by Finian Blake
“Jeff our forger will need your help in Trabzon. Could you see your way clear to flying out there with us? You will return the next day with him to process thirteen sets of papers.”
“Cassandra will help too,” Sarah said. “She was a forger for our spy school when she left my department and her English is perfect, so there will not be a problem.”
“I do have one other reason for having you go with us,” Adam said emphatically. “I want the Generals to know that you are with us. I need them to understand that you are out of bounds as a target. If they attack you they lose their end.” They settled down to dinner and enjoyed a quiet evening. Adam called Ralph and Roger to the house for drinks.
After Adam poured the drinks he gave them both their assignments. Frank and the old men would fly out to Trabzon in one of the 747’s with their equipment. Roger and Ralph would fly to Trabzon tomorrow in the Twin Otter with forging crew and the old men. They would return to the Inn with Sarah, Jeff, and Cassandra along with the photo equipment to start processing the papers. Roger and Ralph would then pick up the Ark and fly to Sur in Oman so the Caribou could act as a safety valve for the transaction. It was only four hundred miles to Karachi which was only two hours flying time away. They would need to leave tomorrow morning to be in position on the sixteenth. Adam instructed them to fly down the northern coast of Turkey looking for the Patna. Jeff would be in the air with the 747’s that would arrive tomorrow morning. Frank, Mark and the ‘old men’ would fly out with them to do the advance work with the rest of the men coming with the 747’s the next morning for the main event.
The next day started with the arrival of the 747’s. Adam dropped the crew for the Twin Otter off and picked up the flight arriving with Jeff. He dropped the crews off at the cottages. Adam made sure that they would have full service. Next he took Jeff up to the Knoll to see Terri. She was still in her robe. Jeff could see the thick outlines of the dressings on her abdomen under the robe. Anna and Sarah were having breakfast with Terri. Anna introduced Sarah as her sister and informed him that Sarah would be assisting him. Sarah made it a point to wear a short skirt and thinnest blouse she could find. Jeff was still despondent but was distracted by her looks. He pegged her as being in her late thirties. Her athletic body and grooming were a distraction.
“I still cannot believe Liz would do such a thing. She said that she loved you both.” Adam stepped in quickly before Anna could say anything.
“It broke my heart, to have to do what I did. It broke Terri’s heart when I told her that I did the job, even though Liz killed her baby. She could not go near the studio until we made some changes, so you may not recognize the place. This business hurt us all.” Anna bit her tongue to keep from saying anything. She wanted to tell Jeff the truth, but Adam already took the responsibility for the act. Jeff nodded and said nothing. Terri fixed him some breakfast and they went over to the studio. All traces of Liz had been removed, and Jeff noticed that her pictures were removed.
“I would like some of her work. She had a special talent. Where did you bury her?” Terri remembered a place where the workers were digging.
“We buried her on the edge of the Knoll. Right now, we are waiting for a marker.” Terri took Jeff out in back of the site for the new gym and showed him the filled hole on the edge of the Knoll that was overlooking the river. “I will move my brother next to her when things settle down. This is the perfect spot for a family plot. We loved her and had to treat her with respect.” Jeff seemed to settle down somewhat. We will have a marker in place before you return to the States.”
“I thought that you would have dumped her body. I did not realize that you still cared for her.” Jeff put his arm around Terri and she winced as he held her. He could feel the dressings under her robe.
Terri sounded truly sorrowful, “That was a tragedy all the way around. It is something that we will never understand. I think that I will put a marker for the baby next to her marker. They disposed of him before we could say anything. It would have been a boy.” Jeff winced at that comment. He thought of Liz and Terri he never knew about the baby. Jeff found himself understanding Adam’s harsh reaction and suddenly found himself wanting to be anywhere else.
Terri remained where she was and Sarah moved to the studio. Jeff walked up the stairs behind Sarah. He looked up her skirt as he followed her up the stairs. Her long shapely legs held his attention until he tripped.
“Did something distract you?” Sarah was pleased that she could make this young man stumble. She would test him later. “I think that most of what you need is in the basement. I made some changes to keep Terri from being depressed. I was told that I changed some of your work, and for that I am sorry.”
“You did what you felt was necessary. We can work with what you have here.”
“While we are in Trabzon we will pick up my assistant. I believe you will find that she is an accomplished forger too,” Sarah said. “We just added her to the list of those defecting. I think that you will find Cassandra an interesting person. I am glad that Adam insisted on you although I would have recommended the Spaniard.” Sarah took Jeff by the arm into the studio. As she walked Sarah undid the top two buttons of her blouse.
“I have not had the chance to do any work but there may be something that I can show you.” She turned around and bit his ear as she ran her hand down his body. Jeff could feel that she was in shape. He briefly wondered how old she was before her hand made it to his zipper when he realized that the only reservation he had left was on top of the bed. Sarah realized that if she did not take charge of the moment that it would be gone, so she pushed him back on the bed yanking his pants down around his knees slowly crawling on top of him.
“Have you ever heard of a Russian beaver?” Jeff shook his head no. “It is a furry little animal that crawls up on your face and sucks out your tongue.” Jeff’s mind melted as the Russian beaver assaulted his tongue.
Susan came up the hill looking for Jeff. She saw Adam and Anna coming from the studio.
“How is Jeff doing with the news about Liz?”
“When Terri explained what happened, he was better able to come to grips with the news.”
“Where is Jeff now?”
“Sarah wanted him to inspect her equipment.”
“I will just go up and say hello.” Anna held Susan’s arm.
“That would be a bad idea. Jeff is getting acquainted with her equipment.” Anna gave her a stern nod and Susan caught on to her meaning.
“We have one refugee that will be staying with Sarah. Her name is Cassandra, and she will be a special case. Sarah wants her to be an assistant. Terri thought that it would be alright but we wanted to check it out with you.” Susan looked over to the gym.
“Here comes Terri now.” She noticed that Terri’s talk seemed more than a little animated.
“I think that I will place those markers that I mentioned to Jeff. We would need special permission to make a cemetery, but if we plan a memorial without the bodies no permission will be needed. Some kind of memorial would make me feel better.” Adam agreed instantly.
“That is an excellent idea. We can order them today and put a rush on them. Susan, Terri wants headstones for Milo, Liz, and the baby on the edge of the Knoll.”
Terri turned to Adam, “Can we name the baby?”
“I like the name Promise?” Adam smiled in agreement.
“Promise is a perfect name.” He hoped that this was a sign that Terri was coming around to her old self. Susan was enthused by the idea.
“We can make a flower garden back there. I love the name Promise. Let me know what I can do to help.” Susan turned her attention to Adam. “As long as Terri approves we can work with anyone.” Susan wanted to make it clear that she still had complete faith in Terri.
Sarah and Jeff came down to the house about noon. Adam and Terri were just coming back from getting her stitches out.
“I need to feed Jeff some lunch. I have kept him busy all morning.” Sa
rah was on a roll.
She looked Terri up and down. Terri was wearing a button front dress. She walked up to Terri and undid the lower buttons. The incision had been stapled and the scar was a deep red with a few spots of dried blood running up four inches above her panties.
“It still looks angry but it will heal over time.” Terri could see the horrified look in Jeff’s eyes. Jeff had been silent all this time.
Sarah held Terri back, “I wanted him to see your scar. I knew it would not look good after the staples came out. I could have told him about the scar but he is very visual. You saw the look on his face. I was trying to convince him that it was necessary. I wanted him to know that there was more involved in this other than Liz.” Terri could see Sarah’s point they walked out to the car and drove into the village for lunch.
When they had settled with their meals Adam got down to business. “Jeff do we need any other equipment to make the documents?”
“A secure line would help. As for the rest of it I need to examine the equipment in the basement.”
“We will need to know what equipment you need when we get back from lunch. If we order it this afternoon, it will be here before you return. Before you examine Sarah’s equipment again, see what needs to be ordered.” Jeff winced when Adam said Sarah’s equipment.
“We will be leaving early tomorrow morning for Trabzon. Sarah will be going with us. Terri, while we are gone, I would like you to move into the security center. You know my codes, so there is no better choice to monitor communications. Susan set up a secure line through MI 5, and we will be calling directly there, so you will be the first to receive any information. Suki and Brent will handle security here. Frank arranged some auxiliaries to work with them. The rest will come with us. Sarah, Jeff and Cassandra will return in two days to start work on the papers, and the ship will take five or six days to make it to Karachi with our refugees. After the papers are done Ralph and Roger will go to Sur with the Caribou, as a safety valve.
The 747’s will do a fuel stop in Manchester and Jeff can return on the empty 747. I will fly with the other 747 to coordinate the payment. This reminds me. I need to make a phone call.” Adam returned everyone to the Inn and drove up to Manchester. He thought that avoiding Manchester would make it a likely spot for his location. They were doing a fuel stop there. Adam used the secure phone at Brit Worldwide hoping that Susan would be in her office. Everywhere Air was a big contract and she wanted to be sure that things went smoothly. Adam called Hans in Washington DC.
“We are in for a kick off. I need one favor from you. I need to clear customs at Andrews Air Force Base. I am bringing back a Top Secret cargo as our cover and require special clearance. We will then fly to Milwaukee to drop off the payment. When we clear everything, your thirty three million will be deposited in the account that you used to transmit the funds. Remember, your money depends on our safe return.”
“Understood…”
Adam broke the connection dialing Tony’s number.
“Do you have a number for me?”
“Yes, if we are talking about one hundred percent pure the number will be eleven or twelve.” Tony broke the connection. Adam was thrilled, as he had planned nine tops and that would mean monster bucks. After bonuses for the crew that would leave twenty one million for the split with Gregory and Anna. Susan was still in her office.
“Can we talk business?”
“Of course we can. What do you need?”
“I have an idea of what we will net on this job. Will you accept five hundred thousand dollars for the use of the Inn?” Susan choked for a minute because this was way more than she expected.
“That would be most generous. What about the personnel?”
“Everybody that takes direct part in the mission will get a bonus with a lesser bonus for indirect participation. I need to work out the bonus situation with Gregory and Anna. When they set up the arms part of the deal, they became partners.” Adam was a full partner in the Inn, and he could have claimed the use of the Inn without ever offering compensation. Adam went directly to the founder’s cottage looking for Gregory and Anna.
“Would you like to talk money?”
Gregory answered first, “We are always willing to talk money.”
Anna pulled a chair up and put her high heels in Adam’s lap. “I hope that you have something good to say.”
“I think it is good. After expenses we will have a thirty five, thirty five and thirty split on twenty million. You and Gregory should each get seven million apiece and I will get six million. There is one thing that I need to explain. Do you remember that Abdul-Rahman wanted me to process his payment?”
“Yes I clearly remember that.”
“His five hundred kilos will price out at six million dollars. That will be separate from our deal. That will be a straight business transaction with Abdul-Rahman for processing his commission and my fee will be his security team in Pakistan. I need to know that you are clear on that exception. We are basing our transaction on five thousand kilos of product. That will be twenty five million for product, fifteen million for expenses and twenty million for our profit. Can you live with those figures?”
“Are you saying that Abdul-Rahman will make six million on the deal?”
“That is exactly right. Remember we are just processing his payment from the clans. Nothing of ours is going to him, and to me the security is worth it. My commission goes to security.” Anna thought about what Adam said for several minutes.
“I would rather make more, but I can see the value in the security. If Abdul-Rahman decides to shaft us he will not get a thing.”
“His stake will be bigger than any other individual. If we lose, he loses more.” Adam wanted to press this point. “Seven million each for thirty days work is a good paycheck. Neither one of you or Alice will have to worry about money for the rest of your lives.” Gregory and Anna both nodded their ascent. “Can we agree that we are a go?”
“Let’s go for the gold.” Anna answered not waiting for Gregory.
“Good, I will give Abdul-Rahman a call. I want him working on security now.”
The secure line was in a separate room inside the security room. Adam picked the phone and called Abdul-Rahman.
“I have two numbers for you. One number is low and the other is high. The low number is ten and the high is twelve.” Adam could hear Abdul choke.
“What about your commission?”
“The commission will be our security in Pakistan. If you succeed, we succeed and your commission just quadrupled. Can we count on you?”
“For that I will sacrifice my first and second born.”
“You did well for dealing with a thief.”
“Can you trust a liar,” Adam laughed.
“I can trust a generous liar.” Both men laughed heartily. In twelve hours it would be time for takeoff. The operation was a go.
Adam awoke at five AM. He dragged Terri in the shower with him.
“In my head and heart, you are the only one that I love. Lynn has all of the numbers if anything happens. I should be back in ten days. You have Martin, and Suki plus seven auxiliaries. Sarah, Jeff and Cassandra will be back in two days. Gregory elected to stay here. He has problems in Turkey and with Marc on board the ship he cannot go there. Anna will be going with me to deal with Abdul-Rahman.”
“What about processing the payment?”
“I will do that myself. There is no point in everybody taking that risk. One 747 will be empty except for Jeff. I will fly back with the payment on the other one. We will clear customs at Andrews Air Force Base and go on to Milwaukee to deliver the payment. One 747 will go to Milwaukee and the other one will go on to Ontario. Fran will pick me up and fly me back on her Lear.”
“Nothing is ever nice and simple,” Anna observed. “Nicaragua was supposed to be nice and simple. It took you six months to recover.”
“That will not happen again. Hans has thirty three million reasons to make things work.
”
Adam was more confident of this run. The vans were full so Terri drove him to the Airport.
“I want you back in one piece without any extra holes.” Terri kissed him passionately pushing him out of the car. She would not sleep comfortably until he returned. It was a bitter sweet goodbye. Terri was hoping that he would not have a problem but she did not want him to be hugely successful. She wanted all of this to come to an end.
Noah briefed the flight crews about the cargo, “Your cargo is one hundred percent legal. Everything on board is honest to god relief supplies. If anyone wants you to land for inspection, it would be in our favor for you to comply slowly. You are carrying humanitarian supplies mobile hospitals, field kitchens, medicine, generators, clothing, blankets and food. Make them exhaust all the options to get it checked before you cave in to their demands. Delay, but do not refuse. You are the diversion. We will load some empty crates and machinery in the lower bay and they will not be stenciled.”
The 747’s taxied out taking to the sky. The flight to Trabzon was uneventful and they landed in the late afternoon. On approach they could see the Patna tied to the dock. Most of the containers were offloaded. The two ends were stacked five wide and five high. The containers in the center section were removed. Fifty of the rest were just stacked on the dock. One of the loading booms was situated dead center one boom at the bow, and one boom in front of the bridge, so effectively there were three cargo booms that could be used to load the center section. With three booms operating they could, load one container every three minutes with Adam meeting they the 747s when they blocked in Trabzon. The Twin Otter was fueled ready to fly and Frank would move his crew to a small town ten miles east called Hoda for the launch of the extra mission.
Karim had a truck take them and their equipment to Hoda by road with Frank launching his mission at eight thirty. The fifteen mile trip would take fifty minutes in the inflatable boat loaded with their equipment and as many gas cans as the boat would carry. It would be a long trip out to the pick-up point and Frank did not want to run out of gas. Frank, Tom, Mark, Brent and Ryan took their twenty foot inflatable boat up the coast landing in front of the beach house. Ryan stayed with the boat, Frank took a position between the house and the boat, and Brent took the car with Mark and Tom actually going in the house. Mark started to throw furnishings around the house, and Tom took one of the two bags of blood and spread the blood around the front of the house loading half of it in a squirt gun to create blood splatters. Brent moved to Seraphina’s car and sprinkled the other bag of blood in the driver’s seat and in the sand outside the driver’s door of the car. He took her keys and started the car, leaving it running. Tom sprayed the front of the house with AK 74 5.45 rounds while Mark took a throw rug from the house piled with sand dragging it from the car to the boat. Finally Tom followed behind sprinkling blood in the drag marks and on the carpet. All of the men were wearing Russian combat boots. Frank lobbed a concussion grenade on the porch, removed the silencer from his AK 74 and sprayed Seraphina’s car with bullets again running to the boat. They loaded in the boat and disappeared due West at full speed hoping that the search would be along the coast.