The abrupt physics of dying - Paul E. Hardisty

Claymore Straker is trying to forget a violent past. Working as an oil company engineer in the wilds of the Yemen, he is hijacked at gunpoint by Islamic terrorists. Clay has a choice: uncover the cause of a mysterious sickness afflicting the village of Al Urush, close to the company's oil-processing facility, or watch Abdulkader, his driver and close friend, die. As the country descends into civil war and the village children start dying, Clay finds himself caught up in a ruthless struggle between opposing armies.