‘Merc,’ Chloe warned.
Zeb curled up tightly beneath the pickup as the headlights illuminated the vehicle’s underside briefly. However, none of the Taliban soldiers spotted him.
The vehicle drove up to the building’s front, and the CPO hustled the VIP inside.
‘No luck,’ Beth said disappointedly, when it sped away. ‘That shawl. It covered him.’
‘Hold up,’ Meghan said abruptly. ‘Listen.’
Zeb froze when he caught the remainder of the conversation between Pasha and Ahmadzai.
‘Back out,’ he called out to the twins when he heard the door opening and closing. ‘Pasha will have many of his men with him. They’ll check the street. They might spot the Range Rover. It doesn’t fit into the surroundings.’
‘Way ahead of you,’ Meghan said with a smirk. ‘We aren’t in the street anymore. We backed up when this newcomer arrived.’
Zeb nodded. Which was a mistake.
His head bumped audibly against the chassis. ‘Who’s there?’ a Taliban soldier called out.
We’ll have to shoot it out, Zeb thought bitterly as he drew his Glock.
‘Sahib’s here,’ Faroukh said as Pasha came out of the building, surrounded by his guards. ‘Let’s go.’
‘I thought I heard something.’
‘Can you see anyone in the street? Come on. We cannot keep him waiting.’
The Taliban contingent rushed to their vehicles, climbed inside and drove away.
Zeb didn’t move. He waited beneath the pickup until Ahmadzai appeared too and was driven away in another Toyota, and then rolled out from beneath the vehicle. He looked up once at the apartment, which was dark, and hurried to the mouth of the street.
‘You nearly got yourself killed,’ Broker said with a smirk when he joined his friends.
Zeb grinned ruefully and went to the Range Rover his friends were crowded around. ‘Any luck in identifying that other person?’
Beth made a face as she looked up from her screen. ‘No. He was speaking so softly that all we could hear was snatches.’
‘Yeah, but—’
‘Werner’s got nothing.’ She shrugged despondently. ‘We got it to run comparisons against all politicians’ speeches, everyone who came on TV or radio. Zilch. Zero.’
‘Who has such a low profile?’ Roger looked back at the street as if it could provide a clue.
‘Beats me.’ Zeb gave up when inspiration didn’t strike him. ‘Where’s Pasha gone?’
‘He’s in the Green Zone. We heard him make a call to Ahmadzai. The politician got the government to provide a house for him and his fighters, too.’
‘There’s nothing else on the news channels.’ Meghan pointed to the dashboard radio. ‘They are speculating that with Pasha’s return, the peace deal can be signed tomorrow.’
‘That’s what Mystery Man said.’
‘Yeah, and the TV channels are trying to interview Pasha.’
‘We have to get this to the president,’ Bwana said urgently. ‘We have to expose Pasha and Ahmadzai. Rahmani can investigate who this other person is. It has to be someone in government.’
‘We will,’ Zeb interrupted as he climbed inside the Range Rover. ‘But after the event. The Taliban leaders aren’t going anywhere.’
He brought out his cell phone and made a call.
‘Darwish, we need accommodation.’