Task Force Mars - Kevin Dockery [100]
To the side of the truck was a tall post with a box on the top. It was at just the right height for the passenger to be able to reach out and pull some kind of coiled cable away from the box and into the front compartment of the truck. None of the SEALS could see what was happening, but suddenly the guns moved back to pointing up the road and the heavy bars of the gate began to retract to alternate sides. The gap opened, and the truck rolled into the compound.
As they watched the gate bars slide shut, the SEALS could still make out the truck from their vantage point. Moving quickly to one of the trees, Jackson clambered up as quietly as he could. Now at a higher point but still covered by the three-pointed leaves of the tree and the aromatic fruit that dangled from the branches, he could see the crew of the truck as they stopped by one of the gun emplacements. They moved to the back of the truck, lowered a ramp, and disappeared inside. A moment later, they were back out, carrying what appeared to be a heavy box. They moved into the gun emplacement, and that was all the officer could see for a few minutes. Then the men appeared again and repeated their actions twice more. Finally, they climbed into the vehicle and moved on to the next emplacement in the line.
Climbing down, Jackson headed back to where the other SEALS were waiting in concealment. He quickly informed them of what he had seen.
“Looks like an ordnance resupply to me,” Chief Harris commented. “It could be that they expended a load of ammunition during that fracas earlier today.”
“There’s a lot of gun emplacements in there, Chief,” Jackson said. “That truck didn’t look big enough to carry three of those boxes for each gun in there.”
“Maybe this is another one coming up right now, boss,” Falco said as he pointed back along the road. Now that they were looking for it, they could all see the wavering lights of what could have been another vehicle coming up the road.
“Quick, Chief,” Jackson said, making a fast decision. “Help me move some of these bigger chunks of brush into the roadway. Falco, if that vehicle doesn’t stop, you stop it.”
Without a word, the sniper pulled his big rifle from his back and got down into a firing position. He would be able to see the oncoming vehicle easily through his electronic and optical sight. The big 10.2-millimeter projectiles of the rifle had the best chance of penetrating any obstacle if he had to fire at the truck.
Moving fast, Jackson and Harris dumped enough brush into the roadway to block any kind of easy passage. Then they both took up hasty ambush positions on either side of the road. Each SEALS was careful to make a mental note about just where his Teammates were placed so that he wouldn’t fire accidentally in their direction. It was far from a safe way to set up a hasty ambush, but it would have to do.
The truck appeared and started to slow as the beams of its lights illuminated the brush piles. If the SEALS were lucky, they could take the vehicle without firing a shot. If they weren’t, they would have to find another way into the compound.
The truck slowed and stopped just a few meters from the brush pile. Both doors opened, and the men inside got out. Knowing that the front two men were his Teammates’ concern, Falco kept watch in the direction the truck had come from while also paying attention to the back of the truck.
The two men walked up to the brush and started to talk in the hissing, clicking language that still gave Chief Harris the willies. Still, he was wearing one