No Man's Land - A Russell Carter Thriller by Roland Fishman

Author:Roland Fishman [Fishman, Roland]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Rising Tide Books
Published: 2014-07-01T00:00:00+00:00

9

The three of them ran in single file at close to full pace along another dirt track that cut through the thick jungle. Djoran led the way, followed by Carter, with Erina bringing up the rear. The barking of the dogs had ceased.

Djoran guided them through dense rainforest and two fast-running streams, which provided some relief from the energy-sapping heat and humidity. They’d been too short of breath to talk at any great length. Still, Erina was unusually withdrawn, Carter thought. She probably still harbored suspicions about Djoran. She wasn’t one to trust people until they proved themselves. Then she was fiercely loyal.

From Carter’s point of view, Djoran’s timely appearance seemed a miracle, a gift from the gods.

After they’d been running for close to twenty minutes without stopping, they crested a small hill and Djoran raised his hand, indicating they should pause.

All three came to a halt. The sweat poured off Carter. He wiped it out of his eyes with the bottom of his T-shirt and looked down at the valley below, where a small village lay – half-a-dozen wooden huts with rough holes cut in them for windows. The sun lit up their rusted corrugated-iron roofs. Lazy wisps of smoke rose from the chimneys, the only sign that the village was inhabited.

“Please wait here,” Djoran said. “I must make arrangements.”

Carter nodded, feeling grateful for the opportunity to bring his heart rate and breathing under control. He inhaled deeply and watched Djoran run down the hill, a bundle of boundless energy in a state of perpetual motion.

Erina dropped her daypack on the ground and stood with her hands on her hips, her face glistening with perspiration. She bent forward, breathing deep and hard.

Down in the valley Djoran knocked at the door of one of the huts and went inside.

Erina’s breathing returned to normal faster than Carter’s. She stood up straight and said, “I’m still not convinced we can trust this guy. This could be a trap.”

“Djoran’s okay,” Carter said, still bent over and breathing hard.

He harbored no doubts about Djoran whatsoever. He’d only needed to look into Djoran’s eyes to see the goodness shining in him. It was something that couldn’t be faked.

“He’s a Muslim training to be a mujaheddin,” Erina said.

“We can trust him.”

“How do you know?”

“Same way I know the difference between a shark and a dolphin.”

“Nice metaphor, Carter, but when you see a fin in the water coming toward you in shark-infested waters, it’s prudent to entertain the possibility it might be a shark.”

Carter looked at her without saying a word.

“And,” she said, “how do you know he didn’t doublecross Jacko just like Peacock did?”

“I never trusted Peacock.”

“Let me remind you, we’re on a tropical island in the middle of nowhere. It’s governed by sharia law and hosts a terrorist training camp, which Djoran is part of. God knows who’s hiding in those huts. I mean, where the hell is everyone?”

“Hopefully we’ll find out very soon.”

After a silent minute they both watched Djoran walk out of the

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