*
‘We’re heading for Cape Coast,’ Colin explained, as he drove the car along at a fair clip. ‘I’ll show you the landing site and the place where the motor will be parked. Then Doc can drive us back to Accra so’s he gets at least one run over the getaway route.’
It took them just over an hour to reach Cape Coast, the buildings of the university sparkling white in the bright sunlight as they approached. Colin turned off the main road, following a sign that directed him into the university car park. He wasted no time, halting just long enough to explain: ‘I’ll have this motor sitting here for you tomorrow – keys on top of the offside front wheel. You should make it to Accra in well under an hour if you put the boot down.’
*
At the deserted village he showed them his preparations and explained his signalling plan as they inspected the drop zone. Ray, as the expert, ranged further afield, checking the texture of the earth and looking for dangerous rocks or potholes. Finally he pronounced the terrain: ‘A pretty fair DZ.’
‘Thing is,’ Bert asked. ‘Will you be able to find the place?’
‘I’ve spent a lot of time on navigation,’ Ray told him. ‘It’ll be easy enough finding the plain and, with the arrangements Colin has made, I don’t see any problem getting us here.’
‘That’s the reason I painted the end of the building and prepared the fire,’ Colin pointed out. ‘They’ll give you something to aim for.’
‘They’ll be useful,’ Ray agreed. ‘But remember, I’ll be coming in at about 150 miles an hour and I’ll have to be spot-on first time. I won’t be making any second runs – that’s for sure.’
‘You’re saying you can deliver us?’ Bert demanded, his face puckered up in enquiry.
‘Course he can,’ Doc spoke confidently. ‘He spent enough fucking money learning, didn’t he?’
‘I’m asking him.’ Bert stared at Ray with steady, penetrating eyes.
Ray squared his shoulders and looked at the horizon, staring at the low, haze-shrouded hills before replying. ‘I can do it,’ he said. ‘I’ll deliver you all right.’
‘So it’s settled?’ Colin broke in.
‘I’ve seen enough,’ Ray agreed. ‘All I need now is a good map covering the flight route and this area of the coast.’
‘Right then,’ Colin hurried them on. ‘There’s nothing else here and I’ve still got a lot of travelling to do.’ He led them back to the car. ‘Bert, you’ll be coming back to Takoradi with me tonight.’
‘Takoradi?’ Bert’s voice was sharp with surprise. ‘What about the hotel?’ The car bumped along the neglected road as they talked.
‘You and Doc are sharing a room, right?’ Colin didn’t wait for a reply. ‘So no one will be any the wiser if one of you happens to disappear for the night.’
‘I was thinking of disappearing myself,’ Doc leered. ‘Know what I mean?’ He nudged Colin suggestively.
‘I’ve thought it all out,’ Colin continued, ignoring Doc’s flippancy. ‘You stay the night in Takoradi, Bert, and join the plane there. That way one of you will already be on board when it arrives at Kumasi. It also saves the three of you travelling together from Accra and maybe attracting attention.’
‘You’ve certainly got it all worked out,’ Bert acknowledged.
‘Besides I’ll be needing someone to give me a hand tomorrow morning with placing your getaway car at the uni.’
‘I’ll be looking for overtime rates!’ Bert warned.
‘Then you can start working now,’ Colin said as he bounced the car on to the main road and brought it to a halt. ‘You drive to Accra from here. Get in at least one run over the route.’
Doc drove hard but took no real chances as he made the one and only rehearsal of their escape. Forty-five minutes later he entered the industrial outskirts of the capital to merge easily with the heavy evening traffic. ‘That’s it.’ He relaxed his concentration. ‘If we get this far we’re home and dry.’ He nodded at the heavy traffic. ‘S’like Oxford Street out there.’
*
The bedroom in the Ambassador Hotel seemed crowded as they gathered round the map Colin had provided. Ray adjusted it to his satisfaction on top of the coffee table and drew a line between Kumasi and Accra. ‘There,’ he said, making a mark with his pencil. ‘I’ll follow the normal flight path to here,’ he touched the map at a point approximately forty miles south-east of Kumasi. ‘Turn on to 235 degrees here,’ his pencil moved south of the established flight path. ‘And in thirty minutes …’ the pencil stabbed – ‘Uturri! That gives you a full twenty-five minutes to get control of the passengers and prepare for the drop.’
‘If we handle everything properly we should be fine,’ Bert said in his slow, careful speech. ‘As far as I can find out, there’s actually never been any trouble with passengers during a hijack.’
‘That’s a fact,’ Ray agreed. ‘But you still have to handle it properly, put on the right kind of show and make them believe that you really will shoot.’
Bert’s finger tapped hard on the paper map, making it crackle like distant pistol shots. ‘Yeah, right. We’ll give them a fright all right. But it all starts with you. You’ve got to get control of the cockpit before we can make a move.’
‘Don’t you worry about that,’ Ray grinned. ‘I can be quite scary when I want to.’ He turned to Colin. ‘What’s the story about the cockpit crew?’
‘There’s just the pilot and co-pilot in the cockpit,’ Colin told him. ‘And a stewardess always goes in to them with a coffee just after take off.’
‘Do they take any anti-hijack precautions on board? Cockpit door locked, no passengers beyond a certain point … stuff like that?’ Ray asked.
‘I’ve made the trip four times,’ Colin replied. ‘The last time was just one week ago, and when the plane is in flight the stewardess just walks in and out of the cockpit without knocking, no keys or anything.’
‘So it’s just a matter of getting into the cockpit sweet and pulling the gun on them,’ Ray observed. ‘I hope you’ve bought decent-looking replicas, Colin. Proper frighteners I mean.’
‘The guns are fine,’ Colin told him. ‘I went for quality, the best on the market. Believe me, they look really lethal.’
‘What models did you buy?’
‘Big ones, Ray. I knew you’d want that.’ Colin grinned. ‘Real scary .45 Colt automatics. And they’re not just replicas; they can fire blanks and eject the casings just like a real gun. Believe me, they look and sound the part all right.’
‘Okay then,’ Bert joined in. ‘So we’ve got the guns. Now how do we get them on board? Airport security is supposed to be really tight these days.’
‘Not out here,’ Colin told him, ‘especially not on internal flights. There will be no problem getting the guns on board. They’ve never had any hint of trouble here, so security is really slack. Definitely no worries on that score.’
‘Yeah, that sounds about right,’ Ray nodded. ‘But we’ll be catching the plane north tomorrow,’ he pointed out. ‘How are you going to get the weapons to us?’
‘You and Doc will be flying out of Accra,’ Colin explained. ‘It’s just possible that with all the comings and goings of the big fight they’ll step up security in the airport. I noticed a lot more uniforms than usual there today, as a matter of fact. So it’ll be safer if Bert carries them via Takoradi. There’s no question of security checks there and he can pass them over to you at Kumasi.’
At the end of the discussion Colin pulled a long envelope from one of his pockets and handed it to Doc. ‘Return flight tickets to Kumasi. I booked them weeks ago to guarantee seats and picked them up at Accra post office to avoid ID problems. You’ll see that the names are Braun and Steiner; that’s just to throw them off a bit – make them think it was Germans or something. It’ll cause a bit of confusion during the initial investigation.’ He turned to Bert. ‘I’ve got your ticket in Takoradi.’
‘You’ve done a good job,’ Ray said, nodding his apprec
iation. ‘You lay out a good plan.’
‘Thanks,’ Colin acknowledged the compliment and sat back in his chair. ‘This is your case, Doc,’ he kicked at the suitcase he had carried up from the car. ‘And yours is still in the motor, Ray. I’ll be dropping you and your case off at your hotel when Bert and me head back to Takoradi.’
‘Yeah,’ Ray agreed. ‘That’ll do me.’ He got up and stretched himself. ‘I’m going to make an early night of it. Big day tomorrow.’
‘I’ll keep to myself as well,’ Doc nodded seriously as he spoke. ‘Maybe take a walk just to get the feel of the place.’
Ray folded the map. ‘I’ll take this with me and study it tonight.’
‘Right then! Ready to move?’ Colin looked at Bert. ‘You won’t be needing any luggage in Takoradi, so leave your gear here and just bring your smother with you. I’ve already booked a hotel and I can sort you out with a clean shirt and shaving gear. Now …’ he looked at each of them in turn. ‘Is there anything else you can think of before we break this up?’
Ray held his hand out to Bert. ‘I’ve been thinking,’ he said. ‘With the fight on, this plane’s bound to be fully booked. I don’t want to have to walk down the length of the plane to get into the cabin.’
‘I’ll make sure I’m first on board at Takoradi,’ Bert promised. ‘I’ll get a seat right up front for you.’
‘Then all we need is a little bit of luck and we’re in business,’ Ray’s glance at Colin meant nothing to the others.
Colin stared back at him for a long moment before speaking. ‘Everyone feel okay? Quite happy?’
‘We’ve covered it all,’ Doc agreed. ‘If anything does go wrong it won’t be our fault.’
Once again Colin met Ray’s eyes, an imperceptible nod bridging the air between them.
‘There’ll be no accidents,’ Colin stated confidently. ‘The last thing they’re expecting out here is a hijacking.’ He turned to punch Bert lightly on the shoulder. ‘Come on. You too, Ray. Bert and me still have to get back to Takoradi tonight.’
Colin hung back a little as the three of them moved towards the door. ‘Well, Doc,’ he said, ‘this is the big ‘un we all dream about. I’ll be waiting for you to leap out of that plane tomorrow and make me a millionaire.’
Doc’s face tightened as he stiffened his chin. ‘It’s the big ‘un all right. Thousands of miles from London, hijacking aeroplanes, leaping out on parachutes and running about the fucking jungle. Yeah! It’s the big ‘un all right.’
‘You happy about it?’
‘It’s looking good,’ Doc admitted. ‘I’ve been on a lot rougher jobs for a lot less money. Yeah.’ He nodded. ‘I’m happy about it.’
‘Be lucky,’ Colin gave him the thumbs-up, turning the movement into a quick salute as he let the door close and hurried after Ray and Bert.
*
‘Well, we’re committed now.’ Colin stood at the rear of the car, retrieving Ray’s suitcase from the boot.
‘It’s the right way,’ Ray assured him. ‘There’s always the chance we’ll strike lucky in Kumasi.’
‘Well, you seem to be calling the shots now, Ray. I only hope it all works out for us tomorrow.’
‘No.’ Ray put his hand on Colin’s arm. ‘It’s your operation. I’m only making suggestions based on my experience in the army. You discovered this job and your plan is first class. If that gold goes on the Dakota tomorrow, we’ll take it. Your plan will take it!’
‘If it goes on the Dakota.’ Colin sounded very pessimistic.
‘Believe me, Colin, if I didn’t think there was a genuine possibility of that happening, we wouldn’t be talking now.’
‘Right,’ Colin nodded, grateful for the moral support, even if he did have his doubts.
They walked round to the side of the car, Ray speaking louder now for the benefit of Bert. ‘Christ!’ he exclaimed, shaking his head as he looked along a wide avenue of tall palm trees. ‘A few weeks ago I was hacking a taxi down the Fulham Road … Now look where I am. It’s better than the fucking SAS!’
‘Well, it’ll be up to you tomorrow, soldier,’ Bert grinned up at him. ‘Feel confident, do you?’
‘I am confident.’ Ray looked straight at Colin. ‘Confident about everything.’ He stood on the wide pavement, lightly swinging his suitcase as Colin climbed into the car. Then, almost simultaneously, the three of them uttered the villain’s timeworn prayer.
‘Be lucky!’
The car accelerated away through a patchwork shadow of palm trees cast by the overhead street lighting, brake lights glowing as it approached a junction. Thoughtfully, Ray looked at the disappearing rear lights. ‘Be lucky?’ he repeated the words quietly to himself. ‘Well, as you told me once yourself, Colin: You’ve got to work at being lucky in this business.’
Fifteen minutes later, after depositing the suitcase in his room and changing into darker clothes, Ray was back on the street, making enquiries about the nearest all-night marketplace. Later, after visiting the market and making his purchases, he hailed a taxi.
‘How many pounds you take me for Kumasi?’ he asked the delighted driver.
24
Colin turned into the cinema car park and pulled on the handbrake. ‘You’re booked into the Atlantic Hotel – name of Watson,’ he told Bert as they got out of the car. ‘You can carry the case with your kit in it as luggage and I’ll get an overnight bag to you later on this evening.’
Bert lifted the case from the boot and weighted it experimentally in his hand. ‘No bother,’ he said. ‘But if I’m to carry this, along with the two duffle bags tomorrow, it’ll be a bit of a load. I helped Ray pack them and they’ve got a lot of extra bits and pieces inside.’
‘Everything will be going into the one hold-all tomorrow,’ Colin told him. ‘But keep it out of sight when you check-in, just in case they decide it’s too big for hand baggage.’
‘Yeah, I’ll watch that. Now, what about the replicas? When am I getting them?’
‘You’ll have them when I bring you your overnight bag. Put two of them in the holdall and carry the other one on you to pass to Ray in Kumasi. Just make sure you don’t go bumping into anyone with it and you should be all right.’
‘Fuck me! I’ll be like Arnold Schwarzenegger by the time this is over.’ Bert flexed his arms in demonstration.
‘You’ll manage.’
‘Yeah,’ Bert nodded approvingly. ‘You’ve got it all sussed out, Colin. Just like old times, eh?’
‘I’ll meet you near the hotel later on,’ Colin told him over a beer in the cinema lounge. ‘We can go for a meal this evening; there’s a club in Sekondi that does a good steak and it’s well out of the way of Takoradi.’
‘I could do with a kip right now,’ Bert admitted. ‘I’ve been on the go since the minute I arrived here.’
‘Aye,’ Colin agreed. ‘It’s all been a bit of a rush and a rest will do you good. I’ll give you a couple of hours before I pick you up, then we’ll head for Sekondi for a meal and a pint. You can even try a bit of the old ‘High Life’ dancing at the Jamboree Club; you’ll like it there. Mind you, it’ll have to be an early night, so no heavy drinking or getting involved with women. We’ve still got a lot of work to do in the morning.’
Bert made a face at him. ‘Is that all you ever think about?’ he asked. ‘Work, work, work?’
‘As far as this job is concerned it is,’ Colin agreed. ‘Remember, you keep yourself in good nick for tomorrow and we can all forget about ever having to work again.’
‘You’re the boss. If you say no heavy boozing and no women …’ Bert spread his arms. ‘That’s it!’
*
‘Bit of all right that,’ Bert remarked, pushing his plate away and wiping his mouth with a napkin as he looked round the club’s interior; he didn’t notice a gold-bedecked African man nod his head at two of the girls sitting at the bar. ‘And look at the birds; a few tasty lookers there.’ He nodded to a string of attractive young black women sitting along the
bar. ‘Wouldn’t mind a shot on the swings with one of them. There you go,’ he smiled happily. ‘I’m getting the eye from a couple of them already.’
‘Forget it, Bert,’ Colin said. ‘You’re just a meal ticket to them, so don’t show out or they’ll be all over you and harder to get rid of than fleas on a camel’s arse. A quiet meal and a drink, that’s all we’re here for.’
‘Yeah, I know,’ Bert nodded despondently. ‘But what a waste, eh? Oh oh, there’s a couple of them coming towards us.’
‘Just be polite,’ Colin told him, ‘but don’t let them sit down or offer to buy them a drink; they’ll take that as an invitation and pester us all night to take them home.’
‘Wish I could,’ Bert lasciviously licked his lips. ‘What a body!’ he said, looking up at the approaching girls.
‘We sit beside you?’ One of the girls placed her hand on Bert’s shoulder. ‘We keep company for you. Have good time.’
‘Sorry, girls,’ Colin spoke up. ‘Maybe some other time, but not tonight.’
‘I don’t speak to you,’ the girl turned a petulant face towards him. ‘I speak to him,’ she smiled down at Bert, moving her hand to caress his cheek. ‘You like me?’ she said, smiling at him and moving to take a seat. The second girl curled her arm round Colin’s neck and bent her head to his face.
‘You like me? You buy me drink?’
‘Look, girls,’ Colin pushed her hand away. ‘We have things to talk about, so just leave us alone. Maybe another night.’
‘You not like me?’ the girl persisted, placing her arm round Colin’s neck again and talking into his ear. ‘I good girl, we have fun together. Come on, you buy me drink then we go have fun.’
Bert was having a struggle to prevent his girl sitting on his lap as she writhed her body against him. ‘Hey, you’ve been told! We’re not interested. Get off me.’ He pushed her away. ‘Now leave us in peace to have a drink.’
‘My girls not good enough for you?’ Bert heard a voice and turned to the gold-wearing African standing behind him. ‘Why you come here if you don’t like girls?’
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