He cast another glance at the man who hadn't moved an inch. His breathing was even, telling him that he was indeed unconscious. He knew he would have to explain the mans presence to Mandras as he wasn't on the list, yet the way Nina had pleaded to save him told him that, in the very least he could use him to get to Nina. Or maybe he really was valuable, and she was giving him up to save her own skin; given Nina's nature, the latter seemed much more plausible. Either way, he thought, despite deviating form the plan, they would benefit from bringing the man back with them.
The radio in his pocket cackled, drawing his attention. He held it up to his ear to hear Pezel's voice better, the line wasn't too good, they would have to invest in some new equipment soon. With the money today's job would bring in, he was certain they could afford it.
"I found one alive, well, for now he is anyway." He knew what Pezel was asking of him, if they were to bring him along or not. Even if he was on the list, they would be asking questions. He silently cursed at himself for letting Nina take over, he hadn't even noticed it, but already he was running about doing things the way she wanted. He hated that about her, the way she could manipulate people to doing something you would never do, and you did it, yet sometimes you didn't even realise what you were doing. Nina to a tee, he thought angrily.
"Is he on the list?"
"I don't think so, but his face is pretty messed up anyway, so I can't be sure."
"How badly injured is he?"
"Pretty bad."
Kalah waited in silence for a moment as he thought, brushing his curly tangled hair back behind his ears with one hand. "No. Dispose of him. You found anyone else?"
"No. They are all dead."
"Okay, take care of him then meet us back here, were going back to base."
He shut the radio off and began his pacing once more. Killing the unknown was the right move, they could explain away one extra man, but if they brought back two Mandras would wonder what he was playing at and he couldn't afford to lose this job, not this late in the game after everything they had worked for. That would be unacceptable.
Pezel trudged through the undergrowth and stepped over another chunk of plastic before steadily climbing down the ditch, already knowing what he was to do. Anton followed his league, making sure not to brush against Pezel who's hands were covered in the rich substance that was blood. Kalah stepped to the side so he was directly behind Nina, and watched as Pezel grabbed Bauer's upper body from behind, gripping him around the armpits, unconcerned with the blood that Anton was clearly weary of. Bauer's arms flailed around as he was dragged up the hill, Anton struggling with his legs which he couldn't get a grip on as well as his friend had.
After a rest at the top of the hill they moved him again, both struggling to lift Jack up high enough to roll him into the back of the open pick up truck. After counting to three they both heaved him up in it then shoved his immobile body over the cold and dirty base. They then climbed up themselves and dragged him to the far end, next to the separate area where the two seats sat sectioned off from the rest of the vehicle.
Kalah followed behind them with Nina at gun point. She struggled to climb up onto the open tailgate of the pick up, so Anton grabbed her cuffed hands and pulled her in, seating her next to Bauer, who was now splayed out on his back, his head lagging to the left, not facing her. Pezel sat a few feet away with his gun trained on the two, and Anton climbed back out, noticing the smeared blood trail from where they had dragged Jack across it. There wasn't too much, he reassured himself as he fastened the tailgate back up, and if there was, that would be Kalah's problem. He checked the back was secure then climbed into the drivers seat and sped away from the crash site, back to there current base.
Anton sped over the rocky land unconcerned with the bumps, they all knew of the strict time issue. Pushing the speed to 80, which could be dangerous for such uneven roads he assured himself they would be long gone before the rescue teams found the plane. In the back Pezel and Nina clung to the sides of the pick up to try and soften the jerking about the harsh terrain was causing them. Jack was sliding about, his head repeatedly banging against the hard flooring, nobody doing anything to try and stop it.
Through the blanket of fog Jack could feel his head rumbling against the cold material, he was slowly coming too.