Radclyffe - Honor Under Siege

climbed into the sky on the horizon.

“Thank you, General.

“Weve eliminated both problems at once, Matheson said. “Its

time to rejoin our men and re-dedicate ourselves to our true

mission. We have a war to win.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

I s she are they Oh, God, Diane whispered. “Get me a narrow-

field, real-time image! Paula ordered. She keyed her radio.

“Hara, standby. Close the roads. No one in or out. Call in the

backup units and position them on the shore and the perimeter.

Blair realized she was still gripping Paulas shoulders and

forced herself to let go. She couldnt move her eyes from the

screen in front of her. She stared at the dark circle, wil ing

an image to appear.

“Cams boat, Blair asked hoarsely. “Cams boat should still

be there, shouldnt it? Paula?

For the first time in her life, Paula ignored the first

daughter. Renée was on the boat that had suddenly

disappeared. The thought sent a momentary surge of panic

through her and she went completely blank. Then, as if

changing a channel in her mind, picture after picture snapped

into view and came sharply into focus. Beirut, the Cole, the

World Trade Center, the Pentagon. A field in Pennsylvania.

Not one life. Not hundreds of lives. Thousands and more to

come, she knew. And her part to play was here, today, and it

would never be about one life again. Not even the life of the

woman she loved.

“Theyre there, somewhere, and well find them, Paula

said steadily, because she had to believe it. “Mac, get me a

picture of

whats going on out there and an open line to Renée Savard.

“Yes maam, Mac said, his voice rough with strain. “Ill do

that.

* * * * *

“Theres debris in the water, Savard shouted over the roar of

the engine.

Cam leaned over the railing, narrowing her eyes against the

icy spray and staring at the shiny black surface of the water.

“Whos got the wheel?

“Donaldson. I need to be out here. Savard raised the radio

cradled in her hand. “Ill direct him.

Cam didnt argue. She doubted she could get Savard to go

back inside, and she didnt have the time or inclination to

persuade her. One hundred feet in front of them a geyser of

flame spouted into the air, the engine fuel from Valeries and

Henrys boats burning. She should have expected something like

this. Matheson would be a fool to leave a weak link like Henry

alive, and Matheson was no fool. Henry had underestimated

him, and so had she. She would not let Valerie pay for her

miscalculation. She kicked off her shoes, shrugged out of her

holster, pulled her badge off her belt, and pushed everything into

a bench locker.

“You cant the water is 40 degreesCommander?

“Tell Donaldson to head for the flames and to get all the

lights focused off the bow. Move ahead slowly. Christ, we dont

want to hit her.

“Commander

“Shes in the goddamn water, Renée, and Im going to get her out.

Savard shouted orders into the two-way. As the boat

corrected

course, Cam flung her head back, furiously trying to clear

her vision. Oily smoke roiled from the flaming hulls,

obscuring the surface of the water. The boats were no longer

tethered to one another and huge sections wallowed in the

waves. Burning fragments the size of refrigerators drifted as they

slowly sank.

“There! Savard pointed off to their right. “The

dinghy!

Cam jerked around and followed Savards arm. A capsized

inflatable rubber dinghy bobbed on the water.

“The explosion probably upended it, Savard cursed.

Cam stepped up onto the railing and dove into the water.

* * * * *

“Im getting something now, Chief, Mac said urgently as

he continued to rapidly type. “Itll just take a second to redirect

the satel ite focus.

“Get me in as tight as you can. Paula turned at a sound

behind them. Hara stood in the doorway. “All clear?

“Yes maam. Everything is quiet. She glanced toward the

monitors but said nothing.

“Run status checks every five with the team leaders, Paula

directed.

“Yes maam. Ill take point on the shore.

“Good. Paula bent forward, peering at the monitor as if that would

make the fuzzy images clearer. Without warning, the screen cleared

and a sharp black- and-white image of a burning boat came into view.

Blair caught her breath, momentarily disoriented by the eerie sensation

that she was watching news footage, the kind of images that were

ubiquitous and somehow mind-numbing. But she felt anything but

numb. Her nerve endings burned, and it felt as if her entire body were

twitching. A red haze of fury and panic threatened to skew her vision,

and she had to blink to focus.

“Can you tel whose boat it is? she

asked.

“Not yet, Mac answered. “Wel have a slightly wider field in just here,

theres another vessel. His voice drifted of as a partial y submerged,

smoking boat came into view. “Weve got at least two vessels hit. He

touched his ear and frowned. “Its Tanner requesting permission to

begin search and rescue.

Stark shook her head. “No. We dont know that whoever sent the first

missile doesnt have another one ready to go. The commanders boat

is out there somewhere. Until we contact her, we keep this locked

down. Tel Tanner to maintain her position. She is not to pursue any

unknown vessel.

Mac relayed the

order.

“They might need help, Paula, Blair urged. “What about the Coast

Guard? “No. This is a Homeland Security operation. We dont

involve anyone else. “What if Cams boat was hit too?

“If we confirm that, Paula said, “Il send a team out

from here.

“How long can they last out there, if theyre in the water? Diane

asked.

Paula didnt answer. Instead she said, “Find them for me,

Mac.

* * * * *

Cam didnt think shed ever been so cold. It was the kind of cold that

went so deep it was an ache inside of her. She didnt think about the pain

but just swam arm over arm in the direction where shed seen the

dinghy. Valerie had been in it, she knew that shed been in it. Henry was

dead. Shed ordered him shot. Valerie was the only one who could have

launched the dinghy.

Her clothes were sheets of ice dragging her down. Her arms and

legs were heavy. It was hard to move. So much smoke. Black acrid

stinging smoke that singed her already swol en throat and clouded

her eyes with tears and salt. Cold.

Her hand struck an object and she tried to grab it, but it floated

away. She rubbed her face against her frozen sleeve. The dinghy. A

wave crashed over her head and she went under. It was a relief to be out

of the smoke. Her throat felt momentarily soothed until she reflexively

took a breath and water flooded her lungs. She gagged, vomited, then

clawed her way to the surface. She broke through and sucked in a

lungful of tainted air. Coughing, she tried to swim and managed only to

keep her head above water. Then she saw it again. The dinghy. From

somewhere deep inside, she found another ounce of energy. Valerie was

there, she knew she was there. Valerie had launched the dinghy.

Cam pushed herself toward it. She had sent Valerie out here alone. She

would not let her die alone. She found the nylon rope that circled the

dinghy and tried to hold on to it with frozen fingers. When it popped

away from her she gave up trying and sluggishly circled it, her muscles

slowly turning to lead.

For an instant, she thought she imagined the white form floating next

to the dinghy. When she reached out, her fingers were too stif to grasp

the ghostlike figure. Closer now, she could make out Valeries wrist

wedged underneath the encircling rope on the rubber life raft. She had

tethered herself to it somehow.

“Valerie, Cam croaked. She got a mouthful of water and spat it out

angrily. “Valerie!

Cam struggled to release Valeries wrist from the twisted lines. The

instant Valeries arm slid free, she started to sink beneath the surface.

Cam couldnt grip her clothing, but she managed to get an arm around

her waist and pul ed her against her body.

“Valerie, its Cam. Swim. You have to swim.

Cam couldnt tell if she was breathing or not, and for a fraction of

a second she felt the way she had when Blair had been exposed

to a potential y deadly toxin. The floodgates she kept securely

locked against loss and despair broke open and the pain was so

crippling she was momentarily paralyzed. They went under

together, Valerie clasped in Cams arms.

* * * * *

“Command One, do you read, Felicias voice fil ed the

room. “Felicia, Mac cried. “Status. Status report. Are you

“ engaged in search and rescue. Any sign of

incoming?

“Negative. Mac switched channels and the original wide-

angle view came into focus. “Advise evacuate area as soon as

possible.

“Roger, as soon as rescue is complete. Do you have

visual?

Mac turned to Paula who was staring at the speakers as if

she were trying to see through them to Felicia and the others.

“Felicia, this is Stark. We have debris from two

vesselsno

survivors identified.

“Thermal scans? Felicia asked sharply.

“Nothing, Mac said, “but if Valeries in the water, shes

probably too cold already.

“We have two in the water. Do you read?

Two. “Who? Paula inquired urgently.

Blair didnt need to hear the answer. She already knew.

* * * * *

Cam didnt have the energy to fight. The cold in her bones

had dissipated, and so had the pain. Her body was strangely

heavy, yet weightless at the same time. She couldnt see, but the

sharp smoky sting in the air was gone. She wasnt in the

air. She was underwater.

She was underwater, and Valerie was with her. Valerie

wasnt moving. What had Blair said to her? Shed made her

promise something. Cam was so tired and it was so hard to think.

Promise me. Promise me you wont sacrifice yourself for

her.

Thats right. She had promised Blair. Promised her not to die

for

Valerie.

A surge of adrenaline shot through Cam, electrifying her.

Shed promised not to die for Valerie, but she hadnt promised to

let her die. What had she said? No one was going to die. She

tightened her grip on Valerie and kicked. The surface seemed very

far away.

And then she felt itValerie was kicking too. Neither one of

them was going to give up without a fight.

* * * * *

“Macs got a thermal body pattern in the water, Felicia announced,

hurrying from the cabin to join Savard on deck.

Renée strained to see through the smoke, arcing the floodlights

back and forth. “Over theretwo in the water, twenty yards off

to the right. Help me lower the life raft.

“Im coming with you. Donaldson can handle the

boat.

Renée nodded and between the two of them they unlashed the life

raft from its deck moorings, disengaged the lock on the pul ey,

and swung the small boat out over the water. Felicia hit the

switch for the motor and as the inflatable raft lowered

automatical y, she grabbed two PFDs from a nearby locker. She