“You!” His voice was a harsh croak.

  “Yeah, me, General Barre.”

  “You think you have beaten me. You do not understand us Somalis. You will never beat us. We will drive you…”

  He stopped and spat out a gobbet of blood.

  “You do not know who we are, and when we strike, it will be where you least expect it. Watch your back, American. Revenge will be like a bolt of fire tossed from the skies. We will…”

  Another spurt of blood came out of his mouth, and then he sighed, closing his eyes for the last time.

  “What did he mean?” Cate asked him. She’d come up unheard to stand behind him.

  “I’ve no idea. Barre was a psychopath and a bully to the last. It was just an empty threat.”

  “Maybe,” she replied, but her tone was doubtful. “But he said revenge.”

  “I’m sure it was his last gasp. It’s nothing. Try and get through to the Abraham Lincoln. They’re obviously back in the game, and we need a medevac, fast.” He looked around. Almost all activity had stopped inside the compound, and there were no signs of any hostiles. “With Barre gone, our job is done. It’s time to get back to the beach and get us all out of Somalia.”

  “This is Echo One. The target is down, repeat, the target is down. Assemble outside the main gates. We’re going home.”

  “Brief and powerless is man's life; on him and all his race the slow, sure doom falls pitiless and dark,” Rovere quoted over the body of General Mohammed Barre.

  Talley grinned. “A suitable epitaph, Domenico.”

  The Italian nodded. His expression was thoughtful. “There may be more hostiles lying in wait for us on the way back. I have a suspicion that we may still feel the long hand of General Barre, even after death.”

  “”Yeah, we’ll keep an eye out, but I don’t think we’ll bump into any serious opposition. With their leader gone, they’ll be demoralized and disorganized. Right now, I’d guess most of them are out looking for loot. They won’t have time for us.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  Talley smiled again at Rovere’s forlorn expression. “We’ve won, Domenico. Now let’s get out of here.”

  “As long as you don’t say Mission Accomplished, Boss.”

  “Not this time, no. It’ll be a long time before any leader makes that particular claim. Come on, we’re done here.”

  They returned to their vehicles. Talley started up and drove to the gates. The troops were at full alert, all the guns manned. If they did run into an ambush, they’d sure have enough firepower to hit back hard.

  “Let’s go. Move out.”

  He drove at maximum speed along the track. Cate was on the satcom. She put the audio on speaker, and he listened to her talking with Admiral Alexander.

  “We need the RIBs to take us off the beach, Sir. We also have many wounded. It would help us to medevac them and get them to the carrier A.S.A.P. There’s not likely to be any armed resistance now that we’ve killed Barre.”

  “You’re quite sure he’s dead”

  “Yes, he is, that’s confirmed.”

  “That’s good news.”

  Talley shouted across, “Ask him what changed his mind about that air support.”

  “I heard that,” Alexander replied. “Can Talley hear me?”

  “Yes, Sir, we’re on speaker.”

  “Very well. Captain Talley, you’re no longer a member of NATFOR.”

  “Er, it’s Lieutenant, Sir, not Captain. I don’t understand. What do you mean?”

  “I mean you’re now Captain Talley, and you’ve rejoined the US Navy. How come you know General Kelly, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs?”

  “I, er, met him once, Sir.”

  “He seems to hold you in great esteem, Talley. When I hustled the Pentagon to get those Super Hornets in the air, he was almost waiting for my call. Said to send them in and worry about the repercussions later.”

  Talley recalled the incident in Washington Ronald Reagan Airport. So did General Kelly, it seemed.

  He heard Alexander continue speaking. “It was the only way we could send those aircraft into Somali airspace. In the case of NATFOR, there was a long chain of command and political decisions that people either refused, or were afraid, to make. We arranged for you to be reinducted into the US Navy, and as your commander in the field, I decided it was long past time you received a promotion. It meant I could legitimately mount a mission of my own as support for US Navy personnel trapped inside Somalia.”

  “In that case, we owe you and the General a lot, Admiral.”

  “Thank us when you’re safely on board. You should be back here before too long. The Abraham Lincoln has moved closer inshore, in case you need close support. The RIBs only need a half hour to get you off the beach and back on board. And by the way, the helos are on the way to pick up your wounded.”

  “Thank you, Sir.”

  “I’ll see you back here soon. Out.”

  He kept up as fast a speed as he could. It was full light now, and the only obstacle he had to worry about was the chances of any of Barre’s surviving forces mounting some kind of a revenge mission. Thinking of Barre reminded him of the Somali General’s last words. ‘When we strike, it will be where you least expect it.’

  Now what the hell did that mean? Is it possible there is someone highly placed within NATO or the UN, someone who will take over Barre’s operation and continue operating his piracy and drug trafficking empire?

  With a heavy heart, he realized it was only too possible. Where there were millions of dollars at stake, even billions, there were always men prepared to sell their soul to the devil.

  And what about Hakim? What’s happened to him?

  He realized Cate was speaking to him.

  “I’m sorry, what did you say?”

  “I was congratulating you on your promotion, Captain Talley.”

  He laughed. “Yeah, thanks, but it may be temporary. Remember, it was only done as an expedient so Alexander could get us the help we needed.”

  “Maybe. You know that now you’ve been transferred back to the Navy, it could be difficult to put things back the way they were. Your NATFOR days may be over.”

  “Maybe, but I guess Hakim will sort it all out,” he said offhandedly. “I only hope he makes a better job of it than he did with the air support he failed to deliver on.”

  But even as he spoke, he knew that there’d be a lot of talking to do and decisions to make before things went back the way they were. His NATFOR team, Echo Six, had not exactly covered itself with glory, having snatched victory by a fine margin. It could mean that he’d stay in the Navy, in the event that NATFOR didn’t want him back or even disbanded after coming so close to a debacle.

  So what will it mean for me, back to the Seals? If they’ll have me, and if they’ll put me back in operations, which is doubtful.

  “”I’m not sure if he can sort it out,” she replied. “You know, I never understood why he didn’t try just that little bit harder for us back there. But I guess he’s a staff officer, and he thinks in straight lines. Orders are orders. You know what it’s like.”

  “Yes, I do.”

  So why didn’t you push that bit harder, Colonel Hakim? If Admiral Alexander could pull it off, why couldn’t you? You were supposed to be running the operation, yet when the shit really hit the fan; we were left inside Somalia to die. Did you have an ulterior motive? Or maybe your superior, someone back at the UN, wanted us to fail and to die. I need to look into Colonel Hakim some more.

  “Cate, when we’re back safely on the Abraham Lincoln, can you get hold of copies of all Hakim’s signals that passed between the operations room and NATFOR headquarters. I mean discreetly. I don’t want anyone to know.”

  “Not even the Colonel?”

  “No, definitely not him.

  “Do you suspect him of anything?”

  “I don’t know. To be honest, I’m not sure where the leak may have occurred. But I do know this. Somewhere up the line, we were sold down the river. I’d like to know who was behind it.”

  And rip out their lily-livered guts.

  She nodded. “I see. Yes, I can do that. The communications between the Colonel and Commissioner Gul are super-encrypted. I can get access to them, but I can’t read all of them. No, wait; there’ll be someone on the Lincoln with decryption expertise. I’ll find out, and arrange to put everything on my laptop and bring it to your cabin. We can take a good, long look at what was said.”

  “Yeah, amongst other things.”

  She darted an amused look at him. “I thought you’d be too tired.”

  “Not for you, no. Never.”

  She held his gaze for a long moment, and finally, she nodded.

  They reached the beach. Welland had got them all there safely, and the RIBs were already waiting for them. A contingent of marines had gone ashore to clear the minefield. Parked on the tideline was a pair of Marine Black Hawks. Medics had swarmed onto the trucks and removed the casualties. Five minutes after Talley had come to a halt, the first of the helos had lifted off with its load of casualties for the Abraham Lincoln, and the second machine was spooling up. They abandoned the trucks, leaving Guy Welland to plant the remains of his explosives around the heavy weapons mounted on the Technical. He’d spoken to Talley while the wounded were being transferred.

  “I don’t like the idea of those cannons being left for the Somalis to cause more misery. I’d like to leave them a little surprise.”

  Talley nodded. “Do it.”

  Guy started hiding explosives inside the firing mechanisms of the heavy cannons and the breach of the recoilless rifle. They were tiny, almost invisible booby traps, but these were no ordinary booby traps. Nothing that would harm innocent children if they came across the weapons, and found them wonderful toys to play with in this war-torn land; where the machine gun and rocket launcher was as common as a television set to the average Westerner. But when they loaded the weapons with ammunition and fired them, the ammo would explode in the breaches, killing their would-be users; a stern lesson, indeed. Rovere watched him mining the last of the heavy guns.

  “Put your sword back in its place, for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.”

  Guy looked at the Italian and grinned. “You’re probably correct, Domenico. At least, whoever said it in the first place was correct. Shakespeare?”

  “The Gospel of Matthew, verse 26:52. When Peter drew a sword to defend Jesus from arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane.”

  “I doubt the locals in Somalia will be avid readers of the New Testament,” Guy grunted.

  Domenico grinned at him. “That’s what I’m counting on. It’s a hard country, and they’ll learn a hard lesson.”

  Talley chuckled as he watched the last of the helos climb away into the eastern sky.

  “It’s time to get aboard. I don’t know about you guys, but I can’t wait to wash away the shit of this pestilential country and then get some sleep.”

  “Amen to that,” Domenico agreed.

  “I’d like to find the guy who discovered Somalia,” Guy added. “And show him the error of his ways.”

  “It used to be a successful country,” Cate said, overhearing his comment. “At least, it was until the middle ages. Then the local Muslim warlords took over, and it’s been a virtual hellhole ever since.”

  “All the more reason to get out,” Talley smiled. “Let’s go.”

  On board the Abraham Lincoln, he felt a strange sense of anti-climax. There was no sign of Admiral Alexander, whom he was waiting to thank for his novel intervention. He also wanted to shake the hands of those FA-18 Pilots who’d devastated the Somali armor and saved the mission, and their lives. And he had a few searching questions for Colonel Hakim. Questions about his withdrawal of their air support. There was also the question about Talley’s own status in the Service. Alexander had shanghaied him into the US Navy for the best of reasons, and the promotion felt good. But where did he stand, who did he work for? Before NATFOR, he’d been a Seal, working out of Coronado Base in San Diego. He’d left that job for NATFOR. He’d also left behind a wife and family, as Kay had evidently made the decision to move on.

  What now?

  But he would have to wait for answers. All there was to meet him were a couple of squids, a Petty Officer and a rating. They showed him back to his cabin through the maze of passages, cabins, and pipework that made up the almost uniformly gray interior of the carrier. He stripped of his sweat-soaked uniform and took a long, hot shower. Then he climbed into his bunk and was instantly asleep. He had a strange dream, the bloody, battered face of General Barre appeared, just the head, floating on a slick, smooth ocean. There was no body. The lips moved, and his ghostly voice echoed across the water.

  “Watch your back, American. It will be like a bolt of fire tossed from the skies.”

  What the hell did he mean? Was it the bitter words of a dying man who still couldn’t accept he’d been bested by a superior force?

  Talley tried to swim away from the ghastly head, but no matter which direction he went in, Barre’s visage was always there right in front of him. And then a hand appeared and gripped him, pulling him under the water. He fought and struggled to prevent the corpse of General Barre from pulling him under.

  “Sir, Sir! They want you in the operations room.”

  His eyes opened to see a young sailor standing there. He shook his head to clear it.

  “Understood. Tell them I’ll be right there.”

  “Yes, Sir, can you find the way?”

  He grinned. “Oh, yeah, I forgot. Wait outside the door, give me a few minutes. You’re right. You need a prize for navigating the interior of this ship.”

  The sailor disappeared and closed the door. Talley found there was a plain officer’s working uniform laid out for him by some thoughtful person. He took an ice cold shower and dressed before he’d even fully dried himself. He felt deliciously cool and confortable. He ran his fingers through his hair and stepped out.

  “Ready when you are, Sailor.”

  “This way, Sir.”

  They were waiting for him. Colonel Hakim looked grim-faced and angry.

  What the hell is wrong? The mission was accomplished, albeit at a cost.

  Rear Admiral Alexander was immaculate in his razor creased officer’s khakis. They’d found female officer’s dress whites for Cate. Obviously, there was no working uniform for either her sex or her size, maybe both. She looked ravishing, pure, almost divine in the severely cut uniform that fitted her curves perfectly. Maybe too perfectly. Domenico Rovere was admiring her, and Guy Welland stood innocently nearby, pretending not to have noticed her ravishing beauty. He stepped straight up to Alexander and saluted.

  “I’d like to thank you, Sir. Those Super Hornets saved my men from a nasty death back there.”

  The Admiral nodded and returned the salute. “You’re more than welcome, Captain. And welcome back to the US Navy.” He looked across to Hakim. “Over to you, Colonel.”

  Hakim cleared his throat. “Thank you, Admiral. Firstly, welcome back, er, Captain Talley, and congratulations on a mission that succeeded in achieving its objective. There are, however, a number of problems we need to resolve. I gather you are no stranger to the accusation of war crimes? You’ve been accused of something similar during your service with the US Navy.”

  Talley nodded stiffly. “I have, Sir, and I was cleared of those charges.”

  Hakim cleared his throat. “Yes, well, it seems that another complaint has been received. You were seen kidnapping a United Nations High Commissioner from his residence. His body has been found. I’m afraid you have to answer for both the kidnapping and his death.”

  Talley could hardly believe his ears. “Look, Colonel, that guy was an ally of General Barre. He was feeding him information directly from the UN, including details of ships that could be pirated in the Arabian Sea and even a warning of our operation to intercede. The man was a traitor, a thief, and a murderer.”

  “And he’s dead. I imagine you killed him, Captain?”

  Talley realized Hakim was staring at him as if he were an enemy. As if the Colonel regretted the death of Jamal Osman.

  How the hell did he found out so quickly?

  Alexander’s voice whipped across the operations room. “Don’t answer that, Captain.”

  Hakim rounded on him. “Admiral, we have to know what happened inside Mogadishu. We have a possible diplomatic incident on our hands, and there’ll be questions asked inside both NATO and the UN.”

  “Mister, you’re on my ship, and this is not the United Nations or NATO.” Alexander’s voice was icy. “Under the Articles that govern the Armed Forces of the United States of America, Captain Talley was recalled to duty. It was done legally and according to the advice of our JAG’s department in the Pentagon. I had them burning the midnight oil to make sure we got it right. So he’s not under your command. He belongs to me. As does this ship. If you have any questions for Captain Talley, you clear them through me first. Do you understand me, Colonel?”

  Hakim’s dusky Arabic face was almost white with rage. “You’ll regret this, Admiral. The NATO Secretary General will take this up with your President.”