there was a gabble of Dutch between the pair, then the other spoke up, scowling first at his compatriot. ‘I do not think we should blow the bridge. It is my thinking that we should instead drop the mill onto the road and bridge as the Russians pass.’
In bottom gear Burke crawled the truck over the brow, and there below them the view was exactly as they’d last seen it.
‘It’s very tempting and I’d love to see it happen, but we haven’t the time for fancywork like that. Okay, Burke, what are you hanging about for? Put your foot down.’
The Scammel surged forward, and was doing sixty before the brakes were applied. For a moment it seemed the back end was going to break away, but Burke corrected before a skid could develop. ‘Where do you want it?’
‘See if you can turn it around without any more bloody dramatics. Then park it out front of the mill.’ With the motor now warmed and running quietly, Hyde clearly heard a distinct new sound against the background thunder of the barrage.
Andrea heard it also. ‘Mines.’ She listened again. ‘And ammunition. The Russians have run onto the minefield where Taylor was killed.’
They jumped from the truck, Hyde shouting to Burke before slamming the passenger door. ‘Get a bloody move-on, and don’t ditch it.’
‘Fucking great.’ Burke took the precaution of speaking after the door had closed. ‘I’ve got a wagon longer than the road is wide and he wants me to try for the world’s fastest three-point turn.’
‘If you reckon you ain’t up to it, boy, I’ll always have a go.’
‘Shit,’ Burke muttered under his breath. He’d forgotten Ripper still manning the anti-aircraft mount. ‘You just concentrate on what you’re supposed to be doing. If we get jumped by a gunship we’ll be in worse crap than if I drop a couple of wheels off the road.’
Before the Scammel finally rocked to a halt facing back the way they’d come, boxes and cases were already being hauled from the back and broken open on the road.
The Dutchmen had made a hurried survey of the bridge and when they returned to Revell they were arguing again.
‘So what is it now?’
Grudgingly they broke off their acrimonious exchange.
‘It is stronger than we expected. With the charges we have they will need to be placed right underneath to be sure of bringing down the span. Anywhere else and ...’
‘How long will it take?’ Even as he said it, Revell knew he’d made a mistake by addressing the question to both of them.
‘One hour, not more…’
‘At least two…’
‘I say one…’
‘So help me if you two start up again I’ll leave both of you here.’ Hyde’s bellowed threat cut them short. He stabbed his finger into the chest of the older man. ‘We’ll go for your idea. How do we drop the mill?’
He looked smug and was about to make a sarcastic aside to his companion when he saw the NCO’s expression and decided against it. ‘That is a fuel-air bomb.’ Gesturing at a tarpaulin-shrouded hump aboard the Scammel, he began to unfasten a securing rope and then tugged at the heavy waterproof material.
It fell away to reveal a drab-painted cylinder about two meters long and half as wide. This was the first time Hyde had seen one close-up, though he’d witnessed their tremendous power from a distance.
‘Get it emplaced as fast as you can. Time’s running out on us.’ Taking up a heavy case of claymore mines, Hyde went to join Andrea and Burke, who were setting various anti-armour and anti-personnel devices to cover the approaches to the bridge.
They worked quickly, hardly needing the prompt provided by the distant reports of mine explosions. Cannon fire blended into the destructive chorus and told Hyde that the Russians were putting down a firestorm in order to blast their way through.
Hurried though the preparations were, they were thorough. Mines and launchers were set where they would be protected by the devastating sweep of shotgun mines and these in
In bottom gear Burke crawled the truck over the brow, and there below them the view was exactly as they’d last seen it.
‘It’s very tempting and I’d love to see it happen, but we haven’t the time for fancywork like that. Okay, Burke, what are you hanging about for? Put your foot down.’
The Scammel surged forward, and was doing sixty before the brakes were applied. For a moment it seemed the back end was going to break away, but Burke corrected before a skid could develop. ‘Where do you want it?’
‘See if you can turn it around without any more bloody dramatics. Then park it out front of the mill.’ With the motor now warmed and running quietly, Hyde clearly heard a distinct new sound against the background thunder of the barrage.
Andrea heard it also. ‘Mines.’ She listened again. ‘And ammunition. The Russians have run onto the minefield where Taylor was killed.’
They jumped from the truck, Hyde shouting to Burke before slamming the passenger door. ‘Get a bloody move-on, and don’t ditch it.’
‘Fucking great.’ Burke took the precaution of speaking after the door had closed. ‘I’ve got a wagon longer than the road is wide and he wants me to try for the world’s fastest three-point turn.’
‘If you reckon you ain’t up to it, boy, I’ll always have a go.’
‘Shit,’ Burke muttered under his breath. He’d forgotten Ripper still manning the anti-aircraft mount. ‘You just concentrate on what you’re supposed to be doing. If we get jumped by a gunship we’ll be in worse crap than if I drop a couple of wheels off the road.’
Before the Scammel finally rocked to a halt facing back the way they’d come, boxes and cases were already being hauled from the back and broken open on the road.
The Dutchmen had made a hurried survey of the bridge and when they returned to Revell they were arguing again.
‘So what is it now?’
Grudgingly they broke off their acrimonious exchange.
‘It is stronger than we expected. With the charges we have they will need to be placed right underneath to be sure of bringing down the span. Anywhere else and ...’
‘How long will it take?’ Even as he said it, Revell knew he’d made a mistake by addressing the question to both of them.
‘One hour, not more…’
‘At least two…’
‘I say one…’
‘So help me if you two start up again I’ll leave both of you here.’ Hyde’s bellowed threat cut them short. He stabbed his finger into the chest of the older man. ‘We’ll go for your idea. How do we drop the mill?’
He looked smug and was about to make a sarcastic aside to his companion when he saw the NCO’s expression and decided against it. ‘That is a fuel-air bomb.’ Gesturing at a tarpaulin-shrouded hump aboard the Scammel, he began to unfasten a securing rope and then tugged at the heavy waterproof material.
It fell away to reveal a drab-painted cylinder about two meters long and half as wide. This was the first time Hyde had seen one close-up, though he’d witnessed their tremendous power from a distance.
‘Get it emplaced as fast as you can. Time’s running out on us.’ Taking up a heavy case of claymore mines, Hyde went to join Andrea and Burke, who were setting various anti-armour and anti-personnel devices to cover the approaches to the bridge.
They worked quickly, hardly needing the prompt provided by the distant reports of mine explosions. Cannon fire blended into the destructive chorus and told Hyde that the Russians were putting down a firestorm in order to blast their way through.
Hurried though the preparations were, they were thorough. Mines and launchers were set where they would be protected by the devastating sweep of shotgun mines and these in
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