Nuclear Surprise

by Rob Carnell

  "Thanks Natasha, these quarters will be fine, I don’t expect we will spend much time in Moscow anyway, when do we go to Vladivostok?"

  "My orders are to give you all the help I can. But I will not put either of us in unnecessary danger. We have work to do tomorrow. There is some food in the kitchen, help yourself" she noted as she turned and marched into the bedroom allocated to her and locked the door with a thud.

  Matt found the bathroom first. He freshened up then decided food was not a priority. He was asleep almost as soon as he hit the pillow.

  His cell phone woke him at midnight for his check-in call with Bill Simpson.

  Chapter 53

  Back Streets

  Moscow, Russia

  October 15, 06.30am

  * * *

  MATT WOKE early and struggled to get back to sleep. Eventually he gave up and decided to stick with his usual routine of a morning run. He quickly and quietly changed into his running gear.

  Not knowing where to find a key, Matt eventually found a roll of wrapping tape in a kitchen drawer. He just taped the plunger of the door and pulled the door closed after him. To a casual passerby the door appeared latched.

  The miles were passing by quickly under Matt’s casual gait. The grey apartment block looked just like all the others in the area. So as not to get lost, he just decided to run down one road for a half hour, then turn around and come back.

  After 30 minutes, he was still surrounded by apartment blocks and decided to head back. Matt was a little surprised that there were not more people outdoors. He certainly did not spot any other runners.

  Eventually he spotted the right block, and decided to run up 3 flights of stairs rather than wait for the decrepit elevator.

  So as not to wake Natasha, he quietly pushed the door open and stepped inside. He was confronted with the muzzle of a gun against his temple.

  "Where the hell have you been? What were you thinking? When do you avoid security?" asked a very agitated Natasha.

  "Don’t you have any more W questions for me? I went for a run, what’s the problem?"

  Natasha lowered the gun, "I could have shot you. Russia is not safe. It is my fault I guess for not explaining the rules."

  "Security is our first priority. Always lock the door. I will give you a key. Never leave here without letting me know where you are going and how long you will be gone. Give me a SARTIME" said Natasha.

  "A what?" asked Matt.

  "SARTIME stands for search and rescue time. It is the time we will come looking for you. Work out what time you will be back, and then add a margin for error. Maybe thirty minutes should work out ok" explained the infuriated Natasha.

  Chapter 54

  Boat Yard

  North Korea

  * * *

  IT TOOK three weeks for Kamal to sail from Russia to a boat yard in the far north of North Korea.

  He took a satellite telephone from his bag when he was approaching North Korean waters and let his contact there know when he was due to arrive.

  He arrived under the cover of darkness and there were four new workers here just for this job. They were recruited from other parts of the country.

  On arrival, the old masts were immediately removed and the boat was pulled from the water on a cradle and it was moved into a large covered area, away from the prying eyes of satellites and spies. The workmen also slept in this area, and they had no contact with anyone else in the yard. Security was tight.

  The next day the task of transforming the boat began in earnest.

  The old masts were scrapped. They removed the old engine and installed a brand new Japanese Yanmar diesel.

  Next the electrics were removed and completely updated. An electric bilge pump was fitted. Radar and GPS were added as well. A chest type refrigerator was also installed.

  New sails were manufactured and were marked with a yacht club logo and sail number that Kamal had requested.

  Some of the fiberglass work looked rough, particularly on the deck. Fiberglass filler was applied in layers then sanded back until the hull and deck were both mirror smooth. When it was done, an epoxy undercoat was sprayed over everything, and a polyurethane paint was used to spray the hull black. The deck was painted blue. Both were designed to make the finished product harder to see.

  It looked decidedly rough when it arrived at the boatyard, but when complete is was a thing of beauty. The name "Surprise - New York" was expertly sign written on the stern.

  The boat was re-launched at night when the rest of the yard was deserted. A new single mast was fitted making the new craft unrecognizable from the little boat that sailed from Russia. Lastly, the refrigerator and cupboards were stocked with food for the long journey. The freezer contained a good helping of lobster.

  As Kamal was leaving the dock, he heard the four shots that ended the lives of the craftsmen who had remodeled his yacht.

  This mission was way too important to leave anything to chance.

  Chapter 55

  Onchon Air Force Base

  North Korea

  09.15am

  * * *

  COLONEL KIM Ji-Sung believed himself to be the ultimate patriot. He had been in the North Korean air force all his life, his father and grandfather had spent their lives in the army and were proud that Kim had chosen the newer calling. Kim always regretted that they did not live long enough to see his rapid rise through the ranks of the eighty thousand strong Korean People’s Army Air force.

  Kim could fly anything in the North Korean military, but he was under no illusion about the aerial inferiority of his beloved country. Their fleet was at least ten years outgunned at the top end in fighters, and the small bomber, transport, and rotary wing fleets were a joke compared to the latest offering in the military service in the western world.

  It was a pity that he did not get to fly more these days, but as his position of power grew, so did the responsibility. Now he was much more involved in planning, administration and policy.

  Unlike the general population, Kim had seen the other side of life. He had twice represented his country at overseas military get togethers with neighboring countries. He had travelled once to Russia to the north, and once to South Korea. Kim had learned passable English and was a valuable asset in negotiations.

  His visit to Seoul was the most amazing day of his life. The high rise buildings, modern cars and colorful clothes left a lasting impression on Kim during the taxi ride to his hotel. As was the custom when North Koreans ventured south into democratic land, he was constantly shadowed by security staff, and was given zero latitude to interact with his non-communist brothers.

  That was a year ago, but the memories had not dimmed with time. How he wished he had somehow found a way to take his family to Seoul with him. He was convinced life would have been very different today.

  His life had been a relatively happy one until the light of his life, his daughter June-Hee became sick. In a week it became obvious that it was getting worse and Kim threw his weight around to get her admitted to a military hospital.

  Poor safeguards at nuclear facilities meant that North Korean doctors were well acquainted with leukemia, and after June-Hee’s diagnosis, Kim was told that nothing could be done as the drugs that could keep his daughter alive were in short supply in his country. It was heartbreaking to watch his beautiful daughter fade away and she was buried three weeks after being admitted to hospital.

  For Kim, his life was totally transformed when he returned home after a two week military exercise. He found his wife Mee dead in the bathtub where she had slashed her wrists. Taped to the mirror in the bathroom was a note that shook his whole being, he could not even finish reading the tome, it was just too painful. He screwed it up into a ball and flushed it away.

  That was three months ago, and since then Kim had spent a great deal of time reflecting on his life and his obligations to his country.

  Kim had seen that there was more to life outside the strict confines of North Korea
’s capital, Pyongyang. Earlier that day he had read a secure communiqué and made a decision that would affect his future, and possible the security of his nation.

  Now it was time to put in place his hastily thought out plan.

  Kim picked up his office phone and spoke with his aide.

  "Rhee, I need to get some flying hours up, book me three hours in a MIG-15 trainer this afternoon at 3pm."

  He had a choice of lots of aircraft, but the old MIG-15 first deployed in 1949 and still in use as a two seat trainer was needed for today’s mission. It had a top speed of six hundred and seventy miles an hour and a range of over one thousand miles, much more than he needed. It was not the top speed he needed, it was the slowest speed. Also, it would be fairly obvious to anyone looking, that this ancient little aircraft was unarmed.

  This was a little unusual as Rhee knew that Kim was senior enough not to need to keep current. But he instantly snapped back "Of course Colonel, I will arrange a car to take you to the airfield, is 2.30pm suitable, sir?"

  "Yes thank you Rhee, also things will be quiet here this afternoon with me away, please take the rest of the day off after I leave."

  Rhee beamed with excitement, he had worked for Kim for three years and done his utmost to shine in the most boring of support jobs, but perhaps he had finally been recognized, "thank you sir, I will go and visit my parents."

  "Rhee, until then, I am working on a most important assignment, I am not to be disturbed for any reason, do you understand?"

  "Of course sir, I will see to it."

  Kim had a lot of thinking to do

  Chapter 56

  Onchon Air Force Base

  North Korea

  02.45pm

  * * *

  Kim’S RIDE was waiting for him outside his office building when he strode out carrying his briefcase in his left hand and his flight case in his right.

  The colonel’s uniform opens a lot of doors in North Korea, and he was ushered into the tack room and was in a flight suit in a matter of minutes.

  He was in the left seat of the trainer five minutes later, and was at full power on the western runway when he firmly pulled back on the stick and headed into the firmament three minutes after that.

  He reduced power for a steady climb and leveled off at fifteen thousand feet, twenty five miles from the airfield. He made the minimum radio calls required.

  Then Kim made his final decision.

  He made a mayday call on his regular frequency, then switched his radio frequency to the international distress frequency and made a similar call.

  Instead of turning right when he crossed the coast, he turned left, applied full power and dove for the ground. The old plane shook as he pulled back on the stick, he hoped the old wings would stand the 4g shock and leveled out at one hundred and fifty feet. Low flying took a great deal of skill, and Kim was concentrating hard to miss the waves splashing below. This old bird had none of the modern navigation aids of terrain following radar guidance.

  North Korea had been paranoid about attack from the south. It’s ageing Chinese and Russian radars were the spotters for their missile racks. Kim was betting that they were not expecting traffic south, or that they simple were switched off or inoperable, either way, Kim was right.

  It is less then two hundred miles from Pyongyang to Seoul, even less from the military airfield east of the city. As he was approaching the border to the south, he made another mayday call on the international frequency, climbed to five thousand feet and throttled back to two hundred knots.

  From the border it is only forty eight miles to the nearest military airbase.

  Two minutes later he was joined by a pair of US made F-15K Slam Eagles in South Korean livery. They shook their wings, the international sign for follow me.

  Kim breathed a huge sign of relief and followed his guardian angels to freedom.

  As soon as Kim had taxied to a stop at the military airfield, his aircraft was surrounded by soldiers waving M-16s.

  He shut down his engines for the last time, and climbed down slowly and announced in passable English "I am Colonel Kim of the Korean People’s Army Air force, I have important information, and request asylum in the United States."

  Chapter 57

  Osan Air force Base

  Seoul, South Korea

  * * *

  KIM WAS treated courteously, but was still kept under armed guard at all times, even when changing out of his flight suit.

  He was given a simple meal and some tea. Kim had plenty of time and was not at all impatient. He had been waiting the best part of two hours when the door to the small office he was sitting in opened and the tallest man he had ever seen entered. His guards took this as their cue to wait outside.

  "Colonel Kim, I am John Daley from the United States Embassy in Seoul. I understand you are requesting political asylum in the United States" said Daley in a slow Texan drawl.

  "Thank you for coming Mister Daley, how soon can I go to the

  United States?" replied Kim in even slower English.

  "Colonel, things like this take some time, even if asylum is granted, it will take weeks to make the arrangements"

  "I understand Mister Daley, but this will not take that long to happen I am certain" said a confident Kim.

  "I have some knowledge that I must pass on to your President immediately. I will speak only to your President in person, and only after I have a written offer of asylum in the U.S."

  "Dream on buddy, that’s just not going to happen, if that’s your attitude, I recommend you climb back into that rust bucket of an aircraft and fly on home!" commented the loud Texan.

  "Mister Daley, please explain to your superiors that there is a Russian nuclear weapon involved, it will open some doors I think. Please communicate quickly. I don’t think you want to be held responsible for the sudden death of tens of thousands of your countrymen." Kim crossed his arms as if to say that was the last word.

  Daley ran out the door of the office without another word.

  He immediately called his superior, who called his superior. He in turn called his superior, who turned out to be the United States Commander-in-Chief, President Connolly.

  Chapter 58

  Back Streets

  Moscow, Russia

  6.30am

  * * *

  "HERE IS a map I have drawn for you so you don’t get lost" said Natasha. "Go out the front door, turn left and go about a kilometer then turn left. You will go over a bridge, and one of the few parks in this part of town. Then left again at the big gas tanks and then left back onto our street here" explained Natasha pointing to her hand drawn map.

  "Ok, sounds fine to me. SARTIME is 8am" said Matt as he took off out the door and down the stairs.

  Matt was making a better pace than the previous day. He had passed the bridge and the park. As he was approaching the gas tanks, Matt turned and ran right into a short but well muscled individual.

  He started to apologize in Russian, when he noticed the man held a knife and was pushing Matt back between the gas tanks.

  "Give me your phone and watch" said the man in gutter Russian. Matt remembered the tracking device in the phone and remembered the potential importance to his mission.

  Without even thinking, Matt stepped forward toward his attacker and pushed the man’s knife hand away with both his forearms in a blocking move, taking the man by surprise. Matt took another half step forward with his right foot, behind the legs of the knifeman, whilst grasping the attacker’s right wrist with his left hand. Then Matt did a palm strike to the adversary’s chin which made his tripping move even more effective. The attacker went down head first, banging his head on the ground and rendering him unconscious. Next, Matt remembered his training without a thought. Always disarm your opponent. This was drummed in to him at The Farm. When he searched the man he found a lethal looking pistol in a pancake holster behind his back. This seemed a little odd to Matt, but nevertheless he grabbed the pistol and the knife and
stuck them in his pockets. Next he checked that the guy was not dead. There was a pulse and this was enough for Matt.

  He took off in an adrenaline rush and made it back to the apartment in almost double time, with only a quick stop to throw the gun and knife down a drain.

  "What happened to you?" Natasha asked as Matt looked a little disheveled.

  Matt explained exactly what happened, and was duly proud of his effort. This was the first time in his life he had ever hit someone in anger.

  "See Matt, I told you Russia is not safe. I am glad you are ok. You must be very careful, nothing is quite what it seems here" Natasha warned.

  Chapter 59

  FSB (ex-KGB) Headquarters

  Lubyanka Square

  Moscow, Russia

  October 16

  * * *

  MATT HAD heard rumors of the torture chambers under the complex, and was extremely surprised with Natasha lead him down endless dark damp stairs right to the bottom.

  She was casually dressed in jeans and a button-up shirt. One more button was undone than yesterday, showing off her ample cleavage. Matt reluctantly glanced away from the view, feeling that it would be better to keep some distance from this woman, despite the undercurrent of attraction that he felt, and hoped was mutual.

  There was a steel door that Natasha opened with two keys and they found themselves at the start of a long stone corridor with what looked like cells on each side.

  Next, she opened the second door on the left and the cell was full of heavy filing cabinets. Once again Natasha selected the correct key, and he pulled open the old cabinet which groaned under the weight of the drawer that slid out.