by Orion Gaudio
“We thinking container ship?”
“Yeah.”
“Alright. I was told you have access to a boat?”
“Correct.”
“I’m thinking we spot Zhi, I get on the ship, get the flash drive and bail into the bay. You come pick me up.”
“That should work,” Rollins said.
Turner looked out the window as they merged onto the highway. He didn’t like relying on help from other agencies, it always got messy. Sometimes they didn’t have a choice, though. He hoped everything would go according to plan and he’d be on a flight back to Pittsburgh first thing in the morning. The problem, though, was that things rarely went as they drew them up.
Rollins turned off the highway and pulled into the parking lot of a rundown motel. They got out of the car and headed into the room. Two small beds, both sagging in the middle. Not a place he’d like to spend the night. On one of the beds was a black trunk.
“Is that for me?” Turner asked.
“Yeah, I got everything they requested.”
Turner walked over and flipped the top open. Inside was a 9mm Glock, two extra magazines already loaded, a shoulder holster, a seven-inch fixed blade combat knife, and a dry bag.
“Alright, this should work.”
Turner picked up the Glock and turned it over in his hand. He ejected the magazine to make sure it was loaded and he aimed it at the wall. His hand started to shake almost instantly. Turner put it back into the trunk.
“Good?” Rollins asked.
“Yeah, I think so.”
Turner lifted his suitcase onto the bed and unzipped it. Inside was an outfit for the following day for him to fly in and a tactical outfit for the mission in case his suit wasn’t practical.
Rollins took his phone out of his pocket and headed for the door.
“Gotta make a call, I’ll be right back.”
Turner nodded and took his outfit out of his suitcase. A long-sleeved wool sweater, black polyester pants, and matching black sneakers. He got changed and swung his arms and legs around to make sure the fabric would have enough give. As always, Rene had come through for him. The fit of all the clothes was perfect and his mobility wasn’t hampered one bit.
He secured the combat knife to his belt and pulled it out to test how easily it would release from the sheath. No problem there. Turner strapped on the shoulder holster for the Glock and snapped the button to secure it.
If he was being honest with himself, he wasn’t sure he’d even be able to make a clean shot if it came down to that. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It would be easy to get himself killed on a mission with so much uncertainty, so he needed to be focused and ready for anything.
Rollins came back in the room and sat down on the empty bed.
“You ready?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“I was just checking in on the status of Zhi. The cars are starting to get near the city limits. We should get going.”
He zipped up his suitcase and grabbed the dry bag out of the trunk before shutting the lid. He put the bag into his back pocket and zipped it closed. That was something he might need later if he bailed off the ship after getting the flash drive.
They walked outside and got in the car. Rollins started the engine and backed out of the parking spot.
“You have a plan for the boat?” Turner asked.
“Once we identify which ship Zhi is on, I’ll get the boat while you sneak on board. I’ll hang back and then you can signal me from the stern. Then I pull up to the ship and you make your way down to me. Should be simple enough.”
“Fine.”
The plan was sound, but Turner was still hesitant—he was the one putting his life in danger while Rollins was just there to get him out after the retrieval. There was some risk to that. Turner wasn’t completely jaded, but Rollins task was nothing compared to infiltrating the ship and taking the flash drive off Zhi.
Turner took the Glock out and checked the magazine a second time. He would have liked a chance to discharge the pistol, just to get the feel for that particular one. They were all fundamentally the same, but he didn’t really like the idea of trusting someone he’d never met to provide him with a firearm that his life could depend on working without issue.
“You might want to put that away… we’re almost there.”
Turner nodded and put it back into the holster. Rollins turned off the highway and headed for the main entrance to the Port of Oakland. It was late enough that there wasn’t much activity. Turner wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not… it depended on how Rollins was planning to get them past the security guard who had just stepped out of his shack.
Rollins rolled down his window as the guard stepped up to the car.
“Evening. Where you headed?”
“We need to check on a shipment… make sure that it’s been loaded,” Rollins said.
“Just need to see your paperwork.”
Rollins reached down and pulled a folded piece of paper out of the storage cubby in front of the shifter. He passed it to the guard, who held up his flashlight and scanned over the document for a few seconds. Seemingly satisfied, he folded it back up and handed it to Rollins.
“Have a good evening, gentlemen.”
Rollins rolled up the window and pulled through once the gate opened.
“That seemed easy enough,” Turner said.
“The power of the United States government.”
Turner chuckled and shook his head. NIA was considered a black ops organization, so they didn’t get to throw their weight around like other more public organizations could. It meant that Turner couldn’t just show a piece of paper and get into somewhere, unless it was forged. It did allow him and his fellow agents to operate in a much grayer area, which allowed him to actually do his job. He wasn’t sure, but he guessed the CIA was who wanted the flash drive recovered, but they couldn’t sanction this type of operation. The entirety of their involvement was having Rollins here to assist, and even then Turner assumed he was on a more sanctioned mission somewhere in the area and they had unofficially asked him to do this. It could get sticky, which was why Turner was there and why he was going solo to retrieve the flash drive.
Rollins pulled the car into a small lot behind an empty building and they got out.
“You armed?” Turner asked.
Rollins patted his left side.
“Never go anywhere without it. Why?”
“Just making sure.”
“Just so you know… I’m officially not here.”
“I figured.”
“So… yeah… I can’t exactly go firing rounds off if you get yourself into trouble.”
Turner shook his head.
“You couldn’t get a hold of another Glock for yourself?”
“Hey, man, I know it’s not ideal… but I shouldn’t even be here in the first place. I’m doing this a favor, so cut me some slack. It was already hard enough for me to get one and file the serial number off in such short notice. You guys didn’t exactly give me a lot of lead time.”
“Right… sorry.”
Rollins shook his head and started walking. Turner took a deep breath and followed him. He had started to feel they were wildly underprepared for the mission, but there was no turning back—Howard had made it very clear that he was to do everything in his power to get back that flash drive.
Turner caught up to Rollins as he reached a stack of shipping containers.
“What are you thinking?” Turner asked.
“We should get on top of these… and watch them from here.”
Turner looked around the side. They were close to the water and he could see several container ships. It wasn’t ideal. He’d prefer to be higher up, but it would work in a pinch.
“Fine.”
Turner dragged a stack of wooden pallets up to the edge of the container. He went up first. Turner jumped and grabbed the top of the shipping container and pulled himself up. He got down on his
knee and reached down to pull Rollins up.
“Thanks,” Rollins said.
They got down on their stomachs and waited. Rollins pulled his phone out his pocket a few seconds later.
“They’re arriving at the same gate we just passed through.”
“Good.”
Turner could feel his heart rate picking up. He was anxious to get the mission over with and the hardest part was about to begin. Car headlights illuminated the surrounding area. Turner pushed himself as flat as possible. All seven cars pulled up and stopped. He just had to wait and spot Zhi as he got out… and then follow him onto whatever ship he boarded. The cars started moving again.
“What are they doing?” Turner asked.
“No idea.”
“You think they saw us?”
“No chance.”
Turner held his breath and watched the cars. One by one they stopped in front of shipping containers. Two passengers got out of each one and opened the doors to the containers.
“Shit.”
They watched as the cars pulled into the shipping containers. Each driver got out and stood back as the doors of the shipping containers were closed. He scanned the men and counted them. There were three near each container.
“Zhi didn’t get out of the car,” Turner said.
“You think he isn’t here?”
Turner bit his lip as he tried to figure out what the Chinese men were doing.
“No, he’s here.”
“OK… but how the hell do figure out which container he’s in?”
Before he could answer, seven mobile cranes drove up to the containers. Turner knew he was running out of time. He had to figure out which one Zhi was in, or the flash drive would be lost forever.
He could only think of one way to pull it off… and he didn’t like it one bit. Turner pulled the Glock out of his holster and handed it to Rollins.
“What do you expect me to do with this?”
“I’m going to climb down. I want you to fire off a few rounds at one of the containers.”
“What?”
“Trust me,” Turner said. “Just give me thirty seconds.”
“And then what?”
“I’ll take care of the rest. You get out of here and go get the boat.”
“How am I going to know which ship you get on?”
“I’ll send you a signal.”
“How?”
“I’m not sure. I haven’t gotten that far yet.”
“This is crazy. No way it’s going to work.”
“It’s the only option we have.”
He pushed himself back to the edge of the container and dropped to the ground. Turner ran to the next stack of containers and peeked around the corner. He could see all seven containers and the men standing around them as the cranes started to lift them. The mobile cranes started moving.
“OK… Rollins… do it.”
He waited and looked back at the container where they had been watching from. He could just see the outline of Rollins against the night sky.
Pop. Pop.
Rollins fired two shots at the container in the middle. Turner kept his eyes locked on the men gathered around the cranes. They sprung into action and one of them started shouting commands in Mandarin. Half the men ran toward the container closest to him and the rest started to fan out with weapons raised.
Turner glanced back at the container, but he couldn’t see Rollins anymore. He hoped he would make it out and to the boat. Otherwise, Turner would be in for a rude awakening assuming he could recover the flash drive.
A group of ten of the men ran under the container as it moved toward the ship in the middle of the port. They had slipped up and done exactly what Turner hoped they would. He assumed they had been tasked with protecting Zhi no matter what, so the shots fired by Rollins had spooked them… and they had reacted by going to protect the container that Zhi was inside of. Now all he had to do was wait until it was on the ship and sneak aboard. Turner knew it wouldn’t be easy, especially since they were concentrated around one container… but it was the only plan he could come up with in that moment.
13
The mobile crane slowly made its way to the ship and loaded the container. The men guarding it had stayed with it the entire time.
Turner stuck his head out and looked for the other men. They had come back without Rollins in tow, so he assumed that meant he got away, and were gathered around the one who had barked out the orders to find the shooter.
He backed away from the container and looped toward the end of the dock. There was enough light in the area that he didn’t want to get spotted. He knew they were already on high alert and if they saw him it would make his job nearly impossible.
It took a few minutes, but he made it to the stern of the ship that Zhi had boarded. The ship was still tied up with four large ropes. He looked around to make sure he was alone. Turner wrapped his arms and legs around the closest rope and swung out over the water. He hung upside down and shimmied his way up the rope to the ship.
He looked down just as he reached the top. The water under him had started to churn. Turner reached up and pulled himself onto the deck just below where the containers were stored. He assumed Zhi was out of the container already and that’s where his crew would be taking him.
Footsteps reverberated off the metal floor. Turner pushed open the closest door and ducked inside. He heard a faint clicking that sounded like a lighter. A few seconds later he cracked the door. One of the ship’s crew was standing just a few feet away and puffing on a cigarette. He closed the door as quietly as possible and looked around. It was a storage room of some kind with nothing but a few boxes and lengths of rope. He sat down on one of the boxes and took his knife out of the sheath.
Leaving his gun with Rollins wasn’t ideal, but he’d lost confidence in his ability to shoot… so he wasn’t sure it mattered that much. Dealing with a few guys would have been one thing, ten plus Zhi was another story.
There was some commotion outside the door and the ship started to move. Turner shook his head. He got on board just in time. A few minutes later and he would have missed any chance of getting the flash drive.
The door flew open. Standing in front of him was one of Zhi’s men. Turner lunged toward the man as he tried to raise his CF-05 SMG. He was too slow. Turner plunged his knife into his neck. Blood sprayed across the wall as he ripped the knife out, tearing his flesh in the process. The man stumbled backward and grasped at his neck. He dropped his gun as he hit the railing behind him.
Turner ran forward and pushed the man in the chest with all the force he could muster. He toppled over the railing and hit the water a second later.
Turner bent down, picked up the CF-05, and turned it over in his hand. It was the first time he’d actually held one, but he was familiar with the concept of the SMG and its helical magazine design. The gun had a strap, so he swung it over his shoulder and walked toward the hallway where he assumed the man had come from.
He heard someone speaking Mandarin, so he ducked into a room and pressed himself against the wall. Two of the ship’s crew walked by the open door and continued on their way. Once their voices had faded, he stepped back into the hallway and continued his search. The ship was massive and he was running out of time—he wanted to get the flash drive and get off the ship before they were open water.
The rooms he had seen so far were all related to the operation of the ship, so he thought his best shot would be to head for the front of the ship. He assumed that was the most likely place for Zhi to be, but that also meant that’s where the men guarding him would be.
His mind raced as he tried to think of a way to create a diversion significant enough to lure the men away from Zhi. He had to get them far enough away that he’d have time to get the flash drive and make his escape. Then he had to figure out a way to signal Rollins.
“One step at a time,” he said, in a whisper.
He reached what he assumed was the center
of the ship. The rooms on either side of the narrow hallway looked like crew quarters. There were numerous other hallways leading to his right and left, but he wanted to stay centralized in case someone found him and he had to make a break for it.
He heard voices down the hallway to his left and ducked into the room on his right. There was a bunk against the far wall and small desk and stool. He eased the door shut just before the men walking in the hallway reached him. He looked around the room as he waited. There was a refillable lighter, a bottle of lighter fluid, and a pack of cigarettes on the desk.
Turner nodded and picked up the bottle of lighter fluid. He popped open the top and started to spray it all over the bottom bunk. Once the bottle was empty, he tossed it on the bed and grabbed the lighter. The sheets flamed up almost instantly when he tossed the lighter on the bed. Smoke began to fill the room almost immediately.
He ducked down the nearest hallway and waited. Smoke poured into the hallway. Turner heard the sound of footsteps. Three of Zhi’s guards went running by with fire extinguishers in hand. He had to move quickly as he assumed it wouldn’t take them long to get the small fire under control.
Turner slowly moved back to the hallway and made his way from there the men had come. He froze. One of the guards had his back to Turner. He readied his knife and snuck up behind the man. With his left hand, Turner covered his mouth and pulled the knife across the throat of the guard. He struggled for a few seconds, but then dropped to the floor. Turner stepped over his body and pushed open the door he had been guarding.
Zhi was alone in the room and he spun around as the door opened. Turner closed the door and took a step toward Zhi with the bloody knife raised.
“Who the hell are you?”
“Give me the flash drive.”
Turner could see the fear on his face as his eyes flicked around the room. Zhi had boarded the ship with ten armed guards and now his was all alone and unarmed. His eyes darted to the table five feet away from where was standing. On it was a CF-98. Zhi looked back at turner and shook his head.
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“The flash drive. Give it to me.”
