On the Heels of Evil

by D. E. Daum

  “Sorry, Saleem. Are you going to let me go now?”

  He’d always liked Evans. He released him. “I’m sorry, too. She’s a touchy subject. Tell the Colonel that I can’t leave yet.”

  “Okay, but the Colonel thought you might like a crack at the guy who tried to kidnap your wife.”

  He licked his lips. Oh, yeah, he wanted him. “I’ll be there in thirty minutes.”

  After Evans left, Kelly stood beside Valerie’s bed. She wasn’t glamorous now. Her color was sallow, her cheeks sunken, and her lips chapped. Her hair was a mess with an inch of dark roots. She had not a drop of make-up on. She was still beautiful. She had never had a chance at a normal life. Kelly reached over and grabbed her hands. He felt something. He didn’t know what but he felt something. She opened her eyes, looked at him and mouthed, “I love you.” She closed her eyes and the EKG monitor went flat.

  Three nurses and a doctor rushed in and began working on her frantically. Kelly looked beyond them and couldn’t believe his eyes. Above Valerie’s frenetic rescuers, was Valerie. Not her body, but an apparition of her, her essence, she smiled at him and said, “Have a good life, Kelly Rogers. Yes, I know who you are. You are a good man. I love you.”

  Suddenly, she was gone. No one else saw or heard her. They were still trying to revive her. Kelly knew it was too late. He felt faint. He found a chair and sat, and then he remembered Eckert. He could not think of anything he would rather do than talk to Eckert.

  Kelly got to the door of the interrogation room as the guards were starting to remove Eckert. Kelly shoved the guards away and grabbed Eckert by the hair, dragging him back in the room.

  “What’s going on here?” Kelly demanded.

  Dickens replied, “Apparently Eckert knows where the bombs and young Hitler are. He’s willing to talk as long as he gets a deal. We were sending him back to his cell, and we’re going to see what we can obtain from his confederates.”

  Eckert’s open mouth and wide eyes showed how surprised he was. “So, he is with you Americans. Wait until the radical rag heads find out.”

  Kelly punched Eckert in the nose causing it to bleed profusely. “Is that any way for you to talk about your allies? You phony bastard.”

  Eckert bent over and put his hand to his nose as blood coursed through his fingers, dripping onto his clothes and the floor. “I think you broke my nose. I’m not telling you anything.”

  Jane came over and eased Eckert into a chair and urged his head back to stop the blood flow.

  Gazing at the man and feeling revulsion, Kelly snarled, “Listen Eckert, with the lady and the Colonel it’s business. With me, it’s personal.” Kelly looked at Jane and Dickens and nodded. They nodded back and walked out.

  Eckert yelled, “No, wait! You can’t leave him in here with me. Wait, wait!” The door shut and he looked at Kelly. He was shaking, as was Kelly, for separate reasons.

  “You tried to have my wife murdered, and my bodyguard was shot defending her.”

  “No, I can explain. We were not going to harm your wife. We were going to use her to get you to Adlerhorst. We figured you wouldn’t come any more after your crazy speech.”

  “You and your ilk would think it was crazy.”

  “Anyway, it was Valerie’s . . . arrrgh.”

  Kelly hit Eckert an uppercut so violent it sent him and the chair over and crashing against the wall. Eckert couldn’t get his breath. Kelly helped him by kicking him in the ribs three times. Eckert passed out.

  Behind the one-way mirror, Dickens said, “Are you sure Kelly won’t kill him?”

  Jane said, “If he doesn’t get the information, he will.”

  Kelly picked Eckert up and threw him back in the chair as if he were a mannequin. He threw a glass of water in his face to revive him. Eckert’s eyes were bulging with fear. Kelly stood right next to Eckert and said, “It’s not nice to lie about the dead. Now, let’s start all over. Where are the nukes?”

  “What nu ”

  Again, Eckert couldn’t finish his lie before Kelly backhanded him, spinning him off the chair. His nose was bleeding again and now so was his left eye.

  “You don’t get it, do you? I don’t care if you live or die. The only way you are going to survive this night is if you tell me everything I want to know. You tried to take my wife. Valerie died twenty minutes ago. I know what you did to Valerie and the other girls. You are a beast. You are scum, and I would like nothing better than to watch the life flicker from your evil eyes.”

  When Kelly was finished, ninety minutes later, Eckert had squeezed the best deal he could out of the Colonel. Kelly had all of the information he required and a little more. They would confine Eckert to a military base for the rest of his life, but his surroundings would be pleasant and he would have access to anything he wished, except computers or any other form of communication. In return, Eckert gave Kelly and the colonel the location of the rogue nukes, Johann Hitler, and the location of a list of the party membership, including officers, some of whom were not at the conference. And a bonus – a list of contributors. This would keep them busy for a while. But there was something else. The atomic bomb headed for Las Vegas was scheduled to go off in a little over a week.

  Chapter 4

  Buenos Aires, Argentina

  Jane came around gradually. She felt like her head had been run over by a truck, or more like a tank. Where was she? She opened her eyes and looked around. She was in a little room, about ten-by-ten with no windows and just one iron door. There was a single light bulb hanging from a very high—sixteen-foot—ceiling. From the looks of the room, it was part of a very old building. Again, she wondered where she was. She didn’t remember coming here. She decided to backtrack and think about what she did know.

  At the last meeting in London, they agreed it was necessary to split their forces, with Kelly and Colonel Dickens heading the operation to Las Vegas. Jane hated to let Kelly do that, since his recent speech on Al Jezeera had made him a celebrity. Going to America, which many Muslims viewed with enmity, might also be viewed with suspicion. He could not take his honor guard with him on a secret operation.

  Thinking seemed to clear the cobwebs from her brain. She went to the door. It was locked, and formidable. It would take a key, or a charge to open this baby. Jane started banging and yelling. She stopped to listen but heard nothing.

  Fortunately, there was a reunion planned of Saleem’s UCLA class, which presented an excuse for Kelly and Mariam to go to Los Angeles. The timing was not the same, but it was close enough to allow them to be in L.A. when the shipment arrived. The problem was they had to stop the bomb from detonating in Las Vegas without anyone knowing Saleem Rhamsy was involved. Jane should have been there to help, but she couldn’t. Someone had to go after Hitler’s grandson before he disappeared, along with the other nukes.

  Jane yelled repeatedly, “Anyone here? I need to pee. Do you have a bathroom? Finally, someone answered her in Spanish, “Silencioso.”

  Spanish! So, Jane was in Argentina. Now she was beginning to remember. It was not surprising that the Nazis would have operations out of the lower part of South America, given the pro-German bent in the area dating back to even before World War II. Jane remembered hearing that the Germans had operations here and in neighboring countries in World War I, not to mention a large immigration of Nazi war criminals and their families in the aftermath of World War II. Yes, Nazis would have connections and should feel comfortable in their second home, South America.

  Jane had arrived at dawn at the International Airport in Buenos Aires. She had tried to sleep on her ten-hour trip from D.C., but her mind was spinning. She hated to leave the Las Vegas emergency in Kelly and the colonel’s hands, but she had no choice. If Eckert hadn’t lied to them, and she didn’t think he had, she knew where Hitler was going to be through tomorrow. If she missed him, it might be months before they could track him and the nukes down, if ever.

  Evans and Haman met her at the baggage center. She was glad to see
them. At least she had some company on this mission. She hated to take Haman away from Kelly when he needed all the help he could get. Hitler had not been at Eagles Nest, so hopefully, he had no idea that he was the leader of a now decimated organization. This advantage would not last forever. They needed to get him before he went into hiding.

  Jane yelled again, “No comprende Espanol. Por favor, el bano.”

  Finally, someone answered in heavily accented English. “There is a floor drain in your cell. Use it.”

  Jane said, “Wait. Where am I? How did I get here?” Nobody answered her.

  Chapter 5

  Los Angeles

  Kelly and Mariam checked into the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel around 7:00 P.M., when they arrived in L.A. They were familiar with the hotel, since it was where Saleem and Mariam had their wedding reception and honeymoon four years previously. The shipment from Portsmouth was scheduled to be offloaded the next day. Dickens had reserved a suite on the same floor but hadn’t yet arrived. He was arriving by midnight with some much-needed muscle. In the meantime, Kelly and Mariam had ordered from room service and decided to catch up on their love life, with a reenactment of her and Saleem’s honeymoon.

  At eleven-thirty, the phone rang. It was Dickens. He had arrived by private jet. He would be at the Beverly Wilshire by twelve-fifteen, and would come to their suite at twelve-thirty.

  At midnight Haman called. “I lost Starbird and Evans,” he said. “They were supposed to meet me at the hotel. They never showed up. I tried to get ahold of the Colonel to tell him, but I couldn’t find him.”

  “I’m going to see him in another hour. I’ll tell him. Why did you separate?”

  “Evans insisted on it. He said he needed to show something to Starbird.”

  “What time is it there?” asked Kelly.

  “It’s about 5:00 A.M. Why?”

  “Keep trying to track them down. Call me back in three hours.”

  Kelly needed to tell Colonel Dickens what happened. He couldn’t wait any longer. At twelve-twenty, Kelly and Mariam went to the Colonel’s suite. He was just opening the door and had three Ranger-types with him. Kelly nodded to the three and said to the Dickens. “We’ve got to talk. I just got a call from Haman. Starbird is missing.”

  Dicken’s mouth opened wide. After ushering everyone in, he said, “Tell me everything you know. Don’t leave anything out.”

  After Kelly briefed Dickens, he tried to get the Colonel to let him go to Argentina to look for Jane. Dickens said, “Kelly you’re not making sense. You’re here to pick up an nuclear bomb and keep it from being set to blow up Las Vegas. You are scheduled to meet the Saddam Brigade’s front man on this operation, and you’re supposed to make it look like you are on . . . what’s his name? . . . Hamadi’s side. You need to purposely screw up his operation without blowing your cover. How are you going to fit in the search for Jane and Evans?”

  “You’re right. I want to jump the gun, arrest Yosef Hamadi and his henchmen tonight, and get the bomb out of circulation tomorrow. I have to find Jane. You don’t understand. She’s very important to me.”

  “Have you talked to Hamadi yet?”

  “No, I haven’t. Let me call him. Maybe I’ll think of something.” Kelly went into one of the bedrooms to make the call in private. After five minutes, Kelly came back, the color drained from his face.

  Dickens asked, “Did you get him?”

  “I did. We have problems. They already have the bomb. What’s worse, they’re on their way to Las Vegas. They told me they have everything under control, and they don’t need me anymore, especially since I think it’s wrong to kill the infidels.”

  “Great, it looks like they heard about, or saw your speech. This may actually work in our favor. Do you know where they’re going to set the bomb?”

  “No, he wouldn’t tell me. How would this work in our favor?”

  “Well, we know they want to set the bomb off on Memorial Day, which is seven days away.”

  Kelly interrupted, “Yeah, so what?”

  “That gives us at least two and maybe three days to find Jane and Evans.”

  “Us? You’re going also?”

  “You bet. Jane is like my daughter.”

  Chapter 6

  Buenos Aires, Argentina

  As best as she could tell, Jane’d been awake about eight hours. If she’d been unconscious before that she had no idea. Jane’s mind hadn’t stopped working since she woke up. She remembered that she and Evans had split up from Haman, so they could check something out. He took her to some old Catholic mission on the outskirts of the city, but she didn’t remember anything after she and Evans had gotten out of the SUV.

  She wondered if Evans was still alive. If so, was he nearby? She yelled his name a few times, but no one answered. She had to get out of here. There had to be a way. She noticed there was a heating vent about two-thirds of the way up the wall. Even if she could sprout wings, it was too small to squeeze through. Several of the blocks, about eight feet high were irregular in a square pattern and appeared to have been added. Jane decided it must have been a window someone bricked up. That meant that the wall was likely an outside wall. If she only had something she could use to pick at the blocks, but she didn’t.

  She heard keys in the door, and it swung in. One huge man, as big as Haman, swung the door in. A second, smaller man brought in a tray of food and a bucket of water. She thought about getting after them but decided against it, because they were both armed and the behemoth could just slam the door on her if she attacked the smaller one. She hoped this wouldn’t be her last opportunity. She tried talking to the men. She even flirted with them, but they just shook their heads and the smaller one said “No Ingles.”

  She was starved and thirsty too. The plate had some kind of mush on it that looked like black beans, corn and rice. It didn’t look great, but, because she was so hungry, it tasted wonderful. Then as she stared at the door she realized the door swung in. The hinges were on the inside. How stupid! Why didn’t I see that before? Now if she could just find a nail or a screw to push the hinge pins up. She looked around the room but there was nothing. Shit, the hinges are beckoning, and there is nothing I can do about it. Then she noticed a nail sticking out of the wall where the window had been bricked in.

  * * * *

  Haman was elated. His boss was coming, the Colonel as well. Haman didn’t know what to do. He wasn’t a stupid man, but he was just a bodyguard, a warrior. He had never been in such a position. He did manage to trace Starbird’s cellular phone to an old mission outside of Buenos Aires, but there was no sign of Jane or Evans. There were tire tracks in the dirt parking lot. It looked like they had entered and left at different locations, but the road was paved. Nothing could be determined from there.

  * * * *

  Jane threw the tray up at the nail several times and caught it on its way down so it wouldn’t make noise. Once she missed it, and it clattered to the floor. She hoped it wouldn’t arouse the guards. After a few minutes, she continued. Finally, the nail came tumbling down with the tray.

  * * * *

  Colonel Dickens called his superior who agreed to send someone to take over and set up an operation in Las Vegas, freeing Kelly and Dickens to go to Argentina. They were to meet Hayden Crenshaw in Las Vegas and brief him so Kelly, Mariam, Dickens and his people flew to Vegas.

  Kelly sent Mariam via cab to the Bellagio Hotel after which he and Dickens met with Crenshaw at McCarren Executive Air Terminal. Dickens and Kelly briefed him on everything he knew and told him they’d be back in four days to help. Additional backups came in on a private plane that the Colonel and Kelly met at the Las Vegas airport. They turned around and left on the same plane after it refueled for the long flight, with a second refueling required in Panama.

  * * * *

  Jane got one hinge out and that was it. The other two hinges had non-removable pins, not accessible unless the door was open. She sat legs crossed on the concrete floor again. One t
hing is certain, we’re missing our best opportunity to apprehend or kill Johann Hitler and acquire the nukes. Who the hell captured us? Why aren’t they questioning me? At least, if someone would question me, or even try to rape me, I would have a chance to escape.

  Hours later, Jane heard the keys rattling again and the lock turning. She would be ready for them this time. Again, the giant swung the door open, and the smaller guy started through the door with another tray. Jane threw the tray at him, hitting him in the left eye. He reached for his gun, and Jane pounced on him. One blow with the side of her hand crushed his windpipe. As he started to fall, Jane grabbed his arm and before the big fellow knew it, he had a nine-millimeter Glock staring him in the face. He dropped his own weapon and put his arms up in supplication. Jane shoved him into the cell and clobbered him on the back of his head with the butt of the gun. She locked the brute inside and shoved the gun in her pants. She picked up the other gun and looked around. There didn’t appear to be any other guards. She was in a long hallway with a dozen or so doors, all on one side except for a pair on the side opposite her cell. She needed to find Evans and get the hell outta there.