The Grey Falcon

by J. C. Williams

  Chapter 71

  “We need to separate ourselves from this car.” Chad pulled off the highway, and drove two blocks into a residential area.

  They stepped out of the car. Chad had his backpack. Harry had nothing. A few steps later, Chad suggested, “We should go to Valmir’s control center.”

  “Wait a minute,” Harry said. “I forgot something.” Chad tossed him the car keys.

  Harry hurried back to the car. Chad turned around when it started up.

  Harry popped out and stood by the driver’s door.

  Chad took a step back toward the car. “What are you doing, Harry?”

  “We need to separate, Chad. They do not know where you are, but they can track me. If we abandon the car, they will assume I am with you, and we are running from them. However, if I drive down to the roadblock, alone, I can tell them I am looking for you.”

  Chad wanted to run to the car. Harry had become a friend. He knew Harry would lock the doors and drive away. Besides, he understood the logic. “You are probably right, Harry, but for the wrong reason. Staying with me will get you in trouble. Or dead.”

  “Where will you go?” Harry asked.

  “I have an idea, but I shouldn’t tell you. Harry, if they ask why you were at Ravanica, say that I said I might go there or to Niš. You couldn’t get hold of me until you got that far, then we connected and I told you I would meet you in Niš.”

  “That sounds good,” Harry said. “I’ll call you when I am past them.”

  “Harry, they could hurt you.” Chad said worriedly.

  “Not me, old boy. I will remind these chaps I am a bloody British citizen.”

  Chad smiled.

  Harry had a thought “When I call you, if I use Dr. Archer, it means they are listening. If I call you Chad, I am alone.”

  Harry drove off. Chad called the Minister’s office.

  “Is he in?” Chad asked, after identifying himself.

  “No, sir,” a voice answered in English. He is off-site in a meeting. May I get a message to him?”

  “Yes, please tell him that I have a promising lead. I may have something for him tomorrow. I’ll be in Niš tonight.”

  Hopefully that helps Harry’s story. Now, I have to move quickly, he thought. He did not know if the big man working for the Minister had contacts as close as Niš.

  His phone buzzed. A text from Sandy. The message read – This bloke is after you. Be careful.

  A picture was attached. It was the big man.

  Second text – “Name is Zevic.”

  Chad texted back. Saw him at Ravanica monastery two hours ago.

  He knew he needed to get a copy of the phone recording to someone. Harry was out. The police or military would check his phone. Sandy would be the best person. He tried. The attachment was too large. The phone suggested email. He kicked himself for not setting it up on this phone. He needed his laptop and a memory stick. It was sitting in a rental car near the monastery.

  Chad called the Albanian archeologist, Valmir Siliki, explained his situation, and asked a favor. Valmir agreed.

  “Valmir, these people that are searching for me will probably contact you. You honestly don’t know where I will be. I think you will be safe.”

  Fifteen minutes later, one of Valmir’s students from the Niš dig picked him up. They took a series of roads around Niš, avoided the roadblock, crossed the river, and were well on their way to the border. His phone buzzed. It was a call from Harry’s phone. Most likely it was not Harry on the other end. He let it roll to voicemail and then turned off his phone. He couldn’t risk triangulation.

  -----

  “Do you have a laptop with you?” Chad asked his driver. The young man spoke English. Anyone under thirty in Kosovo would generally speak Serbian, Albanian, English, and German as well.

  “In the back seat.”

  “Do you have Wi-Fi at the dig?” Chad wondered. They had passed through the border with no trouble. Chad was going by his new ID so, even if his real name had been put on a watch list, it was not a problem. Though a redheaded American would have been a better watch target.

  “No. Some have a satellite link.”

  “Any chance that you do?”

  The student laughed. “Can’t afford that.”

  “I know what that is like,” Chad commiserated.

  “What do you need?” the student asked.

  “I have a recording on my phone. I wanted to email it.”

  “If you copy it to the laptop, I’ll email it for you. We both have iPhones. I have a cable.”

  Chad considered that. However, that could risk more people seeing it than Chad was ready for.

  “Do you have a flash drive?”

  “I do. It has some things on it.”

  “Any chance I could borrow it?”

  “Important?” the boy asked.

  “Very. I’ll make it up to you. Actually, I’ll buy it from you. How is a hundred euros?”

  “Whoa. Too much. That could buy several flash drives.”

  “Pays for the gas and your time as well,” Chad urged.

  “This is a favor for Valmir,” the student protested.

  “Take the hundred. Pull off at the turn to your site. We’ll copy the recording. You go back or stay in Kosovo and forget that you saw me.”

  “Deal.”

  -----

  Chad hiked up the long five-mile dirt road that led to Valmir’s Kosovo excavation. Work was done for the day. There would be very few if any students and workers there. He called Harry.

  “Dr. Archer, it is good to hear from you.” They were listening.

  “Sorry, Harry. I was in a place where there was no reception. I am surprised I even have a signal. It is weak. I may lose you.”

  “What time will you be in Nis?”

  “That’s why I called. I will be longer here than I thought. I won’t get to Niš until tomorrow most likely. Or. Perhaps you can come to…” Chad cut it off. Triangulation would show him in Kosovo, but there was not enough time to pinpoint it.

  Nonetheless, Chad expected Zevic had contacts in Kosovo. They would close in tomorrow. In the meantime, he had to lay low, hide in the caves at the site, and get the flash drive to someone who could get him out of this. The Professor. The man who initiated Chad’s involvement in this.

  Chad thought about this. It wasn’t happenstance that the Professor heard about a need for an archeologist. He probably influenced that. The Professor, the Guardians, and their activities were shrouded in shadows.

  Chad knew from his past interactions with them that they involved themselves in cultures and world events. He came to that conclusion because from research assignments for them. Why did he participate, he often asked himself. He justified it for two reasons. The first was that they might actually be a group that has the advancement and survival of mankind as a goal. The second was that any person or group that aspires to that could also abuse it. Chad felt an obligation to stay close.

  In addition to a worldwide network of Guardians with financial and political connections, they had a force of Guards that carried out the necessary activities. Sandy was one of them. Chad had met one other one - Lupa, the she-wolf. A tracker and assassin, who provided him protection in his last quest.

  Chad had used the Professor’s help already on this quest to escape Malta. He had a faint signal for his phone and ninety minutes of daylight.

  His call was received in Scotland. Three minutes later the Professor called back.

  “Dr. Archer. I received your message. You found some more artifacts, have disturbing political information, and possibly have initiated a new Balkan war.”

  “The first two are true, Professor. What war?”

  “At the moment, Serbian military have a hundred or more soldiers at or en route to every Kosovo border crossing. Kosovo security forces have alerted the NATO forces, called KFOR, and they closed all the border crossings. Back-up NATO forces are moving toward those border points. The UNMIK, tha
t’s the United Nations Mission in Kosovo Administration group, has declared a no-fly zone for any Serbian originated aircraft. The Serbian government has issued a statement that a suspected terrorist plot was foiled and its members have crossed to Kosovo near Niš.”

  “Wow,” was Chad’s only comment.

  “It is worse than that,” the Professor said.

  “How can it be worse?”

  “There had not been a description or picture released of any of the terrorists, but at the same time as all of this was happening in the last hour, a name was put on the Serbian-Kosovo border watch list – Dr. Chad Archer. Just thirty minutes ago a description was added to the watch list – a tall redheaded American. Are you somewhere safe?”

  “Yes, but how do I get out of here?” Chad asked.

  “You don’t. You stay put. I know this is not a secure line on your end, but please update me as much as you can.”

  “I have what I think will be determined to be Lazar’s royal robe, clasp, and belt buckle. I have not removed the protective wax to see what symbols or inscriptions are on them. I also have a recording of a disturbing meeting led by Minister Brajkovic.”

  Chad waited. There was no reaction by the Professor.

  “You are not surprised?” Chad asked. This confirmed to Chad that the Professor initiated this quest because he already suspected the Minister for some reason.

  “I am surprised that you found a sword, and more, in such a short time. I shouldn’t be. You are a remarkably resourceful person.”

  “Thanks. I think. I want to get this recording to you. There is an assassination that needs to be stopped. Do you have someone in Kosovo that can come take this flash drive?”

  “No. But forty-five minutes ago, I sent a person on a flight from Belgrade to Niš. The agent has landed and is driving toward Kosovo. Unfortunately, the agent will not be able to cross the border.”

  Chad arrived at the excavation site’s center as they spoke. He tried the door to one of the trailers. Locked. Peering inside he saw a solution.

  “Professor, start your person in Niš down route 35. Give me a contact number. He can stay on that side of the border. I’ll get this to him. Oh, and can you have the British embassy check on a citizen being detained by the Serbian military? I think in Niš. Harry Barrison is his name.”

  “Right, will do. My person is on route 35 now. One hour from the border. By the way, he’s a she.”

  Chapter 72

  “Third time’s the charm,” Chad said to no one.

  He landed the drone right where he wanted it. He owed Valmir for one broken window in the trailer and the use of his drone. Chad was thankful he played with it under Valmir’s tutelage. When was that? Just three days ago? He attached the flash drive to the drone with duct tape.

  Chad hiked to the higher mountain elevation where Valmir had shown them the beautiful view of the Kosovo border. Chad had line of site to the drone behind him and to the fields just beyond the border. The light was beginning to fail. He looked at his watch - eight o’clock. The sun set in seventeen minutes.

  He made the call.

  “Hello.”

  Chad thought the voice was familiar.

  “Can you find a way off the road to the north? About a mile before the border?”

  “Can do,” the accented voice responded.

  “You’ll need to be in an open field. I have a drone.”

  “Okay. We cannot use flares. Too many military around,” the voice answered. Chad was sure he knew her.

  “Is this my friend from Bolling Hall?” he asked.

  “Could be,” she laughed. “Or her ghost.” Lupa referred to their previous encounter.

  Chad gave her instructions. “I will flash my light twice every thirty seconds. When you see it, use your headlamps to signal me.”

  Chad used a battery-powered floodlight the diggers used for their cave excavations. Ten minutes later he saw headlights of a vehicle crossing the fields. He flashed twice. It took six attempts and then she blinked her headlights.

  He called again. “Here goes,” he said.

  The drone flight was smooth. He felt good for the first minute as he watched it fly over him and the caves, but then it left his sight. Now he had to rely on the image from the drone’s camera.

  Chad rotated the drone until he saw Lupa’s lights. He directed the drone toward them. The next step was tricky. This landing would be by feel from the drone’s camera and an altimeter reading on the screen.

  “I see it,” Lupa said.

  “I’ll try to land it now,” he spoke into his phone. The drone camera showed a jeep and a person next to it.

  Lupa warned him. “Easy. I have a sat-link phone for you. You’ll need a return trip.

  He concentrated on a slow descent. It was hard to watch the screen view and the altimeter. He focused on the altimeter though he had to guess at the height above sea level compared to his height at the excavation site.

  “It’s down,” Lupa said just as the screen went blank. The altimeter still read five feet.

  “Ouch,” Chad said. “How bad is it?”

  “Not bad. I have the package. Give me a minute to attach your phone.”

  Chad looked out over the grey-lit vista as he waited. He saw three sets of headlights in the fields coming from the main road.

  “You have company coming,” he told her.

  “No worries. Try to take off.”

  Chad sent the signal and was jubilant when he saw the picture from the camera again.

  “Good luck,” he said.

  “You, too” Lupa replied.

  He watched the drone screen while glancing at the field in the distance. Lupa’s jeep lights went dark. Chad saw two muzzle flashes and then one set of the approaching headlights disappeared. Then a second set went dark. He knew her to be a marksman. Marksperson, he corrected himself.

  He heard the whir of the drone and steered it toward a light visible in the trailer. One more landing, he thought.

  This one did not go as smoothly. “Ouch,” he said for the second time in the last ten minutes. He may owe Valmir for one drone.

  Turning, he took a last look at the field. A set of headlights had reached where Lupa had been, and then they turned back toward the highway. He saw another set of lights to the southeast, almost at the road. They stopped. Then the lights of the vehicle in the field disappeared lights disappeared. Three for three. She had a head start. But, they would have a radio.

  Chad’s money was on Lupa.

  Chapter 73

  Chad knew he was in a dream, but later he remembered only bits and pieces of it. He would recall seeing headlights at a distance. He saw the lights disappear. Then he heard the sound of cars. He strained to see them in the dark of his dream. Semi-awake now, he thought to himself that the dream was a connection to Lupa’s earlier escape. But, wait. He had not heard the vehicles in the fields. He definitely heard some now. He was suddenly fully awake. And, alarmed.

  Chad crept to the mouth of the cave he had hidden in, and crouched looking toward the excavation center and the trailers there. His sight was blocked, but he heard cars or trucks. Carefully, he moved around the hillside in front of him to get a view.

  Chad counted four vehicles. One jeep and three pickup trucks. Men were exiting the trucks. They carried rifles and small arms. Two cautiously approached the trailers and looked inside each one. Then they grouped together talking and pointing.

  Chad lay on the cold ground concealed by boulders and bushes.

  One man went to his truck and turned on a spotlight and began sweeping the surrounding area. Chad ducked. Are these good guys or bad guys? He got his answer when two men cocked their weapons.

  “Houston we have a problem,” he silently told himself. He felt secure for the night. He could hide in the cave. They wouldn’t find him. Too many caves. Too dark. However, in just a few hours it would be daylight. His only chance would be to hope his cave led to a tunnel that led somewhere. He had a sat-link
phone, but who you gonna call? Ghostbusters, he answered.

  As if in answer to the thought of a call, headlights and flashing roof lights appeared driving up the hill from the main road.

  The truckers saw them too.

  “Well, well,” he thought. “This should be interesting. The cavalry is here.”

  Chad relaxed and watched. A sudden thought made him inhale sharply. What if this was more bad guys? Did the Serbian police or army finally cross the border?

  Nothing to do now but wait and hope. He didn’t have long. The first arrivals were scrambling to get into their trucks. Armed men leapt out of the newly arrived vehicles with the flashing lights. They set up a protected perimeter. One man stepped forward into the light. Chad breathed more easily seeing the blue shoulder insignia of the KFOR officer.

  A man emerged from the lone auto that first arrived. He walked forward, hands up. He stopped at some command and turned around. Another soldier entered the light and frisked him. The man was trying to convey something to the UN force. The soldier that did the frisking accompanied his commanding officer and the man to the trailer with the broken window.

  Chad got it. The man was claiming they were there because of a break-in. Could be, but he didn’t think so.

  Ten minutes later the first arrivals left. The UN force left, leaving two soldiers behind. Chad crept back to his cave. He had a few hours until daylight. Perhaps, a few more hours of sleep. He hoped that Valmir and his excavators would show up by then.

  He had just closed his eyes, when the blinking light on the sat-phone and a soft vibration brought him back to life. Wow. Glad that didn’t happen thirty minutes ago.

  “Hello,” he whispered. He heard crackling on the other end. The cave was impeding reception. Chad scrambled out and around the far side of the hill away from the guards, hoping they were not patrolling.

  “Hello,” he said again, whispering.

  “Can you talk?” It was the Professor.

  “Yes.”

  “First things first. Your Mr. Barrison is safe and sound. The British Embassy flew someone to Niš last night and raised a hue and cry.”