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It was nearing ten o’clock when we hit the trail leading to El Diablo Alcazaba for the last time. As predicted it was pitch black, not a star was shining. The trails were still filled with heavy, thick mud and knee deep water in the low spots from the passing hurricane. The area had received over twelve inches of rain. It was hard going over the slick trail. Mud caked our boots making them very heavy. Anyone who has spent time in the outdoors hunting understands what it’s like to walk with ten pounds of mud on each boot.
All of us were dressed completely in black. Our faces were blackened to break them up. We wore com units and night vision goggles. Finally we got to the edge of the clearing at the extraction point.
“Patch and Bill, lead the way with the metal detectors,” I said as I scraped mud off of my boots with my combat knife. “Brian, you follow behind and mark the trail with the flags. The rest of you make sure you follow the path they clear for us, don’t wander off. Scott and Dave take positions to cover us.”
The Seals with the detectors slowly led the way across the longest half mile I’ve ever covered in my life. Brian had saved us, no doubt about it. We hadn’t gone fifty feet when we found the first mine. We carefully marked its location with the triangle shaped markers and kept going. In all fifteen mines were marked by the time we crossed no man’s land.
We had finally made it across the clearing and had our backs against the wall of the fortress. “Take five guys,” I said as I rested against the wall. “Chief, get your men into position. Sam, get that door opened for us,” I ordered my men.
Sam crept up to the door and tried the knob gently. “It’s already unlocked LT,” he murmured into his com unit as he stepped away and took up a defensive position.
“Patch, you’re hands free. You lead the way and cover our targets mouth so he can’t call out for help. Doc, get your needle ready to go,” I whispered into my microphone.
I waited until Doc was ready with the drugging agent. “Alright Patch lead the way,” I said quietly.
Patch stepped thru the doorway. We used our night vision goggles to find our way in the pitch black house. I could hear snoring coming from the back of the house as we followed our ears to its source.
Patch stepped thru the doorway and crossed the room quickly to the unsuspecting man and covered his mouth with one hand and put his handgun to his head with the other to keep him still.
Doc was close behind with his needle and injected the drug directly into Philippe’s neck so it would act fast. Seconds later our man was out cold.
“Patch, pick him up and let’s go,” I instructed. “Chief, we’re coming out of the house,” I informed the men stationed outside.
I led the way out, moving quickly. We wouldn’t waste any time crossing back over the open ground.
“Chief, keep your positions here until we’re out a ways to protect our backs. Scott and Dave keep on your toes and watch the chief’s back when he crosses.”
We slipped out thru the hole in the wall that was made by Brady’s rocket strike. I led the way down the marked trail. Patch followed next carrying Philippe in a fireman’s carry. Doc brought up the rear following closely in Patch’s footsteps.
The chief knelt by the corner of the bungalow unmoving. He knew the first thing an enemy would spot was movement. Years of Seal training had taught him to look by moving his eyes and not his head. He spotted a sentry moving along the wall of a building working his way towards their position. He waited until the man was in the shadows before taking the shot so his body wouldn’t be lying in the open where it would be easily seen.
“Target down,” the chief said into his com unit as he watched the man crumple silently to the ground.
Moments later the group heard the soft sound of a silenced shot. “Target down,” Sam called from the other side of the bungalow.
“Get out of there chief,” I ordered my rear guard. We were half way across the clearing by now. The flags on our markers looked almost luminescent thru the night vision equipment. Danny had done a good job picking the right color.
I heard the boom of one of the big bore sniper rifles as one of our snipers took out a sentry on the wall. I looked behind me to see the progress of the chief and his men. They were jogging across the clearing and had almost caught up to us.
The first shot from the sniper rifle alerted the men inside the fortress and soon both snipers were making kill shots to keep the men inside the fortress hunkered down. By now we were three quarters of the way across the opening. A third of a mile separated us from them, nearly six hundred yards. It was a shot I wouldn’t hesitate to take in this situation so I knew we weren’t safe yet.
“Brady, fly over the eastern wall of the fortress and clear any men you see there with your Gatling gun,” I ordered our chopper pilot.
“We’re on it LT, coming in hot,” Brady said over the noise of his beating rotors.
A minute later I watched as our chopper shot over the clearing. I glanced over my shoulder and saw the flames leap out of the barrel of the Gatling gun. “You’re in the clear LT, targets are eliminated.”
We reached the far end of the clearing and Patch laid Philippe on the ground. “Bill, take that metal detector and sweep an area for Brady to land on.”
“I’m on it LT,” Bill said as he grabbed the metal detector and swept the area. We’d almost left them by the fortress when we came back across the clearing.
“Light a flair to mark the LZ for Brady,” I instructed my team. “Brady, bring her down and pick-up your package.”
Brady landed as the boom of one of the big bore guns echoed across the clearing. We loaded Philippe into the chopper and put plastic cuffs on his hands and feet.
“Deliver him to Red Dog and hot foot it back here Brady,” I ordered. “The guerrilla fighters are formed up and waiting to go,” I said, seeing them across the clearing thru my goggles.
“Back off and give me room so I can get airborne,” Brady said. The helicopter shot up into the night sky and spun around to the south and raced off.
“Sea Eagle, Sea Eagle this is the Sea Hawk, over,” Brady called over the radio.
“Go ahead Sea Hawk, we read you loud and clear, over,” Danny answered back.
“Be advised, we are inbound with our cargo. Light up the helo deck to receive helicopter. Let Red Dog know we have a package for him to take delivery of.”
“Roger that Sea Hawk. Come ahead, we are waiting for the delivery, out,” Danny said as he ended his transmission.
The Sea Hawk shot out over the coast of Cuba and headed out to sea. The Sea Eagle was on station twenty miles off shore. Brady could easily see the ship in the distance with the lights on to illuminate the helicopter pad.
Patch glanced over at Chris. “Is our boy still out cold?”
Chris strained to see behind him into the passenger cabin. “I don’t see him moving any Brady,” Chris answered.
The helicopter reached the ship and Brady was working to bring it safely down onto the landing pad. The rough seas still made it difficult to land. The back of the ship was raising and falling eight feet. He would have to time it just right in order to have a gentle landing. Brady took his time and worked the controls bringing the chopper down onto the deck and cut the engines.
Red Dog was instantly there with two of his men to take the assassin out of the back of the helicopter.
“He’s all yours Red Dog take good care of him. He’s worth ten million dollars to us but only if he’s alive,” Chris informed the head of security.
“Don’t worry Chris we’ll make sure that he’s not able to hurt himself. I’ll handcuff him to a bunk so he can’t do anything stupid.”
Chris glanced at his watch and saw it was 4:30. “We better get our asses moving Brady. They’re waiting for us to start act two.”