wrath of the Sea Queen (61 page)

"
I
t looks like you smacked
your back
up
against a rock
. 
I think I saw a roll of paper towels in the van. 
I will
see if
I
can get
the bleeding
stopped
once we get back
, o
k?
"

Vin helped her climb up the hill, and then, after getting a makeshift compress over her wound, helped her get situated inside the vehicle. 
He wanted very much to climb in beside C
a
eli and hold onto her, offer her some comfort, but he could not do that right now.  Instead,
Vin climbed into the passenger's seat and looked over at
Private Burks
with a
hurried
look on his face.

"
Ready when you are
, Nathan
.
"
  Vin smiled politely, knowing Private Burks was still trying to figure out what
had
happened.  Vin also knew that when the young solider told this story to his friends, they would never believe him.  Vin was mildly curious to know how the mysterious results of using of his gift
to maneuver the vehicle
would be written up in the
young
man's report.

"
Sure.
"
 
Private Burks
started the
vehicle
without argument, and
they were on their way again.

Their van was now the only vehicle on the road.  The blue pickup truck
went by
while they were stopped.  It would be long ahead of them by now.  Vin
continued to
look back
and
check on C
a
eli freq
uently.  He also glanced at the bench seat at the rear of the van
to check on Ben and Salma.  Ben partially stretched out across the seat, leaning his head against Salma's shoulder.  Vin wished he could offer a similar comfort to C
a
eli, but at least one of them needed to be alert.  Vin
's instincts told him
that more trouble
lay
ahead of them
. 
Unfortunately, i
t wasn't long before
his suspicion w
as
confirmed
.

The van came over the crest of a hill
,
and Vin saw the blue pickup truck about a
quarter
mile ahead of them.  It mov
ed
very slowly, as if it were waiting for them to catch up.  When the driver of the truck noticed the van approaching, the truck's speed increased; though not
fast
enough.  Both Vin and the rookie
guardsman
noticed the odd behavior.

"
Private Burks, did you see that?
"
  Vin asked for confirmation.

"
Yes Sir.  I did.  They should have been long gone by now.  If I didn't know any better, I would say they were waiting for us.
"
 

"
How much further is it to the hotel?
"

"
Maybe another twenty five minutes, depending on the road ahead.  Sometimes it floods in heavy rains like the storms we've
had th
e
l
ast
couple of
days.  Do you want me to try and get there sooner?
"

"
Not exactly
;
I want you to stay with the
truck
for now.  Pretend like you didn't notice that stunt.  Catch up slowly, so that we can see the truck clearly for a mile or so.  Then I want you to back off suddenly.  Make them think that we stopped again.  I don't want them to be able to see us. 
K
eep going, but stay out of their sight. 
Let's
see how long it takes before they fall back to catch a glimpse of us again.  If they don't, then we
a
re both being paranoid.  If they do, then we might have a problem.  We might need to ask your colonel for assistance.  Are you willing to give it a try?
"

"
Yes Sir.  You know, it's probably a news crew.  No matter how tight we keep the details on a blackout op,
it
always seems
as if
at least
one reporter manages to get word of it.  I
woul
d bet good money it's one of them trying to be the first with footage of the doctor's arrival. 
That was a pretty sloppy move
;
something a civilian would do. 
A professional would not be likely to make such a mistake.
"

"
You're probably right, Nathan, but shall we try it anyway?  At least we
wi
ll know if they are actually watching us or not.  Then
, if necessary,
we can
worry
about who they are.
"

"
Sure. 
S
it tight.
"
  The Private did exactly as Vin asked, and the results were predictable.  In no more than five minutes, the pickup truck lost sight of them and
then
slowed down to find out why.

"
Well, at least now we know.
"

Vin
tried
to
determine
what the best course of action would be.  He needed to do something soon.  C
a
eli was sick, Ben needed further medical attention, and Salma was too preoccupied with tending to both of them to care about the potential danger
that the
protestors posed
to her.  Vin did
n
o
t have time to worry about
over
eager
reporters and their stories
, and h
e had
very personal reasons for his lack of
tolerance for reporters of any kind.

"
It would sure be easier if they got a flat tire,
"
Private Burks mused.

Vin looked over at him.  That wasn't a bad idea at all. 

"
Why don't you keep them in sight for a while? 
Let's
see what they
do
.
"

Vin waited another ten minutes before taking action.  Then, before they got too close to their destination, he stirred the winds enough to sling a two inch diameter tree branch
, debris from the previous day's storm,
into the rear tire of the truck.  The broken limb hit with enough force to impale the tire.  The truck weaved
reck
lessly for a short distance, and then pulled off to the side of the road.  As their van passed by, Vin saw two men moving toward the spare tire and preparing to replace the damaged one.  They did not look like reporters.

"
Gee, Private, are you some kind of psychic?  You said it and it happened.
"
  Vin could not resist having a little fun with the young man.  The astonished look on Private Burks' face made it clear that he
was confounded by
the strange events happening on this trip
.  The look amuse
d
Vin and ease
d
a little of his tension. 

"
At least that will stall them long enough for us to get to the hotel
ahead of them
and get se
ttled
in our rooms.  I don't know who they were or what they wanted, but that should stop them, for now,
"
Vin stated the obvious.

"
I should let Colonel Franks know,
"
Private Burks replied.

"
Yes, definitely, but
let's
have him meet us at
the hotel.  They will have that tire changed before your Colonel Franks can get someone dispatched to pick them up.  We know they are following us, so
let's
use that to our advantage,
"
Vin suggested.

"
Good idea.  I can complete my mission by securing the four of you.  Then I c
an arrest them
for hampering a military operation
when they arrive at the hotel
.  It will look great in
my
report!
"
 
Private Burks'
smile beamed as he considered the notion of such a successful
mission
.
  It would help detract attention from the odd events that he would
also
have
to
detail
in his
briefing
.

"
And if they turn out to be anything other than nosy reporters, you will let us know, won't you?
"
  Vin asked
.  He wanted to ensure
that he did
n
o
t miss any important developments in case something more sinister
was
afoot.

"
Yes. 
Of course
,
Sir.
"

"
Good.  Then perhaps now would be a good time to press that gas pedal a bit harder.  We want to get there as far ahead of them as
possible
.
"
 

As Vin finished
his discussion with Nathan
, he heard movement behind him.  C
a
eli slowly worked her way
forward
to sit across his lap and laid her head on his
right shoulder
.