and the feeling went away, replaced immediately by the threat of gunmen who had taken up positions on a ridge a hundred yards up the mountain from the cave.
Lourds watched the men and knew the brief shelter the generator had afforded was over. He debated trying to get back into the caves, but that wasn’t a good answer because then they’d be trapped in the tunnels once the dig site was overrun. And he fully expected it to be overrun.
The man beside the cave ran out to the rifle abandoned by the wounded ANP officer. Scooping up the rifle, he dropped to his knees and fired bursts at the Taliban on the ridgeline. The bullets drove the Taliban back for a moment. One tumbled down the mountainside, proof of the man’s accuracy.
Lourds couldn’t help thinking that an excellent soldier had been wasted as a Russia Today journalist.
Evidently out of rounds, the man got up and ran for the generator. He dropped to his knees again and quickly started searching through the wounded ANP officer’s uniform and coat.
Anna helped him, and together they found three magazines for the rifle. Her hand was shaking as she handed the ammunition to the man. “I see you found your way to a meeting with Professor Lourds after all.” She spoke in Russian.
The man stared at the woman for a moment, then he smiled and slapped home the fresh magazine. He answered in Russian as well. “If we don’t die today, I’d like to buy you a drink, Miss Cherkshan.”
“If we don’t die today, I will buy the next.”
Lourds listened to the exchange, but his mind was on the wounded man in front of him. Lourds had had first aid training. He knew how to take care of various injuries, and this wasn’t the first time he’d seen a bullet wound.
He shrugged out of his coat and pulled off his soccer T-shirt. Working quickly, he folded the shirt tightly and ignored the cold air swirling around him. He could be dead before his body had time to get truly cold.
The ANP officer had gotten shot in the side, just above the hip. Lourds pulled at the man’s uniform blouse and hoped that he didn’t unleash a spill of entrails.
The man groaned.
“Are you still with us?” Lourds spoke in Dari, then Pashto, and again in English.
“Yes. I am hurt.” The man spoke in Dari.
“You are, but we’re going to get you out of here,” Lourds said but had no idea how to accomplish the feat. He shoved the folded shirt against the man’s waist in an attempt to stem the blood.
Anna leaned close. “You will need something to secure the compress. We’ll use his belt.” She reached for his pants and expertly snaked the man’s cotton D-ring belt from the loops. “Help me get this under him.”
Lourds straddled the man, aware that the Russia Today man was blazing away with the rifle, and lifted the wounded man so Anna could slide the belt under him. She wrapped it around his middle, then slid the tongue through the rings and cinched it tightly.
Blood had already soaked the shirt.
Lourds glanced at her. “You’re very handy.”
“My father is a military man. He made sure I knew how to properly take care of myself.”
“He must be a very proud man.”
Anna smiled slightly with a hint of sadness. “Not so much. I tend to disagree with him, and he tends to disapprove of me.”
“Well, you get a gold star in my book.”
She nodded, then looked around. “We cannot stay here.”
“No.” Lourds studied their situation as well. Before he could formulate a plan, another ANP officer skidded around the corner.
The man was older, practiced, and—under the circumstances—calmer than he had any right to be. He held his rifle and took in the Russia Today man. “You know how to use that?”
The Russia Today man nodded.
“Good. Then you can cover our retreat.” The officer looked at Lourds. “You and I are going to get this wounded man out of here.”
“Where are we going?”
“As far back as we can go, as fast as we can get there. The United States Army Airborne is on the way. They’ll be here in a couple minutes. Maybe less. They want us out of the area because they’re going to rain hell on this cursed Taliban.” The officer slung his rifle and grabbed one of the wounded man’s arms. He pulled the arm over his shoulder and helped the injured officer to his feet. “Help me.”