Andy McNab - Meltdown

She nodded. As always, she was focused on her own side of the operation, but she was mindful of Dudley's warning that her mission could not, and would not, take priority over his.

Kubara's black Mercedes was now heading north, deeper into the Catalan heartland, and Danny was edging the Corsa closer in the darkness. All the Merc driver would see was headlights in his rearview mirror.

As soon as Teddy had made the calls Kubara had requested, the bodyguard had taken the twins' mobiles, ripped out the sim cards and batteries, and dropped the phones and parts out of the window, one after the other. No one was going to use the phones' signals to get a fix on them.

But Danny was still following.

'No change. Ninety, one hundred Ks an hour, still heading north.'

Fergus had taken over the net as Deveraux spoke on her mobile to her team members at the airport.

'Roger that. Soon as we're airborne, we'll pick you up.'

'Need to be quick about it. That's the Merc turning left off the main into darkness. I can't follow. Get a fix on me! Get a fix!'

Danny slowed the Corsa as he saw the Merc's headlights puncture the inky darkness to his left. He wanted Fergus to know exactly where the turning was. The mobile tracking would fix and confirm that.

'Approaching the turning… Stand by… Now!'

Danny continued a little way down the road, then pulled onto the verge and switched off the Corsa's engine.

'Danny's foxtrot. I'll use the mobile.'

He grabbed the handycam, got out and ran, as the Merc's lights disappeared into darkness about 1K away.

Thorn bushes snagged at his jeans as he sprinted over the dusty, undulating ground, holding the handycam tightly. His mouth was dry and sweat seeped from every pore; he ran as hard as he could. Getting to the target was all that mattered.

He was no more than 200 metres away when he heard the electronic whine. He knew immediately what it was: a helicopter's rotor blades had started to turn and were getting quicker as the engines revved up.

Danny closed in on the target, powered up the handycam, attached it to the phone and started recording, using the powerful lens to make out the details of the scene in front of him.

The Sikorsky S-92 helicopter stood waiting, its huge rotor blades now at full speed. They were cutting an enormous circle through the air and pushing out a tremendous downdraught, throwing dust into the air. Further away were the shapes of derelict farm buildings and a tanker, which had obviously been brought in to refuel the helicopter.

The S-92 was only for the seriously wealthy, the Bill Gateses of the world, or rulers of oil-rich Arab nations – or the top drug dealers like Enver Kubara.

The aircraft had been developed from Sikorsky's S-70, US Army Black Hawk and US Navy Seahawk helicopters. Its twin engines delivered massive power and a flying range of over 600 nautical miles.

There were military and air-sea rescue versions of the S-92, but it was the civilian version that stood waiting for take-off. The aircraft raised helicopter in-flight luxury to a different level. There was room for no fewer than nineteen passengers to be comfortably seated in leather, airliner-style seats and there was a thick, shag pile carpet on the floor – which meant that conversation could be held at normal levels; there was even a fully stocked bar.

Teddy and Will knew and cared nothing about any of that as they were ordered out of the Mercedes and bundled across the open ground, crouching low and running towards the side door.

As he watched from the perimeter, Danny was already on his mobile to Fergus. 'They're going airborne.'

Teddy was first up the steps, followed quickly by Will. They looked around the cabin. It was almost like entering one of their own luxury coaches. But the luxurious surroundings were not what made them gasp with shock as they stepped inside. Someone was sitting at the back of the aircraft.

It was Storm.

Kubara followed Teddy and Will and pushed them down into their seats. Teddy looked at Storm, then back at the Bosnian, and for once in his life he tried to do the decent thing.

'There's no need to take her; she knows nothing. She can't help you. Please, leave her here!'

Kubara simply ignored Teddy's plea. The bodyguard climbed into the heli and pulled the door shut. His boss was already instructing the pilot to proceed with the take-off.

In a thunderous roar of sheer power, the helicopter lifted into the night sky, and far below Danny watched as it flew off towards the sea. Quickly he ran back to his Corsa to make his report.

Inside the Sikorsky Teddy turned back to look at Storm.

'I'm sorry, Storm,' he told her. 'I'm so, so sorry'

The helicopter that Danny was flying in could hardly have been more different from the Sikorsky, but in its own way it was just as impressive.

The Cougar was a no-frills military helicopter. It could carry twenty-nine combat troops, all seated down the centre of the aircraft in red, nylonwebbing seats that could be folded away to make room for cargo or stretchers.

The interior walls were covered with a thin silver padding. It was there to protect the wiring, which lay behind it against the aluminium bodywork.

Conversation at normal levels was impossible; the two turbo engines were directly above the passengers, so they had to shout or talk via the intercom with earphones and mic.

There was a constant smell of aviation fuel being burned and the floor was covered with solid, gritted tar to give some grip in wet conditions.

It was Danny's first time in a helicopter and he was one of just seven passengers. The others were Fergus and Deveraux and her four-man team. The team was already prepared for action: they had to be ready; no one knew where they were going or how long the flight would last.

They were wearing full body armour, with a ceramic plate placed in the pocket over the chest. The plate was capable of taking and dispersing the energy of a round by shattering on impact. Ceramic is extremely tough when acting as a shield but delicate when being handled, so wearers always take great care when handling their plates.

Deveraux and her team had MP5s as their main weapons, with a torch attached below the barrel, zeroed so that the rounds would go wherever the light shone. The MP5s also had a laser-beam box next to the torch. These carried out the same function as the torch but were more precise and could be used in the dark if the team was wearing NVGs.

The five also each had a Sig 9mm semi-automatic pistol strapped to one leg, with spare magazines attached to the other, as their secondary weapon. They were carried on their legs because the body armour made it difficult to draw a weapon from a belt.

The only ones not ready for immediate action were Fergus and Danny, and Fergus wasn't happy about it. He looked back and was glad to see that Danny was dozing. It was an important lesson to learn: you grabbed any opportunity you could to catch up on sleep.

Fergus was sitting directly behind Deveraux. As soon as she had checked her body armour and weapons, he tapped her on the shoulder.

When she turned back to look at him, he nodded down at her ready bag and then shouted to be heard. 'What about Danny and me?'

Deveraux shook her head. 'I shall be operating with my team, as a team. I don't want Batman and Robin getting in my way.'

'This is a joint operation!' yelled Fergus. 'You know Dudley's orders. I'm in command. We must have weapons!'

Deveraux hesitated. She had been hoping to avoid handing over the two Sig pistols Dudley had ordered her to provide for Fergus and Danny. Reluctantly she reached into her ready bag and took out the pistols and just one spare magazine for each short.

'These are for your defence only. For your protection. Do not get in my way! I will not be responsible for your safety if you or the boy get in my line of fire!'