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Back Blood in the Water Save as PDF
Chapters (82)
  1. Title Page
  2. Copyright Notice
  3. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  4. ONE
  5. TWO
  6. THREE
  7. FOUR
  8. FIVE
  9. SIX
  10. SEVEN
  11. EIGHT
  12. NINE
  13. TEN
  14. ELEVEN
  15. TWELVE
  16. THIRTEEN
  17. FOURTEEN
  18. FIFTEEN
  19. SIXTEEN
  20. SEVENTEEN
  21. EIGHTEEN
  22. NINETEEN
  23. TWENTY
  24. TWENTY-ONE
  25. TWENTY-TWO
  26. TWENTY-THREE
  27. TWENTY-FOUR
  28. TWENTY-FIVE
  29. TWENTY-SIX
  30. TWENTY-SEVEN
  31. TWENTY-EIGHT
  32. TWENTY-NINE
  33. THIRTY
  34. THIRTY-ONE
  35. THIRTY-TWO
  36. THIRTY-THREE
  37. THIRTY-FOUR
  38. THIRTY-FIVE
  39. THIRTY-SIX
  40. THIRTY-SEVEN
  41. THIRTY-EIGHT
  42. THIRTY-NINE
  43. FORTY
  44. FORTY-ONE
  45. FORTY-TWO
  46. FORTY-THREE
  47. FORTY-FOUR
  48. FORTY-FIVE
  49. FORTY-SIX
  50. FORTY-SEVEN
  51. FORTY-EIGHT
  52. FORTY-NINE
  53. FIFTY
  54. FIFTY-ONE
  55. FIFTY-TWO
  56. FIFTY-THREE
  57. FIFTY-FOUR
  58. FIFTY-FIVE
  59. FIFTY-SIX
  60. FIFTY-SEVEN
  61. FIFTY-EIGHT
  62. FIFTY-NINE
  63. SIXTY
  64. SIXTY-ONE
  65. SIXTY-TWO
  66. SIXTY-THREE
  67. SIXTY-FOUR
  68. SIXTY-FIVE
  69. SIXTY-SIX
  70. SIXTY-SEVEN
  71. SIXTY-EIGHT
  72. SIXTY-NINE
  73. SEVENTY
  74. SEVENTY-ONE
  75. SEVENTY-TWO
  76. SEVENTY-THREE
  77. SEVENTY-FOUR
  78. SEVENTY-FIVE
  79. SEVENTY-SIX
  80. Praise for Blood in the Water
  81. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  82. Newsletter Sign-up

If it were up to him, he would have preferred to attack from where he was, as that would not risk making any noise that would alert Soh’s men, but he knew he needed to get closer in order for his plan to be effective. It would also be helpful, he knew, if he could attack from above them on the hill, though he suspected that might be pushing his luck.

He tucked his weapons back into his vest and started carefully picking his way up the hillside, parallel to the fort’s entryway and the guards stationed there. Now the going was extremely slow. A few times he slid through narrow openings between tree branches and the tree rustled, snow coming down on his head from the branches above. Each time, he assumed that he would be discovered, and he held his breath, his hand going to his vest, searching for a weapon. Each time, though, there was no attack from the guards, and no indication that he’d been sighted.

He made it up to a spot that was roughly even with the entryway on the hill, and then he encountered a small clearing and a solid wall of rock. The surface had some crags and ledges, and under other circumstances, he could probably have scaled the cliff and put himself in the perfect vantage point from which to attack those guarding the entryway. He couldn’t feel his feet at that instance, though, and he was wearing neoprene gloves that had iced over. He figured that the odds of him making it to the top of the ledge without falling were low, and such a fall would put an end to his life—not to mention Diamond’s. After a moment, he concluded that his position in the clearing was the best he was going to be able to do.

Cormack dropped to a knee and took out his weapons and ammunition again, making sure that they were ready and accessible. He had to hit the entryway as hard and as quickly as he could. His goal was to create such a commotion that Soh and his men inside would assume that there was a full-scale assault coming from the north. With luck, that would lure them to the front, by the entryway, and away from the corridor connecting the north side of the underground fort to the eastern side.

From where he was, he could just make out the entryway, twenty yards or so due west. It had been a long time since he’d thrown anything any significant distance, and he wondered whether he would be able to be accurate enough to be effective. It was his only chance—and Diamond’s only chance as well.