Capital Falling | Book 4 | Sever Winkless, Lance (most popular ebook readers TXT) 📖

the beach and look out onto the water where two military patrol boats are positioned meters apart from each other on the river. The two boats flank each side of another smaller boat, our boat, and I see Josh and Alice stood inside its hull.

Josh has his back to me and seems to be remonstrating with a sailor stood on one of the patrol boats. I wave across the river trying to get Alice’s attention as she stands next to Josh, but she is looking everywhere apart from at me.

Suddenly, Alice’s head turns in my direction and my waves become more vigorous. I see a smile spread across Alice’s face and she urgently pulls at Josh’s arm. Josh turns to Alice in surprise, and she says something to him excitedly, while pointing towards me.

Josh’s head spins in my direction and he finally spots me up on the embankment wall and that I am alive. Josh, who must be overcome, drops down, bent over in the boat, his hands moving to his head.

Perhaps, somebody up above was watching over me after all, I think as I look out at my son, my eyes welling up.

Alice’s hand goes to Josh’s shoulder to comfort him, but as soon as she touches him, he pushes himself upright. He gives me a wave back and then quickly reaches for his radio.

“Thank God, Dad. Are you okay, over?” Josh’s voice squawks from the radio on my chest. I just about hear it over the roar of the helicopter.

“Just about champ. But if it wasn’t for these guys, we wouldn’t have made it. When did they turn up, over?” I ask.

“About five minutes ago. Are the others with you, over?”

“I’ve got Karen and one other. I’m afraid Jim didn’t make it, over,” I tell Josh sombrely.

“Shit,” Josh replies. “Fill me in later, over.”

“I will. What are those guys saying, over?”

“Nothing, they won’t tell me anything, apart from we cannot come onto the beach to get you, over,” Josh replies.

“Okay, I’ll see what I can find out from up here. I’ll let you know. Out,” I tell Josh.

“Copy.”

I turn away from the embankment, my eyes falling on the colossal carnage reaching up the street in front of me. The Special Forces troops have formed their perimeter. One or two walk between the fallen undead, double-checking none pose a threat, and there is a conflab going on between three of the black-clad operatives close by. These are obviously the ones I need to get some answers from, but before I get the chance, Karen comes over to me.

“Are you okay,” I ask. She looks a bit broken, something I am not surprised by in the least. She comes right up to me and throws her arms around me, taking me somewhat by surprise.

Karen squeezes me tightly in silence for a moment and I belatedly put my arms around her to give her a reassuring hug in return. Tanya stands close by watching on, she looks completely drained. I can only feel admiration for the young girl after her ordeal of been trapped in that office for days and then dragging herself through this nightmare. She has an inner strength that I am sure she knew nothing of before and I hope she finds some peace now.

“Thank you, Andy,” Karen says as she breaks away from me to look me in the eye.

“It was rough. I’m sorry about Jim,” I tell her.

“We knew it was a gamble Andy, so don’t blame yourself. It will be tough, but I will get over it. Stacey and I will be together,” she tells me, and I think that they will be as I look at Karen.

“Andy, fucking Richards,” a voice asks from my left. I am not sure if I am being asked a question or being addressed.

“Yes, and you are?” I reply as a tall, burly, black-clad operator approaches me.

“You’re a fucking loose cannon,” the man says as he reaches to pull up his black balaclava, his helmet under his arm. “You always were.”

The black material rises to reveal a face I know well, a face I had hoped I would never see again.

“I don’t know what you mean, Sergeant Briggs,” I answered.

Briggs and I had a long history of butting heads. I was his Captain for a short time before I left the SAS and the military. Briggs passed selection two years after me and the man is a complete arsehole. Luckily, the two of us were never posted into the same troop together, but we completed plenty of operations in the same field together and we never saw eye to eye. But when I was fast-tracked for promotion, he did everything he possibly could to fuck-up my command. He took pride in trying to make me look bad to the top brass, at every opportunity. Not that I ever let him succeed.

“You don’t know what I mean?” Briggs says in amazement. “Just look at your little escapade today, for example.”

“I’m here to help some friends, that’s all,” I tell him.

“And how was that going before I turned up to save your ass?”

“We haven’t got time for this Sergeant,” I say changing the subject, and not only because this dickhead has a point. “We need to evacuate the area, the enemy could be regrouping as we dick swing, Sergeant.”

“My men have us covered,” the Sergeant grins, loving every second of his time in the spotlight.

“Nevertheless, Sergeant, we are leaving,” I insist, without really having a leg to stand on. We are in their hands, it seems.

“Corporal,” Briggs shouts to one of his men, who comes to heel immediately.

“Get the women down to the boats,” Briggs orders.

“What is going on here, Sergeant,” I demand.

“What can I tell you Richard’s. It’s on a need-to-know basis, and you don’t need to know.” Briggs grins.

“Where are you taking them?” I ask urgently. “Am I going with them?”

“The women will be safe, don’t worry. But I have different orders for you, my friend.”

“Come on, Don. I