Honour Among Thieves

yards long and just about wide-enough to take two cars. Hannah looked at the little timber shops and the men who were growing old sitting on steps and leaning against walls. A dirty old Cadillac travelling slowly through the village, she thought, would probably be the highlight of their day, until she saw the vehicle at the other end of the road. 'There's a jeep coming towards us,' she said calmly. 'Four men, one of them sitting behind what looks like an anti-aircraft gun mounted on the back.' 'Just keep driving slowly, Aziz,' said Scott. 'And Hannah, keep talking us through it.' 'They're about a hundred yards away from us now and beginning to take an interest.' Cohen pointed to the tool bag and grabbed a wrench. Scott selected a spanner as they both turned over slowly and rested on their knees. 'The jeep has swung across in front of us,' said Hannah. 'We're going to be forced to stop in about five seconds.' 'Does it still look as if there are four of them?' asked Scott. 'Yes,' said Hannah. 'I can't see any more.' The Cadillac came to a halt. 'The jeep has stopped only a few yards in front of us. One of the soldiers is getting out and another is following. Two are staying in the jeep. One is behind the mounted gun and the other is still at the wheel. We'll take the first two,' said Hannah. 'You'll have to deal with the two in the jeep.' 'Understood,' said Scott. The first soldier reached the driver's side as the second passed the bumper on Hannah's right. Both Aziz and Hannah had their outside hands on the armrests, their doors already an inch open. The instant Aziz saw the first soldier glance into the back and go for his gun, he swung his door open so fast that the crack of the soldier's knees sounded like a bullet as he collapsed to the ground. Aziz was out of the car and on top of him long before he had time to recover. The second soldier ran towards Hannah as Scott leaped out of the car. Hannah delivered one blow to his carotid artery and another to the base of his spine as he tried to pull out his gun. A bullet would not have killed him any quicker. The third soldier started firing from the back of the jeep. Cohen dived out into the road, and the fourth soldier jumped from behind the wheel and ran towards him, firing his pistol. Cohen hurled the wrench at him, causing him to step to one side and straight into the firing line of the mounted gun. The bullets stopped immediately, but Cohen was already at his throat. The soldier sank as if he had been hit by a ton of bricks, and his gun flew across the road. Cohen gave him one blow to the jugular vein and another to the back of the neck: he went into spasms and began wriggling on the ground. Cohen quickly turned his attention to the man seated behind the gun, who was lining him up in his sights. At ten yards' distance, Cohen had no hope of reaching him, so he dived for the side of the car as bullets sprayed into the open door, two of them ripping into his left leg. Scott was now running towards the jeep from the other side. As the soldier swung the gun round to face him, Scott propelled himself through the air and onto the top of the jeep. Bullets flew everywhere as they tumbled clumsily off the back, Scott still clinging onto his spanner. They were both quickly on their feet, and Scott brought the spanner down across the gunner's neck - the soldier raised an arm to fend off the blow, but Scott's left knee jack-knifed into his crotch. The gunner sank to the ground as the second blow from the spanner found its mark and broke the soldier's neck cleanly. He lay splayed out on the road, looking like a breast-stroke swimmer halfway through a stroke. Scott stood over him, mesmerised, until Aziz dived at his legs and knocked him to the ground. Scott couldn't stop shaking. 'It's always hardest the first time,' was the Kurd's only comment. The four of them were now facing outwards, covering every angle as they waited for the locals to react. Cohen climbed unsteadily up into the jeep, blood pouring from his leg, and took his place behind the mounted gun. 'Don't fire unless I say so,' shouted Scott as he checked up and down the road. There wasn't a person to be seen in either direction. 'On your left!' said Hannah, and Scott turned to see an old man dressed in a long white dishdash with a black-and-white spotted keffiyeh on his head, a thick belt hung loosely around his waist. He was walking slowly towards them, his hands held high in the air. Scott's eyes never left the old