BlackStar Mountain

by T C Miller

  He repeated the routine with a sleep-soddened Star, tying her hands in front. A third zip-tie went from Star’s bonds to Licia’s, loosely tying them together so they could walk in single file.

  He pushed them through the slit at the back of the tent and into the surrounding forest. The guardians of the campsite were concentrating their attention in the opposite direction while watching the road. Belk had been left to guard the rear and was nowhere in sight.

  The two girls shivered in the cool night air, but were soon wide awake. Licia was grateful he hadn’t blindfolded them as she avoided tree roots, bushes, and an occasional boulder. The just risen waning gibbous moon shone brightly through the towering pine trees and offered some illumination.

  She followed the man, with Star stumbling behind, for about thirty feet before almost tripping over a body that appeared to be wrapped in branches and grass. It lay motionless and she paused for a while, wondering if the person was alive. The kidnapper jerked her shirt and they continued the trek.

  The trio followed what appeared to be a hiking trail that led toward a clearing in the forest ahead. A mist hung just above the path and the smell of moss and fallen pine needles caused her to sneeze.

  “Make another sound like that and you are both dead,” the man hissed at her.

  “Can’t help it...” she whispered. “Allergies.”

  “Stifle next one, or will be your last.”

  The sneeze cleared her head and she began to assess their situation. She remembered the words of the instructor of a self-defense course. Don’t let an attacker isolate you...Better to die resisting.

  It was sound advice, but here in the forest in the middle of the night, she wasn’t sure how to resist with her hands tied behind her. Use your head. “Uh, mister, I have to go to the bathroom,” she pleaded in a soft voice.

  “Me, too,” Star added.

  “Too bad...We must go much further.”

  Licia stopped.

  Their captor turned around and grabbed her by the throat. “We are on tight schedule...Hold it in and keep moving.”

  “Can’t walk with my legs crossed,” she replied through clenched teeth. “Give us a few minutes and we’ll move a lot faster.”

  His face was in shadow and hid his reaction. She stood there waiting and fidgeting.

  “Okay, but then, no more delaying.”

  “You have to cut these so I can go.”

  There was another pause before he answered,” “One at a time, and no tricks.”

  “I’ll go behind that tree,” she said in a near whisper.

  “No...Doithere.”

  “In front of you?”

  “Your choose...That, or wet pants.”

  “Oh, come on...you have a weapon...I don’t. You really think I’d try something with a guy your size?”

  She whimpered a little for effect.

  He pulled a folding knife from his pocket, opened the blade and cut Star lose from Licia.

  He motioned for Star to step back and cut Licia’s bonds.

  Licia waited until her hands were free and brought them in front of her. She pretended to be unfastening her belt and surreptitiously watched the placement of his feet.

  “You gonna watch?”

  The kidnapper was staring at the back of her jeans and offered only a lecherous grin in reply.

  Licia whirled suddenly and caught him under the nose with her elbow.

  The unmistakable cracking sound of cartilage breaking was accompanied by a yelp of pain. She backed up closer, stomped on his instep and used her elbow again to deliver a powerful strike to the midsection.

  He bent over in pain and her elbow struck once more, this time with a downward blow to the back of his neck. It drove him to the ground and she brought her heel down on the base of his skull.

  Licia bent over to retrieve the knife from his hand and heard a tinny voice coming from an earpiece radio he wore. She removed the earpiece and listened for a moment, but couldn’t understand what she thought was probably Russian.

  She slipped the nightvision goggles off and retrieved the power supply from his belt.

  It only took a moment to cut Star’s bonds.

  “Thanks.” Star rubbed her hands to restore circulation and shivered. “Wow! Where’d you learn all those moves, girl?”

  “Self-defense class.” Licia checked the man’s pulse and found none. She stripped his down jacket off and held it out toward Star.

  “I’m supposed to put that creep’s coat on?”

  “Better than being cold...Besides, he won’t need it anymore.”

  “You killed him?” Star stared at the prone figure. “Never seen a dead person before.”

  Star slowly donned the jacket while Licia removed the man’s weapons and a bundle of zip-ties from his pocket. Might come in handy.

  She pulled the sling of his rifle over her shoulder and handed two magazines of ammo to her friend.

  “Put these in your pockets...May need them later.”

  Star complied and for the first time, Licia noticed a blank stare on her face.

  “You okay?”

  Star mumbled something unintelligible that could barely be heard.

  “You’re not going into shock on me, are you?” Licia shook her friend’s shoulders and thumped her on the forehead with her knuckle.

  “Ow, why’d you do that?” Star complained as she rubbed her forehead. Her eyes were focused again and Licia breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s better...Now, let’s head back to camp.” Why am I whispering?

  The answer came a few seconds later when they heard the sounds of somebody coming toward them from the clearing further down the trail.

  “What is it?” Star asked the question in a trembling voice.

  “Think some of his friends are looking for us. Come on, let’s make tracks back to the camp.”

  Licia picked up the dead man’s flashlight, took Star’s hand and started back down the trail the camp.

  “You need to pick up the pace,” she said after a short distance.

  “Got a rock in my boot...Gotta get it out.”

  “Okay, let’s move far enough off the trail they can’t see us.”

  METRO STATION PARKING LOT

  GAITHERSBERG, MD

  “This is not a good time to talk,” Justin Todd hissed into the satellite phone. He had been sitting in his car for almost an hour waiting for the phone to be answered. He was short of breath and felt clammy, even with the air conditioning on.

  “I don’t care,” the voice on the other end replied. “It’s crucial to current operations that we receive the information we need as soon as possible.”

  “I cannot risk it. I am officially under suspicion and being watched...”

  “Not my concern, you little piss ant. Go back there and get the information or we’re both dead...Understand?”

  “I will be arrested if I access those files and you will still not have the information. Do you understand? It is an impasse.”

  There was a long pause followed by the sound of air being forcefully expelled through teeth before he answered, “Need to call them...I’ll get back to you.”

  The line went dead.

  Justin set the phone down on the dash and leaned back. Maybe it is time to go to the gym. The stash of fake passports and currency hidden in a locker would be more than enough for him to disappear before either the Consortium or the NSA knew he was gone. A quick flight to the Cayman Islands and a visit to six locations of more hidden funds and he would vanish.

  He was about to start the car when the phone rang. “Hello?”

  “The situation has changed.” His handler sounded relieved. “Carry on as usual...Gather any intel you can and pass it on. Don’t look for anything that leaves a trail.”

  “That I can do.”

  “Good...Contact me when you have something.”

  Justin sat still with his hands on the wheel and stared straight ahead.

  ***

  CHAPTER 17
>
  CONSORTIUM UNDERGROUND SITE

  NEAR DEER TRAIL, COLORADO

  Rick and Gregory moved quickly along the corrugated steel tunnel that lead from the Control Dome to Missile Silo Number Three. Work had progressed nicely on One and Two and they should be pumped dry in less than a month, or so Gunter Wilhem assured them. Another four or five months of renovation and they would be able to launch the Soviet-era ICBM that would be smuggled into the country labeled as “Steam Turbine Parts.”

  The Consortium’s plan was coming together after years of planning. Rick felt uneasy, since he was not making the final decisions. But, also because he knew the true identity of the leaders of the clandestine organization. He wondered if they would unexpectedly turn on him in their eagerness to possess nuclear weapons.

  They had walked far enough away from the hub of the operation that he felt comfortable with a muted conversation. “I am uneasy with arrangement with Consortium and sense some chicanery...What do you think?”

  Gregory stopped walking and turned to face Rick while he answered, “There is some deception, of that I am sure. You have plans to deal with, yes?”

  “But, of course. It would help, however, if I knew their true intentions.”

  “Agreed. I also have questions for you. I have asked what is plan for nuclear weapons and for money you ransomed from US Government. You give only vague hints. Before we proceed, I would like answers.”

  Rick continued walking toward the missile silo without a word. Gregori put a hand on his shoulder to stop him, but Rick shook it off and increased his pace. Gregori almost caught up with him when Rick reached the silo door and slipped over the steel threshold.

  The inside of the silo was lit by four naked hundred-watt bulbs that fought to illuminate the dank interior. Aged concrete walls absorbed the pale yellow light like a blotter. The odor of decaying animals in the water-filled chasm below filled the air.

  “This is what I speak of...Everytime I ask questions you slip away...Is time now to discuss future.”

  Rick whirled around and spit out the words, “Future? What future? I have never promised you even one penny!”

  “But, I assume we are partners.”

  “You assume wrong.”

  The expression on the massive man’s face shifted from surprise to disappointment and finally settled on pent-up anger. He advanced slowly toward Rick and raised his arms in front of him. Gregori could grip a soccer ball in each hand with ease and crush a human throat like it was made of paper.

  Rick backed up until he was pinned against the corroded safety railing that surrounded the silo. He turned his head enough to glance down into the foreboding abyss of the darkened oval.

  “Is simple misunderstanding,” he said in a voice that trembled.

  “Misunderstanding is yours,” Gregori hissed. “You have underestimated me far too many years. I am not half-wit you think I am.”

  “Not once have I questioned your abilities...”

  “You never appreciate them.”

  Rick considered the words carefully. “How may I show willingness to be partners?”

  “For start, my friend...” He uttered the words with unmistakable sarcasm, “Provide me with account numbers of stolen money and passwords.”

  “Yes, of course...But I must have assurance you will not take all. You have manpower to back you...I do not.”

  “There are only four men left I trust...You have corrupted others.”

  Rick started to protest, but Gregori silenced him with the wave of a hand and a curt remark, “Do not offend me with denials...I, too, possess listening devices. You have offered large sums of money for allegiance to you. What you did not know is I offered larger sums. Mercenaries are won by highest bidder and I am such.”

  “What do you want?”

  “Account information.”

  Rick was pressed back against the rail by the larger man and could smell the borscht and sausage lunch they shared in the communal dining hall.

  He bent backward over the railing to avoid Gregori’s fetid breath and could feel the rusted metal yield. “Can we not compromise, my friend? I give you half of account numbers and we call it even...Friendships must be give and take...”

  “You take far more than give.”

  “It might look that way...So, I will part with half of money in good faith,” said Rick, with a note of terror creeping into his voice.

  He leaned back and heard the railing squeak.

  “You say anything to save yourself,” Gregori said. “Where are account numbers? There are far too many digits to memorize.”

  “True...I mail information to post office box in Denver...Number 2316 at Main Office...Key is here.”

  He pulled a chain around his neck to display it and the railing sagged with a noticeable crunching sound. “Move back so I may stand.”

  Gregori placed one hand against the railing as he leaned forward to inspect the key. The decayed metal gave way with a snap and he quickly pulled back to avoid falling into the gruesome pit below.

  Rick helplessly flailed his arms with an unspoken plea for help. Gregori finally reached out to grab him, but it was too late.

  A look of horror froze on Rick’s face in the dim light as he clutched the key and fell. His high-pitched primeval scream ended abruptly when he hit a protruding pipe with a dull crunch. The sound of a splash echoed in the silo for a moment and gave way to silence.

  The big Russian stood still and stared at the black oval below. He felt an unexpected wave of grief course through him over the loss of his friend. It quickly subsided and he considered his next move.

  The key around Rick’s neck must be recovered to gain access to almost eight hundred million dollars. The question was how to do it without alerting the Consortium.

  There was also the matter of explaining Rick’s demise. He had much planning ahead of him as he started back toward the Control Dome.

  ABANDONED SILVER MINE

  CHEYENNE MOUNTAIN, COLORADO

  “Woo, doggie...We just hit the jackpot,” Bart exclaimed as he popped the top off a wooden crate. The four men had finished hauling a dozen boxes through the opening and onto the entrance floor of the mine. They were staring at a dozen Claymore mines neatly stacked inside.

  “Wonder if they’re still good?” asked Carl.

  “Don’t see why not...Used some in ‘Nam that were ten years old...Worked just fine.”

  The other boxes were soon open and Bart did a quick inventory.

  “Fifty M67 fragmentation grenades...Four flare guns with three flares each...A dozen M16Als with cleanin’ kits and four thousand rounds of 5.56 ammo...Oughta make for some fun...Also found some field packs to carry it all. Let’s do a quick strip and oil on the rifles...Then gear up and head down the mountain.”

  They readied the rifles and stuffed everything they could into the packs. Ten minutes later the intrepid team formed a single file down a narrow trail to the road below.

  They soon reached the fake door and debris that had been blown from the concrete platform above. The body of the intruder Joanna killed was draped over a boulder. It was a silent testament to how most mercenaries end their careers.

  “How far you think it is to the entrance gate, sir?” Joanna asked Bart.

  “Less than a mile.”

  “Think we’ll get there in time to help?”

  “All we can do is try.”

  Joanna nodded and they trudged on.

  They rounded a curve in the road less than an hour later and could hear the sound of gunfire.

  “Okay, y’all gather ‘round,” Bart ordered. “Don’t remember the exact layout of the entrance from this angle...Feel like we’ll be comin’ in at a sharp cut with the attackers ahead of us and the entry guard shack next to us on the left.”

  “That’s how I remember it,” Jake said.

  Bart continued, “Jake, Joanna, Jay and, what’s your name again, son?”

  “Seth, sir...”

  “Fine, g
o with the three of them...Jake, take the lead. Move your team around that big boulder until y’all are behind the semis blocking the road. Meanwhile, we’ll work our way down this road to the main entrance and join in the firefight. Wait for me to send up one of these flares, then blast ‘em.”

  “Roger that, sir. I’ll place two of the Claymores and set them off as soon as the flares go up...Should take some of the pressure off the gate.”

  “What I’m hopin’ for...Won’t need to hold them off too much longer before reinforcements get here from Peterson. Don’t know what the bad guy’s objective was, but we’ll do our best to make sure they don’t reach it.”

  Bart led his team down the road while Jake took point with the other half and started following a trail of sorts behind the massive boulder between them and the attackers.

  “I don’t believe this,” Seth said. “Second day on the job and I’m gonna be in a firefight...Is it always like this?”

  “Just another day in the neighborhood,” Jake replied as they picked their way around rocks and an occasional tree. “Just another day...”

  NEAR GLACIER BASIN CAMPGROUND

  ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK

  Star turned her boot over to let a rock fall out and put it back on. “Now what?” She whispered as the sound of footsteps got louder.

  “Shhh!” Licia moved as close to her friend as possible. “Can’t walk quietly in this dry brush...We’ll move up by the trail...Figure out how many there are.”

  She eased the rifle sling over her head and crept up to the trail with the weapon ready.

  They hid behind a large pine and Licia used the goggles to locate three men moving cautiously down the trail with weapons ready. They had no nightvision gear and one of them tripped over the body of their comrade.

  He bent down to check for a pulse and shook his head from side to side. All three took up shooter’s stances and scanned the woods.

  Licia carefully aimed the purloined rifle and pulled the trigger. The lead attacker dropped his weapon and fell to the ground. The other two blindly sprayed the woods with automatic weapons fire. The two young women cringed and took cover as bullets thudded into trees all around them.