by Mike McNeff
The men moved to finish their preparations. Without being told, some of them took up positions to cover their camp. The vehicle and foot traffic steadily increased. Robin thought about how the traffic made the border inconsequential, as this activity occurred all over the border between Mexico and the U.S. Robin's jaws clamped tight. He had long complained to the DPS brass that DPS should be on the border in force—at least to interdict drugs and contraband—but the response was, “It's a federal problem.” Robin pointed out Arizona citizens living along the border were being affected by the rampant illegal activity. It didn't seem to matter to the brass. Robin knew this national security problem would only get worse.
Robin looked at the men around him, in private knots of two or three. Burke and Rocky were briefing men on the explosives. Burke checked the crimps on the charges and made sure the M-60 detonators were operational. Robin felt comfortable here. Being around tough, courageous men preparing to take care of business was completely in tune with his nature. There is an aura around highly trained and experienced fighting men. Men you can count on to do what is needed no matter how tough the situation may get.
Being supremely confident the mission would be successful, Robin felt intense pride in himself and the men around him. He had a growing realization that warriors who fight those who prey on the defenseless can never really be at peace with themselves. The fight never ends. His underlying uneasiness over the impact his addiction had on his family lingered.
TWENTY SEVEN
When Jack Moore landed at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, he immediately asked for the armament chief. A staff sergeant on the flight line gave Jack a ride to the end of the tarmac, stopping at a large building surrounded by half-buried hanger-shaped concrete buildings. They went inside and the sergeant introduced Jack to one of crustiest non-coms he had ever seen. A giant of a man, Chief Master Sergeant Burl Williams wore more stripes than most uniforms could fit. The lines on his face formed a formidable pattern of canyons and crevices, which were only interrupted by his ready smile. The hand he held out in greeting was attached to a thick muscular forearm, and Jack felt at any moment Chief Williams could crush his hand without a second thought.
“What can I do for you, Customs Pilot Jack?”
“Well, Chief, I am going to be loitering at the border very early in the morning on a highly classified mission. I may be ordered south to assist a special ops team. All I have are two Miniguns. I wondered if I might borrow a couple of 2.75 pods.” Chief Williams' smile left his face and his eyes narrowed.
“Son, that isn't going to happen,” he said in a deep, stern voice.
“The targets are the guys who shot the two airmen just outside the base here.” Chief Williams' expression changed immediately. His smile did not come back, but a fire ignited in his eyes.
“You on the level?”
“I am, Chief.”
“I knew young Sam Cowen, a damned good man. I'm not sure what happened that day. Nobody is saying much.”
“Sam and Jerry Parker jumped into the middle of a drug cartel kidnapping a DPS officer's daughter. Sam and Jerry tried to stop it. They shot Sam in the back.”
“Those sons of bitches!” Chief Williams spat. “Did they kidnap the girl?”
“They did, Chief. The mission of the special ops team is to get her back.”
Chief Williams immediately spun on this heel. As he marched back to the office bay, he started calling out names and barking orders. Two hours later, the Blackhawk sported four 2.75 rocket pods slung under two stubby wings, all courtesy of the United States Air Force. The installation also included a rudimentary sighting system.
Jack heard footsteps behind him, and an arm went around his shoulders. Chief Williams stood next to Jack, dressed in flight suit, helmet, and air crew vest, complete with a Smith and Wesson .38special. He also carried a M-16 rifle.
“I'm going with you.” Jack was going to object when the Chief gave him a hard look. “I decided to retire tonight. The ol' lady has been trying to get me to do it for a while now. I'm gonna go out dishin' some payback. Besides, you need me along to make sure this jerry rig works when you need it to.”
Because of all Chief Williams did for him, Jack simply said, “Welcome aboard, Chief. Let's get airborne.”
Robin looked over the men. He could barely make out their facial features because of the darkness and the camouflage paint they were wearing. The smuggler traffic tapered off, the tarps taken down and the gear stowed in the trucks. A light breeze made the desert cooler. The stars shone thick and sparkling above them while the hills and trees were only dark shadows. The final details of the mission were hashed and rehashed. All of the men were prepared.
“All right gentlemen, let's get rolling.”
The three-truck caravan rolled over the border and raced toward Santa Cruz, going between fifty-five and sixty miles per hour on the well-traveled dirt road. They hit an occasional rut or hole that would jar the trucks and briefly fling the men around in their seat belts. They saw no one. They came to Santa Cruz in sixteen minutes, and they went by it in less than one. Robin only saw two lights in the little dark town.
The hills on either side of the road grew higher as they drove on. Robin knew they were close. After two more minutes, he told Ernie to slow down. After one more, he instructed him to stop one-tenth of a mile from the ranch.
The caravan pulled into a ravine and parked. Robin got out and motioned for Burke and Carlos to join him. They climbed a small hill overlooking the ranch, where they could see inside the fortress fairly well. Security lights lit the area, but the lights cast shadows in many places. Robin counted a number of men in the area.
“Burke, do you have enough shadow to work with? There are at least ten men moving around down there.”
“I guess it will have to be enough. We're not going back now.”
Robin thought for a minute. “We're going to forget blowing up the dope. We're facing long odds in numbers and we can use the guys who were going after the dope to work with the bunkhouse security team to hold back any counterattack. We'll use the explosives to whittle down the odds and move both teams closer to the main house so they can cover all of those buildings. Let's move.”
Back at the trucks, Robin briefed the men on the changes.
“As we move in, perimeter defense teams set two of those charges as close to the bunkhouses as you can. You'll have to light them then. The fuses are three minutes. Save the other two satchels for tactical use. Okay, sentry team, get moving. As soon as you have cleared enough space for us to come in and maneuver, let us know. We'll move in.”
“We're gone,” Burke said.
“Mark and Rick, come with me back up the hill, so you can get a look-see.” From the vantage point on the hill, Robin, Mark, and Rick watched as Burke's team moved along the wall. When they got to the small gate, the team formed a human ladder. Burke went over the wall. Robin didn't see the gate open, but he saw the rest of the team go through it. He and his men went back to the trucks.
“Form up. We'll move to the wall and wait for the word. Hang tough, Gary. We'll be calling soon.”
“I'm ready, Rob.”
Jorge had a difficult time convincing Maria that Carlos had changed sides and was working with the Americans. The explanation was not made any easier by the fact that Jorge could not explain why Carlos had done this. Jorge had no idea. He fell back on common sense.
“Señora, do you like the men here?”
“I despise them.”
“I am sure your husband has come to the same conclusion. I have not talked to your husband. I just know he wants you to come to him and I am instructed to help get you to him. I am also supposed to help another young woman escape. We must leave now!”
That was enough. Maria went with him, although reluctantly. As they made their way across the compound, Jorge heard Maria gasp. He looked over and saw an American lowering the body of a sentry slowly and quietly to the ground. He could see darkness flowin
g from the sentry's throat. Tugging at Maria's hand, he swiftly and quietly brought her to the back door of the main house. Jorge punched the code into the alarm keypad and opened the door. As they entered the house, Jorge heard a door open and close and footsteps coming down the back stairs. He pushed Maria into an alcove. Juan came striding by, heading for the back door. He punched the code into a keypad and uttered a curse about incompetent security. He went through the door. Jorge literally flung Maria up the hall and into the Señorita's room.
The Señorita's eyes were wide. “I thought you weren't coming! You told me you were coming at three!”
“Carlos works for your father?” Maria asked Cathy in Spanish.
Cathy replied in Spanish, “I do not know what you are talking about.”
“She does not know,” Jorge said. “This is not business for a child.”
“I am not a child,” Cathy retorted. Jorge groaned and rolled his eyes to the heavens for guidance. His relationship with women was going downhill.
Jorge, in order to redeem himself, turned to Cathy. “I am told you know how to shoot a pistol.”
“My father taught me.”
Jorge handed her a Browning High Power 9mm pistol, his personal and favorite weapon. “We may need you to help.”
“My father has one just like this. I know how to use it.”
“I would like a gun,” Maria insisted. Jorge sighed, reached into an ankle holster, and handed her a Walther PPKS .380. The women looked at each other.
“Jorge, are we getting out of here alive?” Cathy asked.
Jorge did not answer.
Burke, Mike, and Carlos moved deliberately in the shadows created by the lights in the compound. So far, so good. They had taken out three sentries, all knife work. Burke was relieved when Mike took out number three. Mike had never killed anyone with a knife before, but he met the ugly necessity. Burke saw a man and woman heading for the house. He also saw Rocky taking care of business on the other side of the compound. He realized the man and woman had to be Jorge and Maria. Carlos started for Maria, but Burke grabbed him and put his finger to his lips. He called in Robin and his team.
As Burke and Mike closed on the house, they saw two men toward the front by a car. Nearing the rear of the house, they heard a door close. Burke handed the Hush Puppy to Mike and nudged him and Carlos toward the two men in front of them. Burke glided silently to the rear of the house as he heard the muffled thumps of Mike's shots.
Juan Trinidad walked out of the back door and stood on the porch. He wanted Maria, and he wanted her tonight. He did not care about Carlos. He did not care about Miguel. He stepped off the porch and stopped mid-step. He heard a familiar sound…a silenced pistol.
A flicker of a shadow caught the corner of his eye. He turned, reaching for his gun.. The shadow loomed large. It struck Juan in the gut with a flash of steel. He felt the cold blade penetrate him, then again and again. Surging with fury, he twisted his hand to point his pistol up and fire. He and the shadow fell to the ground in unison, side by side. He saw Burke's face. Burke jerked his shoulders with a grunt of pain, and the blade sliced up Juan's gut. Juan's breath left him. He could not feel his gun. His arms were pinned. He kneed Burke in the groin and lunged with his face, biting into Burke's right cheek and ripping off a chunk of flesh. Burke growled and brought the blade up to Juan's sternum. He raised his knee and rolled on top of Juan, his knees on Juan's shoulders. Weakening, Juan tried to twist and kick, but Burke stayed unmovable. He raised his blade, a razor sharp, double-edged Ka-Bar knife. Juan stared at it as it came down on his face. He didn't flinch. His eyes met Burke's with cold resignation. Burke's eyes drilled Juan with flaming revenge and then death as the blade plowed into his brain and sent him to oblivion.
When Burke made the call for the rest of the team, they entered through the gate and moved to the ranch house. Ernie and Emmett were behind Robin. The rest of the team started ghosting towards the house to form a perimeter. It seemed to be going well, Robin thought. Then a shot. Robin's thoughts changed immediately. The shot compromised the team. He keyed his mic.
“Nora Six-One, Ten-Twenty.” Burke didn't answer.
“Victor Three Twenty-Four, we're headed for the front door,” Rocky said.
“Nora Six-Three we're close,” Mike called.
“We are almost there,” Robin said. Suddenly a dark figure appeared at the northwest corner of the front of the house. He shouted in Spanish and fired a burst towards a car. Robin fired two shots at the man, but he had disappeared. More shouts in Spanish. The front door slammed. A crescendo of small arms fire built in the compound. Mike came out from behind the car and crossed in front of Robin.
Robin reached the northwest corner of the house and quickly peeked around. He thought he recognized Rocky.
“Nora Six!” Robin shouted.
“Victor Three Twenty-Four!” Rocky shouted back. They both moved to the large double doors. Other team members followed. Robin tried the doors, but they were locked. The doors were ornate and too heavy to kick in.
“Ernie, the charge!” Ernie brought up a door-sized piece of cardboard. A double pattern of detonation cord covered the front of the cardboard and strips of folded duct tape were attached to the back. Robin and Ernie stuck the back of the board to the doors.
“Stack up!” Robin ordered. He pulled the igniter and moved to the rear of the stack. It dawned on him Burke wasn't in the stack. He thought of the first shot and swallowed a lump in this throat.
The charge blew sharp and loud. A blast of debris, smoke, and dust engulfed the stack and the front porch. The team moved in, throwing stun grenades in every direction. Emmett and Mike moved right into a large room. They immediately engaged two men who were struggling to get up and killed them with bursts of 9mm rounds from their MP5s. Carlos and Rocky dumped left into a smaller room, and Carlos killed one man there.
Robin saw a man at the top of the stairs and his Galil roared. The man fell back against the railing and his limp body crumpled down the stairs like a ragdoll. Marv posted at the stairs as Ernie and Robin moved down the hall. Heavy explosions rocked the compound as the charges went off.
Ernie and Robin were joined by Emmet and Mike as they moved further down the hall to the room where Cathy was supposed to be.
“Jorge!” Robin called.
“Dad!” Cathy called. Jorge opened the door, and Cathy rushed out to her Dad. Robin put his left arm around her and hugged her tight. He kissed her on the cheek and pushed her to Ernie. The firefight outside briefly stopped after the explosions, but it was starting up again.
“You, all of you, have to go…now!” Robin ordered.
Maria exited the room and saw Carlos. She ran to him. Carlos grabbed her and pulled her to him. He gave a thankful glance to Robin.
Robin nodded. “Get going! Everyone!”
“Dad!” Cathy cried.
Ernie pulled her down the hall. “C'mon, Cathy, your Dad has some killing to do.” Ernie keyed his mic. “Victor Three Twenty-One, move in!”
“I'm here,” Gary's voice came over the radio.
“Up the stairs!” Robin ordered. The rest of the stack went up the stairs, with Marv in the lead. They reached the top and started down the hall. Marv fired a burst at a man at the end of the hall, blowing his head in half. The man pitched forward, his head hitting the floor and sounding like a broken watermelon. A woman in a nightgown stepped into the hall and fired at them. Marv fired back as he went down. The woman collapsed, her head bouncing off the tile.
Rocky hesitated, looking at Marv, who bled from a bullet wound to right side of his torso not covered by his vest. “Go!” Marv yelled. A man Robin recognized as Rodriquez fired one shot with a pistol from a doorway on the right. The bullet hit the opposite wall just inches from Robin. He fired four rounds at Rodriquez, who moved back and slammed the door. Robin did a tactical reload.
Rocky bent down and grabbed the rescue pull ring on Marv's vest.
“You guys get Marv outta here
and to the cars!”
“Sarge—” Emmett started to say.
“Don't argue with me, Emmett. Get going!” He keyed his mic, “All units move to the extraction point!” The rest of the men moved down the stairs, Emmett looking back at Robin. Robin turned his attention to Rodriquez's door. He prepared a stun grenade. Suddenly, the upstairs back door opened and Burke stumbled through.
“Burke!” Robin said, alarmed.
Rick and Doug were barely in position behind a long concrete planter when shots and yelling brought men coming out of the bunkhouses in a rush. The two officers opened up, Rick with his MacMillan Sniper Rifle and Doug with his Galil, and started dropping those men. Then more men burst out of the windows; others came running from the back.
“If there isn't a back door, there must be windows,” Rick yelled. He switched to the MP-5 he brought as a back up. There were just too many bad guys coming at them to be using a bolt action rifle. Bullets whizzed overhead and smacked into the concrete scattering chips everywhere. Doug's Galil roared reply.
Rick glanced to his left. Mark and his team seemed to be holding their own. He could see Willy Young helping with the south bunkhouse men. The south bunkhouse charge went off. The concussion stunned Rick, and debris started raining down on them. Seconds later, the north bunkhouse charge went off. A thick cloud of dust glowed and swirled in the security lights, covering the compound. More debris flew through the air. The gunfight slowed down to a few scattered shots.
