“Show me the money,” he muttered as he powered down his tablet, reciting his favorite line from an American movie. These were the four words that encouraged him to take these risks.
He motioned for his two lead gunmen, who’d been guarding the bridge, to bring him Captain Garland. They dragged him through the blood on the floor and stood him up to face Abduwali.
“I want you to disconnect the internet, but do not disable it completely. Do you understand me?”
“Yes,” he replied. Garland had kept his interaction and responses to a minimum with his captor. “I’ll need to go to the control room in engineering.”
Abduwali studied Garland carefully. The man didn’t appear to be a hero. If anything, he seemed to be content to let things move forward as long as his life wasn’t at risk.
“Okay, go. No delays or detours.”
His men nodded and left him alone on the bridge as they escorted the captain to engineering. For the first time, Abduwali was able to relax. He reached into his Kevlar vest and found a tin of Macanudo cigars. The small ascots were just the right size to get a taste of tobacco without devoting more than ten to fifteen minutes to the smoke.
He hoisted himself up into the captain’s chair and swiveled mindlessly back and forth. As he enjoyed the cigar, he wondered if the bonus he’d earn from this, the largest piracy heist since he’d joined the Los Zetas, would be sufficient to leave their employment.
Then there was the matter of the cash situated in the ship’s vaults. Once he addressed the issue of the Larkin girl’s ransom, he planned on directing his men, with the captain’s assistance, to empty the vaults. His research indicated as much as two hundred thousand dollars might be on hand to bankroll their gaming operations.
Finally, if time allowed, he would allow his pirates to steal the passengers’ personal effects of value, namely jewelry. This was booty for the men to be used as they pleased. They could keep it. Give it to their girlfriends. Or trade it for cash. He didn’t care. It was part of his arrangement he’d made with his employers to give the crew some spoils of the piracy operation besides raping women.
The sound of shuffling feet and sobbing filled the passageway outside the bridge. He rose to greet his new guests when suddenly the Victory shook and rocked to the side before righting itself. The wind was howling and the rain was blowing sideways, pelting his face as it passed through the bridge.
The feeder bands of the hurricane had arrived.
Chapter Thirteen
NAS Corpus Christi
Texas Gulf Coast
With an incredible sense of urgency, the Gray Fox team showed why they were called upon for missions that required rapid deployment. Gunner, Cam, and Bear were family for all intents and purposes. They knew one another intimately and understood what their roles were. When it was time to get down to business, nobody could deploy to undertake an operation faster than they could.
The support team assembled by Ghost was second to none. He pulled personnel from all branches of the military and government. His people could handle the most complex logistical challenges. Within thirty minutes of Gunner laying out his rescue plan, the trio was wheels up for Naval Air Station Corpus Christi on the Texas Gulf Coast.
During the flight, they studied the ship’s deck plan, including video of the interior provided by Victory. Jackal kept them up to date of all developments as well as any changes in weather conditions.
By the time they arrived in Corpus Christi, all the military assets they needed were waiting for them. While they waited for the Air Force Hurricane Hunters to arrive with their WC-130 aircraft, in an oversized hangar, Gunner went over the plan with his fellow operatives while continuing to provide Cam some semblance of reassurance.
“Bear, you may be sitting this one out initially, but we’re gonna need you to come in hot and heavy when the storm passes,” said Gunner.
“Roger that,” he said, pointing at a trailer containing his ride. “They’ve really hooked me up. Check it out. It’s the new prototype of the Mako MK V. These things are made for medium-range insertions and extractions. Runs a cool fifteen million.”
“Jeez,” groaned Cam. “Do they know you’re driving it?”
“Yes. I bring things back in one piece.”
“You mean like the chopper in Ukraine last year?”
“That wasn’t my fault! There were powerlines.”
Cam didn’t let up. “Oh, right. That’s true. And who warned you they were there?”
Bear didn’t respond because Cam already knew the answer to that question.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought. Now, back in one piece, and quit asking Ghost for shit. One of these days he’s gonna say yes, and you’re gonna have to figure out how to pay insurance on that thing.”
Gunner changed the subject. “How does it perform in pissed-off waters? You know, hurricane-churned waves.”
“Like a champ,” replied Bear. “It’s got shock mitigation built in to allow for high seas and heavy maneuvering. It’s got quite a set of guns on her, kinda like yours truly.” He showed off his massive biceps and winked at Cam. The two each got in their fair share of blows during their never-ending scrap.
Gunner leaned over a folding table and swung the laptop around to face him. He studied the radar of Hurricane Archie, which was superimposed over the location of the Victory.
“Great. Okay, let’s talk about the eye dive.”
“Yeah, let’s,” added Cam.
“Seriously, Cam, think about it. What does perfect weather for skydiving look like?”
She quickly replied, “No wind. No clouds. No snow. No thunderstorms. No tornadoes and especially no damn hurricanes.”
“Okay. Okay. Just consider this. Everyone knows the eye of the hurricane is one of the most surreal places to be. Here’s this huge, sometimes three-hundred-mile-wide tropical cyclone. Its winds are whipping at over a hundred miles per hour. It’s
