Page 101 of Deadly Strain

“Someone should have,” Sharp said. “You’re welcome to our decompression party any time.”

“Ooh.” Hernandez coughed. “That means we’ll have to keep our clothes on.”

“You are the only one who feels he has to be completely free, Hernandez,” Sharp said.

Grace choked and snorted.

Up ahead, the hatch to the room above came into view. Sharp held up a hand and any noise anyone was making disappeared. Even Grace went quiet.

She knew what their hand signals meant. Hell, he shouldn’t be so damn surprised. He’d been using them in front of her and with her almost constantly for the last few days.

He knelt at the base of the ladder that ended at the hatch and waved Hernandez forward.

Hernandez went up the ladder and cautiously lifted the wooden door. He used a small dental mirror to scan the room above, then disappeared up into it with no sound at all.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Afew seconds laterthe hatch opened, and Hernandez gave the all-clear signal.

Sharp went up next, then Smoke slipped past Grace to wait at the bottom of the ladder. After a few moments, he urged her to follow Sharp.

The room above was dark, and she realized she was going to have to ask someone if it was night or early morning. She didn’t even know what day it was.

Shadows moved and Sharp was suddenly there, a firm, strong hand under her elbow as he guided her away from the hatch and toward the front of the building. Hernandez was there, talking softly to two men dressed in traditional Afghan clothing. They nodded and moved off before she was close enough to make out what language they were speaking.

CIA was there too, and for once he looked calm. Their leaving was probably the best thing he’d heard in a couple of days.

Sharp leaned down to whisper in her ear, “This place is being watched, so when we go, we’re going to go fast. It might be a bumpy ride at first.”

“Bumpy because of the helicopter’s engines or because people will be shooting bullets and rockets at us?”

“Yes.”

She waited for him to pick one. It took her a moment to understand he meant yes to both. “Better get me a barf bag,” she said with a sigh.

Movement behind her grabbed her attention. Smoke, Clark, and March joined them, and she found herself dragged into a football huddle.