Deadly Force sts-18
Page 22
Ching scowled. “Say it takes us twenty minutes to chopper to the five-mile zone. Then we infiltrate to the downtown area we want in another hour. We recon the potential lockups, pick out our hide-holes, and go to ground. Another half hour. We’ve burned up two hours to target. Unless the spies can pinpoint the holding cell.”
If we left here at 0100 we’d have some time to play with,” Donegan said. “Like if there was no good places to hide. We might have to pull back a ways. I like the blackface-and-gloves idea myself.”
Jaybird came back. “Mojombo says there is a wall just in back of the open market that was once used for executions. That could be the site. It would give us a lot of cover in the market stalls. He said the other spot could be the Central Police Station. It has a concrete-block wall on one side. It’s also been used before.”
“Great, we have two execution locales,” Vinnie Van Dyke said. “I don’t like the idea of splitting up our platoon.”
Lam came back, and everyone looked at him. “Mojombo says he knows what we’re thinking of doing. He’ll be over shortly to advise us. He says a one-on-one wouldn’t work with his men. But he could send along a squad of twelve men with a sergeant to be under the control of Commander Murdock. He’s talking to D.C. and will be here when he’s finished.”
Murdock drummed his fingers on his knee where he sat on the ground in front of his tent. “Kolda doesn’t have to be brilliant to know that us SEALs are still in his country. He can also figure out that his threat is going to pull us into his house. All he has to do is tell one of his Army colonels to provide him the firepower he needs for a good ambush, then try to lead us into the trap.
“We have two possible incarceration spots for the men. One would be the Government House, the other the Central Police Station. He knows that Mojombo has riddled the Central Station once before. So it must be vulnerable. So would he choose the Government Building? It could have more soldier guards, a greater number of rooms and places to hide the prisoners.”
Mojombo had walked up and listened to Murdock.
“Yes, I quite agree that he knows that we will try to outguess him. That still leaves the two spots where the men are held. I just heard from our men in the city. Tehabo has infiltrated the units at both spots. From what he says, the men at the police station are secretive but gloating in a way. They say if anyone tries to shoot their way into that area, they will be met with a total surprise. Nobody will say what it is, and Tehabo was run out twice when he tried to walk into the restricted area. It could mean they have a deadly ambush set up even though the men are not held there. Or it could mean the ambush is to protect the prisoners.”
“What about the Government Building?” Gardner asked.
“Tehabo gives me another story. He says it all looks calm and normal at the Government Building. There are always a lot of soldiers around it as regular guards. He wandered a lot of halls and even got into the basement, and he found no spot that had any more guards than any other. No part had been restricted. But he says that could be a low-key way of hiding the men.”
“So, we’re still snookered,” Murdock said. “I like the idea of trying to free the two men tonight, before they parade them down to some block wall. That will be a much safer operation. Should mean fewer federal rifles around. So let’s consider the rescue by darkness instead of at the hanging.”
“I might have a solution,” Mojombo said. “Don’t split your forces. Let me take twenty men and borrow two of your SEALs with the Bull Pups. We’ll take the Central Station because from our intel it has the most danger and probably the best possibility of housing the two captives. You take your SEALs and investigate the Government Building.”
“Done,” Murdock said. “What about timing?”
“You’ll be flying down. The chopper could come back and take us down as a second load to a different area. Save a lot of hiking that way. The pilot and copilot will have one of our radios and one of your Motorolas. He should have a specific pickup spot for both of us to come in on call.”
“We could leave at midnight and your men could get out of here at 0100. I’d suggest you cut your squad to sixteen men including two SEALs. Any more and the chopper is going to split a seam.”
Murdock looked over his men. “Any comments or questions?”
Jaybird cleared his throat. “Skipper, is there anyone in the Loyalist camp who might have worked in the Government Building, or knows the layout of the two floors, and is there a basement?”
Mojombo grinned. “Bingo. I have two men. Both worked in the Government Building for five years. One was a janitor. He knows every nook and cranny in the place. I’ll detach both men to you as soon as I can find them.”
“Now, it’s almost 1100,” Murdock said. “Let’s check weapons again, clean them up, and get your ammo ration from wherever you got it. We need a count on how many twenties we have left. Each man give me a count. Anything else?”
Mahanani held up his hand. “Sir. I’ve been watching the senior chief. His wound is deeper than I first thought. I think he should take a ride out to the medics on the carrier. I’d feel a lot better about it.”
“Do it. Take him with you. While you’re on the carrier, see if you can requisition two hundred rounds of 20mm HE. I don’t see why their rounds won’t fire in our weapons. We won’t have the airburst potential, but the HE effect will do for now in case we run out. Get the senior chief moving.” Murdock paused. “We need two Bull Pups to go with Mojombo. Let’s make it Howard and Jefferson. Mojombo, that way your squad will be all black. Its not racist, it’s color-coding.” That brought a laugh. “Howard, you take my Bull Pup and I’ll pack your MG. Jefferson, you already have a Bull Pup. You two find out when to report to Mojombo.”
Murdock called Bill Bradford. The big man responded at once. “Bring your sketch pad and some sharp pencils. I want you to make a drawing for us.”
Ten minutes later the two Loyalist soldiers came packing their AK-47’s. They reported to Murdock. Their names were Kaedi and Sandari.
“Do you men know if the Government Building has a basement?”
“Yes, sir,” Kaedi said. “It does. I was a janitor there. I know the whole building.”
“Good. This is Bill Bradford, he’s an artist. Tell him about how long and how wide each floor is. He’ll make an outline, and then you show him how to fill in the rooms so we can label them. It might take two or three sheets for each floor.”
Kaedi nodded and they began. Murdock looked at Sandari. “What did you do at the Government Building when you worked for them?”
“I worked as an accountant on the second floor for three years.”
“Did you get around the building a lot?”
“Yes, but mostly on the second floor.”
“Is there a basement?”
“Yes, under about half of the building. The newer section does not have any underground.”
“Could our two men be locked up in the basement?”
“Oh, yes. There are storage vaults down there. One for the nation’s gold supply, one for paper money, one for valuable documents.”
“Are they airtight?”
“Oh, no. Once a clerk was locked in overnight and it didn’t hurt anything except his pride.”
“How do we get to these vaults?”
“From the main back door there is a hallway to the left. Halfway down it is another door marked ‘Basement.’ Stairs go down, but no elevator. Twenty steps. No security doors or guards when I was there.”
“You are going to show us the way once we get inside, Sandari. Why did you join the Loyalists?”
“The government accused my brother of being a spy for a foreign country. They had a quick, illegal trial and then they shot him. I want to kill fifty of them.”
“Good, Sandari. Good to have you with us. You go find Jaybird and tell him to stick to you like glue. Thanks for your help. You’ll be flying out with us tonight. Stay with the SEALs until then. Okay?”
“Okay,
Commander,” Sandari said. He saluted. Murdock returned his salute.
He heard the chopper take off. It was a calculated risk letting it fly out to the carrier and back. But they could use the 20mm rounds, and he didn’t want to take a chance on the senior chief losing his arm to some tropical infection.
Bradford finished the sketches of the two floors and the basement. Kaedi said the best place to hold prisoners would be in the documents room in the basement. They would check that first when they got inside. If the prisoners weren’t there, the SEALs would work through the rest of the building.
Noon chow turned out to be a corn-and-rice mixture with baked fish and a side of sliced carrots. The surprise of the day was coffee. They had found five five-gallon cans of ground coffee in the loot from the President’s warehouse.
Just after noon, a runner came to Murdock’s tent. He was wanted on the SATCOM. Murdock went to the leader’s tent and took the offered handset.
“Murdock here.”
“Billings, Commander. What to report about the Vice President and Mr. Stroh?”
“Nothing yet. We’re trying to pinpoint their location. We think we have it down to two spots. We’ll raid both those places tonight. It’s about 1300 here now. We should be on site in twelve hours. We will take all precautions to keep the two men safe, and as soon as we have them in our hands, they will, I say again, sir, they will be transported directly to the aircraft carrier.”
“Good. The President said you were a good man. Good luck on your mission. Oh, one word from Cliff Donaldson, the CIA director. He said if there is no way to rescue Don Stroh alive, he is to be terminated. He’s a storehouse of CIA data and can’t be allowed to be kept by a rogue leader who could sell him to any one of four or five interested parties. Do you understand, Commander Murdock?”
“Yes, sir. If Mr. Stroh can’t be rescued, he must be terminated. Understood. Will comply. Wilco.”
“That’s it then. The President sends his best and wishes you success in your mission.”
“Thank him for the men. We’ll report in when the mission is over no matter what time it is. Are we five hours ahead of you?”
“I think that’s it, Commander. Signing off.”
Murdock put down the handset and stared at Mojombo. “You heard the orders. They are binding on you too, since we’re both looking for the same prize.”
“I understand, Commander. If we draw the prize, we will make every effort to bring out both men. If it is impossible to rescue them and we have the ability, Mr. Stroh will be terminated, but not the Vice President. Right?”
“Correct. It won’t come to that. I have a good feeling about this raid. We’re going to bring them back. One of us. Right now I couldn’t guess which one of us it will be.”
Murdock called Gardner into their tent and dropped the flap. “Let’s have a little critique of the mission last night,” Murdock said. “First, your evaluation.”
“Yes, sir. First I appreciate the chance to run the operation. On top, we accomplished our purpose. The police station was burned out and they lost at least a dozen men, maybe more. We had only one casualty, and that’s not life-threatening. Our movement to the objective went well. Our guide did his job. Lam was as efficient as ever and brought us to the right spot. The actual firefight could have gone better. The men coming from outside and attacking us was a surprise. I should have expected something like that. We did reduce them, and scared off the five who escaped from the car fire.
“The armored personnel carrier was another surprise. I didn’t know their Army had any such rigs, let alone the police. Frankly it stumped me. I’ve never met anything like that before.”
“That’s why Jaybird took it on,” Murdock said. “We’ve busted up a dozen or more of them. Almost always with C-4 or TNAZ in the tracks. Stops them dead. Jaybird was showing off a little. He likes to do that. I just hope one of these days it doesn’t get him or some other SEAL killed.”
“That was about it. We formed up and moved out. Mahanani took care of the wound and we hit the takeoff spot and got home.”
“Want to rate yourself from one to a hundred?”
Gardner rubbed the back of his head. “Damn, well, I guess a ninety. Five off for the squad outside the station and another five on the personnel carrier.”
Murdock watched the junior-grade lieutenant. He’d done well, and would soon have his own platoon. He was good. How had he stayed a JG so long? “I disagree with your figure. It should be a ninety-five. The squad of shooters outside didn’t surprise me. The personnel carrier did. So, Lieutenant, put a big eagle’s feather in your floppy. You did good.”
“Thanks. I appreciate that. I better get over to the ammo tent and see that our boys get their pockets filled. I have a count on twenties in my squad. We have five left per man.”
“We have four per man. No more mass firings. We’ll use them carefully unless we get some new stock from the carrier. Have you set up a sleep period?”
“Early chow at 1600, then sleep period from 1630 to 2300. We on the first chopper run or the second?”
“Let’s take the first. Tell Mojombo he has the second trip.”
“That’s a roger.”
* * *
The rest of the afternoon, Murdock sweated out the chopper. It came in just after 1700 with both SEALs and two cases of a hundred rounds of HE 20mm.
“Their ordnance man said these twenties should work in our weapons,” Mahanani said. “He told me to compare them for weight and size and extractor operation. Then if there was any question, not to use them.”
“Do it,” Murdock said. “If they check out, get some sandbags to protect yourself and place the weapon through them with the trigger behind them, and fire off one of the new rounds. My bet is that they will work fine for HE contact.”
Josie Halstrom, the chopper pilot, walked up and waited to talk to Murdock. “I’ve got a new copilot. My other one didn’t like getting shot at and developed a serious stomach problem. No guts is my guess. Anyway, we’re ready to do a double run tonight whenever you’re ready.”
“Good. First run about 0100. You better get some sack time yourself before then.”
Halstrom nodded, and headed back to his bird on the edge of the soccer field.
Mojombo called from his tent three down, and Murdock went over to the African leader.
“SATCOM and they’re asking for you. They asked me if you ever had your own set turned on.”
Murdock took the handset. “Murdock here.”
“Yes, Commander. Billings. We’ve just had a message from State. They have received a radio demand through a third country from Sierra Bijimi President Kolda. He says he has liberated our Vice President from the criminal rebel terrorists and is ready to return him to United States authorities. Kolda says his nation has suffered seriously in military action to rescue the two men, and he needs payment of three billion U.S. dollars. The money will help to cover the terrible death and destruction to his capital during the fight to rescue the Vice President and another diplomat, Don Stroh.”
“The bastard. Our orders still stand?”
“Yes.”
“We’ve planned an operation. I’m not sure that Kolda doesn’t have a SATCOM. If he does, he could be listening in. He didn’t make any threats against our men, did he?”
“No, but he did say that he expected quick cooperation by the U.S. since the Vice President is seriously ill and needs the best medical care possible. It can’t be provided for the Vice President here in Sierra Bijimi.”
“The bastard,” Murdock said. “I’ll report back to you in eighteen hours.”
“Good luck.”
“Thanks, Mr. Billings. We’ll need it.”
23
Mahanani, Lam, and Howard picked a spot well away from the village to test the 20mm rounds brought back from the carrier.
“Look exactly the same,” Lam said. “The grooves, the markings, only thing different is the fuse, and we can’t even see that.”
“Weigh about the same,” Mahanani said, hefting one in each hand.
Howard laughed. “Sure, Old Weights and Measures himself here. Let’s give it a try.”
They set up the Bull Pup with a heavy wooden box filled with dirt on each side. The trigger was just behind the boxes, and the round in the chamber. If it blew inside the weapon, the boxes of dirt should take up the impact.
“Who gets to pull the trigger?” Lam asked.
“Hey, it’s Howard’s Bull Pup,” Mahanani said. “He gets the honor.”
Howard reached down, lay flat on the ground behind the weapon, and curled his finger around the trigger.
“Get back thirty yards,” he told the other two. “No sense in all of us getting killed.” They grinned and moved back.
When they were to the rear and behind tree trunks, Lam called out. “Ready on the firing line.” It was the age-old military order that all was safe to begin target practice.
Howard shut his eyes, ducked down, and pulled the trigger. They heard the familiar loud crack of the round going off. Then fifty yards downrange a huge tree took the round in the center of its trunk with a smashing explosion as the HE round detonated.
Howard sat up and smiled.
“Hey, you chickens, these rounds work fine. Pass the word.” Howard pulled back the lever and checked. A new round from the magazine had moved up into the firing chamber after the first shell casing had been ejected. Yes.
* * *
The Skyhawk with the thirteen SEALs and one Loyalist soldier had kept a minimum altitude of fifty feet over the water as it raced downstream, pulling in sharply at the five-mile dock, and found the LZ a quarter of a mile from the river beside a tributary. The small open field had been harvested. The SEALs and the Loyalist soldier, Sandari, jumped out of the helicopter and ran at once for the cover of the jungle growth. The chopper lifted off at once and powered north over the heavy greenery on its way by a new course back to Tinglat.
The SEALs lay in the jungle growth for two minutes listening for any reaction around them. Gradually the insects began to sound again with their mating calls and operational buzzing and clicking. A bird sang, then another. Murdock licked his lips and stood.