Page 100 of Ground Truth

“Unknown,” Flint replied, breathing deeply to stay alert and power longer sentences. “Good guess, fewer than a dozen. This is a small place. He’s lost at least three of them today.”

“Have you seen any artillery?”

“Sidearms only.” Flint kneaded the piercing headache between his eyebrows. “We don’t have any other options. Can you handle it?”

“Where are you, exactly?” Gaspar asked.

Flint could hear him clacking the keyboard keys, probably trying to triangulate the satellite phone.

“On the back of the island. An old road that runs along the cliff. Black Mercedes sedan.”

A few seconds later, Gaspar said, “Got it. I see you. How long can you hold out?”

“As long as it takes,” Flint replied. “But don’t dawdle.”

“Looks like we can set a helo down on that road. No civilians in the area. We can lay down suppressive fire if needed. Take us twenty minutes to get there. Tops,” Gaspar promised. “But they’re gonna know we’re coming.”

“Yeah, well, we blew our cover a while ago,” Flint replied.

“Copy that,” Gaspar said. “Looking along that road, nobody else is on the way toward you at the moment.”

“Doesn’t mean they aren’t coming,” Flint said wearily. “Fly low. Come in behind the cover of the old volcano. Do whatever you need to do to confuse their detection systems.”

“Depending on what kind of antiaircraft weapons they have, we could get in and get out without taking fire.”

“If we’re very lucky, they don’t have any,” Flint said.

The sun and the heat and the exertion had ganged up on him. He was dizzy. Dehydrated. Exhausted.

“Copy that. We’re in the air. Not long now,” Gaspar replied, talking now simply to keep Flint awake and aware. “How’s your concussion?”

“Been worse.”

“How’s Drake?”

“Not good.”

A few moments of silence passed between them. Flint felt his eyelids closing and forced them wide again.

“Want some good news?” Gaspar asked, probably trying to keep him alert by talking.

“Desperate for it.”

“Scarlett says she found a dog sitter for Whiskers. She suggested you’re unreliable with kids.” Gaspar chuckled.

Flint said nothing.

-

Chapter 48

Flint was conserving his limited resources. Seated on the ground near Drake, he leaned against the big sedan, listening for Gaspar’s helo and hoping to hear it before any other approaching vehicles.

He took a quick inventory. His body was aching and battered, and his headache simply wouldn’t quit, but he’d endured worse.

Nausea and dizziness were the most dangerous of his remaining symptoms, mainly because he couldn’t control them.

Nausea was messy but not fatal. Dizziness could be.

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