Tracy the Fire Witch

by P. G. Allison

  Chapter Nine

  Mar 19, 2020

  After dropping Amanda and Tracy off at the hotel in downtown Leipzig which Lieutenant Saunders had selected for everyone, Gene and Oliver drove back to begin surveillance of the liquor store. They intended to follow the man Tracy had told them would be checking on others.

  As the girls headed up to Linda and Jesse’s room to join them along with Candy and John, Tracy smirked and said, “I won the bet, didn’t I?”

  Amanda sighed, knowing which bet Tracy was referring to. “Gene and I explained we do not disclose private things like that about people.”

  “What’s to disclose? They made it clear enough when we checked in here, right? They wanted the same room and there was no mention of being platonic this time.”

  Amanda rolled her eyes but had nothing to say. On arriving at the room, they knocked and were welcomed inside.

  Candy asked, “Do you think anyone recognized Oliver?”

  “No, he was totally ignored,” said Amanda. “I think the guys were too busy checking out Tracy. They spoke freely in front of us. They definitely are members of the WIJO group which bombed that nightclub.”

  Jesse said, “I’ll let Lieutenant Saunders know. He has some men watching the liquor store and others watching Talib’s apartment building. He’ll want to keep that up.”

  “Yes, and he has GPS tracking in the car Gene and Oliver are using, right?” asked Amanda. “They hope one of the men will be leading them back to where other members are hiding out.”

  “Great,” said Jesse, nodding in affirmation. Looking at Linda he said, “Tell them what Dale Hewson has learned for us.”

  “The holding company which owns the liquor store has ties with another company which owns a large warehouse about forty minutes outside of the city here,” said Linda. “Dale says that’s probably where the business gets most of its revenue, with the store merely a front. In order to be distributing the quantity of beer and wine which this company seems to be delivering throughout its network, a large place is needed for inventory and for storing all their vehicles.”

  “Hey, that’s great,” said Tracy. “Amanda will recognize if the guys we met today have been there. Once we confirm that, we need to search for whatever might be stored there besides booze.”

  They discussed various options for getting inside and doing a search but, until they actually got to see what they were dealing with, they really couldn’t agree on any specific plan. However, Tracy said she and Amanda would try something similar to what they’d done in the liquor store. They decided Linda and Candy would stay behind and maintain communications with everyone while Jesse, Amanda, Tracy and John went out to take a look at the warehouse.

  -----

  Lieutenant Saunders sat up front in the passenger seat of the lead vehicle which also had John and Jesse in it. For this recon, they were using four vehicles after leaving several men behind to guard Candace; one of the vehicles was a car they’d just rented for Tracy and Amanda. He asked, “When we get to this warehouse, what’s the plan?”

  Jesse said, “Once we do a drive-by, Amanda and Tracy will circle back and fake having car problems. The rental car they selected has a simple distributor cap held down with two clips. Tracy says she can pop that cap off using the nail file in her purse, remove the rotor and reinstall the cap in less than a minute. Then, should anyone try to help them, the car won’t start.”

  “So that’s why you wanted her to pick out the rental car. I thought the rental was only so the registration wouldn’t trace back to one of our military vehicles.”

  “Well, that too, but they wanted to be sure they could easily disable it. It’s not likely anyone will attempt to do any actual troubleshooting but they might need to show they can’t get it started. Once they’ve faked breaking down, they’ll approach the place on foot. Amanda can speak German and will tell them their car stalled out and now won’t start.”

  The lieutenant nodded and said, “Okay. That gets them inside the place. And, since Tracy knows Pashto, she’ll be able to listen to any meaningful conversations, just like she did at that liquor store.”

  John said, “They figure they can ask whoever is there to call a tow truck for them. Hopefully, while they’re waiting for that to show up, there might be some conversations worth listening to. If they can manage to do any snooping around as well, that’ll be a plus.”

  “If they have any trouble with whoever is there,” said Jesse, “they’ll send us a text message and you can have your guys rush in to rescue them. But we don’t really expect that to happen. They’re just a couple of girls who need a tow, right?” He grinned.

  -----

  After Tracy had the distributor cap back on with its two clips reattached, she had Amanda grind away on the starter a few times. So far, so good. They left the car with the hood still up and headed over to the warehouse they’d found at the address Linda had provided.

  They’d selected a spot for their breakdown that was a hundred yards from the main entrance. There was a large paved area containing several cars, trucks and vans parked all along one side. There were also four loading bays on that side but none had their doors open. None had been open when they’d gone by earlier either. However, there were lights shining through the windows near the office door at the end of the building. That, the parked cars and an open main gate, suggested there probably were some people in there.

  They’d all stopped at a convenient location about two miles past the warehouse and discussed what they’d noticed. The place had a large fence all around it and they’d noticed two surveillance cameras; most likely there were others. Getting in undetected didn’t look good.

  Tracy’s plan seemed feasible and, not seeing any other way to get into the place, it was decided to proceed with it. While the location was remote and the men inside the warehouse were members of a terrorist group, they would have no reason to suspect Amanda and Tracy of anything. Thus, the risk seemed minimal.

  On the way back, as they’d approached the spot they’d selected to stop their car, Tracy had asked, “Amanda, are you sure you’re okay with our doing this? We can keep going and just tell the guys we changed our mind. Even though everyone agrees we should be okay in there …”

  Amanda had laughed and said, “Look, I’m fine with everything and really want to do just as we planned. I mean … it’s like what I told Gene. I’m with the girl who can incinerate anyone who might want to hurt me, right? What can go wrong?”

  Tracy had said, “Geez! And here I was thinking I was okay since you’d be ripping their throats out as a wolf. All righty then! Let’s do this!”

  Now, after walking up to the office door, they were committed. It was late in the afternoon and time to become damsels in distress. The door was not locked and as they went inside, Amanda called out in German, “Hello? Is anyone here? We need some help … our car broke down.”

  There was a long counter which was mostly empty except for a computer monitor and keyboard. There were no chairs in front but on the other side, in a back corner, there was a single desk. The desk had several piles of paper, another computer monitor and keyboard as well as a telephone sitting on it. There was an empty chair behind the desk with two more empty chairs in front. Cases and cases of beer were stacked all around in several places. Then, there was a doorway which led back into the rest of the warehouse.

  There had not been any bell over the entry but, on the counter, there was a button with a prominent sign which stated in German, “Ring for service”. They pressed that and waited.

  After less than a minute, two men came through the back doorway and approached. They were somewhere in their twenties although one looked somewhat older than the other. They had beards, were dressed in work clothes and did not appear very friendly. The older one demanded, in heavily accented German, “What do you want?” It was obvious the girls were not welcome.

  Amanda said, “Our car broke down and we need to call a tow truck but we don’t kno
w where we are or who to call. Can you help us?”

  “Where is your car and what is wrong with it?”

  Amanda walked towards the window next to the outside door and pointed. “See? We are right there. It stalled and now it won’t start.”

  The younger man asked, “Do you need gasoline? Maybe you ran out.” His German was also heavily accented.

  “No, no. We have more than half a tank. I don’t know what is wrong. Can you help us call for a tow?”

  The men were not pleased and looked at each other. The older man grumbled in Pashto, “We don’t need this right now. See if you can get them going.” Then, looking at Amanda, he said in German, “Tariq will look at it for you.” He gestured to the younger man to go out and look. Amanda went outside with him while Tracy remained inside, pacing aimlessly in the limited space in front of the counter. The man didn’t seem interested in talking to her, which was good. However, he did keep a close watch on her which, since he seemed to be undressing her with his eyes, wasn’t so good.

  Five minutes later, Tariq returned with Amanda right behind him. He announced, in Pashto, “It will not start. You should probably call Talib. He will know what to do.” He went back around to the other side of the counter where the older man was waiting. “I wrote down the license number in case Talib wants that.” He handed over a piece of paper.

  The older man grunted as he took the paper. Then he said, also in Pashto, “I don’t like this. We will be stuck here until Talib arranges for a tow truck to come out. What are we supposed to do with these two women?” Turning to look at Amanda, he said in German, “I must call my boss. He will know who to call.” With a shrug, he added, “We are new here.” Then he walked back to the desk, picked up the phone and dialed a number.

  Tracy was only able to hear part of what the man was saying, but she did hear him say Talib’s name and it was clear he was providing an explanation of their situation, to include reading off the license number of their car. After a couple of minutes, he finished and hung up. When he returned, he told Amanda someone would be coming in an hour or so. Maybe longer.

  Amanda said, “Thank you, thank you.” Turning to Tracy, she told her about the tow truck coming in French. Although neither of them was all that fluent in French, she had picked up enough living with Gene, who was fluent, and she knew Tracy could manage a few words as well. She hoped these men were not very familiar with the language and, watching their expressions as she talked to Tracy, it looked as though they weren’t. Switching to German, she told the older man and Tariq, “My cousin is from Paris and doesn’t know very much German.”

  Both men seemed to accept this. Since Tracy hadn’t said anything up until now, this explanation probably made sense to them. They both studied Tracy with interest but, since she was now removing her coat and folding it over one arm, that interest seemed directed more at her trim female figure than at whether or not she could speak German.

  After watching them looking at Tracy for a few moments, Amanda glanced around the room and then asked, “Can we use a restroom, please?”

  This request apparently caught the older man by surprise. Where was his mind and what had he been thinking about?

  Tariq chuckled and said in Pashto, “Saeed, you must let them use our facilities. I doubt they can wait until the tow truck gets here before they can relieve themselves, right?” He turned and headed toward the doorway leading back into the warehouse. “I will tell Dhanial and the others to stay out of sight until we can bring these women back out here.”

  Saeed grunted and said, also in Pashto, “Make sure nobody tries anything with them. Talib was very clear … we need to avoid drawing attention to ourselves until we know it’s safe.”

  The younger man stopped and looked back, answering, “Sure, but if Dhanial gets a good look at them … especially that young pretty one …”

  “Make sure he doesn’t,” snapped Saeed. “He’s not supposed to even be here. If Talib …”

  “Yeah, yeah. I know. I’ll make sure,” interrupted Tariq as he turned and continued on into the warehouse. Not long after the door closed behind him, the sounds of muffled shouting could be heard. Then it quieted down.

  Turning to Amanda and Tracy, Saeed said, “He will be right back to show you where our restroom is. He’s just checking to make sure it’s available for you right now.” Then he went over to the desk and sat down. He began studying the monitor while moving a mouse around and clicking some keys on the keyboard.

  He sent brief glances over at the two women while he quickly reviewed the various surveillance camera views during the past thirty minutes. He was annoyed with himself for not closing and locking the gate after Dhanial had shown up with three others an hour earlier. Talib was not going to be happy about that and, now that these women had shown up, his day was just that much more complicated.

  He also was annoyed with himself about all the things that French girl was making him think about. He had not been with any woman since coming to Germany and seeing how attractive she was … well … he couldn’t help getting an erection just seeing her take off that coat.

  Chapter Ten

  Mar 19, 2020

  When Ravi knocked on the door at one of the two apartments being used by Dhanial and the others, there was no answer. This was not good. He quickly went to the other apartment and knocked on its door. When it opened, he rushed inside without waiting and, after a quick look around, immediately demanded to know where everyone was.

  Only Saeed and one other man was supposed to be over at the warehouse. The other nine men in the group were supposed to be holed up in these two apartments, laying low. It was obvious Dhanial and three others were not there.

  After questioning the five remaining men, he realized Talib had been right to be worried. Dhanial intended to carry out the next phase of their planned attacks. He was picking up some of the bombing devices at the warehouse and would be bringing them to their next target, a club in Frankfort, using one of Talib’s vans. After learning Candace Axtell and her group had checked out of the rooms they’d been staying at and had left Berlin, Dhanial had convinced himself and the three who had gone with him there was no reason to delay any longer.

  Ravi immediately called Talib and let him know.

  After some heavy cursing, Talib said, “I just talked to Saeed. He didn’t say anything about Dhanial being at the warehouse.”

  Ravi said, “Well, Dhanial can be rather intimidating. He claims he’s got friends high up in the organization back in Afghanistan. What were you talking to Saeed about, anyway?”

  “He had me send a tow truck out there to pick up a car and the two women who were in it when it broke down. You better get out there right away. Bring the five guys you have there with you. I want everyone together in one place. I’ll call Saeed and insist he stop Dhanial from going anywhere until you get there. I’d go myself but we just got a delivery here at the store which I need to take care of before I can leave.”

  “Okay,” agreed Ravi. “I’ll try to keep everyone right at the warehouse until you can get out there later on. I’ll remind them all that you are getting orders directly from Mullah Ahmed Kahtar.”

  -----

  Oliver and Gene had parked their car two blocks away from where Ravi had parked. Then they’d made their way back on foot to the apartment building Ravi had entered. They had no difficulty identifying the building and found they could walk inside without any problem; they were in a poor section of town and the lack of security wasn’t a surprise.

  Following Ravi’s scent, they made their way up to the two apartments which he’d visited. Gene spent several minutes outside of each one scenting the various persons who had recently been into these units. In addition to Ravi and the three others Gene had noted at the liquor store, he scented there were eleven more men total but no women. He knew one apartment was empty at the moment with Ravi inside the other one with five of these eleven men. Since they’d been briefed by Linda while driving over, he knew
about the warehouse outside the city and guessed that was where the missing six guys might be.

  Just as they were leaving so they could call Linda with what they’d learned, they heard the apartment door open. They ducked out the door at the end of the corridor and waited. Sure enough, Ravi and the five others all came out and headed towards them. They quickly went up one flight of stairs to keep out of sight. After the others went down and left the building, they followed after them. They waited until Ravi’s car along with one other car started up and drove away. Then they exited the building and walked back to their car.

  Oliver called Linda so she could arrange for surveillance at this apartment, in addition to the unit they knew was Talib’s across town. When she asked if they could follow Ravi to see if he was going out to the warehouse, he said, “No problem. I have his energy signature and can follow that to wherever he’s going.”

  Linda explained, “If he’s going out to the warehouse, I hope he doesn’t arrive until after Amanda and Tracy have left. They’re out there right now, waiting for a tow truck. Ravi will recognize them if he gets there before they’ve left. I’ll text them and alert everyone else what’s happening while you and Gene are following Ravi.” Then she gave him the address for the warehouse.

  -----

  When Amanda and Tracy were finally led out back and shown where the restroom was, they took a good look around the warehouse. It was mostly wide open with a ceiling about thirty feet up. Along one side, they could see there were four loading bays which lined up with the doors they’d noted on the outside. Three bays were empty but the one closest to them had a van parked inside. The warehouse contained many crates and stacks of boxes along with shelves filled with more boxes. They could see there were a few doors along the opposite side of the warehouse which probably were for offices or storage rooms. They assumed that was where the other guys had gone.

  Once inside the restroom, Amanda said, “I can scent four men are here besides the two we’ve already met.”