V4 Vengeance

by Nigel Seed

  “So what was this anomaly you found?”

  The NSA agent was flustered, “I’m sorry it was supposed to come up on the big screen. Ah! There it is now.”

  Everyone turned to look at the large display screen. A green island with white sand beaches sat in an azure sea. Around it were smaller islets and a few rocks breaking up the waves. The image zoomed in and then in some more. The clarity was impressive. They could see every detail of the house including the sun loungers by the kidney shaped swimming pool and the small drinks tables next to them.

  “Move to the west,” said the NSA agent, and the image moved left. “There it is. We have no idea what this is. It appears to be a railway line but it is only about fifty feet long and it seems to slope.”

  The Admiral looked around the room, “Any ideas?”

  “Sadly yes,” said Jim, “you are looking at a piece of ancient history coming back to life. Unless I am very much mistaken that is the launching ramp for a Second World War vintage V1 Flying Bomb. It looks to me as if Romanov has brought some more souvenirs from Kiel with him. The worst thing is that it looks to me as if that is pointing at Florida. My guess would be Miami, which would be well within range.”

  The silence in the room could have been cut with a knife as the assembly contemplated the picture above them.

  Finally the Admiral said, “How old are these pictures?”

  “They were taken yesterday evening at last light, so they are about eight hours old.”

  “And the Cubans saw the yacht around twelve hours ago. Assuming the missiles were being carried on that yacht they could be unloading or even getting ready to launch by now. Assume this is a missile launch platform and give me some options!”

  There was a buzz around the room. The Air Force officer was the first to speak. “If we are sure it is a launching ramp we could wipe it from the face of the earth with JDAMS with little difficulty.”

  The Justice official coughed, “Attractive as that is, I do not think it is legal to bomb another country’s island without a declaration of war. We do not want a repeat of the diplomatic difficulties we had after Grenada. Plus, we do not know where the material stolen from New York is being stored. It would be a shame to destroy all that.”

  The President’s representative agreed. “The response to 9/11, although warranted, was a very big stick and hurt a lot of people as collateral damage. The President is keen to ensure that any response is measured and appropriate and does not sour relations with any of the governments who are supporting us. The bombing could be held in reserve in case all else fails.”

  A Navy officer stood. The SEAL insignia on his chest glittered under the lights. “I guess you know what I am going to recommend? A SEAL Strike Team can land from the water, infiltrate the island and destroy that facility quickly and with no collateral damage. All our people have been on standby since the New York attack. We can be on the move within the hour.”

  The Army General stood and said, “I could drop paratroops or Special Forces but it’s a small island and there is a strong risk of losing some of our people in the sea. I think I agree that this is ideal for the SEALS.”

  “Admiral, if I may?” Jim found himself saying. “My team here were instrumental in making the New York attack possible. We would like to make up for that as much as we can. We would like to join the SEAL team on this mission.”

  “Thank you for the offer, Major, but I think the SEALS have got it covered.”

  Jim did not sit back but continued, “Sir, much as I admire the SEALs, I doubt very much if any of them have trained on seventy-year-old flying bombs and none of them will have any idea of the makeup of the nerve agent warheads. In fact the only people who have worked on them for the last seventy years, that are available to you, are sitting right here.”

  “You make a good point, Major.” The Admiral turned to the SEAL officer. “Lieutenant Commander Duggan, can you use them?”

  “I can sir, with one proviso. Are you parachute trained?”

  Jim nodded. “Of course.”

  Andrei then said, “And I too have served in the Russian paratroops. I know Romanov well and if there are any Russian documents or interrogations needed I can be of use to you. Also, this maniac is a Russian criminal and Russian law enforcement should be there to assist in his arrest. And I owe him for the death of my friend Tatiana.”

  The Admiral looked along the table then looked at the SEAL, who shrugged, “OK by me, sir,” he said, “and having a Russian along might help.”

  The Admiral stood, “That’s a decision then. The SEALs and their support here will assault and take out the missile threat. The President has instructed that Romanov is to be arrested and brought back to stand trial, if at all possible. NSA, I want updated pictures of that island ASAP and send them to the SEALs as soon as you get them. Detailed analysis can carry on at the same time, but will not delay the raw intel going to the assault team. SEALs to be given any and all support they ask for.”

  They stood and started to disperse. Jim turned to Andrei. “It’s handy you were a paratrooper.”

  “I wasn’t, but how hard can it be? Anyway, you three can tell me what to do.”

  Geordie laughed and Ivan said, “None of us are paratroop trained either. We can all learn together on the way down.”

  They stood waiting for Duggan, the SEAL officer who walked through the dispersing group toward them with Delaney at his side.

  “Very well, gentlemen, it seems you are joining one of my teams. I’m not sure if we will be parachuting in or assaulting from the sea. I imagine you would prefer to be taken in by boat?”

  Ivan said, “Oh and why would that be, sir?”

  The SEAL looked at the four of them in turn. “Sergeant Major, I’ve been leading soldiers for long enough to spot a blatant lie from a hundred meters away. None of you have ever been near a parachute drop. Still, if we do drop, it will be into the sea if that’s any comfort.”

  Delaney laughed, “I guess the US Navy can give you anything you need from here so we can leave your things in your hotel rooms till you get back. Good luck.” And with that he turned and walked out of the room.

  Lieutenant Commander Duggan said, “Follow me. There will be a chopper arriving to pick us up in about fifteen minutes.”

  The SEAL led the way out of the room and waving the Marine escort away, he led the group toward the main exit.

  Jim walked alongside him. “So if you knew we were exaggerating our experience why did you agree to take us?”

  The SEAL looked at him sideways as they walked. “I understand the need to get even with the man who tried to kill you and the need to compensate for what happened in New York. In any case you were right about being the only people who have worked on one of these damned rockets for the last seventy years. I’ll take any advantage I can get to make a mission successful.”

  As they continued to walk Geordie said, “It’s personal as well, sir. Somewhere in New York is Sam, the woman I love. She was performing in a play off-Broadway. Last night was the first chance I had to phone her since we sailed and she was not answering her phone, then or this morning. And she is not replying to emails either.”

  Delaney stopped, “The phone lines in New York are still jammed, but give me the details and I will get my people to check up on her, while we get on with this job.”

  They exited the building through the security gates and headed for the helipad where a US Navy helicopter was touching down.

  “So where are we going first?” said Ivan.

  The SEAL stopped again and turned to them, “Understand this, our operations are highly classified. You will be given no information except what you need to carry out your part of this mission. There will be no idle conversations. I don’t wish to appear rude, but that is how we work.”

  Chapter 37

  They walked across the Pentagon car park to the waiting helicopter and climbed in. There was less rush this time and they were allowed to strap in and put on hea
dsets before take-off. The door slid shut as the aircraft lifted off and turned to fly back along the Potomac. They realized that, although they could hear each other, they could not hear the pilots so had no clue where they might be going.

  They flew low and fast following the contours of the earth, giving the passengers no chance to identify landmarks that might indicate their destination. They were flying above a wooded area almost brushing the tree tops when they passed over a perimeter fence and found themselves over an airfield and approaching buildings that had that indefinable military look about them. The helicopter came to a hover and then landed in front of a large anonymous hangar. The pilot kept the engines running and the rotors turning as the crewman slid back the exit door. He indicated they should get out and head for the hangar. As they cleared the immediate area the pilot applied pitch to the rotor blades and the aircraft lifted off, heading away across the airfield.

  The downdraft blew clouds of high speed dust around and they all managed to get some in their mouths and eyes. They were still spitting dust and grit when they reached the Judas gate in the hangar door. As they approached, the door opened and they were ushered inside by a tall African American man in a camouflaged uniform. The width of his shoulders and the muscle development obvious in his arms was impressive.

  He looked at each of them in turn then said, “This way,” turning and walking to the back of the hangar. He did not look back. He was obviously accustomed to being obeyed.

  The large man led them to an area of tables each with military equipment laid out on it.

  Duggan detached himself from the group and walked away to get on with other business. To the left, as they walked, they had seen twelve sets of equipment packed and laid out in a neat line, each with a weapon laid on the top. Now it appeared to be their turn to kit themselves out.

  The soldier in the camouflaged uniform, without rank badges, turned and waited until they joined him.

  “On these tables you will find the equipment you will be taking with you. Check it and make sure you know how to use it. Anything you do not understand, ask now, there will be no time later. You will be given the minimum equipment you need to do your job. You will not take part in the assault, but will follow my people in. One of my team will be assigned to you and you will do what he says at all times. You will be issued uniforms in thirty minutes so start checking this equipment now. Any questions?”

  There were none, so he turned and waved forward a man who had been standing unobtrusively at the back of the tables. “This is Martinez. It may not be his real name because you do not need to know that. His rank, his history and his real name are of no interest to you. Is that clear? He is assigned to keep you alive, so do as he tells you.”

  As he stalked away Martinez stepped forward.

  “Don’t mind Wallace. He is probably the best in the business, but he sees taking untrained people on a mission as an increased risk to his team, so he is not a happy camper.”

  He turned to the nearest table and started to run through the equipment laid out. “OK gentlemen, listen up; we are short of time so pay attention. You have a minimal webbing harness for your material, adjust it to fit you tightly; once you have it on make sure nothing rattles and makes a noise that might give us away. This is your pistol, a standard issue 9 mm Beretta, accurate and reliable; there is one spare magazine in the small pocket on the outside of the holster. This is your first aid kit in case of injury; there is one over there opened up so you can see what is in it. Familiarize yourselves with it after this. I assume you all have first aid training? You have a small flashlight to be used only if you have to, it can be clipped under the barrel of the submachine gun you will be issued. This is your personal radio, it has a range of about 200 meters and is used to communicate between squad members only. It is voice activated so no unnecessary switches, just the one on/off switch here. Each group leader carries a longer range radio for communication between the groups when they are separated. Each of you will carry a small toolkit for dealing with the missiles and the warheads. That is in this pouch here, please check this and if there are any extra tools you need tell me in the next ten minutes. Your main weapon will be this;” he held up the black submachine gun, “this is the Heckler and Koch MP5. At short range out to about one hundred meters it is highly effective, at fifty meters even more so. You will use it only to defend yourselves and even then only in an emergency. As a matter of course all of these are fitted with silencers. All this equipment has been adapted for use after being immersed in the sea so there is no need to immediately stop and clean it after we land. But try and avoid dropping things in the sea anyway. These are your spare magazines. You have one for the pistol that I told you about and three for the MP5 that need to be stowed in the pouch on your belt. You should not need to use them. All clear?”

  Ivan was starting to bristle at the brusque manner of these men. “You are aware that we are all military, are you?”

  Martinez looked at him, “Yes and I also know you are not special forces trained and we don’t have time to bring you up to that standard.”

  Jim put a hand on Ivan’s arm. “He’s right. Let it go.”

  They adjusted their webbing harnesses and loaded the equipment into the pouches, then jumped up and down to ensure nothing rattled. They familiarized themselves with the two weapons and checked the ammunition in the spare magazines. Martinez then led them to the back of the hangar where they were equipped with black uniforms and boots. Worryingly, they were also handed an emergency life jacket each, also colored black. The last two items were black balaclavas and helmets with fittings for attaching the personal radios. Already attached to the front of the helmets were night vision goggles allowing them to make their way around the island in pitch darkness, if necessary.

  They assembled all their equipment back at the tables under the direction of Martinez who then said, “Right. We have fifteen minutes before briefing. Leave all your equipment here and come with me.”

  He led them to a door in the rear of the hangar and as they stepped through, they found themselves in an indoor firing range. Martinez lined them up and shut the door.

  “As you all have military training I have to assume you have fired a sub-machine gun before. However, you may not be familiar with the firing characteristics of this particular model, the MP5. I am therefore going to give you a quick run through of how this operates and you will get one magazine each to practice with. If all goes to plan that is the last time you will fire during this mission.”

  He talked them through the operation of the weapon and they then stepped up to the firing point one at a time to use their magazine of ammunition. The weapon was accurate and even this unsuppressed practice weapon was fairly quiet, certainly it was a major improvement on the old German MP-40 that had saved their lives twice. The firing practice over, Martinez returned the weapon to the armorer and led them out of the range.

  As they walked he said “I’m sorry this is all so rushed, but we have very little time before we have to leave. We are on the way to the final briefing now and as soon as that is finished we will be moving down to the jump off point.”

  Chapter 38

  Martinez showed them through another anonymous door and they entered the back of a small lecture theatre. The rest of the twelve man team was already seated and they did not turn around. Duggan, the SEAL officer from Washington and the large man, Wallace, who had met them at the hangar door, were on the small raised dais with a large plasma screen behind them. It became clear that Wallace commanded this team. Projected on the screen was a map they recognized as the target island. Martinez placed them at the back of the group and then sat with them.

  Wallace stood forward. “Now we are all assembled we will begin. As you can see, this is the map of the target. Points to note are marked in red. The house, the pier, the launch ramp and these three storage sheds. Each of you will be allocated to one of these targets. As soon as they are secured you will move to the secondary t
arget you will also be allocated. Situation is as usual. Move fast, take no chances and everybody comes home alive. All personnel presently on the island are hostile. Any hostiles offering to surrender are to be taken prisoner and immobilised. Any resistance is to be met with force. Do not take any chances with these people, they are certainly armed and probably have some military training. At least some of them carried out the attack in New York so we know they have no problems killing in cold blood. Any questions about that?”

  There were none.

  The SEAL officer from the Pentagon stepped forward. He was now dressed in camouflage fatigues and looked much more comfortable. He did not introduce himself. That seemed to be customary on this operation; even in the Pentagon briefing room, names had not been used much, just job titles or organizations. Presumably that was so those in the group that had been assembled knew who was speaking and with what authority, without trying to remember names. In this case it was probably that these people all knew one another already.

  He started to speak, “I have here the latest intel we have on the target and an analysis of what it means. The analysis is rough and ready so expect to find surprises once you get ashore.”

  He turned to the plasma screen and pressed the control button held in his hand. The satellite image of the island flashed up, again an incredibly sharp picture considering it had been taken from an orbiting satellite. The pier was now occupied. The luxury yacht was alongside it, and on the other side what looked like a trawler was just coming in to dock. The wake from the slowly turning propellers could be clearly seen. He used a laser pointer to indicate the deck of the trawler.

  “Look here and you will find something of particular interest.” The picture zoomed in to show a large group of men standing around the deck area. “If you look carefully we are pretty sure that they have M-4 Assault Rifles on their shoulders. The best guess from the analysts is that this is the group of mercenaries who carried out the assault on the New York banks. We assume they changed ships somewhere in the Atlantic. Perhaps they sank the original ship and that is why we have been unable to find the freighter. In any case, these are the people who shot civilians without a second thought and drove over a New York police officer. They are not Boy Scouts. You should expect them to resist with deadly force, so take no chances. To the rear of the deckhouse you will also see pallets ready to be unloaded. Again it is a guess but that is probably the loot from the banks. This is a complication that we had not anticipated.”