Page 75 of Stand Fast

He edged closer to Nasar, closer, until only a few feet separated them. Granger was right behind him, now using the tac light on the end of his weapon instead of the flashlight. Zaid angled his body toward the wall of rock and crouched down in front of Nasar.

“Turn around and give me your hands,” he ground out, his entire body wound tight and ready to spring if Nasar tried anything.

The man shot him one more lethal glare before turning slightly, his hands resting at the base of his spine. Zaid shifted his weight and roughly grabbed hold of the prisoner’s wrists. He had the cuffs on in seconds, and pulled tight.

A measure of relief hit him. He holstered his pistol and sat back on his haunches to grab his dressing kit, prepared to bind Nasar’s wound.

“Zaid, look out!” Granger said.

He jerked his head up in time to glimpse two men emerging from a gap in the rocks above them, weapons up.

Fuck.

His hand flashed down for the sidearm in his holster. He drew it lightning fast and raised it just as Granger fired at the figures above them.

Too late.

Nasar lunged and knocked him over as gunfire ripped apart the silence, hurtling them both toward the cliff’s edge. Zaid bit back a curse and wrenched his body to the left, toward the safety of the rock. Nasar let out a feral snarl and tried to lash out with a boot, but Zaid blocked it and slammed a fist into the side of Nasar’s face. Pain shot through his hand as the bastard’s head snapped back and hit the rock wall.

Shaky and breathing hard, Zaid rolled to his knees and grabbed Nasar, who appeared to be at least stunned, if not unconscious, then secured his feet as well. Granger was still ahead, keeping watch on the rocks above, and finally the rest of the team emerged from the tunnel.

“Holy shit,” Hamilton breathed, backing away from the sheer drop off.

“I got Nasar,” Zaid called over his shoulder. “Gimme a hand.”

It took them eighteen minutes to haul Nasar’s dead weight back through the tunnel, to the LZ where Hamilton had called in the Blackhawks to pick them up. Some of the friendly NIU guys were there as well, many of them wounded.

“He dead?” the team leader asked.

Zaid set two fingers beneath the angle of Nasar’s jaw, felt the steady beat of his pulse. “Nah. But he’s gonna have one hell of a headache,” he said with satisfaction.

Zaid was never so glad to see a helo in his life when the two Blackhawks appeared in the midnight blue sky and flew toward them. As soon as they touched down, a mad rush of the survivors ensued.

Two men from one of the helos ran toward them, likely PJs to assist with the wounded. He hoisted Nasar over his shoulder and headed for the helo, handing him off to Maka before climbing aboard the second bird. Two of his teammates each loaded a dead NIU member on board.

As soon as everyone was inside, the pilots took off. They climbed skyward and turned to the west, ready to fly back to the FOB. Zaid couldn’t wait to get there, finish up work for the night, and call Jaliya. He needed to tell her he was okay, and he needed to hear her voice.

A spray of bullets peppered the right side of the helo.

“Goddammit,” he bit out, hitting the deck with everyone else. The door gunner opened up on whoever was shooting at them below.

More rounds strafed along the aircraft’s metal skin, punching through it and sending bits of insulation raining down on them. The pilots veered sharply to the left and climbed. Then Zaid smelled it. Fuel. Even though the fuel cells and lines were self-sealing, they were leaking fuel and at risk of exploding should anything ignite it.

“You gotta be fuckingkiddingme,” Colebrook snarled, bracing himself as the bird pitched hard left and dropped.

Zaid couldn’t answer because his heart was stuck in his windpipe. They’d survived the ambush and Nasar, only to die in a helicopter crash?

The crew chief shouted at them, his voice carrying over the noise of the laboring engines. “Hang on tight, boys.”

Zaid closed his eyes and reached out blindly for something to anchor himself with. His hand met skin, and immediately strong fingers locked around his. He opened his eyes to see Prentiss gripping his hand, his expression grimmer than Zaid had ever seen it.

Zaid held on tight and shut his eyes again as the helo bucked and dropped sharply, summoning a picture of Jaliya’s face. She was smiling at him, her expression soft.

More bullets thudded into the aircraft. Screams of agony filled the cabin.

Trapped in the wounded bird with nowhere to hide, Zaid’s only comfort was that at least Jaliya wouldn’t see them crash into the mountain below.

Chapter Nineteen

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