Captain Bonomo told Lieutenant Saunders, “Linda’s task force includes the FBI’s Psychic Division and Oliver is one of their best psychics. Linda and I will be giving our pilots direction to where we think the van might be, based on what Oliver is able to sense for us. That’s highly classified and you must not include any reference to that in whatever reports you eventually file when this is all over. We won’t be telling the pilots why we know where they need to fly. We’ll merely tell them our source is classified. I’m pretty sure they already know this mission is top secret due to how it was arranged.”
The lieutenant looked at Jesse with some skepticism but then nodded. He realized there were aspects to this entire mission he’d never understand but he was appreciative he’d been allowed to participate. It was all way over his head but he’d do his part. He checked in with Bravo-Three, the men he’d sent after the van, and advised them he’d be providing them with some guidance on where to look.
In addition to the two helo pilots, there were two crewmen; they waved Linda’s team over and assisted them all with climbing aboard and getting seated and strapped in. Linda, Jesse and Lieutenant Saunders were provided with headsets and microphones enabling them to communicate with the pilots and crewmen. Once everyone was ready, the helicopter lifted off and climbed up to an altitude of a thousand meters.
Although it was now dark out, the pilots had helmet-mounted night vision goggles and could navigate anywhere they needed to go. When Oliver provided Jesse with a direction, he gave that to the pilots and they began their search. Glancing at the map which one of the crewmen gave Jesse, their direction was south-westerly and possibly toward Frankfurt. Lieutenant Saunders relayed that to Bravo-Three who then also headed off in that direction.
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When the anti-terrorist team members Gostoff had sent to arrest Talib, Tabish and Musa finally broke into Talib’s liquor store in Leipzig, they found it empty. Likewise, no one was home at any of the apartment addresses for these men. When all the vehicles registered to these men were also accounted for, it was obvious. The men had fled, probably to a safe house somewhere.
The German authorities were notified, an all-out search was initiated, photos were distributed, and checks were made at all public transportation centers. Every airport, train station, bus terminal and taxi company received notice these men were persons of interest whose whereabouts were to be reported immediately.
Searches made at the apartments turned up nothing helpful, in spite of obtaining the computers which had been left behind. When all resources had been exhausted with no immediate results, Gostoff placed a call back to Linda. He had finished up at the warehouse location and was returning to Leipzig at this point.
After Linda answered her phone, acknowledging she was still up in the helicopter and more than halfway to Frankfurt, Gostoff asked, “Are your sources still monitoring all phone calls from Talib Mansoor? I think you told me that was how your task force identified him in the first place, right?”
“Well, we will know if he uses his satellite phone to call back to Afghanistan. We might be able to provide a location if he does that but we never established any monitoring for other phone calls he or his men might be making. Why? Wasn’t he at his liquor store?” Linda had not yet heard any reports from the men Lieutenant Saunders had left doing surveillance.
“No, it looks like he and his men have gone to ground,” answered Gostoff. “They’re not using any of their known vehicles or prior locations … we doubt they’re coming out to the warehouse. I still have people there but, if he was nervous about Ms. Axtell’s visit like you said and wasn’t able to reach Ravi or Saeed after they were arrested?”
“Right. I understand,” agreed Linda. “Okay. I’ll let my people know. If they learn anything, I’ll get back to you.”
“Thanks.” After a short pause, Gostoff asked, “You say you’re checking for that van out near Frankfurt?”
“It’s only a guess but, yes. If we locate the van, I will let you know right away.”
They said their goodbyes and disconnected.
Linda asked Lieutenant Saunders to check and, after he conferred with his surveillance team at the store, he confirmed what Gostoff had told her. They never saw anyone leave the store but did notice Gostoff’s men rush in. They were guessing there must have been a hidden exit since it was obvious no arrests had been made.
Linda then let the others know Talib had managed to escape. But that situation would have to wait … they needed to focus on finding Dhanial and that van with the explosive devices first.
Ten minutes later, Oliver said, “I think we may be getting close now. I’m sensing stronger signals and those are coming from somewhere below rather than from up ahead. Let’s have the pilot circle around to the right and take us down a little lower.”
Amanda and Jesse were seated next to a window on the left side of the aircraft while Tracy, John and Lieutenant Saunders were seated next to one on the right. They’d been the ones to see the van back at the warehouse earlier and hoped they could recognize it again once they got somewhere near, even though it was now dark out.
There were two main routes from Leipzig into Frankfurt and they were now over one of them, not far from Giessen. They’d been guiding Bravo-Three who were only about fifteen minutes back, having been speeding as fast as possible. As they descended lower, there were enough lights allowing them to determine what vehicles were travelling on the various roadways.
John asked Tracy, “Isn’t that the van we want? See the one which just went through that intersection?” He was pointing so she could see.
“Yes!” exclaimed Tracy. “That’s the one!” She and John pointed so the others could see and Jesse came over to look. He alerted the pilots they had a suspect vehicle down below and described it for them, asking that they circle overhead but stay far enough away so it wouldn’t be obvious they were following this van.
Lieutenant Saunders was very impressed. Somehow … and, he knew he’d never know just how … Oliver and Linda’s team had indeed managed to locate the van. As their aircraft circled lazily overhead, he was able to see it well enough to satisfy himself they really had the right vehicle. When they checked the license plate number which appeared in one of the photos the co-pilot managed taking, it checked. They had the correct van.
After checking with Bravo-Three, it was confirmed they were only about ten minutes away. If the target was in Frankfurt, which they had been guessing for a while now, it looked possible to intercept the van before it reached there. Linda gave Gostoff a call to ask that he get his organization to take the lead. She wanted Bravo-Three to only play a supporting role which, hopefully, wouldn’t be needed.
Gostoff had just reached Leipzig when Linda called. He hadn’t given her chances of locating that van much hope but, on learning she was now circling overhead and had confirmed the license plate, he promised to get someone from the Frankfurt anti-terrorist group in touch with her right away.
He had been keeping his supervisor in Berlin up to date with all the developments and, after getting Linda’s call, he quickly passed along her request.
More calls were made and it didn’t take long before one Jordan Dietrich in Frankfurt was told to call Linda Rayburn and provide all necessary resources in stopping the van and arresting the suspected terrorists. Detailed info was provided on the types of explosives and bombing devices, along with possible weapons, which might be in that van.
Dietrich called Linda to get the story firsthand and promised he’d scramble a team to intercept the van. They discussed possible locations where a blockade might be set up, but they needed to see which route into Frankfurt the van would take before any decision could be made. When Linda advised the van had just left Route 5 and was now on Route 661, Dietrich stated he wanted to stop them just before the Preungesheim district, on the northern outskirts of Frankfurt.
Linda told Dietrich, “Our Bravo-Three team is in a vehicle now only five minutes behind the v
an. It will be in position to stop any retreat the van might attempt. Wait one … we need to check something with our pilot.”
Jesse had been signaling her, pointing at his watch and at the pilot. She switched over to use her headset to communicate with the pilot and learned they could stay on station for at least thirty minutes. On the phone again to Dietrich, she added, “We’ll be up here for another half hour or so. Then we’ll need to refuel.”
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Dhanial was pleased. He was confident this attack would go just as well as the one they’d done in Munich, only better since they were placing two bombing devices. He’d go into the club first, checking things out. Then two of his guys would come in through the back door he’d open for them, while his remaining guy stayed with the van, ready for a quick getaway. They had done a thorough surveillance of this particular club’s layout ten days earlier; he’d have no problem taking out the one security guard in the back and letting his guys sneak in.
Once they each had placed their explosives under tables near support columns, like they’d managed doing in Munich, they all could make their way back out and climb into the van. After they were well clear, they’d detonate their bombs remotely. Boom! Another big moment for WIJO with a strong message sent to the rest of the world. He was sure this would really enable him to move higher up in WIJO’s organization.
They’d taken a leisurely route so far, making sure they were not being followed and driving at a normal pace. Now they were only minutes away from their destination and the timing would be just right. He looked ahead along the stretch of highway and …
Suddenly, there were flashing lights up there! Oh, oh! What was this?
“Hey, it looks like police are looking for someone,” he yelled. “Pull over and stop. Let’s see what happens. If any of them come toward us, we need to turn around and go the other way. We cannot allow our van to be stopped and searched.”
Chapter Fifteen
Mar 19, 2020
Tracy watched as the van pulled to a stop. There were several vehicles now racing towards the van, lights flashing, forcing traffic to pull over to one side or the other. Then she saw the van start back up, veering across the road and crossing to the opposite lane. It was obvious it planned to make a run for it.
She focused on the front of the van, where the engine was. She didn’t need to extend her arm, really. She aimed with one finger and was able to control the energy which she’d been gathering. Suddenly a bright fireball burst, going right through the van’s hood and into its engine compartment. The van ground to a halt. It wasn’t going anywhere after that.
Men came scrambling out, waving weapons. The vehicles with the flashing lights quickly pulled to a stop nearby. Doors opened and men with weapons climbed out, using the open doors for protection. Shots were fired and in just moments, it was over. The four men from the van were all down. Then the police rushed towards the van with fire extinguishers. Fortunately, before the fire had spread to anywhere inside the van, where the explosives were located, it was put out.
It would be learned that two men from the van were killed while Dhanial and one other were badly wounded. They would survive, however, and be able to stand trial with Ravi and the others later. Two of the anti-terrorist team members were wounded, but only with superficial wounds. The arrest was considered a huge success.
Bravo-Three arrived shortly after it was over. They asked for Jordan Dietrich but since he was back at headquarters, they merely talked to him on the phone. They did, however, get to see firsthand how everything had played out. Like everyone else on site, they found no explanation for the mysterious explosion which caused the van’s engine to burst into flames. That never would be explained and would be written up as a strange anomaly. A lucky strange anomaly, of course, since had the van not stopped when it did, there might have been some collateral damage.
In hindsight, having the anti-terrorist forces and police all flashing their lights the way they’d done might not have been the best strategy. As explanation, since no one was making any excuses, there had been very little time for these Frankfort teams to react. Once there was one vehicle flashing its lights, that quickly resulted in all the others doing so as well. But all had ended well, so … like the strange fire anomaly … not much was said about it. The contents of the van got all the attention. A bombing attack by WIJO terrorists had definitely been stopped, with the men responsible for planning that arrested. The authorities would have no difficulty in proving these men were responsible for the attack in Munich as well.
Linda and her team had only circled overhead for a few minutes after seeing how events unfolded down below. Then they’d headed off to an airport nearby to refuel.
Linda talked to both Dietrich and Gostoff, congratulating them for a successful operation and received their thanks for the behind the scenes assistance her team had provided. Then she called Lieutenant Colonel Schermerhorm and briefed him on everything.
Once her phone calls were over, she rejoined the others on her team who had somehow managed getting several pizzas delivered. For this impromptu pizza party, they were able to use a hangar which had been made available to them, thanks to calls their pilots had made. It was nice to know people who knew people. They were all in a very up mood.
Away from being overheard by those not on her team, Linda explained what was left for them to still accomplish. “I asked if we could keep our Army helicopter for another day and Colonel Schermerhorm said he was confident he could make that happen. We already have Lieutenant Saunders and his guys, of course. We’ll return to Leipzig tonight and get some rest at our hotel. In the morning, we’ll let Oliver take us to wherever Talib is hiding with his two men.”
Oliver grinned and said, “I was hoping you’d say that! If we still have that helo, it won’t be any problem to locate those guys. Then, you can have the lieutenant and his men apprehend them. Or, will you be inviting Gostoff to do that?”
“No, we’ll let Jesse and Lieutenant Saunders do the apprehending. They did such an outstanding job rescuing Tracy and Amanda, I’m sure they’ll be quite capable of capturing Talib and whomever else he has with him. Then? We’ll have to see what our task force back home wants us to do. They’ll be conferencing all night on that while we’re getting our rest. The consensus back home is to use this opportunity to send our own message to WIJO. Having Missy right there in Afghanistan where she can help get our message across just makes this an ideal occasion for doing exactly that.”
There were several calls of, “Hear, hear!” and “Okay, now! Let’s go!” The enthusiasm was plentiful and, when their pilot approached and announced he’d just received word that he was to provide Linda and her team with continued support for another twenty-four hours, that was met with further cheers.
Thus, it was a happy team which climbed back aboard the Black Hawk for a return flight to Leipzig. Lieutenant Saunders called ahead and arranged for a couple more rooms for the pilots and their crew at the same hotel where everyone else was staying. And, of course, he had vehicles waiting when they landed to take them all back to that hotel.
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Oliver and Candy went to their room where Candy insisted on showing Oliver just how much she appreciated his outstanding wizardry in finding that van. Their passionate lovemaking was a very strong incentive for Oliver to find those remaining terrorists in the morning. Their decision to come along on this mission, hopefully stirring up those WIJO terrorists and getting them to reveal themselves, had definitely been a good one. They both drifted off to sleep, eventually, feeling very good about things.
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Gene and Amanda were also super excited about having come on this trip to Germany. It had been their idea for Oliver and Candace’s embassy visit to be here. Not only had Amanda been able to reunite with her family, introducing Gene, but their mission to obtain justice for Johan and Justine was clearly a huge success. They were certain Oliver would locate the remaining terrorists and, from what Linda was
saying, the task force they worked for was still planning something.
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Jesse and Linda were finding they couldn’t wait to climb into bed and make love. They each had learned a lot that day about the other person and it reinforced all the feelings they’d found about each other in Berlin. They were finding there were real depths to those feelings. The fire kindled during their first few nights together was now blazing strongly and they were more comfortable with being together than either had ever dreamed possible. They didn’t need to look ahead to what the future might be bringing. They just knew they’d somehow manage to continue their relationship long term and, for right now? They were enjoying themselves tremendously. It was a long time before their passionate lovemaking gave way to their falling asleep, still twined together in loving embraces.
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And, what about Tracy and John?
“That laser firebolt was very impressive,” said John as he began undressing for bed. “I didn’t notice any energy being drained from me when you blasted that van. I’m guessing you stored up enough energy beforehand and didn’t need to draw much, if any, from the rest of us when you did that, right?” He chuckled.
Tracy grinned and said, “I did gather some energy from everyone while we were flying along, but you’re right … I didn’t need all that much.” She had been removing her clothes and tossing them helter-skelter and was down to just her bra and panties.
“Oh, why not? Are you the Everready Energizer Bunny now?” He was still only half undressed and paused to admire the way she was now parading around, teasing him in her skimpy, sexy lingerie.
“Actually, that might be a good analogy,” murmured Tracy as she came over, pushed him back so he sat down on the bed and then she helped him remove one of his shoes. “You do realize the Spring Equinox is tomorrow and my highly developed witchy powers always escalate at such times, right?”
Tracy the Fire Witch Page 9