Alpha Threat

by Ron Smoak

  Randall stood up slowly and walked over to the door. He tried the doorknob. It was locked. Not that he had expected anything else but it was worth a try. He walked around the room dragging his hand along the wall. It all felt solid. It felt like smooth concrete, not drywall. While the room looked nice, it was clearly still some type of containment cell.

  Dana watched as he circled the room.

  “What are they going to do with us?” asked Dana.

  “I don’t know. So far they know who we are and why we are in the Amazon. They are also very concerned that we had a radio and a GPS. They also wanted to know about our base camp. “

  “Did you tell them?”

  “Dana, I had too. They were beating the hell out of you. I had to tell them what they wanted,” Randall said. “If I had clammed up, they would have killed you or worse. Look what they did to Manolo. They never asked him one question. They shot him in the head. Besides, what’s the big secret? We are doing our job, trekking through the Amazon looking for artifacts. We aren’t spies or anything like that. What’s to hide?”

  Dana grimaced and tried to sit up again. This time she made it up before Randall could make her lie down again. She sat there for a second to let her head clear. Randall was right, she thought. Why did they want to know so much about what they were doing and where they came from? Someone had beaten the hell out of her to find out. Her head hurt. She was missing teeth. She could barely see out of her swollen eyes and face. Her whole body was bruised and it hurt to move.

  “Well, what do we do now?” she asked.

  “I don’t know. They said they would interrogate us later.”

  “I hope they talk to us and don’t beat us anymore,” Dana said. “I don’t think I can take anymore. We will tell them what they want. We don’t have any secrets.”

  “That’s it, Dana,” said Randall. “There’s this one big guy in charge that knew who we were. He asked a few questions but I really don’t think he wanted answers. He wanted to beat us up. These guys are sick.”

  Both Dana and Randall froze at the sound of the door being unlocked. Randall recognized the same two guards as they walked in and stood by the door. Then there was Maas. Randall knew him all too well. But this time someone else walked in; a tall thin woman dressed in black. She stepped inside the room and silently looked both Dana and Randall over. They must have looked a mess. Slowly she placed her hands behind her back and took a step toward the two.

  “I would welcome you to our base but you are not welcome here. I hope you realize our predicament,” Kaete Grimme began. “You have come here uninvited. I cannot tolerate that. I think that after your experience with this gentleman you will answer our questions,” she said, turning and glancing at Maas.

  Randall stood beside Dana. “Look, we said we would cooperate. But you still beat us. Please. We have nothing to hide. We’ll answer all of your questions. Then please let us go. We don’t even know who the hell you are or even where we are,” pleaded Randall.

  “I’m afraid that is impossible,” said Kaete with little emotion. “You will remain here indefinitely. I strongly caution you, however. You will obey every order. No exceptions. Failure to do so will put this man to work again. He will not be so gentle next time.”

  Randall stared intently at Maas. If only I could wring his neck, he thought.

  “I want to know about your radio and GPS,” began Maas in a low tone. “Who were you contacting with the radio?”

  Dana spoke for the first time. “We communicate regularly with our base camp with the radio. By now they know we are missing and will be sending a search party for us.”

  Maas smiled at Dana. “So the pretty one can talk. What about the GPS?”

  Randall took over, seeing Maas’ interest in Dana. “The GPS pinpoints our location at all times so we don’t get lost. That’s how they will find us. Even here,” showing a slight smile to Maas and Kaete.

  Maas was not amused. His smile turned to a scowl.

  “Dr. Finley,” Kaete began with a deadly serious stare. “Let me make this perfectly clear. It is not in you or your wife’s best interests to have such an attitude. I assure you I will have no hesitation to give your wife to this gentleman for his personal use. Do you understand me clearly?” Kaete looked directly at Randall.

  Randall swallowed hard. He knew exactly what that meant. He had stepped out of bounds with these monsters. He said too much too fast. Now he had to calm everything down.

  “I did not mean any harm, ma’am. We can handle this without any more violence,” Randall said meekly, stepping slightly in front of Dana. His intention was clear. He must protect Dana, even if he sacrificed himself.

  “I thought you would agree,” said Kaete curtly. “I have seen what he can do with a woman. I assure you that you do not want to see that happen to your wife. Now, about the GPS; you were saying…”

  Randall was relieved. They seemed to be placated. “The GPS information is sent automatically back to our base camp and relayed to our expedition headquarters at Princeton University back in the U.S. via satellite. It is part of our normal operations. We are tracked both locally and from Princeton when we are on an expedition in uncharted areas of the world. If anything goes badly, they can quickly send help. It’s not our prerogative. It is a condition of our funding and work with the university.”

  Kaete Grimme’s concern was now clear on her face. This was not good. God knows who all had access to that GPS location information. That information pointed directly at them. She realized that she may have to spare their lives in case there was a need for them as bargaining chips. This weakness made her angry, very angry.

  “See that they are kept under heavy guard but unharmed further,” she ordered Maas. Grimme turned and looked at Maas. She put her face directly in front of his. “Do you understand, Captain Maas?”

  “Yes, Mein… of course,” answered Maas, looking straight ahead. He had caught himself before calling Kaete “Führer”.

  But Randall did pick up on the “Mein...”. Germans, he thought. What were Germans doing here?

  Grimme turned and left the room without another word to the Finleys. Maas gave Randall a nasty stare and then smiled at Dana. He turned and left the room, followed by the two guards. The door closed and was locked.

  “Randall, what in the hell is going on?” asked Dana. “These people are crazy.”

  “I have no idea. This all sounds like a bad dream. Did you hear him say Mein?” asked Randall, thinking. “They are Germans. What are Germans doing in the Amazon?” Then it hit him like a ton of bricks. “My God, Dana, these can’t be Germans, Nazis from World War II, can they?” he said turning to Dana.

  “Jesus,” sighed Dana. “If they are, we are screwed.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  Monday, July 11, 2011

  Finley Base Camp, Cotriguacu, Brazil; 2:30 p.m.

  The jeep pulled up to the base hut. Before the dust cleared Dane and Hugo jumped out of the vehicle. Ben and his sister, Lee, stepped onto the porch.

  “You must be Dane. You made damn good time,” Ben said as he stepped off of the porch and shook hands with the blond man wiping his brow. “I’m Ben Jamison.”

  “I’m Dane Skoglund. This is Hugo Winsor.” Ben shook hands with both of them.

  “I’ve heard a lot about you two,” Ben said smiling. “This is my sister, Lee Watson. She’s my right hand here in the jungle,” Ben said turning to Lee, who stepped to his side.

  “Nice to meet both of you,” smiled Dane. “Hopefully what you heard wasn’t too bad.”

  “All good and all very impressive,” said Ben with a grin.

  “Is there any more word from the jungle?” asked Dane.

  “I’m afraid not,” answered Ben. “My guys came back in. They have a good trail back into the bush. We can leave whenever you want. I’ve put together some gear so we can move pretty quickly.”

  Hugo stepped forward. “How are you fixed for armament?”

  “We
have several handguns, 9mm and .45s and eight rifles. Three of them are CAR-15 tactical assault rifles. The others are 30.06, Remington 700’s to be exact, and two Weatherby 300 magnums for any big stuff,” explained Lee coolly.

  Hugo smiled at Lee. “The lady knows her guns. I like her already.”

  Ben laughed. “She should. She can use all of them as well.”

  Dane looked at his watch. It was almost 3:00 p.m. He looked at Ben. “How long will it take to get to the area where they disappeared?”

  “It will probably take several days, depending on how fast we move and weather conditions. Tecal and his guys have set a good trail back to the last known GPS site,” answered Ben.

  Hugo pulled his gear from the jeep. “It’s 3:00 now. If we book it, we could get about four hours worth of travel under our belts before it gets dark and we have to stop.”

  “With a good trail that sounds good to me,” said Dane. “What do you think, Ben?”

  “Hell, I was ready to go two days ago. Tecal, get the boys together. We leave in fifteen minutes.” Tecal gave Ben a wave and took off to get his men. Lee and Ben began bringing out equipment and guns. Dane and Hugo changed into fatigues furnished by Ben and went through a quick checklist in their minds. Within ten minutes Tecal had returned with two men. They were ready to go.

  “I want to travel as lightly as we can,” said Dane. “Speed is our only hope.”

  “No argument here,” added Ben.

  The group split up the gear that included a small radio, GPS, guns, ammo and some food. Nothing but the essentials, as Dane had asked.

  “Feels like the bush again, Boss,” quipped Hugo.

  “Yeah. Let’s hope it is not as dangerous as we have seen in some of our past escapades,” said Dane as he grabbed a knapsack and picked up a CAR-15 and several loaded clips of ammo. So did Hugo. “We ready?”

  “Let’s go,” said Ben. “Lee, hold down the fort. We will contact you in about four hours when we set up camp for the night.”

  “Sounds good to me,” said Lee smiling as she stepped back on the porch. “Call me immediately if you find anything.” She paused for a second. “Good luck, guys.”

  Ben turned and waved to Lee, then followed Dane, Hugo and Tecal and his men into the jungle. Lee watched them disappear. She wondered if they would ever be able to find Dana and Randall.

  The pace was torrid. One of Tecal’s men took the lead and set a pace that would have burned down most men within an hour but not this group. Hugo and Dane were ex-SEALS. They were trained to numb physical pain and exhaustion. Ben’s military background included the Green Berets. His work in the jungle made him an even harder man. He was up for almost anything. Tecal and his men were born and raised in this jungle. This was their backyard.

  Tecal knew this country very well. His survival skills were amazing. He had his father, grandfather and the rest of his tribe to thank. All young men of his tribe were indoctrinated in a two-year long process. At the end they became men of the tribe.

  This group was seasoned and jungle smart. They were a very different mix than Dana and Randall’s group, whose main objective was educational. The Finleys displayed decent jungle skills but nothing to match this group flying down trails through the Amazon.

  The group made two five-minute water and rest stops over the next three hours. Soon the impending darkness forced them to stop for the night. Dane checked the GPS against the maps. Ben set up the radio for the check-in call to Lee. Tecal and his men set up a small but efficient camp area. Hugo, on the other hand, set off to scout the trail ahead. There was no fire. Just a small camp stove to heat a meal. Even that was hidden behind a shroud of heavy banana leaves. They did not want to advertise their location to anyone.

  One of Hugo’s strengths during SEAL days was his scouting abilities. His buddies back in the military swore Hugo was part Texan, part Indian and part bloodhound. Hugo loved it. And he put it to good use. Once on a classified mission in the Mideast Hugo’s abilities saved his entire SEAL team when he identified and neutralized an insurgent group that threatened his mission. Hugo downplayed the incident but the Navy gave him a Navy Cross for his troubles.

  Ben fired up the radio. “Raven to base.”

  Lee answered within seconds. ”Base here, Raven, go ahead.” She was hovering over the radio waiting for their check-in call.

  “All is okay. No contact as yet. Will check in tomorrow at 1100 hours. Over…”

  “Affirmative, all okay. Check in tomorrow at 1100 hours. Base out.”

  “Roger base, Raven out.” Ben immediately powered down the radio to conserve power. He did not want to stay on the air very long. One never knows who might be listening. He walked over to Dane.

  “I checked in with base. Everything’s okay,” he said quietly.

  Dane looked up and pointed to the map. “We made excellent time today. According to the GPS and the map, we are only about a day and a half away from their last check-in point.”

  Ben looked down at the map and crouched beside Dane. “Then where do you think they first spotted the men in black? We must be getting close.”

  “Yeah,” Dane said worriedly. “I was thinking that as well. They reported the men about a day before they disappeared. I would say that would be about here,” he said, pointing to a spot on the map. Ben looked at Dane’s spot and clenched his teeth.

  “That’s not very far,” he said. “It couldn’t be more than several miles ahead.”

  “That’s right. And to make matters worse, if I’m the men in black and I know the people I have had a GPS and a radio, I know someone is bound to be coming to look for them. Therefore, I would want to know as soon as possible when they are coming.”

  “And you would send out an advanced guard to watch for us,” Ben said, his voice trailing away. “Do you think they are that smart?”

  “Our training always required that we think ahead. We have to assume that our adversaries are as smart as we are. Hell, yes, I think they are smart and will definitely be looking for us.” Dane gave Ben a slight grin. “That’s why Hugo is doing a recon for us right now. We’ll see what he comes up with, if anything.”

  Ben smiled and nodded his head in agreement. He turned to Tecal to remind him, “Tecal, no fires tonight. We don’t want to be seen.”

  “Yes, Mr. Ben. I understand. You want me send the men out to watch?”

  “That may not be a bad idea,” said Ben turning to Dane.

  “Do it,” Dane said without hesitation. “Tell them to not be seen.”

  Ben turned and walked over to Tecal to tell him their decision. He also wanted to let them know Hugo was out there as well. After a few minutes, Tecal gathered his men and told them the plan. His men each grabbed a handful of food and scurried off into the jungle, disappearing silently like ghosts.

  Nearly two hours later Dane saw Hugo skitter back into camp. He immediately signaled to Hugo to join him under the tree he had picked for his bed. Ben came over as well.

  “Okay, Boss, we got trouble,” he said nearly out of breath. “We got signs of folks in the bush and not our folks. I was able to pick up a trail beside the main trail; two maybe three people traveling light. Recon, I would guess. It looks like someone is expecting to see us.”

  Ben looked at Dane. “You were right. But these guys are way out from where I would have expected them.”

  “Yeah, that makes sense to me. It’s exactly what I would do. They are very careful. That makes them very dangerous,” said Dane quietly. “Hugo, how far out are they?”

  “It’s hard to say. I was about ten to twelve klicks out when I picked them up. It was hard to tell if they were headed this way or back.”

  “Okay. We assume they are headed this way. Ben, get Tecal to bring his men in. But bring them in very quietly. It looks like these men in black are hunting us,” said Dane. “I want to turn that around now.” Dane’s mind was clicking through his options. He needed to find these guys and find them fast.

  As Tecal was
rounding up his men, Ben, Dane and Hugo discussed their next move.

  “The last thing we want is for these guys to make contact with us,” explained Dane. “So, Ben, I want you and Tecal to go back to the stream we passed about two hours back. Wait there. That should put you out of the way of these guys but assume that you are under surveillance at all times. No fires and keep a tight watch. Meanwhile Hugo and I are going to press on and try to flank them. Hopefully we can follow them back to their base. Then we will see if they have Dana and Randall.”

  “Can do,” answered Ben. “How long do you think you will be gone?”

  “Hard to say,” answered Dane. “It depends on how fast we find these guys, how long they are out on patrol and how far away from their camp. It could be several days. If we are not back in four days, assume we are captured or dead.”

  Ben stared at Dane for a second, then gathered his backpack and handed Dane and Hugo each a 9mm Glock automatic pistol and four clips of ammo.

  “This should help out,” said Ben. “You both have a 15. Do you need more ammo?”

  Hugo checked his pack and Dane checked his. “Looks like we are okay, Ben,” answered Hugo.

  “Good. Then we are going to head out right now while it is dark. We should be in position by dawn,” said Ben. “Why don’t you keep the GPS and we will keep the radio. That way I can follow you.”

  “Good idea,” said Dane, looking at the GPS, turning it off and stuffing it in his knapsack. “I’ll turn it on every now and then. I don’t want to give away our position if they are monitoring the GPS signal as well.”

  Ben nodded his head and shook hands with both of them. “Good Luck!”

  “Thanks. We may need it,” smiled Dane. With that, Ben and Tecal and his men trotted back down the trail.

  Dane looked at Hugo. Without saying a word they both reached down and got a small handful of jungle mud and smeared it on each other’s face to camouflage their white faces.