The Fine Line of Revenge (8 page)

‘I think we’ve out stayed our welcome,’ Jack decided, as he turned the Ranger and headed back down the coast.

Unfortunately for Jack and Anjo there wasn’t any time to relax.  From amongst the foliage emerged a MD 520 helicopter, armed and in pursuit of the Ranger.  Jack banked right and sent the Ranger into a steep descent into the mouth of a wide River.  Jack kept low to the ground, hoping that the 520 wouldn’t notice where they had gone.  The Ranger gathered speed, whipping past the rock lined banks of the vast river.  But for Sperafico’s men, the chase was on.  The 520 was closing in fast.  Its smaller build was considerably more agile than the Ranger.  The jutting rocks were close.  The harsh training that Jack had been through was all flooding back. He was now one with the helicopter.  As the 520 gained on the Ranger, Jack manoeuvred the helicopter inhibiting any clear shots from their mounted, 0.5 calibre, machine gun pods.  Despite Jack’s efforts, Sperafico’s men fired the guns.  One bullet hit the glass next to Anjo, causing her to scream and lurch to her left. The bullet pierced a hole and exited through the front windshield.  The chase continued. The river meandered more and more, the rock faces becoming closer at every bend.  The 520 fired again. Bullets ricocheted off the Ranger’s blades.  Jack was becoming tired and the 520 was getting closer by the minute.

‘Jack, what do we do?’  Anjo screamed.

CHAPTER 7

Jack thought for a moment, sweat beginning to appear on his brow and his top lip.

‘Take my gun and open your window, and when I say, empty it towards the cockpit of their helicopter, preferably the pilot,’ he instructed.  Anjo checked the gun.  It had a full cartridge.

‘What are you doing?’ Anjo asked.

‘I’m not sure that I really know,’ Jack replied.  The Ranger swept round a hard left turn.  Jack took a deep breath and slowed the Jet Ranger down.  It took all his concentration to stop fast, turning the helicopter side ways.  Anjo aimed as the 520 turned the corner.  She fired the full clip with precision, the 520 returning fire, spraying the back doors of the ranger. Anjo’s second bullet hit the pilot in his left shoulder.  The rest sprayed the cockpit, hitting instruments and the passengers.  Jack powered upwards, as the 520 banked steeply left, slamming into the rock face, dropping the short distance to the calm river below, its rotor blades tearing up the riverbed. There were no signs of the crew escaping as the 520 ignited, bellowing out thick, black smoke.

‘Shit!’ exclaimed Anjo. ‘How did you know that would work?’

‘Oh, it worked once before,’ Jack replied, confidently.  In his mind though, he spoke to himself with a little less self-belief. What if the screen had been bullet proof? And what if he had lost control of the helicopter and had ended up where they were?
The Ranger gained altitude, Jack breathing a sigh of relief as he headed back to the airfield.

The Jet Ranger landed safely at the airfield.  Jack turned off the controls and they both exited the helicopter.

‘How do we explain the damage, it’s only just been re-sprayed?’ Anjo asked.

‘I’ve left some money on the seat, it should cover the damage,’ replied Jack, straightening his shirt collar.  They made their way back over to the hangar.  As they entered they could see Senhor Sabino working on the engine of a red and white Cessna 180, light aircraft.  Sabino looked up from his work.  Jack threw the keys at him.  He clumsily caught them in his left hand.

‘Obrigado, Senhor, Senhorita,’ Sabino mumbled, his mouth full of chocolate.

‘Have a nice day,’ Anjo said, responding with a half-hearted smile, feeling bad about the damage that they had left him.  As they quickly made their way to their Jeep, Jack noticed a dust cloud heading towards them in the distance, the undulating terrain impeding any view of the vehicle.

‘Quick, get in,’ ordered Jack, pulling the keys from his North Face trekking pants.  The Jeep started and then quickly pulled away.  Jack headed into the trees and stopped.  Overhead, they could hear the rumblings of a private jet approaching.  They both jumped out of the Jeep. Crouching behind the dense brush they were able to obtain an excellent view of the runway and surrounding buildings.  As the white Falcon 2000 touched down on the small, but robust, runway, the dust cloud-producing vehicle drove into view.  But it was more than one vehicle.  In fact there were three GMC 4x4 vehicles, all dark blue.  Jack and Anjo watched as the vehicles stopped.  The doors opened and a total of eight armed men exited and most importantly, Sperafico himself.

‘Sperafico!’ Anjo indicated, turning to Jack for his next move.  Jack just kept still and put his index finger to his lips and continued to watch.  They watched, as Sperafico waited by the luggage hold. A team of men were pulling out packages that could only be paintings.  The paintings were loaded into two of the vehicles.  The luggage hold was closed and Sperafico resumed his position in one of the vehicles.  The last GMC waited.  Two armed men stood by its side.

‘They must be waiting for the pilot,’ suggested Jack. ‘It will be a while before we can leave, so make yourself comfortable.’  Anjo turned and sat down, leaning against the side of the Jeep’s tyre.

‘I can’t believe Sperafico was right there and we couldn’t do anything about it,’ Anjo said, running her fingers through her hair ‘but I don’t feel so bad about the helicopter, now I know Senhor Sabino helps Sperafico.’

After another forty-five minutes, the GMC Yukon left the airfield.  It was now safe for Jack and Anjo to leave as well.  They both jumped into the Jeep and headed back to town.

Once the images had been downloaded onto Jack’s tablet, they could clearly see the points of entry and rooms of each of the three buildings.  They also identified each man present in the compound and some out in the surrounding jungle. The room was full of Anjo’s family, all wanting to help.

‘We need to discuss weaponry,’ suggested Jack.

‘I think we can get some FMKs and grenades,’ Paulo answered.

‘That’s good, but we’ll need some rifles as well as sub machine guns, we need to do this as quietly as possibly, or Sperafico will be running before we can even get close’, Jack said.  Fernando rose from his seat.

‘I know where we can get some,’ and he went off to call them.  Jack looked at the pictures in front of him.

‘My biggest worry is that his hectic lifestyle isn’t a guarantee that he’ll have the decency to be in when we pop round to kill him.  We need someone to keep an eye on him over the next day while we prepare,’ Jack stated.

‘I thought that you had satellites, ways of spying on us all, can’t you use them?’ said the man in the corner.

‘I am here alone. I have no access to any such technology,’ Jack replied.

‘Then why are you here? What can you do that we can’t,’ the man added.

‘He is a professional, he does things like this for his work,’ Anjo interjected, rising from her chair, ‘why do we need you to plant our crops, we can do that ourselves?’ Anjo continued, ‘The reason is that, your crops are more successful, because you have more experience than the rest of us, Jack here, is the same as you but in a different line of work.’ Jack didn’t know where to look. He had never been defended like that before. In fact he felt a little embarrassed.  The man in the corner fell silent.

‘We still need a watcher,’ Jack restated.

‘I will do it,’ emerged a voice from the other side of the door.  The door opened and a boy entered. He stood at five and a half feet, thick brown scruffy hair and the spitting image of Paulo.  ‘I will help,’ he said confidently.

‘Marco, what are you doing listening to our conversation?’ Paulo said. ‘You are only sixteen, you cannot help.’

‘I have my horse and my long wave radio. I can camp nearby and keep you updated if he leaves. All I need is a pair of binoculars and some food and water. It is only for one night.’

‘You cannot help, you are too young, and you should not get involved in this business,’ shouted Paulo. Other shouts joined in, arguments for and against Marco helping.  The atmosphere in the room became heated again.  Jack looked around, wondering if this unprofessional approach was really a sensible idea.

‘Let me help, father, let me make you proud. You have taught me all I need to know.  I will take Sombra. He will look after me, he is a good horse,’ Marco said, hoping to convince his father.  Since the death of his mother when he was four years old, Marco and Paulo had become very close.  Not only as father and son but hunting and fishing companions.  Paulo knew in his heart that Marco would be fine on his own.  It was the threat of Sperafico and his men that troubled him.  Anjo stood up from her chair.

‘There comes a time in every culture when a boy makes the transition into manhood.  I believe this is the time for Marco.  And I know you do too, Paulo’.   Anjo took Marco by the hand and faced him.  She looked deep into his brown eyes.  ‘Do you know that this may be dangerous?’ she asked, looking for a moment of hesitation or fear in the young boy.

‘Yes,’ he answered, with nothing but self-confidence.

‘Then it is settled, you will leave first thing in the morning, it will take you about four hours. We will make sure you have everything you need and know exactly where you are going.

As the meeting came to, somewhat of a quickened end, everyone with their own little task to complete the next day, Jack’s phone vibrated in his pocket.  He wandered outside to take the call.  Alex had some surprising news.

‘Jack, after a lot of investigating, I can unofficially tell you that Colonel Grimlock is probably the leak.  He’s been in charge of all Sperafico’s investigations, deeming his operations no threat to national security. I’ve submitted a report to Morgan and Shelton but have had no reply as yet,’ Alex reported getting straight to the point.

‘Can you have him followed?’ Jack asked.

‘When I first started to investigate the files, I had a suspicion so I ask Ben to follow him, he owed me a favour for setting him up with that bird, you know the one with the big…’

‘Alex, get to the point.’

‘We lost him and I haven’t been able to find him, and we can’t officially look for him until it’s been authorised, although this does help in convincing the superiors.’

‘Good work, I owe you one.’

‘Just set me up with a good looking women and we’ll be even.’ Jack terminated the call and placed the phone back in his pocket.

The morning came and Marco was sat astride Sombra, his face excited and his saddlebags full of the equipment he needed.  His family stood next to the horse, along with Jack.  Jack opened up one of the brown saddlebags and placed a pair of binoculars inside.

‘These are digital and you can also see in the dark with them,’ he told Marco, tightening the straps of the bags securely.

‘You take care, Marco,’ Anjo said, rubbing his leg in affection.  The rest of the family wished him well.

‘I will return soon,’ he assured them.  He grabbed the reigns tight and gave Sombra a gentle kick and in just moments, they had disappeared.

It had been a hot ride, but he had made it.  Marco dismounted and tied Sombra securely to a tree.  He untied the saddlebags and pulled out his camping equipment.  He would have to be inconspicuous, so no open fires.  Instead, he had battery-operated heaters for warmth and numerous cold snacks.  From a far off peak, Marco sat patiently, with a good view of the fort and its entrances. The binoculars range was more than adequate. He watched numerous men come and go, but Sperafico remained inside.  On several occasions he had radioed to report his progress, keeping a little contact of home. 

The heat of the midday sun had been and gone and the sun was beginning to set. He pitched his small tent and prepared for his first night alone.

It was late, the night had engulfed the jungle and Marco lay motionless in his tent.  He had not slept, but his eyelids were becoming heavy.  As he closed them for the third time, he heard a rustling from the jungle outside.  It was way in the distance but it had to be investigated.  Marco grabbed the binoculars that Jack had given him and slipped out of the tent.  He squatted on the ground peering through the binoculars, the rustling becoming louder and therefore closer.  He was able to follow the sound, but was unable to see what was causing it.  The rustling stopped.  Marco held the position of the binoculars towards the silence.  He then saw something move.  Through the trees and foliage he could see a jaguarondi drinking from a small watering hole.  Marco was relieved and left the wild cat to drink.  He turned and headed back inside his tent, checking thoroughly for snakes and insects.  It was going to be a very long night.

CHAPTER 8

That morning Jack and Anjo had casually driven the ten miles, through the tree-lined hills and into the centre of town.  The main street was busy with local traders and keen early shoppers.  First on the agenda was breakfast.  They parked the Jeep in a small side road and walked onto the main street.

‘It’s a lot busier than I expected,’ commented Jack, as he swerved round a small child exiting the bakery, loaf of bread clutched tightly in his arms.

‘This is the largest town in the area, it has everything we need,’ replied Anjo. ‘The café is just up here.’  Despite the town’s activity, the café was reasonably quiet.

‘Would you like to sit outside?’ Anjo asked.

‘Why shy away from the sunshine?’ Jack replied.

The café was basic but the chairs were comfortable.

‘Do you need help with the translation?’ Anjo enquired.

‘I think I’ll be fine,’ Jack said, grabbing a menu.  The owner came out to greet them.  He was a thin man, grey shirt and trousers, a long white apron wrapped around his non-existent waist.  He asked for their order, his voice unexpectedly deep, but gracious.  Anjo ordered first.

‘I’ll have the bread with jams and the fruit platter with black coffee.’

‘I would like a ham omelette and black coffee,’