The Persona Protocol - By Andy McDermott Page 0,112
Tony’s team would no longer be so drastically outnumbered. But if they didn’t arrive soon, their numerical advantage would be worthless. Al-Rais and his men would have left with their prize, leaving only Zykov, his bodyguards and the Vityaz’s driver.
He looked up the cutting at the stalled Vityaz as Sevnik’s group, moving at a rapid trot, passed it. The driver finally freed the cable from the hydraulics. He watched the soldiers go, then turned to toss the metal line into the snow—
Something made him freeze.
Adam knew immediately what the driver had seen. His footprints.
None of the Vityaz’s passengers had crossed the cutting. The driver peered into the woods, puzzled, then plodded to investigate the mysterious tracks.
It wouldn’t take him long to work out that someone else had been there. Adam checked the plane. The RTG was being lashed into place. ‘How far away is Tony?’
‘A few minutes.’
‘Do they know the situation here?’
‘Yes. They’re moving as fast as they can.’
‘Adam,’ cut in Kyle urgently. One of al-Rais’s men, Qasid, was coming back along the jetty, but that was not what he was warning about. ‘The driver – he’s following your tracks into the woods.’
Adam looked back along the cutting. ‘I don’t see him. Is he behind the buildings?’
‘No – he’s following them back the way you came. He’s heading straight for Bianca!’
30
Firefight
A mixture of cold and fear had driven Bianca deeper into the trees. The longer she spent crouching amongst the firs, hands and feet slowly numbing, the more exposed she felt. With no idea what was happening outside the little woods, her imagination came up with its own frightening possibilities. Were soldiers patrolling the area? Were al-Rais’s terrorists combing the forest for intruders?
A loud bang followed by a commotion from the stalled Vityaz had been the final straw. Something had happened – but what? Was Adam in trouble? Even knowing that it directly contradicted Adam’s instructions, she followed his trail. Just being able to see what was going on, she felt, would calm her nerves. At the very least, she would know if she had a genuine reason to be scared.
It had not taken her long to lug the PERSONA gear to a position with a partial view of the jetty and the ruined mine buildings. The Vityaz was stationary and silent off to her right. Most of the men were clumped together, slowly shuffling through the snow towards the lakeside. She realised they were carrying something.
The RTG. Al-Rais had got what he came for. And now he was about to take it away.
She assumed Adam had somehow sabotaged the Vityaz. But there was no sign of him – and since the men were carrying the generator rather than scouring the woods, he had obviously remained undiscovered. That realisation eased her tension, slightly. If nobody was looking for Adam, they weren’t looking for her either. She hunched behind a tree, keeping watch.
The men carrying the RTG reached the jetty, then the plane. Some talking – she recognised Zykov’s voice – and then the soldiers headed back the way they had come. The helicopter started up. Sevnik and his men were leaving.
What about the terrorists? And where was Adam? All she could do was wait, the cold gnawing at her again. The noise of the helicopter grew louder. She turned her head towards the sound, but couldn’t see the aircraft through the snow-heavy trees.
She looked back—
The stab of cold through her heart had nothing to do with the temperature. It was pure fear.
Someone was moving through the woods.
It wasn’t Adam. Too broad, coat the wrong colour. The Vityaz’s driver? He was looking down at the ground.
Following Adam’s tracks.
The tracks that would lead right back to her.
Bianca choked the breath in her throat, afraid she would be heard. She had to run! But if she did, the driver would see the sudden movement. All she could was crouch behind the tree trunk and make herself as small as possible, terror rising within her as he drew closer . . .
‘How far is he from her?’ Adam demanded. He glimpsed the driver through the trees, but still didn’t know where Bianca was in relation to him.
‘About a hundred feet, maybe?’ Kyle replied, unsure.
Adam stared into the gloom beneath the branches, but saw no trace of her. At least that was something; she was hiding. Maybe the driver would give up and return to the Vityaz . . .
‘Is it secure, Qasid?’ al-Rais asked his comrade as he reached the shore.