‘He’ll still be alive when you get back. Now do as you’re told. Torres will keep him nice and warm for you.’
‘Fuck, Colonel. It takes at least three hours to go from here to Aqaba and back, even if we’re driving at top speed in the Humvee. If Torres gets his hands on the priest, there’ll be nothing left of him by the time I get back.’
‘Believe me, Gottlieb. You’ll be back in an hour.’
‘What are you saying, sir?’
Dekker looked at him seriously, annoyed by his subordinate’s slowness. He hated having to spell things out.
‘Sarsaparilla, Gottlieb. And make it quick.’
80
AL MUDAWWARA DESERT, JORDAN
Thursday, 20 July 2006. 7:14 a.m.
Sitting in the back of the H3, Andrea half closed her eyes in a vain attempt to deal with the dust that was pouring in through the windows. The explosion of the fuel tanker had blown out the vehicle’s windows and cracked the windscreen, and even though Alryk had repaired some of the holes with duct tape and a few shirts, he had worked so quickly that there were still places where the sand blew in. Harel complained, but the soldier didn’t reply. He was holding the steering wheel with both hands, his knuckles white and his mouth tense. He had raced over the large dune at the entrance to the canyon in only three minutes and was now stepping on the accelerator as if his life depended on it.
‘It won’t be the most comfortable trip in the world, but at least we’re going home,’ Doc said, putting her hand on Andrea’s thigh. Andrea grasped her hand firmly.
‘Why did he do it, Doc? Why did he have explosives in his briefcase? Tell me they planted them on him,’ said the young reporter, almost pleading.
The doctor leaned closer, so that Alryk couldn’t hear her, although she doubted he could hear anything with the noise of the engine and the wind flapping the temporary covers on the windows.
‘I don’t know, Andrea, but the explosives were his.’
‘How do you know?’ asked Andrea, her eyes suddenly serious.
‘Because he told me. After you heard the soldiers talking when you were under their tent, he came to me for help with a crazy plan to blow up the water supply.’
‘Doc, what are you saying? You knew about that?’
‘He came here because of you. He saved your life once before, and according to the code of honour his kind live by, he believes he must assist you any time you need help. In any case, for reasons I don’t quite understand, it was his boss who got you involved in the first place. He wanted to make sure Fowler was on the expedition.’
‘Is that why Kayn mentioned the thing about the worm?’
‘Yes. For Kayn and his people you were just a way of controlling Fowler. Everything’s been a lie from the very start.’
‘And what will happen to him now?’
‘Forget about him. They’ll interrogate him and then… he’ll disappear. And before you say anything, don’t even think about going back there.’
The reality of the situation left the reporter stunned.
‘Why, Doc?’ Andrea pulled away from her in disgust. ‘Why didn’t you tell me, after all we’ve been through? You swore you’d never lie to me again. You swore while we were making love. I don’t know how I could have been so stupid…’
‘I say a lot of things.’ A tear slid down Harel’s cheek, but when she continued her voice was steely. ‘His mission is different from mine. For me, this was just another of the silly expeditions that take place from time to time. But Fowler knew it could be the real thing. And if it was, he knew he had to do something about it.’
‘And what was that? Blow us all up?’
‘I don’t know who set off the explosion this morning, but believe me, it wasn’t Anthony Fowler.’
‘But you didn’t say anything.’
‘I couldn’t say anything without implicating myself,’ Harel said looking away. ‘I knew they would get us out of there… I… wanted to be with you. Away from the excavation. Away from my life, I suppose.’
‘What about Forrester? He was your patient and you left him there.’
‘He died this morning, Andrea. Just before the explosion, as a matter of fact. He’s been ill for years, you know that.’
Andrea shook her head.
If I was American I’d win the Pulitzer, but at what price?
‘I can’t believe it. So many deaths, so much violence, and all for a ridiculous museum piece.’
‘Fowler didn’t explain it to you? There’s much more at stake here…’ Harel stopped talking as the Humvee slowed down.
‘This isn’t right,’ she said, looking out through the cracks in the window. ‘There’s nothing here.’
The vehicle came to a rough stop.
‘Hey, Alryk, what are you doing?’ Andrea said. Why are we stopping?’
The big German didn’t say anything. Very slowly, he took the keys out of the ignition, pulled up the handbrake, and got out of the Hummer, slamming the door.
‘Shit. They wouldn’t dare,’ Harel said.
Andrea saw the fear in the doctor’s eyes. She could hear Alryk’s footsteps in the sand. He was coming around to Harel’s side.
‘What’s going on, Doc?’
The door opened.
‘Get out,’ Alryk said coldly, his face impassive.
‘You can’t do this,’ Harel said, not moving an inch. ‘Your commander doesn’t want to make an enemy of Mossad. We’re very bad enemies to have.’
‘Orders are orders. Get out.’
‘Not her. At least let her go, please.’
The German brought his hand to his belt and pulled his automatic pistol from the holster.
‘For the last time. Get out of the vehicle.’
Harel looked at Andrea, resigned to her fate. She shrugged and with both hands grabbed hold of the passenger handle above the side window to exit the vehicle. But suddenly she tensed her arm muscles and, still gripping the handle, swung her feet out, hitting Alryk in the chest with her heavy boots. The German let go of the pistol, which fell to the ground. Harel lunged head first at the soldier, knocking him down. The doctor leapt up immediately and kicked the German in the face, splitting his eyebrow and damaging his eye. Doc lifted her foot over his face, ready to finish the job but the soldier came to, grabbed her foot with his huge hand and spun her violently to the left. There was a loud sound of breaking bone as Doc fell.
The mercenary stood up and turned around. Andrea was coming at him, ready to strike, but the soldier disposed of her by smacking her with the back of his hand, leaving an ugly red welt on her cheek. Andrea fell backwards. As she hit the sand she felt something hard beneath her.
Alryk now bent over Harel. He grabbed the big mane of curly black hair and pulled, lifting her up as if she were a rag doll until his face was next to hers. Harel was still reeling from the shock but managed to look the soldier in the eye and spat at him.
‘Fuck you, you piece of shit.’
The German spat back at her, and then lifted his right hand, which was holding a combat knife. He sank it into Harel’s stomach, enjoying the sight of his victim’s eyes rolling back and her mouth opening as she fought to breathe. Alryk turned the knife in the wound and then pulled it out roughly. Blood gushed out, splashing the soldier’s uniform and boots. He let go of the doctor, a look of disgust on his face.
‘Nooo!’
The mercenary now turned to Andrea, who had landed on the pistol and was trying to find the safety catch. She screamed with all her might and pressed the trigger.
The automatic jumped in her hands, leaving her fingers numb. She had never fired a gun before and it showed. The bullet whistled past the German and slammed into the door of the Hummer. Alryk yelled something in German and charged at her. Almost without looking, Andrea fired three more times.