Brothers In Arms (Matt Drake 5) Read Free Page B

problem. They needed—
    — a second explosion shook the beleaguered plane to its metal core. A great shrieking, grinding sound spoke of unbearable stress. It rocked and shuddered through every joint. A fireball hit the cockpit, exploding through into the main cabin and taking out the pilot in the blink of an eye.
    “Move!” Drake reacted instantly. As the fire died away, he pushed Romero toward the yawning hole. Mai scrambled over to Smyth, using the chair backs as stepping stones, cat-quick and assured.
    The Zodiacs were stacked at the rear of the plane, big black inflatables with 55hp, two-stroke outboard engines. Drake knew from experience that a special fuel bladder and storage bag full of equipment would be housed at the front of the boats. He also knew that chasing after a Zodiac through thousands of feet of turbulent air into a raging sea wasn’t exactly the best way to go, but some evil bastard had taken that decision clean out of his hands.
    Drake grabbed something solid and made his way slowly toward the inflatables. It would be easy to just leap out of the plane, but that was a big-ass sea down there, and they would need shelter and even the meager security the Zodiacs offered. His head whipped back as a mighty gust of wind slapped him full in the face. A splinter of metal, flapping frantically in the gale, finally tore off and fizzed through the cabin, embedding itself deep into the far wall. Seat moorings began to groan as the pressure grew. It only took seconds, but Drake fought a lifetime to get within reach of the carefully stacked Zodiacs.
    Mai was waiting. “Ready?”
    “If I’m ever ready to do this shit, that’s when I’ll quit,” Drake yelled back at her.
    Then Mai unsnapped the security cables and the Zodiacs shifted. Mai and Smyth manhandled the first to the gap. Drake and Romero struggled with a second. The downward angle of the plane helped them heave the heavy boats into place. Only minutes had passed since the first explosion. Parts of the fuselage were on fire, streaking flames and fuel into the pitch-black night. Drake wondered what the pilot’s last communication had been. Did anyone know they were about to ditch? He double-checked his parachute.
    “Any last words?” Romero was breathing heavily at his side, eyes fully focused on the serrated gap that had been blown in the plane.
    “Just one.” Drake heaved his Zodiac off the plane. “Bollocks!” And jumped out into the furious, violent night.
    The rampant seas swelled, as if reaching up to claim their latest sacrifice.

CHAPTER FOUR
     
     
    The University of Baltimore had been chosen by Senator James Turner as the ideal place to host one of the most significant speeches of his whirlwind east-coast tour.
    By the time Alicia arrived , the crowds were gathering and the stage was in the last phase of preparation. The atmosphere was happy, expectant, the noise a slowly mounting swell. Alicia made her way to the outskirts, a little unsure of how to proceed. The team had still not confirmed any major threat to the senator. She had volunteered to take a quick inspection as much to get her out of the office and into the field as anything. Like Drake and Mai, she was a soldier. Inactivity did more than make her stale; it blunted her predator’s edge.
    She made her way to the top of a grassy knoll. The w inter sun beat down, making her shield her eyes. A sea of people chattered and bobbed around before her, waving pamphlets and campaign flyers, texting friends and flicking at their iPads. The small stage in front of them was no more than a raised dais, backed by a curtain and fronted by a microphone and a couple of chairs. Senator James Turner required no luxuries. He was famous for his outspoken stance on gun control, his ties to the community and the consistency of his promises. A clever senator, and well-funded.
    Alicia could see movement on and around the stage, the senator’s many aides prepping for the speech. She glanced at her