The Shadow's Code

by Miles Goodson

  “OK mate, don’t move. The bullet is still in there. Are you hit anywhere else?” Chris asked. Lindon shook his head.

  Roger’s breathing sped faster and faster, his eyes darted around the room as he gasped his last breath. Then he became silent.

  “The other guys, are they alive?” Lindon asked. Chris moved over to check Bill for a pulse.

  “Yeah, he’s still alive, nasty head injury though,” Chris said. The blood on Bill’s forehead had spread over his entire face. Chris checked James for a pulse. He placed his finger in the bullet holes in James’s back.

  “He’s wearing a vest, must have got knocked out when he hit the ground. He’ll be fine when he wakes up,” Chris said with a smile.

  As quickly as things had started, they ended. The soldier who had been shot had crawled into the corridor and was now being dragged away by his comrades. The remaining soldiers rushed into the room, pointing guns at Lindon and Chris.

  “HANDS IN THE AIR!” they shouted. Lindon couldn’t raise his arm.

  “Don’t shoot. We’re friendly. That guy over there tried to kill everyone,” Chris said. They sat on the cold floor as the soldiers approached them slowly and handcuffed them.

  “These guys need medical attention now,” Lindon said, gesturing to Bill and James.

  “Just stay there and shut up,” a soldier said, trying to make sense of what had happened.

  The Commanding Officer of the British base stood outside building ‘T’ surrounded by personnel.

  Alarms were ringing out across the base. The moment he had heard an emergency declared at building ‘T’ he knew that his mystery visitor has something to do with it.

  “I tell that wanker to do whatever he has to do in a quiet fucking manner and he puts the whole fucking base into lock down… tosser,” he said to a junior officer who was too tired to respond.

  Medical staff waited by the door to gain access. Two ambulances from the local hospital waited at the entrance to the base. A few minutes passed and the door opened to the medical team. Everyone else was left out in the cold.

  “We’re going to send you to the local hospital. We’ve removed the bullet but they can give you an X-ray to check for fragments,” a medical officer said to Lindon. James and Bill were conscious again but both were on stretchers with thick neck supports. The base commander barked orders in Swedish and the soldiers dissolved. Chris followed Lindon out towards the ambulance.

  The Commanding Officer of the British Army walked straight up to Chris to vent his anger. “You shitbag… this is what you call quiet? I would have been less conspicuous with a firecracker up my arse doing the full fucking monty!”

  Chris shrugged. “How did I know I was walking into a shit storm?” The men stared at each other as Chris continued to help Lindon walk to the ambulance that had now been allowed to pull onto the base. Bill and James were still receiving treatment from paramedics. Roger’s body was zipped up into a body bag and left on the floor. There were now five ambulances at the base, all with their lights flashing. The long night was beginning to come to an end.

  James turned to Bill. He was still dazed and struggled to speak clearly. “Where’s Lindon?” he asked.

  “I don’t know...” Bill responded. He asked the man treating him where the other man was.

  “He’s in an ambulance with his friend. They’re leaving the base now.”

  Before Bill had chance to answer a loud BOOM was heard. The explosive force rocked the windows and a huge fireball could be seen out of the window.

  “No,” James whispered, as he stared at the flames, which were ten feet into the air. Bill’s blood pressure dropped. James lost feeling in his arms. The ambulance that was leaving the base had exploded into a fireball.

  “Kioshi” Bill said, struggling to breathe.

  Soldiers rushed out to the ambulance and immediately came under heavy fire from a car that was parked near the front gate. After Kioshi had escaped in the CIA’s SUV he had turned back towards Lindon’s lodge. Two of his men had been running through the forest in the direction where Kioshi had sped away and had reached the river by the time Kioshi found them. Desperate calls were made to the team in Japan who had traced calls for ambulances to a military base. On arrival Kioshi had quickly hatched a plan to kill Lindon. Laying down explosives near the gates, as the guards had been distracted.

  “Go, check the ambulance. I want to see the body,” Kioshi ordered whilst continuing to lay down heavy fire into the base. The soldiers responded with handgun fire as the base went into lockdown. The sound of bullets punctured the air. Kioshi’s men were pinned down by gunfire as more soldiers rushed towards the gates.

  “Snipers on the roofs!” Kioshi shouted, as he sprayed bullets with a rifle, forcing the soldiers to dive and duck. One of Kioshi’s men returned from the ambulance

  “We can’t see him sir, but we’re sure he would be dead, no one would have survived that.”

  Kioshi shook his head. “Then bring me the remnants of his body.” Both men looked at each other.

  “Sir there are no bodies in the back, he must have been thrown from the vehicle,” the man said.

  Kioshi fumed. “What!” Bullets soared past but Kioshi didn’t react to them.

  “We need to move now,” one of the men said.

  “SHUT UP!” Kioshi replied. “Cover me. I want to see this ambulance,” Kioshi ordered.

  “Yes sir.”

  Kioshi’s men threw grenades and started firing in all directions to stop the advance of the soldiers. Kioshi reached the ambulance doors. There was no evidence of a body. Kioshi slammed the door that was still on the vehicle and stamped on the one that had been blown onto the ground. In the distance he could see a red Saab slowly moving towards him.

  “Stupid fucking locals. Shoot at them!” Kioshi barked. Before his men had a chance to raise their weapons several bullets hit them.

  “Amateurs,” Chris said with a smile, holding his gun out of the window.

  Instead of riding in the ambulance Chris had suggested they drive to the hospital in his trusty old Saab. He had slipped out as several ambulances drove into the base. Chris and Lindon turned back and watched from a distance when they heard an ambulance explode behind them.

  Chris leapt out of the car and lay in the snow with his hunting rifle as Lindon fired a pistol.

  “Make him move left,” Chris said as he got into position at the side of the road. Lindon fired from inside the car until he ran out of bullets. Kioshi froze. Then stepped left and raised his gun. Chris fired two rounds and Kioshi dropped to the ground.

  “I think he’s down. I can’t see any movement,” Chris said.

  The atmosphere settled and spotlights circled in all directions. The base alarm stopped ringing and every police officer within a thirty-mile radius descended on the base. Their flashing blue lights lit up everything around them. Time slowed as the torrent of activities halted. Kioshi had finally been stopped.

  Chapter 50

  Lindon and Chris arrived at the hospital in a convoy of police and military vehicles. Bill, James and Lindon were given a private room to themselves. James and Bill both thanked Chris, then asked if they could have some time alone to talk to Lindon.

  “Aye, I was just leaving. I’ll leave you guys to it.” Chris shook hands with everyone. “Lindon, you owe me a beer next time you’re at the bar,” Chris said as he walked away.

  “I think I will be buying the drinks for quite some time, Chris,” Lindon replied.

  Chris smiled and turned towards the door. As he did he hit the voice recorder button on his phone and dropped it into the laundry basket by the door. No one noticed.

  Lindon barraged Bill and James with question about project ‘Parasite’. Lindon was fascinated by their answers. The only place the codes existed was in Lindon’s mind. It was like opening a door, placing the codes inside, then closing the door and locking it. Lindon hadn’t been aware of what had happened. He asked about the man chasing him. James h
ad an answer ready.

  “Kioshi, he had an obsession with attacking America with the bomb that had been left in the Emperor’s garden. It was his downfall. With all his resources and money he could have wreaked havoc on the USA if that was his goal. Instead he was bound to his father’s doomed mission, to get the sweetest of revenge. The Japanese authorities probably knew nothing about Kioshi or his terror group. We predict this was likely something the Emperor had put in place as a final act to avenge the death of his people.”

  Roger was a whole different story. Warren had called Bill just before Roger knocked him out. Warren realised that Roger had gone to school with Kioshi but they were different ages and were in different classes.

  Bill looked at his hands and said, “The two didn’t have any links as no one knew what school Roger had gone to, he was only ever asked about his higher academic achievements. The CIA along with the FBI searched his apartment an hour ago. We think Roger may have become bitter and angry that he wasn’t more accomplished. He had attempted to become a Secretary of State, Defense and even Education. Looks to me like he became so enraged that he just wanted to wipe out the establishment. Kioshi’s phone has a recording of every time the two of them spoke. On the last phone call Roger said he would kill you if Kioshi promised to destroy Washington D.C. I’m sure James and his team will comb through every second to get a rock solid theory, but it sounds to me like his anger and disappointment finally boiled over.”

  Lindon was learning so much about people he had just met. He felt like an entire story was unfolding before his eyes.

  As things became clearer Bill and James understood why Lindon had acted like a recluse. He was afraid that the authorities were chasing him to charge him with breaking the Rules Of Engagement after he had witnessed his two good friends die on the battlefield. Bill was ashamed to think that the men and women who served the country would feel so afraid of the establishment that they swore to defend. Expecting a soldier to act like a machine on the battlefield instead of a human filled with emotions and adrenaline was impossible. Bill cursed the people that instigated such investigations in ‘his’ men and women.

  The president was informed of what had happened and landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California. He remained on Air Force One, unable to comprehend what Roger had done after he had trusted him with so much. Time would be the only healer for the president but for now he had a country to run. Warren had been so elated by the news of Kioshi’s death that he had nearly hit his head on the low ceiling jumping for joy. Finally he had his life back, he could return to being a nobody.

  Lindon called Stephanie just after midday. After ten minutes of trying to explain what had happened he decided it would be better to talk face to face.

  “Look, I know this is a bit out the blue but… I’ve got to go back to the States for work. I wondered if you would join me? I know you have your job, but it could just be a vacation… I’m not going to disappear again, I promise,” Lindon said. Bill and James tried to concentrate on their phone screens as they overheard every word Lindon said.

  Stephanie was in two minds. She wasn’t about to up and leave her job or her life for Lindon, but the idea of a trip back to USA was tempting. “I will need to speak to my work,” she said flatly, masking any enthusiasm for the idea.

  “OK, well look, if you can go then I have to leave tonight and work for a day or two. If you come along I will take you to the Irish bar I told you about and… if you want… I’m going to see my family. They would love to meet you, I’m sure,” Lindon said.

  “Give me a couple of days, and maybe, just maybe, I will meet you out there,” she said with a smile.

  “That’s good enough for me, you tell me the airport and I will be there,” Lindon said.

  “See you soon.” Stephanie hung up.

  The sun sat low on the frosty Swedish landscape. The white snow glistened and the ice reflected light in all directions. Lindon looked out of the window and picked over the food that a nurse had brought in. Bill and James were both sat up in bed looking at their laptops, neither one of them touched their food. As Lindon picked around his dinner he could not help but feel one piece of the puzzle was missing. Who had called him on his burner phone? Lindon asked Bill and James if they had called him but neither of them did. As Lindon stared at his plate his jacket buzzed. He leaned over and grabbed his phone from a pocket.

  “Hello?” The voice on the phone matched the mystery call he had received in his lodge before Kioshi had found him. “Glad to hear you’re alive and well, Ben.”

  Lindon froze. “Are you going to tell me who you are?” he asked.

  The caller laughed. “You really don’t remember anything, do you? My gosh, Professor Ebton was as smart as he looked. My name is Lt Donald Felix. Officially I died recently. I handed you this phone several years ago. Do you remember the old man at the airport that you bought two cell phones from?” Felix said.

  Lindon thought for a moment. “Yeah but-“

  Felix spoke over Lindon immediately. “I promised myself I wouldn’t call unless you were in danger. Since the phones were kept in Sweden I couldn’t contact you sooner and anyway, contacting you would risk someone intercepting the call so I stayed away, but when I heard that Kioshi was in Sweden I knew I had to act. Personally I would have preferred you stayed hidden. It stops those with no sense of the scale of damage these weapons could cause from using them. There will be no winner in nuclear war. We all lose. Please pass my regards on to Bill and James. I wish you all the best, Ben, and I hope we never need to speak again.” The line went dead.

  Bill and James were staring at Lindon. “Who was that?” Bill asked.

  Lindon sat in silence for a moment. “What do you guys know about a guy called Lt Donald Felix?”

  James and Bill smiled at each other and let out a laugh. Lt Felix was a true mastermind.

  Chapter 51

  The ventilation duct and the wall clock were the only sounds along the dark corridor three floors underground at MI5. Chris walked along the hallway.

  Each step resonated with the click clop from his size eleven shoes until he reached a black door with the number ‘8’ embossed at the top. Chris knocked twice. After waiting a few seconds a panel next to the door lit up. He placed his finger on the screen. Then he leaned down so the camera could scan his face. Nearly a minute passed until he heard two clicks and the LED light above the door handle turned from red to green.

  “Chris, it’s been a while, I trust you’re well?” said a thin man with greying blonde hair and a prominent moustache in an old fashioned English accent.

  “Yes, I’m well, how about you, Neil? I see they’re keeping you very secure these days. That door must be at least three inches thick,” Chris said. The two men shook hands.

  “Yes, well sadly it’s not me they’ve gone to such lengths for, it’s these hard drives.” Neil waved his hand over to the wall of computer towers in refrigerators.

  “Uh huh,” Chris replied as he sat down in a soft leather armchair.

  “Everything these days is made for the computer freak that gets more joy fiddling with a keyboard than he does fiddling with a bra. Soul destroying I say. Old dinosaurs like me have had to learn fast or get shoved behind a desk to do administrative work. It’s a sad state of espionage when your top recruits barely leave the building except to get an overpriced coffee with a fancy name. They’re not like we used to be. This new breed of spies… they are sharp as a whip and just as deadly but they are muted. I spoke to one young man the other day about an old submission technique I perfected in the field. The only ones he knew were textbook. But what do I know? I’m just an old man. The world has moved on and I’m clinging on to its coat tails… anyway, I’m sure you haven’t traveled all the way here to listen to me babble on.”

  Chris agreed with everything Neil said but felt it necessary to defend the young guns.

  “Neil, you know how it is, remember when you did SAS training. All the commanders said w
as how weak we all were and how in their day men could run twice as far and rest half as much. I bet they spend a lot more time out in the field than you think. You just don’t see it anymore because they’ve put you in here. I did tell you this when you left the SAS brotherhood to come to ‘5. I agree with you about the computers though. Too artificial for my liking. People are forgetting to live their lives because they’re so caught up in their virtual reality. Y’know I had my sister’s kids over a few months ago and–“ Chris stopped himself from continuing to digress. The two old dogs of the service could drone on for hours if they didn’t stop themselves. Chris rubbed his mouth with his hand and scratched his chin. The room went silent for a moment.

  “Neil, I would love to hark back to the good old days with you but I’m here for more pressing matters,” Chris said.

  “OK, well do share, old chap. Sherry?” Neil was already pouring a second glass when he asked the question.

  “Yes, cheers.” Chris and Neil raised their glasses and took a sip. Chris nodded in agreement.

  “Very good…. now I‘ve come across some highly classified information about our American cousins,” Chris said. Neil listened intently. “It appears they’ve been using the American embassy as a nuclear weapons storage site. To be used to leverage us into action if needed. Now from what I understand the current president plans to mothball it all but as it stands today the Americans could lay waste to most of London and we wouldn’t get a moment’s notice.”

  Neil raised one eyebrow and asked “You have this on good authority, I take it?”

  Chris placed his phone on the table. On it was a recording of Lindon, James and Bill discussing project ‘Parasite’. “This is a Two Star General in the army and a high ranking CIA agent.”

  Chris played the recording, skipping ahead to the part where they explained the reason for the program. The sound quality was muffled as Chris had left the phone in the laundry basket, but it was good enough. Neil couldn’t remember the last time his heart had raced so fast.