Клайв Касслер - Typhoon Fury

“He says it’ll be there in a few seconds.”

Juan opened the window and watched the quadcopter, no more than a foot across, coming in to match the train’s speed. Gomez’s placement of the drone was perfect, lining it up with the opening. It darted inside, corrected instantly for the sudden change in wind speed, and came to rest on the floor. The propellers shut down and went silent.

Juan picked up the drone and clicked open a tiny compartment on its underside. He stuck the flash drive into the padded slot and locked it shut, then put the drone back down.

“It’s all yours, Hali,” Juan said.

“Roger that,” Hali said. The drone’s propellers whirred to life. It lifted up and buzzed toward the window like an angry hornet. Gomez guided it back out through the window, and once it was outside, it shot up as if yanked by a string. The drone was out of sight in the blink of an eye.

“What’s our position?”

“You’re ten minutes from the river.”

Juan checked his watch. “We’ll hold them off for that long. Let me know when the package is secured.”

“Roger that. By the way, three of the Chinese agents were walking along the roof of the train when MacD fired the grenades. They just climbed down inside the rear car.”

“Did they see the drone?”

“No chance.”

“Good.”

A barrage of gunfire broke out in the forward cars. Juan rejoined Linc, MacD, and Eric.

“Sounds like our two groups of friends have met each other,” he said. “We’ve got another group flanking us from the rear. They’re probably there to make sure no one gets off the train.”

“Should we hole up here?” Linc asked.

Shots continued to ring out from up ahead. “No, let’s go back to car seven. I don’t think the Ghost Dragons will be much of a match for the MSS agents. When they’re done with the triad, they’ll be coming after us next.”

“Ah hope Eddie is keeping his head down,” MacD said.

“Let me ask him.” Juan inserted a tiny earpiece that was wirelessly connected to his phone’s transmitter. The Wi-Fi signal was linked directly to Eddie’s phone. As long as his phone was within thirty feet of him, Eddie would be able to hear the communication and reply through his bone conduction microphone subvocally, which would be masked by the surrounding gunfire.

“Eddie, do you read me?”

“Here,” came a guttural whisper in response.

“We’re going to passenger car seven. ETA to river is nine minutes thirty seconds.”

“Agents are in the fourth car and heading your way,” Eddie replied. “And they’re not happy.”

8

There was one more Ghost Dragon gang member at the end of the fourth car making a valiant effort to stall the MSS agents from entering the dining car, but he soon went down in a hail of bullets. Zhong hadn’t lost any men to this point, and the numbers on the other side were dwindling fast. The Ghost Dragons were putting up a good resistance, but the MSS agents were better trained and had more effective firepower. Eddie, who was still unarmed next to Zhong, could see that it was just a matter of time before the triad soldiers were wiped out.

Zhong had assumed the triad launched the flashbang grenades that had temporarily stunned his assault team and he took pleasure in exacting revenge for it. The doors between cars created a bottleneck that made it easier for the defenders than the assault team. Progress slowed down at each of these junctures, which is exactly what Eddie was hoping for.

The Ghost Dragons were apparently making their last stand in the dining car, which was the fifth passenger car on the train. Zhong ordered his two operatives to move forward until they were on either side of the door leading to the dining car. Unlike Juan, the agents were equipped with fragmentation grenades, two of which they tossed through the opening.

As soon as they went off, the MSS agents charged through, blazing away with their assault rifles and taking down anything that moved. The firefight continued for a few moments, and then the dining car went silent.

“Clear!” one of the men yelled.

“Dining car,” Eddie said quietly for Juan’s benefit. His earpiece had been stowed in a tiny pocket sewn into his belt line. He had inserted it into his ear when he was sure no one was looking.

Zhong motioned for Eddie to follow him in. Dead triad soldiers littered the car.

“Find Jimmy Su,” Zhong said. “If they weren’t able to make the exchange already, he’ll have the flash drive.”

Eddie looked around and said, “Where are the Americans?”

“They must have fled to another car. The agents who went to the rear car are making a sweep forward. If the Americans try to jump off the train, my men are ordered to shoot them. They’ll be found.”

While Eddie waited at the front of the car, Zhong’s men searched the corpses for the drive. Zhong kept watch at the far end for a counterassault.

A hand grasped Eddie’s arm from behind. Someone must have been hanging from the undercarriage, was his thought when he felt a pistol barrel against his temple.

“Put your guns down,” Jimmy Su barked. His breath was hot on Eddie’s neck.

Zhong whipped around and raised his assault rifle. “Or what? You’ll kill him?”

“No. I’m just using him as a shield. If you don’t put your guns down, you’ll never see that flash drive again.”

“You picked a bad choice for a shield. I don’t really care if you kill your own man.”

Su whirled Eddie to the side and his mouth gaped when he saw what appeared to be a phantom standing in front of him. Before Su could say anything, Eddie took advantage of the surprise and lashed out with his elbow, pushing the gun away from his face. With the immediate danger gone, he chopped Su in the throat. While the Ghost Dragon leader went down clutching his neck, Eddie kneed him in the side of the head, knocking him cold.

Eddie was about to pick up the gun when Zhong told him to freeze. He sensed the three guns trained on him and went like a statue.

“Back away,” Zhong ordered. Eddie did as he was told.

Eddie smirked at Su’s unconscious form. “Did you see the look on his face? He thought he had me killed and yet here I am. I think this proves I’m on your side.”

“Do you think I’m an idiot? You’re on your own side.” He nodded to one of his men. “Search him.”

“Which one?”

“Both of them.”

The MSS agent did a thorough pat-down on Eddie, then frisked Su’s inert form.

“Nothing, sir.”

“Then the Americans must have the flash drive,” Zhong said. “If we don’t find it on them after they’re dead, we’ll tear this train apart until we do.”

“What about Su? Should I kill him now?”

“No. We may need him later to help us find the drive. Bind him.”

The agent took out some zip ties and cuffed Su’s hands and feet and tethered him to a metal grab bar so he couldn’t crawl away.

When Su was secure, they moved toward the sixth car. Seeing that it was empty, the first agent walked in and promptly set off the flashbang trip bomb that was waiting.

While the agent writhed on the floor, Eddie said, “We must not have finished off Su’s men.” He knew full well that bombs were set by Juan.

Zhong leaned over and checked out the cylindrical grenade, still intact because this type of flashbang didn’t destroy its casing.

He held it up and said, “Have you ever used anything this sophisticated in the Ghost Dragons?”

Eddie shook his head.

“This is made by the United States,” Zhong said. “Military-grade. Laser trip sensor. The Americans must have put it here.”

“Then there might be more of them ahead,” Eddie said.