Anyone seeing Gao Fei shoot for the first time was bound to be shocked, and making a misjudgment because of it was entirely natural.
Shooting in completely unconventional ways was Gao Fei's hallmark—and, naturally, his greatest skill.
Whether Parker was shocked or mystified made no difference to Gao Fei. The man was a captured mercenary; his life and death hung entirely on a whim of Sokholov's.
Nobody gave a damn what Parker felt.
"Are you insane? Suka, you idiot, get down here!"
Sokholov bellowed at Gao Fei. Gao Fei dropped prone first, then slid down into the trench.
It really was dangerous up there. Bullets were whizzing everywhere around him with no telling where they came from. Even though no enemies were visible nearby, the few shots Gao Fei had risked firing from the open ground had already drawn the attention of who knew how many shooters.
Fortunately, they had taken the fortification in very little time; had he stayed out in the open any longer, there was no telling what might have happened.
Though he knew Sokholov was only looking out for him, being cursed out as an idiot still rubbed Gao Fei the wrong way. Having slid into the trench, he said with a helpless look, "Didn't you tell me to suppress the fortification's firing ports?"
"I told you to suppress the firing ports, but did I tell you to leave the trench and shoot from up top? You dumbass! What was wrong with staying behind me and firing when we drew the enemy's fire?"
"What? What are you talking about? You drawing fire to make an opening for me? You'd get killed!"
If a prisoner like Parker died, so be it, but having Sokholov and Samir Bek out front taking bullets just to give him a chance to shoot—Gao Fei felt that was far worse than climbing out of the trench to take the shots himself.
"Agh, you moron! You're our core firepower! All our tactics are supposed to revolve around you! You're the tactical core—if you die, how the hell are we supposed to fight?"
"You never told me that."
"Do I even have to say it?!"
Sokholov flew into a rage. Grabbing Gao Fei by his uniform, he roared, "Don't you ever do that again! Or I'll shoot... Fuck! Those blue berets are all idiots! How the hell did they train you? Fuck!"
After venting a few more curses, Sokholov huffed off to the side, snatched up his walkie-talkie, and barked into it, "1st Squad calling! Acknowledge if you read me! We have completed our objective and are awaiting further orders! Over!"
Sokholov had to report the tactical situation, and anyone who heard could respond—company command, the platoon leader, either worked. His mission was complete anyway, and all that remained was to wait for his superiors to decide how to proceed.
While Sokholov tried to reach higher command, Parker stared straight at Gao Fei.
Gao Fei did not like Parker's look one bit; it made him feel like prey being sized up.
"What are you looking at?"
Gao Fei was hardly known for having a gentle temper. It was one thing if it were anyone else, but Parker was a captive—what right did he have to eye him like a hunter sizing up prey?
Parker's eyes burned with intensity. Leaving the bunker, he walked toward Gao Fei and said with a cocky air, "You're a damn good shot."
Gao Fei looked Parker up and down.
Parker hadn't set his rifle down; it was slung directly over his shoulder.
As he stared fixedly at Gao Fei, his right hand remained resting on the grip, ready to raise and fire at any second.
Just moments ago he had been tiptoeing around, begging for his life, so why had he suddenly lost all sense of propriety? Gao Fei couldn't fathom what was wrong with Parker, but he decided that if Parker stepped out of line, he would teach him exactly how a prisoner of war ought to behave.
"Put the gun down. Squat. Hands behind your head."
Parker obediently set the rifle aside and put his hands on his head to squat, but instead of keeping his head down, he looked up at Gao Fei and continued, "You suppressed those barrier troops with just a rifle, didn't you?"
His attitude was still cooperative enough, perfectly obedient.
Gao Fei had no idea what Parker was getting at. Frowning, he replied, "Yeah."
"Whoa!"
Parker let out an exclamation of awe. His eyes gleamed with excitement as he asked, "You suppressed the barrier troops' fire with just a rifle? Just one single rifle?"
"What's your point? Say what you have to say and cut the crap."
Parker looked at Gao Fei, astonished. "Crap? Uh, sorry, I'm just blown away. But man, there were eight guys in that bunker! They were barrier troops! Barrier troops might be utter bastards, but they sure as hell aren't useless. Only battle-hardened, ruthless veterans get picked for the barrier troops."
"So what?"
"You suppressed eight of them with a single rifle! I thought it was completely empty in there."
"So what?"
Parker stared at Gao Fei in bewilderment. After freezing in disbelief for a long moment, he finally said, "Nothing, really, but I've been in this business for over a decade and I've never seen anything like it. Brother, you're a mercenary too, right? You're definitely with Wagner Group, no question about that. So how much money do you make?"
Now he was talking about money. Caught off guard, Gao Fei asked, "Why do you care?"
"I'm just curious. The last time I ever heard of something like this... that was a long time ago. I've never seen a marksman like you. Are you a sniper? Your pay's got to be crazy high, right? Do you get paid per mission or monthly? Your monthly pay has to be at least fifty grand, right?"
Sokholov snapped, "Do you have a death wish?"
Parker snapped his mouth shut. Stunned for a moment, he lowered his voice. "Sorry, my bad. It's just... you know, when you run into someone this incredible, you just have to chat a bit more."
Sokholov glared daggers at Parker. "If you don't want to die, shut your mouth!"
With that, Sokholov raised his walkie-talkie again and yelled, "Acknowledge if you read me! Respond! Fuck! This damn walkie-talkie lost signal again!"
Parker piped up without hesitation, "It's definitely broadband jamming. Anti-drone systems can mess with your comms too. Sir, don't be mad. The mission's finished anyway, and past this point is the enemy's reserve position—that's not our job. Just wait for higher-ups to respond; waiting isn't a bad thing."
Sokholov stared at him in utter disbelief. "'Our'? Who's 'our'? Get your facts straight. You're a POW. Don't you know we don't take prisoners in situations like this?"
Parker replied immediately, "It can be 'our'! I've got several friends in Wagner. Man, I'm a mercenary. It's not like I'm fighting for Ukraine's sake. I can join Wagner! Aren't we already fighting side by side right now? Sir, please, tell me, this guy..."
Looking back at Gao Fei, Parker said with naked curiosity, "Please just tell me how he pulled that off, okay? I'm curious. It's killing me—not knowing the answer is driving me crazy!"
Sokholov glanced at Gao Fei, then looked back at Parker before saying abruptly, "He's just a good shot, that's all. Listen, seeing as you've got some sense, I didn't plan on putting a bullet in you right away. But if you keep running your mouth like this, I really will have to kill you."
Parker clamped his mouth shut.
Sokholov raised the walkie-talkie once more and shouted, "Calling, calling! Acknowledge if you read me!"
There was still no reply on the other end. Sokholov paced a couple of steps in agitation. Parker spoke up again, treading carefully: "Sir, this is a major transit route. I think we ought to set up a defense first, just in case routed enemy troops come in from other directions."
The suggestion made sense. Without knowing whether they were to keep attacking, setting up a defense as quickly as possible was their best course of action.
Too preoccupied to waste more breath on Parker, Sokholov stepped aside and began arranging a defensive line.
The second Sokholov stepped away, Parker turned straight back to Gao Fei. "Man, you're incredible. Can you tell me how much you make a month out here? Is it fifty grand?"
Gao Fei looked at Parker without a word.
"Not fifty grand? Then surely thirty grand? Twenty?"
Taking in Gao Fei's expression, Parker drew in a sharp breath. "Ten grand? It can't be less than ten grand, can it? Fuck, Wagner isn't that stingy. They're willing to pay top dollar for real talent. Man, you didn't get ripped off, did you?"
Chapter 38