Lethal Promise

by Paul Stretton-Stephens

  “I guess I’ll have to be.”

  “That’s the way, Mikey. Don’t think too much about it. Let’s see what happens when we get there. Isn’t that right, Fi?”

  Fi stopped eating. “It always is, Boss. We never know what will happen and we have to be prepared for anything and everything.”

  Mikey received an alert on his mobile.

  “By the way, I’ve just got a message about the airport. The information we asked for. Here’s a plan of the airport, listing of commercial flights, terminal buildings, et cetera. And it says here that security screening times depend on flight schedules. I would imagine that security will be minimal when we’re due there.”

  Mikey passed the mobile to Jago and then to Fi, so they could familiarise themselves with the layout.

  “Okay, shall we go?” asked Jago.

  “Give me a second, Boss. I haven’t finished eating,” said Fi, loading her fork.

  Mikey looked on as Fi polished off her third plate of food. She’d eaten a prawn starter and a sirloin steak, and now she was finishing a beef burger.

  “Fi, I don’t know where you put it all,” said Mikey.

  She was still eating and couldn’t answer.

  Jago chipped in, “She’s always had a large appetite. It’s all that physical exertion she enjoys. It burns it up.”

  ***

  It was an hour after darkness had fallen. The helicopter dropped the trio about half a mile away from the airport car park. They paused beside a building, and Jago and Fi set up their micro protector drones (MPDs) and placed the lenses in their right eyes.

  Mikey watched in astonishment. “Wow, what are they?” he asked.

  Fi explained, “They’re our extra sets of eyes. They fly within a certain, predetermined range of us and we get to see what they see through the intraocular lenses. It’s literally like having eyes in the back of your head, and out to the flanks.”

  “They are so good. We wouldn’t get anything like that in our department. You wouldn’t happen to have a spare set, would you?”

  “I’m afraid not, Mikey. It’s just a plain old mobile phone for you. Are we set to take up our positions?” asked Jago.

  The pair nodded and headed out to their respective positions.

  Mikey made his way to the Hertz Car Rental. He was early, but that gave him the opportunity to recce the area. Two young men manned the car rental office, which was situated in a Portakabin. Inside there was a small waiting area with seats, but Mikey thought it best to stay outside.

  Fi positioned herself beside a small aircraft hangar that was one thirty metres east of the rental office. The position also enabled her to access the airfield should she need to.

  Jago took up a position on the south side of the car park, under the cover of some trees. The drones circled his position, and as he was stationary, the MPDs assumed static positions. Two of them took to the branches of the trees, whilst the other found a perch on an antenna about six metres away from Jago.

  It was 6.45 p.m. when Mikey received a message on Laney’s phone. It read: Walk out onto the airfield with the terminal at your back. Walk until you reach a jagged white line on the tarmac approximately 50 metres before the main runway. Bring the bag. Wait in that spot for further instructions. Reply ‘yes’ if you understood this message.

  Mikey keyed in the response and sent it. He called Jago and explained the instructions.

  “Mikey, you’ll be exposed. We’ll cover you as best as we can, but obviously we can’t get too close.”

  “Well, I’ve come this far. And we can’t stop now,” replied Mikey as he wiped the perspiration from his forehead.

  “Don’t forget to drop off your mobile so we can retrieve it later.”

  “Will do.”

  Jago called Fi. “Fi, at your six you have two planes parked up. Make your way to those planes and provide cover for Mikey as he moves out into the open. He’ll be heading just short of the T where the main runway and the taxi runway join. I’ll be heading to the edge of the main terminal, where I’ll be at Mikey’s six.”

  “Roger that, Boss. I’m on my way.”

  It took Jago and Fi a minute to reach their positions. They could both see Mikey walking across the tarmac towards the taxi runway. There were six planes out on the tarmac, two parked near Fi’s position and four parked in front of the terminal. Jago hunkered down in the shadows with only the evening sounds of bird calls and bats to keep him company.

  A few minutes passed and an aeroplane ‘follow me’ car arrived with its orange light flashing. The driver of the vehicle opened his door and Jago heard him talking over the radio. Shortly afterwards he left the vehicle and stood against a nearby wall, smoking a cigar, the smoke of which wafted in Jago’s direction.

  Ten minutes had passed when the sound of an approaching aircraft became audible. Mikey, Jago and Fi watched its nearing lights as it lined up to land.

  Jago moved further into the shadows and called Abi. “Abi, as you know we’re at Geraldton Airport and the control tower looks to be unoccupied. We have a target aircraft coming in to land. I would like a track and trace on this aircraft until I say otherwise. I need all the usual: ownership, country of origin, flight paths, et cetera.”

  “Sure, Boss, we’re on it now.”

  As Jago moved back into position, the sleek aircraft landed and taxied towards Mikey, who was anxiously waiting with the bag, as instructed.

  Chapter 17

  Jago monitored the aeroplane through his Vortex Fury Rangefinder binoculars as it slowed to a halt. The interior was illuminated and he could see two distinct figures moving. The door opened and half a dozen steps extended to the ground.

  A burly, suited man stood at the top of the stairs with what looked like an HK MP7 in his hand. He was so large he blocked out the light from the interior. He was wary and scanning the area for any signs of danger. After a minute he motioned for another man to pass him and alight from the plane. That man disembarked and trained his weapon, a pistol, on Mikey.

  Jago rapidly scanned the porthole windows. Fleetingly, a tall, dark-haired figure came into view, and then they were gone, out of sight, as the interior lights dimmed. Jago switched his view back to Mikey, who was engaged with the man at the foot of the steps. The man gestured to Mikey, presumably for the bag.

  “They told me I’d get paid when I brought the bag here. So, where’s my money, mate?” asked Mikey, playing for time.

  Without a word, the man turned, ventured inside the aircraft for clarification and returned within a minute.

  “There’s no money. Your boss arranged for you to be here with the gear, that’s all. No money. Just hand over the bag and we’ll be on our way. Take up the money with your boss, Red.”

  The man at the top of the stairs descended a couple of steps and spoke to his colleague before returning to the doorway.

  “My friend has spoken with Red, and he asks how his sister was when you visited and did you give her the gift he gave you to give her?”

  “You can tell Red that she wasn’t in – well, not at the address he gave anyway,” said Mikey confidently.

  There was a moment of awkward silence. Mikey looked back and forth between the brute in the doorway and the man at the foot of the steps. He was waiting for the slightest sign of a trigger finger moving. And there it was. The man at the foot of the steps lifted his weapon ever so slightly with his finger on the trigger.

  Mikey simultaneously reached for his pistol as he dived away and rolled. He heard a burst of rounds and watched as the gunman on the tarmac went down. Mikey changed his view to the doorway of the aircraft amid a hail of bullets all around him. He returned fire and knew Jago was also engaging the same man. Fi, having taken care of one gunman, was now advancing on Mikey’s position and putting down fire on the second gunman.

  Jago emerged from the shadows and demanded the keys from the ‘follow me’ car driver. He raced to the vehicle, got in and headed for the plane’s nose. The plane had alread
y begun its taxi into position, although they hadn’t retrieved the steps and consequently the door had not been closed. Fi and Mikey were still putting down short bursts of fire on the doorway, preventing its closure.

  Jago screeched to a halt near Fi. “GET IN, QUICKLY,” he commanded.

  The large gunman came into view and continued to fire sporadically, with little effect. The steps screeched and spewed sparks across the tarmac as the plane gathered speed. Jago was going at breakneck speed, trying to catch up with the aircraft to block the nose’s front wheel, but the car wasn’t really up to the job and was seriously feeling the pressure.

  The firing from within the aircraft had virtually stopped when Jago drew level with the steps, which were hanging loosely on one strut support.

  “Fi, take the wheel and keep it steady. I’m going to try to get aboard.”

  Fi moved over into position and simultaneously Jago opened the door and leaned out, stretching for the only handrail available. The other strut was breaking away under the pressure of being dragged along the ground at speed.

  With his MP5 slung over his shoulder, Jago grasped the rail and heaved himself onto the first step. Once he was clear, Fi tried to stay a short distance from the steps in case Jago should need to return to the car. The plane was speeding up, and the pressure was immense, but Jago was determined to climb the steps into the aircraft.

  His eyes were glued on the open doorway and the slumped figure of the suited man. He saw movement. The man, staring directly at Jago, lifted his weapon. Jago withdrew his pistol with one hand and dispatched two rapid rounds into the now floundering body of the gunman.

  As Jago holstered his pistol, the speed of the aircraft was ever increasing and the remaining hinge of the steps was being torn away from its attachment to the aircraft. Jago had two options: clamber the short distance to the doorway, or hold tight. He didn’t get time to select an option, though, as the steps and door broke away from the main body.

  Jago desperately clung to the step edge and remaining rail as the door spun and slipped across the runway like a toboggan on ice. Fi remained close to help Jago when the door eventually came to rest. When it finally stopped, it had left the runway and continued a short distance on the rough ground, throwing Jago off. As Fi approached him, he lay prone and motionless.

  She scampered from the car to his side. Jago was stirring.

  “Boss, are you, all right? Boss?”

  He slowly pushed himself up onto all fours, shaking his head. “I’ll be okay, Fi. I don’t think there’re any broken bones. Just a few bumps and bruises. I’ve had worse.”

  He was kneeling and tried to stand, but caught hold of Fi for support.

  “Boss, hold on. It’s only a few metres to the car. Can you make it?”

  “Yes. I’m shaky, that’s all.”

  Once in the car, Jago asked, “Can we check on Mikey?”

  As they drove the few hundred metres and neared Mikey, they could see that he was finishing a search of the body of the gunman who’d got off the plane and was talking on his mobile.

  Jago and Fi pulled up and alighted from the car. Jago gingerly walked over to Mikey and patted him on the shoulder.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yes, I’m good. Well, I am now.”

  “You did good out there, Mikey. What have we learned?” asked Jago.

  “The dead gunman has no wallet or any form of identification on him. There are no labels in his clothes. Interestingly, he has a tattoo of a bee on his forearm.”

  “Why is that interesting?” asked Fi.

  Jago said, “You might not have seen this from your positions, but I thought I could make out two markings on the plane: a glass with a bee on it, on the tail, and a ‘P4’ on the underside of the wing.”

  “I’ll add that to the list. I’m just getting my team to find out what they can and collect our man here,” reported Mikey.

  “As a matter of interest, what pistol did he have?” asked Jago.

  “He was using a Beretta M9A3. And thankfully he wasn’t as quick as Fi here.” Mikey turned to Fi. “Thanks, Fi.”

  “No problem, Mikey. That’s what being part of the team is all about.”

  “Fi, are all your MPDs intact?” asked Jago.

  “Yes. In all fairness, they weren’t needed too much. It’s great they can enter hover mode when they can’t keep up with you in a car. When I returned they picked up my signal and were there again, doing what they do best. How do you find them, Boss?”

  “To be honest, I was sceptical to start with, but in the last nine months they’re proved to be an invaluable piece of kit. We’ll probably need to charge them next time we’re in the chopper for any length of time.”

  Chapter 18

  Jago called Abi. “Abi, the only markings on the aircraft were as follows. On the underside of the wing, I could just make out a ‘P’ and the number four; that’s Papa four. On the tail there was a small image of a bee on a glass – you know, the kind that fly around the garden in summer. Interestingly, we have one dead gunman who has a tattoo of a bee on his right forearm. I’ll get Fi to take his prints and photograph the face and the tattoo and send them over to you.

  “The plane took off and continued in a westerly direction. I’m not sure what altitude they’ll be able to fly at with no door to the cabin, or for how long. They may look to land somewhere for repairs or to change planes. Can you get in touch with our Aussie friends to see what charters are being taken tonight or tomorrow?”

  “Well, you’ve been busy, Boss. I’ll get onto these straight away. In the meantime, I thought you might like to know the techies have been studying the drone footage from the attack. And at first it seemed that the drone was hovering in a static position for quite a while and the techies couldn’t figure out why. But when they enhanced the footage, they saw what looked like a bee or something similar flying and landing on the neck of a man. As soon as it left the man’s neck, the first explosion sounded, shortly followed by the second, and then the shooting. The man collapsed as the drone moved away from the scene. I’ve shared this with our Australian friends.”

  “Have we any idea what that injection might have been?”

  “No, not at the moment, but it was a good thing they took blood samples from everybody who went to the morgue. We’ve asked their lab technicians to look at absolutely everything and consider the possibility of traces of a substance that can induce respiratory and heart failure. We’ll wait to see what they come up with in toxicology.”

  “How are you and Bernie managing?” asked Jago.

  “Yes, we’re good, and Bernie is all good with the appointments with his wife.”

  “What about Dom? Is he there with you yet, or tying up loose ends?”

  “He’s been in a couple of times, but as you say, he’s tying up loose ends. He should be on board with this full time tomorrow, or the day after at the latest.”

  “That’s good. Listen, can you get Fi and me some provisional plane tickets to the Maldives? We’ll be paying a visit to the bikie gang shortly, and depending on what we find out there, we’ll more than likely be heading out to the Maldives. We also need accommodation, and it needs to be high grade, to create the right impression. Oh, and after we land, we need to buy some quality clothing and all the trappings of wealth. If you get time, can you check out where we can do that?”

  “I have a nice list of things to do now. Unless there’s anything else, I’ll end the call.”

  “Nope, that’s it for now. I’ll get Fi to send over the prints and photos of the dead gunman for you to examine,” said Jago.

  Fi had overheard Jago’s conversation with Abi and was already taking the fingerprints of the dead man. She set about photographing his face and the tattoo, and quickly sent them to Abi.

  “Let’s leave our man here for collection later. Mikey, can you secure the weapon and bring it with us? Let’s head back to the terminal and return this car to its driver.”

  They arrive
d at the terminal and the driver had disappeared.

  “I half-expected the local police to be here by now. It’s strange that the driver didn’t call them. I’ll just leave the keys in the ignition with a window down for when he returns. Okay, the next job is to pay a visit to the Deans. Did we get their location from Laney?”

  “Yes, I’ve got it. Give me a minute to enter it into the GPS,” said Mikey.

  As they walked towards the terminal, they heard the loud roar of motorcycles. Fi was in front as they were just about to round a corner.

  “I think you can cancel the GPS, Mikey. They’ve found us,” said Fi.

  The three spent a moment observing the advancing lights amid the cacophony of revs from at least a dozen throaty motorcycles.

  “Let’s get onto the roof. At least we’ll have the advantage of high ground if they detect us,” said Jago.

  They scampered onto the roof of the ‘follow me’ car and scaled the remaining height to get onto the flat roof of a small building adjacent to the main terminal.

  “Check your ammunition, and Fi, can you call in the chopper and tell them to hold off at a safe distance in case there’s an exchange of fire. Mikey, can you call the Geraldton police and request assistance from any available units. The likelihood is that they’ll know these guys well.”

  “How many rounds have you got left, Mikey?” Fi asked.

  “I’m down to two mags.”

  “And I have three MP5 mags, four pistol mags loaded, plus enough ammo for two more mags,” reported Fi.

  “Mikey, you act as the observer and be sparing with your rounds. If you find yourself short and we need the firepower, get some from Fi.”

  “Will do, Jago; she can’t have all the fun. I’ll position myself behind the spotlights that illuminate the pathway to the car park.”

  They watched as the motorcycle gang split in two and rode around different sides of the terminal buildings. Two riders rode out to the body on the tarmac and within minutes reported back to the obvious leader of the group, Red.