Page 85

CHAPTER 84

ABAI WAS LEADING from the rear, waiting for the point men to clear a path with their blades before he ordered the whole column forward. He knew that his men were wishing they were back on the water right now. Because this was a punishing trek. Hot, humid, and buggy. Even in the middle of the night, the temperature was still in the nineties.

Two days back, the flotilla had landed near Dar es Salaam on the Tanzanian coast. From there, a fleet of trucks and jeeps had transported the militia across the savanna and through the upper bulge of Zambia. But here, in the thick of the jungle, motorized vehicles were useless.

Besides, Abai didn’t want to announce his arrival. The grueling hump through the jungle would pay off in the element of surprise. He had the destination from Captain Savage—a small copper mine near Kolwezi, in the Lualaba Province. Mission: eliminate the two primary targets. As a bonus, take back the mine.

Bilan was standing alongside the commander, rifle across his shoulders, waiting for the path to be cleared. “Forty men,” said the warlord’s son. “For two people?”

“The force fits the mission,” said Abai curtly.

Abai couldn’t wait to turn his troops loose. The boys were itching for a fight, and the captain had warned him that his targets would not go down easily.