Ruthless Game (GhostWalkers, #9)(57)

“Yeah, I got that.” He’d been hoping the sniper’s first shot had been a miss on purpose. “I think they have no idea who I am, Rose. It’s possible they think I’m Carlson stealing you away. Whitney set his watchdogs on Carlson and Fargo. They’ve eliminated Fargo, so they’re coming after me.”

“I agree that it’s got to be Whitney’s man,” Rose called back to him. “So if he’s driving us toward the canyon and away from that slope, what does that mean?”

Kane had a sinking feeling he knew what it meant. Whitney had a crew waiting for them. He didn’t bother to answer the question. Rose knew what it meant as well. Of course Whitney still had no way of knowing that Rose had given birth to Sebastian. They thought she was still pregnant. With the cartel behind them and the sniper driving them in a direction, Kane was certain Whitney was dropping—or had already dropped—more men into the combat zone.

“The canyon offers the only viable cover, and we can’t run in this thing forever. We have enough ammo to give it a good fight, and I can take out a good portion of the cartel’s vehicles and men when they close the distance. Forget luring them to open fire again. Drive straight for the ravine.”

“We might be driving right into Whitney’s men.”

Kane shrugged. “Then we make our stand there. I think we’ll have more of a chance. Otherwise all they have to do is wait for us to run out of gas and then water. We’ve got Sebastian to think of, Rose. Head for the canyon.”

She nodded and kept to the course, the Humvee bumping over the uneven ground, followed in the distance by a stream of bouncing lights as the cartel followed.





CHAPTER 10




The canyon was several miles away across open ground, but it was their only real cover. The M1165 Humvee with frag armor included two-inch-thick bulletproof glass. The doors alone weighed a good 250 pounds. Along with the state-of-the-art CROWS system mounted on the roof, they had firepower and protection but little speed.

Kane liked the idea of staying inside the Hummer now that they had half the cartel on their asses as well as a sniper and spotter. With the CROWS system, a remote-controlled weapon platform mounted on top of the vehicle, the gunner could sit in the vehicle and use a joystick, watching the action through a “TV” screen. The system had the capability to zoom in, use night vision, infrared, daytime, or heat sensor, with some very heavy-duty weapons. If necessary, and he hoped it wouldn’t be, he could disengage and use the system manually.

“They’re coming up behind us,” he said.

Bullets sprayed across the back of the Humvee. The first of the cartel vehicles had outdistanced the others and had gotten within firing range. In the distance they heard a massive explosion, and the ground shook. The blast seemed to trigger several smaller detonations. Kane saw a large mushroom plume rising out of the desert in the direction of Diego Jimenez’s subterranean house.

“What the hell was that?” he demanded.

Rose shot him a fierce look. “That was me being pissed off. If the cartel—or Diego’s sons—thought they’d be using his home and tunnel, or any of the weapons he acquired from Whitney, they have another think coming.”

“Remind me never to get you angry at me,” he said.

“Don’t ever betray me.”

Kane grinned at her. “You’re so damn sexy, soldada hermosa, especially when you go all blow-things-up and scary on me.”

She pursed her lips and made kissy noises. “Just a gentle reminder.”

He laughed out loud. “Just so you know, I’m the jealous type.”

Her eyebrow shot up. “Fine time to tell me. I thought I was going to get to take lots of lovers. Guess not.”

“Damn right you guess not.”

A heavy caliber weapon rocked the Humvee. Rose ducked and then bared her teeth, eyes flashing fire. “Check the baby and then teach that idiot a lesson in manners.”

“I do so love it when you go all soldier on me.”

“Quit flirting with me and get the job done.”

“You started it by blowing up the house,” he pointed out righteously. Dutifully he took another look at Sebastian. The bouncing of the Humvee didn’t seem to bother him, although he did open his eyes to stare at his father through narrow, sleep slits. “We’re fine, son,” Kane soothed. “Mommy’s a terrible driver, but she’s having fun, so we’ll overlook it this once.”

Sebastian’s little bow of a mouth curved in a smile, and his eyes closed.

Kane settled in front of the screen, his hand on the joystick. The lighter, much more mobile truck leapt onto the screen. One man was in the bed of the pickup with a machine gun. Another was strapped to the roof with a rocket launcher. A third man leaned out of the passenger window with what appeared to be a grenade in his hand. The driver, with a look of determination on his face, fought the wheel as the tires bounced over the rough terrain.

“This is a cool system,” Kane said. “I’ve got one sweet weapon for distance and damage.” He could hit someone a good one and a half miles away.

“You sound like a kid in a candy store. Shoot them already, or you’ll be doing the driving and I’ll be the one having fun,” she threatened.

“Bloodthirsty little wench,” he muttered. “I’m on it.”