from the west.”
Haney shook his head. “Wouldn’t you be expecting us? Don’t underestimate these guys. They’re good. The only reason Harvath is still alive is that he’s better.
“Then there’s the problem of the Alakurtti Air Base. We could almost hit it with a nine iron from here. Wagner wouldn’t need to waste any manpower. Their pilot could simply call it in—a column of heavily armed skiers, moving through the nearby forest, under cover of darkness. I’m guessing they’d send someone to check that out. What do you think?”
“I think it would probably get a pretty substantial response,” replied Staelin.
“Which is why we’re not doing it.”
“I understand, but we can’t just sit here.”
Haney appreciated his doggedness. They all felt the same way about Harvath, and part of what made them all so good at their jobs was never taking “no” for an answer. They were always pushing back, always looking for different and better ways to achieve their missions. Never had it been more important for any of them than right now. But Haney’s job was to examine their list of options and select the best one.
“Waiting sucks,” Haney agreed. “I get it. It’s even worse knowing that Harvath is so close. For the moment, though, he’s okay.”
“For the moment,” the former Delta Force operator stated.
“Listen, the best thing we can do for him is to get some rest and be ready for wheels up before first light.”
Staelin wasn’t done yet. “What about the Zero-Three-Hundred team?”
Haney consulted the most recent message he had received. “Finland has agreed to open their airspace. The Zero-Three-Hundred team, along with U.S. aircraft, is being spun up in Sweden right now. But in all likelihood, we’re going to get to Harvath first. If we do, then we pick him up, we get him out, and no one’s the wiser.”