The Valhalla Prophecy: A Novel by Andy McDermott

Author:Andy McDermott [McDermott, Andy]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9780345537041
Publisher: Dell
Published: 2014-09-28T23:00:00+00:00

20

Vietnam

Chase quickly checked Castille’s AK-47. The magazine was fully loaded. He looked through the Land Cruiser’s rear window at the pursuing 4x4 – and saw Hoyt leaning from one of the side windows with a Kalashnikov of his own. ‘Down!’

He ducked as the American’s AK chattered. The bumpy track threw most of Hoyt’s shots wide, but one still struck the tailgate and shattered the window. Natalia screamed.

Chase kicked out the broken glass and fired two shots of his own. He knew his chances of hitting even the other Land Cruiser, never mind its occupants, were slim, but his main goal was to force the driver to fall back. A plan was already forming in his mind, but he would need more of a gap to pull it off . . .

‘Hold on!’ Castille warned. The track ahead jinked to avoid a large rock. He braked, flicking the steering wheel to swing out the Land Cruiser’s rear end on the muddy surface before applying more power and spinning the wheel hard in the opposite direction. The 4x4 kicked up a spray of wet earth as it performed a power slide around the obstacle.

Chase saw his chance and fired another pair of shots. He couldn’t tell if they had hit or not, but they had the effect he’d hoped for. The driver flinched, distracted at a crucial moment – and braked too hard as he turned. The second Toyota slewed sideways, its back end ripping through the undergrowth before hitting the rock, caving in the rear passenger door.

The Englishman braced himself again as Castille took their own vehicle around another curve. Their pursuers were lost to sight behind the trees. ‘Nice driving, Hugo! I didn’t know you were into rallying.’

‘I grew up in the country,’ Castille replied. ‘There is a lot of mud when it rains!’

‘Wow, that’s about the most interesting thing I’ve ever heard about Belgium.’ In the mirror, Chase saw his friend make a sarcastic face. ‘Okay, Hugo, I’ve got a plan, but you probably won’t like it.’

‘You want me to slow down so you and Natalia can jump out, and then carry on to decoy them away from you?’

‘Well, that saves me explaining! So you do like it, then?’

Castille snorted. ‘No, not one little bit! But,’ he added, giving Natalia a quick smile, ‘it is the best chance we have to get you away from them. Edward will take care of you, you do not have to worry about that.’

‘I know,’ she replied quietly. But there was something behind her words that made Chase give her a questioning look: resolve, or . . . resignation? He wasn’t sure.

And there was no time to think about it further. ‘Here, here,’ he said, pointing ahead. The track began to rise up a hill, the ground to the left dropping away quite steeply at the entrance to a valley. He realised it was the same one into which he and Natalia had been swept by the mudslide the previous night. ‘We’ll jump out behind those bushes there.

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