Free The Loyal Nine by Bobby Akart

Black Sea. We’ll let you know if the situation changes.”
    “Fair enough. I’ll let you concentrate on driving the barge. Looks like she’s responding,” said Nomad.
    “We have positive control of the barge. You’ll get your fireworks,” said the operator, disconnecting the call.
    “Everything is on track,” said Nomad, pointing toward the two lane concrete span.
    Teresenko crawled behind him to get a better view.
    “Keep an eye on the Russians for me.”
    “There’s nowhere to go on that road,” said Nomad.
    “Until there’s somewhere else to go,” said Teresenko.
    “Point taken,” replied Nomad, shifting his binoculars to the approaching vehicles.
    Russian soldiers protruded from the top and side hatches of the BTR-82s lining the M14 highway, preparing for a warm reception from the pro-loyalist factions lining the downtown streets on the other side of the Kalmius River. Instead of AK-74s, they carried short poles featuring the white, blue and red striped Russian Federation flag, ready to wave in celebration of the historic event. Ukraine’s withdrawal from the areas surrounding Mariupol tacitly approved the formation of a “land bridge” between the Russian-Ukrainian border and the pro-Russian Crimean Peninsula.
    “How are we doing over there?” asked Nomad.
    “The barge is moving swiftly upriver. Are you sure it can fit under the smaller bridge?” asked Teresenko.
    “People a lot smarter than either of us did the math. The flat-deck barge will clear the smaller bridge by three feet at high tide. They should have five feet of clearance right now,” said Nomad.
    “I’m more concerned with side-to-side clearance. The bridge supports are tightly spaced,” said Teresenko.
    “The drone will be directly overhead for this. They have it under control,” said Nomad.
    “I hope so,” said Teresenko.
    Nomad mentally added for your sake to Teresenko’s comment. He held no illusions about the price of failure on this mission. Teresenko and the three snipers stood one radio command away from trying to kill him. For all Nomad knew, the order had already been issued. He was ready at a moment’s notice to fight his way out of here. Separate transportation had been arranged in the event of a double cross, and Skyfall carried two Hellfire missiles as an insurance policy.
    His satellite radio LED screen displayed a text message. 30 seconds TOT.
    “Thirty seconds until the lead Russian vehicle reaches the bridge. Get your people set,” said Nomad.
    Teresenko warned the various commanders scattered among the buildings lining the northern and eastern edges of the Azovstal facility. From their concealed positions in the structures, they would launch a coordinated attack against the Russians travelling the M14 highway. Most importantly, a small team of Azov Battalion commandos would detonate an explosives-packed train car positioned underneath the M14 overpass at the very northeast corner of the industrial compound. The destruction of the overpass would effectively trap the vehicles traversing the three-kilometer stretch of highway running parallel to the steelworks factory and prevent reinforcements from directly supporting their beleaguered comrades.
    “Fifteen seconds,” said Nomad, watching the lead vehicle pass due north of their tower.
    The sound of automatic small-arms fire broke Nomad’s concentration on the barge passing under the smaller of the two side-by-side bridges crossing the Kalmius River. On the far side of the bridge, men dressed in loyalist paramilitary garb fired at the barge as it vanished under the bridge. They quickly scrambled to the other side, emptying their magazines into the metal beast lumbering through the water. The bullets had no effect on the steel contraption, sparking and ricocheting into the water and concrete bridge struts. A nearby rifle report competed with the automatic fire, one of the snipers attempting a fifteen-hundred-foot shot from the platform below him. Nomad