The Action 3 страница

Bebo jabbed only the front part of his throat cutting off the small amount of air getting in. The last thing the man saw was the face of what looked to be a black demon with a bow that came down from the trees and carry him upward. If placed high enough the body would not be found or detected for months if at all. Once she was sure that Steph had him under control, Bebo moved to the main buildings and took a quick look. Five automatic weapons were trained on the area as she made her inspection.

" You think they took them to the clinic? " asked Bear when Bebo returned to the trees.

" According to the information we had, this was supposed to be the clinic. What we have though, is a small village with a pack of misfits to watch it." Bebo signaled for Beth to come and join them. The laptop looped through to the Lincoln and to the latest satellite photos of the area. They all looked at the area and for any openings in the lush vegetation that made up the jungles of Conger.

" This is a possibility, " said Bear pointing to a stop about five miles from where they were. " It borders the river. No hospital works very well without a water supply. What do you think? " she asked of Bebo.

There was another possibility ten miles to the west of where Bear was pointing and it too had a water source near by, just not as large. If they went to the closest one first it would add that much more to their walk to get to the next location. It wasn't the getting there and fatigue that bothered Bebo; it was the time factor of choosing incorrectly.

" Get back to the Lincoln, Beth, and tell them I need live feed in about two hours. We can't afford to give up any more time than we have to if we're going to find any of these guys alive and our friends with the machetes still in the dark about York, " directed Bebo. Soft tapping followed and she could feel Bear's eyes on her as she looked at the quiet village.

" What about these guys? " The trainer pointed to the shacks where the soldiers and rapists were sleeping.

" It would be sweet, Bear, but not now. One is all I'm willing to get rid of now. We can't take the chance and announce our arrival by leaving a sea of bodies behind us."

Beth finished and put the laptop away. " They said to give them an hour to coordinate with the folks back home to get the thing back in the position you want. If the weather's good they should be able to show you someone picking their nose once the sun comes up."

" That's exactly what I'm interested in, how'd you guess? " The two women laughed at the sarcasm that reminded them of Bo. " Let's move out." She signaled to the others to stick to the trees. In the dark it was impossible to spot any more triggers and she didn't want to be slowed down. " We'll move for another hour then take a break and decide what direction we're heading."

The GPS device kept them on target for the first and closest location. When Beth brought out the computer again, the first light of dawn was breaking through the trees. From their perches in the branches they could see that the sky was going to cooperate showing only a few clouds. For fifteen minutes the picture concentrated on the first location that was now about a mile away.

The scene below them seemed normal. They watched villagers moving around with the laziness of people who had just risen from a night's sleep. Their movements were relaxed as they went to the river to collect water and there were children throwing rocks into the water as their parents went about their business.

For about two minutes the screen blurred and then another location came into view. The village to the west was even smaller than those they had come across and looked to be a large communal pig farm. Again there were villagers going about their business but there was something hinky about their movements.

" What don't you see? " asked Bear.

" Men and children, " answered Bebo. She quickly pointed to the very edge of the screen before the picture disappeared. " It's what I do see that makes me think this is the location." It wasn't a military truck, but it was large enough to be able to be used as a transport vehicle. " What do a bunch of pig farmers in the middle of a jungle need a truck for? "

" Pig deliveries? " joked Beth. " I'm sure there's a huge supermarket around here somewhere." The picture was still up but they were done, so she sent the Lincoln a message as to which location they were headed to while Bebo punched the coordinates into the electronic positioning device.

" My question is, why isn't it ever the short walk? " Bebo smiled and dropped from the branch down to the ground. She wanted to be able to move as quickly as possible until the day got to its hottest point. By then they would be far enough away from any danger to sleep until late afternoon. That would leave them rested enough to reach the village by nightfall.

The others stayed in the trees until Bebo was about fifty yards away. She was looking for any more traps but the jungle floor was clear for now except for its own natural killers. When she looked up to give the order to have them drop, Bebo saw the movement close to Rita. Without hesitation she pulled the bow from her back and sent an arrow toward the woman's head. Any protests on the guard's part died away when she saw the large poisonous snake twitching and hanging from the arrow that pinned its jaws shut to the trunk.

" Thanks, Bebo." She waved and felt a wave of relief wash through her. From her boot she pulled a knife and cut the head off so she could retrieve Bebo's arrow.

" Anytime. You should see me try it with a blindfold while smoking a cigar and singing, then I'm really impressive."

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The place stank and was filled with enough bugs and things that crawled to make sleep impossible. With no windows and no source of light it only added to the sense of anxiety in the hot room. They had been stripped down to their underwear, and their captives would come every so often and drag someone off. Then the screaming would begin driving up the fear of when it would be your turn with the fuckers doing the torturing.

" Where do you think they took Brian? " Patrick had to concentrate to recognize the voice asking the question. He didn't know where Lt. Turner was, but the big Georgian was responsible for their current position.

" With any luck they're trying to keep him alive to see if he'll talk, " answered Junis. The damned barbed log had come out of nowhere along with the group of men who'd surrounded them when Brian had screamed. The vision of the bastards pealing their man off their little trap made his head hurt. It was the moaning that told them Turner was at least still alive.

" As soon as they run out of locals to play with, we're fucked. You all know this right? " asked Titus.

" They're not saving us for last, Titus, they're waiting for someone, " said Michelle. At the moment she would have preferred a beating instead of having one more thing crawl in her ears.

" How do you know that? " Titus sounded irritated.

" Because they were lucky enough to find all these armed Americans taking a stroll though the woods, and grandma's house is nowhere in sight." David Norris sat with his back pressed to the wooden wall and dreamed of a hot shower and a cold beer. " She's right, we're too important for the rank and file. They're waiting for someone in charge to show up."

" We need to get the fuck out of here then, " said Titus. Some pig farm was not where he was punching in his ticket.

" Should we use your head as a battering ram to get the door open? " asked Billy Wade.

" He's right, Billy. We have to find a way out of here because we all know they aren't sending anyone for us. Hell the government will deny we even exist so it's up to us to save our own asses, " said Patrick. This was a new experience for him. Being a prisoner in a country like Conger was the equivalent of dipping your dick in honey and sitting on a fire ant pile.

They heard a woman screaming and it cut their conversation off. Not even the heat of midday was stopping the rebels from their killing. From the capital city of Alteci another military convoy pulled out from the presidential palace now in rebel control. The message from the interior had been received and the leader of the coup had sent who he considered the right people for the job. Retrieving information was not only their specialty, but also more importantly a form of pleasure. The Cobras would not only talk, they would then beg for death.

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Morning came again in Washington and Annie laid in bed looking at the picture of Bebo with her parents sitting on the nightstand. She wanted more than anything to have the tall woman in the bed with her and holding her. After what her mother had told them the night before, sleep had been impossible. It was a toss up between being angry or hurt at having something so important being kept from Reggie and her.

" Please hurry back, love. I really need you here." She ran her finger over the face she'd come to love and hoped somehow her plea would reach Bebo's heart.

The door opened and Reggie stood in the hallway looking like hell. " Can I come in? "

Annie held the corner of the blanket up and her little sister gladly took the invitation. " How are you holding up? " She asked the younger blonde.

" After hearing that my father browbeat my mother into giving up her whole identity because he's homophobic? Just peachy. There was one thing that this did explain for me, or at least cleared it up in my head."

" What's that? "

" Where his reaction to my lifestyle came from. It makes me feel sorry for mom for all the shit he must have given her when we weren't around." Reggie turned on her side so she was facing Annie and put her hands under her chin. " I want more than anything to find someone to share my life with, but if it means having to give up who I am as a person, I don't mind ending up alone."

" I haven't had much time with Bebo, but that's where I think I've lucked out. I'm not bragging, Reg, but don't settle."

The younger blonde smiled before giving her sister a mock glare. " I know, I asked her out first, remember? " She reached over and brushed a strand of hair back behind Annie's ear. " Do you think she knew about this? "

" I think Bebo would've been too young to remember mom, and I think she would've told me if she'd known. This is something that she couldn't have kept to herself if she'd had some idea."

" That's great that you're so confident after being together such a short time." In an instant a glow came into Reggie's eyes as if something important had occurred to her. " You know what else this means? We have every right by birth to walk through those Archives, Annie. Hell our grandmother runs the place."

It was a lure to think about, but Annie still had something else on her mind. " What do you think the rest of the story is? After what Queen Audrey said last night, there has to be something we're missing."

" Just one more reason for daddy and Bebo to get back."

" I'm sure there's more than just that for wanting my daughter home, I'm hoping anyway, " said Audrey from the door. She was still wearing her pajamas and robe wanting to go down and read the message Philip had sent them that morning. It was short, but the fact the girls were still on the move and heading in what they thought was the right direction gave her hope they were all right. " A mother never wants to think of her children this way, but I remember when Bo had to go places without me when we were your age. I missed her as a whole, but some of those body parts took preference over some other things."

Reggie and Audrey laughed at Annie's instant blush. " Can I just say there are many reasons I want her home and leave it at that? " asked Annie.

" Like I said, I'm her mother and while I'm loving that she's in love, great detail on the subject isn't necessary." Audrey walked in and took a seat on the bed. " We got a copy of a message they sent from Conger this morning. They're on the move and think they've found where they're keeping your father and his unit. With any luck this will be over soon."

" There was nothing else? " asked Annie. For once in her life she wished she had some sort of vice like smoking to vent some of her nervousness.

" She's fine, Annie. If there's one warrior on the whole isle of Amazonia the trainers have poured their heart and soul into training, it's Bebo. And with her are some of the finest fighters and protectors we have. What we have to learn as scholars is to accept what drives someone like your Bebo and my Boden." She placed her hand on Annie's chest over her heart.

" What? " asked Reggie and Annie together.

" Boden comes from a long line of warriors and she instilled that spirit into our daughter from a very early age. Thing is, you have to be of the same mind for something like that to work. You cannot do something and love it enough to be good at it if you don't like it. Bebo is like her mother, " Audrey pressed down a little more on Annie's chest. " She feels the need to prove herself in battle here. In her heart she was born to protect the innocent and preserve the rights of individuals to live the way they so chose to live. Sometimes we have to understand that can't be learned in books or taught to people who have no desire to hear. It must be forged at the end of a sword. From the first woman who called herself an Amazon, that has been our tradition."

" So you're saying that there's no need for teachers if your army is powerful enough? " asked Reggie.

" Think of it this way. When a body is found to have a cancer growing inside, you don't kill the person because of what you see as a flaw. You remove the part that is diseased and hope the healthy tissue is strong enough to fight back and flourish. In the world there are people who are of a mind to try and bend others to their will by beating them down. The only way to defeat them is to remove them so the others who want to live in peace can do so."

" Do you think you can spend time with us today? Reggie and I have so many questions." This gentle woman, Annie could see, had a lot to do with the person she'd fallen in love with. Bebo may have been born to be a warrior, but she also had a heart for history and learning just like her other mother.

" I'm sure your mother will be able to answer whatever questions you have to get you started. Tonight, if you like, we'll spend time together and I'll bring you up to date on what Amazonia has become since she left." The queen rested her hands on her lap and looked over at the same picture Annie had been studying that morning. " I may be asking too much, but don't shut your mother out. She needs, I think, to feel needed and accepted by the two of you especially now. When your father returns there's a chance she'll find herself alone if you turn your backs on her."

Annie reached out and took one of Audrey's hands in hers. " We wouldn't do that, highness."

The promise bracelet came into view and Audrey wanted to see what Bebo had picked, but wanted to also respect their privacy. It was more than a piece of jewelry to their people; it was a bit of a person's heart. " My daughter has chosen well."

" May you always think so." Annie lifted her hand up when she saw the queen's lingering look. " I'd take it off to let you see, but I think it would kill me to do it. You can take a look if you want though."

Before she looked Audrey explained the symbolism of the bracelet and how some people didn't feel it appropriate to share with others. " What I mean is, don't feel like you have to show it to me because I'm her mother. This is the equivalent of my daughter's most private thoughts."

" It's because you're her mother that I want you to see it. You say that Boden had much to do with Bebo becoming the person she is, but I think you don't give yourself enough credit. There is a lot of you in her heart, but more importantly in her mind."

" Thank you for saying that, Annie, but right now my heart and mind is rooting for the part that's all Bo."

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The energy bar Bebo was eating had attracted a small monkey and she was laughing at the way he was trying to get the peanut butter off the roof of his mouth when she shared a piece with him. She and the group had been napping since one in the afternoon high in the tree branches. They had set up some trap lines of their own, not to kill or maim someone but to sound a small alarm in their ear pieces if someone walked through the hair thin lines.

" How much farther? " asked Beth. She was sitting in the next branch over and eating another energy bar, hers made mostly of dried fruit.

" Three miles tops." It was close to six so like the night before; they would have the cover of darkness when they arrived. " Get on the horn and send one more message then tell them we're going silent until I have the unit in hand, or we find they've been moved again."

After that was done and they finished the simple meal, they started moving again, Bebo wanting to be in place when the sun went down. Something in her gut told her they were running out of time, and she didn't want to go home and tell Annie her father had died before she had a chance to save him.

In the camp the door to the cell opened and the men outside laughed as the team blinked up at them like blinded owls. " Dat one there, " the tall man said in broken English. He pointed to Patrick and the guards dragged the general out.

As soon as they were able to let him stand Patrick almost fell his legs were so numb from sitting for so long. A cane slapping against them a couple of times got the blood flowing soon enough and he was moved to a small room with a single naked light bulb hanging in the center of the ceiling. The generator powering the electricity in the space could be heard sputtering outside, and the whole thing reminded him of a bad action movie.

" Would you like something to drink before we begin? " Another man spoke from the corner; his English much more polished and educated sounding than the guard's. Patrick squinted but he still couldn't make out his face. " I asked you a question, " he said, this time sounding a little firmer.

" No."

" Good, we can see now that you're able to talk, so I'll explain how this works. I'm going to ask you a question and if you don't answer, " he stopped to laugh, the others joining in. " Let's just say it'll be in your best interest to answer." Pelli knew his limits as far as who he could play with before the real interrogators arrived in the morning, and he figured he'd start with the oldest and what he saw as the weakest link in the bunch they'd captured. He wasn't expecting the man to tell him anything but throwing him back in with his people, broken and bloodied, would loosen their tongues when the others arrived.

" If you want to kill me, go ahead, but I'm not giving you shit." Patrick stuck his jaw out in defiance and the man standing next to him punched him so hard it felt like a muscle had pulled in his neck it whipped back so fast.

" The left leg, Mau, " Pelli ordered. A thick club swung down and landed just above Patrick's knee. Everyone heard the bone snap when the blow was complete, but all they managed to do was make the general break a sweat. " See, sir, you may think you aren't giving me shit, and you can continue to do so, but it'll come at a price. Eventually we'll run out of bones and I'll have to find something else to amuse me. Or should I say, someone else? Perhaps one of the lovely young women you're traveling with? "

" Fuck you." Patrick gathered what salvia was left in his mouth and spit it toward the voice.

" The right leg, Mau." The club came down again, only this time it not only broke the bone but the skin as well. Still Patrick stayed quiet. " One last thing, then I'll send you back to think about our next meeting. Mau, his right hand." His henchman picked up Patrick's hand and placed it on a small table beside his chair. From his belt he pulled out a large knife and buried it in the palm. When he twisted the man was satisfied when Patrick finally let out a small squeak of pain. " Something for the maggots in there to feast on until we see each other again."

The sun had finished its descent by the time they carried Patrick across the compound to their holding cell. On the other side of the wall, some wild pigs the villagers had managed to capture were penned and eating some scraps. With no care for his injuries, the rebels threw him back in and relocked the door. When the lock turned again, Patrick gave himself permission to moan. The bugs were instantly attracted to the open wound on his leg and hand driving him mad.

" I can say with certainty we're in the right place, " said Bebo. She lowered the binoculars after Patrick disappeared from view. His blond hair sticking out like a beacon in the sea of people moving around in the village.

" What do you have in mind? " asked Steph.

" I'm open to suggestions, " said Bebo with a grimace. She was trying to forget the mental image she'd just seen, and hoped the rest of Patrick's people were okay. " After all, I'm not going in there alone."

" This might not be the most acceptable, but I say we wait. If this place runs like the last, they'll be asleep after inflicting a bit more pain, and we don't know how many there are." Bear took her own look and chimed in her opinion. Sitting in the large tree about three hundred yards away, they were all mentally calculating how many rebels were stationed in the village. So far Bear had counted twenty-eight, but some of the shacks had shown no movement. It could mean they were empty, but then again some of them could have been getting in some sleep.

Bebo was about to answer in agreement when the man who had broken Patrick's legs dragged a woman from one of the shacks. In her arms was an infant that looked to be about a few weeks old. She was crying and trying to use her body as a shield to protect her child from the man's viciousness.

" No, please I'll do whatever you want just spare my baby, " the woman said through her sobs. It was some form of local dialect and the Amazons watching didn't understand the words but the pleas of a mother were a universal language.

Mau laughed and ordered two of his men to hold the woman still. From his belt he pulled his machete and for an instant Bebo thought he was going to kill the child, but he had one of the men strip it from her and hold it. The infant was crying only adding to the bizarre scene of hatred.

" You're nothing but a whore and part of the scum that has infected this land for too long, " Mau told her. He used the long blade to cut her shirt open. The action got Bebo to start moving.

It wasn't the brightest thing she could have decided, but there was no way she would sit and watch some atrocity happen and do nothing. The day she was to face judgment and try to enter the Amazon land of the dead, this would not be something counted against her, and she hoped Annie could forgive her if her sense of right got her killed.

" Just remember you made this decision by refusing me, I spared your child, it's you who's killed him. " Mau spoke the words close to her face as his men stood by and laughed at the woman's whimpering. Two strokes and her breasts lay on the ground at her feet. In a land where children depended on their mother for nourishment, not being able to breast-feed was the child's certain death along with its mother. He wiped the blade clean on her ripped shirt and left her in the square to die. " She wanted that kid so much, give it to her, " Mau ordered the man holding the infant.

They were his last words as an arrow pierced the back of his neck and sliced through his vocal cords. Before the two men with him could sound the alarm two more projectiles came from the jungle and dropped them. Bebo came at a run and twisted his head to finish what the arrow had not. The others joined her and dragged the men to the closest building along with the woman to try and keep the element of surprise as long as possible.

The woman was still crying and trying to hold her child for the little time she had left. Above her hovered strange women in face paint and heavily armed. " Please you must save my baby. " She tried to hold the child up and hand it to the closest person.

" It's ok, you're going to be fine, " said Rita in a soft voice. It was a lie, but the Amazon wanted to provide as much comfort as possible to the condemned soul bleeding out before her.

" Take my baby, I beg you. " Her vision was growing dim and her strength had left her.

" I think she wants you to take the baby, " said Bebo as she went about pulling the arrows out of the three throats. She wanted to leave behind no physical trace of their being there. " If you do though, just remember what kind of commitment that is. Do you think Jeanne is ready? " Bebo asked referring to Rita's girlfriend still back in Amazonia.

" She'd probably thank you for pushing me to the alter that much sooner. She's been ready for this since two days after we starting dating." She took the child from the woman and held it to her chest to see if it would stop crying. " I'll take good care of, " she peeked in the diaper to find it was a girl. " I'll take good care of her I swear it on my honor." Rita bent low and whispered into the woman's ear. She lifted the limp hand and placed it on the baby's back so the woman could feel her child as she slipped into the next life.

" Thank you. Thank you, goddess. " It was the last thing the woman said before the blackness took her. She was still breathing but her mind had mercifully shut off the pain as she slowly started to slip away.

" Congratulations, Rita, now try and find some place to leave the kid until we're done here, " said Bear. There was a horrible stench where they were standing and when she looked into the sty, she could see the wild pigs feeding on some of the dead villagers the rebels had thrown into the pen. " Fuck me, we need to finish and get the Hades out of here."

" Steph, you and Beth take position here and cover us. Bear, take Rita and take up a position at the next building over. Max and I are going where we saw them take Patrick. With any luck they're all piled in there together." Bebo looked at all of them and put up her fist, the warrior's sign of courage. " Come on, Max, let's go get the reinforcements."

Three guards sat close to the doorway of the cell the Cobras where in. They were talking quietly amongst themselves but just as quietly two arrows cut through the night and pinned two of them to the wall behind them. The third met his maker at the end of Bebo's knife.

" And here I thought my knife throwing needed more work."

" Has anyone ever told you that violence makes you funny in a strange sick sort of way? " asked Max, as they moved closer.

" It's an old family tradition if what Boden tells me is true. I'm just trying to forget this isn't a game and you don't get to wipe the paint off after we're done. It's kind of disconcerting otherwise."

Max used the butt of her rifle to get the lock off the door. " Hi, fellas, care to come out and play? "

" What in the fuck are you doing here? " asked Titus. He threw the door open wider and crawled out.

" You're welcome for coming all the way out here to get you, " said Rita as she offered her hand to the others to get out. " Bebo, you'd better get over here."

Patrick was lying there looking like the pain was making him start to go into shock. He turned his head when he felt someone kneel next to him and turn on a small flashlight. Even with the paint he recognized her. " You? "

" Yep, sorry to disappoint you, but it's me. This is going to hurt like a bitch but we have to get you out of here. You think you're up to helping me? "

" Just leave me and get my kids out. I'll just slow you down." He turned his face away from her and to the dark wall.

" I promised your daughters I'd find you and get you out, Patrick, so you don't get to be so noble. If you want I'll give you a stick to bite on, but you're coming with me."