“Nate was always the plans guy,” Tim mumbled. “I was always more the killing type.”
“Fine,” she said. “Then what would Nate do?” The two men thought about it.
“Well, first we have to find them,” Tim said finally.
“And then recon,” Wally added, and Tim nodded.
“Then we see what we’re up against. Go in dark, stealthy.”
“Great. And then you can do what you do best,” Ana added, “and kill these bastards.”
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
Hadhramaut Governorate, Yemen
Nate had learned a lot in the last few hours by virtue of their unfortunate predicament. They were tied to a metal pole that was staked into the ground, thankfully in a seated position. Circled around them were several Bedouin-style tents and not far from where they were seated was a fire that appeared to be used for cooking and heating water for tea. Their central position made it impossible to attempt to defeat their restraints and escape, but it also made it a gold mine for gathering information, as all the activity happened in a flurry around them.
Their captors had no idea both men spoke Arabic. Nate had a much higher fluency level and wasn’t sure that Shane was picking up on everything being said, but he understood perfectly, and translated in hushed tones. The men who held them made no effort to communicate with them, and Nate assumed they spoke no English and didn’t consider the possibility that their captives might speak Arabic. It gave him ample time to listen as the terrorists spoke freely among themselves.
What he had learned so far was that they were in a camp to the south of the Saudi town of al Kharkhir, across the border on the Yemeniside. These men, who he was pretty confident were Al Qaeda, used the camp when they wanted to shake the town down for supplies, which meant they hadn’t traveled far from the crash site. Nate was certain Tim and Wally would come looking for them, but he would have preferred that they stay away and keep Ana safe. He shuddered to think what would become of her if she was captured by these terrorists and was somewhat comforted by the fact that it was him here and not her.
Even still, Nate was terrified. He and Shane were essentially in the worst-case scenario. Al Qaeda hated Westerners, and Americans most of all. It was certain that the men would kill them, but it was what they would do to them first that really made Nate’s skin crawl. Execution by beheading was a foregone conclusion, and Nate only hoped that he still had the strength to fight when that time came, and to make them shoot him instead.
So much for lost cities, he thought absently. There had always been a chance of failure, even though he had been so certain he was right. What he hadn’t anticipated was a gruesome death at the hands of terrorists. Although there was still time, and as yet no one had paid them much attention, which he found highly unusual. He calmed himself long enough to start thinking through options. Nate refused to believe there was no escape. He simply needed to look for opportunities.
Things got really interesting when the leader, Omar, made a phone call. He was going to trade them to someone else; someone who was going to pay him a lot of money. He was also going to allow the mysterious buyer to execute them at dawn, which meant they had some time. This new information allowed Nate to relax and begin focusing on his surroundings and their prospects for escape. He assumed the person on the other end of the phone was the one who had been gunning for him and Ana, and his suspicions were confirmed when Omar broughtup “the girl.” It appeared Nate would meet the person behind this after all. Unless his old teammates got to them first.
Normally he wasn’t sure they would stand a fighting chance. However, after Omar hung up he talked to several of his men. It appeared he didn’t trust whomever he was turning them over to, and feared a double cross. In preparation for a possible betrayal, Omar had sent the majority of his men out into the surrounding hills to lie in wait in case his business partner showed up early. If a large force was approaching, they would call him and then they would all meet at the village of Al Kharkhir to make a stand. It was also the reason Omar kept his prisoners alive. He would need them as bargaining chips. Nate had relayed the information to Shane, who had only been partially tracking.
“Well, I guess there’s some good news in there somewhere,” Shane said in a whisper.
“Yeah, maybe.”
“I’ll take maybe,” Shane said, then exhaled loudly as if in pain.
“How’s the head?”
“I’ve had worse. The second professional fight I lost was a knee to the head. I was so concussed I threw up for an entire day. How about you?”
“Can’t say I’ve taken a lot of rifle butts to the head, but I think I’ll make it.” Nate’s temple hurt like hell, but otherwise he didn’t feel too bad.
“Any idea what time it is?” Shane asked.
“No,” Nate answered. “They took my watch.”
“The Omega?”
“Yeah. Omar’s been wearing it around.”
“Fucker,” Shane muttered. “So, what do you put our chances of escape at?”
“In the middle of a terrorist camp in the Yemeni desert? Surrounded by American-hating jihadists?” Nate pretended to weigh it in his mind. “I’d give it fifty-fifty.”
Shane half chuckled, half moaned.
“Don’t make me laugh,” he said, “it hurts my head.”
“Sorry.” They sat in silence for a few minutes. There was very little movement in the camp.
