by T C Miller
“Yes, I am sending you some chemicals with instructions for precise use. They act very slowly and mimic diseases that are common in older men. I will let you know when you are to begin applying them to the Director’s food and drink.”
“You should know I will find that difficult to do…I have developed an affinity for the old man.”
“Will it unduly complicate matters?”
“No. I will, however, anticipate an unusually high bonus to help assuage my grief.”
“Considering the level of interest in the matter, I believe they will reward you quite well.”
“Good. I enjoy my association with the Commission. They understand the value of both hard work and loyalty.”
“Indeed they do. There is one thing of the utmost importance regarding the chemicals…You must follow the dosing instructions to the letter. We don’t want him to die, but to be sick enough to keep him away from the office for a few weeks. His weakened constitution should leave him a little addled and easier to control.”
“That would also put Hawkins in charge during his absence,” Justin replied. “Which might prove quite favorable for the Commission.”
“Ah, yes, Hawkins…of the Kennebunkport Hawkins…He attained the position of Deputy Director because of his family’s connections…Most people consider him to be barely adequate for the position.”
“That is true. I, on the other hand, have worked hard to maintain a cordial working relationship with him in case he became the Director…acting or otherwise. He trusts and occasionally confides in me.”
“Excellent…We are close to compromising him and should soon have him under control…Keep that in mind if he confides in you about the consequences of illegal gambling and the company of women his daughter’s age…I don’t think he’ll be an impediment to our operation.”
“When do you want me to start administering the drugs to the Director?”
“I’ll get back to you on the timing…but it should be very soon…We have a number of ongoing operations that would benefit from the impairment of his faculties.”
“I see. Are there any other matters that would benefit from my involvement?”
“Not at the moment. Keep us apprised of the situation in California…Also, to respond to your earlier consternation…I wouldn’t have called you at the office if you had filed a timely report.”
“I thought you would want me to wait until the operation reached a stalemate.”
“May I remind you that you’re only an operative and not a manager…Resume filing daily reports.”
“Understood. I will inform you if anything comes into the office regarding the California project…Now, if there is nothing else, I must get back before I’m missed.”
“That is all.” The phone let out a slight squeal as the encryption algorithm was left with no signal from the other end.
Need to revisit my escape plan. He turned onto a wide boulevard and drove toward the campus of the NSA and some of the most critical secrets of the nation. A nondescript sedan tailed him at a discreet distance
UNKNOWN LOCATION NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
“You must be quiet or we will be in much trouble.” The girls huddled together in a corner of the dank room , hugging each other or themselves. Their worn clothing offered little comfort in the damp basement and some of them shivered, either from fear or their surroundings. The only light came from two small vents.
“You don’t understand, they will beat us if we make noise…You have been here only short time…You do not know how cruel they can be.”
“I don’t care and I don’t want to be here any longer. I think we should jump the guard the next time he comes in…There are enough of us to take him.”
“Except he has gun…We have no weapon and we are but children…You must watch too many heroic American movies.”
“Can’t just give up…We have to try to escape.”
“And then what will we do? We will be shot…or worse.”
“So what? I’d rather be dead than face what may happen.” She resumed banging on the door with her fists and yelling, “Let us out…You can’t do this to me…I’m an American citizen…”
CANNERY GROUNDS
SEAWIND BAY, CALIFORNIA Bart cautiously rounded the corner of the cannery, with his team closely behind. He keyed his mike. “Team One Leader, what’s your 20?”
“Northeast corner of the power plant building by the big water tower…Pinned down by fire from the transportation barn.”
“Coming around the southwest corner of the cannery…See you now.” Onkst and three of his men were crouched down behind the solid base of the water tower by withering fire from an electrically-operated mini gun. Capable of firing four thousand rounds per minute, it was throwing enough lead, even in short bursts, to keep them from advancing on the building. “Gee, Red Ranger, guess you found ‘em.”
“Apparently,” Onkst replied. “Do I get a prize?” “Sure…Bad news is it’s in the building.”
“Story of my life…so what’s next?”
“Hoping you had the answer…”
Jake crouched off to the side listening to them while keeping
an eye on the transportation barn. “Boss…Hate to butt in…Have you noticed something?”
“What?”
“Fire is perfectly timed…Know it sounds weird, but I’ve been timing it…Fires for exactly five seconds…Pauses for ten then repeats…Like it’s on a timer.”
They listened intently. “Damn, son, believe you’re right…Never heard anybody fire like that.”
“Me neither…Got my attention…And look where it’s firing…Straight out a window…Same direction all the time…Like it’s not being aimed.”
“Well, I’ll be…”
“If it’s okay with you, Boss, I’ll run over to that truck…See if the fire follows me.”
“Risky…Could nail you before you got there.”
“Yeah, but if I’m right…”
“Cut you in half if you’re wrong…But I see you’re bound and determined to prove a point, so go ahead and we’ll cover. Ready when you are.”
“Soon as the next rounds stop…Now.”
Jake darted out from behind the concrete wall in a serpentine pattern and headed for the double-axle steel wheels of the truck. The others began firing at the building and it was pockmarked with hundreds of bullet holes in less than a minute. Jake ducked behind the cover of the truck and signaled that he was okay.
Bart keyed his mike. “Cease fire. Good instinct as usual. Mini gun didn’t change action…Looks like we got ourselves a robot gun.”
“Roger that. Now if you join me…think we can move in around the side.”
“Copy. Team One, move up in sequence…See if it draws fire. On my mark, go.”
Jake moved from the cover of the truck to a four-foot high retaining wall ten feet from the building while Bob Onkst took his place behind the truck wheels. Like a choreographed dance done to the bursts of fire, he joined Jake while another team member moved up to the truck. The others continued firing at the building while the mini gun continued the steady sequence of fire and rest.
Bart was the last figure to join the assemblage behind the wall. “Good work, y’all…Now let’s give ‘em somethin’ to think about.” He pulled a frag grenade from a pouch on his tactical vest, yanked out the pin and tossed it through a window as he ducked behind the wall with the others. The blast shattered most of the windows in the building and the mini gun fire abruptly stopped.
“Guess that’s that.”
Heads nodded in agreement and Onkst replied, “We’ll clear the building.”
“How ‘bout we all go in together…except one member to cover our six?”
“You’re the man with the plan…Duran, cover us.” “Sure thing, Gunny.”
One by one, they moved up to the metal building. The acrid smell of Cordite and smoke from the grenade poured out of every opening in the building and hung around it in a cloud. The on
ly sound coming from within was the ticking of the six mini gun barrels as they cooled.
Onkst dropped a flash-bang through one of the shattered windows and they waited for a response. None came and he led them through what was left of a side door in single file SWAT formation. Smoke and dust swirled in what was once a dispatch office. The mini gun lay on its side on top of a desk pointed out a window. A control unit with a timer and a motion detector was plugged into an electrical outlet and a cable ran to the gun. “Nice call.”
Jake nodded and moved toward a door on the opposite side of the room. He started to move through the door, but Bart held him back. “You’ve taken point enough…I’ll take this one.”
A member of TRT-1 moved up behind them. “Let me take point, Colonel…I owe you.”
Bart looked down at the name tag on the TRT uniform. “Owe you? Don’t think we’ve ever met before…” Bart stepped through the doorway and his lead foot broke a tripwire. Two strong hands on his shoulders pulled him back behind the wall of the room as an explosive charge on the other side detonated. The force of the blast blew pieces of wallboard, smoke and dust into the room.
Bart stood up coughing. “Well, pardner, that was prophetic, indeed…Really do owe you now…Think you just saved my life.”
“More like we’re even…You saved mine before.”
“Can’t be…Like I said, don’t know you.”
“Maybe not well, but you do.” Carl took off his balaclava mask.
“Damn, son, you look a lot like Bill Johnson…Cop who used to work for me…Can’t be…he’s dead.”
Gunny spoke up, “Sorry, Colonel, didn’t get a chance to introduce you to our newest member, Carl Dean…formerly Bill Johnson.”
“Thanks, Bill, or Carl, or whatever your name is…Sure appreciate it.”
“No problem, sir…Call me Carl.”
“Sure enough. Okay, let’s check out the rest of the building…Be sure to clear it for booby-traps as we go.” Bart picked up his rifle, patted Carl on the shoulder and moved cautiously through the shattered doorway. “Thanks again…uh, Carl.”
Other team members followed them into the largest room in the structure—a cavernous space once used to repair vehicles, but now empty. The smell of old grease and worn tires permeated the air. Overhead doors at the front and rear were big enough for tractor trailers to pass through. The rear door stood open and a driveway beyond led straight to the highway.
“Man, I’m getting tired of this.” The frustration in Bart’s voice was clear. “Looks like they got away while we were clearing the rest of the site. Do a final sweep of the area and meet in front of the cannery building for a debrief.”
***
CHAPTER 28
Bart stared at the downcast looks of the team members assembled in a semicircle around him. “I know some of you suffered minor injuries that need to be treated, so I’ll keep this short. We’ll do final reports back at the office tomorrow. Meantime, thank you for your hard work…You performed well under difficult conditions. We did some good work today…A smuggling ring that’s done serious damage to national security’s on the run…Can’t hide from us forever. I know you’re disappointed we missed our ultimate objective…That’ll be the subject of post-op research and analysis. But no one can say we didn’t give it our all.” A member of TRT-1 raised his hand.
“Question?”
“No, sir, more like a comment…Wasn’t too sure about
working with your team, since you’re new…Gotta tell you though, they sure know their stuff.”
Mumbled comments agreed with the assessment.
“Thanks, mighty kind of you…All were hand-picked for their skills.”
“Yes, sir…They can watch my six anytime, and I’ll watch theirs…especially Davies.” He realized his words came out wrong and stammered, “What I mean is, she’s one tough mama…Wait, wrong, too…”
Bart smiled. “Suggest you stop while you’re behind, Jeff.”
“Okay, how about the toughest woman I’ve ever seen in a firefight…You too, ma’am.”
His last comment was directed to Nora.
“Why, thank you, AgentSchrock…you’re too kind.”
“The truth, ma’am.”
Joanna raised her hand and spoke, “Something hasn’t been cleared up yet…the whole Druid thing. Jake and I walked past the building yesterday and it’s beautiful…But why would Peters be willing to kill to get it?…I mean, it’s only a building…So what’s the big deal?”
“Don’t know,” Bart replied. “Maybe we should take a closer look at the building now that we have probable cause. I’ll call Banner and get a search warrant…”
“Not necessary,” Onkst interjected. “I know you’re used to conventional law enforcement, but we don’t do things quite the same way…I happen to have half a dozen blank warrants in my pocket for moments like this…Why don’t we head on in to town for a look-see?”
“This place looks even spookier at night,” Joanna whispered to Jake as they stood in front of the Druid Building.
“Could be the empty streets.”
“It is late at that. Colonel, what you want us to do?” “TRT-2 has the cannery secured. TRT-1 is coming up the
cliff from the beach to secure the back of the building. Soon as they’re in place, we’ll go in…though it looks empty. No lights and the place is locked up tight.”
“Team One Leader to BSOG Leader, over.”
“BSOG Leader.”
“Back of the building is secure, and we’re standing by…Left
two men guarding a tunnel hidden in the cliff below that allows access to the beach, over.” “We’ll check it out after we sweep the building…Send two of your men around front to secure the street.”
“Copy that…On their way, over.”
“We’ll go in soon as they’re here.”
A few minutes later, the two members of Team One took up positions on either side of the building. Jake used his picks on the front door without success and Bart motioned for him to step aside.
“Sure hate to ruin this fine craftsmanship, but we need to get in there.” He fired half a dozen rounds into the area around the lock and the door popped open. “Jake, take point…Joanna, you’re with him. Nora and I’ll clean up.”
They worked their way through offices and a meeting room, encountered no one and met back in the meeting room. Dark paneling and subdued lighting gave the impression of a church or a corporate boardroom. A crystal chandelier hung from a fourteen foot ceiling in a space big enough to seat thirty or forty people. “What now, boss?”
“Don’t know, Jake…”
Nora broke in, “Building sits on a stone foundation that follows the cliff down. Onkst says they may have found a tunnel further down the cliff, which seems to indicate a basement…So where’s the access point?”
“Got me…Anybody see a stairway?”
They shook their heads, and Joanna finally spoke up, “I know this is gonna sound like some Agatha Christie novel…But what about a hidden staircase?”
“Kind of thinking I like,” Bart replied. “Search the first floor again. Look for wall panels that seem a little out of place, bookshelves that have scrape marks on the floor in front of them…And don’t forget to look under rugs for trapdoors.”
They split up and began another search of every room in the building.
Fifteen minutes later they heard a muffled summons from the kitchen and gathered in the center of the commercial-sized room to figure out where Joanna was.
“In here, y’all.” Joanna’s voice emanated from a walk-in pantry adjacent to the kitchen. Bart pushed the door open and found her standing in the middle of a stark-white, eight-by-ten room lined with shelves filled with canned goods and food preparation equipment. The smell of spices filled the air.
“What in the world are you so excited about, girl?” “Come in and close the door.”
They complied and she hit the light switch to throw the
room into darkness.
Bart finally asked, “What am I supposed to see?” “Give your eyes a minute to adjust, then look at the base of
the shelves.”
“I see it,” Nora exclaimed. “A crack of light…like the room
they held us in.”
“Bingo.” Joanna turned the light back on and pointed to a
section of shelves. “Haven’t been able to find a latch…Pretty
sure there’s one someplace.”
“Over there.” Jake pointed to a fuse box. “Looks like they
rewired this building recently…Shouldn’t be any fuse boxes left
in here.” He popped open the plain gray metal cover to reveal a
single switch in the off position. A quick flick in the other
direction produced a clicking sound and a tug on the bookcase
pulled it open to show a lit staircase leading downward. Jake slid the charging rod back on his rifle to load a round
into the chamber. “How you wanna do this, sir?”
“I’ll take point…you follow…with Joanna last. Nora, if
you’ll cover our sixes…”
“Hold on there, big guy…Any of you speak fluent
Russian?” Nobody replied so she continued, “I should be going
down there if you think there might be any Russians. After all, I
was the one who went to Monterey and took the Russian course
at DLI.”
“Good point, darlin’. Joanna, take her place up here while
we check it out.”
“Yes, sir.” Damn…was hoping for more action.
The staircase descended to a landing, turned right, and after another descent led to a narrow hallway with closed doors set at intervals. Jake moved to the opposite side of the first doorway and waited for Bart to get into position. Nora hung back to provide cover down the hallway.
Bart turned the knob and pushed the door open all the way. The room contained two bunk beds and a pipe suspended from the ceiling with women’s clothing hanging on it.
