Laura 02 The God Code

by Anton Swanepoel

  Blood freely flows from a hole in Ernest’s hand where the hammer of the gun cut into it.

  “Thanks, owe you one,” Victor comments as he tears a strip of material from the dead man’s shirt and starts bandaging Ernest’s hand.

  “What are you doing? That’s a dead man’s shirt.”

  “So, he is not going to need it anymore. Now hold still.”

  Suddenly three bullets hit Victor in the chest, and he slides over the floor from the impact. Ernest quickly kicks the flashlight away and fires in the direction the shots came from while diving for cover. A man screams as Ernest scores a direct hit.

  “Intruders, intruders!” someone screams in the bridge.

  Ernest peeks around a missile tube he is hiding behind, trying to pinpoint the enemies’ position. Subtracting the men they killed from the number onboard the technician gave, there should still be seven hijackers left. Ernest ducks behind the missile tube as a flashlight from inside the bridge shines in his direction. Both entrances to the bridge are covered. There is no way he can get near the bridge without being seen and possibly shot. Ernest steals a glance in the direction of Victor. Victor’s body is lying somewhere in the dark on the opposite side of the path. Ernest cannot safely cross the path to help Victor without being seen. Stealing a look again at the closest door, Ernest is greeted with a volley of gunfire. Quickly he pulls back, then sticks his machine gun around the missile tube and empties a clip in the direction of the door where the shooting originated.

  There is a scream as Ernest hits someone, however he does not know if he killed or wounded the person. Reloading, he again aims the machine gun around the missile tube, firing in the general direction of where he thinks the men are. Suddenly the machine gun is ripped from his hand as a bullet strikes it, while at the same time a bullet catches Ernest in the left shoulder, spinning him round, causing him to hit his head against the missile tube, knocking him half unconscious. Dazed, Ernest crawls away, trying to get behind another missile tube, closer to his lost machine gun.

  “Hold it!” A gun barrel is pressed against Ernest’s head. As Ernest freezes, two men grab him and lift him up. He can feel he is searched while someone shines a flashlight in his eyes, blinding him. The men drag Ernest towards the control room where he is dumped on the ground and kicked twice in the stomach and then in the face.

  “Guard the door,” One of the men orders, as Ernest tries to get his breath back. Everything is spinning and his ears are ringing.

  “How many men are with you? And how many of my men have you killed?” Ernest is kicked hard in the side, causing him to slide a few feet across the floor until he hits the legs of the chart table.

  “There must be at least two, I got one,” someone comments.

  “You screwed up our plans, taking out my boat and men, but not to worry, I have enough men here to keep the crew under control and take the submarine to where I can get more men. You, on the other hand, will die here today.

  “Kill him, then go take control of the crew. Watch out, they may be armed.”

  The steel is cold as the barrel of a pistol is pressed against Ernest’s right temple. The click sound of the hammer being pulled back fills his ears.

  “Wait.” Ernest starts to slowly turn as he speaks, having been lying on his stomach.

  “Why?”

  “Because I want to look you in the eye as you kill me.”

  “Suit yourself.”

  Ernest looks up at a bearded Mexican man in his early thirties, holding a gold plated Smith and Western .45 ACP, pointed at Ernest’s head.

  “Nice gun.”

  “Thank-” The back of the man’s head explodes as a bullet rips through it, then suddenly there is blood and brains being spattered all over the place as bullets cut the men down, five in total. When the shooting stops, Ernest cranks his head to look behind him at the door while still lying on the floor. Victor is hanging upside down from the outside wall, his upper body in the doorway, a smoking pistol in each hand. Rolling over, Ernest comments, “I thought you were dead.”

  “Bulletproof vest, never leave home without it,” Victor replies as he unhooks his legs from a pipe on the wall.

  “How did you manage to sneak up on the men with the guard at the door?”

  Picking up a flashlight, Victor lights up the ceiling of the missile room, showing a small walkway running from missile tube to missile tube to allow for inspections.

  “I just used the missile tubes next to the wall where it is dark, then used the pipes running along this wall to make my way to the door. Then I hooked myself in, holding myself up by bending my knees and holding on to the pipes. When they were distracted by expecting the bloke to shoot you, I just let go of the pipes, swinging down and took a few pot shots.

  “Glad you did. Let’s go get the crew in the mess hall and then go pick up the rest of the crew,” Ernest responds.

  “We also have to pick up the two pilots, or their bodies. By the way, will you please put the pin back into the hand grenade. You are making me nervous, and what were you thinking bringing a hand grenade onto a submarine in any case?”

  Victor shakes his head as Ernest replaces the pin in the hand grenade, having pulled it out just before he turned to face the man tasked with killing him. If the man did shoot Ernest, the hand grenade would have dropped from his hand and killed the rest of the men. After replacing the pin, Ernest responds, “Good thing you shot the guy when you did, otherwise we both would have been toast.”

  ***

  It takes the submarine crew only 20 minutes to locate the first pilot, due to his sender working and sending out a distress signal. Pieter is carefully lifted onto the deck of the submarine, barely conscious. Taking Victor’s hand, he gives a weak smile then whispers, “Thank you for coming back for me.” His hand goes limp and Victor feels his pulse, the man is dead.

  The search for John’s body takes two hours as his transponder is not functioning. Only by luck and the sheer brilliance of the Captain and navigator being able to track the ocean currents do they find him, or what is left of him. The Gatling gun had torn through his seat and his body, cutting him in half. The man died of massive trauma and blood loss. Placing both bodies in specially designed bags, the crew places them in one of the freezers. As the submarine makes its way back to US waters at maximum speed, they use a standard marine radio to contact the closest Navy base and send an encrypted message to the President that the submarine is secure and returning to port.

  Victor and Ernest are standing in the conning tower, looking out to sea, when the Captain comes up behind them.

  “You two have done an excellent job. How about you get out of that wet gear and go get yourself some food in the mess before joining me in my cabin, we need to talk.” Both men nod in agreement and the Captain continues. “Ensign Conrad here will show you to the showers and get you fresh clothes.” The Captain then steps aside and lets the men move past him. Conrad leads them to the showers where he gets them towels and promises to bring them fresh clothes while they shower. Due to the submarine being so large and designed to be submerged for long periods, it can generate fresh water through osmosis out of sea water for its five showers. As is typical on a submarine, privacy is of little concern and the dressing room is one large area with benches. Both men welcome the warm shower, then wait for the Ensign while sitting on a bench, towels around their middles.

  Ernest cannot help but notice multiple bullet scars on Victor’s body.

  “I can see why you wear a bulletproof vest, you have enough experience with being shot at, and I guess in your career you are never off duty,” Ernest comments.

  “Not all of them are from my career.”

  There is a few minutes silence, before Victor continues.

  “I was in the military, still in training. It was my girlfriend’s birthday and I managed to get a weekend pass. We were on our way to the movies in her dad’s car. Man, I was so nervous. I was going to propose to her. Had the ring tied to my
shoelaces as I was afraid of losing it. I stopped the car at an intersection and reached down to make sure the ring was still there.

  “It took me only a second, but when I looked up, five local gang members had surrounded the car. Before I could react, one of them shot me through the side window, six times with a .38 special. A bullet damaged the nerves in my spine, and I could not move.

  One of them smashed the passenger window and unlocked the door. They dragged Arabel out of the car to the front. I was still semi conscious, but no matter how hard I tried, I could not move, even though my mind wanted to. She tried to fight them off, but they just punched her in the stomach and face. They threw her on the car’s bonnet as they ripped her clothes off in front of me and gang raped her right there on the car’s bonnet. Her eyes pleaded for me to save her, but I could not. The last one to rape her jumped on the bonnet when he was done, and then dragged her body up and pressed her face against the window.

  “He spat at me on the window, then slit her throat, holding her down to let the blood spurt on the window for me to see until she stopped struggling. He then cut off her breasts and threw them in my lap, then left her lying there on the car, bleeding to death. I went in and out of consciousness, and each time I came to, her eyes would stare at me. I looked into her dead eyes, unable to move, for two hours before the cops showed up.”

  A deadly silence falls over the shower room for a minute, Ernest unable to say a word, and then Victor continues.

  “It took me two years to recover and learn to walk again. I had many surgeries to get the bullets removed and fix the nerves. The doctors said I would never walk again or be able to use my arms, but nothing would stop me from getting those bastards. As soon as I could, I went AWOL from the army and tracked down every single one of them, it only took me three days to get them all. They died painfully and slowly.”

  Ernest tries to swallow the lump in his throat, and then asks, “What did you do then?”

  “Went back to camp.”

  “Why?”

  “Had nowhere else to go. Her dad blames me for her death and I have no family.”

  “What happened when you reported back to base?”

  “Got arrested, there was a witness. While I was in military prison, a General came by and offered me a deal.

  “If I agree to join a company doing special ops, he will get me out. Apparently the speed with which I found these people two years after the incident, and that I could remember each one’s face, in addition to how I killed them, got their attention.”

  “And that’s the company you used to work for?”

  “Fifteen years, and still every time I take out a drug lord or terrorist, I see her face.”

  “I can see why you’re so driven, you want to join her. You wish every time not to come back from a mission.”

  “I used to, but things changed.”

  “You met another woman, and she is taking the pain away?”

  “Correct.”

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “I do not know, she has been pulled into this mess. Since we met, we have both been dodging bullets. I do not know if she will be able to last until all of this is done, or if she will stick around when the action is over.”

  “Well, only one way to find out. When we get back to land, you and she are invited to join my family and me to spend some time at our family cottage in the woods for a weekend, and if things go okay, you are welcome to stay at the cottage for as long as you like.”

  “Thanks mate.” Victor wants to say more, but emotions block the words. Just then Ensign Conrad appears with fresh clothes, Navy overalls.

  ***

  Laura stares at the computer screen in frustration. She has been searching for hours, but constantly gets an error message that a document number does not exist. On her lap is a manuscript she found in the archives, that references a few other documents, yet the computer informs her none exist. Frustrated Laura throws the manuscript on the desk, but it slides off and falls on the ground. Laura slowly bends down to pick it up, but something catches her attention, and she reaches over to pick it up. This looks familiar, where have I seen this before? Oh, yes, it is a small piece of fiber-optic wire. This is the same wire the technicians used when they came to install a new computer system at my old work. Laura pulls the computer forward on the desk and frowns. This is strange; there is no Internet or LAN connection at the back of the computer, so where did the wire come from? Laura looks again at the piece of wire in her hand. The wire is flattened, as if it had stuck to someone’s shoe after being stepped on and came off in the room. Maybe it is from security cameras in the building.

  Being thirsty, she gets up and walks to a water cooler close to the elevator door. Laura pours herself a cup of water, and then takes a big gulp. Just then something strange far down the passage next to the wall catches her attention. Not all the lights are on in the building, and the path next to the wall is mostly in the shadow, yet there is light coming from the floor, by the wall, about 100 feet from her. Slowly, Laura walks towards the light. Where is the light coming from?

  Cautiously Laura moves closer.

  With a shock she realizes the source of the light. A closed door is built into the wall and the light from inside shines through the small gap at the bottom of the door. Voices are coming from inside.

  Who is inside the room? I was told I will be alone down here. Why did I not see them enter the archives? Curiously Laura puts her ear to the door.

  “How could you miss him, do you know what problems he is causing for me now?” Phil is furious.

  “Relax, we have his girl.”

  “Yes, and the Pope is still alive and Laura is asking too many questions.” Laura puts her hands over her mouth when she hears the words.

  “I will kill her and then the Pope, making it look like she killed the Pope and committed suicide. You can still tie her to some radical group. I will get Victor later.”

  “Laura has the pictures of the scrolls with her. I need those pictures before you kill her. I have waited a long time for those scrolls and the data on them; everything is already set up. In this computer here I have entered all the codes to decode the scrolls, all I have to do is upload the pictures from the scrolls, and the computer will decode the symbols in a matter of minutes.”

  “And what do you plan on doing with the information?”

  “With that, you can take over the world. No one will be able to stop you. Governments will pay billions for it.”

  “I want half.” Andrea’s voice is emotionless, cold and calculated, no negotiations.

  “What?”

  “Half, or I kill you and decode the things myself.”

  “Okay, half it is then. However, you make sure she and the Pope die today, no complications. She is busy working at the computer in the other room, as promised, try not to miss. I’ll start up the computer. Kill her then bring me the pictures.”

  Suddenly the door knob turns and Laura jumps out of the way just in time before the door opens. Pressing herself hard against the wall and holding her breath, she hides behind the open door. Andrea’s footsteps fade as she walks towards the room Laura was working in. Phil sits down at the computer without noticing Laura and starts typing commands on the computer.

  Andrea holds her Walter PPK 32 at hip level. She loves the little pistol, small and compact, yet deadly up close. She loves looking into people’s eyes as she shoots them in the heart, it gives her so much personal pleasure. She also loves to seduce her targets, and see the surprised look on their faces when she shoots them right after they propose.

  Coming to the computer room, she is immediately on high alert. The door is open and Laura is nowhere to be seen. Carefully she backs away from the door and goes over to the elevator, pressing her back to the wall and kneeling down. After scanning the paths between the book racks she can see, she cautiously returns to Phil. Laura has already tip toed farther down the path and is climbing on top of one of the shelves.
Carefully Laura removes the neon light above her, and lays it down next to her.

  “She is not there.” Andrea’s voice reveals her hatred for Laura.

  “What do you mean? She was in the room when I passed by earlier. Did you search the shelves?”

  “Are you kidding me? Do you know how big this place is?”

  “Well, she must have gone off looking for a document she thinks may be important. We can find out which one it is from the computer, it will tell us what document she last scanned for and exactly where she is in the building. Let’s go see.”

  Laura is desperately holding back a sneeze. The top of the shelf is full of dust, and fills her nose. The footsteps are faint now. They must be far enough away for them not to be able to hear me. Laura’s eyes start to water as she desperately tries to hold back the sneeze, but to no avail. Laura’s heart stops as she lets out a soft sneeze. Did they hear me?

  “What was that?” Andrea stops in her tracks, her muscles tensing.

  “What was what?” Phil is getting annoyed.

  “I heard something, someone sneezing, somewhere down the room.”

  Laura’s throat tightens, and her heart starts to pound against her chest as the footsteps come back, directly to her shelf. She clenches her jaw as she holds back another sneeze.

  “It came from somewhere over here.” Andrea points to where Laura is hiding in the dark.

  “You’re imagining it. There’s no one there.” Phil starts to walk back to the computer to see what files Laura last accessed.

  Andrea is standing right below the shelf Laura is on, and stares down the passage, then slowly turns her gaze up. She cannot see anything, but something is odd about the shelf. Then she notices what caught her attention, the light above the shelf is not working. The shelf is 10 feet high, and Andrea cautiously starts to climb the shelves.

  Laura slowly pulls out the small Mares Hero knife she is hiding on her left thigh, a gift from Victor. She holds the knife ready, her heart racing. She has to clench her fists to stop herself from sneezing again and tears fill her eyes, blocking her view. Carefully, Andrea pokes her head over the top of the shelf. The two women see each other at the same time.