DELIVERANCE: a gripping action thriller full of suspense by Jackson Cole

lead,’ Marshall says quietly. ‘I’ve got your six.’
    Charlie moves swiftly along the passageway until he reaches the door, then he turns with his hands held out. Marshall takes one last look behind them and throws the Sig underarm to Charlie who catches it left-handed as he shoulders the exit door open. Charlie exits fast with the gun held low until he is through the door. Once in the open, he immediately brings the Sig up and sweeps it through a full three hundred and sixty degrees.
    ‘Clear,’ he calls back.
    Marshall pushes Sarah through the door and follows her, closing it behind them. They fall in step with Charlie who is heading for the nearest cover, which is a helicopter positioned thirty-five feet from the door. With the sun still rising there is limited light, but Marshall feels too exposed. Once hidden behind the large aircraft, Charlie turns to him.
    ‘Next move, little brother?’
    Marshall thinks for half a second.
    ‘We’ll take the chopper.’
    ‘I can't fly a helicopter,’ Charlie states.
    ‘Fuck,’ Marshall says under his breath. ‘I thought you did a full advanced avionics course?’
    ‘Planes only, I’m afraid. Helicopters are different.’
    Marshall’s mind begins to work in overdrive. He knows where they need to get to. He only has one other contact in the whole of Australia and he promised he wouldn’t compromise them unless absolutely necessary. But he now deems the situation to be just that.
    2,910 kilometres.
    Two days driving.
    Not good.
    ‘We need to get moving then,’ Marshall says, clearly annoyed. ‘We are going to lose any head start we have driving, but I guess we have no choice.’
    Suddenly the Puma helicopter’s engines begins to whine as it initiates its pre-motor warm up. The noise startles Marshall, who had been deep in thought about how the hell they could possibly get out of there. It also startles Charlie, who has been surveying the area for any possible hostile targets. They both look round to see Sarah sat in the Pumas pilot seat.
    ‘Get in!’ she shouts over the noise of the warm up sequence. ‘I can fly it!’
    Charlie raises an eyebrow at Marshall, but Marshall simply shrugs.
    They quickly join Sarah on board the Puma. Marshall takes the rear bay whilst Charlie takes the co-pilot seat, straps himself in and puts a headset on. Marshall notices Sarah’s unease at being so close to Charlie, but the simple fact is that Charlie has avionics experience, and Marshall does not. She will just have to put up with him for now. She turns in her seat and with simple hand signals asks Marshall where they are heading. Marshall boots up his GPS and dons his headset. He relays co-ordinates to Charlie, who feeds them into the on-board GPS navigation system.
    That’s a long old way, little brother , Charlie’s voice crackles in Marshall’s ear. Any reason we’re heading there ?
    ‘I have one other contact in this country,’ Marshall responds.
    And they’re in Adelaide ? Charlie asks.
    ‘Yes.’
    Will he or she help ? Charlie asks.
    ‘He’ll help,’ Marshall says. ‘He owes me.’
    Marshall remembers how Aaron Jefferson officially died during a covert SAS mission in Sudan.
    Only he didn’t really die at all.
    He simply wanted out of the services, and with no official way out possible, he faked his own death. In view of the fact that the mission was covert, there could be no enquiry. As far as Marshall is aware, he is the only person who knows that Aaron Jefferson is now Michael Jefferson, living in Adelaide, Australia.
    The instruments read two fuel stops required for the destination , Sarah’s voice suddenly announces clearly in Marshall’s ear. Any ideas ?
    Yes, Marshall responds deep in thought. Let me know when we are 500km in.
    His mind is full of many thoughts, all of them swimming around in his head, but the most prominent of all at this particular moment is: Where the fuck did Sarah learn to fly a helicopter?
    He promises himself that he will talk