Ambush sts-15

by Keith Douglass

Domingo slapped Rosa gently on each cheek. “Rosa, do you want me to knock you off the chair with a hard slap?”

  “No.”

  “Then answer. What is the Eagle’s Nest and where is it?”

  “It’s where the leader of the Army lives. I don’t know where it is.”

  “You’re lying, Rosa. Your husband is there as one of the leader’s personal bodyguards. Where is it?”

  Rosa stared straight ahead.

  Domingo swung his right hand, palm open, and slapped her so hard it knocked her off the chair. She hit the wooden floor hard, and not having her hands to break her fall, she hit on her shoulder and the side of her head.

  Domingo nodded at Franklin. He lifted her back on the chair.

  He repeated the question. She shook her head. He hit her again, knocking her off the other side of the chair.

  When Franklin picked her up, she was crying.

  “Strip her to the waist,” Domingo ordered. It wasn’t a request; it was a general talking to a yeoman second. Franklin used his knife to slice the buttons off a colored blouse, then cut the bra straps and cut the blouse to get it off without untying her hands, then threw the clothing on the floor. At first she tried to hunch her shoulders to hide her breasts.

  “Now, we get down to the interesting forms of interrogation,” Domingo said. Rosa screeched at him in Filipino. He shouted back at her in the same tongue.

  She stopped the words, and began screaming. Domingo took her blouse and jammed it into her mouth.

  “Rosa, what would your husband do if he found you had only one breast?” Domingo held out his hand, and Franklin gave him his own carefully honed KA-BAR fighting knife. Domingo grabbed one of her breasts and drew a thin bloodline across the top. He let it go. Rosa looked down at the blood, spat out the gagging blouse, and screamed again. Domingo slapped her quickly twice and she stopped.

  “Young lady, I was fighting Moros and other guerrillas when you were a child. I’ve cut off men’s genitals and sent them back to their wives. I’ve cut all sorts of pieces off prisoners urging them to cooperate on sharing information. I can do the same thing to you. One last time. What is the Eagle’s Nest and where is it?”

  Rosa sobbed silently for a moment, then stared hard at him.

  “It is where our leader lives, his retreat. It is on the mountain about ten miles north of here and up in the hills overlooking the sea. Some say it is six miles from the waves.”

  “Now, that wasn’t so hard, was it, Rosa? Is that where they took the last eighteen hostages this morning?”

  “I don’t know.”

  General Domingo stared hard at her. “I believe you,” he said. “Now, how many rebels in town?”

  “Only eight.”

  “Where are they?”

  “Some in stores, offices.”

  “Call them all. Tell them there is a special meeting here in ten minutes. Have them come here.”

  Franklin handed her the blouse. He untied her hands, and she shrugged into it. It was cut so much that it didn’t cover her.

  “I have another blouse,” Rosa said.

  Domingo motioned them away. Franklin went out the door with her and watched her put on the new blouse. She didn’t turn her back as she slipped it on. Franklin let her go to her desk; then he checked it and found a knife and two small handguns. He took them all.

  “Make the calls, now,” Franklin said. “Don’t warn them in any way, or I’ll shoot you, just the way I killed that man in the office.”

  “Speak in English,” Domingo said.

  She made the calls, took no arguments, gave no reasons, just told them to be at the police station in ten minutes.

  Canzoneri had checked out the rest of the building. There was a small jail in back, three cells, and in each was a real police officer. He let them out and told them what was happening. They said they would help. Two officers stood on one side of the main door. They locked both rear doors. When the first rebel came in he was dressed in a summer suit, and went down hard when one of the policemen slammed the butt of his pistol down on the man’s head.

  The next three were held under guns, put on the floor, and tied. When the fifth one came in, he was suspicious and already had a revolver in his hand. He saw the men on the floor and lifted the weapon, but Domingo put two .45 slugs into his chest and he went down and died a minute later.

  The next three came in quickly, and were put on the floor and tied. One of the policemen seemed to be in charge. He had sergeant’s stripes, and grinned when the last rebel was down.

  “They steamed in here three days ago and took over,” the man said. “Oh, I’m Sergeant Esteban. I’m in charge here. Not a lot to do, but the rebels wanted a town, I guess.”

  “The Eagle’s Nest,” Domingo said.

  “Yes, a rich man’s estate high up on the edge of the mountain about ten miles north of town. I’m not sure who owns it now. He comes in sometimes for supplies. We get everything in here by boat. We built a pier, but it isn’t long enough for big boats.”

  “Now all we have to do is decide what we do next,” General Domingo said. “How do we get word to Murdock? How do we get back through those roadblocks? They will be waiting for us now.”

  He went over to Rosa. She sat at her desk, not moving, not looking at anyone. “Rosa, how many guards does your leader have at his Eagle’s Nest?”

  “Fifty, my husband told me that.”

  “Figures,” Domingo said. Then he grinned. He took out the piece of paper and dialed the phone number. A short time later he spoke to the air base commander.

  “Colonel Romano. Did those choppers take off on time?”

  “Yes, sir, General Domingo. Armed and ready. They won’t have any trouble finding that rock house.”

  “Good. Now I want you to radio them to divert one to Lebak, down here thirty miles south of the rock house right on the coast. Also, radio the pilot to tell Commander Murdock that we believe the missing eighteen hostages are at the Eagle’s Nest, about twenty miles south of him high on the mountain cliffs.”

  “Yes, sir. I have that information.”

  “Now, I want you to send here to Lebak two more CH- 46’s with ten Rangers on each one combat ready with triple regular ammunition. Get them into the air within a half hour. Got that?”

  “Yes, sir. We have relayed the radio messages. The diverting chopper says he’ll be at Lebak in approximately thirty minutes. The other two birds won’t be there quite that fast.”

  “Thanks, Colonel. Oh, if you need me, you can call here at this number.” He gave the number of the police station and hung up.

  “Well, Sergeant. Looks like you need to get your jail cleaned up. Two bodies in the office over there. I could use some first aid and a doctor for my shoulder, and you have jail cells for these rebels. Get them moving. Rosa goes in a cell too.”

  “Eagle’s Nest?” Canzoneri asked.

  “Yeah, but first we have to find it, then figure out how to take it when they have fifty guns up there,” Franklin said.

  “Only fifty?” Canzoneri asked. “Hell, piece of cake.”

  21

  Rock House

  Mindanao West Coast

  Murdock had done everything he could think of. Juan had continued to question the prisoner until he died, but had learned nothing more.

  “Happens,” Juan said.

  Murdock ignored it. He checked with the hostages again, and all were excited about being rescued and at last getting on with their travels. Now it would be straight home for most of them. They had loved the tuna sandwiches and fruit, and Jaybird had another meal for them made from some canned meat he’d found in a storage closet. He soon found flour and potatoes, and relaxed and got ready to fix another meal for the hostages.

  They had complete security. If any of the rebels had survived and run into the jungle, they were heading somewhere else and not trying to attack the compound. Murdock found a radio in one of the upstairs bedrooms and caught up on the news. The government was still p
ressing the rebels trying to get the hostages released, informed sources in Manila reported.

  Murdock laughed. They had no more casualties. The pilot of the chopper was feeling better. Khai’s broken arm wasn’t so good, and Mahanani said it might have to be rebroken if it had started to heal crooked.

  It was after 1300, and Murdock was starting to wonder if the general and his team had had any trouble getting to Lebak. If they had, he and the platoon might have a few days to sit here waiting for a chopper.

  He was in the backyard of the place, trying to figure out if a forty-six could land in the area, when he heard the familiar whirling and churning sound of a helicopter.

  Half the SEALs appeared as if by magic when the bird came closer. Then it was right overhead. Murdock grabbed a red flare off his shoulder and lit it and tossed it in the middle of the open space behind the hostage structure.

  The pilot circled the area again, then came in upwind and gently settled the giant windmill to the ground. A cheer went up from a dozen hostages who had crowded out the door when they heard the helicopter coming in.

  The pilot let the bird run, and came out to talk with Murdock.

  “Commander, I’m Captain Jonas Virac. I have some messages for you. First the general and your two men are fine and safe. They are in Lebak. One of our birds was rerouted to Lebak. The general says that they think they know where the rest of the hostages are. In the Eagle’s Nest, which is about twenty miles south of you and ten miles north of Lebak.

  “We are supposed to take the thirty-one hostages and transport them ASAP to Davao. You will remain here for transport by the bird that is now in Lebak. Any questions?”

  “Your chopper pilot Captain Samar is a little shaken up, but in good shape. We were shot down by a sniper on the ground. He’ll go back with you on this run.”

  “Good, we’ve been worried about him. Commander, we can leave as soon as you get the people loaded on board. We have doors on the sides so we can close them and not lose anybody.”

  Murdock went into the hostage area and began sending the people two at a time out to the helicopter.

  “Take anything with you that you have. I don’t know about luggage, but I haven’t seen any.”

  “The damn rebels stole everything we owned,” one woman yelled.

  “There will be thirty-two of you and it will be close quarters, but even if you have to stand up, the flight is only for a little over forty minutes. Please help us all you can, and we’ll get you all out of here and home safely.”

  The loading took almost twenty minutes. One little lady had to be carried, and they put in a small chair for her to sit in during the trip. The thirty-two fit in snugly, but some of them found places to sit down.

  “Commander, we’re buttoned up. I may be back, not sure. All hell broke lose back at the base when we found out that other bird was overdue and unreported and that the general was on board. Then the S & R guys found the burned-out hulk and we didn’t know what to think.”

  “All’s well.”

  “Oh, the bird that went to Lebak will probably be up to get you shortly and transport you down there. That will be the staging area for a shot at the Eagle’s Nest. Good luck, Commander.”

  The CH-46’s rotors spun faster, and it lifted off smoothly, gained altitude, and turned gently so it wouldn’t upset any of the very important cargo it carried.

  Murdock waved, then looked to the south. How long would it be before the forty-six from Lebak came to haul them out south so they could look for the next eighteen hostages?

  Murdock was heading back to the main house when he heard the shots. Rifle shots from a distance. He sprinted for the corner of the rock and wood house.

  “Anyone hit by those shots?” he asked on the net.

  Jaybird shouted a warning into the mike. “More incoming,” he said, and then Murdock heard the new shots. A submachine gun chattered off a dozen rounds.

  “Where are those shots coming from?” Murdock asked.

  “From the south side of the compound, in back of the guards’ quarters,” Jaybird said. “May be two shooters. We’ve got one man down. I think it’s Train. I’m into the woods to circle those bastards.”

  “Take another man with you,” Murdock said.

  “Nobody here. I’m gone.”

  Murdock ran toward the guards’ barracks. He was shielded from the shooters. He paused at the side of the place and peered around the corner. He saw Tran “Train” Khai sprawled near a chair that had tipped over. The chair was in a patch of shade. He watched closely. Train wasn’t moving.

  “Anybody else see where those shots came from?” Murdock asked. For the first time he realized he didn’t have his weapon. He’d been too quick to decide this was a secure area.

  “Yeah, to the south somewhere,” Van Dyke said. “Heard them, but didn’t see any flashes. They must be deep inside the bush out there.”

  “Two of them?” Murdock asked.

  “My guess. Or one guy and two weapons.”

  “Everybody go to ground and stay out of sight. Can anybody see Train?”

  “Yeah, I have him,” Howard said. “He’s down and I don’t see him moving.”

  “Who has weapons?” Murdock asked. Four men sounded off. “I want you to give me some cover. Fire into the brush to the south. Jaybird, get behind a big tree for a minute.”

  “Roger that,” Jaybird said.

  “Cover me, now,” Murdock said. He waited for the first shots, then charged around the corner of the guard building and raced the forty feet to where Train lay. He scooped him up like a sack of wheat and pounded back the way he had come and around the corner.

  Murdock put Train on the ground and looked for the hit. He didn’t find it at first. Then he looked closer, pulled open his shirt, and there it was, one small turning-purple hole right over his heart. He’d died in the microsecond that the bullet hit him.

  “Cease fire,” Murdock said. “Tran is gone. Took one round in the heart. Every man with a weapon, now, and stay under cover. Get the bastards, Jaybird.”

  Jaybird came out from behind the large mahogany tree and worked forward. He moved like a ghost, not making a sound, edging under, around, and through the growth, not fighting it, accepting it and passing it by. He stopped to listen. Nothing. He worked ahead again toward the spot he had picked out as most likely to hold the snipers.

  Again he stopped. He listened, but heard nothing. He worked ahead for twenty yards and stopped. This time he heard whispering. Two of them. He angled to the right, worming his way through heavy growth flat on his belly, his H & K MP-5 sub gun cradled on his forearms. Jaybird stopped and listened. More whispers. Then a clicking sound. A fresh magazine sliding home into the receiver.

  Jaybird headed directly for the whispers now. He figured he was still twenty feet away. Then he edged around a tree trunk and saw them. Both had settled down behind a mahogany tree that had fallen long ago and was three feet thick. They must have lifted up and fired over the trunk, then dropped down.

  Jaybird was behind the log. He sighted in on single-shot and drove one 9mm Parabellum through the side of the farthest man’s skull. He jolted to the side. The other man fell to the ground and began to squirm away. Jaybird watched him, pushed the lever to three rounds, and sprayed the rebel with twelve rounds. Jaybird waited a minute, then moved in and checked the weapons. A sub gun and an AK- 47. He took them and extra magazines and hiked back to the compound.

  “Scratch two in the first race,” Jaybird said on the net. “Two down and dirty. Is Train really gone?”

  “Afraid so, Jaybird,” Murdock said. “A heart shot. Nothing we can do.”

  “Fuck!”

  “You can say that again,” Van Dyke said.

  “Fuck again,” Jaybird said.

  It was almost a half hour later before they heard the sound of the chopper coming in. They had raided the big house for all the good food they could find. Mahanani found a bottle of whiskey that he confiscated for “medical purpose
s only” and put in his pack. Four men covered the south area in a defensive line as the bird landed in the backyard. General Domingo was the first one out of the craft, and he grinned.

  “Got us some airpower,” he said. “You get our guests off all right?”

  “No problem, General. Only we had a sniper attack by two of the guards we flushed out when we came. They caught one man in the open and he’s KIA.”

  “Sorry, Murdock. I know how close you men become. A damn shame. You track down the snipers?”

  “Jaybird did and they paid the price. You know where the other hostages are?”

  “It’s a probable. Maybe the leader of the rebels too. I’ve got twenty Army Rangers coming in and two more birds. We’re going to have a shot at this place bright and early in the morning.”

  “Why not tonight?”

  “We’re not sure where we’re going, and we don’t want to tip him off with a recon flight. We can talk about it. We’ll get you and your men out of here and in some quarters in Lebak, and take him at dawn.”

  “We need to get Tran on his way back to the States.”

  “Yes, we’ll do that as soon as we get to Lebak. A chopper will take him to Davao. I’ll have the Army provide a casket and do preliminary work, then get him on a flight to the States as quickly as possible.”

  “I’ll need to call San Diego in California and tell my CO. He’ll notify the family.”

  Senior Chief Sadler had the men police the area. When they were done, no one could prove that the SEALs had been there, except for the line of corpses by the barracks. They left the two in the jungle where they had fallen. The men put Train on the chopper first, then the rest filed on, looking more serious than usual.

  Murdock gave the general a thumbs-up, and the general spoke to the first lieutenant flying the chopper and it lifted off, on its way down the coast as the afternoon shadows began to lengthen.

  The first thing Murdock did when they landed at Lebak was go to the police station and use their telephone. It took fifteen minutes to get the right operator and get through to San Diego.

  Commander Dean Masciareli was not pleased to take the call. He knew it was Murdock.