Waterkill (Dave Henson Series)

by Mark Donovan

  Dave shifted his tired eyes over to McDonald who had gotten up out of his chair and had begun to slowly pace back and forth in the conference room.

  “Our intelligence reports out of the Middle East, and particularly out of Iran, indicate that there is an Al Qaeda cell who has been developing a synthetic disease for the express purpose of using it as a weapon of mass destruction. Or more specifically, engineering a chemical/biological weapon that emulates a known deadly disease. However, unlike the naturally occurring form of the disease that kills hundreds of thousands of people each year, we believe this group’s version of the disease has an amped up kill potency.”

  “So what is this naturally occurring disease?” asked Dave, the contempt in his question now ratcheted up a notch.

  John looked over at McDonald once again to get his approval to answer Dave’s question, and again, McDonald gave him the go ahead nod.

  “Back in February, there was a small village in Yemen where more than two thirds of its population was wiped out in a twenty-four hour period. The village was not attacked by any military or militia group, and there was no evidence of any type of conventional weapon used. Many of the people simply became violently sick in the span of just a few hours. A day later, all of those stricken by the illness were dead. The reports that we were able to obtain suggest the people died from severe dehydration brought on by acute diarrhea and vomiting.”

  “All the symptoms of cholera,” interrupted Eric McDonald.

  “How did they contract cholera?” asked Dave.

  “We believe the victims contracted it through the community’s public well. It seems to be the only common denominator with the victims,” said John.

  “However, water samples taken days later from the well showed no positive results for cholera, which leaves us somewhat conjecturing on the disease itself as well as its source,” chimed in McDonald.

  “I thought there was treatment for cholera?” questioned Dave.

  “Yes there is,” responded John. “If rehydration and hydration salts are provided in a timely manner, victims who have contracted the disease are often able to recover from it.”

  “So why not in this case?”

  “This particular engineered cholera, which we know nothing about at this time, seems to be very fast acting and more powerful than the natural forming cholera bacteria,” responded McDonald. “Reports from the Yemenis government say that the victims who either consumed the water or came in contact with it began to experience violent symptoms within just a couple of hours.”

  “Basically the villagers didn’t know what hit them,” said John. “And most likely they, nor the local Yemenis government officials, even had access to hydration salts.

  “Also, the public well was the only potable water source for the community and it is untreated,” added McDonald. “The victims would have only accelerated their demise if they had attempted to rehydrate with the well water.”

  “Which some of them presumably did,” responded Dave as he shook his head in sadness for the victims.

  The three men remained silent for a few seconds before Dave spoke again.

  “So why did you call me? How can I be of any service in this tragedy?”

  “I am glad you asked. We were just coming to that,” responded McDonald. “Again, based on the intelligence reports over the past couple of years we know that Al Qaeda has been working diligently on a chemical/biological weapon. Piecing together the field reports and stitching in our own intelligent assumptions, we believe this cholera type weapon is using nanomaterials to help accelerate the delivery of the engineered disease into its victims.”

  “Yes, carbon nanotubes are being used today in the field of medicine,” responded Dave. “However, they are typically being used to accelerate drug delivery into patients to help cure them of illnesses. For example, carbon nanotubes are used today in various types of cancer treatment. The nanotubes are coated with chemicals that cancerous tumor cells are attracted to. The coated nanotubes are then injected into the tumor tissue area. After waiting a period of time to allow the cancer cells to congregate around the coated nanotubes, an infrared laser energy field is applied to the tissue to excite the nanotubes. The nanotubes vibrate due to the applied energy field. As they vibrate they create a localized heat, or a hot spot if you will, in the cancer tissue. This causes the cancer cells to die and to stop the growth of the tumor.”

  “We are familiar with this medical use of carbon nanotubes,” responded McDonald. “However, we believe Al Qaeda is employing a similar use of the technology to accelerate the delivery of their cholera weapon into its victims.”

  “And to effectively make it more deadly to boot,” added John.

  “So I agree with your theory,” responded Dave, “But how can I help? Do you have any of the weapon material to analyze?”

  “Not yet,” responded John. “However, we think we know where there is a sample of it and we hope to recover it soon.”

  “So why do you need me now if you don’t have any of the material yet?” questioned Dave as he looked at the two men.

  “Because we need you and NSurv’s surveillance expertise to help locate the material,” responded McDonald.

  “How specifically can I or NSurv’s technology help you find this material?”

  “Last week a small aircraft went down over east-central Alaska,” responded McDonald. “We believe on board the aircraft was a member of Al Qaeda who was carrying a sample of the cholera weapon. Fortunately, and unfortunately, the aircraft went down in the middle of a blizzard in mountainous territory.”

  “So if you know where the aircraft went down why haven’t you recovered the weapon?”

  “We do not know precisely where the aircraft went down,” responded John. “Air traffic control radar lost the aircraft’s position shortly before it went missing. The mountainous terrain, coupled with the heavy precipitation at that time, created so much interference and clutter that ATC lost radar lock on the aircraft.”

  “What about the aircraft’s electronic locating transmitter?”

  “The aircraft’s ELT was not working or was turned off,” replied John.

  “So Dave, we need for you and your company to help us locate the aircraft,” summarized McDonald. “And time is of the essence. Al Qaeda radio and internet chatter since the aircraft went down has been elevated. Al Qaeda is trying to locate the aircraft itself. We need to find the aircraft and their weapon sample before they do.”

  “Do you have any idea what the bioweapon is contained in?” asked Dave.

  “Based on a suspicious corpse found just a few kilometers southeast of the small Yemen village, we believe the weapon may be being transported in a small metal cylinder,” responded John.

  There was a momentary pregnant pause in the room before McDonald broke the silence, “So can we count on you and NSurv’s support Dave?”

  Dave looked at both men and nodded his head in agreement while he scratched his chin with his thumb and index finger. He was already formulating a search plan to find the missing bioweapon cylinder. “You have my full support,” responded Dave. “In whatever capacity you’d like to use NSurv and my services, they are at your disposal.”

  “Thank you Dave,” responded McDonald. “The Department of Homeland Security is convinced that Al Qaeda was planning to infect a public water supply in the United States with the cholera weapon sample that this aircraft was transporting. Besides the lost aircraft situation, we also have intelligence that Al Qaeda has impending plans of deploying this cholera type weapon at other targets in the United States and Western Europe. So again, it is imperative we locate the downed aircraft and weapon sample before Al Qaeda does. If we can get a hold of the weapon sample, we can study it and possibly find a way to detect and neutralize any additional deployments of it.”

  “So when do we leave for Alaska?” asked Dave anxiously. “It sounds like we don’t have a lot of time.”

  “We have already deployed a searc
h and rescue Border Patrol Special Ops Group to the eastern mountains of Alaska,” responded John. “Unfortunately they’ve had no luck so far in locating the aircraft. The search area is massive. Based on its altitude and air speed when ATC lost radar contact with the aircraft, it could be anywhere in an area the size of the state of Connecticut.”

  “We’d like to get you on a military jet to Fairbanks by tomorrow,” said McDonald.

  “I’ll need to pick up some equipment at NSurv headquarters,” replied Dave. “I’d also like to bring along my colleague Ron Blackwell if that is okay with the two of you?”

  Dave and Ron Blackwell had been inseparable friends and colleagues since their days at Stanford University. Ron had worked at previous companies with Dave and was currently NSurv’s Director of Engineering for its Nanotechnology Electronics division. Also, at six feet four inches and two hundred and fifty pounds, and an ex-tightend football player at Stanford, Ron had also proved his value out in the field in other ways. Besides being extremely fit, he was also an experienced back country hiker and an excellent marksman.

  “Not an issue,” responded McDonald. “We will fly you and your wife out of Andrews Air Force Base early tomorrow morning and stop in McCall, Idaho to allow you to pick up whatever and whomever you need.”

  “Okay, I will call Ron and let him know to be ready and to gather the necessary equipment.”

  “Excellent. Plan for a Homeland Security Agent to pick you up at your hotel room at five o’clock tomorrow morning,” said McDonald. “He will escort you to Andrews, and get you and your wife seated aboard the jet.”

  McDonald opened up the door to the conference room and said goodbye to Dave and John.

  “I am sure you are exhausted,” said John. “I’ll take you back to your hotel where you can make your phone call back to McCall and prep Dana for the early morning flight tomorrow.”

  “Thank you John. I am pretty tired, but I doubt I’ll be getting a lot of sleep tonight.”

  John turned off the conference room lights as the two exited the room. Thirty minutes later John dropped Dave off in front of his hotel and the two said their goodbyes. As Dave made his way up to his hotel room he was already formulating a list in his head of what surveillance tools would be most appropriate for finding a crystal ball in a mountainous snow field.

  Chapter 8 (April 12, Wednesday 2:30pm, Alaska)

  It was more of a dirt wedge cut into the rugged Alaskan wilderness than it was an airport. The gravel runway was only two thousand five hundred feet long and fifty feet wide. Other than the airstrip itself snow still blanketed the surrounding landscape. The airfield was located in the heart of the Mertie Mountains, an Alaskan mountain range named after the famed geologist John Beaver Mertie who crisscrossed the Yukon-Tanana area for thirty-nine years in the early 1900s. However, Chicken Airport in east-central Alaska was now command headquarters for the search and recovery operation of the Cessna 206 aircraft that had gone down ten days earlier. Several field tents were set up along the southwest side of the airstrip. Two dozen men dressed in winter border patrol clothing milled around the tents. As many snow machines also surrounded the tents. On the airport ramp sat two UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters and four United States Air Force Light Lift Cessna 208 Caravans.

  Dave and Ron Blackwell, along with several Department of Homeland Border Patrol Special Ops Group agents, had arrived from Fairbanks an hour earlier on one of the Cessna 208 Caravans. They were standing in the largest tent, which served as the command center for the operation, and were talking with the Chief Patrol Agent in charge of the search and recovery operation. The two were explaining to the chief a new high tech drone device that they had brought with them from NSurv.

  “The Hunter-Falcon is specifically designed for locating small targets in a vast area,” said Ron, as Chief Patrol Agent Dwight Davis listened with focused interest. Ron was pointing at a large open plastic shipping box and holding one of the Hunter-Falcons in his hands. In the box were hundreds of small fist size translucent objects with gossamer type wings attached to them.

  Each Hunter-Falcon was approximately the size of a tennis ball, however, they were football shaped rather than round. The translucent gossamer wings wrapped around the body of the small drone in a curved shape. On one end of the Hunter-Falcon was a small clear plastic propeller, and inside its translucent body was a grayish looking material that appeared to float.

  “The Hunter-Falcon is designed to be capable of being released from an aircraft or from a mother missile,” continued Ron. “Each Hunter-Falcon can fly a prescribed course or fly its own autonomous flight path. At any time an operator of a Hunter-Falcon can manually override the prescribed flight mission and remotely direct its flight path.”

  “What is the gray material in it?” asked Davis in a gruff voice. Chief Davis was a giant of a man, standing six feet six inches tall and weighing two hundred and seventy five pounds, most of which was bone and muscle. He cut a figure that looked like he had been chiseled out of a granite cliff. He returned the Havana cigar to his lips and his steel blue eyes stared at Ron as he waited impatiently for an answer to his question.

  “The grayish material inside the Hunter-Falcon’s body is a form of nano-dust that can be configured prior to launch to operate as a specific sensor type or types,” interrupted Dave. Dave could sense that Chief Davis was not overly impressed with what he was looking at and decided he needed to step in with the description of NSurv’s latest nano technology drone.

  Picking up one of the small drones from the box and examining it up close Davis asked, “What kind of sensors?”

  “Acoustical and image sensing,” replied Dave. “The nano-dust can even be configured to operate as a passive infrared sensor, similar to what is used on outdoor home security light sensors.”

  “So how can we use these little toys to help locate the 206 aircraft?” the Chief asked contemptuously.

  “Well, our plan is to drop them out of one of your aircraft at a prescribed altitude over one end of the target search area,” responded Dave. “Preferably on the upwind edge of the search area. Once released each Hunter-Falcon will begin to fly a prescribed course across its sector of the target field. While doing so it will scan the area below it and maintain proper separation from adjacent devices. The data from each Hunter-Falcon sensor will be transmitted back to our computers here at base camp where it will be processed and compared against likely target characteristics for a small downed aircraft. When any possible targets are detected we will manually fly the appropriate Hunter-Falcon into the target area for closer inspection.”

  Chief Davis was looking down at the small drone in his hand and nodding his head in skeptical understanding when he questioned, “Quite the impressive little device, however, how does this thing get its power?”

  “Both the body and the wings of the Hunter-Falcon include photovoltaic properties to effectively operate like a solar panel,” responded Ron. “Using nano-carbon materials, rather than silicon based solar photovoltaic technology, they are much more efficient in converting sunlight into electricity. Consequently, even on a cloudy day these small drones can easily produce sufficient electrical energy to keep their propellers continuously turning.”

  “And keep transmitting their sensor information back to us,” interjected Dave.

  Chief Davis raised the drone he was holding in his hand up to eye level and examined it closely. “So you really think this little thing, along with its brothers in that box, are going to be able to locate the aircraft wreckage in this rugged terrain?”

  “With any luck we should be able to locate the crash site before nightfall,” responded Dave with a slight grin on his face as he stared back at Davis. He could see that the Chief was becoming impressed with the little “toy” object he was holding in his hand.

  The Chief began to nod his head in acceptance. “Okay, then lets load up one of the 208 Caravans immediately with your Hunter-Falcons and get them deployed ASAP. We have had no luck so
far finding any trace of the aircraft with our conventional methods, and Washington has already made it quite clear to me that they are getting impatient. No doubt, that’s why they sent the two of you.”

  Ron looked over at Dave and gave him a quick grin. As he did, the Chief looked up from the drone he was holding to see Ron’s smirk. “You have a lot of confidence in your little toy here buddy,” said the Chief as he pointed his cigar at Ron. “We shall soon see if it is warranted.”

  “You shall see Chief,” responded Ron smugly. “You shall see and learn.”

  Thirty minutes later Ron was on his knees in the back of one of the 208 Caravans, dropping out of the open cargo bay door of the aircraft the first Hunter-Falcon. He was bundled in a heavy winter parka coat and wearing a hat pulled low over his ears. Though it was technically spring, the outside air temperature was only twenty degrees Fahrenheit and icy cold air whipped through the interior of the aircraft’s fuselage due to the open cargo bay door.

  The aircraft flew along the upwind leg of the target search area. As it did, every twenty seconds a Border Patrol Special Ops agent kneeling beside Ron handed him another Hunter-Falcon from one of the shipping boxes that sat next to them. On Dave’s mark, Ron dropped the device from the aircraft. In between drops, Ron blew into his bare hands to warm them from the frigid air.

  They were flying at an altitude of seven thousand feet to avoid hitting any mountain peaks and to release the devices at a consistent altitude. However, as each Hunter-Falcon drone was released it descended downward and flew a flight path one thousand feet above the ground for its prescribed flight mission.

  Dave was seated in one of the back seats of the aircraft, next to Ron and the Border Patrol agent, with a laptop opened up and sitting on his knees. As each small drone was released he confirmed that it was operational and flying its prescribed vector course. In addition, he periodically switched to another screen on the laptop to see the entire field of deployed drones.