Sad Wind From the Sea - Jack Higgins [58]
'Not him,' Hagen said. 'Only when he's dead.'
Rose coughed and said in a weak voice, 'I'm sorry, Mark, but I can't take much more of this.'
He held her tightly in his left arm and wondered what the hell they were going to do and then, through the heat of the evening, there sounded a splash of paddles and the birdlike chatter of Chinese voices. He peered cautiously out of the reeds and saw two canoes moving towards them. In the front canoe were three soldiers and in the rear one sat Captain Tsen and an N.C.O. Hagen bared his teeth in a savage grin. He gently released Rose and said: 'Try and hang on for a few minutes more, angel. I promise you I'll get you out of this.'
'Jesus Christ, five of them,' Mason whispered.
Hagen patted the sub-machine-gun. 'Sitting ducks,' he said. 'I'll wait until I can't miss.'
The only sound was their own heavy breathing and the occasional bursts of conversation from the Chinese. Gradually the canoes drew near and Mason and Hagen moved forward to the very edge of the reeds. Hagen had never felt so calm, never felt so sure of anything in his life before. He couldn't miss. He raised the machine-gun and pulled the stock hard into his shoulder. His left eye closed and he squinted along the barrel. Almost before he realized it the first canoe was crossing his path. His finger tightened and a stream of bullets poured into the three soldiers and then as he swung towards the second canoe the gun went dead.
For one terrible moment he paused, reflected bitterly that you could never count on your luck to hold for very long, and then he hurled the useless weapon into the face of the N.C.O. who was sitting in front of Tsen. The man screamed and fell back, and Tsen drew his pistol and fired wildly at Hagen. Mason threw himself out of the reeds and wrenched savagely at the side of the canoe, and as it turned over Captain Tsen took careful aim and shot him twice at close quarters.
The screaming N.C.O. had disappeared beneath the water. Hagen thrashed forward, groping for Mason's body, and Tsen surfaced beside him, terror in his eyes. Hagen grabbed him with his left hand and hammered the pock-marked face with his right fist. He gripped the Chinaman's throat firmly with both hands and forced his head back beneath the surface of the water. For a little while the body bucked agonizingly and then suddenly it was still. He released it and turned quickly towards Mason.
Rose was holding him with difficulty. Hagen grabbed at a floating paddle and pulled the nearest canoe forward. 'Hold the canoe steady,' he told her, 'I'll lift him in.'
Mason's eyes flickered and for a moment the familiar sardonic quirk touched his mouth. 'Don't waste your time,' he gasped, 'I've bought it this time.' Hagen lifted his head above the surface of the water. It seemed that Mason was trying to say something else and then a stream of blood issued from his mouth and his head jerked to one side.
For a brief moment Hagen still held him upright and then, as he heard the unmistakable sound of the launch returning, he released his grip and allowed Mason's body to sink beneath the surface. Rose screamed and surged forward, hammering at his face with her clenched fists. 'You can't leave him!' she screamed. 'Nothing matters to you! Nothing!'
For a moment he struggled with her and then in desperation, as the sound of the launch became louder, he slapped her heavily across the face several times. She hung limply in his grip, staring at him, the marks of his blows already beginning to show on her delicate skin. Suddenly her head dropped and she began to cry soundlessly, her shoulders heaving. He had no time for pity. He lifted her bodily and dumped her into the canoe, and then he scrambled carefully over the bow and groped for the paddle in the water, half-turning the canoe and sending it