Overthrow (A James Winchester Thriller Book 2) (James Winchester Series) by James Samuel (the gingerbread man read aloud .TXT) 📕

and he is your primary contact, so it wasn’t my business to stop him. I warned him of the risks involved and he decided to proceed anyway.” Gallagher paused. “You and Winchester dug yourself into this hole.”

“It was Blake who killed Sambath.”

“Wood, be careful.” Gallagher’s voice grew dangerously low. “I have a full report from the scene and Harrison assured me that Winchester put him in an impossible situation. Nevertheless, I decided not to remove both of you from Cambodia. You have a chance to redeem yourself.”

Sinclair held the phone away from his ear and took a deep breath. Gallagher’s man-crush on Blake infuriated him. He’d never understood how the two had become friends or why Gallagher could never look at any situation involving Blake objectively.

He returned the phone to his ear. “The point is, I need outside help to research these men. There is nothing available on any of these people on the public web. Unless someone can get into the Cambodian government’s files, I have no way of finding out anything more about these people.”

“I see. Then I will trust your judgement in matters of intelligence. Should I pass this to Finch?”

“Yes, sir,” Sinclair breathed. “It would go a long way to helping me fulfil this part of this contract. When I find the traitor, I can pass it to James.”

Gallagher grunted. “Good. Finch will contact you when there is something to report. Send the files to the usual address. A name and some basic background will be sufficient, I’m sure.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Sinclair put the phone down. Jacob Finch was everything Sinclair wished he could be. Jacob was the elusive computer whizz of the Blackwind. Reclusive by nature and socially awkward, Finch worked from afar. There was no computer system in the world he couldn’t break into, given enough time and inclination.

At times, Jacob found himself in prison for several crimes, the most recent being online extortion of a variety of major corporations and educational institutions. He never needed the money; he just had nothing better to do. Gallagher had pulled some strings and had him released on the condition that he worked exclusively for Blackwind. Of course, he still committed some minor crimes in his spare time, but his employers glossed over that little fact.

Sinclair took each file and entered the most basic information about each figure. Jacob never needed anything more. He attacked any assignment Gallagher assigned him as if it were a personal insult. As he clicked the ‘Send’ button, Sinclair finally relaxed for what felt like the first time in days.

He would have everything he needed within a few hours.

Chapter Forty

Cardamom Mountains, Koh Kong, Cambodia

 

The shroud of night continued to cover them as they departed the Khmer Rouge outpost and began the perilous journey to the main camp. They inched up the trail as it continued to climb, winding them with each incline, only to reveal another greater incline. James swiped the sweat dripping down his chin.

Each man had swapped out their weapons to take the AK-47s left behind by the dead Khmer Rouge. The straps around their necks held the Kalashnikovs in place, but they were still cumbersome for travelling. James kept moving his out of the way as it bobbled around his moving limbs.

Then something miraculous happened. The hills disappeared and they found themselves on a mesa of some kind. The path through the trees evened out and they could walk at a brisk pace again.

“The stream should be on the right in a few moments,” said Preap, his voice barely above a whisper.

James grunted as he peered into the trees. From the darkness, the gentle bubbling of flowing water. It came from the right, probably just beyond the treeline. His tired mind and body craved to run to it and throw himself into the cooling water.

“Let’s go,” said Blake. “It’s there.”

“No,” said Preap. “We need to find the right path to it first.”

Preap probed the sides of the trail by nudging the undergrowth with his foot. The whole ceremony seemed rather odd, but after what happened to Adam, nobody voiced their opposition.

It took a couple of minutes of prodding before Preap stopped and waved at them to follow. This was the moment of truth. Preap would either walk them into the trap or they would emerge to find the cool blessing of a mountain stream.

James watched every step Preap took, ensuring his feet hit exactly where Preap’s had been. He held onto the hanging vines and low branches as they broke through the first line of trees. He saw only more black shapes glittering underneath the final flashes of the moon. Then it became clear.

Preap ascended a fallen log covered in moss. The gnarled, rotting wood provided them with an easy passage towards the stream. Each man ascended and traversed it in a low crouch to keep their balance.

He heard the water before he saw it as Preap plunged in. James joined him, the water coming up to his knees. He steadied his boots on the riverbed before pressing the water to his face and dumping it over his head with one hand.

Balancing the Molotov cocktail in the other, he felt like he could breathe again. The ancient stream had cut a path through the thick foliage. For the first time in over twenty-four hours, he felt like nature wasn’t trying to kill him.

Blake paddled into the stream. “How far to the base?”

“No more than a few hundred metres. The stream will be safe. This is where they get their drinking water,” said Preap. “The only place in Cambodia where you can get fresh drinking water from nature. You should try it.”

“Gee, thanks for the local knowledge, but let’s hurry up. The Sooner we do this the sooner we can go down again. Prak better be here after