Afghan Storm (Nick Woods Book 3) by Stan R. Mitchell Read Free Book Online Page A

weapon -- Truck’s RPK machine gun -- could hit at
that range, as well, with a good spotter. The AK-47s carried by Marcus and Red
would be far more limited on their range. Despite the fact that they were
souped up and topped with ACOG scopes, they would have to wait to engage until
the targets arrived at three hundred yards. Nick picked out terrain features
for each of the distances.
    “Okay,
here’s the plan,” he said, and he quickly described to them how he hoped it
would go down.
     

 
     
    Chapter 15
     
    Tariq and
his warriors attacked. They jogged down the hill, fully aware that they’d have
to cross the gully below before starting up the steep terrain to reach the
Americans.
    But their
confidence remained strong. Even the steep hill they’d have to assault
shouldn’t be a problem with heavy suppression. They might take some losses, but
they’d eventually swarm over their targets. Tariq and his fighters were certain
of this.
     
    Nick used
his sniper scope to scan the crowd of villagers as they started down the hill.
He was looking for clues, tendencies, and really anything that might help his
men get out of this jam alive.
    The fighters
jogged down the hill, unrushed and unhurried. Smart move, Nick thought.
    “These boys
are smart for not tearing off toward us,” Marcus said, clearly thinking the
same thing.
    “They look
confident,” Red added, “as if they expect us to just raise our weapons and fire
some bursts toward them with our heads down.”
    “That’s just what they’re
used to,” Truck laughed. “These dipshits are untrained, and they ain’t ever
been in an actual military situation.”
    “He’s right,” Marcus
admitted. “There are plenty of Taliban troops that have faced off with American
forces, but these guys are pretty much farmers with guns. We should feel lucky
that they haven’t picked up any tricks from their Afghan neighbors. Those
suckers have learned to use the terrain as a weapon, planting IEDs everywhere.”
    “Yeah,” Truck replied.
“But these poor bastards are out of the loop. And they’re about to learn one
damn hard lesson.”
    Nick tried
to block out the banter, mentally going over every angle. He wanted to kick
himself when he suddenly realized that fighting beneath the net would be
confining them too tightly together.
    But it was
too late to make that adjustment now. Each of their flanks had AKs protecting
them, and they had their machine gun and sniper rifle in the middle.
    Marcus lay
at the far end of the group with his AK, then Truck waited behind his RPK,
followed by Nick with the sniper rifle, and finally Red at the bottom with his
AK.
    Their enemy
advanced like a hungry pack of wolves, eagerly hunting their dinner. They’d be
smarter to be spread out wide instead of running so close together, Nick
thought, but clearly they underestimated their “prey.”
    They were
nearing the six hundred meter mark when Nick slowed his breathing, dialing
himself in. To his left, Truck pushed harder into his bipods and let loose a
deep breath of his own.
    Well, that’s our cue,
thought Nick. After all, no can of whoop-ass had ever been opened without a
good ole exhale to start.
     
     

 
     
    Chapter 16
     
    Although the
advancing villagers were still out of effective small-arms range, they paused
here and there to fire off bursts from their hips. Their bullets raked the
hillside on which S3 waited, but only a few even came close.
    A man with
an RPG knelt and fired, as well. His shot arced toward the hill and slammed
into it with a roar. The shot was fifty yards short, but it sent gooseflesh
ripping up Nick’s arms. RPGs were no joke.
    Nick quickly
set his crosshairs on the man with the RPG. Nick eased the trigger back. A shot
roared from his rifle and hit the kneeling man low, blasting through his groin,
pelvis, and hips. He wouldn’t be running up the hill any time soon. Or
breathing once he bled out or gave into shock, which should be in a matter