Lethal Authority (Wade Hanna Series Book 2)

by Joseph D'Antoni

  Two dirt access roads came in from the west and north of the farmhouse. Stephan’s car was parked on the road to the right of the farmhouse. It could also be used for evacuation or bringing in addition fire power.

  A small white pennant hung from a flagpole strapped to the farmhouse chimney, showing wind direction and speed. Based on the movement of the flag, Wade estimated a light 8-mph wind coming out of the east and used that calculation to adjust his scope.

  Heavy shadows from the thick vegetation bordering the field distorted the distances, so Wade knew that making precise distance calculations would be difficult. He estimated the width of the farmhouse and used that estimate to calculate the distances to other points. While he waited, he walked off distances between banana plantings and used those calculations to estimate the distances to points closest to him. He repeated the process until he got several points confirming the distance to the runway and different points between the farmhouse buildings.

  Based on those calculations, he estimated the distance to the farmhouse was approximately 450 yards away from his firing position. He could easily be off by twenty to forty yards in his calculations, though, and didn’t have much confidence in his estimate.

  As Wade was checking his calculations, the front door of the farmhouse suddenly opened and Stephan appeared in the doorway, his automatic pistol holstered at his side. Another man stepped out beside him. The two spoke for a while before walking down a narrow stone path to the edge of cleared field. Wade focused his scope on the man next to Stephan. The face was new to Wade. It wasn’t the previous pilot who had delivered Stephan’s weapons.

  The second man pointed toward the plane, and he and Stephan continued their discussion as they walked into the field. Wade was too far away to hear what they were saying. Stephan seemed relaxed, several times making gestures toward the covered plane. Wade assumed they were discussing the plane’s readiness for their departure time. The two men walked back to the plane and started removing the branches and camouflage netting. From the body language of the two men, Wade assumed the other man was the pilot. After the netting and bushes were removed, Stephan started walking back to the farmhouse. The pilot got in the plane, started the engine, and moved the plane to the main part of the runway between Wade’s position and the farmhouse. The pilot shut down the engine, got out, checked several parts on the exterior of the plane, and returned to the farmhouse. A smile spread over Wade’s face when he saw the plane’s new position. It was now less than half the distance to the farmhouse and close enough where he might pick up parts of conversations between the men as long at the plane’s engine was silent.

  He quickly recalculated his distances and angles to the plane. His only concern was that the plane now blocked his vision of the farmhouse. He considered alternate angles and decided to move his firing position thirty yards to the right, which changed his angle, but still offered a view of the farmhouse and the plane.

  Suddenly the front door opened again, and the two men started walking to the plane. As they got closer Wade could hear their conversation. This time Stephan appeared a bit agitated.

  The pilot spoke in English with a heavy Spanish accent. “I need to start my inspection of all sides of the plane and wings.”

  Pointing in the direction of the plane, Stephan snapped, “Well, what are you waiting for?”

  Wade’s new position gave him better shooting angles from all sides. The only areas that were not visible were one side of the farmhouse and the area behind the house which contained two metal outbuildings that looked like workshops or equipment storage.

  The pilot, who was unarmed, slowly inspected the tip of the wing. Stephan turned away from the pilot in apparent frustration and returned to the farmhouse, while Wade counted Stephan’s steps as another means to confirm his distance calculations. The second measure verified that he had been off by thirty yards in his previous calculation.

  The pilot seemed a little obsessive about his inspection routine, as he spent an inordinate amount of time on details. Wade was able to get a good look at the pilot. He was well groomed, with a short haircut and trimmed beard, which complemented his white guayabera shirt which glistened in the sun. He wore expensive aviator-style sunglasses and seemed to know his way around the aircraft.

  The twin engine Beechcraft Baron 58 tail section stood in the sunlight, and Wade jotted down the tail numbers on a crumpled piece of paper which he returned to his pocket. He was far enough back in thick banana plantings to cover his shooting position from three sides.

  He happened to look above him. The tall spindly light blue eucalyptus tree leaves danced in the slightest breeze. Wade remembered reading that the eucalyptus trees had been brought in from Australia and planted as wind breaks when commercial banana farming began, in the early part of the century. Wade’s immediate thought was that the movement of the blue leaves might give him a better indication of wind speed than the distant chimney flag on the farmhouse.

  Wade looked around for a quick escape route from his dark hide. He stamped down the plant material covering the ground, making a path so he wouldn’t trip or encounter an obstacle he wasn’t prepared for. His extraction paths went off in three directions behind him.

  To his right were the decaying remains of an old barbed-wire fence. It was leaning out, almost ready to fall from old age and the encroaching pressure of plant roots. At one time the fence must have served to separate the eucalyptus trees from the banana plants, but the roots of both species had long ago destroyed that barrier. The falling fence was an impediment that had to be avoided if Wade was forced to evacuate in that direction. Of course, it would also slow anyone down who was coming at him from the opposite direction.

  Sitting among the dense cover of banana plants, Wade remembered reading that it was the Cavendish variety of bananas that had made the fruit a commercial success in Central America. Poor quality natural soils in Belize made development of large commercial banana plantations less attractive to large-scale importers, so the farms in this country were smaller and farmed by independent growers.

  Wade resumed his sniper position, wondering who else might be in the farmhouse or the surrounding buildings. He felt pretty comfortable with his current estimate of the distance to the farmhouse, now at 325 yards. He would probably not be shooting directly toward the house, but that became his reference point for the distance to all his other target points.

  Instinct told Wade that the plane in front of him had not been called at the last minute for this assignment. He believed it had been part of Stephan’s extraction plan all along and might have been waiting there for several days.

  Wade also didn’t think Stephan’s extraction plans ever included extracting his operatives with him. This plane was Stephan’s private getaway chariot.

  Stephan and the pilot headed toward the plane, talking as they walked. By then, Stephan was clearly showing some frustration. They picked up their pace at Stephan’s insistence, but neither showed a sense of urgency. As they got closer to the plane, the two men separated. The pilot walked ahead of Stephan and began checking the wing and landing gear. He held a clipboard and was systemically going through a list as if he had done it many times before.

  Stephan ducked under the engine cowl and came around the wing. Walking in Wade’s general direction, he turned to look out at the dense foliage surrounding the outer perimeter. Through his scope Wade could see Stephan’s steely blue eyes. They were as cold as Wade remembered from the airport. Stephan’s back was to the plane as his eyes scanned the surrounding landscape. He was unsettled, operating by instinct rather than anything he heard. He paced nervously in a semicircle, coming closer to the banana plantings at a difficult shooting angle for Wade.

  Wade’s eyes were pressed against the rubber ring on his scope. He was focused on Stephan’s blue eyes, trying to discern the complex workings of another operative’s brain. Stephan’s eyes were filled with caution and distrust, laser-like, as if they could melt metal.

/>   The worried look on Stephan’s face told Wade there might be something telepathic going on that had brought him to the perimeter. Perhaps it was that sixth sense they both shared. Wade had known the feeling since childhood, growing up in the swamp.

  Stephan scanned the long rows of banana leaves moving with the slight nudge from a light breeze. His expression didn’t change as he looked into the dark expanse of plantings. Wade wondered what his sixth sense was picking up. Suddenly, as quickly as he’d arrived, he turned back to the plane and walked with purpose toward the copilot’s door. When Stephan’s angle changed from a side shot to frontal position, Wade had his chance to fire, but he didn’t take it. Why am I hesitating again? Why am I trying to figure out how the man’s mind works?

  Approaching the side of the plane, Stephan bent over and yelled to the pilot loud enough for Wade to hear, “I’m ready. Let’s go.”

  Wade couldn’t hear the reply if there was one.

  Stephan had turned to reach for the cockpit door handle, when Wade noticed something he hadn’t seen before – there was a bulge in Stephan’s shirt - a protective armored vest. Wade had to immediately change his shooting options. A frontal shot for center mass had been Wade’s primary objective, but clearly that wouldn’t work. He quickly compared a head shot to a hip shot. A hip shot would give him a slightly larger target below the vest, especially if his leg was extended.

  In a jerky motion Stephan backed away from the plane, showing frustration. He shouted again at the pilot, who was checking ailerons at the rear of the plane. “Damn it! I need to get the hell out of here.”

  This time the pilot yelled back to Stephan and moved a little more quickly down his checklist. Stephan reached for the cockpit handle, lifting his leg up to the wing step. Wade had to make another quick decision. He wasn’t going to hesitate any longer.

  As Stephan shifted his weight to his leg on the wing, Wade exhaled slowly while he applied even pressure on the trigger as he had done thousands of times before. The silenced thump of the round leaving the barrel reached Stephan in a fraction of a second.

  Stephan spun off the wing in a pirouette landing on his back, screaming in pain. Wade couldn’t see where the round had hit. It was either in his upper thigh, hip, or crotch. Wherever it was, Stephan was hit and immobilized, but still alive. Wade readied for his next shot.

  The pilot hadn’t heard the silenced shot, but heard Stephan’s cries of pain. The pilot seemed disoriented, hesitating before looking under the plane. He saw Stephan rolling and holding his bloody lower torso. The pilot crouched and ran to Stephan’s aid as fast as he could. Stephan’s extended open, bloody hand halted the pilot. Stephan yelled at the pilot, “Start the damn plane!”

  Chapter 30

  Wade waited for his next shot as Stephan’s body rolled and spun below the plane. The pilot was torn, trying to decide whether to follow Stephan’s instructions or assist him. Disobeying Stephan’s orders, the pilot came to his aid. The two men spoke, with Stephan’s bloody hands grabbing the pilot’s clean dress shirt to emphasize his point. Wade was unable to hear their conversation, but watched as Stephan screamed instructions. Pushing the pilot away, Stephan rolled behind the landing gear, which blocked Wade’s next shot.

  The pilot backed out from under the plane toward the opposite side and stepped on the wing as he reached for the handle of the pilot’s door. He was clearly unnerved, his hands visibly shaking with fear. Before entering the cockpit, Stephan yelled out new instructions to the pilot: “Start the engine! Call the house for help!”

  Standing on the wing, the pilot turned back toward the farmhouse, cupped his hands, and yelled instructions in Spanish. Wade couldn’t make out what he said. The pilot wasn’t Wade’s concern, so he focused on Stephan, who had managed to pull himself up to a sitting position using the landing gear for support.

  Blocked by the tire and landing gear, Wade was still without a shot. The pilot disappeared into the cockpit, slamming the door behind him. With one hand on his wound Stephan’s other hand shook as he pointed in Wade’s general direction.

  The plane’s propeller made a single revolution, with white smoke billowing from the ports before the engine went silent again. Wade thought the pilot might have had second thoughts, realizing that despite Stephan’s orders, the plane would roll over Stephan if he moved forward.

  A movement caught Wade’s eye in the scope. Two men in camouflage fatigues were running at full speed from the farmhouse toward the plane. Each had an automatic weapon hanging from his shoulder. Wade turned his attention to making scope adjustments for the oncoming threat. He decided it would be better to let them come closer before he took the shot.

  He turned his attention to the underside of the plane. The pilot had abandoned his seat in the plane, and had come underneath it to help Stephan, despite his orders to the contrary. Stephan was frustrated with him, but didn’t refuse his help. Grabbing onto each other, the pilot was able to drag Stephan to the opposite side of the plane near the pilot’s door.

  The threat from the farmhouse was quickly edging closer. The two men continued running at full speed toward Wade. They were 150 yards away and were bringing their weapons to shooting positions. Wade moved his scope sight back from Stephan to the oncoming shooters. He scanned behind them to see if there were others following, but saw no one. He quickly scanned the other roads leading to the farmhouse with the same result.

  As the two men got closer, Wade recognized their weapons. One man was carrying a Heckler & Koch MP-5 submachine gun, and the other was carrying a Russian AK-47. Both men wore military boots and camouflage fatigues with vests loaded with magazines of ammunition.

  The pilot managed to get Stephan onto the wing and somehow pushed him through the door. Following him into the cockpit, the pilot pushed and lifted Stephan’s body over the controls into the copilot’s seat.

  The two armed men took up firing positions, and rounds were now landing all around Wade. Stephan managed to gather enough strength to yell instructions out of the pilot’s door. Wade could see him pointing the men in his general direction. Rapid fire continued to split banana plants before landing deep behind Wade’s position.

  Within a few seconds, the Beechcraft propellers started spinning. The plane lurched forward a few feet, confusing the two shooters and causing them to split their positions on either side of the plane.

  Stephan continued yelling directions. But over the sound of the plane’s engine, no one could hear. It didn’t stop Stephan from animatedly pointing in the general direction of the banana plantings.

  Not seeing return fire or resistance, the two shooters were still uncertain about their target. They fired multiple bursts from their automatic weapons in a wide arch, sending broken foliage to the ground around Wade’s position.

  Wade moved five feet to his right for a better angle at the plane. The approaching men had now assumed prone positions. With his rifle stock resting on the trunk of a recently cut banana plant, Wade scoped the plane one more time as it made a right turn approaching the runway. Wade saw the outline of Stephan’s head. At that point he imagined the rest of Stephan’s body profile on the inside of the plane’s aluminum skin.

  He had one last shot, but it would have to be a miracle shot. Adjusting his scope, he imagined where the center mass of Stephan’s body would appear in the copilot’s seat. This time he ignored the fact that he might still be wearing body armor. The odds of hitting any other body part from this distance and angle were too remote. Perhaps he would get lucky.

  The plane started picking up speed. For the moment, he ignored the two men shooting at him and exhaled slowly, increasing his pressure on the trigger. His silenced shot fired, giving no indication of where it landed. Wade wasn’t even certain his shot hit the plane. Between the plane’s increasing speed, vibration, and distance, along with a slight turn to the left just before moving down the runway, he couldn’t be sure. With his vision of the copilot’s door now obscured, there was no way to confirm his sh
ot. He had other problems just in front of him.

  The two oncoming men moved forward fifteen feet and resumed a prone position. With the plane gone, both men were exposed on open ground. The two men rushing him had been cautious, uncertain of their target and how many men were hidden in front of them. They took turns fanning rounds in his general direction while the other man offered cover, looking for signs of movement. As their bursts were fired, Wade could hear rounds ripping through the plants and leaves around and above his head.

  His adversaries were trying to cover an area which they perceived to be fifty yards on either side of Wade. Both men had enough automatic fire power to take out a platoon of men beyond the long banana fence line. They just didn’t have a precise fix yet. Wade identified each of the two men by number.

  Shooter One stopped firing long enough to carefully scope the surrounding area, looking for signs of movement of any kind. He no longer seemed interested in firing blind. Shooter Two had just emptied his magazine and was in the process of reloading when Shooter One yelled a command in Spanish that Wade took to mean “Cover me.”

  Wade could see their revised plan was to cover each other, firing into the dense foliage in more systematic segments. Sooner or later, the plan would reach Wade’s position. Between alternating firing sequences, they would move closer until they reached the dense cover. Once they were in the cover, they would have the same advantage as Wade, and he couldn’t let that happen.

  When Shooter One reloaded, he gave the ready command for Shooter Two to run to the next position. When the second shooter hit his second step, Wade fired into his center body mass, causing him to flip backward like a circus clown. He landed flat on his backside, lifeless, face up to the sky with his weapon resting quietly at his side.

  Shooter One didn’t hear the shot, but recoiled in shock at seeing his partner’s back flip and the lifeless body a few feet in front of him. He didn’t have a clue where the shot had come from, but emptied an entire magazine whose rounds landed on either side of Wade, missing him by ten yards.