Scott Mariani 2-book Collection: Star of Africa, The Devil’s Kingdom. Scott Mariani

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СКАЧАТЬ Ben repeated.

      ‘You don’t mean that.’

      ‘Don’t I?’

      ‘You’re not that cruel, surely.’

      ‘There are quicker ways,’ Ben said. ‘If you’re concerned about inflicting cruelty on your fellow man.’

      ‘Meaning what?’ Jude said.

      Ben just shrugged.

      ‘I can’t believe you would even contemplate that,’ Jude said. ‘What, you want to line them up on the deck, make them kneel, bullet in the back of the head and dump them in the ocean? Execute them in cold blood?’

      Ben said nothing.

      ‘No. Absolutely not. That’s not who we are,’ Jude said.

      ‘Compassion is great, Jude. But if these men had half a chance to get free, do you think they’d show you an ounce of quarter? Have you forgotten what they did to your friends, and almost did to you?’

      Jude was silent for a second. ‘Fine. I agree that’s a risk we can’t afford. But I can’t accept that we stick them in a container, and we’re certainly not going to murder these people. So we find another way.’

      ‘Such as?’

      ‘Such as, we don’t keep them on the ship. We let them go.’

      ‘I see. Drop them off at the nearest port, nice and easy, wave bye bye and put it all behind us?’

      ‘Or something,’ Jude said.

      Ben looked at him. ‘Think about who you’re dealing with, Jude. Khosa won’t give up easily. He’s seen what’s at stake here. He’s had the diamond in his hands once already. And you can be sure he’s got the contacts to put together as many men and as much hardware as he’s going to need to reclaim it. If you let him go, he’ll be back again before you know it, and I don’t think he’ll be any more interested in negotiating than he was first time around.’

      ‘They’re murderers. I know.’

      ‘No, Jude. You don’t know.’

      ‘But we’re better than that. At least, I thought we were. What happened to you?’

      Too much, Ben thought. ‘That’s just the way it is.’

      ‘Here’s what we’ll do,’ Jude said. ‘We’ll put them in the lifeboat and cut them loose.’

      ‘Aren’t you listening to a word I say?’ Ben asked.

      ‘Apart from anything else, it’s getting awful heavy out there,’ Jeff said.

      ‘No shit,’ Condor said miserably.

      ‘That thing’s pretty much unsinkable. They’ll have a chance,’ Jude replied. ‘You know, they’re still human beings. We owe them a chance, don’t we? Or what does it say about us?’

      ‘And you want to make a go of it in Special Forces,’ Ben said, looking straight at him.

      Jude flinched. ‘Who told you?’

      Ben pointed at Jeff. ‘He did. Apparently that’s what you’re gunning for, to get into the SBS. Starting with the navy interview in February. Tell me I’m wrong. I’d love to be.’

      Jude said nothing. Jeff was frowning.

      ‘Trust me, Jude, you don’t want to be a part of that,’ Ben said. ‘You couldn’t be. Because it’s shit, and it makes stone-cold killers out of people, and you just proved to me that you’re better than that.’

      ‘Hey, thanks,’ Jeff said. ‘Speak for yourself.’

      Ben went on, ‘And you also proved to me that you wouldn’t survive in that environment. This is not your world, Jude. It’s my world and I know what makes it go round and round. So listen to me.’

      ‘We’re going to put them in the lifeboat,’ Jude insisted. ‘It’s the only way that we can get rid of them without losing our humanity. We’ll make sure they have enough fuel and supplies to make it back to the Somali coast.’

      ‘So they can reorganise themselves and come right back after us with double the forces?’ Ben said. ‘It’s a mistake.’

      ‘It’s my decision,’ Jude said. ‘It’s the right thing to do. Everyone agreed?’

      ‘I’m getting too old for this shit,’ Gerber said, shaking his head resignedly. ‘I’ve seen enough blood for one day. Let’s do what the young fella says and get shot of ’em, and be done with it.’

      ‘Whatever, man,’ Condor said. ‘I ain’t up for no killin’.’

      ‘Not in cold blood, anyway,’ Tuesday said. ‘Seems like this is the best option.’

      ‘Don’t look at me, boys,’ Jeff said. ‘I’m just a dyed-in-the-wool heartless killing machine.’

      Ben held back from saying more. He’d said too much already.

      ‘Then it’s agreed,’ Jude said. ‘The lifeboat it is.’

      It had been many, many years since shipwrecked crews had been forced to take their chances at sea in open rowing boats. The Andromeda was equipped with a modern MOB, or Man Overboard rescue vessel, a bright orange fibreglass craft some eighteen feet long, with an outboard engine and basic bench seating inside for a whole crew, as well as internal storage space for spare fuel and supplies. Jude had always thought it looked like the submersible Thunderbird 4 from the old TV series. The MOB hung forty feet above the sea from external mountings on A Deck. To release it from its cradle it had to be winched up a few feet, then swung out clear of the ship’s side and lowered down on cables using the davit, a small crane used for hoisting materials up and down from the water.

      Which was a straightforward enough operation in still and clement conditions. In the middle of a howling tropical storm, it was anything but. The wind was blasting them so ferociously that it was hard to stand up on deck without clinging onto something solid for support. A murky midday had become an even more cloud-laden afternoon, with visibility reduced to almost zero by the time Ben and Jeff had finished loading up the extra water, provisions and fuel that Khosa and his men would need to make it back to the coast.

      Next, the prisoners were marched laboriously up from the hold and lined up on the bucking, rolling deck, drenched with rain and spray and closely watched at gunpoint by Tuesday while Ben and Jeff ushered them one at a time into the bright orange craft. One of the men was selected as its pilot and Ben, communicating with him in Swahili, talked him through the basic controls. Jude stood a few feet away, watching.

      Khosa was the last to board the lifeboat. He hadn’t taken his eyes off Jude the entire time, and they were filled with a crazy fire that made the back of Jude’s neck tingle. The African’s horribly scarred face twisted into a leer of hatred mixed with triumph. His cheek and brow were swollen and crusted with dried blood. One or two extra scars to add to his collection.

      ‘You will СКАЧАТЬ