Harv remained motionless, waiting for G2 to reveal himself.
He didn’t have to wait long.
Materializing like a black wraith no more than fifty feet away, G2 stood and started toward the dam.
Harv was no stranger to covert fieldwork, but he still felt his skin tighten at how close the guy had been. At that distance, a fully automatic rifle burst would’ve been fatal. His stealthy approach down the trail hadn’t created any discernible movement or noise. He had no doubt his former recon training had just saved his life. Harv counted his blessings, said a silent thank-you, and thought of something Nate liked to say, “Luck favors the well prepared.”
When G2 reached the dam, Harv eased over to the trail. Staying in a crouch, he advanced toward the dam and made a mental note of the gunman’s tread pattern in the damp soil. He wasn’t too concerned about being seen — the entire area held deep shadow from the massive trees lining the pond. As long as he didn’t make any sudden movements, the ghillie suit would do its job.
“Nathan, Estefan, stand by.”
He received two clicks.
The closer he got to the pond, the louder the frogs became. G2 began hopping from rock to rock as he crossed the dam heading for the far side. Harv thought that was risky given the other gunman hadn’t yet made his presence known.
Or had he?
Harv instinctively froze.
He hadn’t seen any radios, but that didn’t mean they didn’t have them.
Gun up, he slowly took a knee.
Be patient, he told himself again. Do nothing and see what happens. There were times when no action was the best action.
Thinking about it more, Harv seriously doubted they were using radios. Since Estefan hadn’t reported seeing either of the gunmen use a radio, it was likely they had some kind of loose plan to meet at the dam and reassess their situation.
When G2 reached the opposite side, he stepped off the trail, crouched, and stared in the direction of his approaching comrade. Harv doubted G2 had seen any movement yet.
He heard it then, coming from Estefan’s direction.
A high-pitched whistle overpowered the frogs’ noise.
A few seconds later, Harv heard a similar whistle from G2.
Keeping both men in sight, Harv relocated to within thirty feet of the dam and hid behind a waist-high plant.
G1 picked up his pace and waved when he saw his friend. A few seconds later, they met next to the trunk of a massive tree. Harv noted G2 was bigger than his comrade. No doubt they were talking about their next move.
Harv waited, analyzing the situation. If they fanned out in opposite directions, he’d have to take them down separately. That would take time, because he’d have to wait until they were adequately separated before taking the first one down. He’d then have to backtrack and pursue the other gunman from behind. He supposed Estefan could silently kill one of them with his knife, but he didn’t want to put Estefan in that situation if he didn’t have to.
Harv’s answer arrived when the gunmen walked in his direction. It became clear neither of them suspected their opponent had night vision. They were obviously relying on the near blackness down here to conceal their movement.
Harv aimed his Sig but didn’t activate its laser.
With G2 on point, both men navigated the rocks and crossed the dam.
He confirmed G1 had his finger off the trigger. He could clearly see the man’s forefinger in a straight position on the outside of the trigger guard.
He let them advance a few more steps.
Harv extended his Sig over the top of the bush.
Now!
He painted his laser center mass on the lead gunman and double tapped him. His expression confused, G2 collapsed.
Before G1 could react, Harv nailed him in the chest with two quick shots.
Even with two chest wounds, G1 managed to level his rifle at the source of the suppressed shots. Harv shot him in the face before he could discharge his automatic weapon.
He fired a final round into G2’s head to end the man’s writhing.
In less than four seconds, he’d fired six shots and scored six hits. His emotional switch remained turned off, but Harv felt remorse at killing two men like this. It hardly seemed fair. They never had a chance. Them or us, he reminded himself, then pressed his transmit button. “G1 and G2 are down.”
He knew Nathan wouldn’t say “good job” or “well done.” Now wasn’t the time for back-patting or compliments.
“No change in town,” Nathan said. “I don’t have eyes on Antonia or G3 with NV or the TI.”
“Copy. Estefan, double-time over here. We need to conceal these bodies.”
“On my way.”
Harv approached the dead men and wished this hadn’t been necessary. During their scout sniper missions and subsequent covert ops with the CIA, Nate had done 99 percent of the killing. Nevertheless, Harv had felt equally responsible for each death even though pulling the trigger was quite different from making range, wind, and elevation calls.
He reached down and confirmed both men were dead. At least neither of them had suffered longer than a few seconds.
“I’ve got you,” Estefan said. “South side of the dam.”
In that moment, Harv knew what to do next.
Cowering inside the recycle Dumpster behind the post office, Antonia hadn’t heard anything in a long time and wondered what she should do. Thankfully, there was only paper and cardboard in here. She slid the flattened boxes she’d used for concealment aside, cracked the bin’s plastic lid, and peered through the narrow opening. She didn’t know how long she’d been hiding in here, but it felt like hours. One thing was certain, she sure as hell didn’t want to get shot at again. She’d seen the red laser beam a split second before the bullet plowed the ground in front of her. Raw panic had seized her, a wholly unpleasant state of mind. She’d been panting like a dog when she’d scrambled into the bin. Ten seconds later, her body had begun an uncontrollable shiver, and she’d nearly vomited at the thought of the shooter opening the Dumpster’s lid to finish her off. She’d been utterly helpless and thoroughly shamed. Franco could never know about this; he’d dump her for sure.
Once her mind calmed, she questioned who’d shot at her. It had to be Tobias’s son, but why would he do it? He seemed to care about her. It didn’t make sense. Could he have missed shooting her on purpose? If so, why? Maybe he wanted her to react exactly like she had. Maybe he was teaching her a lesson and wanted her to go home. If that was his intent, it worked. She’d had her fill of action for the evening. She climbed out of the recycle bin and followed the rear wall of the post office to its southwest corner. It took her a moment to build up enough nerve to peer around the corner.
Was that movement? She could’ve sworn she saw something on the south end of town. She held perfectly still and stared toward the bridge. There it was again. Thirty seconds later, the movement turned into two dark shapes walking down the middle of the road.
One of them was in front of the other, and it looked like the guy in front was a prisoner. His arms were behind his back, and he walked with a slight limp. The guy behind was holding a rifle at the hip. It looked like he had a backpack with something bulky dangling on the outside. As they got closer, she confirmed the first guy was definitely a prisoner. Then she saw him clearly, and despite her frazzled state, Antonia managed a smile. Perhaps the evening wasn’t a total disaster after all. One of Franco’s men had captured Tobias’s son and was marching him up the road. It felt good to see Estefan Delgado caught and helpless. He certainly wouldn’t be shooting at her again.