Westland hefted the bulky gun. "What about recoil?"
Thompson smiled. "It's a beauty. You fired shotguns before?" Westland nodded. "It's got less recoil than any shotgun you've ever fired. You can fire it from the hip."
Riley interrupted. "What kind of load you got in there?"
"Alternating slugs and number four buckshot." Riley whistled lightly. That thing could clear out a room. Thompson pointed at Westland's vest. "You got solid slugs on your right side and number four buck on the left. Don't forget that if you reload. It's best to alternate the rounds. The slugs will knock the shit out of someone if you hit. The buckshot gives you some dispersion. Alternate them and you raise hell."
Westland nodded. "I can handle it."
Thompson pointed out one last important feature. "You've got two safeties. First is a normal cross-bolt safety, right here. See, this is safe and this is fire." Thompson flicked the switch. "The second safety is in the grip, kind of like the .45-caliber pistol. You have to maintain pressure on the pistol grip to fire."
Westland nodded. Thompson slapped her lightly on the back. "Take care of my gun now. Hate to lose it."
Riley had grown to like the gruff commando over the course of the day. He'd been surprised to find out that Thompson was a major and the assistant operations officer for his troop. He certainly had not seemed concerned about rank in dealing with Riley or Tremont. Thompson's role in the upcoming conflict was to be the coordinating point for the attacking elements from his bird's-eye view up here on the hill. With the SATCOM he could talk to the incoming aircraft and with the small FM radio he could talk to the members of the Tiger and Eagle forces along with Tremont up in the tree.
Thompson looked the two of them over. "Looks like you're ready to party."
Pike watched the headlights turn into the parking lot. He counted two cars, one of which was a military police vehicle. Pike looked at his watch and then at the SATCOM set. Since giving the final authentication he had monitored B Troop's traffic. He knew all the elements were in the air and en route.
Unfortunately, he also knew there was still plenty of time for those forces to be recalled. If only he had another hour.
The door to the building swung open and General Macksey strode in, followed by Linders. Pike stood and faced the oncoming storm. He decided he'd open the pleasantries.
"You didn't have to get all dressed to come see me, sir," he said, noting the dress mess uniform in which Macksey was regaled.
Macksey failed to see the humor. "What the hell are you doing, Pike? Is Delta actually on alert in Panama?"
Pike considered several possible stalling replies. The only problem was the SATCOM radio behind him on the table. All Macksey had to do was pick up the mike and he could talk to the B Troop commander himself. "Yes, sir."
Macksey glared at him. "What the hell are you doing?" he repeated.
Pike stopped the general in his tracks with his next statement. "Sir, do you realize that one of the men from that last mission, the one who escaped, has been sent by the CIA down to Colombia to assassinate one of the members of the drug cartel?"
Macksey seemed stunned. "What?"
Since he was being honest, Pike decided he'd overwhelm the general with the bald facts and hopefully forestall him getting on the radio with a recall. "Let me start from the beginning, sir. I think you'll find this all quite interesting. The day that last Hammer mission was compromised, the…"
Rabitowski looked at the fuel gauge. They were down to less than a third of a tank. He checked the map as the helicopter whizzed over a single-lane road. "Checkpoint 15, on route and on time."
Cullen nodded but didn't speak. They were flying terrain contour, approximately twenty-five feet above the highest obstacle. Even with the night-vision goggles it was a tiring operation for the pilot.
Rabitowski checked the map again. "Turn left. Stop turn." He peered ahead through his goggles. "The route goes slightly to the left of that hill ahead."
Cullen made the slight adjustment and the aircraft steadied on the new course. Rabitowski checked the time again. Another forty-five minutes to target.
Macksey shook his head as Pike finished his tale. "That's all fine and well, but you had no authority to do what you've done. I'm canceling your party." He gestured toward the SATCOM radio. "Do you have commo with the Delta Force commander down there?"
Pike nodded reluctantly. As Macksey moved toward the radio Pike decided to play his trump card. "Sir, did you also know that the missing man from the Eyes Three mission is alive and being held in the target Delta is heading for?"
That stopped Macksey in his tracks. "I was told he was dead."
Pike drove the nail home with a vengeance. "I told you not to write him off. We have a verified visual sighting of Master Sergeant Powers being held by this Colombian, Ring Man."
Macksey looked Pike in the eye. "You're already in enough trouble as it is. I'm asking you to tell me the truth. Is Powers really alive and being held there?"
Pike glared back. "Sir, one thing I'm not is a liar." He pointed at the radio. "You make the decision. Are you going to abandon the only chance we're going to have to rescue him?"
Macksey seemed torn for a few seconds and then shook his head. "I have to cancel. This whole thing is unsanctioned. We'll never get away with it."
Pike was starting to get angry. "Is that all you care about? Covering your ass?"
Macksey stood firm. "Goddammit, man. Why didn't you go through channels if you knew Powers was alive?"
"Because the CIA would probably not have allowed verifying, and the bottom line is that there wasn't enough time."
Macksey picked up the handset for the radio. "I'm sorry, Mike. You screwed up and I'm going to have to fix things. What's the call sign for the Delta commander?"
Pike sighed. "Eagle Leader."
Macksey keyed the mike. "Eagle Leader, come in. Over."
The reply was almost instantaneous. "This is Eagle Leader. Please identify yourself. Over."
"Eagle Leader, this is General Macksey. I'm ordering you to abort your mission and return all your elements to friendly territory. Over."
There was a pause on the other end. "This is Eagle Leader. I need verification of abort. Over."
Macksey turned to Pike. "What's the code word for abort?"
Pike didn't answer, but even as he stood there saying nothing he realized he had made a mistake in that area. Macksey glared at him, then keyed the mike again. "This is General Macksey. General Pike has authorized this mission without proper authority and refuses to give up the abort code word. I'm ordering you on my authority to abort. Over."
There was an even longer pause on the other end. "I'm sorry, sir, if this is General Macksey on the other end, but I cannot abort without the proper code word. Over."
A thought struck Macksey. "The code word is Cage Thunder. Over."
The reply was quicker this time. "Roger, I verify Cage Thunder. Over."
Edberg looked up in dismay as he verified the abort code word. The other members of his force were still in their positions. His ops officer was looking at him strangely, wondering what the long conversation was about. Edberg gestured for him to come over. The man waddled over awkwardly and threw himself on the adjacent seat. He yelled in Edberg's ear to be heard over the roar of the engines. "What's up?"
"I just got the abort code word from the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff."