by Finian Blake
“I have what I am supposed to pick up. Messages and cargo are what I deal with. Delivery confirmed.” Noah locked eyes with the general. They were both playing a game for time and both men knew it. Smirnov posed his next question softly.
“Would you confirm this shipment for me?” The general tapped his chest. Noah picked up his water and motioned outside. Both men walked down the ramp with Noah guiding the general near the APU exhaust where the small turbine was making a howling noise. He pointed up at the small turbine.
“I can make that delivery. I am not CIA,” Noah said calmly. “I pick up and deliver for profit.”
“I was hoping that you were CIA.” The general’s face showed genuine disappointment. “I was generating a retirement with a side business, and this is causing me a problem with my government. I am having some problems with the Federal Security Bureau that is the FSB to you. I was hoping to retire in the United States.”
“I too had to make a few adjustments in my life.” Noah’s face took on a serious expression. “I do not think that defecting would be a good choice. You are a general and they would squeeze you very hard. If you have a family, they would hold them over your head for blackmail. Something like that is really very ugly.” Smirnov’s face took on a very disappointed look. Noah continued to talk over the whine of the APU. “How many people are we talking about?”
“There will be three people my wife, my daughter and of course myself.” Smirnov’s face took on a hopeful expression. “Why do you ask?”
“I think that there is an alternative to defecting.” Noah offered another smoke and Smirnov passed the bottle. They talked for thirty minutes with Noah asking questions and the General, answering them. Finally, the two men shook hands with Noah making his commitment.
“I will provide transportation, and quality documents for three in exchange for your cooperation.” They killed off what was left of the vodka with Noah walking unsteadily up the ramp into the Ark.
General Smirnov walked to the rear of his car and climbed into the back seat more than a little drunk.
“Well Ekaterina what do you think?”
“I could not hear over that turbine. It made too much noise. You will have to tell me what was discussed.” Ekaterina was very frustrated. The bug that the general was wearing did not pick up a damn thing.
“Our friend is not as sloppy as I thought. The cargo bay was bugged by our technicians. Somehow I don’t think that it will make any difference.” Smirnov leaned forward.
“Let me tell you what was said my wife, and you tell me what you think.” It was almost fully dark the sun had dropped below the horizon and the twilight was fading quickly. Ekaterina put the car in gear and pulled away. The general used his wife as a driver and she listened to all of the conversations analyzing them later with the general. Ekaterina was fluent in seven languages and could speak a few more. The general would count on her good instincts to give him critical evaluations plus he never had to trust a translator. He started going over everything starting from the time he left the backseat right up to the minute that he climbed back in the car. They were across the border on their way to the base before the conversation was completed. The conversation would go on late into the evening once they found a secure place to speak.
Noah raised the cargo ramp. He walked slowly forward inspecting the insulation as he went. Noah found two bugs by the loading console. He did not find any for the length of the cargo bay, but he found two more by the bay door. These were all short range transmitters. There had to be a relay device somewhere in the crates that they had just loaded. Noah was not about to open all of the cargo to find out where they were. He would have the plane swept when they returned to Manchester. Noah opened the access door passing through to the crew area. He reached for the switch to retract the stairs, but as he looked out the door a Chevrolet Suburban pulled up to the wing sliding in the dust. Noah went over to the cooler and took four bottles of water out passing them up to the flight deck.
“You guys did a hell of a job. Do me a favor and stay up there a little while longer. I will do the outside checks.”
“Hey! We’ve been up here for over an hour. We want to move around.” The quartet was decidedly frustrated.
“Just stay up there and prepare for takeoff,” Noah’s voice had enough edge on it that nobody questioned him. “Frank, the cargo weight is two eight five zero zero. Can you finish the weights for me?”
“You’ve got it Noah. What’s up?” Frank sounded concerned.
“I will tell you later, just preflight now!”
A Chevrolet suburban pulled up to the ark. Noah walked up to the passenger door and tapped on the window. The window rolled down. It was Frank who had flown up ahead of the Ark. His contact was really steamed, “Just what did you two discuss under the APU? Our long range mikes could not pick up a thing.”
“We were just making arrangements for the second run. I make all of the arrangements personally that is part of my security. Right now I need to get the Ark in the air. We are losing the light.”
Noah had enough urgency in his voice that Frank rolled up the window telling the driver to move away quickly. Noah put the water on the steps trotting around the Ark doing all of the checks double time because it was critical that the plane took off before they lost the natural light. If absolutely necessary Frank could push the safety factor by taking off in the dark, but there was no reason for that if they flew now. When he got to the nose Noah waved to Frank holding up four fingers. Frank fired up number four engine. Noah tossed the water in the crew cabin, raised the steps and closed the door behind him. By the time he reached the jump seat all four engines were running.
“Do not lift it off until we are near the end of the cleared area. I want them to think that we need the full length of the run way.”
Frank brought the engines up to full power. The Ark lurched forward. He did not pull up until the last minute keeping low until they passed Chalma Kandi. The Ark started to climb gradually to a normal cruising altitude. They checked in with Iranian air traffic control and asked to be handed off to Turkish air control.
“What in the hell was all that garbage just before takeoff?” Frank sounded severely peeved.
“Do you remember that woman that you fed all of that semen to?”
The answer came as a chorus, “Oh, yeah!”
“That was her husband.” Noah said quietly. “I thought he might have found out because she was wearing some of your offerings when she left. You know how it is. Some people have no sense of humor.”
“She said she was going to French him when he got home!” Frank rubbed the bulge in his pants. “That is one wicked woman. I wonder if she has anything else to haul for our second run.” The cockpit broke out in laughter.
4
DETOURS
The Ark made a fuel stop in Adana, Turkey without incident. By ten PM they were winging their way down the center of the Mediterranean Sea. They picked a route that kept them over water as much as possible. With the time difference, they should land in Manchester sometime a little after midnight. The flight was a little over five hours. Noah stood up.
“I am totally out of gas. Call me before we start our approach.”
He went down to the crew lounge, falling into the recliner. It took only a few minutes for him to fall sound asleep with the constant noise of the props insulating him from the other noises on the Ark. They were clearing the Spanish coast when Noah regained consciousness. He walked up to the flight deck. The pilot and copilot were in the crew bunks while the engineer and relief were flying the Ark.
“We are coming from the south out of the English Channel. When we get to the Irish Sea, we’ll do a hard right and land in Manchester.”
The pilot and the copilot slipped out of the crew bunks. Noah passed the coffee up to the flight deck, slipped into the lav, and did a quick clean up. By the time everybody did their clean up, the Ark was on approach. They received a straight in clearance which w
as no surprise at that time of the evening. As the plane touched down, everybody felt a slight wobble followed by a loud bang. Frank did a slow taxi to the in-bond area at Brit World Wide. Customs met the aircraft and quickly checked the documents clearing everyone. They had been on board the ark for twenty hours. Noah was disappointed to see a man driving the golf cart. He wanted to see Susan again.
“Are you Noah?” Noah just nodded yes.
“My name is Milo. I have a security detail for the plane. Susan says nobody stays on board tonight.”
“Alright, but we need a mechanic out here before we leave. We think the Ark blew a tire on landing. How soon do you think we can get one out here?” Noah wanted to get a hot shower and crawl in between some clean sheets. “Frank you guys go on to the hotel and check in.”
“Good deal,” The quartet answered in unison. “We will check you in when we get there.” Milo caught them before they left.
“Susan booked you into a different hotel about twenty minutes away. It’s a very nice place. She would be here, but she has a special function tonight.” It was obvious that Milo was going to stick to his instructions. “I will have a mechanic here within twenty minutes.”
Three of the four Franks loaded on to the golf cart riding into the building. The engineer looked at Noah.
“I might as well stick around. It is my job to verify the condition of the aircraft.” Both men started to walk around the Ark. Frank was first to spot the damage. Two interior tires had blown out on the left main gear of the Ark.
“It should not be a problem,” Frank was sure.
They finished the walk around with neither man finding any other damage. Frank went up to the cockpit shutting down all of the systems. The ground power was already hooked up, and they did not need any of the other systems. Frank pulled the breakers for the cargo bay so that the cargo ramp would not operate. When the security team showed up outside the Ark, it only took a few minutes for Noah to give them their instructions. They were starting to get set up when the mechanic appeared. Noah pointed out the damage and the mechanic broke out his flashlight walking over to the tires examining them for a few minutes.
“The tires are no problem. We can get two sent down from Heathrow. The problem is that one of the rims is damaged. We need to get a civilian rim from Lockheed in the States and cannot get you ready for at least 24 to 48 hours. Noah shook his head and looked at the mechanic.
“Make it at least 48 hours. I need some time. Don’t order the tire until daylight. I want you to slow walk this.”
“Milo said that Susan authorized any request you should make. Therefore, the estimate is 48 hours for the repair. I’ll make it official.” Milo needed to know the rest of Noah’s requirements.
“From what I hear, you will be requiring our services for the next 48 hours. Am I correct?”
“It is possible.” Noah was hoping for some rest.
“Susan instructed us to arrange whatever you require.” Milo looked dead serious.
“Milo you have the duty. Give Arthur any access he needs for repair otherwise nobody gets in the Ark. We will see you tomorrow.” Noah motioned Frank to get on the cart.
“Milo, we will need the rooms for at least 48 hours could you pass that on to the hotel?” Noah turned to the engineer without waiting for an answer.
“Looks like we caught a bit of time. I hope these are good rooms.” Frank was about blown out too.
“This place is really nice.” Milo injected. “This is the first time that we have ever sent a flight crew over there. It is sort of a special deal.”
When Noah and Frank walked out the front of the building a Jaguar limo was waiting for them. The driver took their bags holding the door for them.
“You would be Misters Body and Giles?” My name is Frank. Noah looked at the engineer and started to laugh.
“That would be us.” They did not stop laughing until they were well on the road.
“Is this place quiet? I could really use the rest.”
“I assure you that it is as quiet as you require.” The release flattened Noah’s energy reserves. He was glad that they were only ten minutes from a bed.
The car turned on to a gravel road. Noah could not see a thing. Trees hugged the road and there was no moon. Only the headlights of the jaguar gave any illumination. After a few hundred yards, he noticed a few lights up ahead on the right.
Frank slowed the car making the turn into a courtyard. The driver parked the car and produced two keys.
“There is no office. Master Giles will take this cottage.” Frank got out and waited for the driver to get the bag out of the car. A few minutes went by and the driver returned to the car.
“I am sorry about that, but I had to introduce Master Giles to his cottage.” He put the car in gear and drove down to the far corner of the courtyard.
“Master Body you have the founder’s cottage,” he said with pride. “Wait here and I will get your luggage, and turn on the lights.” Noah got out of the car anyway. The fanfare was great, but he wanted to shower. Frank flicked on the lights. “This is the founder’s cottage.”
“Could we do the short form? I am absolutely dead.” Noah was mumbling.
“You have a sitting room, fireplace, bed room and bath.” Frank just pointed. “There is no restaurant. Call for room service for any of your needs. All calls come through the security center. The bottle of scotch on the counter is with the room. Dial ‘0’ on the black phone for everything you need and the red phone is direct dial to call local or international. Good night sir.” Frank was out the door in seconds.
Noah stripped on the way to the shower turning on the water as hot as he could stand. He was worried about running out of hot water, but it lasted until he was finished. He did a quick pick up on the way back to the bed throwing back the covers rolling into bed naked pulling the covers over him lasting only a minute before he was sound asleep. It was one-thirty AM.
The sun produced a half light in the room. The curtains were tightly drawn, but a small amount of light crept into the room. Noah could barely make out the clock. It was seven thirty. He rolled out of bed naked, picked up the phone and ordered an English breakfast being sure to ask for kippers instead of bacon. He took his time shaving and brushing his teeth. The shower itself was a small room rather than the small closet size that he was used to wrestling with. He climbed in and turned the water on as hot as he could stand it. The water came from every corner of the shower with the shower seat getting a minimal amount so that he could soap up. After he rinsed off, Noah turned the water as cold as he could stand it for the wakeup call that his body hated. He pulled a towel off the bar and was surprised to find that it was pleasantly warm. The towel racks were heated turning on with the bathroom lights.
He walked out into the bedroom naked deciding to investigate the sitting room. He opened the door and was greeted by the aroma of breakfast. Noah walked in the room without looking, lifting the cover from the tray. It held eggs, bangers, kippers, fresh baked bread, tea, two types of jam and an orange/lemon marmalade. The cover and the plate were still warm and a small cloud of steam rose as he took in the aroma of his morning feast.
“Good morning sir. Is the breakfast to your liking?” It was a female voice with a slight Dutch accent.
The maid was bent over lighting the fireplace. Her legs seemed to go on forever, being remarkably well-formed with her mesh hose and high heels adding unnecessary definition to her legs. Her black hair had a slight hint of bronze in it. She stood up with a long match in her hand. She wore a maids uniform with an off the shoulder neckline that exposed some interesting cleavage that demanded his attention. Noah could not help staring transfixed by her beauty. Her skin tone suggested that her heritage was from the south Pacific and yet she had some decidedly European features. The heat from the fireplace felt good on his skin causing Noah to suddenly remember that he was naked deciding to use the metal lid off the plate to cover himself.
“Sorry, I didn’t
realize that anyone was here.” He started to walk back in the bedroom. The maid gently took his hand leading him over to the small table that held his breakfast.
“My name is Terri. I will be catering to all of your needs.” She shook out a serviette and placed it over his lap making Noah considerably less exposed. “I see that Frank picked you up last night. Didn’t he explain the Inn to you?”
Noah looked into her beautiful green eyes, but nothing matched to place her in any particular population. Her features were decidedly European in one respect, but her raven hair with a tiny hint of bronze was from the South Seas Islands. Her skin was light but with a small hint of bronze in it giving a suggestion of all races in her features.
“This is an Inn for very rich and powerful people with special tastes.” Terri chatted, buttering his bread as if he was fully clothed. “This is the founder’s suite. It is a full service suite if you get my meaning.” Her accent floated between Dutch / English and her easy speech showed that she was not uncomfortable with him being naked as a matter of fact the opposite seemed to be true. “Susan had you down for maid service. Would you prefer a butler?”
Noah was starting to catch on and understood what the offer of a butler was suggesting.
“No, I definitely prefer maid service.” Noah had to test out his impression and ventured a comment. “You have beautiful cleavage. Let me see your breasts.” Without hesitation Terri lowered her bodice. They were not overly large but they were extremely well formed with lotus blossom nipples. She cupped a breast holding it just inches from his lips for inspection, so that Noah did not have to lean forward to inspect the wonderful globes.
“They are truly amazing.”
“Thank you sir, I am quite proud of them.”