The Black Templar by Alex Lukeman

Author:Alex Lukeman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Female Protagonist, Action Adventure, men's adventure, women's adventure, adventure thriller
Publisher: Alex Lukeman
Published: 2019-01-06T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 29

It was late afternoon in Italy. Nick pulled his collar up against a cold wind blowing in from the Adriatic Sea. The sky was overcast, the water gray and uninviting.

Nick, Ronnie, Valentina, and Lamont stood on a private dock at Ancona used by the Italian Navy for some of its smaller boats, away from the main seaport. They were dressed in black gear without any distinguishing markings. They carried MP7s, pistols, extra ammo, and a small combat pack. The pack held a medical kit, C4, detonators, and emergency rations. In addition, Ronnie carried grenades and more C4. An in-helmet radio system allowed them to communicate with each other. They were tied in to Harker and Langley by a satellite system that also let them communicate with the ship.

A hard chop broke against the piers of the dock. They stood looking at their ride.

"Man, that is some kind of boat," Lamont said.

The Ghost was unlike any vessel Nick or the others had ever seen. It looked like something out of a science fiction movie.

"We have nothing like that in Russia," Valentina said.

The ship sat low in the water, but that would change once she was underway. Then she would come up on two narrow pontoons, something like a hydrofoil, but much more efficient. The craft was painted dark gray. It was mostly flat angles, with a split, smoked glass windshield in front. It looked a lot like an F-117 without wings. The borrowed stealth technology was obvious. Nick didn't see any weapons, but that didn't mean they weren't there.

The captain of the craft was a lieutenant commander, a large man with skin as black as coal.

"Which one of you is Carter?" he said.

"That's me."

They shook hands.

"I'm Lieutenant Commander Jackson. Are you the same Carter that kept President Rice from getting blown up in Jerusalem a few years back?"

"Yes."

"In that case, welcome aboard," Jackson said. "That was outstanding. Watch your head going in."

Entrance into the vessel was through the rear of the ship. The interior was dimly lit. Instead of the strap benches often found in military transport, the Ghost had two rows of blue high back seats facing each other across the aisle. There were two small round windows, no more than six inches in diameter. The floor was a metal grill.

Forward on the left was a recess where a sailor sat watching computer monitors. The control console in front looked like something out of an attack helicopter. A petty officer sat at the console, watching more screens and performing pre-checks. The interior was large enough to carry a full combat squad in addition to the crew.

"Classy," Ronnie said.

"Make yourselves comfortable," Jackson said. "Strap yourselves in. It's going to be a little rough out there tonight."

"What makes this thing go?" Lamont asked.

"Two turboshaft engines that put out two thousand horses. The propellers are up forward, in the pontoons. It's a super cavitating hull, efficient as hell. Once we get moving, she'll come up on top of the pontoons and we'll open her up.

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