‘Look for a valley or inlet,’ the pilot ordered.
Almost as soon as he spoke, a swale between the mountains came into view. The pilot steered the Harbin in a wide arc that brought the aircraft around perpendicular to the shore and nose into the wind. Then he extended the landing gear and flared the helicopter to reduce both the rate of descent and the forward airspeed. The Harbin seemed to float, but the ground still rose up quickly. The pilot leveled out and brought the Harbin down. It landed with a crunch, and the aircraft pitched forward and about ten degrees to the left.
‘Everybody out,’ the pilot ordered.
The crew and passengers exited from the right side of the aircraft. Smoke wafted from the engine intakes, tingeing the air with a pungent smell. The pilot dropped onto the ground to check the condition of his aircraft. The Harbin employed a retractable tricycle landing gear, and the rear wheel assembly on the right side had collapsed on impact with a large rock.
‘Pilot,’ Liu growled, ‘report our situation and request immediate assistance.’
‘I will,’ the pilot markedly paced his voice, ‘after I’ve assessed the condition of the aircraft.’
Peng set his helmet down and stood by the water’s edge. The lake was calm and soundlessly lapping along the shore. He picked up a smooth stone and flung it sideways into the water. It skipped twice before submerging, the sound echoing strangely. He picked up another stone and was about to send it after the first when he heard something splashing. The noise was faint, but steady and slowly growing in intensity.
‘Do you hear that?’ Peng asked.
‘What?’ Liu replied.
‘Listen.’
Liu removed his helmet and cocked an ear toward the lake. ‘Probably birds.’
‘I don’t think so,’ Peng said. ‘It’s too regular.’
Liu listened more intently and picked up on the steady rhythm of the stroke. ‘You think someone survived?’
Peng stuck his hand in the water but yanked it out quickly. ‘It’s freezing. I can’t think why anyone else would be swimming, and Kilkenny was once a SEAL — they train in cold water.’
‘Cao!’ Liu spat, staring into the fog. ‘If it’s a swimmer, where is he?’
‘Hard to tell. The sound is bouncing off the rock all around us. But it’s definitely approaching shore.’
‘You go that way,’ Liu ordered, pointing east. ‘If you find this swimmer, kill him.’
Peng nodded and the two men set off.
Liu moved carefully along the rocky shore trying to pinpoint the source of the elusive sound. It changed in intensity, but overall it seemed to be moving closer. After ten minutes, Liu estimated he had covered almost fifty meters of difficult terrain. And the sound was definitely nearby.
Through the haze, he spied a lone swimmer cutting a long smooth stroke through the placid water. Liu studied the shore and found a large boulder to conceal himself behind until the swimmer emerged. The man would be cold and tired — an easy kill.
The swimmer slowed, then stopped as he reached the shallows. All but the upper half of the man’s head and the barrel of a pistol remained submerged — he exposed only what was essential in order to survey the shore. Seeing no threats, the man dragged himself out of the water and peeled off his balaclava as he crossed the final distance to shore. Liu squeezed off a warning shot that struck the water near the swimmer’s feet. It was Kilkenny.
‘Throw your weapon into the water behind you!’ Liu shouted as he stepped out from behind the boulder.
Kilkenny stopped and shook his head in wonder. ‘Just not my day.’
‘Your weapon!’ Liu shouted again.
Kilkenny tossed his pistol over his shoulder and heard it splash into the lake.
‘Now the knife,’ Liu commanded.
With his hands in clear view, Kilkenny stripped the knife sheath from his leg and threw it back into the lake.
‘Legs apart! Hands on head, now!’
Kilkenny complied, placing his legs shoulder-width apart, slightly bent at the knees.
Liu moved closer. ‘Where is Yin Daoming?’
Kilkenny considered the question and decided he was too sore and tired to stonewall. ‘Gone.’
‘Gone?’ Liu spat back angrily. ‘Gone where?’
Kilkenny tilted his head toward the water. ‘He’s in the lake.’
‘Is he dead?’
‘I don’t think he made it to shore,’ Kilkenny replied.
Liu smiled at the thought of Yin’s body sinking into the frigid depths of the lake. He stepped closer to Kilkenny. ‘I should have killed you in Rome.’
‘I was just thinking the same thing about you.’
‘Why did you do this? What is so important about this priest?’
‘Have you ever spoken to him?’ Kilkenny asked.
‘I have. He is an old fool.’
‘Then you weren’t listening.’
‘I listened enough. You and those who sent you are all fools, deluded by your religion.’
Liu stepped directly in front of Kilkenny and pressed the end of the pistol into his captive’s abdomen. The two men stared at each other eye to eye. What Kilkenny saw sickened him.
‘You look to the heavens and see something that does not exist,’ Liu continued. ‘Your religion is nothing more than mass insanity. There is no God, and I am going to prove it to you.’
In a sharp fluid motion, Kilkenny twisted to the right and swept his left hand down and around like the blade of a windmill. The flat of his palm struck the top of Liu’s pistol hand. The force of the blow pushed the pistol away from Kilkenny’s torso and snapped the metacarpal bones of Liu’s three longest fingers. Still, Liu squeezed off a single shot before the weapon flew from his hand out into the lake, the bullet tearing into Kilkenny’s right side.
Kilkenny spun back for the return stroke, but the shock of his injury robbed the blow of strength and speed. Liu leaned back and used his right arm to easily deflect Kilkenny’s elbow and forearm. Like a gear, Liu turned with his opponent and took control of the exchange. He blocked Kilkenny’s right fist with the palm of his left hand, and as it slipped past, he grabbed the wrist and drove his knee into Kilkenny’s side.
The pain blinded Kilkenny, leaving him barely aware of his arm being rotated behind his back as he doubled over. Liu spun him around, pinning the trapped forearm up between his shoulder blades and turning Kilkenny toward the lake.
‘Move!’ Liu shouted, jabbing the thumb of his damaged hand into the wound in Kilkenny’s right side.
Kilkenny felt his knees weaken as pain shot through his body, overwhelming his senses. He staggered forward, then planted his right leg, folded his left up to his chest, and pivoted around with what strength he could muster. As he turned, Kilkenny twisted his trapped arm free and grabbed Liu’s wrist. With his own center of gravity well off of his right foot, Kilkenny used Liu as a counterbalance. He felt the Asian trying to pull away to avoid the hammer blow from his incoming fist. When he was almost completely around, Kilkenny let go. Released, Liu shot back, avoiding the fist but not the foot.
The blade of Kilkenny’s foot landed squarely in the center of Liu’s chest and fractured his sternum. Liu toppled back onto the rocky beach, and Kilkenny landed in a foot of water. Liu could barely catch his breath but knew he couldn’t wait for the next attack. He pulled the balisong knife from his boot and opened it with a practiced flick of the wrist. As a knife fighter, Liu was ambidextrous.
Both men were slow in gaining their feet. Liu had trouble breathing, and Kilkenny experienced a new level of pain as salty lake water flushed the wound in his side. Liu charged, and Kilkenny backpedaled into the lake. The SEALskin kept Kilkenny’s feet warm, but Liu found his freezing to the bone as the icy water seeped into his black leather boots. Kilkenny stood with his left side toward Liu, his left arm raised to block while his right protected his wounded side. Liu mirrored Kilkenny’s stance, his damaged hand protecting his chest with the knife hand forward.