by S. L. Menear
His mangled eye socket magnified his monstrous appearance.
I emptied the Walther into his face and chest as time seemed frozen. He fell backwards and dropped out of sight as I unbuckled my harness and climbed up out the door.
Nicolai lay motionless in a pool of blood.
“He’s definitely dead this time, kids. Hurry and climb up here before the chopper explodes!” I reached in through the open door.
Charlie pushed Emily up to me, and I pulled her out.
Ow, my ribs.
Charlie climbed out, and we sprinted down the path. Seconds later, the helicopter exploded into a fireball and knocked us to the ground.
We stared at the intense flames as we caught our breath. A brisk wind carried the scent of burning jet fuel and charred flesh.
The explosion numbed our hearing. Everything sounded distant as the barrel of a pistol was pressed against the back of my head.
“No one move or I’ll blow her brains out,” Lord Edgar Sweetwater said in a bitter tone.
Twenty-Seven
Dundee, Scotland
Earlier, Ross paced in the base operations center as Corporal Burns researched properties owned by Sweetwater or one of his corporations.
“Burnsie, at the ball after the royal awards ceremony in August, Sweetwater invited Sam to vacation on his private island near the Orkneys. Find out exactly where it’s located. A fast boat probably could get there from Norway in four or five hours.”
Ross nudged Derek and pointed at a map of the North Sea. “The Orkney Islands are there. Look at the distance from the coast of Norway. Think that’s where Nicolai took them?”
Derek frowned. “Maybe. Sweetwater gave MI5 the slip today. Nobody knows where he is.”
“Got it!” Corporal Burns handed Ross a printout and pointed at the map. “It’s right there.”
Ross stared at the map. “That has to be where he took them.” He patted Burnsie on the back. “Tell the Lynx pilots wheels up in five. I’ll get the teams ready.”
Sweetwater’s island was two hundred miles from the SAS base, which wasn’t a long flight in a Super Lynx helicopter. Ross would send two helicopters with four-man teams in each. He would lead one team and Derek the other.
Sweetwater’s Private Island
“Put your hands together behind your backs and sit still.” Sweetwater slipped flexicuffs over my wrists with his left hand and yanked them tight while his right hand pointed the pistol at my head.
“Sit still while I cuff the brats.” His broken nose made him sound nasal. “Now walk ahead of me into the house, children first.”
Blood dripped from the stub where Charlie had clipped off his left pinky finger.
“How did you get loose?” I tried to distract him with conversation.
“Nicolai released me. The fool rushed out when he heard the helicopter. He should have waited for me to get the weapons.”
“Where did you get the pistol?”
“A hidden wall safe. I also keep a satellite phone in there. Too bad you didn’t find the safe. You used all your bullets on Nicolai. I’m in control now.”
He glanced at his watch. “Hurry inside! I don’t want us to miss our ride.”
My heart sank. “You called your submarine.”
“It docks in fifteen minutes. You have until then to tell me what I want to know, or the children will die.” He urged us through the door in the study’s bookcase. “Take the passage to the sub base.”
When we reached the platform above the dock, he secured us to support columns. He was careful to stay out of range of my kicks.
He lifted devices that looked like bombs from a large crate, placed them next to support columns throughout the sub base, and set the digital timers.
“Now that I’ve taken care of housekeeping issues, I’ll start with Charlie. He has too many fingers.” Sweetwater retrieved the clippers from the mitt on Charlie’s left side.
“Wait! If you harm either of the children, I’ll never tell you anything, and I’ll find a way to kill you before my last dying breath.” I spoke with a tone of absolute conviction.
Sweetwater stared at me, apparently detecting the fire in my eyes. He stepped away from Charlie. “Tell me where Poseidon’s Sword is hidden.”
“I was gathering clues when the Black Sun disrupted my search. You know I haven’t found it yet. Here’s something you may not know. I care far more about these children than an ancient weapon, so I’ll make you a good deal. If you leave the children here unharmed, I’ll go with you to help you find the weapon. You’ll never find it without me.” I managed to keep my voice steady.
“I know about the triplets. I can use one of them to find the weapon.” He smiled and stepped closer to Charlie.
“The triplets were killed in a plane crash in the Himalayas twenty-three years ago,” I lied. “I’m the only one who can locate and activate the weapon. You need me.”
His eyes revealed uncertainty as a submarine surfaced alongside the dock.
“Ah, my new stealth sub, 184 feet with an anti-magnetic steel hull. The special hydrogen/oxygen fuel cells allow for silent running underwater.” Pride filled Sweetwater’s voice.
A hatch opened on the deck forward of the superstructure, followed by an inner hatch beneath it.
“Time to go,” Sweetwater said. “I’ll take your deal.”
“Disarm the bombs first.” I saw the red LED timers counting down.
Six minutes until detonation.
Sweetwater cut the rope binding me but not my plastic cuffs. “Get moving down the steps to the dock.”
“Not until I see you disarm the bombs.”
Two men with machine pistols emerged from the hatch and stood on the deck.
Sweetwater gripped a small electronic device in his left hand. “This will disarm all the bombs simultaneously when I press the button, which I won’t do until you’re in the submarine.”
Five minutes left.
I slowly walked down the steps to the dock as my ribs throbbed from the awkward angle of my arms behind my back.
“I’ll step onto the deck, but I won’t go below until I see you activate the disarming switch.”
“Keep moving. I’ll keep my word.” Sweetwater pushed me toward the sub.
I glanced at the nearest bomb before I stepped onto the deck.
Four minutes.
Ten minutes earlier, the lead Lynx circled the burning helicopter. Ross spotted a body engulfed in flames beside the wreckage on the helipad. He tapped the pilot’s shoulder.
“Hover close to the ground and we’ll jump out. Pass the word to the other team.”
The two teams jumped from the helicopters and surrounded the mansion. After shattering windows for entry, they cleared the ground floor.
Ross and Derek headed downstairs and found the dungeon.
Ross turned on the lights while Derek stood ready to fire. It was empty.
Derek picked up something and held it out to Ross. “Look what I found.”
“A bloody pinky finger? Keep it. We’ll run the DNA.” Ross shook his head.
“I hope it doesn’t belong to Sam or one of the children.” Derek wrapped the finger in his handkerchief and put it in a zippered pocket.
“Best we find them quickly,” Ross said.
He and Derek conducted a quick check of the servant level and met the team in the living room.
“The home is empty, but we found muddy footprints from the door to a bookcase in the study,” a soldier said. “Some were child sized.”
“Must be a hidden passage. Show me the tracks.” Ross followed his soldier into the study and examined the muddy tracks. One set tracked to the right side of the fireplace and then merged with the others at the bookcase.
The fireplace poker handle was wet with blood. Ross pulled it and the bookcase opened. “Could be whoever lost their finger pulled this.”
He left two men in the mansion and led the other five down the secret passage.
When
they arrived at the submarine base, Ross found the children tied to a column and Sam standing on a submarine deck with Sweetwater and two armed men.
Ross and Derek shot the two gunmen before they had time to react.
Sweetwater held a pistol to Sam’s head as he focused on the SAS team. “Hold your fire or I’ll kill her.”
While Sweetwater was distracted by the soldiers, Sam stomped on his foot, dropped to the deck, and rolled into the water on the far side of the sub. She disappeared beneath the surface as Sweetwater turned and fired.
Ross shot him in the left shoulder, and Sweetwater dropped an electronic device. It slid across the deck into the water as he dived through the hatch.
“Hurry, Captain Sinclair! The bombs are set to explode!” Charlie shouted.
Ross spotted the bombs against several columns. Red digital numbers counted down.
“Bombs! We have less than two minutes. Free the children and take them out!” Ross ran to the dock as the submarine submerged. He frantically searched for Sam, knowing the water was cold, and her hands were cuffed.
“Help!” Sam surfaced on the far side of the submarine pen. She struggled to keep her head above water.
Ross peeled off his heavy gear, dived in, and reached her just as she slipped under the surface. He yanked her up and pulled her across to the dock.
Sam coughed up water when he deposited her on the pier and cut off her cuffs. Her eyes widened when she focused on the nearest bomb.
In a weak voice, she said, “Thirty seconds. Leave me—”
“Bugger that! You’re coming with me.”
He slung her over his shoulder, and she gasped in pain as he sprinted through the passage. When they reached the spiral steps, he took them two at a time and closed the bookcase a second before the bombs exploded in the submarine base.
“Everyone into the choppers!” Ross carried Sam to the lead helicopter.
Derek had directed most of the soldiers to board the second Lynx to make room for Sam and the children in the lead helicopter. Aboard, he wrapped wool blankets around Sam and Ross, who were shivering. The children snuggled into blankets from the house.
The ground shook as the far side of the island dropped into the sea.
Ross tapped the pilot’s shoulder. “Get us out of here! Stay well clear of the house.”
The helicopters lifted off and cleared the island’s eastern coastline when the house exploded and dropped into a massive water-filled crater. Fissures appeared like spider webs. The island disintegrated to half its size. All traces of the mansion, helipad, and submarine base were gone.
Derek nudged Ross. “Nothing’s ever easy when it involves Sam, is it?”
Ross shook his head. “She could keep our military busy for years.”
He remembered to check her hands. All her fingers were intact, but her expression was tight with pain. “Sam? What’s wrong?”
She sucked in her breath. “Cracked ribs.”
“Sorry about the rough handling, lass. There was no time.” He stroked her cheek.
“That’s okay. Thanks for saving me—again.” She kissed him.
Ross glanced at Charlie and Emily. “Derek, did you check the children’s hands?”
“Aye, they’re fine.” Derek smiled at the children.
Sam nudged Ross and whispered, “Did you find a severed finger?”
“Aye, Derek has it in his pocket. Who—”
“Tell him to drop it into the sea. I’ll explain later. Please.” She squeezed his arm.
Ross saw the desperation in her eyes and turned to Derek. “Pull that bloody digit out of your pocket and hand it to me.”
Ross passed it to the pilot. “Drop this out the cockpit side window.”
Sam sighed with relief.
“What happened to Nicolai?” Ross asked Sam.
“I gouged out his left eye, shot him full of holes, and burned him to a cinder. He’s definitely dead this time.” She snuggled against Ross and closed her eyes.
Ross processed the information and glanced at Derek. “You heard?”
“Aye.” He locked eyes with Ross and grinned. “That’s one dangerous girlfriend you’ve got there.” He chuckled.
Ross shook his head. “Aye, that she is.”
Before You Go…
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Page Ahead for an Excerpt From:
TRIPLE THREAT
Triple Threat
A Samantha Starr Thriller, Book 3
December 22, Winter Solstice
Lieutenant Mike Starr and his SEAL team waited in their rigid hull inflatable boat on the Arabian Sea. Their covert mission in Pakistan had stripped Islamic terrorists of several key players.
Heavy cloud cover inked the night, and steady rain pelted the sea and drowned out any sounds.
Mike scanned the water with his night-vision binoculars. The nuclear submarine, SSGN-729 Georgia, would surface soon and recover his team.
Something moved behind the veil of rain.
A pod of orcas glided into view. Most of the killer whales were almost thirty feet, a little longer than the boat.
“Hey, guys, we have company. Orcas are checking us out.” Mike scanned the whales. “Holy shit, a woman is riding one!”
“Your brain’s waterlogged,” a teammate said, rolling his eyes. “We’re a long way from Sea World.”
Another SEAL shook his head and laughed. “Poor guy probably hasn’t been laid in a while. He’s imagining women now.”
Mike pointed. “She’s right there and coming closer.”
His men stared.
A killer whale stopped alongside them. The woman had her arms wrapped around its dorsal fin. Long red hair cascaded over her bowed head and black bodysuit.
She looked up into his eyes. “Mike, please save me…” Her voice faded.
Mike hesitated. How does she know my name? Good god, she looks like my sister.
A SEAL punched Mike’s arm. “She knows you. Get your ass in gear!”
“Yeah, we don’t want to upset her killer-whale buddies,” another teammate said.
Mike pulled the woman up into his arms. She shivered, wrapped her arms around his neck, and snuggled against his broad shoulder.
He tilted up her chin.
“What’s your name?” He searched her face for a clue to help him remember her.
She managed one word before she passed out: “Blaze.”
The orcas scattered and vanished underwater. A massive submarine surfaced, sending a wave into their boat.
Mike carried Blaze aboard with his SEAL team. A sailor passed around towels as they dripped on a metal walkway.
The captain pushed through the team and glared at Mike. “I wasn’t informed a civilian would be with your team. Who is she?”
Mike glanced down at the beautiful redhead in his arms. “Her name is Blaze. She passed out before she could tell me more.”
The captain eased closer and scrutinized the unconscious woman. “Was she part of your mission?”
“No, sir, we rescued her moments before the sub surfaced.” Mike assisted a sailor as he wrapped a blanket around her.
The captain crossed his arms. “You found her drifting in a disabled boat?”
Mike hesitated and sighed. “Uh, not in a boat, sir.”
“Come on, she wasn’t swimming this far from shore, was she?”
Mike glanced at his men for support. “She was wi
th a pod of orcas, sir. One of them carried her right up to our boat.”
The captain’s eyes widened. “Are you saying she was riding a killer whale?”
“Yes, sir, and my men saw it too.” Mike turned to his team.
They nodded and chimed in, confirming his report.
The captain stood inches from Mike. “Why is she on my boat?”
“She said my name and asked me to save her.” Mike met the captain’s gaze. “And she bears a strong resemblance to my sister.”
“How did she know you’re Lieutenant Mike Starr? She could be an enemy spy or saboteur.”
“She called me by my first name. Her exact words were, ‘Mike, please save me.’”
The captain thrust his hands on his hips. “Lieutenant, do you know this woman?”
“I’m not sure, sir. She looks familiar, but I can’t remember if we’ve met before.”
“Well, she’s your problem. I want her guarded every second until you’re transferred to the aircraft carrier. Take her to sick bay and have her checked out.” The captain strode back to the control room.
Mike gazed at the beautiful redhead in his arms and glanced at his men. “That didn’t go so well. Get squared away and then somebody relieve me so I can change into dry clothes.” He carried the unconscious woman to sick bay.
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TRIPLE THREAT
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Acknowledgments
My highest praise goes to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who is the guardian of my soul.
Many thanks to Dottie Littlefield, Suzanne Berglind, Fred Lichtenberg, Leslie Borghini, Tina Chippas, George Bernstein, and Richard Brumer for their helpful critiques.
Special thanks to my brilliant beta readers, June Piper and William N. Wolfe, and to my special advisor, Barbi Leonard.