PRIMAL Renegade (A PRIMAL Action Thriller Book 8) (The PRIMAL Series) by Jack Silkstone Page B

hospital with you.” He took off the pistol belt and placed it on the bench.
    Vance shook his head. “We're trying to keep a low profile, brother. Better if you stayed here with the team.”
    “Yeah, OK, well if you need to talk I'm always here for you.”
    “For sure.” Vance swallowed hard as he grabbed a set of keys from the bench and strode toward the door.
    “Oh and Vance, when it comes time to pull Bishop out of the shit, I'm good to go.”
    “Let's hope it doesn't come to that. Knocking off a dirt-bag poacher shouldn’t be too difficult for Bishop and Kruger.”
    “We both know what Bish is like.”
    He managed a smirk. “Yep, goddamn shit magnet.”
     
    ***
     
    BAREEN HOSPITAL, ABU DHABI
     
    Vance walked slowly along the spotless white corridors as he searched for Doctor Edwards’ office. He found it five doors down, exactly where a pretty young nurse had directed him. Pausing with his hand raised to knock on the door he contemplated turning and walking away; leaving the decision that needed to be made to Tariq. In all his years as a paramilitary operative then as the Director of Operations for PRIMAL he had never faced a dilemma like this. Life and death decisions were part of his day-to-day routine but that hadn’t prepared him. His shoulders dropped as he knocked.
    “Come in.”
    He pushed the door open and nodded to the man behind his desk. “Hey, Doc.”
    “Vance.” Edwards directed him to take the seat next to Tariq.
    The Arab rose and they shook hands.
    “Tariq, good to see you, brother.” Vance sat and placed his clenched fists on his thighs. “So what's the prognosis?” He didn't really need to ask. The grave expression on Doctor Edwards’ face said it all.
    “Gentlemen, Saneh's situation has begun to deteriorate. In the last twenty-four hours her brain activity has slowed. I'm afraid we're losing her.”
    Vance sighed. “What about the baby?”
    “I've been consulting with a colleague of mine who is the hospital’s leading obstetrician. We concur that as long as we keep Saneh's body alive the child could continue to develop normally. But, there will be an increased risk of complications.”
    “What kind of complications?” asked Tariq.
    “The child could be either mentally or physically impaired. There is also an increased likelihood that Saneh's body might terminate the pregnancy.”
    “And the alternative?”
    “We begin a revolutionary program to stimulate Saneh's brain.”
    “But there will be an impact on the child.”
    Doctor Edwards nodded. “The risk remains that, as a side effect of some of the drugs, her body will terminate the pregnancy. This is uncharted territory, I don't know of any other cases where–”
    “Can't we use other drugs?” interrupted Vance.
    “We can but the chance of recovery is significantly reduced.” Edwards placed his hand on a document on the desk. “These are the release papers authorizing the treatment. I'm going to give you a few minutes to discuss the options.” He rose and left Vance and Tariq in the office.
    “I never thought I’d have to make a decision like this,” said Vance.
    “You still haven't been able to reach Bishop?”
    He shook his head. “No, he's offline still.”
    “And we've run out of time.”
    “Yes, we both know what needs to be done.”
    Tariq's eyes were glassy as he rose from his chair. “We always knew there would be times like this.”
    “Seems to be a lot of them recently, bud.”
    Tariq placed a hand on his shoulder. “We’re doing the right thing.”
    “I know.”
     
    ***
     
    TSAVO EAST NATIONAL PARK, KENYA
     
    Bishop held up his hand signaling the hunting party to halt. Crouching in a thick patch of grass he surveyed the terrain ahead.
    Five hundred yards away a meager herd of elephants foraged on a floodplain next to a shallow lake. Upwind, the majestic beasts were oblivious to their presence. Bishop grimaced as he spotted the massive tusks on the bull. Kogo would want them for