‘The planes flew the rescued to a humanitarian camp in UAE,’ Wolf said. ‘A lot of them were able to make their way home from there. A lot of others didn’t have any home to go to. Aid organisations are working hard as we speak to relocate them to new and better lives elsewhere.’

‘But then the gates of hell slammed shut,’ Holt said. ‘As everyone knew they would.’

Chapter 22

Ben said, ‘Which I’m guessing is the reason you all made the jump from being non-com civilian volunteers to this,’ motioning at the vehicle and the weapons that gave them all the semblance of a militia unit.

‘There was nothing left for us to do in that role,’ Wolf replied. ‘The rest went home. Meanwhile, the seven of us got our heads together and agreed we weren’t about to cut and run. Not with our work unfinished. We have the skills and the experience to make a difference, bring a little bit of the war back to the enemy while trying to help some more of the hundreds, maybe thousands, of people who’re still stranded and in danger here. So we stayed behind. We knew exactly what we were getting into. We went into this eyes wide open.’

‘We’ve been going around knocking out a few small pockets of Talib,’ Holt said. ‘OK, a tiny independent fighting force like ours is never gonna swing the balance of power. But at least we can give them something to think about. So far we’re not doing too badly. Certainly got them all riled up. We’re the reason there’s all these extra patrols everywhere, buzzing around like someone poked the hornets’ nest. The sons of bitches hate us, and they should. But they had it coming, for what they’ve done here.’

‘Hate isn’t the bloody word for what I think about the bastards,’ said Nobby Scraggs, suddenly no longer so much the gentle giant. ‘Who wouldn’t feel that way about them?’

‘I don’t hate them,’ Ben said. ‘It’s not my job to try to punish them. Only to help others they might hurt.’

Holt laughed bitterly. ‘Yeah, well, noble sentiments apart, there’s two ways of looking at that. You could just as well say that a bullet is the best way to prevent them from hurting anyone. Too many folks have been hurt already and they’re only just getting started.’