Anvil Read Online Free PDF

cigarette and lighting it.  Hiram
set next to her, circling his arm around her narrow waist and pulled her close.
    “How is he
still alive?  I thought the Russians were closing in on him,” he said,
gently rubbing her thigh with his other hand.
    “They
were.  They did.  He had some surprises for them and escaped through
a storm tunnel.  I’m watching him on thermal right now, about ten miles
south of town.  It’s snowing there and I hope we can get to him in
time.  At least he made a clean escape from the goddamn Russians,” Jessica
said, leaning her head onto his shoulder.
    The two
lovers talked for a few more minutes as Jessica finished her smoke.  They
embraced and kissed deeply after checking to make sure no one was around, then
she broke away and dashed back to the building where she worked.
    When Jessica
was out of sight, Hiram turned and strode across the neatly mown grass to the
parking lot where he had left his personal vehicle.  He had been waiting
for two hours for her to take a break and was relieved to be moving
again.  Getting behind the wheel, he drove across the sprawling base,
careful to stay below the posted speed limit.
    Reaching the
cargo area of the harbor, he parked and stepped out, looking around and seeing
no one else.  Keeping a close watch, he moved deep into a maze of stacked
shipping containers.  Stopping close to the middle of the massive storage
area, he checked for observers again before removing a key from his pocket and
approaching a container at ground level.
    He had
carefully selected this one, reviewing its history and satisfying himself that
it hadn’t moved in over a year.  Due to its unique size and shape it would
likely sit for another year or more before being loaded on a ship.  Well,
that would be if the world hadn’t ended.  Now, it would probably never
move again.  It would just sit there until the salt air rusted it into
oblivion.
    Stepping to
the door, he pulled on a pair of thin, latex gloves so he wouldn’t leave
fingerprints.  He inserted the key into an old lock scrounged from the
motor pool where he worked.  It was tarnished with age on the outside, but
well lubricated and the key turned easily, the hasp popping open. 
Removing it, he raised the locking lever and tugged the door open, taking
another look around before stepping into the container.
    Clicking on
a small flashlight, he ignored the debris scattered across the floor and stepped
quickly to a battered shoe box lying amidst a pile of loose packing
material.  Raising the lid on the box, he retrieved a small satellite
phone and pressed the power button to turn it on as he walked back into the
open air to get a signal. 
    A minute
later the phone finished its boot sequence and had locked onto a signal. 
Hiram pressed a speed dial button and listened as a phone deep within GRU
headquarters in Moscow began ringing.

6
     
    I stumbled
and fell to my knees when Rachel pulled on me.  She was dragging me
towards a small hole in the side of a bluff, but I didn’t want to go.  I
wanted to keep following Katie.  To catch up with her and protect
her.  I tried to push Rachel away, but she was stronger than I was.  
    A moment
later Irina’s face appeared in front of me as Rachel worked my body through the
hole.  Together, they pulled me into the darkness and rolled me onto my
back.  Immediately, fingers began unhooking, unfastening and unbuttoning
my clothing. 
    “W-w-w-w-w-hat
the hell?”  I stammered through a shiver.
    “You’re
hypothermic,” Rachel’s voice said from the darkness as my vest was pulled over
my head.  “If we don’t get these wet clothes off and warm you up you’re
going to die.”
    “K-k-k-k-k-atie,”
I mumbled.
    “We heard
her,” Irina said in my ear as she raised my upper body to work the shirt off my
arms.  “We thought we were being attacked, but I think she brought you to
us.  She saved you.”
    I understood
the words Irina was speaking, but the