Клайв Касслер - Marauder

When they were halfway along the promenade, Sinduk stopped and spoke to two of his men, who peeled away and headed toward a walled-off section of the park that had a sign written in both Indonesian and English. It read “Coming soon. Feel the rush of Raging Rapids.” A rendering showed thrilled riders on an eight-person raft careening down a white water course.

Sinduk pushed Raven forward with the remaining two men. The strays went through a door to the construction area that said “Employees Only.”

“Where do you think they’re going?” Linc asked.

“That must be how they snuck the weapons in,” Eddie said. He keyed his mic. “MacD, Linc and I are heading into the Raging Rapids. We’ll let you know what we find.”

“Acknowledged. Ah’m on my own.”

Eddie eased the door open and peeked through. No one was on the other side. He and Linc went in and found themselves on the pathway for the ride that was divided into two lanes, one for the majority of the attendees, the other for those who’d paid extra for the Super Pass.

The ride seemed nearly complete, with vines, fake trees, and artificial rocks adorning what was supposed to mimic a remote canyon. Eddie could hear water roaring just out of sight, which meant the ride was being tested in preparation for its opening.

A short way up the path, they crossed a bridge and could see down into the false gorge. An empty raft with eight barred seats around a flat center area was adrift on the seething water. It bounced and spun as its rubber sides slammed into the walls, soaking the craft with a gush of water every time it dipped over another mini-waterfall.

As they got closer to the ride loading area, Eddie could hear several men speaking rapidly in Indonesian. He and Linc climbed over the path’s railing and crept along the concrete simulated rocks until they found a hidden spot in the bushes where they could see who was talking.

Four bodies were lined up beside the control room. All of them were dressed in the characteristic yellow park uniforms, as were the terrorists, who must have secured their own supply of uniforms. Bullet holes were stitched across the dead men’s shirts.

Huddled around two large metal boxes were six men, the two they’d been following and four more. One box was already opened and contained seats to be installed on more rafts. The other box was being pried apart. A pile of white towels lay on the floor.

They finished prying open the box and pulled out six submachine guns from between the seats, which they handed around, tucking them into towels so they could carry them out into the park unseen. Eddie recognized the weapons as Daewoo K7s. The South Korean–made guns were equipped with noise suppressors and were popular with the Indonesian military.

Eddie looked at Linc, who nodded. He’d noticed the same thing. If one box had room for six weapons, then the other opened one meant six more K7s might already be out in the park.

The four terrorists who were already dressed like employees took their towel-wrapped weapons and started down the path back to the main area of the park. The two left behind began stripping so they could put on their own uniforms.

This was the best chance for Eddie and Linc to procure weapons. Forty feet separated them from the terrorists, but there was a spot farther along the canyon where they’d only be ten feet away when they sprang from the bushes. Eddie pointed to the place, and Linc nodded again.

Before they could move, they heard voices coming from behind the ride’s control room, causing the terrorists to freeze. There must have been an unseen passage from the employee area of the park. Two women in yellow uniforms came around the building and stopped, staring in horror at the corpses.

They looked up at the half-dressed men, screamed, and edged back the way they’d come. The terrorists scrambled to pick up guns.

Eddie and Linc responded instinctively, knowing that the women were dead if they didn’t act. Both of them charged out of the bushes and rushed the men, distracting them long enough for the women to run.

The only thing that saved them was the terrorists’ struggle to free their guns from the towels. Linc tackled his man, sending the submachine gun flying. They rolled across the loading area together and into one of the rafts that was moving along the conveyor belt toward the release zone into the rapids.

Eddie knocked his guy senseless and knelt down to retrieve the K7. He picked it up and turned toward footsteps pounding up the rider path. The four other terrorists must have heard the women’s screams and came running back to investigate.

Eddie unleashed a volley from the automatic weapon and took down two of the men as they rounded the bend. The other two took cover and returned fire, forcing Eddie to dive behind the control room as its windows blew apart.

In the reflection of the lone remaining pane of glass, Eddie could see the shirtless terrorist he had flattened get to his feet and sprint toward the raft where Linc and the other terrorist were brawling. He leaped into it as the craft tipped down and plunged into the rapids.

TWELVE

Raven heard the muted staccato gunfire coming from the direction of the rafting ride that was under construction, but no one besides Sinduk and his men reacted. To tourists, it would have sounded like construction equipment, but Raven suspected that Linc and Eddie had engaged the terrorists in battle. She had seen them out of the corner of her eye when they entered the construction zone.

“They must have encountered a couple of workers,” Raven said.

“Then why is the gunfire still going on,” Sinduk said. “They’re supposed to take care of anyone who spots them quickly and with minimal noise. I don’t like this. We can’t wait any longer.” He scanned the promenade. “There they are.”

He nodded in the direction of the Crazy Eights waterslide. Raven saw Emily Schmidt, a forty-something brunette in a black one-piece, and her son Kyle, a sunburned redhead in long board shorts. With them was Oliver Muñoz, a reedy Cuban American covered by a loose swim shirt, and his look-alike teen daughter Elena, who was wearing a blue tank-top bikini.

The four of them were laughing, carefree, and dripping with water. They scanned their wristbands to use the Super Pass lane and began the long walk up the stairs to the top of the ride.

Sinduk raised his hand as a signal, and three men dressed in the park’s yellow uniforms approached with loads of towels in their hands as if the bundles were an offering. By the menacing looks in their eyes and intense expressions, it was clear they were from the other Indo Jihad cell.

They abruptly stopped only a few feet away when a white man drunkenly staggered up to Raven. He was shirtless, wearing nothing but swim trunks and sneakers, and seemed proud of his ripped abs, bronzed biceps, and chiseled face that wouldn’t have been out of place on a comic book superhero. He grinned at Raven as he gave a sloppy salute to the men with the green beer bottle in his hand.

“Ah have been waiting for you, beautiful,” MacD Lawless slurred convincingly. He drained the rest of the bottle, which she guessed was water. “Where have you been?”

Raven played along with the act. “I think you have me confused with someone else.”

MacD shook his head and burped. “It’s time to go, babe. Eddie and Linc are busy right now, but they’ll be ready any minute.”

“Get out of here,” Sinduk demanded.

Raven turned to Sinduk and put up her hand. “I can take care of him.” She faced MacD again. “It’s time for you to leave.”

MacD smiled even wider, but his eyes flicked toward the men with towels. “Don’t push me away, darlin’.”

He took a step closer to Raven, and she understood what he wanted her to do. With both hands, she shoved him backward into the men holding the towel bundles.