Page 25 of Harbored by the SEAL
The destruction of theGem of the Seaswould go down in history forever as one of the most spectacular terrorist acts of all time.
“Kill them,” he said, peering through the rain to his man in the shadows below. No sooner had he thought the words than his second man fell to the ground, just as the other had done. “No!”
He pulled his weapon from his holster.
“Don’t shoot!”
The first mate’s head whipped around to see the captain standing in the open doorway. He swallowed hard, his gun pointed at the ceiling. “They are boarding us. A helicopter has landed on the bow and they are boarding us!”
The captain moved to the window. “It’s HERO Force. You knew they were coming.”
“They shot two of our men!”
“I don’t understand.” The captain picked up the microphone and reached for the intercom switch. “We have to warn the passengers and get help on the deck.”
The first mate flicked the captain’s hand away from the switch, unsure if the men had cut the intercom wires, too. “No. You can’t do that.”
“I am this ship’s captain and I will handle the situation as I see fit.” He flipped on the microphone and opened his mouth to speak.
The first mate opened fire, the gunshot echoing through the ship on the public address system as the captain fell to the floor.
“I am in charge now,” said the first mate. He looked back at the helicopter on the bow, several men standing on the helipad in the rain. HERO Force. They were not part of the plan. He’d worked hard to ensure the mainland didn’t know what was happening on the ship.
He pulled out his walkie-talkie. “Turn out the lights and all but the emergency generator. Set a course for Nassau, full speed ahead.” He pocketed the walkie-talkie and pulled the microphone from the captain’s unmoving hand and watched the ship go dark around him.
“Attention. This is your captain speaking. We have experienced the failure of our main generator. Not to worry, everything on the ship is mechanically sound, but we’ll be running on emergency power until we get the problem fixed in port. This means emergency lighting in the hallways and staterooms. I ask that you stay confined to your cabins throughout the night. We will be docking in Nassau in the morning for repairs.”
He stepped over the captain’s body before turning in a slow circle for one last look at the bridge. “It’s hard to believe we can control all this from a disco.” He laughed, grabbing his hat, and walked out of the room.
23
Rain fell down in sheets, reducing visibility. The flight from the U.S.S.Rapturehad taken longer than anticipated due to the conditions, which had Matteo trying to land the bird in the waning light of day.
“Faster. They’ve gotta be going twenty-five, twenty-eight knots,” said Jax into his headset, looking out the window of the chopper.
“Roger that,” said Matteo. He was flying fifty yards in front of the cruise ship and a hundred feet up, trying to match its speed.
“It’s a new ship,” said Logan. “Faster than the rest of the fleet. I failed to take that into consideration.”
Red made some adjustments and the chopper picked up speed. “You’re just lucky I’m good at this shit,” he said.
Jax eyeballed the cruise ship out the window. The boat was no longer gaining on them. “That’s a match.”
“Roger that. I’m going down.”
They were close enough now for Jax to clearly see the deck. There was no one on the helipad and he was relieved they would have a clear landing. His eyes moved up to the row of windows on the highest part of the ship — the bridge. He hoped whoever was in there would take kindly to the company, but he knew better than to assume that was the case.
His hands clenched the AK-47 in his lap. He didn’t know which would be touchier — this landing or the subsequent reaction to their arrival. While he didn’t anticipate stepping out of the chopper with his weapon, he needed it just to make sure they could land safely.
The chopper slipped lower in the sky, its rotors now below the bridge. Jax could make out people in the windows, all staring, some moving quickly.
Just keep that helipad clear for us, and everything else will take care of itself.
The slightest movement on the deck near the helipad had him straining his eyes in the heavy rain. He reached for his binoculars and trained them on the ship. “Son of a bitch. We’ve got company.”
“Friendlies?” asked Hawk.
“He’s got a weapon. That makes him a tango.”
