“Casey, it’s Ahmed. Ken said you were out and about.”
“What’s up? You got something?”
“Not sure. Maybe.”
“Tell me you found the other plane.”
“There’s a warehouse a few miles north of you. Company moved out of there a couple years ago. Looks like it was purchased last year but nothing’s ever been done with it.”
“You think we should take a look at it?”
“Maybe. I looked at aerial shots on Google and it doesn’t look like anything’s been done with it, except the pavement behind the building looks smooth. In the front it looks like any other abandoned building. I thought the new pavement looked weird.”
“Send me the address and I’ll swing by.”
“I’d be careful if I were you. It could be nothing, or it could be what we’re looking for.”
“I’ll let you know if we find anything.”
Casey stopped at a restaurant on the way to the hotel and arrived with supper. While they were eating, Casey addressed the group.
“Just got off the phone with Ahmed. There’s a warehouse just north of here he thinks we should check out.”
“Something suspicious about it?” Ken asked.
“Could be. It’s been abandoned for a couple years, but someone bought it a year ago and hasn’t done anything with it.”
He pulled up the aerial photo on his tablet and zoomed in as well as he could.
“Here’s what Ahmed thought was suspicious. Look at the back of the building.”
“Looks like they re-did the pavement back there, but not in the front,” Rachel said, “That’s weird.”
“That’s what Ahmed thought.”
“Whoever bought it could be taking their time fixing it up,” Elijah said.
“Possibly, but Ahmed said it would be worth looking at, and considering tomorrow’s the day, I agree with him.”
“So, when do we go?” Rachel asked.
“We?” said Casey.
“Yes, we. When should we head up there?”
“I was gonna have a look see by myself.”
“You run into trouble, you’re gonna need someone to watch your back.”
“I won’t dispute that. Wait until after dark. We can drive within a couple miles and go in on foot.”
“If we hit the jackpot with this warehouse, what’s the plan?” Ken asked.
“Hit it hard and hope they don’t detonate the thing?” Rachel said.
“Or tip the cops and let them handle it,” Casey said.
“Normally I’d agree with that, but if these guys see cops coming, they could detonate.”
“Same if they see us coming.”
“You guys need to be extremely careful. You get spotted, that’s it,” Ken said.
“We’ll be careful.”
Three hours later Casey and Rachel arrived back at the room and Ken was the first to address them.
“Well, how did it go?”
“Place looks suspicious,” Casey said, “Looks abandoned at first, but there were security cameras and motion detectors around the building.”
“And that new pavement out back, much longer than the building,” Rachel said, “I’m no expert, but it looked long enough for small planes.”
“So, I take it you couldn’t get that close?” Ken asked.
“We didn’t risk it. I dropped a couple of those cameras, figured we could watch the feed.”
“Good thinking. You sure there were motion detectors?”
“Pretty sure. Set up in pairs facing each other, probably lasers. We’d never get close if we tried anything.”
“We can keep an eye on that camera feed. My gut tells me that their operation is going to start there.”
“Another thing. You’re sure they’re going to have a banner towing behind the plane?”
“Makes it easier for them to get to the stadium undetected.”
“When Casey was talking to Mahmoud, the other guy was showing me around and he showed me how they hook up the banners. There wasn’t a set up for that at the warehouse, so even if the plane’s there, he’s still gonna need to fly by their other airstrip to pick up the banner.”
“So, if we see the plane take off from the warehouse, we can assume the bomb’s on board and he’s headed to pick up the banner before going to the ballpark. How far from the airstrip to the ballpark?”
“I drove it a couple times, straight shot down the highway about 40 miles,” Casey said.
“In a Cessna with an extra 80 or 100 pounds on board and towing a banner…probably 20 minutes flight time,” Elijah said.
“Can we catch him with your plane?” Rachel asked.
“Nyangumi isn’t that fast. We might be able to keep up is all,” Ken said.
“How do you figure they’ll trigger the bomb?”
“Probably an altitude detonator. Makes the most sense,” Ken said, “Too many problems with a timer if the pilot’s timing is off. Impact detonation would probably work too, but these things do more damage if they explode before hitting the ground. Set an altitude detonator around 200 feet or so and you do more damage than if it goes off on impact.”
“Wouldn’t it go off right after takeoff?”
“Pilot could arm it after takeoff. Then when he gets back down to the altitude, boom.”
“Earth to Casey,” Rachel said, “You playing games at a time like this?”
She snatched the tablet from his hands to see what he was playing.
“Man, I just managed to take off and now I’m gonna crash again.”
“Crash what? This a flight sim or something?” she said as she showed it to Ken.
Ken looked at the exact replication of a cockpit on the screen for a couple seconds before the crash.
“It crashed. Can you back it up and try again?”
“Sure,” Casey said as he started the sim over and the screen once again showed a cockpit interior.
“That’s a Cessna cockpit,” Ken said.
“Yeah, is it accurate?”
“Exact. Where’d you get this app?”
“It was out there on the app store. Thought it couldn’t hurt if it’s accurate. You never know what we’ll have to do tomorrow.”
“What the hell are you thinking?”
“Just a crazy idea. Hope we come up with something better.”
“Care to fill me in?”
“You still got Avi’s toys in the plane?”
“I believe so…wait a minute…are you thinking what I think you’re thinking?”
“Maybe…crazy idea. Last resort if it comes to that. Desperate times, right?”
“Yeah, crazy…what…who’s calling at this hour?”
“It’s the satellite phone, probably an encrypted call. I’ll get it,” Rachel said.
“Rachel, it’s Jenny. How are things going down there?”
“We think we know how they’re going to carry out the attack. Just going through our options for stopping them.”
“Ahmed found something else. More like a target of opportunity. You think we can spare you and let the boys take care of stopping the bomb?”
“If they’re planning what I think they are, I’d just get in the way.”
“We think we know how they got the bomb from the freighter to Miami. You remember the rich couple who disappeared, the ones who went out on their yacht and were never seen again?”
“Yeah, you think it’s connected?”
“Ahmed found the yacht, or at least one exactly like it. It’s anchored not far off shore. The yacht has a helipad and the Kings had a Sikorsky helicopter. The helicopter doesn’t appear to be with the yacht at the moment. Did you by any chance see one at their hangar?”
“No, but we tried to check out another warehouse they might own and there was pretty tight security. It could be there.”
“Here’s the thing. Ahmed intercepted a phone call from Mahmoud. He’s coming on board tomorrow and wants to get moving right away.”
&
nbsp; “He wants to get away before the bomb goes off.”
“That’s what Ahmed thinks and I agree with him. Mahmoud is one of the planners of this attack and it’s his cousin who’s flying the plane. We already have Khalid and Ansari in our custody. However things go down tomorrow, it would be nice to have Mahmoud as well, preferably alive.”
“How do you suppose we pull that off?”
“There are only a couple people on the yacht right now. If they could be persuaded to bugger off, you could be waiting for Mahmoud. He’s going to fly the helicopter out himself. Secure him and get a couple miles out to sea…”
“Why should I go out to sea?”
“Just in case…”
“Just in case the guys don’t succeed? Not gonna happen. I’m part of this team and I trust them…”
“I trust them too, but if things go badly…”
“You’ll already have Khalid anyway. Tell you what. I’ll go about a mile or two South. That should be far enough and I can get back fast if nothing happens. But how am I supposed to sail the darn boat without a crew?”
“I’ll come with you,” Elijah said.
“You know something about yachts?”
“Been on a few ships.”
“Who you talking to?” Jenny asked.
“Elijah said he knows his way around a ship. He can help me.”
“That only leaves Ken and Casey to stop the bomb.”
“Like I said, they have a plan cooking. We’d best be off. We’ll keep you posted.”
July 11, 6:00 AM
Khalid awoke to a familiar sound, but his mind was still too groggy to make sense of it. He rolled out of the bunk and by the time his feet hit the floor he knew what he was hearing, the steady whump whump whump of an approaching helicopter, getting louder by the second. Tariq Ansari was a little slower to wake up, but he soon heard the sound.
“Is that a helicopter?” he asked Khalid.
“Sounds like it. I didn’t think these folks had one.”
“After the plane they brought us here in, nothing would surprise me. Who are they anyway?”
“I’ve been wondering. They’re well equipped, but I don’t think they’re CIA. Some private agency of some sort.”
Before either could say anything else, there was a deafening bang and the door leading to the tunnel flew inward and landed on the floor. Four black clad men with balaclavas on their heads and armed with AK-47s came through the opening and spread out into the room.
“What the hell is going on here…” Jenny started to say before one of the attackers fired a burst and she fell back in a spray of blood. Miriam got up from her desk and tried to make a run for it, but another burst cut her down halfway across the room.
“Miriam!” Ahmed screamed as he ran to her side and knelt down, cradling her head in his arms. Another burst and blood spurted from his back and he fell next to Miriam.
One of the attackers ran to Jenny’s body and retrieved a key to the holding room and freed Ansari and Khalid.
“Hurry, through the tunnel and to the chopper,” he told them in Arabic.
“Who are you?” Khalid asked.
“Just another faithful follower of Al Thi’b.”
“How did you find us?”
“Long story. We need to hurry. We’ll tell you on the way.”
“Who are these people?”
“Private group, very dangerous. You’re lucky we got here when we did.”
“Where are we going?”
“To the coast. We have a ship arranged. Let’s go. We need to be long gone before anyone else shows up.”
35
There were two men aboard the yacht, anchored a quarter mile off shore, and both were sound asleep. Mahmoud wasn’t expected until sometime in the afternoon, so neither man was going to wake up at dawn if he didn’t have to. Not that it would have mattered if they were awake. In the dim light shortly before dawn, it would have been difficult to spot the two people who swam toward them from shore.
Elijah was a strong swimmer, but still Rachel had to keep her pace down to allow him to keep up. A waterproof bag tied to her thigh contained their weapons and she was also carrying two lengths of rope with rubber grappling hooks attached and still she had to be careful not to leave Elijah behind. Elijah knew this as well and was tempted to let his pride be wounded until he realized he had forty years on her. They arrived at the yacht and Rachel handed him one of the ropes and swam over to the starboard bow. She was up and over the railing in no time, pulling a pistol out of the bag in one motion as her feet hit the deck. She slid the other pistol across the deck to the port side where Elijah came over a few seconds later.
They moved quickly toward the bridge and found nobody. They moved down to the engine room and it too was vacant. Coming back up a level they found themselves in a corridor where the crew quarters were. The first room was empty but they knew the second room was occupied before opening the door when they heard snoring. Elijah opened the door quietly and peered in. There was a bunk with a young man on it, sleeping soundly. He moved into the room and Rachel went to check the other rooms. The next room was also occupied. When the man on the bunk opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the barrel of a pistol inches from his head. His eyes went wide and he started to say something, but Rachel put her hand over his mouth.
“Make one move and it will be your last,” she said in Arabic.
He saw the wisdom in her words and remained still and silent. Elijah came into the room with a length of rope and a roll of duct tape.
“I trust you can put these to good use,” he said before going back to the other room.
She knew exactly what to do with both and in a couple minutes the terrorist was bound and gagged on the bunk. Five minutes later, Elijah came back.
“I’ve searched the rest of the ship. It’s just these two.”
“Good deal. You think we need them, or do you think the two of us can manage it?”
“That’s not the problem. There might be a protocol for when Mahmoud arrives. He might radio when he’s on the way to make sure everything’s okay.”
Rachel tore the duct tape gag off the man she had just tied up and addressed him in Arabic.
“I don’t want to do you any harm, but if you don’t cooperate with us, I might have to. Do you understand?”
The man said nothing but nodded his head.
“What’s your name?”
The man still said nothing.
Rachel pulled her pistol out and pointed it at his head. He looked nervous but made no move to answer her. This guy was a true believer, not afraid to die if it came to that. She moved the pistol down toward his knee and pressed the barrel against his kneecap. She started applying pressure to the trigger and saw the bead of sweat course down his face. He took a deep breath, clenched his fist, and looked at the pistol.
“Raheem…I’m Raheem.”
“See Raheem, that wasn’t so hard. Now, we’re going to have a little conversation, and if I feel that you’re not being truthful with me…”
She emphasized this by touching the pistol to his kneecap again.
“When is Mahmoud arriving?”
Raheem hesitated and she put her finger to the trigger. More beads of sweat were running down his face by now.
“This afternoon…after 5:00.”
“What’s the plan?”
“He always radios when he’s on the way so we can be ready.”
“And which one of you answers the radio?”
“I stay on the bridge. Jafar runs the engines.”
“Well, Raheem, you and I are going to hang out on the bridge and you’re going to act normal when Mahmoud calls. If you try to warn him, I will know and I will hurt you. Do you understand?”
Raheem nodded.
“Tell me you understand.”
“I understand.”
“Good. Get on your feet and let’s go to the bridge.”
“I’ll make Jafar comfortable in the engine ro
om,” Elijah said.
“Better just leave him in one of these cabins. Secure him well and lock him in. Not as much trouble he can get into there.”
Ken and Casey were eating breakfast in the room when Casey’s phone buzzed.
“Rachel and Elijah are good to go at the yacht. Hanging tight until Mahmoud shows up,” Casey said.
“That will probably be a while. Anything show up on those camera feeds?”
“Other than the odd squirrel, nothing.”
“We probably won’t see anything for a few hours. If they have the bomb in the warehouse and they load it on the plane, there’s no need to take off from there until this evening.”
“So, what are we going to do all day?”
“There’s not much we can do. We should go check with Nyangumi and make sure she’s fueled up and ready to go. We can keep an eye on the cameras from there.”
“I wish we could make a move on them now.”
“Me too, but that would be way too risky. Until they set the altitude detonator, they could have a way to set the bomb off at a moment’s notice if they suspect anything. As crazy as it sounds, your plan is our best bet.”
“It’s not as crazy as you might think. It’s the last thing they’ll expect, and it’s about our only chance of catching them without the bomb going off. If we try to take them at the warehouse, they’ll see anything coming and be able to detonate. Are you sure the altitude detonator can be turned off?”
“I’m no expert, but it will have to be simple enough to be armed in flight. It will probably be a switch that the pilot can reach back and toggle.”
“Okay, you’re sure he’ll be towing the banner. If that’s the case, he can’t arm the bomb until after he has the banner. What if we try to take him before he gets to the banner?”
“That might work. Let’s get out of here and get everything ready.”
Wolf Trap (Casey Reddick Book 1) Page 26
