'Now!' Aleska commands into her communicative device to her troops.

Piercing gunshots ricochet around them. Her men drop to the floor firing at their respective targets. Chaos ensues amongst Nazario's men. They panic and return fire. A disturbing sensation envelopes her like something ominous was going to happen. She feels an intense strong physical and mental sense of danger. Aleska stills her mind and body using her thought process to engineer a quick win strategy. She springs into attack mode. Her pistol in her left hand fires two shots. Simultaneously her right hand removes a knife from behind her collar. She somersaults high into the air, aims the knife with precision at the knot holding Stone prisoner. Stone falls to the ground in an undignified bundle and instinctively rolls away from the line of fire. She silently hopes she's calculated her fall with equal precision.

With one eye watching Stone, Aleska falls with an agonizing thud between two pairs of heavy duty boots.

Poor landing!
She cringes from pain as somebody's boot, kicks into her ribs. That's why soldiers should not become emotionally entangled with each other. One tends to lose perspective, become distracted and one is not as objective as one would be if one is not distracted by emotion.

With excruciating pain, she rolls to the side, looks over her shoulder and throws another knife at Stone to free himself. She is under sustained attack again. Three assailants are keen to use her body as a football.

Even on her back, Aleska adeptly blocks most of the attacks to her head and face. But three against one is an unequal ratio in anybody's language. She uses her arms to effectively block the blows to her head, whilst her feet move with the speed of light to counter attack her aggressors. Her right leg sweeps out and with a fatal chop, drops one assailant. She agilely hops back onto her feet, uses her elbow to deliver a lethal knock into another's mid drift. She feels a thud ram into her back, spins around, uses her right foot to connect square onto the face of her third attacker.

They are not done with her. Quickly regrouping, they come on the offensive again. Aleska figures it's time to end the party and whips out her pistol. She is on her knees and fires three accurate and fatal shots. She looks around as she catches her breath. Scott is entangled with one of the men, but he looks in control. Chris is doing battle with another. She does a rapid scan and counts five dead bodies. Her eyes search for Stone; sees him trading blows with two men. Aleska smiles. Her Commander has a lot of pent up rage and a score to settle. She sees Stone pummel the men with his fists and boot.

There were more gun shots, then an eerie silence. Aleska rises to her feet, her weapon in the ready between her hands. She looks around. All her men are still standing. Stone has been robbed of his pleasure of beating his attackers to pulp. Aleska walks cautiously to where Nazario is lying on the ground. She kicks his weapon far away.

'I'm bleeding!' He screams, panic stricken.

'Hold your fire,' Aleska instructs her men. She cautiously pushes Nazario onto his stomach. He grunts with pain. She frisks him; finds him clean.

'I need a doctor,' Nazario growls like a wounded animal.

Aleska ignores him. She rushes over to where Stone is standing.

Stone's eyes rake over her. 'I don't always agree with the methods Spetsnaz employs, but I cannot argue with its propensity to achieve results.' His tone is emotional, appreciative, edged with irony.

She wraps her arms around him and for once, she is indifferent to the rest of her team watching. She boldly kisses her man.

'I love you,' she whispers in his ear.

'And I love you,' he whispers back. 'But why don't you ever follow instructions?' Stone breathes against her lips.

She blinks slowly. His eyes were drawn to the arc of her long lashes, sexily sweeping down over her eyes.

'You said, "don't kill him." I didn't,' she murmurs, her arms still tightly wrapped around him.

'You shot both his knees. He can die from blood loss.'

She smiles. 'He won't. I know he is on Britain's High Value Target List. As our window is rapidly closing, l aim to deliver him to London alive.' She drops her arms when she hears their men shuffling about.

'Good work. Thank you,' she nods to the men.

They brim with pride and bask luxuriously in her praise. Each of them lay down the cache of arms and ammunition they have gathered, belonging to Nazario and his gang.

'They have some state of the art weapons,' Harris murmurs. 'They could have blown us to smithereens!'

Stone and Aleska inspect the hoard of weapons. Each saying a silent prayer that Nazario was captured before he had the opportunity to unleash his weaponry on them. Aleska testingly lays her palm on the surface to air missile. She knew of its powerful range; capable of shooting an aircraft up to an altitude of 10 000 feet. Back in Russia, they possess BUK advanced weapons systems like this in the Spetsnaz arsenal at their Command and Control centre. Aleska had tested them in a remote desert region, during her training.

'Yeah. It works to devastating effect,' she says quietly.

'I remember,' Stones adds, with a rueful smile, 'that time in Serbia when we were doing our reconnaissance training, and you were meant to link with our jet for aerial refuelling; and you deliberately veered your aircraft away because my pilot was making crude comments about a missionary position with you.'

She looks away, vividly remembering that ghastly incident and she recollects more clearly that Stone had been sitting next to the pilot, and had not participated in the frivolous bantering with his colleague.

Incensed by that pilot's tasteless comment, Aleska had fearlessly veered off course; angrily turning head on, towards that pilot. The first thing she had noticed was Stone had not found any humour in his pilot's banter. The second thing she had noticed was that, that pilot had gone white as a sheet, thinking she was going to blast him out of the air. The advanced weapon system she had been carrying had enough firepower to blow up the aircraft she was facing, but she had merely changed course and returned to base.

Stone remembers that moment all too clearly. When he had looked into her angry eyes, glacial as they had been, he knew deep in his heart, she would never take an innocent life and he had not been wrong. Nazario's contemptuous voice brings them back to reality

'Lovebirds. How interesting,' he snickers. 'I should have killed her,' he goads.

Stone calmly and wisely ignores him. One on one. Nazario has no chance in hell against his Aleska

'Argh,' Nazario yelps as Aleska's boot kicks him onto his back.

'Radio for back- up, to pick up this mess' she instructs Scott, pointing to the dead bodies. 'Captain Chris, get your chopper ready. This one is leaving tonight, to London,' her eyes stay focused on Nazario.

'I need medical attention first,' there is defeat in his eyes, helplessness in his voice.

'A surgical unit will stabilize you enroute to London,' Stone announces, 'along with six armed men to restrain you and ensure you stay alive to have your day in court.'

'I think you should call Captain Jane,' Aleska smiles up at Stone as she tucks her arm through his. 'She is wondering why the Colonel is ignoring her calls.'

'I was otherwise tied up,' Stones grins.

Aleska laughs, affectionately leaning closer to Stone.

'Thank you Major,' Stone presses his lips to hers.

'Only a pleasure Colonel,' she grins.

'Let's get the hell out of Brazil, tonight.'

'No!' Aleska stops walking. 'I still have to take you to the Canopy Walkway.'

Stone smiles. 'It's a date.' He cups her face, before pressing his lips to hers.

'I think, we all deserve the day of tomorrow,' Aleska suggests.

Stone laughs. 'Mission complete. Why not?'

They head back to base together with their injured prisoner. Nazario is fainting in and out of consciousness, but every time his eyes open, he is swearing a litany of foul abuse at Aleska, insulting her most colourfully. She is unfazed and calmly refuses to waste any energy on him.

'Major Maric how do you remain so calm when he is insulting you?' Jane asks and shivers involuntarily.

Aleska breathes heavily. 'I read this wise saying once. "Insults only destroy the validity of one's argument," she shrugs indifferently at Nazario's verbal abuse.

'You are amazing,' Jane compliments her, 'and I can't wait to go on our Canopy Walk tomorrow.'

The next morning, most of the men in the squad are keen to indulge in some white river rafting on the way to Canopy Walkway. The white waters are extremely dangerous, and most of the rapids channel through the steep valley walls making portaging in a raft near impossible but the men are not deterred.

The mighty Amazon makes great sweeping turns and bends, like a coiled snake that continues all the way to the Atlantic. It is a humid day, as they set out to the river. Their clothes stick to their bodies from the stifling heat. In the forest the sky scraping trees provide sufficient shade, but out on the river, the sun is less kind. There is potential danger of piranhas in the water, the soldiers are unfazed, but Stone has his reservations. He wants to suggest to Aleska to float the kayaks downstream, while they walked alongside the river until they passed the powerful rapids, but this fearless lady will probably laugh at him. Stone questions the safety aspect!

'We will be fine,' Aleska smiles. Although negotiating the rapids will be challenging, they are all expert swimmers, SAS soldiers and all, famously skilled to operate in all types of terrains.
'Perhaps we should take the less dangerous route and navigate through the forest?' Stone suggests.
Aleska laughs. 'And disappoint the men!'

'I've heard of people getting sucked underwater and are never seen again in these destructive rapids,' Stone stalls. 'One needs precision in navigating these rapids.'
'And I know you are more than capable Stone,' she playfully ruffles his hair. 'Now secure your paddle to your kayak,' she instructs.
'Why?' he remonstrates.
'Just do it,' Aleska instructs.

The power and size of the rapids look daunting, but Aleska is skilful and so is Stone. The rest of the team zealously hop into their rafts without hesitation and begin their excursion. Stone casts a furtive glance at the forceful flow of the river and reluctantly sets his kayak into motion down the river. The large pools funnel into smaller sections creating the perilous rapids which Aleska is unperturbed by. The mighty river drags the kayak in all different directions. Every bump and scrape commands Stone's ardent concentration. The powerful undertow grips the kayak, forcefully hauling it down stream, sideways towards the ferocious rapids. Stone hears a daunting roar a little further down the tumultuous white waters and prepares himself.

Aleska is attuned to her situation. She keeps her focus, directing her paddle and rudder to manoeuvre through the rising white waters. She glances once over her shoulder. Stone quickly relaxes his features to display an outward calm he is not feeling. Aleska wants to manoeuvre away from a tricky rapid up front. She points to her left, indicating he should follow.
' Hurry!' she screams when Stone takes his own sweet time to change direction.

Too late. He goes bang against the submerged rock Aleska was avoiding. The impact catches him off guard, his kayak capsizes, becomes immersed under the rapid. Stone instinctively reaches out to grip onto the paddle. He feels relief as the paddle leash tightens. Coughing and spurting he pulls himself over his kayak. Aleska stops adjacent to the rapid against a rock. She laughs when Stone's head pops up. He looks like a drowned rat clinging onto a piece of wood.

She looks beautiful and regal with her arms folded perched on her kayak. But Stone scowls angrily, not directing his anger at her but, at the conniving river that had mercilessly dismounted him from his boat. He floats on the hull of his capsized kayak until he gets to her, using her kayak as anchor.
'Something amusing you?' he growls.
'Now you understand the lesson of tying your paddle to your boat,' she grins.
The scowl just gets broader as he remains silent.
'Lucky for you, you won't need to hike or swim back to base camp,' she teases.

'Colonel, you okay?' One of the guys shouts out.

Stone raises his thumb, assuring them he's fine, but mumbles gruffly to Aleska.

'Let's get moving,' he jerks his kayak away towards the more gentle waters downstream.
'Yes Colonel,' she clowns, finding his pouting face adorable.

Stone does not feel like conversation. He focuses on the resplendent surroundings and the indigenous sounds of the jungle. It is an intricate maze of plants; that rise high into the sky. With an abundance of water and soil nutrition, the gigantic trees surged upwards reaching for the sun's rays. The vegetation is dense. It creates a thick wall of green leaves and wide trunks. Some of the bends in the river cut into the jungle walls, leaving the trees to hang over the water's edge. Stone identifies the Parakeets that squawk, and the buzz of noisy cicadas over the other birds.

After a few hours of hard paddling, Aleska motions to Stone that they are going to stop at an accessible bank they were approaching. He nods and follows Aleska as she disembarks. She stretches tiredly and flexes her aching fingers. Stone secures his raft tightly around one of the trees and does the same with Aleska's.

They await the rest of the team, to join them. Stone is standing tall, shoulders broadly bunched, hands on hips, scanning the area, when he feels Aleska's hands circle around his waist.
'You still angry?' She murmurs from behind him.
'You laughed at me!' He accuses gruffly.
'Stone---,' she chuckles, and comes around to face him. 'I wish you could have seen how adorable you looked all wet, like a ... drenched rat.' Her deeply accented voice is like musical notes to his ears.
'That's not funny,' he narrows his eyes, but he is distracted by her sensuous fingers entangling in his hair, wet from when he capsized not so delicately into the mighty Amazon.

'No,' she whispers, her eyes lock with is, her mouth drawing closer to his.
She sighs. Her eyes are half closed when a loud piercing scream disturbs them. Aleska reacts instantly and sprints in the direction of the cry with Stone right behind her. She finds Jane ankle deep at the water's edge.
'Captain Jane?' Aleska finds her white as a sheet, frozen in a semi squatting position.

'Sn---sna- sn-a-ke!' she whispers.
Aleska answers in a calm, soothing voice, moving her feet ever so cautiously towards Jane. 'Stay calm. Don't move an inch!'
'Help-- help me please.'
' It's okay,' Aleska reassures her. 'I'm right here.' She gingerly wades into the water next to Jane, and takes a hold of the frightened soldier's hand.
Aleska looks down and sees a slithering reptile wriggling between Jane's feet. It's about the length of her slender arm.

'Just stay calm,' Aleska whispers. She identifies the distinct pattern of a juvenile anaconda. Gently, Aleska pushes it away with her foot and the little snake goes sliding downstream. Jane spins around like lightning and goes flying into Stone's arms, hiding her face in the crook of his shoulder. Stone's arms instinctively wrap around her, to comfort the traumatised Jane.
Just at that moment, Scott and the rest of the troops come racing towards them. 'What happened?' Scott asks with concern.

'Sna-sna-sna.'
' Snake?' Scott chuckles softly.
'Yes,' Jane nods hysterically.
'Aw --come on Jane. This is a jungle. There will be snakes,' Scott teases.
' It --was -- an ---an --- anaconda.'

'You're safe now,' Stone murmurs uncomfortably.

Aleska grins at Stone looking rather awkward, trying to pacify the startled Jane. The troops rally around Jane, forming a hedge of protection around her as they continue towards the Canopy Walkway. 'We're here guys,' she points skywards. 'Now we begin our eagerly anticipated accent towards the heavens.'

            -end chapter 16-