An African Adventure (Vince Hamilton Private Investigator Book 4)

by Patrick Slaney

  I set out to walk to the police station.

  Fortunately, there was a street sign pointing towards the police station, so I had no problem finding it. Once I gained entry, which was a bit of a job as it was all locked up; I was able to dial straight through to the tracking centre in London. It was not good news. As I thought, once the ship had sailed into the southern hemisphere, they were unable to track the containers. The operator on duty did suggest that we obtain a monitoring package so as we could track them in Southern Africa. That, unfortunately, was a long-term solution and wouldn't help us with our immediate problem of identifying the containers.

  The call finished, I left the police station. I made a point of not talking to any of the police officers present as I was nervous that one of them might leak information back to Hansie Joubert's team. It was better to be safe than sorry.

  Back at the hotel, I joined the others in the observation post that they had set up on the balcony of my room. I then contacted Johan Nel on the radio. He answered immediately. I explained that the tracking system was inoperable so we couldn't get help from London.

  'I am reliably informed that the majority of trucks that travel from East London to Johannesburg stop at the rest area in Queenstown,' Johan continued. 'Can you please see if the trucks that we are interested in, follow this procedure? If they do stop, you will have to get close enough to be able to read the identity numbers. Do you think that you can perform that task, or do I have to send some of my men to assist you?'

  'The three of us should be able to get that information for you,' I replied.

  Dale tapped me on the shoulder and informed me that some trucks had just driven past, but, he added that none of them had been blue.

  'Johan, I can confirm that it looks as if the first trucks from the Johannes Maersk have started to arrive in Queenstown. No blue ones as yet, but we had better get organized.'

  'Major, will you contact me as soon as you know anything.'

  'Will do Johan.'

  Having hit the disconnect button on the radio, I joined the others on the balcony.

  The street lights illuminated the trucks as they passed our spot making it easy to see the colours and the name of the shipping company who owned the containers. It would be a simple exercise to spot a blue container.

  'OK guys, are you clear as to what our role is tonight?' I asked them.

  'Yes, we are waiting for five blue containers to arrive,’ Reggie said. Once they are here, we will go to the truck service area on the edge of the town and see if we can get the identity numbers that match those on the manifest,' Reggie said.

  'That's correct Reg; when we have established, which are the containers with the cars in them, we will write down the registration number of the truck. We will then have all the information we need to be able to track each container. I suspect that there will be a total of three trucks; they are most likely to divide the five containers over the three vehicles. Two containers being placed on two of the trucks, and the fifth being on the third truck.'

  'It's all a bit confusing,' Dale added. 'We are only looking for three trucks then.'

  'That is my supposition; the reality may be entirely different.'

  'Dale I want you to stay here. Keep the radio close by you in case Johan wants to get hold of us. Reg and I will go to the truck stop, leaving here when the first truck, carrying a sky blue container, has gone past. I will also go to the garage just up the street and purchase some Pay as You Go Sim cards for our mobiles.' I couldn't risk taking the radio with me. Johan might try to contact me when I was close to the enemy in the lorry park. It would be a total giveaway. By purchasing the Sim cards, Dale would be able to text me if he had an emergency.

  'Agh, that's disappointing; I wanted to be part of the team checking on the containers.' Dale was clearly not happy with the role that I had given him.

  'You will be safer here, and anyway, you don't know how to use a pistol.'

  'Reg, you and I must ready to go the minute we see the trucks. Make sure that your flak jacket is in the 4 x 4 as you will need it.'

  'It's already in the vehicle, but I'll check,' Reggie replied.

  We both went off to get ready. It was much colder here than it had been in East London, so I put on extra layers to combat the near zero temperatures. There was also a strong wind blowing, but, fortunately, no rain. Not a good night, weather-wise, for doing a stake out.

  As I was changing, Dale called out to me from his observation spot on the balcony.

  'A truck carrying two blue containers has just gone past. It was on its own.'

  'Ok, Reg and I had better get going. Let's hope that they all stop at the truck rest area. I'll see you later Dale. Make sure that you stay out of sight.'

  I knocked on Reggie's door and went down to the 4 x 4. Two minutes later we joined the main road and headed north towards the rest area.

  We sat in silence for the five minutes it took for us to drive to the lorry park, both lost in our thoughts of what the night had in store for us. I parked the 4 x 4 in the section reserved for cars. The trucks were all parked in a larger area at the far end of the parking area, about sixty meters from the restaurant and toilets.

  'Reg, I am going to go into the public areas and check them out, will you please go and start looking at any trucks that happen to be carrying blue containers. Don't start trying to decipher the identity numbers until I rejoin you in around five minutes.'

  'Have you got a list of the numbers that we are looking for?' Reg asked me.

  'Yes, I have written them down for you on this piece of paper.' I handed him the list of numbers.

  We both got out of the vehicle and headed off to our prescribed destinations, Reggie in his flak jacket and me in my anorak. .

  The Restaurant and Toilet areas were pretty basic, clean but not modern. I noticed a door that had a sign on it saying - Driver's Sleeping Area. Presumably, drivers were able to rent beds if they needed to rest for a while. I had talked to the manager of the hotel, and he had told me that the authorities were getting a lot stricter on the time drivers spent on the road. It was now mandatory for them to get four hours sleep every twenty-four hours and they also had to rest for around an hour every five hours. Queenstown, being three to four hours from East London was ideally situated for the drivers, and it was obviously a popular spot.

  I visited the toilets as a cover for my nosing around.

  As I was going out the door of the toilets, I was nearly knocked over by a burly man rushing in. He must have been caught short. He apologised in a very Afrikaner accent. I assumed that he must have been a security guard employed by the truck stop, as he was wearing a flak jacket.

  Having had a quick look around, I set off to join Reggie in the truck park. In fact, I soon met Reg as he was coming back to find me.

  'We've got a problem, Vince.'

  'What's that?'

  'Three trucks came in a few minutes ago, and they parked together at the far end of the parking area. They were accompanied by two 4 x 4's which have parked beside them. I counted five burly men who got out and formed a protective circle around the three trucks. There is no way that we can get close to them.'

  'Well done Reg; you have saved us making a fool of ourselves. I was nearly knocked down going into the toilet, by a large man in a Flak jacket. He must have been part of their team.' I was annoyed with myself; we should have thought of the fact that they would probably have armed guards travelling with them. '

  'What do we do now Vince?'

  'Can you get close enough to take down the identity or the Registration Numbers?'

  'It is very dark where the trucks are parked, but the guards would still see us. I did manage to decipher one of the 4 x 4's registration numbers. It is RHC 406 GP.'

  'You're a genius Reg. I think one number will be adequate as they seem to be travelling together in a convoy.'

  'Do we need to stay here until they leave?' Reggie inquired.

  'No, I think that it is be
tter that we don't hang around in case we are spotted by one of the support team. I think that I've already bumped into one of them in the toilets. We'll head back to the hotel where I can contact Johan Nel.'

  When I rejoined the main road from the service area, my only option was to go left in the direction of Bloemfontein. It was a dual carriageway. At the first opportunity, I did a U-turn and headed back towards Queenstown and the hotel, repassing the truck stop on the other side of the road.

  Dale was very relieved to see us return safely, and told us that he had felt isolated and in danger on his own. When he had seen the three trucks one behind the other, he explained that he thought it was a better idea not to text me. He felt that I would be easily able to track the three trucks, and my concentration might be broken by receiving a message from him.

  'Did you also see the two large black 4 x 4's?' I asked him.

  'No, I didn't notice them. I was just looking for the trucks with the blue containers on them.'

  'They were driving together in a convoy with a 4 x 4 in front and one at the rear,’ I explained. ‘We weren't able to get the registration numbers of the trucks holding the containers as it was too dark, but we did manage to get the reg. number of one of the cars.'

  'So what do we do now?' Dale asked.

  'We can all get some sleep, subject, of course, to my contacting Johan Nel. We will aim to get on the road at 4.30am tomorrow morning. I'll call him now.'

  I managed to get hold of Johan on the radio. He informed me that he was already in Aliwal North, which is one hundred and eighty kilometres north of here, and he is waiting for the trucks to pass. I was able to tell him that the lorries were travelling in convoy and that there was a 4 x 4 in front and one behind, each containing three armed men. I also gave him the registration number of one of the 4 x 4's. He instructed me to cease tracking the vehicles and to meet him in Johannesburg tomorrow around lunch time. He reckoned that it would take us another seven hours to complete our journey. I should plan on leaving Queenstown at 4.00am at the latest.

  When he signed off, I turned to Reggie and Dale.

  'OK guys, there is nothing more that he wants us to do tonight. You can go and get some sleep; we will leave at zero four hundred hours tomorrow morning. I will settle our bill now, so we will have no delays in the morning.’

  My brain was so active that I couldn't get to sleep, so I was quite relieved when I could give up trying and get up at 3.30am. At least, I had managed a few hours rest.

  With the rooms paid for, we got away just before four o'clock without disturbing anybody. Dale opted to sit in the back as he wanted to catch up on his sleep and, a few minutes later, was out for the count.

  Reggie was close behind him in the sleep stakes. After about ten minutes, I heard snoring coming from the front passenger seat.

  I would have to be careful that I didn't fall asleep at the wheel since I now had nobody to talk to. I turned the radio up to replace their voices.

  I started to go over in my mind what I still needed to do before I left South Africa. I hadn't telephoned my wife since I had arrived in the country other than to tell her that I had arrived safely. I had better contact her soon to let her know that I still in the land of the living. I also hadn't spoken to Carol Newsome in the past week to see how she was getting on. My thoughts started to make me feel guilty. I had rather abandoned Carol and the boys. We had become quite close during the preceding weeks when I had been sorting out her problems, and she had come to rely on me. Strange, I was feeling guiltier about not contacting Carol than I was about not 'phoning my wife?

  As I drove along, I started to remember the things that Carol and I had done together when we were growing up in Rainham. It had been good fun, and we had grown quite close. I reckoned that if I hadn't gone off to Sandhurst when I was nineteen that we might have ended up marrying each other.

  The next topic on my things to think about to keep me awake was the current state of my marriage. During my twenty-five years in the military, I had been at home on very rare occasions, especially, after Michael and Victoria had been born. We had taken the decision to buy a house in London, as our family base. We reckoned at the time that it was better that I travelled to whatever part of the world I was serving in while the kids remained in a stable environment. Michael was now fourteen so Daphne, and I had been virtually living apart for around twelve years or until I was invalided out of the SAS two years ago. Even then I wasn't at home as I was in hospital, recovering from my injuries, for a further six months.

  I started to feel sorry for myself. If I hadn't been blown up by an IED, I would still be in the military. The private investigative work had got me out of the home and back doing something that I loved. The problem with Daphne was that she wanted me to retire gracefully and be a stay-at-home Dad. The analysis I conducted driving along the narrow roads of the Eastern Cape, illustrated to me that I was attracted to Carol and her family because they appreciated what I was doing for them. The fact that Carol had flaunted her body and her affections on me had also helped in making me feel loved and wanted. The conclusion I arrived at was that I was in a right muddle with very confused emotions. At the end of the day, I loved my kids, and I wouldn't do anything to damage my relationship with them. For an easy life, I would have to conform to my wife's wishes, and not do anything stupid.

  My thoughts were disturbed when the radio buzzed.

  'Major are you there,' it crackled.

  Reggie was woken up as he was holding the handset.

  'Reggie Talbot here. Vince is driving,' he muttered.

  'Just want to confirm to you that the convoy is on the N1, which is the Bloemfontein to Jo'burg highway. It is presently stopped at a service area at a place called Kroonstad. The local traffic police have taken over the tracking for us. As soon as the convoy gets close to Jo'burg, a police helicopter will take over the monitoring. It is very easy to monitor three trucks and two 4 x 4’s. Will you please join the rest of my team for a meeting at Douglasdale Police Station at midday? It is on Witkoppen Road, in Fourways which is close to Midrand.'

  'Will do.'

  Reggie signed off.

  I was sure that Dale would know where the police station in Fourways was as he lived nearby, but I didn't want to wake him up quite yet. He was still sleeping soundly. I would ask him later when we got closer to our destination.

  Dale came alive about an hour later and stuck his head into the front of the car.

  'Any news? Is everything OK?'

  'Yes Dale; everything is fine, and we are getting on well,' I replied. 'Did you sleep well?

  'Yes thank you; can we stop and get some food, I am starving?'

  'That's a bloody good suggestion Dale,' Reggie commented. 'Vince, can we stop at the next service area that we come to.'

  'I think that is possible as we don't have to meet Johan Nel until midday, and we only have around three hundred kilometres to go or around three hours driving.'

  'What time is it now?' Dale asked.

  'It's 7.30am, so we can stop for at least thirty to forty minutes,' I said.

  We passed a road sign stating that there was a service area five kilometres ahead.

  'That will do us,' Reggie blurted out.'

  'Dale, do you happen to know where the police station in Douglasdale at Fourways is?' I asked him.

  'I don't know exactly where the police station is, but I do know where Douglasdale is.'

  'That is where Johan Nel has asked us to meet him at midday,' I explained. 'Is it easy to find and close to the Highway?'

  'Yes, it is only about five minutes from the N2 and very easy to find.'

  'OK, so you can have a one hour break at our breakfast stop if you want. There is no rush.'

  A decent breakfast revived us all and we were on the road again an hour after we stopped. I asked Dale to drive as he was familiar with the roads and knew where we were headed. He was also well rested. I had a well-earned nap before we pulled up beside the Douglasdale Police
Station at 11.50am ready for our meeting with Johan Nel and his team. They both informed me that I had been snoring.

  Chapter 25

  There was a security checkpoint at the external gate, and we were only allowed to pass through into the inner sanctums of the police station after they had checked that we were indeed meeting Chief Detective Inspector Nel at 12 noon.

  We were taken down a dark, narrow passageway towards the back of the building. It was a timeworn property that hadn't seen a coat of paint for many a year. It reminded me of the Hampstead police station where Inspector Baird operated from, even to the ancient two-tone green paint that covered the walls. Dark green on the bottom and light green on the upper section. At the end of the passage, we were ushered into a meeting room where Johan Nel and his team were waiting for us.

  'Good afternoon Major Hamilton; did you have any trouble finding us?' Johan inquired.

  'No, thank you; Dale Fortuin lives close-by in Bryanston, so he showed us the way.'

  'Now that you have joined us we can start,' Johan Nel continued. 'Firstly, I would like to announce that the convoy of three trucks and two 4 x 4's reached the Consolidated Containers Depot in Kyalami half-an-hour ago. The containers are currently being offloaded from the trucks.'

  'Can you confirm that there were only five delivered?' I asked.

  'Yes, the other seven that got mixed up with the ones we were tracking, went off in different directions and are presently being checked out by some of my officers on the off chance that they may contain drugs.'

  'So what is the next step in the plan,' one of those present asked.

  'I have organized for armed men to be discretely placed in a ring around the depot. Their instructions are to stay out of sight while still ensuring that none of the containers or anything hidden inside them leaves the depot. I am planning on moving in at 8.00pm this evening. We also have a tail on Hansie Joubert, so we know where he is minute by minute. The intention is that he will be picked up at the exact time the attack on the depot is launched.'

  'Are you expecting the guards in the depot to fight back?' he was asked by one of the officers.