The Midas Legacy (Wilde/Chase 12)

by Andy McDermott

  ‘Oh my God!’ shrieked Nina. The heat of the explosion had singed her hair, exposed skin feeling as if she had leaned into an oven, but she was still alive. She looked up to check that the wing had not caught fire, and was thankful to see that the fabric was intact.

  Her relief was short-lived as she realised their situation. They were far from safe. The plateau spread out below as they gained height. Lights stood out on the winding road descending the mountainside: the missile convoy making its way down . . . and trucks coming back up. Soldiers sent to reclaim the base – or what was left of it – and hunt down the escaped prisoners. Beyond was nothing but dark forest all the way to the airbase far below. Even from this distance, the enormous Antonov freighter stood out clearly at one end of the long runway.

  Eddie brought the microlight around in pursuit of the TELs. The plane had reached its top speed, which he estimated to be only around fifty miles per hour; there was no speed indicator, or for that matter any instruments beyond a crude artificial horizon and a couple of gauges. ‘We should be able to catch up.’

  Nina had to raise her voice over the wind and the buzzing engine. ‘We’re really going after them?’

  ‘It’s all we can do. Well, apart from letting a bunch of pissed-off North Koreans torture and kill us. I know this thing’s supposed to be stealthy, but I don’t fancy our chances of crossing the border without getting flak shot up our arses. And that’s if we can even reach it.’

  ‘So our choices are get killed, or try to stop them escaping with a set of nuclear missiles – and then get killed?’

  He looked back at her, downcast. ‘Afraid so, love. We’re stuck in North Korea with no backup, and we’ve just made ’em really, really mad at us. And it’s not like we can blend in with the locals – the red hair’s a bit of a giveaway.’

  ‘Just a little. But what can we do to stop them?’

  ‘I’ve still got one stick of dynamite. We can fly over the first transporter and bomb it. If we get lucky, it’ll block the road – the other trucks might even crash into it.’

  ‘And after that?’

  ‘No idea. But I don’t think . . . I don’t think we’re going to get home to Macy.’ The name was abruptly choked off by emotion.

  Nina felt the same overwhelming sense of loss and grief. ‘We shouldn’t have come here,’ she said, tears blurring her vision. ‘We shouldn’t have done this! Oh God, Eddie, why the fuck did we do this? We’re going to die and we’re . . . we’re going to leave Macy all alone!’

  ‘She won’t be alone. She—’

  ‘She won’t have us! Eddie, she’s going to have her parents taken from her – she’s going to go through the same thing as I did! Why did we . . . Why?’

  Her husband was silent for a long moment as she sobbed. Finally he spoke. ‘If we hadn’t come here, they’d still be shipping out the missiles and they’d be knocking out even more plutonium from the Crucible. At least we stopped them making any more nukes, and we’ve still got a chance of keeping those down there from leaving the country.’

  ‘I’m sure that’ll make Macy feel so much better,’ she said bitterly.

  ‘Yeah, I know. But even if Mikkelsson thinks that if everyone has nukes nobody’ll dare use ’em, he’s full of shit. It only takes one psycho megalomaniac and it’ll all kick off, and it’s not like there’s any shortage of them in the world.’ He made a course adjustment, then looked at Nina again. ‘I don’t want Macy to have to face that. So if we’re going to die either way, then at least we can do like Ock and make it count for something.’

  ‘Fight to the end, as you like to say?’

  ‘I say it because I believe it. We can still make a difference. I’d prefer to do that without fucking dying, but, well . . .’

  She wiped her eyes, then squeezed his shoulder lovingly. ‘You know something, Edward J. Chase? Probably nobody else but me would think so, but you are actually kind of noble. In your own special, sweary way.’

  ‘I try my best. All I can do, really.’ He leaned over to regard the vehicles below. ‘Okay. Let’s do this.’

  The convoy had just emerged from a zigzagging series of hairpins on to a relatively straight section of road. The SUV carrying Kang and the Mikkelssons was in the lead, the truck bearing Captain Sek and his team – and the warheads – following. Behind that was a jeep, then the three TELs and their deadly loads, the missiles lying flat in their hydraulic cradles. Bringing up the rear was a second jeep.

  Eddie fumbled the dynamite and matchbook from his pocket and passed them to Nina. ‘Get ready to light it when I say.’ The convoy was picking up speed, going faster than seemed safe considering the state of the road and the sheer size of the trucks. Kang was presumably in a rush to reach the airbase. The Yorkshireman looked ahead. ‘Bollocks.’

  ‘What?’ asked Nina.

  ‘Power lines in the way.’ He peered into the moonlit darkness. ‘I’ll have to come in from the valley to avoid the wires.’ He changed course, swinging out over the steep-sided gorge below. ‘You ready with the dynamite?’

  ‘Yeah – if I can light a match in this wind.’

  He looked over at the road, now to their right. The leading vehicles were still picking up speed, though the driver of the first TEL was apparently having second thoughts, allowing a gap to open up. That was good – a slower target would be easier to hit. Eddie judged the speeds and distances again. ‘Okay – light it!’

  The rearguard jeep had three soldiers aboard. They were in the dark about what was happening: all they knew was that Facility 17 had been attacked, and their job was to protect the missile transporters at all costs. The brutal discipline of North Korea’s military had been drummed into them, hard; taking actions or even asking questions about anything beyond the scope of their orders was an invitation for punishment.

  So when the man in the rear seat heard a buzzing noise in the dark sky, he did not immediately open fire upon it. Since their instructions had been to stop anyone pursuing them by road, he merely tapped the shoulder of the driver, his immediate superior. ‘Sir! There’s something up there – I think it’s one of our little planes!’

  The driver, his rank the Korean equivalent of a lowly private, first class, was no more ready to take risks than his subordinate – especially when said risk would involve shooting at a secret aircraft of the People’s Army. ‘Get on the radio to Colonel Kang,’ he ordered the other passenger. ‘Tell him about the plane, and ask what we should do.’

  The soldier made the call, twitching in fear when Kang’s voice roared back at him. ‘What do you think you should do, you idiot? Shoot it down – kill them!’

  The two privates hurriedly raised their rifles. A small flickering light appeared on the aircraft, giving them a target . . .

  It took Nina three attempts to light a match, and another two before the fuse caught. ‘Okay, it’s fizzling!’

  The microlight was now level with the second TEL, passing over the line of pylons. Eddie got ready to turn for his bombing run. ‘Give it to me!’

  She reached out to put it into his upraised hand—

  Gunfire sounded from behind. Bullets whipped past, a couple punching holes through the fabric wing and another striking the engine block just behind Nina. She shrieked, flinching just as Eddie threw the aircraft into a hard bank away from the road, snapping his hand back to grab the dashboard. The dynamite tumbled into the forest.

  ‘Shit!’ he yelled as a loud detonation came from below. ‘So much for stealth!’

  The firing stopped. Nina looked back through the propeller at the retreating lights. ‘Great, now what do we do? That was the last stick!’

  Her husband curved the plane around, gaining altitude. ‘We either give up and see how far this thing can take us before we run out of fuel . . . or we do something crazy.’

  ‘Crazy, or stupid?’
<
br />   ‘Usually the same thing with us, isn’t it?’ The convoy came back into view. ‘If I can get on to one of the transporters, I can take out the crew, then go full Mad Max and use it to ram the others off the road.’

  ‘You’re right,’ Nina exclaimed. ‘That’s crazy and stupid. And what would I be doing while all this was going on?’

  ‘You’d be flying the plane, obviously.’

  ‘Well obviously!’ she hooted.

  ‘It’s pretty easy. Like playing a video game.’

  ‘I hate video games!’

  ‘Except for when you were obsessed with Candy Crush! You’ll get the hang of it long before you hit the ground.’

  ‘I’m not reassured. And how am I supposed to take the controls when you’re in the front seat?’

  ‘You’ll have to wait till I’ve jumped out!’ He twisted to give her a small smile. ‘You can do it, trust me.’

  ‘It’s you I’m worried about,’ she replied unhappily. ‘Once you jump . . . that’s it. We’ll never see each other again.’

  The smile disappeared. ‘Yeah, when you put it like that, it really does seem like a shit idea.’ He sighed. ‘But I’m not just going to give up and run until they shoot me.’ He altered course to cross behind the convoy and take the plane over the trees above the road. ‘And I’ve got this,’ he added, nodding at the rifle on his shoulder. ‘So at least I’ve got a fighting chance.’

  ‘But I don’t. Eddie, what am I supposed to do without you?’ It was a question that went beyond the immediate future.

  A long pause. ‘What you always do,’ he said. ‘You survive. Somehow.’

  ‘Not this time.’ Her voice quavered. ‘Not without you.’

  ‘Hey, you never know – maybe we’ll both survive. I dunno how, but . . .’ His smile returned, warm even through sadness. ‘But I’ll only get one shot at this, so I’ve got to take it. I love you.’

  ‘I love you,’ she replied, wrapping both arms around his chest. ‘I love you so much.’

  ‘Enough not to think I’m insane for doing what I’m about to do?’

  ‘I wouldn’t go that far.’ She wiped away tears. ‘Go on then, you damn fool. Go and save the world. Again.’

  ‘We really need to start charging for it, don’t we?’ The convoy was now out of sight behind the trees, though occasional flickers of light through the foliage gave away its position. He turned the plane towards it, pulling back the throttle lever. The engine slowed, the propeller noise dropping considerably. ‘Huh. Okay, maybe it’s stealthier than I thought. I did think that trying to cross the border in a squad of lawnmowers probably wouldn’t work.’

  ‘So what’s the plan?’

  ‘They won’t be able to see us until we come over the trees. I’ll bring it as low and slow as I can, then jump out. The second I go, you climb over the seat and grab the controls. You’ll be heading out over the valley, so that should give you enough time to sort yourself out before you hit anything.’

  ‘And then what?’

  ‘I’d tell you to fly this thing as far away as you can, but . . .’ Both knew full well that she had no intention of leaving him. ‘Just make sure you get clear.’ One last loving look back at her, then: ‘All right, here we go.’

  He brought the microlight lower over the moonlit treetops, angling to cut across the road. The leading vehicles came into sight, Kang’s SUV and the troop truck now some distance ahead of the rest of the convoy. ‘Okay, get ready, get ready . . .’ He tensed, swinging both legs over the side. ‘Get ready . . .’

  The transporters swept into view below, the aircraft crossing above the rearmost—

  ‘Now!’

  Eddie jumped.

  The drop on to the missile was not great, only around eight feet – but there was no purchase on the smooth, curved surface. He slithered off, hitting the rocket’s hydraulic crane arm, hard, and rolling off it towards the ground below—

  One hand caught the transporter’s side as he fell. He swung from it, dangling with the huge wheels churning just inches away. ‘Arsing cockery!’ he gasped as his gun bounced off the road and disappeared over the edge of the gorge.

  He flailed his free arm, managing to get a secure hold. Relieved, he pulled himself higher, glancing forward to check the road ahead.

  Startled eyes stared back at him in the truck’s wing mirror.

  The transporter’s driver barked a hurried command to the other men in the cab – as the chatter of gunfire resumed from behind.

  43

  The men in the trailing jeep could hear the microlight still shadowing them, but couldn’t see it – until it overflew the transporter ahead. They opened fire as it continued across the valley.

  Eddie’s leap threw the little aircraft wildly off balance, sending it into a steep climb as it banked drunkenly to the right. Nina, clambering into the front seat, screamed as she was almost pitched after her husband. Bracing herself, she pushed the stick to the left, levelling out with a lurch – only for more bullets to lance up at her.

  The wing took several hits, fabric tearing. She looked up to see a yard-long rent in the dark material, its edges flapping furiously. The microlight rolled again. ‘Oh shit, shit!’ she panted as it veered back towards the road.

  The convoy reappeared below, growing larger as the plane lost height. She was past the third transporter, heading for the second as another burst of fire came from the jeep. The wing puckered again, the engine taking more hammerblow impacts – and stuttering.

  She tried to swing away from the looming TEL, but the controls felt as if they were submerged in molasses. The nose pitched upwards, too slowly. Glaring red tail lights swelled before her like devilish eyes—

  The little plane finally banked, but too late.

  The wingtip clipped the missile, swinging the microlight sharply back around. It crashed against the rocket’s left side, its wing snagging on the great hydraulic clamp securing the weapon for transport.

  The fuselage tore loose. Nina was almost flung on to the road, just catching one of the ladder rungs running along the length of the missile’s erector arm. The broken bodywork hit the road below her, breaking apart.

  Eddie hauled himself up on to the third transporter, crouching on a narrow footplate beside the missile. The gunfire from the trailing jeep had stopped – he guessed they were afraid of hitting the rocket – but he could no longer hear the microlight’s engine. Hopefully Nina had got clear—

  The reason for the aircraft’s silence was frighteningly revealed as its mangled remains bowled past. The propeller clanged off the TEL’s side just beneath him, slashing a foot-long tear in the sheet metal. The jeep swerved to avoid the debris, falling back.

  Nina hadn’t been in the wreckage. He looked ahead, desperate for any clue to his wife’s fate. The road curved, bringing the rest of the convoy back into view – and revealing her hanging from the second transporter’s side.

  The TEL’s wheels whirled beneath Nina. Above the long blank slab of the transporter’s side the ripped wing flapped like a flag, the lines that had secured it to its frame now whipping in the wind.

  Shock giving way to fear, she pulled herself up. Arms straining, she swung and tried to hook a foot over the edge of the bodywork—

  Lights flashed behind her. The third transporter had pulled out, the driver waving furiously from his side window.

  Warning the soldiers in her own vehicle that she was there.

  Another message crackled over the SUV’s radio. Kang listened with growing disbelief, then shouted an order into the mic. ‘They are still alive!’ he snarled to his passengers. ‘They are on the transporters!’

  ‘Perhaps we should stop so your men can get a clear shot,’ said Mikkelsson icily. ‘They seem to have trouble with moving targets.’

  The colonel glared at
him. ‘We will not stop! Two people cannot have destroyed the entire facility – they must have had help from the American special forces you warned us about. If they take the warheads or the plutonium, it will be a disaster for my country!’

  ‘And for you,’ Sarah said quietly, her face expressionless.

  Kang regarded his companions with fury. ‘We will not stop.’ He bellowed more commands into the radio. ‘I want those spies dead before we reach the airbase! Do not stop for any reason! If they damage the missiles, I’ll have you all shot as collaborators!’ His voice rose to a spittle-flecked screech. ‘Kill them, right now!’

  The jeep pulled out to overtake Eddie’s TEL, the huge vehicle obligingly shifting to the right of the road to make room. As it drew alongside, the soldier in the front passenger seat stood and grabbed the ladder rungs, pulling himself aboard the transporter. The man behind him followed suit, the jeep dropping back once both were clear.

  Eddie scrambled forward. The Koreans still couldn’t risk shooting at him, but the first man had drawn a knife or bayonet, and his companion was doubtless doing the same. He rounded the clamp locking the missile in place and headed for the cab. The soldier was rapidly gaining on him, driven by the fearlessness of youth or the terror of being blamed for failure.

  The rungs ended at the base of the rocket’s nosecone. With the warhead not fitted, the truncated tip stopped a few feet short of the transporter’s cab. Eddie clambered on to the flat deck beneath it, ducking underneath the missile as if to start back down its other side – then halted.

  The pursuing Korean reached the nose—

  A brutal uppercut smashed against his jaw. He staggered – and Eddie clamped both hands around the rocket’s support arm to pull his feet up and kick the soldier hard in the chest.

  The man flew off the transporter’s side with a winded scream. He hit the road with a harsh snap of breaking bones – and the jeep ran him over with a deeper, wetter crunch. The impact flung the vehicle off course. It hurtled out over the valley, arcing down to an explosive landing a hundred feet below.