"What time is it?" Ava asked.

She was leaning over a parapet. She and Ali were in the castle Keep atop the Sira Fortress. From this lofty open-air vantage point she had a panoramic view of the Outer Harbor and the Old Town district of Aden. Ava could even make out Vendetta far, far below –now the sole vessel berthed at the pier. If Ava had been here earlier, she might've spotted Adam East marching towards Badaki's headquarters.

Except for Ava and Ali, the Fortress was deserted. It was customarily a popular place for tourists and local lovers but with the current unrest everybody with an ounce of sense was hunkered down in their hotel rooms and homes.

"Around one o'clock," Ali Khan answered nervously, wringing his hands together. "Do you think Adam received the message?"

"I have no idea, Ali. I told you I wasn't certain Adam would go to Aaron Abel's office, or his home; it was just a hunch. I don't know what Adam's plans are. Anyway, our options were limited. My only contacts in Aden were Aaron and Inspector Guma. You shouldn't have taken Adam's SAT-phone."

"How was I to foresee this catastrophe?" Ali scrubbed at his temples, paced in a small circle. "My business life obliterated; everyone hunting me down; my own brother wishes me eliminated. In Allah's name it is all too unfair!" He spread his arms theatrically into the sky.

Ava turned and looked at Ali. She shook her head in wonder. She said, "Ali. You are a pirate, a kidnapper, a terrorist for Pete's sake! What did you expect?"

"Oh, Miss Ava, it was not my wish. It was my brother. He became the great Badaki of al-Qaeda!" Ali made a grand one-armed sweeping gesture over Aden, continued meekly with, "And naturally being the younger sibling I had no choice. Adam must help me. Where is he?"

Ava offered, "Maybe we should wait for him on Vendetta; he may not get the message at Aaron's."

"Hah! You would like that. That boat sticks out like a swollen bum. My brother could locate me easily, have me erased."

"Ali, I don't want to see anybody... erased, not even you. You've stuck to your part of the bargain, I'll stick to mine. If Adam shows up, I'll do my best to persuade him to help you."

Ali Khan had stuck to the bargain. He'd returned all of Ava's belongings they'd taken from her and from her room at the Aden Rock Hotel. He'd handed over her satchel containing her passport, laptop, purse, wallet... all her valuables, untouched. The gravy: Also in the satchel were financial records proving the link between Yuri Dostov and al-Qaeda... confirmation of Ava's big scoop, on a platter! Ali had pried loose one of the large stone blocks in a secluded passageway of the Fortress and pulled out the satchel. Things were unfolding quite well.

But of course she was getting a trifle ahead of herself, Ava conceded. She still had the Zalmay murder rap hanging over her head. And she was stranded on a mountain top after bargaining with a member of al-Qaeda. And for all she knew, her boyfriend –or whatever– was prowling the streets looking to commit murder. And all of this taking place in the midst of an impending civil war. She turned back round to peer out from the parapet and dream up some sequence of long-shot events that might untangle the mess.

Ava was about to declare SNAFU-hopeless when she spotted something, far off, traveling across the peninsula towards the waterfront thoroughfare. Whatever it was, it was hurtling ever nearer at an astonishing clip. She kept her attention fixed and focused on the near-deserted roadway.

Long before recognition registered on her brain, Ava's heart swelled and stuttered, telling her what it was, who it was.

Adam! Ava was certain.

He was rocketing in their direction as though The Beast had been shot out of a particle accelerator. He scarcely slowed when making the right turn at the intersection near the Hospital. He barreled down the main waterfront drag. When he neared the end of the avenue to turn onto the causeway, Ava could hear him gearing down aggressively, the bike protesting stridently, the sounds echoing all the way up to where she stood.

"What is that noise?" Ali Khan asked. He came over beside Ava and leaned over the parapet.

Ava said, "It's Adam. I've seen him this way before. Not good."

"What do you mean, Miss Ava?" Ali asked nervously.

It made Ava apprehensive seeing Adam in this state. He was so freakin' impulsive. She could well imagine him blasting up the mountain side and chucking Ali Khan over the parapet without so much as a fare-thee-well.

Despite this unpleasant notion, a pert, self-satisfied grin was planted on Ava's lips. Because coupled with the apprehension was a good measure of gratification. Ava figured since Adam had gone to Aaron's place and then had gone to fetch his bike, he must have ditched the idea of hunting down Badaki; he'd become concerned only about finding her. Sweet. She just hoped Aaron's apartment still had a functioning door.

She said to Ali, "Chances are, Adam has figured out that the text message was from you, not me, and that I'm your prisoner again. Not to mention the fact he's still holding a big fat grudge over your Somalia caper."

"But, Miss Ava, you are not my prisoner. You must tell Adam this. You must tell him we have made an agreement."

"Sure... if he gives me an opportunity."

"What!? Er, I think I must have my pistol back, please."

"Oh no you don't, buster." Ava pushed away from the parapet, put some distance between her and Ali, shoved a hand into her pocket. "That's my insurance, remember?"

Ali Khan looked around anxiously. The Beast yowled like a Banshee as it began the climb up the far-side of the massive promontory spread out beneath the Sira Fortress. There was a long steep winding stone path that led up from the outer base of the mountain to the Fortress. Ali and Ava had taken ages to complete the climb. Ali Khan was in worse physical shape than the Pillsbury Doughboy; they'd had to rest several times along the way. By the sound of it, Adam would reach the summit in mere minutes.

"Please do something, Miss. I wish no one harm."

Ava looked at Ali. Pathetic. He was everything a human being should not be. But she still couldn't help feel a modicum of pity for the poor bugger. Besides, now that Adam had given up on murdering Badaki there was no sense taking a fall for killing his miserable younger brother. She turned her back on Ali, positioned herself between him and the entrance to the castle Keep. Ali took a step closer to her. He said, "Thank you, Miss Ava. I pray Allah blesses you and protects you for all eternity."

"Yeah sure, Ali, I just bet that's your prayer."