Vanishing Point - Marc Cerasini [101]
Yizi raced for cover as the Blackfoot lifted off the ground. The stealth helicopter spun in a tight circle inside the hanger. When the helicopter's nose was facing the door, it leaped forward like a race horse leaving the starting gate. The craft paused to hover over the runway, then it suddenly shot straight up, into the bright blue desert sky.
Yizi ran into the sunlight, watched the aircraft rise until it disappeared in the billowing clouds.
* * *
11:23:31 a.m. PDT
Runway 33R/15L
Groom Lake Air Force Base
Nina sped along the concrete runway in a cloud of desert dust. She pushed the pedal to the metal, until the rail achieved top speed.
Ahead, commandos heard the sound of her engine. Some fired at the oncoming vehicle. Most scattered, running toward the open hangar.
When she was in range, Nina opened fire. Clutching the steering wheel with her left hand, she fired with her right. She and Curtis had removed the windshield before they left the tank farm in anticipation of this attack. She could aim better that way, and she didn't have to shoot through the glass.
Firing from a moving car wasn't easy, but it was something Nina Myers had learned at The Farm, and she felt a rush of professional satisfaction when two commandos dropped to the tarmac.
When she emptied her dock, she tossed it into the empty seat beside her, grabbed Curtis' gun and opened up again. There were fewer targets this time. Almost everyone had run into the open hangar for protection.
Nina raced past the enemy and skidded to a halt in front of Hangar Six. The blast doors were pitted and pockmarked, but no bullet had penetrated the thick armor. Tony Almeida, clutching an AK-47, limped through the hangar's shattered doorway to greet her.
"You're just in time," Nina said, pointing to a second vehicle fast approaching.
* * *
11:24:55 a.m. PDT
Runway 33R/15L
Groom Lake Air Force Base
The battered tanker truck could not keep up with Nina's sandrail — not with a full tank of jet fuel, anyway. Curtis watched helplessly as Nina pulled ahead.
As their vehicles approached the runway, they both watched the high-tech helicopter blast out of the hangar and into sky. Though they were too late to stop someone from escaping, there were still hostages to rescue. By silent consent the CTU agents proceeded with their original plan.
Curtis smiled grimly when she saw Nina speed into the melee, saw dead men in her wake. Best of all, almost everyone ran to the hangar. Curtis aimed for the open door, lashed the steering wheel in place. Then he shifted a steel pipe waiting in the seat next to him.
The truck slowed a bit while Curtis positioned the pipe. Commandos in the hangar opened fire on the truck. When Curtis jammed the pipe between the seat and the accelerator, the truck surged forward.
Time to go.
Curtis popped the door and rolled out. He slammed against the concrete, felt his shoulder pop and cried out. He bounced, then rolled over once, twice, before landing on his back. Groaning, Curtis curled into a protective ball and closed his eyes. Shots pinged the concrete around him. He heard shouts, a crash — and then the explosion.
Flames filled the hangar's interior, incinerating everything and everyone inside. A few howling forms tumbled out of the building. Wrapped in burning fuel, they didn't scream for long.
The hostages burst out of the next hangar, guns ready. But there was no one left to fight. Yizi and the Chinese commandos were all dead.
* * *
11:25:07 a.m. PDT
Over Emigrant Valley
With Jong Lee clawing at his helmet, Jack steered the Blackfoot out of the hangar, then blasted it into the sky. The aircraft's flight characteristics reminded Jack of the Harrier's, but the vortex technology that powered the Blackfoot were far more powerful than the engines on the British fighter jet.
He'd intended to fly away before the other man boarded the helicopter, but Jong Lee figured out the plot and leaped into the helicopter to stop him. The Asian was a skilled and savage fighter,