Helius Legacy

by S Alexander O'keefe

  Caine smiled in spite of the growing anxiety in his gut. The balance of power had just shifted. If Andrea was still alive, they had the firepower to get her back and then some.

  When Caine walked back into the warehouse after loading the last box of ammunition for the C9 into the Suburban, he noticed that Ricard was leaning over the table in the room pointing at the series of maps and pictures they’d obtained earlier, and Vlasky was standing beside him, listening. As he walked over to the sink to get a drink, Caine realized what had been bothering him about Ricard. The Colonel had always been on the lean side, but he looked almost emaciated in the glow of the overhead lights. Caine wondered whether he’d been sick. If that was the case, it didn’t seem to be affecting his concentration or stamina. He was as sharp as ever.

  As he looked around the room, Caine was surprised at how quickly each man had fallen into the old routine. Jaq and Caine were checking the weapons, Pietro was working on the communications gear, the optical equipment, and his new sniper rifle—the Barrett, and Ricard and Vlasky were putting together the rescue plan.

  As Caine walked across the room to retrieve a bottle of water, a realization struck him: the other members of the unit had come to help him, but there was more to it. He could see it in their eyes. They wanted to recapture, for a short time—maybe the last time—the terrible intensity, adrenaline, and even the fear they’d left behind years ago. Caine suddenly realized that he did as well. He hoped they felt the same after it was all over.

  Caine didn’t realize that Ricard had quietly walked over to him, until he looked up. For a moment the two men looked at each other. It was as if Ricard knew exactly what Caine was thinking and wanted to set the record straight, before it was too late.

  “Every man in this room chose to be here. You carry no responsibility for what will happen tonight, good or ill. You must accept that or you will put yourself and every man in this room at risk. More, you will dishonor their choice.”

  Ricard’s admonition cut Caine to the quick. Ricard couldn’t know about Caine’s inner demon, but it was almost as if he could sense the fear. Caine looked at Ricard and nodded.

  “Yes, sir.”

  CHAPTER

  FIFTY-TWO

  Travis County, Texas

  December 8, 1999 / Wednesday / 1:45 a.m.

  Andrea was bound to a wooden office chair in a dusty storage building at the far end of the compound. The old chair was made of oak, and the undercarriage, which rotated, was made of wood and iron. Her hands were handcuffed behind her. The chain that held the cuffs together was woven through the thick wooden slats that formed the back of the chair. The bottom half of the chair was chained to a nearby steel desk that easily weighed three hundred pounds.

  Although she wasn’t particularly uncomfortable, the wait was driving her crazy. She wanted to stand up, to walk, to do something. Where is Caine? Why isn’t he here with the police? As she leaned over in the chair to try to get a better view through the hole, the door to the building opened. She couldn’t see the man’s face in the dark, but she recognized the outline. It was Anders. He closed the door and sauntered over to the steel desk beside her chair. When he reached the desk, he sat on the edge and stretched his legs out in front of him. Anders pulled out a pack of cigarettes, tapped one out of the pack, and flicked on his lighter. He put the flame inches from her face. Andrea flinched away, but refused to look up at him. “So how’s my little babe doin’ all by her lonesome in heah? Gittin’ a little anxious, are we? Yer probably missin’ me.”

  Andrea stared straight ahead.

  “Well, don’t you fret, honey. I’ll be back right quick. Me and the boys just have to kill your little boyfriend, and then there’ll be plenty of time for us to cozy up.”

  Andrea froze and then looked over at Anders. There was a smile on his face. What is he talking about? He couldn’t know about Caine, or could …

  Anders smiled widened, as if he knew her every thought.

  “Oh yeah, darlin’, we know about your little phone call, or should I say fax call. Yes, sir. We’re expecting Mr. Caine to make his appearance anytime now. ’Course, when he does, we’re gonna have to burn his ass, but then that’s jest too bad, ain’t it.”

  Anders’s voice became harsher as he continued.

  “You see, Miss smart-ass lawyer, we’re not as stupid as you assumed. We put that old fax machine in there for you to find. We knew you’d make the call and Mr. Dudley Do-Right would come a runnin’ … right into this trap we got all set up for him.”

  Anders was leaning over Andrea now, and his face was inches from her own. His words were harsh and gloating.

  “Smart thinking, bitch. You just bought your Mr. Caine an early grave.”

  Then the leer returned to his crude features.

  “’Course, that means we’ll have some quality time to get to know each other, at least until we put your ass into the same hole as Caine. But then, life’s a bitch and then you die.”

  Anders stood up when he finished, and walked to the door. He paused at the door and spoke without turning around.

  “And just for your information, Caine ain’t bringing the boys in blue with him. He’s ridin’ solo on this run.”

  Then he walked out and slammed the door.

  Andrea’s throat was suddenly impossibly dry, and she had to struggle to swallow. Anders was right. She’d underestimated them. The man with the European accent had played her for a fool and John was going to die for it. A wave of recrimination and powerlessness washed over her. For a moment, she almost began to cry hysterically, but squelched the feeling. She wasn’t dead yet. There had to be a way out.

  CHAPTER

  FIFTY-THREE

  Travis County, Texas

  December 8, 1999 / Wednesday / 3:30 a.m.

  The five men were lying prone behind the crest of a hill, about six hundred yards south of the compound. They’d been watching the site for two hours with two pairs of night-vision binoculars and a Swarovski spotting scope. There were three larger structures in the compound: a narrow three-story building at the western end, a large estate in the middle, and a smaller house at the eastern end. There were also two smaller structures. A one-room building on the eastern side of the smaller house, and a small barn in between the smaller house and the northern wall.

  The unit had been able to identify three armed observation posts within the compound. The first post, designated Post One, was on the roof of the three-story structure at the western end. Two men were lying on the roof, one facing southwest and the other facing northeast. Each man was armed with an M-16. Post Two was in the cupola on the roof of the main house. Two men occupied that position as well, but it was impossible to identify their weapons in the darkness. Post Three was located in the second floor of the house near the eastern end of the compound. The interior of the house was completely dark, but three of the windows on the second floor were open. Since it was forty-five degrees outside, the windows were a dead giveaway.

  Ricard’s first objective had been to identify Andrea’s location and confirm that she was still alive. Fortunately, one of men in the compound had solved the problem two hours earlier by lighting a cigarette inside the one-room building closest to the eastern wall. The flame from the lighter had illuminated the room for a fraction of a second, giving the unit a clear view of Andrea through a tear in a window shade.

  The second objective was putting together a viable rescue plan. The bad news was they were attempting to gain access to a fortified position defended by occupants who were expecting an incursion. The good news was the three fire positions in the compound had been laid out to maximize the occupants’ ability to kill Caine, not to protect Andrea. If they could reach Andrea and separate her from the enemy before a fight started, their prospects for success improved dramatically.

  The third objective was a part of the second—finding an extraction point that would get them out of the compound safely. The only exit from the compound was at the western end,
and Andrea was being held at the far eastern end. Using that gate as an extraction point would expose them to fire from all three gun positions if they were discovered. Infiltrating and extracting over the eastern wall would eliminate that risk, but it was also the most obvious route. They had to assume that entry point would be closely watched.

  The terrain to the east also presented a challenge. The wall, which was eight feet tall, bordered a steep ravine. Getting over that wall and down the slope in the dark, without injury, wouldn’t be easy under optimum conditions. Taking that route with a drugged or injured hostage, possibly under heavy fire, would be suicide.

  As Caine scanned the compound for the hundredth time, memorizing every detail, his earlier confidence waned. Taking back a hostage by force was always high-risk. It only takes a second to put a bullet into the hostage’s head. Negotiation was almost always the prudent course, but that wasn’t an option here. These kidnappers weren’t interested in ransom. Killing the hostage and the rescuer was the end game.

  The plan Ricard developed was based upon a simple ruse that exploited the enemy’s expectations and lack of intel regarding who they were facing on the other side of the wall. The men in the compound were expecting Caine to try to infiltrate the compound by stealth, and this is exactly what they would see. Vlasky would serve as the decoy, approaching the compound from the south using the long, straight ravine that passed by the eastern wall. Vlasky would give the men inside the compound enough visual sightings to keep their attention, but not enough to give them a target.

  The men in the compound would expect Caine to follow the ravine to the point where it was closest to the eastern wall of the compound and make his insertion there. This wouldn’t happen. About two hundred yards from the wall, the ravine passed behind a hill, making it invisible to the ranch for the next fifty yards. Once Vlasky reached this cover, he would race up the backside of the hill and set up the C9A1 behind the crest. This position would give Vlasky the ability to directly engage the three gun positions in the compound.

  Pietro would be positioned on a second hill just to the west of Vlasky, about four hundred yards from the compound. He would use the Barrett rifle to provide surgical fire support, and his position would serve as the unit’s communications base.

  Once they were sure that Vlasky had been spotted approaching the compound from the southeast, Caine and Jaq would enter the compound over the north wall. Caine would make his way to the building where Andrea was located, while Jaq provided rear cover. Once Andrea was secured, Caine and Andrea would return to the north wall.

  Since they couldn’t find an acceptable extraction point, Ricard would create one. A section of the north wall was riven by a large crack that expanded into a fissure as it approached the top of the wall. At certain points, the opening was large enough to see through. Ricard would use the C-4 to blow a hole in the wall, allowing them to exit from the compound.

  Once Andrea was secured, Pietro would leave his location and bring the Suburban around to the northern wall to pick up Andrea, Caine, Ricard, and Jaq. Vlasky would be picked up on the way out of the area. If everything went according to plan, the whole operation should take thirty minutes from start to finish.

  CHAPTER

  FIFTY-FOUR

  Travis County, Texas

  December 8, 1999 / Wednesday / 4:00 a.m.

  Paquin had set up three fire positions within the compound. Severino, Anders, and Cochrane were located at the southern end of the ranch on the second floor of an old guest house. From that location, they could cover the approaches to the southern third of the compound.

  Vargas and the two ex-Nicaraguan soldiers manned the fire position at the opposite end of the ranch. This position was located on top of what used to be the servants’ quarters in the northwestern corner of the compound. The two Nicaraguan soldiers were lying on the flat roof of the structure. Each man was armed with an M-16. Vargas was inside the building, which was dark, armed with an Uzi.

  The third position was located in the cupola on the roof of the main house. The two men in the cupola were former members of Mexico’s national police force, the Policia Nacional Federales. They’d been sent to Paquin by a contact within the Mexican government. The contact described the men as corrupt but capable. Paquin disliked using unknown resources, but he had little choice in the matter. He needed mercenaries on short notice, who were willing to kill for money, without asking questions. The two ex-Federales fit those requirements.

  Paquin’s command center was in the large study on the second floor, directly below the cupola. He had expected Caine to try to infiltrate the perimeter of the compound at no later than four in the morning. Night vision equipment had been issued to all three fire positions in anticipation of this strategy. As the hours ticked by and each position gave the mandatory “all clear” sign every twenty minutes, Paquin had become increasingly apprehensive. When the digital clock on his desk turned over to 4:00 a.m., he stood up and walked over to the window facing the east side of the compound. He looked through a small break in the curtains at the distant horizon. Sunrise at this time of year was another three hours away, but the sky was already starting to gray. If Caine was coming, he needed the darkness.

  For over ten years, Paquin had laid traps for defectors, spies, smugglers, and your average East German trying to escape to the West. The wait had always been the most difficult part of the process, particularly when the time window began to close and the quarry failed to show. He knew that it was a waste of time to obsess over what could have been done differently, but he found himself doing it anyway.

  Caine had received the bait. He knew where the woman was being held and he knew that they would eventually kill her. If he wanted to save Andrea Marenna, he had only one choice. He had to take her back by force. The only unknown was whether Caine would risk everything for the woman. He had other options—safe, rational options. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe—

  Cochrane’s voice crackled over the microphone on his desk.

  “Station One here, I think I have contact. Yes, sir, I definitely have contact.”

  Paquin walked backed to the desk and picked up the microphone.

  “Control here. What location? And how many?”

  “I only see one, and he’s coming up the ravine to the southeast, sir. It’s got to be our boy. He’s wearing cammos and his face is all blacked up … and from the size of the pack he’s carrying, I’d say this hombre is loaded for bear.”

  “You’re sure he’s alone?” Paquin said, his voice insistent.

  “Yes, sir,” Cochrane answered.

  “Control here. Station Three, do you have a visual?”

  Vargas’s voice came back.

  “Not yet, sir. There’s a rise blocking our view. We should pick him up in about thirty yards.”

  A wave of relief washed over Paquin. He’d planned every last detail of the operation. A hundred things could have gone wrong, but none of them had. Caine was here. Now they just had to put him down.

  Paquin pressed the transmit button.

  “Stay on him. Let me know when he gets to within fifty yards of the wall. No one is to take any action except on my order. Is that clear?”

  “Station One, clear.”

  “Station Two, clear.”

  “Station Three, clear.”

  CHAPTER

  FIFTY-FIVE

  Travis County, Texas

  December 8, 1999 / Wednesday / 4:05 a.m.

  The base station for the two-way mobile radio system they were using for communications was located on the hill occupied by Pietro, about four hundred yards from the compound. Each man was outfitted with an earpiece, a throat mic, and a push-to-transmit actuator. The PTT was clipped to Caine’s chest. Caine heard Pietro’s voice over the mic.

  “Tango here. They’ve taken the bait. All eyes are on Zulu.” Caine nodded to himself. They’d spotted Vlasky’s approach.

  Caine heard Ricard’s voice over the mic.

  “Delta and Ech
o, you are go, repeat, you are go.”

  “This is Delta, roger that, Alpha,” Caine answered.

  Caine heard Jaq’s voice a second later. “Echo here. We are go.”

  Caine looked forty yards down the wall, where he could just see Jaq’s outline in the darkness. Caine turned to the wall and threw a grapple over the top, checked the hold, and went up the wall. Thirty seconds later, both men dropped into a crouch on the other side of the wall and scanned the compound.

  Travis County, Texas

  December 8, 1999 / Wednesday / 4:09 a.m.

  Pietro watched Caine’s approach from a second hill to the southwest of Vlasky’s position, moving the scope alternately from Caine to the third observation post. Caine was using the limited cover available to him, but a disciplined observer looking out the rear window of the third observation point could have spotted him. They just had to hope that all the spotters in the compound were focusing on the point where they expected Vlasky to emerge from behind the hill. Pietro quickly scanned the men who were visible on top of observation points two and three; every pair of binoculars was focused on the ravine.

  Pietro looked quickly to the hill to the east and saw Vlasky setting up the C91A. Then he turned the sight back to Caine. He breathed a sigh of relief once Caine reached the eastern side of the building where Andrea was located. Now he was no longer visible from the third observation post. Seconds later, Caine reappeared, glancing around the corner of the building.

  Pietro quickly scanned Post Three. He couldn’t see any movement and moved on to Post One at the other end of the compound. To enter the building, Caine would have to come through the side door on the south side of the building. He would be shielded from Post Three by the building, but Post One would have a direct line of sight on his position. Although it was dark, if someone in Post One looked across the compound with a good pair of binoculars, at the right moment, they could spot him.