“So what are you going to do about it?” Harvey asked. With the tension rising still further he turned back to the radio,
“Alpha 2, I’m going to tell you how to make that device safe. I’m going to take you through it, and I want you to follow my exact instructions…I need you to trust me, OK?…You do trust me don’t you?”
“…Yes.” John replied softly.
This was all that the operative wanted to hear, “Good man. OK, you’re going to disconnect the timer from the detonator. That’ll prevent it from setting off the main charge, OK?”
“Fine, what wires do I need to touch?”
“Don’t touch anything yet!” Warned the operative. Harvey, the whole team listened on in complete silence. West, still in River View, found himself a quiet spot out of the way, listened intently to the drama playing out in his earpiece. Frustrated and captivated with that fact that this was purely a two man drama and there was no way he could help.
“OK John.” Continued the operative, “I want you to position yourself so that you are comfortable, and when I say so I want you to touch one of the wires.”
“OK. I’m ready…which wire?”
The operative hesitated for a split second. If he got this wrong, “The green wire OK John? When I say so, I want you to touch the green wire. I want you to feel how loose it is in its connection. Can you do that for me John?”
Tentatively John reached out to the wires in the bomb device. Trembling with absolute fear under the stark realisation that he could be staring at instant death, it required all of his personal and professional stamina to steady his hands. Beads of sweat running down his forehead, his eyebrows felt heavy under the collection of sweat he was perspiring under the intolerable situation. His eyes stinging from the sweat that had managed to drop, impairing his close eyesight prompting him to mop himself with his other free hand. He touched it, his forefinger slowly tugging at it in a bid to gauge how secure the wire was in its fitting,
“It’s tight but I can move it.” He said.
“OK John, you are going to disconnect it from the detonator now. That will break the circuit and stop the timer from setting it off. When I tell you to, I want you to pull on the green wire and slowly remove it.”
Frozen stiff, John understood his instruction perfectly. Harvey though was just as nervous,
“Is that the correct way to diffuse that device?”
The operative turned again, “Providing it doesn’t have a failsafe-‘
“You mean booby trapped?” Harvey cut in,
“It will be the correct wire.” He reassured, but Harvey could not be sure,
“What happens if it isn’t?” He asked,
“Then it will explode in his face.”
“Oh my god.” Said Clive in the background. Samantha at his side just stood there in silence as did the others, her hand covering her mouth. Suddenly the immediate reality hit home. Everything, not just John’s life, but the whole operation, the wider implications and the reputation of everybody relied on this next decision,
“It had better be the right one.” Said Harvey reflecting the thoughts of everyone around as the operative turned back to the task in hand,
“John can you hear me?”
“I hear you.”
“OK, take your time, when you are ready pull on the green wire and disconnect it slowly.”
John gripped the wire, his heart thudding through his chest, ears, and neck. The sounds of his surroundings completely drowned out by now in the tenseness of the situation. He began to tug,
“Pulling it out now.” He said as everyone stood in silence. Jack, still in hiding could only hear through the quietness of his earpiece. At Thames House nobody dared say a word for fear of breaking John’s intense concentration at this critical time. Tugging at the green wire very slowly, John applied a very minute amount of pressure, only as much as his hands dared as he suddenly heard a click. The wire pulled out but only halfway, causing a noise to be heard stopping John dead in his tracks holding the wire steady in a half connection to the detonator,
“It’s beeping!! It’s making a noise!!” He said over the radio. Everyone at Thames House panicked, but tried utterly not to show it. Jack, hearing the pleas of his friend over the radio wanted to break cover, held his hands over his eyes waiting for the sound of an explosion,
“OK, OK, keep calm John!” Said the operative desperately trying to control the emotions of the situation, “Pull the green wire out now. Nice and steady, remember, you trust me.”
“Don’t you dare leave me like this!” Was the reply,
“Nobody is going to leave you John, We are here. Don’t think about the beeping; just continue to pull out the wire nice and steady.”
Everybody listened on…silence…had he done it? Again everybody, even Jack listened intently for any signs of radio chatter, but nothing. Nobody dared utter a word,
“Control I’ve done it, the wire is out. The beeping has stopped.”
The sense of relief almost overwhelmed everyone, in the huge sighs let out by those present. As they came down from their high emotional state from what they had just gone though, the operative sought to reassure Hudson as to what he had just done,
“OK well done, you’ve made the bomb safe. Now you can remove it, carry it around, whatever. Just make sure the green wire doesn’t go back in for now.”
Removing it from the wall, it seemed to come away pretty easy. Looking at it now, John could see it was a fairly simple manufactured device. Was not complicated at all, but something struck him, even in the throes of relief that he was still alive,
“Control, there’s something else about the timer…the hands on the clocks, it bugged me in Colchester, but it’s only just hit me now. The design of the hands, they’re identical to ones retrieved from King’s Cross. Inspector Waterson showed them both to me and Jack in Scotland Yard in the aftermath of the bombing!”
Still relieved, Harvey responded, “So are you looking at a device used in that terrorist attack?”
“Possibly, or at least the timers were used.”
Jack still listening in from his hiding spot knew exactly what his friend was talking about. He realised the link straight away.
“Control,” Asked John, “I have an idea. If I re-arm this bomb and reset the timer, we have a ready-made device to put out of action that stockpile of poison before those trollies and vans get out there to distribute it.”
Harvey turned to Clive, “Will plastic explosive be enough?”
“Yes, plastic explosive does have a greater yield than ordinary dynamite, so it should be enough to evaporate any released poison before it gets into the atmosphere.”
Harvey didn’t have much alternative, “OK Alpha 2, go ahead.”
He reset the timer, setting it for ten minutes by rotating the hands to the correct time. He inserted the green wire back into the detonator causing it to tick,
“Control we have a live device again, now it’s just one mighty big grenade. I’ve set it for ten minutes.”
“Then that is how much time we have got.” Replied Harvey.
Back at the bridge leading toward the factory warehouse, all was quiet. There was certainly no external evidence to the drama that had just occurred at the dockside. A crouching figure swiftly but quietly attempted to make his way across, getting only two thirds of the way before being disturbed by activity,
“Control, this is Alpha 2. I have the bomb on me; I’m attempting to plant it at the warehouse now. But there seems to be activity coming from the building.”
“What kind of activity Alpha 2?” Asked Harvey, still coming down from the excitement,
“People moving out of the side.”
Harvey thought for a second, “Sounds like they are getting ready to move.”
The whole team were now monitoring the wider events, watching and waiting all the screens and computer monitors to see what the terrorists would do. Harvey wanted to time it right, to catch them in the a
ct with all the evidence, it was all both exciting and terrifying at both the same time. After the knife-edge incident with John and the bomb, it was hard to say how much more they could take. Such was the intensity unfolding before them, nobody saw four suited men enter the office behind them,
“Charles, what’s going on? Where are we up to?” Said one of them in an authoritative tone causing Harvey to spin round with a few others,
“Home Secretary, this is a pleasant surprise. Well it definitely looks a potential biological attack on the capital. We have pinpointed the terrorists and the ring leaders, and traced then to APF Industries in the docklands.”
“I know, I remember you briefing me earlier. So what are we doing about it?”
“The full works, the police are on standby, rooftop snipers covering the area, specialist police forces and bomb squads are on site. Even the SAS are deploying and waiting for our signal to go. I even have some of my own personnel on the ground.”
“How many?” Asked the Home Secretary
“Two. One going after the poison on site and the other going after the ring leaders if he can find them.”
“And how are they going to distribute this poison?”
“They are deploying them in tarmac laying machines under the cover of road works. We think they are going to get them out via white vans observed on site.” Explained Harvey. There was nothing else he could say.
“OK.” Said the Home Secretary, “The Prime Minister is aware of the on-going situation and wants to be updated regularly. So do you recommend the implementation of evacuation Plant Theresa?”
Harvey stalled for a second, “No I don’t think so yet. I still believe we have a chance to stop it Home Secretary.”
“You had better hope so; otherwise this country will hang you by the balls.” Warned the politician, but Harvey had no time to respond, one of the other operatives cut in,
“The SAS and the police are deployed. They’re ready to assault on our word. What do we do, shall I tell them to go in?”
Hesitating for a few seconds, everyone wondered if this was it,
“What are your orders?” Asked Aazim as the Home Secretary stepped forward,
“Charles, the Prime Minister is in no mood to wait, and neither is the Palace. What are you going to do?”
Turning toward his staff Harvey wanted as much info as possible,
“Alpha 2, report what you see please.”
John, still on the bridge still had a good view from his hiding place behind one of the structural pillars,
“I see workers outside the warehouse where the poison is being manufactured. There definitely seems to be an increase in activity, it looks like they are getting ready to move….wait…..the trollies, they are gathering a number of them outside. Harvey, it looks like they are already filled with poison, they could be getting ready to move.”
“But where?”
John was as much in the dark as anyone, “I’ve no idea. It’s possible they could be distributed around the city or concentrated in one place. Who knows.”
In the deep shadows of River View, Jack, now satisfied that everything was OK tried to make his way toward the exit. There was a sense of hesitancy about his actions; could he be sure this tower block was completely clear? He did not have to wait to find out,
“Alpha 1, are you still in River View?” Said one of the other operatives,
“Yes.”
“Alpha 1, there’s activity in your area; multiple contacts have been spotted entering the front of the building.”
“Do we know who they are?” Asked Jack, there was a pause,
“…We think its Victor Bruenstein.”
Now Jack perked up suddenly, perhaps this was he chance to get him,
“Can you locate the contacts in the building?” He asked,
“Negative, but the lifts have been activated and there are visible contacts in the foyer. Recommend you avoid these Alpha 1.”
Looking around the dark car park, he saw a large green door off to the side. It bore a sign next to it,
“A stairwell!!” He said to himself as he made his way over to it. Carefully opening the door there were no figures immediately upwards as he entered the shaft and begun his ascent up each flight of concrete stairs. It seemed to take forever, but his movement was hampered by cautious progress, slowing up every few yards as he passed the exit door to each floor,
“Control can you give me any more info?” He whispered as he moved higher. If Bruenstein was here he had no idea where to find him,
“Alpha 1, there are multiple heat sources in that structure, it’s impossible to determine who is who, but I’m reading 3 signatures on the top floor, level 20.” Replied the operative as West proceeded to follow.
Climbing about four storeys, he paused in on the staircase, his hands gripping the metal handrail. Hearing a noise from above, Jack looking up to see a figure approaching his location fast and there was nowhere to hide. Having no choice, he raised his gun and walked slowly forward as the two men approached each other. They met on opposite sides of a particular flight between the 13th and 14th floors, the guard on the top and thankfully not paying much attention as West looked upwards to him on the bottom. Instantly Jack fired, three times, in rapid succession, the bullets hammering into the guard’s torso, blasting out of the back. Slumped against the wall, the guard, slid down toward the floor, a streak of dark red blood on the recently painted walls followed him down indicating the exit wounds. He was dead. Jack carefully walked up the stairs, removing he ammunition clip from the barrel smoking gun, quickly replacing it with a fresh one full of live rounds. Satisfied he was dead by giving him the once over, he continued upwards.
Finally after many flights and one long empty stairwell, Jack reached door marked for the 20th floor. It was shut tightly but it was a designated fire escape so he knew it couldn’t be locked. Pausing briefly Jack listened intently for any signs of movement beyond the door. He wasn’t totally satisfied but he had to probe onwards; gripping the handle, he turned it slowly, loosening the latch until the door became loose. He opened it slowly, his silenced gun rose as he stuck his head out into what seemed to be a corridor outside upper level apartments. The corridor was lit but the electricity supply was poor at best, by now Jack was used to dimly lit locations, he had been in enough of them in the past. Still working cautiously, he moved forward, the charcoal coloured doors and carpet contrasting against the cream painted walls perfectly muffled the sounds of his footsteps as he made his way forward with his gun,
“If someone can’t hear me, then I won’t be able to hear them.” He thought to himself in an alert state. Another green door lay at the end of the corridor; clearly it was further stairwell as he made his way toward it. The signage confirmed where it led,
“Penthouse Level.” He said. If Bruenstein was in the building, that had to be his location.
It wasn’t very high, only a couple of flights at most which brought Jack out into another corridor, more lavish than the previous ones. He didn’t have time to scout, instantly he heard voices, around three of them coming from a penthouse flat at the front. Silently he raised his gun and moved into the darkness as the voices became a little louder and clearer. He headed through a large door into a dark and spacious, but not yet furnished area. Looking more like a large concrete tomb than a future penthouse apartment, the basic shell with its large window spanning one wall provided the perfect viewing point amongst the construction works.
Still in the shadows, Jack silently placed himself behind one pillar. Wide enough for him to remain hidden, he looked on toward the window toward a figure standing solitary and looking out. The tall, dark haired man with a large light brown leather jacket stood there motionless, totally unaware of the situation unfolding in the docklands and of Jack hidden about 12 feet away,
“Bruenstein!” He thought to himself, recognising the man instantly. Looking on with contempt, after all it was he who had caught Jack and beaten him up in the
old underground tunnels before John turned up. His next move was clear, however as luck would have it, two others turned up entering the space through a side door. Shifting back slightly and trying his absolute best to minimise his breathing as there was very little ambient noise to cover it up, he looked on while shrouded in darkness. He watched as the two quickly approached Bruenstein to speak,
“We’re ready to go.” Said one of them,
“Tell them to load the vans. Tell them to leave as soon as it is done.”
Jack thought on, “Leave? For where? Where are the targets? And where is Maxwell Grey?”
“Where shall I tell the vans to deploy?” Asked the other guard loudly, making no attempt to cover it up,
“As planned, we deploy outside to where the bombs are in four waves, three poison trollies in each one. First to Trafalgar Square, the second placed around Whitehall, make sure you leave one near Downing Street. The third wave deployed outside the Houses of Parliament and the final wave around Piccadilly Circus.”
Alarmed Jack listened on as Bruenstein continued, “Are the explosives already in place in these areas?”
“Yes, they’ve been deployed.”
“Are they scheduled to go off in time?”
“They’re set to go off in half an hour. The carts should be in place beside them by then.”
“Good, tell the guys to start getting them out on the road. C’mon we only have an hour.”
Given his orders, one of the guards turned to walk away and Jack knew he needed to do something. Leaving Bruenstein with the second henchman he watched as the other left the penthouse. Taking his chance, he withdrew slightly trying his best to stay within the shadows, exiting out into the corridor. Suddenly he heard footsteps, rapidly getting closer with each soft thud on the carpet. Diving around a corner was his only hope, as he hugged the wall as the footsteps came ever closer. Clearly they were coming from behind closing the gap; Jack watched in the darkness as he could see soft, diffuse shadows fluctuating on the opposite wall in front of him. Fixated, Jack steeled himself as the figure rapidly passed him unnoticed, tasked with carrying the message to deploy. He had to be stopped. Jack rapidly moved out, crouching slightly and checking with a flinching glance backward he moved up to the guard. Raising his arm, his pistol now turned upward like a club, he pulled it down with full force, striking the guard a heavy blow to the head. The guard instantly fell and Jack grabbed him quickly; he was unconscious as he looked around to make sure he had not been seen. Gripping his armpits, he dragged the knocked out terrorist into a nearby cleaning cupboard, laying him out of sight and safe for the time being. Locking the door behind him, Jack was satisfied he had just bought a little time for himself.
Three Faces of West (2013) Page 29
