Relentless Pursuit: A Kelly Maclean Novel

by Hawk, Nate

  Now the Syrian had lost all smugness. He was sweating hard despite the mild weather. His mind was racing to the beheading videos that he had seen, as he began envisioning himself and Niko becoming the next headless victims of the organization. He could hear it already. See what incompetence gets you, they would ask rhetorically, as several men would hold him down and another would use a blade to sever his head. Or, perhaps they would douse him with gasoline and set him on fire. Damn it! Why had he even wanted the recognition of working with ISIS?

  The answer was rather simple. The Syrian had lived a playboy lifestyle. He had everything that a spoiled boy could ask for; except just one thing. He had money and he had free time but he wanted to be somebody. It was the recognition that he was seeking that had led him to ISIS. He had a small amount of radical Islam lurking within him. That, combined with his access to arms, produced naïve hopes for some personal recognition as he threw in his efforts to help reunite Syria and Iraq into a new and regionally powerful nation state. Now drenched in sweat and lost in defeat and hopelessness, the man knew his days were numbered. He saw no way to survive his first assignment with ISIS. Fortunately for him, Niko interrupted the man’s thoughts of self-pity that would have been his end had the Syrian not had the good fortune of working with a true visionary, like Niko.

  “There is another way to achieve the end result that our organization has requested of us.”

  The Syrian wiped sweat off of his forehead for a countless time. He suddenly was filled with hope and life. Yes, life! he thought.

  “Tell me how to help. Just tell me what to do,” he said.

  He suddenly pictured himself again as an old man. Perhaps he could live a healthy life back in his reunited homeland.

  “I’ll do anything,” the Syrian pleaded.

  “The water is very high. All we have to do is close the radial gates on that emergency spillway and the dam will overtop.”

  Niko pointed to the area that he was referring to as he was sure the Syrian had no idea what an emergency spillway was. The Syrian was aghast at what he had been told. That was this man’s solution? Was Niko serious? The Syrian’s sweat reemerged as did the thoughts of violent death at the hands of knife wielding men. What kind of a solution was Niko proposing?

  “We’re tasked with sending a raging wall of water down the valley towards Munich. A slow current over the top of the dam will not achieve our goals,” he said fearfully.

  Niko had had enough of the man’s whimpering. Niko was solution oriented. Niko was the type of guy that got shit done without a lot of talk or fanfare. Guys like this Syrian were pussies who cowered once a single thought of failure worked its way into their heads. Niko knew guys like him generally proved to be completely ineffective in the field. Those types could dethrone themselves of success with only a single thought of potential failure.

  “You, shut up and let me do the thinking!” Niko said with determination.

  The Syrian man submissively glanced away as Niko continued.

  “Two, maybe three hours of over topping on an earthen dam and it will be gone. Do you understand? Poof!” he said, creating a mushroom cloud with his hands. “Gone for good. The trickle that you mentioned will quickly erode the dam and it will release all of this water. We do not need explosives to inundate Munich with floodwater. Just stay here by the car and I’ll take care of it.”

  Niko readied his Glock pistol as he eyed the parked vehicle. Then his intelligent eyes gazed over towards the control tower. He turned around and looked at the sulking man who was leaning on the Audi.

  “Perhaps we can use your explosives after-all,” Niko said as he eyed the controls that would open and close the radial gates of the emergency spillway.

  He quickly grabbed several explosive components that he knew would work well for the idea that he had. The one thing that the Syrian did get right was that the explosive components were already prepped with quick connectors. Niko quickly eyed the components that he found to have the best connections and therefore the best chances of working. He sure didn’t need another dud. He already had one leaning against the Audi.

  ***

  Chapter 62

  Kelly walked down the length of the crushed stone path to the edge of a clearing. Before him, he saw the Audi parked at the edge of a small gravel parking lot. It was dark but there was enough ambient lighting to see silhouettes and shapes moving around. One man was running from a floodgate towards a tower. The front trunk of the Audi was open where an extension cord plug dangled carelessly. There was a man there that seemed very nervous, perhaps about his role in the endeavor. There was one other vehicle present, a plain white sedan with official plates. Kelly figured it wasn’t going to be a good night for its owner. Why was anybody there that time of night? he wondered. Maybe the flooding initiated an emergency inspection. It was a routine and boring job that had increased in danger by orders of magnitude when Niko had shown up. Kelly looked over at the structure that he knew the men were plotting to destroy. He was surprised at the size of the earthen dam whose job was keeping those downstream safe from devastating flooding. His surprise came from realizing how small it was. However, it sure looked complicated. There were multiple spillways and floodgates. He had a new appreciation for the experts that keep such structures functioning so the people living downstream remained safe.

  Kelly looked towards the catwalk that led from the earthen dam to the control tower. He didn’t know the integral workings of dams but it was clear that this tower was an important part of the water management in the Isar Valley. As he watched the footbridge, he saw Niko quickly cross it and disappear inside the control tower. Whomever had left the door unlocked had probably just made a fatal mistake. Kelly could picture Niko threatening the dam operator’s life as the ultimate inspiration to do whatever it was that Niko needed done.

  Kelly walked along the tree line in the dark and got as close to the car as he could while not silhouetting himself in the open. The Syrian man stood by the car and leaned over to look into the trunk. He looked bored, like a man without a task. He also now had an expression on his face that, to Kelly, made him look angry. Kelly slid the MP5 into position and lined up the sights. The open trunk’s light silhouetted the man well. He was twenty yards away so he knew even if the sights were not accurate, he would hit just by sighting down the barrel and adjusting his fire. He glanced down at the selector switch on the short black sub gun. It had three settings, “0”, “1” or “A”. He knew the automatic setting was a good way to make too much noise and possibly even miss his intended target. He slid the safety to “1” and prepared his shot. The man was oblivious to his surroundings. Kelly wondered why he was even there. He must just be a driver, Kelly thought. Well, they’re important, too… not to mention guilty.

  Kelly watched from the shadows as the man shifted his weight around on one leg, seemingly pausing to think about something for a moment. It was just the pause Kelly was waiting for. He took the slack out of the well-machined trigger and began to squeeze. The gun fired a shot that hit the man center-mass in the side of his chest. The suppressed rifle made only a muffled sound as the subsonic projectile did its job. The man didn’t fall immediately but Kelly was already moving forward so he fired again. A similar result was achieved and the man stumbled further sideways with both hands clutching his torso. He noticed Kelly with the rifle as his brain began to piece together what had happened. In that millisecond, the man made a motion as if to reach for his side arm.

  Kelly closed the gap between them and was now five yards away. He still had the sights trained on the man who was turning now, pulling at his pistol in an effort to line up the shot. Kelly wished that he had his other rifle. The M4 cartridge was more powerful and the man would have already been on the ground. Kelly’s heart raced. It was obvious that he had hit the man but the nine-millimeter bullets were not powerful enough for an instantaneous death. The other man was dying; Kelly knew that for sure based on the location of his shot placement
and the lack of medical help nearby. Still, the man seemed to have enough wherewithal that if left unchecked, might allow him to take Kelly with him. Was it possible? Could Kelly be dropped right there with Niko so close and the inhabitants living downstream facing sure death? Kelly quickly dismissed any chance of that happening by dispatching a subsonic 147-grain bullet to the man’s face. It hit just under his eyes on the bridge of his nose. The cartilage and tissue that had been there only milliseconds before, was now replaced with a gaping hole. Blood spilled out like an industrial-sized thermometer had just exploded.

  A pink cloud of mist surrounded the man’s head as his brain’s neurons immediately stopped sending signals to the rest of his body. He fell backwards to the ground as if he was a child preparing to do a snow angel. Kelly saw the irony and figured there wouldn’t be any angels wherever this man’s soul was going. He glanced in the trunk and saw what he knew to be a bad choice of explosives for this job. Antipersonnel mines? The other explosives looked to have been retrieved from a supply of abandoned USSR missiles. It appeared as if the Syrians had come through after all. Kelly didn’t spend time pondering the source. Fortunately, he immediately saw there weren’t enough of the Russian explosives to take out the structure before him. But what the hell had Niko been up to over by the floodgate? What was blowing a floodgate going to do? It seemed counterproductive and besides, it was already mostly open.

  Then he heard two things. The first noise was the radial floodgates of the emergency spillway lurching to life. A powerful but muffled motor began moving them towards the closed position. They eventually came to a stop as they closed fully against the water pressure. Then Kelly understood what Niko was up to. In anticipation of the next noise, he began sprinting towards the control tower. As he did, he heard the second noise. A gunshot from inside the control structure rang out and Kelly realized it was a big problem. He also knew Niko was inside. Kelly’s moment had come yet he still felt two steps behind Niko. Kelly wondered who would prove to be the better man?

  Kelly approached the control tower’s catwalk. He knew he would inevitably create noise as he moved across it so he slowed to a walk and did so with caution. Niko had to be on the other side of the door that was twenty feet in front of Kelly.

  ***

  Rick Quinn’s day was getting worse and worse. He couldn’t believe what he had been told by Special Agent Winston Becker. Who the hell was that guy anyway? He sounded like the Grim Reaper over the phone, Quinn thought. Quinn had learned that the man had taken Owen’s place on the HIG interrogation team. Winston Becker sure had sounded tired. That guy needs to get some sleep, Quinn thought. Apparently the interrogation of Mohammad Vargas had revealed the German terror target. Quinn asked himself how it was possible that a high value target like that could really be left unguarded in today’s age of terror. Quinn was on an Agency jet in route to Munich with more on his mind than he had experienced for a long time.

  His thoughts went back to that day in September, more than twelve years prior. Even though Rick usually exaggerated his role regarding 9-11, it had still been tough on him. It was hard on all of his colleagues too. The Agency had certainly blown it and the memories of those who had perished proved it.

  Quinn picked up his phone. He didn’t even know who to call at first. Half of his quickly compiled PAG team had been killed that day, including the team Supervisory Agent, Laura Banks. She had been one tough lady and Quinn had really liked her. His long time agent Stan Lubensky had been through the shit many times and had always performed well, until a couple of hours prior when he had been killed too.

  Quinn thought about the Boston cop that was with his team. He couldn’t believe that this guy Kelly had been brought into the fold. That decision was sure to get more of his agents killed. Quinn knew his career had peaked unless he could quickly clean up the mess. On the other hand, if the ISIS cell was destroyed and the imminent danger to Munich’s safety was resolved, he knew that he’d be hailed a hero. Quinn called his newest recruit.

  “Owen, it’s Rick.”

  “Hey, Rick. I was about to call you. We’ve got all but two of these guys holed up in a house in Grunwald.”

  “That’s why I’m calling. Your old friends on the HIG team just came through. Sounds like your protégé Winston Becker is climbing right up the ladder of success. He delivered some urgent Intel.”

  “Lay it on me,” Owen said dryly.

  “Look. We’ve got two major problems. The first is that terrorists are gonna be released in the Altstadt,” he paused, considering the best translation. “You know, the city center. They aim to engage in a Mumbai style attack.”

  “I’m clear on that. What’s the second problem?” Owen asked.

  “This Mohammad Vargas, he claims Niko was attached to this particular cell to take out a hydro-electric, earthen dam just upriver of Munich. The reservoir is already at full capacity with all the rain so if he’s successful in breaching the structure, six and a half million people could be facing a 30-foot wall of water, racing down the Isar River Valley. In addition to turning the city into a war zone, entire German industries will be swamped with floodwater, creating an epic economic and humanitarian disaster. Loss of life is estimated in the tens of thousands, maybe more if it happens at night when the residents are asleep. The warning time is so short we might as well forget about evacuation. Essential sectors of the German economy will be shut down overnight, exactly at a time when the country needs to respond with its very best. In a nutshell, the terror cell’s goal is to rain death and destruction in Munich by flooding the entire region with water. To make matters worse, Mohammad Vargas says the “go ahead” has already been given.”

  “Alright,” Owen said. “Let me make a call and I will get back to you with a SITREP.”

  Owen ended the call and tried Kelly again.

  ***

  Chapter 63

  As Kelly approached the door in the quietness of the night air, he kept his weapon ready for any contact that he might make with Niko. Thoughts and emotions swirled within his head. He had chased Niko halfway around the world, after the man’s terror cell had murdered Jen and Brady. That understanding was again filling him with an intense rage that had blocked out all other thoughts.

  Prior to the event, Kelly had planned to settle down and go on vacations with his family. Instead, they had been killed and he was the one who had narrowly escaped death. But why him? The only actions that Kelly could equate with happiness in his current life was chasing down the mastermind of the terror cell and killing him. When he had found out that Bekhan had intentionally targeted Jen based on an altercation they’d had a few days before, he couldn’t believe it. His family hadn’t been in the wrong place at the wrong time. They had been individually selected to be murdered. But it didn’t stop there; in fact, it got much worse. Kelly eventually realized that this rapist Niko had used the bombings to eliminate a loose end from his past. He had tricked Bekhan into committing the terrorist bombing and singling out Jen. Kelly hated himself for not digging deeper and stopping the blasts. He was sure that the bombings were all his fault.

  Kelly quietly crossed the bridge with visions of killing Niko on his mind. Kelly felt his adrenaline causing him to shake like a racehorse at the starting gate. Then he heard a noise that seemed to be the starting buzzer, giving him the go ahead to kill Niko.

  The sound took a moment to register. Oh shit, it’s my cell phone ringing! It was so loud that he yanked it from his pocket and answered it immediately. Half of that decision was just to make the loud noise stop. When he saw who it was, he figured it would be best to take the call. He stepped back off the platform, uncertain if his nemesis had heard the noise. Unfortunately, Niko had heard the cell phone.

  “What?” he asked very quietly.

  Kelly kept his gun trained on the door and pinched the phone in an awkward position between his ear and shoulder.

  “It’s Owen. Just got an Intel report. Niko is going to blow a dam upriver of Munich
…”

  Kelly was having trouble hearing him but he had gotten the gist of his explanation. No shit, Kelly thought as he considered the timing of the Intel report. He was surprised he had any reception but being out in the open at a slightly higher altitude must have helped.

  “I know. I’m entering the control tower as we speak. I took out the driver so now I’m going for Niko.”

  “You’re cutting out real bad. Just call me back when it’s done. If I don’t hear from you in twenty minutes…”

  “Give me fifteen,” Kelly said. “Fifteen minutes. If I haven’t called you then you’ll know that you’ll have to come here and take care of Niko yourself.”

  “Got it,” Owen said with concern and understanding, clearly audible in his voice. “Do it, Kelly. Go get him.”

  Kelly hung up the phone. He switched the side button to vibrate and put it back in his pocket. Then he began to cross the footbridge when all hell broke loose.

  ***

  Chapter 64

  Niko was confident that his patience would come to his rescue again. Now that the radial gates had been closed, the water was quickly rising and would soon overtop the dam. After forcing the hydrologist to close the gates, Niko had shot him in the gut and left him on the floor for dead. Before finishing the man off, Niko had (unbelievably!) heard a cell phone ringing. Normally, Niko would have shot the hydrologist again, just to make sure he was dead. As Niko eyed the man, he thought he looked dead. He sure wasn’t moving. Knowing that someone else was just outside the door, Niko’s attention had been diverted and it had saved the man from a headshot. After hearing the cell phone ringer, Niko began thinking about what would come next. He looked through a slot in a closed blind and saw a dark figure put a phone in his pocket and begin to cross the footbridge. Niko knew enough about small group tactics to know if there were more men than just that one, they would all be moving across the bridge together. They sure wouldn’t have brought their cell phones with them, either. No, this guy was clearly an amateur. Niko was hating himself for not setting up one of the anti personnel mines right outside the door of the control tower. If only he would have had slightly more foresight, his plan would have been perfect. He had no worries, though. Niko was confident that he could eliminate one more person.