“The com’s gone. Even if I could get it up and running, the body is compromised. How am I going to explain this to the Aero Club?” Drew straightened, his eyes accusing.

“I’ll purchase them a new one.” Buying off the Aero Club was the least of Gilmont’s worries.

“How are we going to get back? We’re stuck in the middle of nowhere.” Drew flung his arms wide to encompass the uninhabited forest.

“Lauren will send someone to pick us up after I capture Agent Taylor.”

“Why did you fire on those men? Neither of them was Agent Taylor.”

While questioning things in the classroom made Drew a good student, Gilmont did not appreciate it now. “What are the chances hillwalkers just happened to be in the exact locale as Agent Taylor?”

“What if they were part of the forestry commission?”

“Armed with a rifle?” Scorn filled Gilmont at the boy’s stupidity.

Gilmont picked up the launcher, returned to the rim, and scanned the tree line, making sure he gave the edge a wide berth. If either of those men had survived, Gilmont had plenty of ammo to finish them off.

Chapter 34

Lifting his binos, Harry scanned the ridge from his cover in the trees. Gilmont and a younger man had almost reached the hillside below the cliffs.

If Harry hadn’t lost his rifle, he could have flipped this scenario on its head. As things stood, Gilmont could pick him off with either scope long before Harry’s Glock was within range.

What a lucky escape those deer had provided by wandering through the trees when they had. Undoubtedly, Gilmont had taken the does’ movements for his and Sharidon’s when he launched that rocket into the forest. That had given Harry a bad turn and proved the lengths Gilmont would go to cover his tracks.

Dropping the binos, Harry took in the dense thickets and the wide expanse of boulders underneath the canopy. Elise could be almost anywhere in this vast terrain.

He removed his sat phone, scrolled through his settings, pressed the GPS coordinates with his exact location, and shot them to Nigel with a text: Gilmont’s here. Sheridan’s down. No sign of Taylor.

Gilmont handed Drew the rifle as the wind buffeted them on the hillside.

Drew’s eyes bulged. “Why are you giving this to me?”

“If we distribute the weight between us, it’s easier to carry.”

“Professor, I’m a pilot. I don’t know the least thing about weapons.” Drew shook his head and handed back the rifle.

“It’s all right, Drew. I do. You’re my pack mule on this expedition.”

“Are we going down there to check on those men?”

“Have you seen any sign of life since I shot that portable assault rocket?”

“No, sir.”

“There you have it.” Gilmont held out the rifle and shook it a bit. “Take it. I need your help.”