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her eyes, flung out her arm and grabbed Dr Rossi by the back of the neck.
    Jana was running on pure adrenalin now. She turned with her fists up, ready for a fight.
    'Whoa,' Gideon frowned. 'Same side, remember.'
    'Come on then,' Jana urged, peering up into the blue eyes of her rescuer's grease-blacked face.
Well, one blue eye - the other had a lens device over it now. And to be honest, the colour was
simply recall from the quick glimpse in her cabin. It was certainly too dark now to see the finer
points of this statuesque soldier who, not an hour before, had been nothing to her but a desperate
hope. And, admittedly, she had envisioned Rambo or The Rock. Jana planted her hands on her hips,
rain-checked the promise of allegiance, and continued the challenging stare. It didn't work.
    'Dr Rossi. We are going. Before they,' Gideon hoicked a finger in the direction of the mayhem
behind them, 'any of them, catch up to us.'
    'Boy, am I sick of people telling me what to do.'
    'Let me be the last then.'

Chapter Four
    Laui Island, Pacific Ocean
Tuesday 6.50 pm
     
    Jana surrendered to the inevitable, but only because the other soldier had already
rounded up her liberated colleagues and disappeared into the dark with them.
    'How come your friend gets a crowd and you only get me?' Jana asked her rescuer.
    'Because I'm in charge.'
    'Oh,' Jana said.
    'See that shed over there?' Gideon scoped the area as she spoke. 'Run and wait. Go.'
    Jana cut straight across the lawn to the sun shelter and crouched by a low cane table. 'So how
many of you are there?' she asked when the woman-in-charge joined her.
    'We're a squad of nine.'
    'I gather the rest of your men, or women, are blowing the island to smithereens then.'
    'No. The Americans are doing that. And please don't ask me why,' Gideon said, pushing through the
thick garden barrier to get to the edge of the path. The way appeared to be clear.
    'Is that because you can't tell me, or you don't know?'
    'Yes,' Gideon acknowledged, wondering if there was any kind of situation in which this woman
would shut up. With a swift hand movement she indicated that Dr Rossi should stay behind her as they
headed down the sandy path.
    The confusing din of gunfire, which was now coming from directions other than just the docks and
rec area, made it almost impossible to hear anything else - like approaching soldiers. Anything,
that is, except Dr Rossi.
    'You know,' Jana said, 'it's nice that you're the main man here, but it doesn't explain why
I…'
    Gideon stopped dead and put her hand on her charge's shoulder to stop her progress. Gideon looked
down at the woman who, without the advantage of a night-lens, had no idea she was being glared at.
'You are the reason we're here, Dr Rossi,' Gideon explained.
    'Me? Why?' Jana, all but speechless with surprise, assumed she was being teased until she felt
the taken-aback twitch in her rescuer's hand.
    'You're asking me?' Gideon asked.
    'Well yeah. There's no one else here,' Jana said, waving at the dark.
    That's what you think . Gideon caught a movement to their right, down the other path.
    'Well, I don't know anything. I'm just your escort for the night,' Gideon whispered, keeping her
night-eye on the two men who were looking in every direction except their six.
    'Oh,' Jana said. 'Well do you at least have a name?'
    'Yes.' Gideon noted that the bare backs and sheer variety of dangling weapons meant the men were
easily tagged, even in this distance, as PRA fighters not Americans and certainly not her Redbacks.
    'Well what is it?'
    'Gideon. Commander,' she replied quietly. Ah good, they're moving out. No they're not. Yes.
No. Oh come on boys, which way? Make up your alleged minds.
    'Commander what? I didn't catch…' Jana was silenced by a hand clamping over her mouth. She
allowed herself to be pushed down to her knees. Again.
    Concentrating on the now departing enemy, Gideon became aware of an impatient tapping on her leg. The Doc probably can't breathe; but three more