Curse of Thieves: Another Major Vince Hamilton Investigation

by Patricki Slaney

  'I'll call them later tonight Sir,' I replied.

  We returned to the others and finalised the rest of the details for the operation.

  I felt a lot more confident after further discussions. As well as keeping watch on the road from Icmeler to Green Sea Bay, which I could do myself, I had a further five men who could conduct a thorough search of Icmeler. I could probably cope simply because I had the element of surprise.

  I looked at my watch and saw that it was close to 10.00pm. The only task left for the SAS team to accomplish was to select and notify the men who would make up the party who would carry out the operation. Since I had no input in this task, I could return to the hotel.

  'Are you finished with me now?' I asked the Captain. 'The only task you have to do now is inform your men and that doesn't involve me.'

  'That's fine; you can go. The next time that I see you will be tomorrow when we fly from Akrotiri to Maritsa Airport on the island of Rhodes.'

  'I'll see you in the Mess tomorrow at around 12 noon for lunch. We are due to fly out at fourteen hundred hours,' I replied.

  I went outside and found my driver and he took me back to the hotel where I had a beer and then went to my room to phone Freddie Shuttleworth.

  Luckily I managed to get him on his mobile as I didn't have a home number for him.

  'Hi Freddie, I must apologise for phoning you so late.'

  'No problem Vince it's only just after nine. I was beginning to wonder when I was going to hear from you next.'

  'I have a request for you but can't give you the background details for the request.'

  'It sounds very mysterious Vince. Why is there such secrecy?'

  'My investigation is at a very delicate stage, and you are just going to have to trust me,' I emphasised.

  'What do you want me to do Vince, as I take it that you are not phoning to wish me good night?'

  'Can you please organize for Peter Brown and Geoff Kemp to meet me on the quayside at the Kolona Harbour, Rhodes next Sunday morning at 11.00am?'

  'Does that mean that you have their boats?'

  'I'm not saying any more Freddie, just that I will probably have good news. Please don't tell anybody else other than the two owners of our proposed meeting.'

  'I understand Vince. I will tell them and will probably come along myself. I suppose that I can safely assume that you have not found Sea Office?'

  'I'll tell you everything when I see you. Good night Freddie.'

  'Oh, by the way, should they bring along some crew?'

  'Yes, that would be a good idea. I will have Nick Knowles with me in Greece so you can use him.'

  'Thanks, I'll see you then.'

  I ended the call and got ready for bed, just hoping that Freddie kept his mouth shut. One of the members of the owners’ group could easily be an informer for the Mafia.

  Chapter 36

  The first task that I had to complete on Friday morning was to phone home to bring my wife up to date as to where I was and when I would be able to talk to them again. Being a school day they were all up and about even though it was only just after seven o’clock back in the UK. It turned out that her mother had returned to stay since I wasn't there. In fact, I think that she was quite thankful that I wasn't around so as she could look after her mother without feeling that I wouldn’t be too happy with the arrangement.

  I told her that I would be in Cyprus for the next few days and hopefully, I would phone her again on Sunday or Monday. I also told her that I was hoping to return to the UK the following Tuesday.

  While I was making telephone calls, I decided to phone Willem to bring him up to date and inform him as to what would be happening to Habibi and Golden Spirit over the weekend. He obviously needed to know what was going on as he would see that the vessels were moving.

  Willem came up with a very good suggestion. His idea was that, before we moved the motor yacht out of Lindos bay that we checked to see whether there was an additional satellite tracking device on board. He felt that there was a strong possibility that the men who stole the boat would have put another transponder on board for their own tracking purposes. He also suggested that if we found one that we should remove it and place it on another boat in Lindos Bay. I thanked him for his input as I would never have thought of such an idea.

  I saw Chris Thompson at a table in the breakfast room when I went downstairs. I walked over and joined him.

  'Good morning Vince. Did you sleep well?'

  'Not too badly. It did take me a bit of time to get to sleep as my mind kept going over the details of the plan; however, when I eventually dropped off I slept soundly. How about you?'

  'Like you, my mind was occupied with the details of the operation. In fact, I got up around 4.00am and did a full review of my role in the process. I slept for a few hours after that.'

  'I presume that Dasher got away on time this morning,' I asked.

  'I checked with the operations room, and they confirmed that it left at zero seven thirty hours, on schedule' the Captain replied.

  'What time is your man coming in from Nice? What's his name?' Chris asked.

  'His name is Nick Knowles and he arrives just before midday. I will pick him up from the RAF base and bring him for lunch in the Mess,' I replied.

  'I have organized a car to go to the base at 9.30am; do you want to come along with me? I would appreciate your presence when I check all the equipment. It will also give you an opportunity of meeting the team who will be travelling with us, more especially, the four men who will be going with you as part of your team.'

  'Yes, I will come along with you. I would appreciate being kept busy otherwise the time will drag. It would also be important to meet with Corporal Cooper and the men and go over our particular section of the plan.' I had worried what I was going to occupy myself with to pass the morning.

  In fact, the time flew by, and it nearly slipped my mind that I had to go and meet Nick at 11.30am. As the driver was bringing me to the hanger, I saw, what I assumed was his plane, touch-down. I was standing waiting on the tarmac when Nick came down from the plane.

  'Good morning Major,' he said when he saw me.

  'Good morning Nick,' I replied as I shook his hand. 'Did you have a good flight?'

  'Yes it was great. I have never flown in such a small aircraft. It was like being in a cigar tube,' Nick said enthusiastically. 'The crew said that it was a BAe125 and is used for transporting VIP's. I felt extremely important.'

  'Do you know where the flight originated?'

  'The rest of the passengers told me that they were coming from the UK to Cyprus. They said that they had joined the flight at an RAF base called Brize Norton.'

  'Anyway, welcome to Cyprus, Nick, the place where your adventure starts. Let's get in the car and go and meet the rest of the team for lunch.' I started to move towards the car. 'We will take off for Rhodes at 2.00pm so I have plenty of time to tell you what will be happening, and where you slot into the picture.'

  'I am very nervous Major and hope that I don't let you down.'

  'You will be fine Nick. Your role will simply be to advise the naval personnel who will be capturing Splendiferous and Whispering Legend. They will do any of the fighting required, but they will need your knowledge of the boats to make sure that they do not get caught out.'

  'I have never been involved in anything like this before, and I am scared of getting shot.' Nick said timidly.

  'Just do what you are told and you will be safe. They won't involve you in any of the dangerous aspects of the operation where there is likely to be shooting.'

  We arrived at the building that contained the Officers' Mess and went in to have lunch. Captain Thompson and the Wing Commander were already there waiting for us.

  I introduced Nick to them both, and we sat down to lunch.

  The conversation stayed well away from the upcoming venture and mainly concentrated on various sporting events that were taking place in England at the time.

  Lunch
over, the Wing Commander got up and wished us luck.

  'I am looking forward to hearing that everything went as planned and there were no major cock-ups.' he smiled at us. 'Please make sure that I don't have to phone General Baird with any bad news.'

  'We'll do our best Sir,' Captain Thompson replied.

  I didn't say anything and just smiled back. I thought to myself; it is such a massive operation involving so many people that something is bound to go wrong.

  'I'll see you at the hanger at 1.45pm Major.' The Captain went off to get ready leaving Nick and I with forty minutes before we would join them.

  'Nick, we have just over half-an-hour to kill. I will take you over the plan that we have come up with so you know what will be taking place at any time. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.'

  When I had finished, I said to him. 'You didn't ask any questions, does that mean that you understood everything or were you too afraid to ask a question?'

  'No, it is all clear to me. I am just amazed at what I have got involved in. When I met you with the other owners in Cannes, I obviously didn't think that it would come to this and with the involvement of the RAF, the Navy and the Army.'

  'To be perfectly honest Nick, I also was unaware of how big this operation was. It started off with one large luxury motor yacht going missing. It then grew like Topsy into the massive operation it is now. Three motor yachts, quite a number of luxury and expensive cars, a number of masterpiece paintings, and jewellery, have all been stolen. I am glad that I have the full involvement of the services as I couldn't have tackled this on my own.'

  'Do you think that all the missing goods will be at the complex in Green Sea Bay?'

  'Well, we are convinced that they are stealing to order, so some of the items must have already gone to new owners. We are just very fortunate that none of the motor yachts that we have been monitoring have been passed on.'

  'Could Splendiferous possibly have been passed on to new owners as it has been in Marmaris Bay for a while?' Nick inquired.

  'I hadn't considered that possibility, but you are right, it could have been sold. We will still take the crew into custody as it is an illegal deal even if the new owners have paid for the vessel.'

  'Major; thank you for involving me in the operation, it has been very interesting.'

  'Don't thank me now; wait until you can look back at a successful outcome.'

  We headed off to the hanger to meet the others and board the plane for Rhodes.

  On joining the others I went over to talk to Captain Thompson who was standing with what I presumed were his men. The group looked like a bunch of tourists rather than a highly trained team about to go on a military operation.

  'Hi Major, are you all ready to go?' He asked me.

  'Yes, I can't wait to get going. Your guys look as if they are setting off on holiday.'

  'We are travelling light, and our weapons and bullet proof jackets are in the bags that each one is carrying. I see that you have a similar bag.'

  'I have my Glock and silencer with me, together with its ammunition. I would rather have something bigger, but that's all I could fit,' I commented.

  'We are all in the same position, but we should be OK as any contact with the enemy will be at close quarters,' the Captain replied.

  'So how many men have we got in total for the attack at Green Sea Bay?' There seemed to be a few more than I expected waiting to board the plane.

  'Well, you are taking five men, including Corporal Cooper for whatever you get-up to in Icmeler, and I will have a further five, including Corporal Patterson, for the main attack. In addition to all these, I am sending in Sergeant Jones plus one other man. Their job will be to go to the top of the mountain and make sure that we are not attacked from there.'

  'When are they going to land in Icmeler?' I asked.

  'I thought that the men involved in that aspect of the operation could go in on the Turkish Gulet with you. They would then have all day to get to their destination,' the Captain replied.

  'So can I just recap on what exactly happens when we get to Maritsa airport in Rhodes today?' I was starting to lose track of the exact chain of events as some small changes had been made to the plan. 'Where are your men going to spend the night?'

  'They will spend the night at Maritsa airport as it is a NATO base, and it won't raise any questions. You will go with Nick to the port at Faliraki where you will join the naval patrol boat, Dasher. The Lindos part of the operation happens next. Once you have obtained the motor yacht, Dasher will then head back to Cyprus with the captured crew. You and those involved in that operation will spend the night on Golden Spirit. Is everything OK so far?'

  'Yes, I am following you.' I nodded my head.

  'In the morning I will have the men who are travelling to Marmaris with you down at the port at Faliraki by 5.30am. You will get from Lindos to Faliraki to meet us by taxi. At 6.00am, the Gulet will pick you and your party up to take you to Marmaris while the rest of us will remain on Rhodes until around twenty hundred hours in the evening.'

  'The only difference to the original plan is that your men will stay at the airport for the night rather than go to Lindos,' I summarised what he had told me.

  'There were going to be too many people on Dasher and things could have gone wrong. I am much happier with the new arrangement,' he said.

  'I agree with you. We couldn't have fed everybody on board the boats and they wouldn't have got much sleep. It's a much better plan.'

  'Captain Thompson gave the order for everybody to board the aircraft. Half-an-hour later we were climbing into the clear blue sky over Cyprus. Our mission had started.

  We were hardly settled when a crew member announced that we were making our final approach into Maritsa airport and would be landing in five minutes. The adventure was about to begin in earnest.

  Chapter 37

  As soon as we were on the ground and had disembarked from the plane, I organized for a Taxi to come and pick Nick and me up to take us the short distance to Faliraki. It was now 4.30pm, and the Navy wasn’t picking us up until after 8.00pm; we had three hours to kill.

  When we arrived at the port, I located a Bistro that fronted onto a beautiful sandy beach. At the end of the beach, closest to the town centre, it opened out into a small fishing port. We dumped our bags and went on a recce of the harbour area, telling the owner that we would be back to eat in his restaurant a little later.

  Faliraki was a small port made up of one harbour containing about fifty fishing boats each of which was not much longer than five meters. They were the local traditional boat, having a high prow, which is typical in this part of the world.

  At the mouth of the harbour, there was a lighthouse and a quay where larger boats could tie up. On further investigation, we established that this was the only suitable place where we could board Dasher. I was encouraged that there weren't many people around the harbour. Most of the tourists were concentrated in the area of the town that was closest to the beach. We would be able to conduct our pick up without causing much of a scene.

  Satisfied that we had chosen a good spot, and had no need to change our arrangements, we returned to the Bistro where we had left our bags.

  Two and half hours later, having eaten a leisurely dinner, we wandered over to the harbour where we sat down on some fishing crates to wait for our lift.

  We heard the patrol boat long before we saw it. It came towards us along the narrow channel that led into the port. Even with the engines throttled back there was a throb that shook the air around us. I noticed they had covered all the markings on the vessel. There was no way of knowing that it belonged to the Royal Navy. Any of the crew I saw moving around on the deck were also dressed in casual clothes. If there were any inquisitive observers looking on they would not be able to determine that it was a naval vessel.

  The helmsman nosed the bow in towards the quay until it was nudging the concrete. A rating took my hand, and I was able to swing mysel
f aboard. Nick performed the same manoeuvre bit more gracefully than I was able. The boat reversed out into the channel and then powered out towards the open sea.

  'Welcome aboard Major,' Captain Moffatt said as he shook my hand. 'I take it that this is Nick Knowles, the guy who is going to help us?' He also shook Nick's hand.

  'Thanks for being on time Captain. You must have had a good voyage from Cyprus.'

  'We made good time and were, in fact, able to slow down a bit as we got closer to our destination,' the Captain replied.

  'What time are you aiming to get to Lindos at?' I enquired.

  'Well, it gets dark around nine o'clock, and I want to be there shortly after that. If the occupants of the motor yacht are ashore having dinner as you have suggested that they probably will be, then I think that they would aim to be back on board at around 11.00pm. I want to be in possession of their boat when they get back so as we can give them a surprise homecoming.'

  'That doesn't give us much time does it?'

  'We can't take Dasher into Lindos Bay so I will put the assault team ashore in a small inlet, just short of the headland protecting the bay. According to the map I have, the inlet is three hundred meters away from where we can swim out to Golden Spirit. You can swim Nick can't you?'

  'Yes Sir, like a fish.'

  'I have a detailed sketch of the boat we are going to grab hold of in the cabin downstairs. I want you to look at it with me Nick so as you can confirm that what I am suggesting will work.'

  We went down below to a small cabin where Captain Moffatt had laid out a schematic of Golden Spirit. There were also some detailed photographs lying on the table. He asked Nick some questions and then, happy that his plan would work; he relaxed a bit.

  'I think that it is about time that we briefed the team that is going to have to do the job,' Captain Moffatt announced.

  He shouted out the door and got the attention of an officer who was chatting to the helmsmen.