Taeho surveyed the scene outside the window.
The road leading to Kinshasa was a main highway. Under normal circumstances, trucks and passenger cars should have been coming and going.
But right now, there was nothing.
"But Director, the road looks different from when we first came............."
The moment Gihwan tried to speak.
Bang!
A gunshot tore through the air.
"Get down!"
Taeho pressed down on the bewildered Gihwan's head. A bullet mark dented the vehicle's front windshield.
Crack!
The bulletproof glass spiderwebbed with cracks. But it didn't shatter.
"Argh! What the hell?"
The driver screamed.
Taeho quickly surveyed their surroundings.
"Rema!"
-It's an ambush!
Forest on the left side of the road. A gun barrel glinted from behind a tree.
Forest on the right. Another gun barrel.
Rema quickly calculated the trajectories of the incoming bullets.
"Fifty meters ahead! Both sides of the forest!"
The moment Taeho shouted, the UN escort team reacted.
Two soldiers jumped out of the lead vehicle and hid behind trees.
Rat-tat-tat! Rat-tat-tat!
Return fire began. But the enemy outnumbered them. Armed mercenaries appeared from both sides of the road.
They wore black tactical gear and wielded AK-47s.
Through Rema, they had detected a total of eight hostiles.
A thought flashed through Taeho's mind.
'They were waiting in advance. That means they knew our movement route.'
"Reverse! Reverse!"
The driver slammed the brakes and shifted into reverse.
But gunfire also erupted from behind.
Bang! Bang!
-There's an ambush in the rear as well.
Rema's voice. They were blocked front and back.
"Gihwan, bring the sample box!"
"Yes, sir!"
Gihwan unfastened the bulletproof case secured in the back seat and pushed it forward.
Taeho opened the case and checked the interior.
Cooling system operating normally. Temperature maintained at minus 80 degrees. All forty-seven samples safe.
"Rema, check this vehicle's bulletproof rating!"
-Vehicle panels equivalent to NIJ Level III. Front glass is B6-grade multi-laminate. Risk of breach if hit repeatedly at the same point.
Taeho looked at the front windshield. It had already taken five rounds. The cracks were growing larger.
"We're out of time."
The UN escort team continued returning fire, but the mercenaries' firepower was superior.
Then a mercenary standing on the right front appeared with a long tube slung over his shoulder.
"What's that?"
-RPG. It's an anti-tank rocket launcher.
"Damn it!"
Taeho quickly moved to the passenger seat.
"Get off the road! Into the woods!"
"But there's no road?!"
"Now!"
Taeho grabbed the steering wheel and forcibly turned it.
Screech—
The vehicle swerved sharply onto an unpaved road. The wheels dug into the dirt and slipped.
At that moment, the RPG flew.
But the car had already left the road.
The rocket missed and struck the vehicle behind them.
BOOM!!!
A massive pillar of flame erupted with the explosion.
The shockwave rocked the vehicle.
"Uwoh!"
Gihwan screamed.
Taeho looked back.
The UN escort team's vehicle was engulfed in flames. Black smoke billowed into the sky.
"Damn it............."
It was the vehicle carrying four escort team members. Fortunately, the escort team seemed to have bailed out before then.
"Keep going! If we stop, we're dead!"
Taeho urged the driver.
The vehicle turned onto a forest path. Trees and bushes scraped against the body.
Screech! Screech!
Gunfire continued from behind. The mercenaries were chasing them.
"Is there a way out?"
The driver asked.
Taeho whispered.
"Rema, find a path through this forest."
-Searching................
-Found. 1.2 kilometers to the north. There's an old logging road.
"Head north!"
When Taeho shouted, the driver urgently turned the wheel.
The vehicle broke through the underbrush. It sped between the dense trees.
Gunfire could still be heard from behind. The mercenaries were chasing in vehicles.
"Director! Over there!"
Gihwan pointed ahead.
A logging road was visible fifty meters ahead. It was narrow, but enough to escape through.
"That way!"
The vehicle accelerated.
Then.
Rat-tat-tat!
Concentrated fire poured from behind.
The rear window shattered.
"Urgh!"
Gihwan screamed.
"Gihwan!"
Taeho looked back. Gihwan was clutching his shoulder. Blood seeped between his fingers.
Taeho quickly moved to the back and said,
"Let's get your shirt off."
His voice was calm, but his hands were already opening the emergency kit.
Gihwan unbuttoned his shirt with his left hand. His right arm wouldn't move. Taeho pulled the shirt down below his shoulder.
It was a through-and-through wound.
The bullet had pierced through the outer deltoid muscle of his shoulder. The entry wound was only coin-sized, but the exit was larger. Blood spurted in rhythm with his pulse.
'Near the axillary artery.'
Taeho assessed immediately. The axillary artery, branching from the subclavian artery, passed through the shoulder. Diameter six to eight millimeters. If damaged, it would bleed at five hundred milliliters per minute.
"I'm taking out the emergency pad."
"Director, I....."
"Don't talk. Save your strength."
Taeho took out sterile gauze and pressed it to the wound. The gauze instantly turned red. He left it in place and layered hemostatic gauze on top.
The kaolin in Combat Gauze promoted blood clotting. It was a hemostatic agent used on the battlefield.
"Ugh......."
Gihwan stifled a groan.
Taeho clenched his molars and pushed the gauze deep into the wound. He had to apply direct pressure to the bleeding source.
"Just hold on a little longer."
Taeho's voice was calm to the point of coldness. He held the gauze with one hand and pulled out a pressure bandage with the other. The Israeli Bandage was tactical equipment integrating a pressure pad and an elastic bandage.
The car took a sharp curve. Taeho's body swayed, but his hands didn't move an inch. He wrapped the bandage around the shoulder and positioned the pressure pad precisely over the wound.
"Take a deep breath."
Gihwan inhaled.
At that moment, Taeho pulled the bandage tight.
Gihwan's face contorted.
The bandage crossed over the shoulder and looped below the armpit. Taeho wrapped it once more and secured it tightly with the fastening clip.
"Try moving your arm."
Gihwan tried to raise his right hand. His fingers trembled, but they moved.
"Fortunately, the nerves are fine."
Taeho said. He placed his fingers on Gihwan's wrist. The pulse was beating. Fast, but regular.
"Radial pulse is normal. The artery wasn't hit."
Taeho pressed on the pressure bandage once more to check. Blood was no longer seeping out.
"Can you hold out until we reach the hospital?"
Gihwan nodded.
"Yes, Director. What about the samples?"
"Don't worry. They're safe."
Taeho checked the sample case.
The case was made of bulletproof material.
Internal temperature normal. All samples safe.
"Worry about your body before the samples."
Taeho returned to the front seat.
The vehicle raced along the logging road. It sped down the bumpy path at a speed that could induce motion sickness.
Gunfire could no longer be heard from behind.
They seemed to have shaken off the mercenaries.
"Stop."
"Huh?"
"Stop for a moment."
The driver stopped the car.
Taeho got out and surveyed the surroundings.
The forest was quiet. Only birdsong could be heard.
"Rema, any heat signatures nearby?"
-Scanning.
-No human heat signatures within a five-hundred-meter radius.
"Good."
Taeho returned to the vehicle and checked on Gihwan.
"How are you?"
"I'm fine. It hurts, but I can endure it."
Gihwan forced a smile with his pale face.
"You've lost about five hundred cc's of blood. Fortunately, it doesn't seem life-threatening."
Taeho took Gihwan's pulse.
Ninety-two beats per minute. Fast, but stable.
"When we get to Kinshasa, we'll go straight to the hospital. You need proper treatment."
"Yes."
Taeho asked the driver.
"How long until we reach Kinshasa from here?"
"Our current location is............. Why the hell is this GPS acting up? They must be using some kind of jamming device."
The driver was flustered. The vehicle's GPS was dead.
"Rema, confirm current location."
-Confirmation complete. Eighty-seven kilometers to the nearest hospital in Kinshasa city. Estimated time: forty minutes.
"Forty minutes."
Taeho nodded.
"Driver, I'll guide the way. Go slowly. They may have set up another ambush."
"Understood."
The vehicle set off again.
Taeho was organizing the situation in his head.
'Who leaked our location?'
The departure time from Eungil-ri was known only to the WHO, the UN escort team, and some members of the Congolese government.
Yet the mercenaries knew the exact ambush location.
'There's a spy on the inside.'
Taeho asked Rema.
"Rema, what's the likelihood that this vehicle's GPS was tracked?"
-Eighty-seven percent. The mercenaries' ambush position corresponds exactly with our route.
"So that means there's a tracking device on the vehicle?"
-Highly probable.
Taeho said to the driver.
"Stop the car again."
"Huh?"
"We need to find the tracking device."
The vehicle stopped.
Taeho got out and examined the vehicle's exterior.
He searched thoroughly over the bumper, wheels, and undercarriage, but found nothing visible.
"Rema, run a radio wave scan."
-Scanning.............
-Detected. Inside the rear wheel well.
Taeho went to the rear wheel and reached in.
His hand grasped something hard.
It was a GPS tracker.
Taeho removed the black device, no bigger than a fingernail.
"This was it."
Someone had secretly attached it before departure.
Taeho threw the tracker onto the road and crushed it underfoot.
Crunch!
"Let's go!"
The vehicle set off again.
They finally entered Kinshasa city. The hospital building was visible in the distance.
Taeho said.
"We're here."
Gihwan was still pale, but his consciousness was clear.
"Director. You've had a hard time."
"It's not over yet."
The vehicle arrived at the hospital emergency room entrance.
"We're here, Gihwan."
Taeho opened the door and jumped out first.
But when they actually went inside, the ER entrance was completely empty. A single nurse was dozing at the counter.
The ceiling fluorescent light flickered.
"Where's the doctor?"
Taeho asked in French. The nurse rubbed her eyes.
"He's in surgery right now. It'll take about an hour."
Taeho turned around and looked at the car.
Gihwan was trying to get out of the car, clutching his shoulder. His face was pale.
"Is the operating room empty?"
"Yes, but the doctor is................."
"I'm a doctor."
Taeho cut her off. He took out his WHO credentials and held them out over the counter.
"I'm Dr. Kang Taeho, WHO Special Advisor. The patient has a gunshot wound. Open the operating room immediately."
"But the attending doctor................."
Taeho took three one-hundred-dollar bills from his wallet and placed them on the counter.
The nurse's eyes widened as if they would pop out, then she shot up from her seat.
"This way, Doctor!"
The operating room was at the end of the hallway.
Taeho supported Gihwan and went inside. The light above the operating table was on, but the air conditioner seemed to be broken.
"Sit here."
Gihwan sat on the operating table. His breathing was rough.
Taeho went to wash his hands. There was a sink in one corner of the operating room. He rolled up his sleeves and scrubbed his hands with antiseptic soap.
Between his fingers, the backs of his hands, up to his wrists. He washed meticulously.
The nurse brought sterile gloves.
"Doctor, do you need anything else?"
"Lidocaine, saline, sutures, and antibiotics. One gram of ceftriaxone."
Taeho said. The nurse nodded and ran out.
Taeho put on the gloves and approached Gihwan.
"You need to take your shirt off completely."
Gihwan tried to take off his shirt with his left hand, but his right arm wouldn't rise.
Taeho helped him.
The shirt fell to the floor.
The pressure bandage was still wrapped tightly. Blood was no longer seeping out.
"It's going to hurt from now on. Can you endure it?"
"Yes."
Gihwan answered. His voice trembled but was clear.
Taeho began unwrapping the bandage. Slowly and carefully, the gauze was stuck to the wound.
"Take a deep breath."
Gihwan inhaled.
Taeho soaked the gauze with saline. Once it softened, he pulled it off in one go.
"Ugh......"
Gihwan stifled a groan.
He examined the exposed wound carefully once more.
The entry wound was on the outer deltoid, and the exit was below the scapula in the back.
The bullet had passed cleanly through. The bone was uninjured.
'The axillary artery was missed, too.'
Taeho felt inward relief. If a blood vessel had been damaged, Gihwan would be in shock by now.
The nurse brought a tray. Lidocaine, saline, sutures, and syringes were on it.
"I'm going to administer local anesthesia. It'll sting a little."
Taeho drew the lidocaine into a syringe and slowly injected it into the skin around the wound. Once at the entry, once at the exit. Gihwan's shoulder convulsed.
"We need to wait about five minutes now."
Taeho said. He looked at the clock.
Gihwan lay with his eyes closed.
"Director."
"Yes."
"This is my first time getting shot."
Gihwan said in a trembling voice. It was impossible to tell whether from laughter or fear.
"It's also my first time treating a human gunshot wound."
Taeho answered nonchalantly.
Gihwan's eyes snapped open.
"Really?"