by A. D. Winch
Eric considered the Doctor’s words, “Yes, but as long as you continue to monitor my condition.”
“That goes without saying, Eric,” replied Doctor Noel. “I must stress that you may still experience these emotional symptoms, and I apologise for this in advance. So, if you feel angry or trapped remember that this is just the effects of coming off the drugs. Keep this in your head at all times. Remember it is just the drugs.”
His voice got quieter, and he leaned towards Eric.
“Look at me, Eric, and remember it is just the drugs. Just the drugs.”
He leaned back and returned to his normal voice.
“If you need anything I am here to help. You know you can trust me, Eric.”
“Yes,” replied Eric with a relaxed smile and resumed his game.
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***
Chapter 35 – Last Supper
It was still dark when one of the villagers drove the inhabitants of the beach cottage to the harbour at Larne in his minibus. The roads were quiet, and lines had been drawn in the frost by the few cars that were already out. When they arrived at the harbour, it was almost empty. A breeze blew in from the sea, rocking the sail boats and providing a dawn chorus of rattling metal.
The harbourmaster met them. He was a thin, jovial man who talked incessantly as he led them to their vessel. It was docked at the end of the pontoon and looked out of place as it was surrounded by sailing boats. Painted across the stern in large black letters were the letters O-R-C-A, followed by I-I. Unlike the first Orca, it was newly built and painted in blue and white. Otherwise, it looked the same.
“It arrived last night for you,” explained the harbourmaster. “All accounts have been settled, so you’re free to sail away.”
Captain Wang thanked him and climbed on board with the crew and Ursula. Alexander spoke briefly to the harbourmaster and then followed.
The crew unloaded the bags they were carrying and immediately undertook a quick tour of the Orca II to check that she was ship-shape. They were delighted with what they found. Everything was modern; the engine shone, and all the equipment on-board was brand new. They were even more pleased to discover replacements for the computer hardware and software that had sunk below the waves.
Before they left the harbour, Captain Wang approached Alexander, who was looking at the sea apprehensively.
“Andrea is not here but, on behalf of the crew, I would like to thank you and her for keeping your word.”
“You don’t need to thank me. If Andrea says she will do something, she does it. I will tell her though.”
Captain Wang headed for the wheelhouse.
“First stop, Southampton,” she shouted and carefully steered the Orca II out of the harbour and towards the open sea.
Twelve hours later they arrived in Southampton docks. After short goodbyes, the Orca II left Alexander and Ursula back on dry land. They stood on the quay with their bags by their feet and watched the trawler chug off. It was bitterly cold, and the wind whistled around them. Ursula pulled the zip up on her black duffel coat and pulled the woolly hat further down over her ears.
“We’ll see them again,” Alexander said enthusiastically and picked up his rucksack.
Ursula did the same. They walked off together and out of the harbour towards a taxi that was waiting for them.
Southampton was busy with last minute Christmas shoppers buying gifts. Cars clogged the streets and driving was slow. It was not a long journey but the constant stopping and starting made it feel further. Ursula had never visited England before. As she looked out of the window, she wondered if she would ever just visit somewhere. Not just passthrough but properly visit, like a tourist. She would choose somewhere with her grandparents and use her prize money. However, this was a very big ‘if.’ She had to survive the next twenty-four hours first. Rescuing Eric was the right thing to do. If her grandparents were with her now, she knew they would agree.
The taxi drove to a hotel near a small airport that they were going to use. After they had checked-in, they went straight down to dinner.
The dining room showed signs of faded glory. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling, but not all the bulbs worked. There was enough light to show that the gold leaf paint on the walls was peeling and that the silver cutlery was slightly tarnished. All the tables were covered in red or green table cloths, and Christmas candles had been placed on them. Silver tinsel decorated the room and hung in bows from the walls. In one corner stood a Christmas tree with matching silver baubles and lights that flashed randomly.
The room was empty, so Ursula chose a table for them next to the tree. An untidy waiter approached the moment that they sat down and gave them a menu each. He looked at the white man with a black girl with barely concealed disdain and left them.
Alexander looked at the menu and then up at Ursula. Her shoulders were drooped; her head rested on one hand, and she gazed at the tree. He clicked his fingers in front of her face and smiled.
“So what would you like? This could be your last full meal un…”
The waiter returned and interrupted, “Drinks?”
They ordered a beer and an orange juice.
“That was what I was thinking. This could be my last meal,” Ursula said sadly.
“But the waiter didn’t let me finish. I was going to say ‘until after Christmas Day,’” Alexander stammered.
Ursula put her menu down, “But this could be, couldn’t it? This could be our last proper meal ever.”
Alexander leant across the table and took Ursula’s hand in his. He held it tight.
“You’ve been through a lot already and have always come out of it on the winning side. We’ve been through the plan a hundred times. You, we, we’re ready to do this. They will not expect us, and that is why we will succeed. I know we will.”
“I hope we do, and I’ve tried to be positive but right here, right now, in this place, I can’t stop thinking that what we’re about to do is going to fail and…” Her head dropped, and she began to cry. “What if something bad happens and I never had a chance to talk to my grandparents again or even just to say goodbye.”
“You can’t think that way,” Alexander urged her. “Nobody knows when they are going to die, and it isn’t possible to say goodbye at these times. Trust me, I know this from when my mother was killed. As long as you know they love you, and they know you love them, that’s all you can ask.”
The waiter arrived with the drinks. He looked uncomfortable with the situation at the table and took their food orders as quickly as he could.
“I don’t know if they do know that I love them. Since I found out that they’re not my real grandparents, I don’t think I’ve been the same with them. I’ve been confused.”
“Do you love them less?” Alexander asked.
“No.”
“Then there is no need to worry,” he paused. “Look we can’t phone them but why don’t you write them a letter explaining how you feel. We can give it to the hotel and ask them to post it.”
Ursula liked the idea and soon stopped crying.
After dinner, she wrote a letter and fell asleep much more easily than she had feared.
When they awoke the next morning, there was a fluttering of snow on the ground. They stayed indoors during the day and went through the plan again before resting. After the sun had set they collected their things, gave the letter to the receptionist and checked-out of the hotel.
A taxi took them to the airport and to a large, brightly lit hangar. Inside was a white Learjet. The jet’s door was open, and the steps were down, so they climbed in straight away.
“Hello,” greeted Captain Hudson.
He stepped out from the cockpit and blocked its doorway. He was wearing a big jumper with a reindeer on it and looked vaguely like Father Christmas. His bushy moustache tickled Ursula’s cheek as he kissed her.
“We’re all ready to go. The weather is fine, you’ll be pleased to hear, but there is considerabl
y more snow in Poland. They’ve been having blizzards and uncommonly cold temperatures, but nothing I haven’t seen before. If you’re ready, we can take off, and I can get back in time for Christmas Day with the grandchildren.”
“What about your wife?” asked Ursula.
“Cécile? Well, the thing about flying a jet is that FAA rules state you must have a co-pilot, so I convinced Cécile into a Christmas Eve flight. She’s busy running pre-flight checks so you’ll have to meet another time. Take a seat, and we’ll head off.”
The inside of the Learjet was simple but expensive. Four beige leather seats dominated the interior. There was a polished wooden wall at the tail end and a thick carpet underfoot.
Alexander and Ursula put their bags on the floor and sat down. They did not speak until the jet was at cruising altitude. Both of them were lost in their own thoughts and anxious about what lay ahead. At thirteen thousand metres, they changed out of their clothes and put on a number of different outfits. When they had finished, Ursula was dressed in an orange boiler suit and had handcuffs around her wrists. Alexander wore camouflaged cargo pants and a matching jacket. On his right sleeve, he wore the insignia of the US flag and on his left he had the coloured braid of a General. He checked that his Beretta hand-gun was fully loaded and placed it in the holster on his hip. Over his shoulder, he had a small bag with his mother’s diary inside.
“Are you wearing your heated body suit underneath?” asked Alexander. “I didn’t see you put it on.”
“Yes.”
“Do we need to go through the plan again?” His voice faltered slightly as he spoke.
“No!”
There was silence and the plane began to descend. Ursula tried to contact Eric but without success.
At least I’ll be able to talk to him soon, she thought to herself.
Her stomach was full of butterflies, and she was constantly fidgeting. Opposite her, Alexander sat like a statue. He felt nauseous and was not looking forward to the landing.
The plane’s wheels touched the runway, and the Learjet bounced back into the air. The second time they touched down the plane skidded and slush shot sideways. Captain Hudson gently slowed the plane and kept it on the slippery tarmac.
From the control tower, Magda Szymanska watched the plane taxi to the end of the runway. It was the same as all the other occasions, except this time it was a petite Polish woman who arrived with the money, rather than the ratty man. She had been dressed as a soldier but looked, in Magda’s opinion, too fragile to be in the army.
Magda put the binoculars to her eyes and looked towards the Learjet. As usual, it had stopped too far away to be seen clearly. The light from its wings lit up the snow around it like a halo, and its engines were still running.
A military ambulance sped onto the runway. The red-cross stood out against the green background, but Magda doubted it was being used for a medical emergency. The ambulance drove towards the Learjet and stopped on the side of the aeroplane furthest from the control tower. Magda watched as the jet’s steps were lowered towards the floor, but that was all she could make out.
Ursula was taken aback by the cold as she stepped out into the night air. There was wet snow everywhere she looked. Around the runway it was piled high and outside the airport the branches on the trees sagged under the weight.
She nodded to Andrea, who was behind the wheel of the ambulance, and was pushed into the back by Alexander. The only space was on a stretcher, squashed against the wall. It was exactly as Andrea had told her, and she lay down upon it.
Behind her head, a metal wall with a thin opening separated her from the driver. Alexander closed the rear doors and walked around to the passenger seat. He sat down and put his shoulder bag on the floor. The door slammed shut, and they sped away.
Up in the control tower, Magda watched them leave the airport and drive away through the forest.
They’d better be careful on those icy roads, she thought.
As she watched it began to snow heavily again, and she soon lost them amongst the flakes and the trees.
The roads had been cleared during the day but on two occasions the ambulance skidded across the icy tarmac and narrowly missed the trees.
“Do you want to slow down?” asked Alexander.
He was biting the skin around his nails again.
“No.”
There was no more talking until the fences, surrounding the base, came into view. The base was exactly as Alexander had researched online and in the photos Andrea had sent him. Except in real-life the fences looked much taller than their three metre height. Between the outer and inner fence the street lights looked very bright, and there were vicious-looking, Alsatian dogs roaming freely. Snow had settled on top of the circular razor wire, and it looked almost like tinsel under the lights.
“Is everything in place?” asked Alexander.
He knew the answer before he asked but was looking for reassurance.
“Yes.”
They drove down a new road past the fences, the dogs and the occasional look-out tower. Andrea indicated, and they pulled off the road towards the main entrance. Alexander gulped. He slid open the letterbox window behind him and warned Ursula that it was time. Two sets of gates and large, concrete cubes blocked their path. Andrea slowed down and weaved between them before stopping the ambulance in front of the first gate. In the back, Ursula put a gag over her mouth, made sure the handcuffs were on fully, tied one foot loosely to the stretcher and then began to play her part. She yelled and screamed through the gag, kicked the ambulance wall and made a lot of noise.
Four soldiers appeared from nowhere and walked purposefully through the snow towards the ambulance. Two of them held rifles and guarded the front gate while pointing their weapons at the windscreen. The other two soldiers were sent to check over the ambulance. One of the checkers held an Alsatian on a tight lead, while the other held a mirror on a retractable metal pole. Both approached the ambulance cautiously, and they circled it carefully. The dog handler followed the Alsatian as it led him around. The soldier with the pole checked under the chassis and the wheel arches with a torch and the mirror. Every time Ursula made a loud noise, they looked up at the ambulance but neither did anything else except their job.
The guards moved towards the two front doors. One tapped on the driver’s window with the end of his rifle, and Andrea wound it down.
“What is your purpose here?” asked the guard bluntly in Polish.
“This is General West,” replied Andrea in Polish.
She pointed at Alexander, who was successfully looking very angry.
“And in the back we have a new guest for Internal Zone B.”
On cue, Ursula kicked the ambulance wall with such force that small lumps appeared in the metal.
“I am Major Grabowska from OSAF based in Warsaw,” she handed him an ID. “I have been assigned to help the Americans while they remain on Polish soil.”
“Where are your papers?” the soldier asked Alexander, as he handed back Andrea’s ID.
Andrea repeated the question in English to Alexander, who exploded.
“Papers! I don’t have any damn paper!” he yelled in an American accent. “There are some detainees that we make sure have no papers! No paper trail means no problems for you and me. Ask ape-man there,” he pointed aggressively at the guard, “if he understands?”
Andrea translated word for word back into Polish. The soldier raised his gun and pointed it towards Alexander.
“Don’t play with me boy!” Alexander threatened.
He leant out of his chair towards the driver’s window and continued to point at the guard.
“I’ve been taken away from the Californian sun to the miserable weather of Great Britain and now to snowy Poland on Christmas Eve. I’ve had soldiers point guns at me who have actually killed men, unlike you, and I’m in no mood to play games. Now let me in before I speak to your superior and have you reassigned to cleaning the latrines.”
; Andrea translated once more, and the soldier moved his gun back tentatively.
“You will have to show me what is in the back,” he said, trying to regain control of the situation.
After Andrea had translated, Alexander opened his door impatiently, pushed past the other guard and marched to the rear of the ambulance.
Only the soldier who had spoken to Andrea remained at the front. The other three joined Alexander. When he gripped the door handle, Ursula was ready.
The moment the door opened she sprang out of the ambulance. She banged into the soldier with the mirror and knocked him to the ground. She jumped to her feet, kicked the Alsatian and swung her handcuffed hands strongly towards the dog handler. Her fists hit his temple, and the handcuff sliced into his cheek. The Alsatian barked wildly, snarled and snapped as Ursula ran away. Alexander leapt at her, pulled her down into the snow and clasped her in his arms. Ursula continued to fight as he picked her up and threw her back into the ambulance.
“You’re supposed to be combat trained!” he screamed at the three soldiers. “She nearly escaped. I want your names and numbers.” He continued to shout, poking his finger into the chests of each man. “Name! Speak English! Name! Name!”
There was no reply and exasperated he jumped back into his seat, slamming the door behind him.
“I want their names, numbers and rank. And I want it now,” Alexander yelled at Andrea. “Translate that!”
Before Andrea had finished translating, the gates opened and they were waved into the base. Alexander looked in the wing mirror as they drove through. The four soldiers were sheepishly reconvening as the gate closed. For the first time since they boarded the jet in England, Alexander smiled. He had loved drama at school and secretly felt that he was rather good at it. His performance had set adrenalin pumping through his body, and he started to believe they would be successful. In the back, Ursula sensed his mood change and felt her body relax slightly too. She focussed on Eric and tried to convey to him that they were on their way.
