by Robert Cuma
I suggested, “Maybe we should find out before the ship unloads.”
Again, Hannah said, “Steven, I took a good look around for a way into that cargo area, you’ll need a blowtorch to penetrate those steel walls. The question is what can be that important?”
Just then, I received a telephone call from Carlo. He told me the ship dropped anchor about five miles out of port. His theory was they were ahead of schedule and wanted to arrive in port under the cover of darkness. I concurred with his assessment of the situation. I asked him to continue to observe any activities regarding the ship. He agreed and we hung up. After relaying the information to the team, I continued, “We should wait until this evening to see what Carlo comes up with.”
Gina asked, “Steven, do you think we are dealing with something extraordinary, like a nuclear device of some kind?”
Hannah responded, “Gina that is a good possibility. I think we all were thinking the same thing but were afraid to say it out loud. Assuming that’s true, now what?”
I suggested, “If we assume that’s the case, we should try to find out its’ intended target or investigate the secret cargo.”
Tina asked, “And how do we do that, oh great one?”
“Ah, I’m glad you asked that question, my child. That’s where you come in.”
“Okay, I’ll bite. What do you want me to do?”
“I think you can use the computer I saw in the living room. Try to track all stops the Canton Seas made in the last month. This may give us a lead.”
“I’ll try, Boss. Oh, by the way Gina, your cousins will never know I used their computer.”
“It is okay, Tina, do what you have to.”
Tina went to work right away. The rest of us tried to analyze the secrecy of the ship’s cargo. Hannah said, “I keep on wondering about locking up one hold of the ship and not the others.”
I said, “Hannah, let’s focus on the open cargo area. Tell me what you saw there.”
“The drugs were basically out in the open along with the weapons. The detonators were in boxes adjacent to the wall of the ship’s sealed hold.”
“What else? Think, Hannah.”
“I don’t know!” She exclaimed, “Maybe we should board the ship and take a good look.”
“You’re probably right. We’ll get onboard later tonight. Gina, we will need a small boat of some kind. Can you arrange it?”
“I’ll check with a relative or two to see if it’s possible.”
“Good girl.” Then I shouted over to Tina, “Hey, tiger, how are you doing with the research?”
“It’s early but you can see what I have so far.” We all walked over to Tina’s workstation. Once there, she showed us what she found out.
She said, “The ship was registered in the Philippines. It made several stops in the week prior to reaching port in Taiwan. It stopped in Japan for a day of refueling. It appeared to be a routine stop. However, after it left Japan it went to Vladivostok on the coast of Russia. It remained in port for two days before heading to Taiwan. The records indicate the ship dropped off grain and picked up farm equipment.”
I said, “Great work, Tina. You have an incredible future ahead of you.”
“Oh sure, I do, as long as I don’t get killed on one of your crazy missions.”
“I’m sorry. I keep forgetting that you are just a teenager. I should go slower with you when we are on the move,” as I smiled at her.
“Don’t think you’re going to leave me behind tonight. I love the excitement.”
“We’ll see.” I sent Gina and Hannah to Carlo’s place to get some special equipment and a couple of extra guns. The special equipment was to see if the ship’s cargo area had nuclear materials onboard.
14 – The Threat
______________
That night after Gina secured a small boat for our mission, we headed out to the Canton Seas. On the way to the ship’s mooring, Gina received a call from Carlo. He told her the Italian Coast Guard boarded the ship about an hour earlier. This was a new twist in the case of the ship’s intentions.
Once we arrived, it was extremely dark outside. The clouds covered what little moonlight there was. As we approached the ship, we killed our engine and floated to the side. We tied our boat to a hanging ladder. The four of us climbed the ladder, which led us to the cargo area. Hannah led the way since she was familiar with the layout of the ship. At five miles out of port, the ship was rocking rather severely. The four of us split into two teams; Hannah and Tina went to check out the sealed cargo area, while Gina and I checked on the open cargo bay. The ship was beginning to rock still more as the waves slammed against the hull. I told Gina to stay topside while I went below to investigate the ship’s cargo. It was as Hannah originally described – drugs in the open along with crates of munitions. I didn’t see anything unusual except for the missing cases of dynamite. However, I did notice something significant. The ship was rigged with a sophisticated explosive system. Further investigation revealed a controlling clock device that was set at ten minutes. This meant if the destruction sequence would be started then the ship would blow in ten minutes. I hoped the timer was accurate. I quietly returned topside where Gina was standing watch.
I asked, “Gina, did you see anybody?”
“There is an armed guard on the top deck but he’s unaware of our activities.” Then we were joined by the rest of our team.
Hannah reported, “Steven, the cargo is gone.”
“Define gone, Hannah.”
“The other cargo bay is empty and it’s wide open. I scanned the area for radioactive materials and found traces around the bottom of the hold.”
I continued, “Well, I think the cargo was removed by the Italian Coast Guard boat that was here earlier. We have to find out where it’s heading.”
Hannah suggested, “We can question the Captain, if he is still on board.”
“Good idea but from what I can tell this ship is wired to explode. We will have to be careful. Gina, I think you and Tina should get to our boat and move silently away from the ship in case someone starts the explosive process device. Best I can tell, once started the ship will blow in ten minutes.”
Gina said, “If you need us, we can stay with you guys. I’m quite sure we can make the five mile swim.”
“I think it would be better if I knew you guys were safe. Be sure to get about five-hundred yards straight away from the side of the ship.”
“Okay, Boss, will do.”
“Gina, once you and Tina are away from the ship then call Carlo to let him know what’s going on. Be sure to tell him about the Coast Guard vessel. Okay, let’s all get going.” The girls went over the side as Hannah and I moved toward the Captain’s quarters.
The strong rocking of the ship and the cover of darkness worked in our favor. We made our way one level up when one of the guards spotted us. Before he could raise his gun or shout, Hannah threw her knife and nailed him in the neck. He fell over the railing onto the same deck we were on, with a rather noisy thud. Hannah quickly removed her knife from its target. We approached the Captain’s cabin with caution. Once we arrived at the door, I knocked lightly while Hannah with a muffled voice said in Chinese, “Captain, something is wrong out here.” The Captain opened the door rather abruptly as Hannah and I rushed inside throwing him to the floor. I put my pistol to his forehead while Hannah began to interrogate our prisoner.
Finally, Hannah said, “Kill him, he knows nothing!”
He shouted “No! Please, don’t kill me, I will tell you what I know!”
Hannah continued, “Talk now or my friend will blow your brains out!”
“The boat that was here earlier took the cargo. It was three small crates. I don’t know their destination.”
Hannah repeated, “Kill him, he knows nothing!”
“I am telling you the truth!”
“What is in the crates?” Hannah shouted.
“It is the ingredients to make a RDD.” A radiological dis
persal device (RDD) is the term used for a Dirty Bomb. Although it’s not a weapon of mass destruction, it still can contaminate a large area depending on the level of explosive and the type of radioactive material used.
Hannah continued, “Who ordered this bomb?”
“I know the Russian is involved and some Arab guy.”
“Where are they now?”
“The Russian left with the RDD but I don’t know where the Arab man went.”
“Is that all you know?”
“Yes, just don’t kill me!” The Captain squirmed around the floor of his cabin. I hit him on the back of his head with my revolver as Hannah and I left to join our team.
Hannah said, “We should disable the ship before we go, Steven.”
“I agree. Let’s go back to the cargo area and set off the detonators to blow the ship.” We hustled to the ship’s hold. Once there, we went down to the bottom of the cargo area and looked for the devices to explode the ship. Hannah found the starter button to begin the sequence. As she hit the switch, alarms began to sound throughout the ship. We quickly returned topside only to find a rather large group of goons ready to do combat with us. I shot several of them as the rest rushed me to do battle. Hannah began to slit throats as the well- seasoned ninja she was. The fight seemed to go on for about ten minutes. I instinctively knew we had a few seconds before detonation. Some of these thugs were beginning to take Hannah down with their clubs and fists. This made my adrenalin pump at high speed. I rushed over to her defense and quickly snapped a few necks. Moving like a professional all American football running back, I scooped up my beautiful partner and threw her over my shoulder while jumping over the side of the ship. Before we hit the water, the ship began to explode. I took Hannah down deep in the water to avoid falling debris. We surfaced about fifty yards from the exploding Canton Seas. Awaiting us was Gina and Tina to take us onboard the small boat.
Hannah was beaten up awfully bad. I took my shirt off to wrap her wounds.
I asked, “Gina, did you call Carlo?”
“Yes, he’s on his way in a chopper.”
“Great, let’s look after Hannah. I think she’s hurt bad.” As soon as I finished my sentence, a badly burnt sailor from the ship leaped out of the water and grabbed Gina by the neck. He quickly pulled her down into the dark waters of the ocean. I immediately dove in after them. He dove to a depth of about thirty-five feet below the surface dragging Gina with him. This was bordering on a dangerous depth. I found them in the dark water with the sailor trying to choke the life out of her. After a tough struggle, I was able to get Gina loose. As she floated to the top of the water, I managed to kill the sailor. When I reached topside, Gina was laying face down in the ocean. When I turned her over, I started to get her into the boat. Then I heard gun shots ring out. With Gina tucked under my arm, I looked on to the boat to find two more of the ship’s sailors shot to death. They were killed by the hand of Tina holding the smoking gun. I managed to get Gina onboard with Tina’s help. The kid knew first aid as she began to resuscitate Gina’s unconscious body. Sure enough, Gina began to spit up the salty ocean from her lungs and began to breath. I held Gina in my arms as Tina was tending to Hannah’s battered body. I threw the dead sailors off our boat as we headed back to port.
A few minutes later, Carlo’s chopper met us on the rough seas. Lowering down a basket, we were able to get our wounded team to the safety of the chopper. Once we were all on board, the chopper headed for a hospital. With the wounded in good hands, I briefed Carlo on the events of the evening including the strong possibility of a dirty bomb on the loose in Italy. He assured me that every available resource would be looking for the Coast Guard boat. Carlo also suggested that a group of his most trusted people move on these latest developments immediately. He asked me to join him at his office here in Naples at 6 a.m. That wouldn’t give me too much time for anything else, certainly, sleep was out of the question, but I agreed.
I went to see Hannah first. She was awfully banged up with broken ribs and bruises all over her. I sat on the bed and held her in my arms. I said, “This was a bad one, pretty baby.”
“I’ll survive, not to worry.”
“I don’t like to see you in this kind of shape.”
“Just get me out of here so we can get to work on the RDD.”
Tina entered the room and hugged her dear friend. She asked, “Are you going to come with us? I’ll take good care of you.”
Hannah responded, “I know you will, Tina. You took care of those two clowns on the boat exceptionally well. How are you feeling about that?”
“When someone is threatening your best friend and you have the deep seeded anger that I have, killing is easy.” Hannah and Tina embraced each other again with tears in their eyes. I told Hannah I would see the doctor about her release. On the way, I stopped in to see Gina who was ready to leave. She told me the doctor said she would be fine. I obtained the release of the two girls and we went back to Gina’s cousins’ house. Again, they were gracious hosts. All of us made it to the room with a view and cleaned up our salt-water soaked bodies. Tina gently cleaned up Hannah’s bruised body with the utmost feeling of love. She cared for her as if Hannah was the child.
_______
Gina and I prepared for our meeting with Carlo. We left Tina behind to care for Hannah. On the way out, we stopped to talk to Gina’s cousin. Gina asked him if there was a Coast Guard boat in the region of the Canton Seas. He said no boats were dispatched last night except a large vessel, which patrols the coastline about twenty-five miles offshore. Since he’s in charge of the port of Naples, he found the situation rather peculiar. Gina thanked him and asked if he could look into it further and let her know. He agreed and we left for our meeting.
We arrived at Carlo’s operation center at 6 a.m. sharp. With all the high-level security people attending, I thought I entered the central briefing room at the Pentagon. There were maps, satellite tracking monitors and computers buzzing all over the place. Gina and I with all the brass went into the conference room. Carlo brought everyone up to speed on the activities surrounding the Canton Seas. His superiors started to question me about my involvement with the alleged RDD. I assured them my motives were to track the ship resulting from of a suspicious illegal arms deal. I continued my briefing under the premise that stumbling onto the RDD was purely accidental. After persistent discussions, they seemed to buy off on my story. It was at that point everyone began to move their divisions into coordinated actions under the auspices of Carlo and his team. Carlo was delighted with the command of such an operation. It would be good for his career if he could find the bomb.
After the crowd cleared, I sat with Gina and Carlo to put together a lead of some kind. Carlo and I ran all kinds of scenarios but we couldn’t manage one solitary lead. While we were talking, Gina sat quietly thinking.
Carlo finally asked, “Gina, why are you so quiet?”
“I’m thinking,” she responded.
Carlo again spoke, “About what? Think out loud.”
She thought for a moment more, then she spoke, “Let’s suppose this is a terrorist attack.”
Carlo commented, “We don’t even know if it involves terrorists.”
I chimed in and said, “Carlo, let her finish her thought. She may be on to something.”
She continued, “If you were a radical terrorist, what would be the most offensive act you could achieve?”
We both stared at her for a moment and I asked, “What?”
“Well, we are five days from Easter Sunday and what a way to make a worldwide statement by exploding a dirty bomb in Vatican City.” We all sat quiet for a moment.
Carlo exclaimed, “Ingenious, Gina, ingenious! We will close off the entire city, including Rome.”
I suggested, “I don’t think we should be that obvious. We should set up roadblocks as regular security measures but we must try to stop them before they even get close. Put plain-clothes agents on every road leading to Rome and througho
ut every town on the way. Find the device with the gang of fanatics and take them down.”
“Good ideas, Steven. Why don’t you and your team go ahead to Rome and analyze possible scenarios. Take one of our unmarked communications vans so you can be in contact with all groups involved. I’ll send several agents with you in a follow car. We’ll meet at SISMI headquarters in Rome.”
“Okay, Carlo, we’ll get started right away.” We shook hands and wished each other luck.
After picking up Tina and Hannah, we were on the road to Rome. While Gina drove, Tina manned the communications equipment. Hannah sat in the reclining seat so she could get much needed rest. I sat by the control console with Tina. We started to work the computer system. I asked, “Tina, can you hack into the public records of Rome and the Holy See?”
“I guess so, what are we looking for?”
“I want to know of all permits pulled for any construction jobs in the area. Also, parking permits for news media vans and any new artwork going into both cities.”
“Would you also like me to order us a pizza? That’s a lot of information, Steven.”
“I know but I have faith in your incredible talents, young Tina.” It wasn’t long before Tina had familiarized herself with the entire system. All monitors were indicating videos from numerous sources. Most of them were receiving feeds from traffic cameras around the cities.
When we arrived in Rome, we went to SISMI headquarters and moved our mobile system into the main communications room. Gina told the technicians to give Tina total run of the place. I immediately called Tom York at the embassy.
He answered his secure phone, “York here, how can I help you?”
“Tom, this is Steven.”
“Steven, what’s going on with you?”
“Many things are happening. Meet me at our rendezvous place right away!”
“You got it, Steven. See you in a few.”