Eyes of the Hammer

by Bob Mayer

  Ariel nodded and popped off with a hearty "Yes, sir," while at the same time wondering how the hell he would find the two Americans. The trail of the woman from the hotel had gone cold. For all he knew they were both on a flight back to the United States. That would be the smart thing to do and what Ariel would have done in their place. They were good, whoever these strangers were, but they would run out of luck sooner or later if they stayed in this country. Ariel figured that his best shot was to have the pressure on the street increased. Someone would see them eventually if they were still here.

  Ring Man had another thought of even more importance. "What do you think of taking out Alegre?"

  Ariel considered his answer carefully. He knew that Ponte had advised against it and that the Ring Man hadn't been pleased with that answer. On the other hand Ariel was smart enough to realize that the Ring Man's ambitions of running the country were a little too lofty for the present circumstances; nor did he understand them. Wasn't becoming the head of the multibillion-dollar-a-year drug cartel enough for the man?

  "That is a very difficult target, sir. The presidential guard is a good unit and we have been unable to penetrate it with one of our men. Alegre has not left the palace since this started."

  Ring Man wanted action, not talk. "I know all that. I want you to find a way to get to him."

  PRESIDENTIAL PALACE, BOGOTA

  10:58 P.M.

  Alegre was fuming after the brief meeting with Strom. As the door shut behind the American he turned to Montez. "Do you believe that American pig has the balls to come in here and threaten me?"

  Montez shook his head. He didn't like it either, but he knew it was time to face reality. They'd taken their chances and been burned. With the audiotapes of the last meeting Jameson had had with Alegre, the Americans stood a good chance of making Alegre out to be a liar if he tried to use the Hammer missions as blackmail. Montez had sensed something funny about the meeting on Monday with the American agent. Now he knew that Jameson had insisted on the meeting in order to get Alegre on tape authorizing the killing. The Americans were using that as counter blackmail, effectively neutralizing Alegre's threat of exposure.

  Alegre was feeling the growing pressure from the cartel, but he wasn't ready to quit. "We must stop Ring Man. He's the main threat now, especially since Ramirez was killed this morning. If the Americans will not do it, I will do it directly. I am going to upgrade from a state of emergency to a state of siege."

  Montez knew that was the next logical step for the president if he wanted to truly fight the cartel. Unfortunately, it also ignored the reality of what would happen. Under the official title of state of siege, Alegre could suspend civil law. It gave the president more power than the present state of emergency. But they also had to consider the unwritten law of Colombian politics. For every action Alegre took, the cartel would react with increasing violence.

  Between the cartel, the guerrillas, and a government crackdown, Montez could envision a return to the days of la violencia, the period during the 1940s and 1950s when Colombia was almost torn apart by a vicious, undeclared civil war. The numbers of casualties from this violence ranged anywhere from 100,000 to 300,000, depending on who was doing the estimating. The specter of that happening again was enough to chill the heart of any thinking person.

  Montez decided to make another attempt to talk some reason into the president. "If you announce a state of siege, we cannot be sure how the people will react. There is already a great amount of discontent. We have pushed this war with the cartel to its limit now. If we push farther we run the risk of alienating the people.

  "We must give the development of our sea bottom rights in the Gulf of Venezuela time to mature. You won a great victory there. We must allow time for the people to see that we have an alternative to the drug business. Time for that project to help the economy. If you go to a state of siege, the cartel and guerrillas will tear this country apart."

  Alegre stared at his top adviser. "What do you suggest I do? Give in?"

  Montez tried placating his friend. "Not give in. But we must play for time. You tried to defeat the cartel and—"

  Alegre pounded his desk. "We still can defeat them. I will use the army under the state of siege provisions."

  It was time for the president to crash on the harsh rocks of reality. "The army will not fight the cartel," Montez argued. "Not all the way. They'll do police work and fight some of the lesser dealers, but they will not go against the main body of the cartel. Not until we have an alternative for the people, and not until we can solve the guerrilla problem."

  Alegre stared at his old friend. "Are you saying you will not support me on this?"

  "You are my friend and my president, but I must do what is right for the country. If you pursue this course of action, I believe you doom this country to a period like la violencia. I do not want to see that again. I cannot support you on this."

  Alegre's shoulders slumped. If even his friend Montez would not support him, he knew he stood little chance with the army. "What do you suggest we do?"

  KNOLL 8548

  11:03 P.M.

  Since darkness had settled over the countryside, the temperature had fallen. Riley estimated it now hovered around fifty degrees. He took another look through the ART 2 scope at the lit villa compound. No change from last night. He still had no viable plan. The best he could come up with was trying to go in over the wall at night. He figured that plan ranked somewhere up near Custer's at Little Big Horn in tactical soundness.

  Westland was curled up at the base of the tree. Riley hoped she was sleeping, but he imagined she was shivering. She'd told him about her conversation with Pike. The general's admonition not to do anything before midnight on Thursday was the only thing keeping Riley from going in tonight and trying to get Powers out. He had no idea if Pike could come up with something but he'd follow the instructions. Plus, he wasn't too keen on dying tonight. He figured that if they'd kept Powers alive so far, they'd keep him alive at least another day or so.

  Riley decided there wasn't much else he could see tonight that he hadn't seen last night. Even if the Ring Man showed up in the backyard with a spotlight on himself, there was nothing Riley would do. His first priority was getting Powers out.

  Riley climbed down the tree and squatted next to Westland's reclining figure. "You awake?"

  "No. Of course I am. It's too damn cold to sleep."

  Riley chuckled and slid down beside her. "Two's warmer than one. When we used to go on winter warfare training, the guys on the team would always buddy up against the cold. Same thing in Ranger school. I think on some of those cold nights in the mountains at Dahlonega I was closer to my Ranger buddy than any woman I've ever been with."

  Kate pressed her body back against his. "Want to test that last thought?"

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  THURSDAY, 5 SEPTEMBER

  FORT BELVOIR, VIRGINIA

  8:43 A.M.

  The buzzing of the phone woke Pike out of an exhausted sleep. His hand shot out and grabbed the receiver. "Pike here."

  "Go secure." Pike obliged the caller. "Where'd you get that information on the guards and their shifts and the helicopter? Do you have a source on the ground down there?"

  Pike relaxed as he recognized the voice on the other end. "I've got a man pulling surveillance on the target."

  "Do you have commo with him?"

  Pike reflected on his conversation with Turrel late the previous evening. He was just guessing that Riley and Westland had gone into hiding at the surveillance site near the villa. But he figured it was a good guess, since the two hadn't shown up at the embassy or used their escape route back to the States. Unfortunately, their going into hiding had severed his communications link through Turrel at the embassy. "No," he responded.

  "Shit." The voice on the other end paused for a second. "I guess that's not a problem. We already have our own surveillance en route. I just hope the two don't bump heads. Is there any way my people
can identify him?"

  "There should actually be two people there. A man and a woman.

  "The man's a guy from 7th Group named Dave Riley. The woman's name is Kate Westland."

  "Is this Riley the same guy as the finger card in the file you gave me?"

  "Yes."

  "I'll assume they are there for the same reason we're going in. That's all I need for now. I'll get back to you if we need anything else."

  Pike forestalled the quick hang-up. "How're things looking?"

  "Well, we're refining a couple of ideas and we've coordinated with the aircraft we're going to need. It's cutting it tight but we'll have something ready." The voice paused briefly. "Hey, I got to go, Mike. I'll keep in touch when you come up on the SATCOM later this morning."

  "All right. Thanks."

  Pike hung up and slumped back on the couch in the office. The emptiness of the building reminded him of the loss of the men of Eyes Three even more than the memorial service had the previous day.

  The forces he had set in motion were now rumbling and moving. Pike just hoped they made it through the day without someone getting wind of what was going on and questioning it.

  KNOLL 8548

  5:48 A.M.

  Riley was disoriented for a few seconds as he awoke. He felt cold on one side and warm on the other. The comforting feeling of a woman nestled alongside him contrasted with the harshness of the hard ground. He stared up at the branches above his head, dimly lit in the approaching dawn.

  The reality of his situation hit him with a rush. He sat up and peered around in the dark. The lights from Ring Man's villa lit the sky to the southwest, slowly being overwhelmed by the rising sun.

  Riley looked over at Westland, who was still sleeping peacefully. For a moment he wished they could simply leave this all behind. If it was just the Ring Man mission, Riley would have been willing to. True, Ring Man had been responsible for the killing of his teammates, but they had all known the risks when they signed on for the mission. He'd kill Ring Man if he had a chance, but he wouldn't throw away his, or Kate's, life on it.

  The anchor that held him on this knoll in the mountains of Colombia was the presence of Powers in the villa below. Riley wasn't going anywhere until he gave rescuing his old friend the best possible shot. He still didn't have much of a plan, but he was going to wait until this evening and see if anything developed.

  Of course, Riley knew, Westland didn't have the same commitment, and she was crazy if she still believed in the Ring Man mission. Riley was determined to lay it on the line when she woke up. He would tell her that the Ring Man hit was off. He didn't want her here. He wanted her safely back in the U.S. embassy or even better on a flight back to the States. Riley didn't know what the next twenty-four hours would hold, but he was certain it would be dangerous.

  He sat back against his lookout tree and let his eyes adjust to the growing light. As he waited for Westland to wake, he broke down his weapons one by one and cleaned them. Using his sweatshirt as a rag he wiped the morning moisture off all the parts. He carefully reloaded the magazines, bullet by bullet, and checked the functioning of the weapons' actions. He put the M21 back in the plastic case. The Berreta was strapped back under his left shoulder. The MP5 he placed on his lap.

  Finished with his morning priorities, Riley turned his gaze back on Kate's relaxed face. He realized he'd never had such strong feelings for a woman. He'd lived with a girl for a while at Bragg several years ago, but like all his other short-term relationships, he'd ended up drifting out of it. All those women had seemed too weak. It was hard for him to put his finger on the reason Kate attracted him, but it had a lot to do with her personal strength and self-confidence. She didn't need him but she wanted to be with him. That made a lot of difference. He felt they were on an equal footing.

  Riley switched his thoughts to the mission at hand. Sitting in the lotus position, he relaxed his breathing and contemplated the villa below. There had to be a way in. Riley took it one step at a time. He had all day to think.

  RING MAN'S VILLA

  7:30 A.M.

  Ariel knocked on the door to the Ring Man's bedroom with caution. The Ring Man's moods in the morning were known to vary widely.

  Waking him was considered a move fraught with danger. Ariel felt that the information he had just received was worth the risk. The boss would want to know.

  "Enter."

  Ariel opened the door and peered into the darkened room. He shut the door and walked to the foot of the bed. The Ring Man was sitting up, back against the headboard. The young girl was looking out from the other side of the bed with wide brown eyes.

  "I assume you would not be disturbing me if it wasn't important."

  Ariel nodded. The Ring Man considered him for a few seconds, then pushed the girl's head underneath the covers toward his crotch and leaned back. The man's a pig, Ariel thought.

  "What is it?"

  Ariel tried to ignore the movement under the covers. "I just had a talk with the president's aide, Montez. Alegre is looking for a truce."

  The Ring Man's face cracked in a wide smile. "A truce?" He laughed. "That is very good. A truce. They must be running scared. It figures Montez would be the one to call. He is the more sensible one. What kind of truce did he have in mind?"

  "He says Alegre will stand down from the state of emergency and pull the troops off our operations in the cities if we stop the war."

  "What about the extradition treaty?"

  "It will be suspended indefinitely."

  Ariel was somewhat surprised at the Ring Man's initial reaction. He had thought Alegre's betrayal was something his boss would never forgive. He had expected the Ring Man to explode in anger that Alegre dared propose a truce. His boss's next words confirmed his thoughts.

  "I will never agree to anything with that pig. The fact that he wants a truce and is also willing to anger the Americans by reneging on the extradition treaty means he must really be in a bad position. Also the Americans are probably not supporting him as much. Maybe their loss at Barranquilla took the wind out of their sails. If Alegre wants a truce we must increase the pressure on him and break him. That pig betrayed me and he must pay for that."

  Ariel wasn't sure he agreed with the Ring Man's reasoning. If Alegre fell, then someone else would take over. He knew the Ring Man was not yet in a position to assume that role and doubted whether he ever would be. They were having enough trouble right now consolidating their grip on the cartel. It was not working as smoothly as the Ring Man seemed to think it was. Ariel felt they would be better off accepting the government's offer. However, he also knew that was what his predecessor had recommended. His very dead predecessor. "What do you want me to do?"

  "Have you come up with a way to kill Alegre?"

  Ariel had anticipated that question. "I think there may be a way to do that using this new offer and the American we have prisoner."

  The Ring Man was intrigued. "Wait a minute outside."

  Ariel nodded and exited the room. About two minutes later the Ring Man came out, slipping on his robe, with a satisfied look on his face. He headed for the dining room, where his breakfast was being laid out. "Join me for breakfast and tell me more."

  VICINITY OF KNOLL 8548

  7:46 A.M.

  "I'll guard while you wash off and then we'll switch."

  Kate gave Riley a sidelong glance as she stripped down. Riley was scanning the trail down to the road. As she slipped her foot into the water he casually mentioned, "By the way the water's real cold."

  Kate pulled her foot out and gave him an accusing glare. He was pretending to look down the trail. "Thanks for the warning." She took a deep breath and dove into the water. The shock of the cold caused her to lose her breath and sputter to the surface. She wondered if feeling clean was worth this.

  After a freezing two minutes she clambered out. Shaking off as much water as she could, she quickly dressed, slipping the Beretta back into its place under her shoulder. They'd thro
wn the Colt into the bottom of the pool on the way up yesterday, since it was out of ammunition.

  "Your turn."

  Riley shook his head. "No thanks. I've already had my share of that mountain water. I hope you feel better and that it was worth coming here."

  "What happened to 'I'll guard and then we'll switch'?"

  Riley came over and put his arms around her. "That was just a ploy to get you naked."

  She looked at him and smiled without humor. "Well, it worked. What now?"

  Riley let go of her. "Now we talk about getting you out of here."

  Kate's smile disappeared. "What do you mean 'get me out of here'?"

  "Exactly what I said. Either to the embassy or preferably out of the country."

  She squared off and faced him, her face set into those determined lines Riley had seen before. "Why should I leave?"

  "Because the Ring Man hit is off. I'm not here for that."

  It was her turn to surprise him. "I knew that yesterday."

  "What?"

  She shook her head. He still didn't know the first thing about her. "I knew that as soon as you told me about Powers. I knew you'd make him your first priority."

  "Then why did you come up here with me?"

  She couldn't believe his obtuseness. "To help you, of course. You told me early on that rescuing Powers was your number one priority, and I went along with you and helped you. I'm not going to quit now."

  "I don't have a plan, and whatever I do is going to be dangerous," Riley argued. "I can't ask you to take that risk."

  Westland was starting to get angry. "Don't take that attitude with me. I'm capable of making my own decisions and I'm also capable of taking care of myself. In case you've forgotten, I've managed to do that pretty well so far. It's not up to you whether I stay here or leave. It's up to me."

  Riley tried another line of reasoning. "I'm not trying to tell you what to do. You have no responsibility toward Powers. He's my friend and that's why I'm doing this. You ought to get while the getting's good."