Billy shifted his shoulders. "Don't move me again. It hurts too much, man."

"I know," answered Mitchell. "But you'll take the pain." Mitchell locked gazes with the man.

Billy hesitated, then nodded. "Give me more pain."

Mitchell grinned weakly, then regarded Rutang. "You're first. Before they get any closer."

Rutang nodded, and Mitchell slid Rutang's arm over his shoulder and hoisted the man to his feet. Rutang began to pant, as though being burned. He held his breath, tried to put weight on his wounded leg, then exhaled a string of epithets.

"Just let it out, man." Mitchell was dealing with his own wound, but he wouldn't allow these men to detect any sign of weakness.

"Scott, I can't use the leg." Rutang's eyes were blood-shot, his face screwed up in a tight knot. "I'm not kidding, bro. I'm not kidding."

"That's okay. Here we go." Mitchell hoisted the man across his shoulders and took off, his arm throbbing, his knees beginning to give out as he started up the hill, working at a forty-five-degree angle to alleviate some of the pressure on his legs. He concentrated on his rhythm, just marching, breathing, nothing in the way.

Automatic weapons fire raked the hillside as he turned up toward a large outcropping of rock shaped like an arrowhead and painted a deep brown in the darkness.

Mitchell eyed the puffs and splashes on the hill as the rounds struck. At the same time, he pricked up his ears, listening for the locations of those shooters.

In fact, every sense was dialed to ten, the stench of the jungle and his own salty sweat making him grimace as the earth sank under his heavy boots.

"Almost there," he told Rutang.

Just on the other side of the outcropping lay a wide crevice with a flat floor and backed by another wall of rock. The area made for an excellent defensive position. They would have the high ground.

But getting them all there . . . Mitchell didn't want to think about it.

Once in the crevice, he slowly lowered himself to his knees and began to let Rutang slide off his shoulders.

"I'm down," cried Rutang.

"All right. Crawl back up near the top here and give me a little suppressing fire."

"I'm on it, Scott."

As Rutang got into position, Mitchell took in a long breath, rubbed the corners of his eyes, then gripped his carbine. He made a quick call back to Black Tiger 06, relaying their new GPS coordinates.

Then, for just a second, he glanced up at the stars. Not much of a religious man, he figured it couldn't hurt to ask that big commanding officer in the sky to cut him a little slack.

And in that second, a surprising peace came over him. He would get Billy and Carlos. He would bring them back. He would make it.

"Scott, I'm set."

"All right. Here goes nothing."