Option to Kill (Nathan McBride 3) (41 page)

Nathan held his breath and was sorely tempted to shoot the asshole, but he couldn’t see Voda, who probably had a gun trained on his sister. Now wasn’t the time to act. Jin wasn’t out of danger yet. He also realized Lauren was observing everything. If he acted hastily, he could get Jin killed in front of her daughter — not an option.

She limped forward and got into the front passenger seat. Nathan realized he’d never actually seen his sister before this. He couldn’t see much detail because her disheveled hair concealed her face. He didn’t like having the scope’s crosshairs trained on her, but his finger wasn’t anywhere near the trigger. Just to be safe, he moved the crosshairs off of her.

The Escalade started forward. As it neared H1, he got a better look at his sister. As with Marchand, she looked severely battered, one of her eyes nearly swollen shut. It looked like they’d worked her over pretty savagely.

The SUV rolled to a stop at the fluorescent stake, and Jin got out. Without warning, the driver spun the tires on the road as he sped backward. The open door clipped Jin and knocked her down. Twenty feet farther away, the driver slammed his brakes, which closed the passenger door. The Escalade peeled away in reverse again, leaving more dust.

Nathan had been sorely tempted to shoot the asshole, but now the opportunity was gone. The dust was too thick. Given a shot, he probably wouldn’t have taken it — tempting as it was. He needed to be patient and make sure Jin was totally alone before he took any action.

His sister painfully gained her feet and stood in the middle of the road, hugging herself.

Nathan’s rage boiled at seeing her in this condition. He thought about the note she’d written, all she’d been through in her life. The heartbreaking story of Choon-Hee…Preserving Stone’s dog tag all these years…Her love of Lauren and the beating she’d endured to keep her daughter — and him — safe. Jin was family, and it hurt to see her like this. He thanked heaven Lauren couldn’t see the gory details. Yet.

Nathan forced himself to calm down. If he allowed his emotions to control his actions, he’d get not only himself killed, but Jin as well. Lauren would then be trapped in the middle of the Mojave, with no place to go. He’d shown her how to activate the helicopter’s ELT, but that was little consolation. It would take time for SAR teams to arrive. How long, he didn’t know. But a lot could happen in that span.

He took a few deep breaths, then settled in to assess his sister’s condition more thoroughly. The first thing he noticed was her bare feet. On each foot, several toes were caked with blood. Thanks to Voda’s medieval savagery, she wouldn’t be able to run when the time came. She’d also likely be concussed and have trouble concentrating. One thing was certain: she’d never be able to walk to the helicopter. He’d have to carry her.

Resuming his examination, Nathan saw his sister was tall, close to six feet, and her hair wasn’t quite the jet black of Lauren’s. It looked to be nearly the same color as his own — graying dark brown with a distinct hue of red. Her Eurasian cheekbones were cut and swollen from repeated blows. Nathan had seen other victims like this before, more times than he cared to remember. Her blue jeans and T-shirt were spattered with blood. She tried to stand up straight but winced from pain. Although she’d been physically defeated, her dignity hadn’t been broken.

Still hugging herself, she looked around, and her glance walked across his position. Like Voda, she was probably wondering where he was. Even if she’d known exactly where to look, all she would’ve seen was a large clump of creosote bushes flanked by a few barrel cacti.

Nathan didn’t want Jin to hear him yet, so he kept his voice low. “Mr. Voda, are you still there?”

“
Yes, I’m here.
”

“Please back your vehicles out to two hundred meters.”

“
I think I’ve been more than generous.
”

“I’m on foot, Mr. Voda, and it will take me several minutes to reach my sister. Please comply with my request.”

Voda didn’t respond, but both Escalades began backing away and Nathan lost sight of them from his sitting position. Since the vehicles were moving slowly, he gave it a good thirty seconds.

Voda’s voice came through his earpiece again. “
Okay?
”

“Yes, thank you.”

“
My patience is running thin, McBride.
”

“Once I’ve verified my sister’s identity face-to-face, you’ll have your gems. Please be patient.”

“
No tricks
,” Voda said again.

Yeah, right, no tricks…He was about to give Jin a command, but she spoke first.

Looking in the direction of Voda’s SUVs, she called out, “We don’t have much time.”

Nathan remained silent.

“You’re inside a clump of bushes at my ten o’clock position.”

Without moving, Nathan said, “I’m impressed.”

“Voda doesn’t know you were a scout sniper.”

“Did you give Harv and me up entirely?”

“No. All he knows is that you’re my brother.”

“Pretend you’re still alone.”

“I
am
pretending I’m alone.”

Nathan now knew where Lauren got her feistiness. “Avoid moving your lips too much. They’re probably using field glasses. Can you walk?”

“Not very well.”

“Slowly work your way this direction and keep looking around. Stay near the road, though. I don’t want Voda to lose sight of you.”

She continued the act, hugging herself as though nervous. “Three men are on foot. They got out before we pulled in here.”

“I’m aware of that. They’re no longer a problem.”

“Where’s Lauren?”

Nathan put metal in his voice. “Who are you, Jin?”

She was clearly stunned by the comment. “What do you mean?”

“How do you know about echo five?”

“I promise I’ll explain everything when this is over.”

“If you want my trust, you’ll tell me right now.”

“Nathan — ”

“Who
are
you?”

She looked toward Voda’s Escalades. “DGSE.”

Chapter 30

“French intelligence?”

She responded almost grudgingly. “Yes.”

Nathan’s mind went into overdrive. Things began falling into place, but he needed to be sure Jin was telling the truth.

“Your note. How much of it’s true?”

“Can we discuss this later? We don’t have the time.”

“I’m making time.
How much?
”

“All of it. I’ve been working my way into Voda’s operation for over a year. I’ll explain everything, but not now.”

Nathan emerged from his hiding place and walked toward Jin. Wearing the ghillie suit, he knew what he looked like. He flipped the hood back and kept going. In five more steps he’d enter Voda’s line of sight.

Jin turned and faced him, her expression guarded.

Nathan walked up to her and stared into her blue eye. Her brown eye was nearly swollen shut. “Did you know Voda was murdering the girls?”

She didn’t hesitate. “
No.
”

It was the truth — he knew it with certainty.

With a single word, Jin had proven herself in a way that ten thousand additional words never could.

“Where is Lauren?” she asked.

“She’s in the saddle between those two peaks to the north.”

To her credit, she didn’t even glance in that direction.

Nathan pressed the transmit button on his radio.

“Voda, you copy?”

“
A desert-colored ghillie suit
,” Voda said. “
Well played.
”

“Do you remember what I said I’d do if you brought more than two men?”

“
There’s no need for threats. I have two men, as agreed.
”

“You’re a liar. I neutralized your three goons before you arrived with Ms. Marchand.”

There was a marked silence. “
That wasn’t necessary. They were only here to ensure my safety.
”

“Consider yourself
uninsured
.”

“
Give me my alexandrites, as agreed.
”

Nathan removed a Ziploc bag from his hip pocket, held it at arm’s length, and dropped it to the road. “Come and get them.”

He tossed Voda’s radio and earpiece aside and scooped his sister off her feet. “Hold on tight.” Hauling her in a fireman’s carry, he ran for the cover of H5, the closest standing house. He tried to minimized the bounce of his strides, but Jin cried out anyway.

“Sorry about the bumpy ride.”

Through clenched teeth, she said, “I’ll live. Keep going!”

“You think?”

Nathan heard it then, the unmistakable crackling of automatic-weapon fire. It sounded like distant firecrackers. Nathan dropped to his knees and laid Jin down. In a lightning-fast pattern, the road erupted toward Nathan as multiple bullets skipped off its powdery surface. He used his body to protect her from the maelstrom of slugs. As quickly as it had begun, the crackling ended and they hadn’t been hit. Nathan looked west toward the vehicles, but the rising dust from bullet impacts obscured the SUVs.

“I guess I pissed him off.”

“You think?” Jin said, mimicking him.

Nathan pivoted toward the road. “Stay down.”

In a fluid move, he unslung his rifle and shouldered it. Without using the scope, he estimated a windshield-level shot, and he fired into the dust cloud. The discharge rocked him back. He chambered another round and fired again.

The roar of the lead vehicle’s engine reached them. Within seconds the Escalade would penetrate the dust cloud and be upon them.

Nathan hoisted Jin again and resumed his sprint for H5. He reached down and turned up the volume on the tan radio he used with Lauren.

Her frantic voice screamed through his earpiece, “
…Why don’t you answer me? Nathan!
”

“I’m here,” Nathan said, still running.

“
There’s another car coming down the road!
”

“A third vehicle?”

“
Yes!
”

“Where is it?”

“
It’s almost to the turn where the other one stopped.
”

“Does it look like the others? A black SUV?”

“
Yes.
”

“Is that Lauren?” Jin asked.

“Yes. Lauren, keep an eye on the new arrival. I need to know how many men get out, and where they go.”

“
Is my mom okay?
”

“She’s fine. Keep watching the third SUV.”

“
Okay.
”

Nathan glanced over his shoulder and saw the lead SUV penetrate the dust cloud. He’d hoped they’d make it inside H5 before being seen, but it didn’t happen. The vehicle pulled off the dirt road and skidded to a stop at the western edge of the buildings. Another dust cloud swirled.