And then, not happy with simply waking the men who’d labored and struggled with the banner’s weight between them, he walked over and tased them into awareness.
Terri glanced at him. The look on her face said it all.
We’re gonna die.
Terri had been thinking about Cutler once more and wondering if he had been forced to join the chase team. Most of her wished for an affirmative, but that scared part of her — the one that remembered he’d chosen badly in a moment of crisis; that hoped she’d never see him again. Her soul was full of endings, seeing their parting and her death and worse — a death she wished for but would not soon come.
It was odd — but the best time of her life turned out to have been chasing Cutler. Not world-class robbery or finding him. But looking for him. She had been alone and carefree, just embarking on her journey. Wasn’t it strange how an event skipped by, unnoticed, and then later you looked back and just knew that it was something you’d never forget — something epic that would become nothing less than a deathbed memory.
Looking for Cutler. Not finding him.
And never since had she felt the same. Life had truly passed her by.
She looked to Crouch now, knowing she still had a clever, capable asset at her side. And boy, was she going to stick with him.
Alicia urged the jet to higher speeds, feeling the vibration in the wings and hearing the deep roar of the engines. The floor vibrated and the fuselage rocked as it was struck by turbulence. The pilot called back that they were an hour out from the island of Oahu.
Caitlyn called out through the tumult inside the plane. “I have it. The Shoshone Star is an oil tanker.”
Alicia considered that for a moment. “From Turtle Bay to an oil tanker? Then waveriders will be a form of boat…”
Austin bowed slowly.
“They bought passage,” Russo said, “an easy way out of the country. The tanker could be going anywhere in the world. This changes things now.”
“Why?” Alicia could barely keep her hands still she was so pumped full of adrenalin and fire.
“Isn’t it more likely that their video will be beamed from the tanker? Somewhere totally anonymous.”
“It would make it far easier for them,” Caitlyn said.
Alicia glared at them. She knew they had it all. Everything. The terrorists’ entire plan.
But she also knew it might be too late to stop them.
CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR
Alicia spoke very little as the plane skimmed down the runway, and they were quickly transferred to a helicopter. The atmosphere between them was terse and professional, brooking no mistakes.
The chopper rose immediately, and someone introduced men that Alicia was grateful for but also men she hoped to God wouldn’t get in her way. It was a difficult and complex scenario. The Hawaiians didn’t want such a high-profile resort like Turtle Bay to become associated with terrorists let alone host a gun battle, but neither did they want these terrorists to further their goals.
Whatever they were… Merriweather was still keeping a countrywide lid on the facts.
“We’re twenty minutes out,” a man said.
Alicia nodded her thanks. Another agent handed her a color photograph. “Airport CCTV caught this an hour ago.”
She studied the print, saw Crouch, Terri, Ricci and the other two terrorists all present. “Our worst fears,” she said. “I’m guessing you just received this?”
“Not five minutes ago.”
She nodded. The trouble with hiding the stark, terrible truth behind an operation meant that it did not receive the prompt attention that it should. At least she could set it straight now.
The chopper soared over the island of Oahu, hugging the coastline and passing right by the capital city of Honolulu, the main tourist destination. She leaned over to study the white-colored, high-rise hotels, bars, restaurants and sandy beaches. Even the air over Hawaii was tranquil, it seemed, the chopper cutting through the skies with no resistance. She spotted more curving coastline and then the unmistakable shattered peak that was Diamond Head, a place she’d visited once before with the SPEAR team, such a long time ago.
We fought the Blood King there, she remembered. Deep underneath at the Gates of Hell. Didn’t kill him though. That was later — at Death Valley.
And good riddance. She focused again on the new, current threat — a man called Ricci and his stupidly loyal colleagues. Diamond Head fell away and soon they were nearing the north shore.
Alicia made ready. Russo, Caitlyn, and even Austin and Cutler were fully kitted out with battle gear and weapons. The latter weren’t expecting to use them but were being dropped into a hot zone where anything could happen. Caution was imperative.
Turtle Bay was an upscale resort, situated on a resplendent outcropping of the north shore with incredible, scenic views of the Pacific and the meandering shoreline. The hotel consisted of three buildings, shaped like a three-pointed star, and came equipped with every conceivable comfort a traveler could imagine. Alicia saw the three-pointed star now as they descended rapidly through the air, aiming for the parking lots situated to the south of the property. It would be a short jog to the main building.
Of course, if the terrorists were alert they stood a good chance of seeing the chopper as it swooped in.
Alicia, Russo and four Hawaiian agents in combat gear jumped out of their seats before it landed. As soon as their boots hit the asphalt they were running. Alicia felt a warm breeze and a hot sun; it was the same day she’d arrived in Las Vegas, although it was late afternoon now here on Oahu. The skies were cloudless, the air balmy. Everywhere she looked, tourists ambled around in shorts and T-shirts or packed luggage and surf boards into their cars. Should we try to flush Ricci out quickly with a few shots into the skies or take the more secure route?
She badly wanted to follow the former instinct, but knew that the Hawaiians would stick to the latter.
It took a few minutes to reach the main buildings. Here, paths ran around the sides, leading to pools, sun loungers and a private beach access. Alicia saw that the hotel was huge — it would be almost impossible to find a guest without help from the staff.
Russo was at her side. “You think we’re in time?”
“We have to be.”
“We should send a few people straight around the side,” Alicia told the lead agent, a man named Vino.
“Reception will give us the information we need.”
“I mean — they’re headed directly from here to the oil tanker. That means boats.”
He saw the sense of it. “You two go then but do not engage unless you’re fired upon. You hear me?”
Alicia nodded immediately. “Understood, boss.”
Russo almost managed to keep his face straight.
Making sure Caitlyn knew to keep an eye on Cutler, she dashed around the corner before slowing and hiding her gun underneath their jacket. The situation and the location did not go well together; even Alicia acknowledged it was a tough predicament for the Hawaiians. A nice vista opened out before them: grassy banks and a pool full of bright blue water, bordered by sun loungers and palm trees. To the left, hotel rooms reached up several stories.
“Once we pass the pool we’ll see the beach,” Alicia urged Russo on.
“It appears to be a series of small pools,” Russo said. “Landscaped to be almost hidden from each other — tiny lagoons maybe, leading us to the ocean.”