The following days were packed with runs and skills sessions; Holger lost his sense of time as everything slipped deeper and deeper into a haze of rigour, broken only by short breaks for food and sleep. The fit Jaegers took turns pushing Holger during the runs, and each day had its own new strength exercises in the forests of the estate; everything from lifting logs and boulders to pull-ups from low branches and shoulder-busting ranger push-ups, where he had to perform press-ups while doing a handstand with his legs supporting him against a tree trunk. During the first couple of days, Holger was close to quitting several times a day. But he dug deep and found his inner mental strength and ignored his body’s pain and exhaustion, and surprisingly fast, his core strength and stamina improved markedly. The lessons in skills of his past gave him something to focus on, and as the days went by, Holger increasingly looked more like a soldier again and less like a lawyer.
Holger was panting heavily as he ended his run at the improvised shooting range Mads and Johan had constructed for the daily training with firearms he, conceivably, would be able to get hold of in Russia. Taking weapons into Russia was way too dangerous, and even though FE could arrange for weapons to be smuggled via diplomatic mail to their embassy in Moscow, this would mean revealing it to the Foreign Office, thus compromising the mission. 270Shooting was every soldier’s favourite pastime, and although many might not want to admit it, there was a straight line from boyhood – where every stick had the potential to become a rifle. However, Holger was still too much of a lawyer to be as enthusiastic as the instructors. The wide selection of Russian weaponry, from Makarov handguns to the classic Kalashnikov rifles in various models, did, however, impress him. The hours on the improvised shooting range were almost like playtime within the jampacked programme – had it not been for the sinister purpose of the shooting practice. As the days went by, Holger demonstrated that his weapons handling was far superior to what the instructors had dared hope for.
Consequently, Mads and Johan quickly moved on to CQB shooting at close range under challenging circumstances and with no time to take precise aim. Holger had first encountered Close Quarter Battle techniques on a course with the SAS in Wales. The British developed simple, reflex-based shooting techniques during their counter-terrorism operations in Northern Ireland.
‘Not much has changed since you were an operator. Except that ‘double tap’ has been replaced by ‘African style’: two in the hood and one in the windshield,’ Johan chortled, and put two bullets cleanly in the chest and one in the head of the target figure on the range.
Soon it became a trained reflex, no longer firing just two rounds to the chest but adding a headshot for full effect. Johan and Mads had also constructed a primitive kill house from tractor tyres. Here, Holger had to fight through a series of rooms as quickly as possible, training in split-second decision-making on which targets were hostile and which were friendly. The tyres would safely stop 271the bullets and facilitate the use of live ammunition. Back in his time as a Jaeger, Holger had practised his shooting skills daily, and those skills came back in spades now, as the training progressed. The instructors gave him approving comments and judged that he could cut down on shooting and instead focus his time on other, more rusty skills.
After a short lunch break, Holger continued with basic principles of orientation in a room in one of the towers of the manor house. Hans started with initial lessons in using maps and a compass but swiftly moved on to primitive means of navigation. Holger was refreshed on how a piece of silk could magnetise a sewing needle placed on a cork in a cup of water and act as a compass. Outdoors, they practised basic navigation based on the sun’s position – tracking the sun’s movement through the shadow created by placing a straight stick in the ground. Holger also practised using Russian maps, which featured markings and colour codes that were new to him. Initially, he read these all wrong, because they were so different from the ones used on NATO maps. However, his Russian language skills came to his rescue, and he was soon reading Russian maps as if he had been doing it all his life. Slowly but surely, he began to feel his inner compass could guide him, as it had in days gone by. Hans concluded his sessions by sending Holger out on a nightly orienteering march to navigate using only the stars.
Communication and signalling were also part of daily chores. PW delivered instructions on the latest security precautions when using unencrypted means of communication, such as telephone and email, as these would likely be the most accessible means of communication. Holger was also given instructions on using an 272encrypted mobile phone that would be his primary line of communication. The encrypted mobile was risky, however, if he was challenged at customs or arrested by police in Russia. It was thus vital that he could use it in a way that did not reveal the contents of his communications to those that might get hold of the phone. PW also covered improvised means of communication and antennas using components that could be procured in any hardware store in Russia.
Given the many topics covered, Holger got to see most of the large estate; JK had chosen a small island off the coast near the grounds as a perfect place for improvised demolition classes. Here, they could detonate explosives without the eyes of ramblers and joggers on them. Holger had never been a demolition expert as a Jaeger, but he quickly acquired enough knowledge to safely handle the explosives. He also became competent in using delay fuses, detonators and mobile phones as timers; finally, he learned to make improvised explosive devices from regular household cleaning products. Stuff that he had previously only heard of in connection to terrorism was now part of his toolkit.
Lessons in survival techniques took place in the ancient beech woods that surrounded the estate. Peter and Johan had a perfect classroom in the ‘school of the forest’. The essential skills of finding water and extracting nutrition from plants and small animals were drilled into him as a build-up for the final escape and evasion exercise.
Holger’s final exam was a forty-eight-hour exercise where he had to use his survival skills on the run. The police canine unit and a hunter force from the local Territorial Army unit made the exercise very realistic. Holger was forced to hide his tracks and scent 273to ensure the pursuing dogs could not lead his enemy after him. It was two days without sleep and with high physical endurance; when the exercise ended, Holger was exhausted, filthy and full of confidence. He felt ready for anything, but as he stood under the hot shower, the adrenaline left his body like water down the drain. The reality of his situation was overwhelming. His law firm was in tatters, and the risk of imprisonment and financial ruin was looming. And now he had been talked into a crazy mission without any guarantee of getting back alive. Why? Holger tried to be rational, but it was hard when the undertaking was downright irrational. He had accepted the task to save his relationship with Louise, even if it meant he would not survive; it would be worse to live with shame. Doubt hit him like a wrecking ball, and Holger panted as the water cascaded over his head. His mind started dragging him down into a dark hole, and it took all of his mental strength to squirm free. I don’t know whether I’m merely treading water or whether I’m trying to get back on shore, but unless I take control, I’ll drown.