by J C Ryan
“Great. There’s the first item to take off your worry-list,” Rex answered.
He reckoned the proof would be emailed to a co-conspirator, to be printed out and then hand-delivered to Sunstra’s father. Or it would be put on a private plane soon. Either way, now that he knew Sunstra was alive right now, he was confident of getting her out safely—if she was in the house in front of him. Nevertheless, there was no time to waste.
He mentally urged the sun to set sooner, knowing the most reliable information would come from Digger’s reconnaissance, not from watching the house.
The time passed slowly when one had to wait. During his training and in the years that followed on missions, Rex had learned that the life of a black ops field operator was one of endless traveling from one location to another, followed by extended spells of mind-numbing tedium, punctuated by bursts of absolute violence and terror.
And then there was the waiting. Waiting for the target or a contact to turn up, waiting for the target to make a move, waiting for someone to complete a task before the next one could begin, waiting for the right time, waiting for the sun to set so he could send Digger in to gather the information he needed.
It took a strong kind of psyche not to go crazy from all the waiting. For some of the experienced operators, this waiting was a terrible time as they were visited by the nightmares of their previous missions—the people they’d killed, the times when they were almost killed… Those were the times when hate for the enemy and what they did came to the forefront, but during their training they were taught to get rid of the emotions of hate.
“Don’t hate them – it will kill you. Instead kill them, so they can’t kill again,” was the refrain the instructors played in their heads when hate wanted to take possession of them.
Rex didn’t hate those who took Sunstra, but he was singularly pissed with them.
Digger was getting restless, accustomed now to being fed at regular intervals. Rex thought about how he could return both himself and the dog to peak mission condition when this was all over. It gave him something to take his mind off what could be happening in the house until they had a clear picture.
When at last it was too dark for him to see Digger concealed in the garden surrounding the tree, Rex slipped out of his hiding place and put Digger’s gear on. He put the comms unit in Digger’s ear first.
“It’s time to work, boy.”
Digger’s ears perked up, and Rex felt the dog’s heart beat faster and stronger under his hands as he buckled the harness and affixed the night-vision camera.
He bent down, took Digger’s face in his hands, and pushed his nose lightly against the dog’s wet nose and said, “Good boy! You love to work, don’t you? We’ll do more of that, I promise. Now, scout!”
Digger took off in a flash in the direction Rex pointed, toward the next house over, Ritthirong’s. He ran silently and with purpose. Rex returned to his position in the tree to watch and direct Digger right and left based on what the camera was showing him on his iPad. In doing so, he had Digger work his way to a window that was half-hidden by shrubbery.
“Look inside, boy.” he directed.
Digger rose until the camera was pointed inside the house. The room beyond was empty of everything but the furniture that revealed it was a dining room.
No good.
“Good boy. Hide and scout.” Rex had discovered by accident that the dog was intelligent enough to understand compound commands Rex made up from the single commands he knew, even commands that seemed incompatible.
Though Digger’s original owner and trainer, Rex’s deceased friend Trevor, had used mostly one-word commands, there had been a few Rex heard him use that were compound ones, like Close Hide, Quiet Attack, Circle and Return, Go Right or Go Left that led him to believe he could combine some. Digger knew Hide and Scout meant be extra cautious to remain unseen while scouting.
It was only later that Rex, through studying books and internet information, learned the simpler, one-word commands were most easily understood by military dogs. He reckoned Digger was a genius among his peers.
Digger was at the next window and immediately positioned himself so that the camera pointed inside, reconfirming Rex’s opinion of his intelligence.
This room had two humans in it, one of which was Ritthirong, Rex thought, based on Narong’s description. Next to the slightly-built Thai man standing next to him, Ritthirong looked like a sumo wrestler. Rex whistled softly. The guy was big. He wouldn’t be an easy take-down, and if he had martial arts training, which Rex assumed he did because of his military training, he was going to be formidable.
Going by the looks, the guy next to him would be easier to take down, though. He wasn’t as big as Narong, and he had an air of deference to Ritthirong that indicated he was an underling, maybe even a servant.
“Got it, Digger. Good boy. Hide and scout.”
The picture jostled as Digger went to the next window.
Pay dirt!
Sunstra was there, sitting cross-legged on a bed, her arms bound behind her back, and a dim lamp burning on the bedside table next to her. Rex’s heart twisted. Had she been like that for three days now? How were they feeding her, if they were? Had they given her arms any relief from the awkward position now and then? It was difficult to tell in the low light, which as dim as it was still interfered with the night-vision camera. Rex couldn’t see her expression.
Is she without hope? Is she crying?
The good news was that one swipe of a sharp knife, or a twist of handcuff keys, depending on what was binding her wrists, should free her to run. She was facing the window, but Rex assumed she wasn’t seeing Digger, who would have been in full view if he hadn’t blended with the night. He wished there was something he could do to alert her that help was coming.
Digger must have recognized her because he let out a soft whine which Rex could hear in his earphones.
“Good boy! Thank you. I saw her. Hide and scout.” Rex heard another quiet whine. Digger’s instinct would have been to go to her right then, just as Rex wanted to do but knew it was not the time yet.
It’s a good thing Narong is not here to see this. He would have been running to break through the window by now.
Digger’s training was strong enough to make him obey, leave her window, and move stealthily to the next one. That room was completely dark.
Rex visualized the size of the room based on the previous one, Sunstra’s prison. There could be two, maybe as many as four more guards in that room, if there were bunk beds. Most likely two, he thought. Two others would be somewhere else in the house, but Digger’s reconnaissance didn’t show them.
Would have been nice to have had an infrared body-heat sensor rigged to Digger so I could’ve detected any people in there.
Rex’s sense of geometry told him there were interior rooms, maybe a couple. A kitchen, which he hadn’t seen in the camera, and probably at least one bathroom. Two rooms into which even the night vision camera didn’t penetrate, including the one next to Sunstra’s. The house wasn’t much bigger, he reckoned. Maybe one more room, or a storage space, that didn’t have a window.
At most, six people inside, not counting Sunstra. Including one mountain of a mercenary.
Piece of cake.
He called Digger back to his location and then called Narong on his cell phone.
“I’ve seen Sunstra. She’s in the room to the left of the entrance, and there’s no one with her. There’s a big bruiser of a man in the room to the right of the entrance, I take it that’s Ritthirong, and a small man, maybe a servant, in there with him. I reckon four more guards at most, and two are probably sleeping.
“As soon as Digger gets back here, I’ll make my way to the front door, bust it in, and take care of the big dude and whoever is with him. You come in right behind me and go for Sunstra. Her arms are bound behind her back, but her feet aren’t shackled. Just hustle her up and out, and we’ll free her arms when it’s all over. Got all th
at?”
Narong took the time to express his relief that Sunstra appeared to be okay. Then he raised a practical question.
“What about the other guards?”
“I’ll deal with them after I deal with the big guy.”
“Probably. But you’re talking about taking on six men, including one of the most lethal mercenaries in Thailand. As soon as I have Sunstra safe in the car, I’ll come and help.”
“That might be helpful, but your first priority is Sunstra. Got it?”
“Yes.”
“Now, wait for my count and then come in at speed.”
Rex dropped out of the tree to meet Digger, who’d just arrived. He quickly relieved him of the harness and gear and said, “Ready boy? Quiet attack!”
He took off with Digger keeping pace at his side, vaulted the low wall that separated Ritthirong’s house from its neighbor whose tree he’d been hiding in, and charged the door. One mighty kick sent it crashing into the wall next to it, and Rex was through. He turned right at the first door and caught Ritthirong running toward him. Not more than two seconds had passed since the noise of the door being kicked in had rung through the house.
Digger went for the servant, leaping on him and taking him down. The man’s head hit the floor with a thud and he went limp. Then the dog turned to help Rex, correctly sensing that the small man was not a threat anymore. Rex was using every trick in his arsenal to attack Ritthirong before the man could bring his own to bear. But the mountainous man was as unstoppable as a speeding train. He was making progress toward the door, evidently intent on getting to Sunstra while the minor impediment of Rex pounding on him to get him to stop only slightly hindered his movements.
Rex could only hope Narong had followed his instruction and acted quickly. The noise would surely have roused the sleeping guards, and those on duty would arrive at any moment. He had to disable Ritthirong before they got there, or he would soon be outnumbered and overpowered.
He got the big man’s neck in a chokehold, but it was like trying to choke a bull. It barely slowed him down. Suddenly, Ritthirong let out a bellow like the bull he was imitating. Rex didn’t have time to look, it was Digger playing his part in it. He used his left fist to deliver a blow to the Thai’s kidney, then had to let go of the chokehold as a massive elbow swung his way.
He barely had time to take note that Digger was indeed fastened to Ritthirong’s left calf like a leech, growling and viciously twisting and turning his head to inflict maximum damage to the muscle.
Rex was about to wade in with another take-down attempt when he sensed movement behind him. He whirled with a Muay Thai kick and caught a new actor in the melee in the neck, felling him instantly.
That was when he turned his attention to the door and saw another newcomer charging toward him. He brought down the leg that had kicked the guy in the neck, shifting his weight to it and immediately bringing the other leg up. The roundhouse didn’t have time to reach its full power, but it was enough to stagger the newcomer.
He swung his elbow back with every foot-pound of strength he had, catching Ritthirong in the liver, but in the process Ritthirong got hold of his arm and twisted, sending Rex to the floor in a flip. While he was down there, Rex punched the littlest guy in the throat to ensure he’d stay out of the fight, then rotated in a move worthy of a master break-dancer to reinforce the kicks he’d given to the two guards, and finally rolled out of the way of Ritthirong’s size twelve foot, which was aimed at his throat in a nasty attempt to stomp him.
Rex sprang to his feet, arms up in defense, and took stock of the situation. No one else had charged in within the last thirty seconds, but he had three adversaries, including one that could crush the life out of him if he got hold of him.
Movement past the door caught his attention. He caught sight of a bare, feminine foot trailing the body it belonged to, and close behind, Narong for a split second framed by the door.
Then he had to execute another combination move to counter the two guards, who’d recovered far too quickly. He knocked one out with a haymaker while kicking the other away. Ritthirong had recovered enough from the liver punch and tried to charge, but then Digger let go of his one mangled calf and went for the back of the other knee, which brought the brute to his knees, howling in rage.
Ritthirong turned, swinging wildly at the dog, but Digger darted in, snapped at the flailing arms, and dodged back out of reach. Rex reckoned he had time to take the remaining standing guard out of the picture, if the others didn’t charge in from the doorway. No sooner had he thought it, then a new man did appear at the door, but he quickly went down, revealing Narong behind him, who was already fighting with a second newcomer.
Check, it’s over.
Rex knocked out the guard he’d been fighting, and grabbed a heavy-looking vase, which he brought down with all his might on the crown of Ritthirong’s head. Ritthirong’s eyes turned in their sockets, but he took forever to fall over, like a giant sequoia finally giving up the ghost. He was well and truly knocked out— down for the count when Rex checked.
With his three taken care of, he turned to help Narong. However, it wasn’t necessary. Narong had both the latecomer guards down, one unconscious and the other nursing a broken arm.
Rex stood wearily and sighed.
Narong had a wide grin when he said, “What took you so long? I thought you’d surely have them all knocked out and trussed like roasting chickens by the time I got back.”
Rex grinned back and good-naturedly gave him a middle finger in response.
“Let’s get them secured.”
After checking that Sunstra was not in physical distress, Rex and Narong took their time in the house, arranging matters so the police would not have to make guesses about what had happened and why, when they got there.
***
TWO HOURS LATER, some fifteen minutes after Narong’s anonymous call to the local police, he, Sunstra, Digger, and Rex were nowhere in the vicinity when the police arrived.
The four of them were at a restaurant on the other side of town, enjoying a late-night supper, including a whole roast chicken for Digger.
At Ritthirong’s home, police found the front door wide open and everyone inside tied up, two to a room behind locked interior doors. Police had long known of Ritthirong’s skullduggery, but they hadn’t been able to get sufficient evidence to move the corrupt judiciary in the town to issue a warrant for his arrest. They found plenty in a neatly-formatted report in the living room on a low table, weighted down with a remnant of a heavy ceramic vase with gold trim.
In one of the bedrooms, of which there were three, they found the man himself, sporting a knot on his head the size of an orange and in a vicious mood. They wisely left him tied up while they explored the rest of the house. The most surprising thing they found was the assistant of the undersecretary of Mining and Development, who claimed he was only there at the behest of his employer. He was supposed to hand-carry a warning message to Ritthirong, but he’d been too late. When he got there, the attackers were just wrapping things up.
“No, I’m sorry. I don’t know who they were. I’ve never seen them before,” he claimed.
The officer knew the assistant was lying, but for now there were more important things to do.
“What will you tell your employer?” one officer asked.
“I’m handing in my resignation in the morning,” he said, his eyes big as saucers. “I never signed up for this. This kind of job hazard is not for me.”
So, they let him go but told him he’d have to make himself available for further questioning and a statement later on.
A call went through to the Phuket police, who picked up the undersecretary and charged him with numerous crimes based on the information Ritthirong gave them, corroboration from the four guards and one other man, who turned out to be Ritthirong’s business manager. The typed report was inadmissible, of course. Not because it was obtained under duress, because it wasn’t, but the person wh
o wrote it was unknown. However, it provided sufficient probable cause to open extensive investigations.
***
DUE TO THE nature of Thailand’s ‘forgive and forget’ culture, neither Rex nor the siblings had much faith that any of the conspirators would receive more than a slap on the wrist.
Thailand’s history was rife with examples of leaders at the top of the food chain being ousted only to rise in favor again within a few years.
However, even if the land again became a magnet for corrupt officials, they thought Sunstra would be safe from harm. The story of the thrashing Ritthirong had received would surely cause his “business” to fail and give anyone with similar ideas reason to reconsider getting involved.
Chapter Twenty
KRAISEE HAD RETURNED to his own apartment, to make room for Sunstra and Rex at Narong’s three-bedroom house. Narong had booked a hotel suite for his parents, who were to arrive the next day.
On the morning after the rescue, Sunstra was still resting when Rex made his appearance in the kitchen. Narong had summoned Kraisee back to cater the breakfast meal for his sister and Rex, and the brothers were deep in conversation regarding the lavish meal to be prepared in celebration of Sunstra’s rescue and thanksgiving to Rex and Digger for their help.
As Rex entered the room, he caught a fragment of conversation about their debt of gratitude for his help. Rex was not a person who liked to be in the limelight. What he overheard made him feel a bit self-conscious. He felt that he would have been obligated to help Sunstra and her family just because of the injustice that was being done to them. To make them aware of his presence, he gave a polite cough as he entered.
To his surprise, both men put their palms together in a prayer-like pose, touched their chins with their fingertips, and gave a slight bow.
“What’s this?” he asked, automatically returning the gesture but not understanding why they’d done it.
“Respect,” Narong answered in English. “With your help I was able to keep my promise to my family,” he continued, cutting his eyes toward Kraisee and then back to Rex. “My brother and my parents know that you and your dog were of assistance to me in rescuing my sister. We are grateful.”