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The drone flew high over the head of the sentry who dozed at the west end of the camp.
Fallon radioed that the guard at the east end was awake and patrolling the perimeter.
Chris watched as the drone slipped through a gap in the curtain that covered the first tent in the row. A man slept on a cot, his AK-47 on the ground next to his bed. This appeared to be the kitchen tent, as the drone flew over a table with a camp stove, water jug, and empty basin on top. He guessed the two plastic containers contained nonperishable food. Only one cooler.
It was unlikely these guys planned to stay here long, unless more food was going to be delivered.
Which brought to mind the question of what was the purpose of this temporary camp? Why not take Dr. Edwards to their stronghold?
Was this bait for a rescue attempt?
Over the radio, Fallon shared that the tent on the other end of the camp was empty but for a plastic table and a few boxes. It was unoccupied, which could indicate there were two guards with Edwards.
Neither drone could find a gap through which to enter the other three tents, not without alerting someone, so they’d move in without knowing which tent housed Dr. Edwards.
They set out again, wraiths in the night. There was zero light pollution here and no moon. Stars lit the night sky, but in tight canyons as they were, very little of that light reached the valley floor. It would be impossibly dark without night vision goggles.
They paused a few feet from where the gully intersected with the bowl where tents were lined up like silver bells and cockleshells.
With a hand signal, Chris sent Albrecht and Meyers to the left, while he and Kramer would go right. They’d take out the guard at their end, and then enter two of the three tents with unknown occupants.
Just as Albrecht reached the slumbering guard, they heard the distinctive sound of a burst of fire from an M4 carbine rifle.
Sleep wasn’t possible, tied to the center post of the tent as she was, but Diana had managed to slip into some kind of pained daze. The rustling of the curtain between the two rooms roused her. She turned to see who had entered the room, but it was too dark to see anything.
A light flared, and she closed her eyes against the sudden flash of white. She felt hot breath on her face as someone knelt before her. A hand covered her mouth.
Her eyes shot open, and in the dim lantern light, she saw Jamal, the younger of the two brothers Harun had ordered to guard her when he left with Rafiq. Both brothers were young. Still teenagers.
His eyes were cold as he made a shushing sound, his hand clamping tighter on her mouth. He raised a sharp knife, and she twisted her head to escape his hand. Before she could scream, he covered her mouth again and pinched her nose.
The knife bit through the binding that attached her wrists to the post above her head. Her arms dropped, but they were still bound together. She swung them down, hitting his arm and dislodging his hand from her mouth and nose.
Jamal dropped the knife, and his hand returned to her face. With his other hand, he shoved her down so she was flat on her back, making his intent clear when his hand groped at her skirt.
He was going to rape her and didn’t want others in the camp to hear.
While he struggled to pull up the long skirt of the abaya she wore, his grip on her mouth loosened. She bit his hand.
He reared back and slapped her.
She shoved at him, hoping to land a knee in his groin. She debated screaming, but would that just bring on the other guards to have their turn?
In the end, it was Jamal who alerted his older brother, Bassam, sleeping on the other side of the curtain, when Diana’s knee found the target and he rolled off her, groaning in agony. Bassam came stumbling into the room. He cursed at what he saw, and she was surprised to realize his words were directed at his younger brother. “I told you to leave her alone! They will kill us if she’s unable to work.”
Jamal paid no attention to his brother and lunged for her. His fingers found her throat and squeezed.
Bassam yanked him off her, wrapping his arm around his brother’s neck.
There was a burst of machine gun fire, and Diana’s gaze shot to the panel that separated the two rooms. Was this an attempt by another guard to stop the fight, or did he plan to join in on the raping?
Both brothers froze.
Jamal broke the sudden silence. “That wasn’t an AK,” he whispered in Arabic.
Bassam released his brother. “Someone’s come for her.”
Both brothers turned to her as she tried to make sense of the situation.
