Kidnap (The Billionaire Series) (32 page)

He then went to check on the teams who had amalgamated into a
mass of bodies relaxing and sleeping while they could. It was going to be a
long night. Lela had crashed out on one of the bunks and it was then that Tom
realised how little sleep he had had in the last
thirty six
hours. He
lay
down on the bunk next to Lela and fell
into a deep sleep. Two hours later, the buzzer woke them all up. It was time to
go.
 

One of the ground crew came running in to find Tom. There was a
problem.
One of the Citation X
’s had a mechanical
fault. Tom thought this wasn’t a problem. They could just double up in one of
the other Citation X’s. However, it was pointed out this was not an option. The
distance was already at the extreme end of the Citation X’s range and any
additional loading would result in their having to refuel. The time involved in
refuelling was not an option, a finite window existed for what they needed to
achieve.

There was no other option. Tom looked across the runway at the
monster A380. Kano and Lela followed his gaze and winced.

“Not again,” they whispered in unison.

“OK. Can you fuel up the 380, please,” said Tom to the ground
crew.

The flying arrangements were quickly rearranged and the teams
boarded the A380 for the final leg of the journey. Tom took the Captain’s seat,
input their destination and then made a quick phone call to arrange additional
transport at the other end. He then made corrections for the weight of the
plane and prepared for take-off.
Kisho
, his First Officer, assisted with the final checks as Tom taxied
onto the runway.
Moments later, they were airborne and Lela and Kano
applauded an extremely smooth take off. It did not, however, reassure them
enough to stop them praying for a safe landing.

Chapter
61

The flight was uneventful and the landing proved the theory
again.
The bigger the plane, the softer the landing.
The airport was unexpectedly empty,

“Where are we?” asked Lela turning to Tom. “I thought we were
landing in Glasgow?”

“We are, we’re at Glasgow Prestwick, just thirty miles South of
Glasgow.”

“Why here?”

“I thought they might be at the main airport waiting for us and
this is just a bit too obvious,” Tom gestured back to the plane. “So I thought
it better to land here.”

“OK, so how do we get home?”

“Sorted,” said Tom pointing to a row of Porsche Cayenne Turbo S’s.

“Did you forget one small thing?”

“What?”

“Although we have lots of guys with us, they can’t drive, there
are no roads on the island. You have four cars and no drivers.”

“Damn, I never thought of that. I should have asked Colin for
some drivers,” said Tom. Colin’s father owned all the Scottish Porsche
franchises.

“We can drive,” offered
Kisho
and Kano.
“And so can I,” another islander offered. Those three had learnt to drive
during their stint in the army.

“That leaves one spare,” said Tom looking at Lela.

“Why are you looking at me?” she asked.

“Because I know Saki lets you drive the cars and you’re wicked in
a go-kart,” replied Tom.

“Yeah but that’s not on the main road.”

“I just flew a bloody plane!”

“Good
point,
well made. Give me the
keys,” she said. Tom knew that Lela was well qualified to
drive,
she loved cars, especially fast ones.

In less than forty minutes, the cars pulled up at the Estate,
headlights off out of sight of the security system. Tom who had travelled in
Lela’s car assured her that those forty minutes were more terrifying than his
fifteen hours of flying. She told him not to be such a pussy.
   

Chapter
62

Reaper was awake. He was waiting for the
AlbAir
flight to land. Two of his men had been sent to the airport to follow the kids
back to the Estate. He would not be happy until they were safely tied up in the
Lodge House and within his control. A room had been dressed in the Lodge and a
camera set up to film the children being watched by knife wielding guards.
Reaper had disguised the
room
as he did not want the
parents to know that their kids were close by.

Leo walked into the kitchen.

“Any news?” he asked.

“The flight is in a holding pattern above the airport. Can you believe
it.
It’s 3.00 a.m. and it has to wait to land.” Reaper
was exasperated. “I’m telling you, it will take all my strength to stop myself
from killing those bloody kids when they walk through that door.”

“I know exactly what you mean,” said Leo.

“Have you got the message to the schools?” asked Reaper changing
the subject.

“Yes, at 10.00 a.m. our time, our guys will let the terrorists
make their demands and to show they mean business, they’ll kill 50 kids at each
school.”

“I thought we said 100?” asked Reaper nonchalantly.

“They’ve all agreed 50 is fine.”

“OK. Well that should cause enough confusion and news for the
next month.
No-one
will pay the slightest bit of
attention to the deal. Perfect,” said Reaper, relishing the tactics.

“He is one cold bastard, this client,” said Leo.

“I know. He’s the only guy I’ve ever met who puts a shiver down
my spine,” responded Reaper.

“And that’s saying something. Are you absolutely sure he wants
that many kids killed?”

“He was adamant. His exact words were that it would be excellent
cover for his transaction.”

“Cold bastard.”

“Very,” said Reaper and then changing the subject asked, “Do our
Team Leaders have an exit?”

“Yes. When the kids are slaughtered, they’ll be dressed as
ambulance men and will stretcher one of the bodies out when the time comes.
They’ll leave their teams behind to what we’re sure will be a swift response
from the authorities.”

“Yeah, fifty dead bodies will bring an end to the softly, softly
approach,” said Reaper watching the hostage scenes which looked like the usual
media circus, all brightly lit with news cameras from around the world vying
for position.

“What if we have to call them off?” asked Reaper.

“No can do. It’s a
one time
communications burst. The system only allows one message and that’s what makes
it so secure. Once the message has gone, it effectively
self
destructs
so nobody can tap into it. We’re told it’s the only system the
NSA can’t beat,” said Leo referring to the ultra secretive American National
Security Agency whom it was said could listen into any conversation or read any
message in the world.

“So there’s no going back?”

No. The orders are irreversible. At 10.00 a.m., 200 kids are
going to die.”

“WHAT THE HELL???” Reaper screamed at Leo as he watched the TV
screens.

Chapter
63

The A380 was not the only plane to have left
Masirah
,
four of the six
available Citation X’s had taken off right behind it. They were to be joined by
an Airbus 319CJ, a Scramjet and another Citation X which had taken off from
Kota
Kinabalu
. In total, eight aircraft were aloft
that morning for Operation Retribution.

The Airbus 319CJ landed in an airfield just outside Moscow and
had four Porsche Cayenne Turbo S’s waiting for it.

The Scramjet had left Kota
Kinabalu
long after any of the others and landed well before them despite having almost
twice the distance to travel. It landed on a secret base just outside
Washington and again was met by a row of Porsche Cayenne Turbo S’s.

The final plane from Kota
Kinabalu
, the
Citation X, had a much shorter flight plan. It headed to a remote island in the
middle of the Indian Ocean.

The four Citations from
Masirah
flew in
formation for almost 3,000 miles before two broke off and landed in Paris,
while the other two made their way across the Channel to London.

At each of the airports, a row of Porsche Cayenne Turbo S’s sat
waiting for the islanders. Tom owed the Porsche family a huge favour.

Tom listened to his earpiece as each of the teams checked in at
their various locations. Everybody was exactly where
they
should be with five minutes to spare. Tom could not believe that everything had
gone so smoothly.

At exactly 3.30 a.m. Glasgow and London time, 10.30 p.m. in
Washington, 4.30 a.m. in Paris and 6.30 a.m. in Moscow, the four hostage sites
would be plunged into darkness. At exactly the same time and at each hostage
site, the police and army commanders in charge and some of their top men would
receive emergency phone calls from their own children. The confusion would
create the window required for Operation Retribution.

***

Reaper screamed at Leo.

“What the hell is happening
?!
Every one
of the schools is in darkness! Check in with your men immediately!”

Leo checked the screen. Only
forty four
blips were showing. These accounted for
thirty seven
guards, the
comms
man, the parents, Mark, himself and
Reaper. The other two men were at the airport.

“It’s fine, all accounted for, no extra bodies here.”

Reaper called his men at the airport.

“Has the flight landed?”

“Yes.”

“Can you see the kids yet?”

“No they’ve not come through yet.”

“What do you mean they’ve not come through yet?”

“It’s a big plane and there are still people filtering through.”

“You imbecile! They were in First Class and had no
luggage,
they should have been off first! Get back here
now!”

“Leo! Kill the mother, the kids have screwed us.” Reaper could
not believe it.

Chapter
64

Papa waited with his islanders. He was in London. They were all
dressed in black, from head to toe and were, to all intents and purposes,
invisible. Their dress, skills and expertise meant that if they did not want to
be seen, they wouldn’t be. Even the Ghurkhas, famed for their camouflage,
marvelled at the islanders’ skills. There were fifteen islanders at each of the
schools, more than enough to deal with fifty terrorists.

The lights went out and the islanders moved in. The power would
return in five minutes and in that time, they had to complete their task and
get out. Mobile phones buzzed all around them as they made
their
way silently and “invisibly” through the security cordon around the school.

It was the same at each of the four schools. Twenty seconds after
the lights were
extinguished,
sixty islanders were in
the terrorists’ dens.

Each islander carried an array of weapons, many of which would be
considered non lethal. However, in the hands of the islanders, there was no
such thing. They also carried a pack containing a variety of contraptions to
aid the mission.

The islanders broke into groups of three and swept through the
schools systematically. The terrorists did not know what had hit them. One
moment they were watching the area around them, the next they were down.
 

Outside, the confusion was growing. News filtered through that
the lights were out at each location. Parents were dealing with major family
emergencies on their phones, leaving only a few non-parents to deal with what
was going on. Commanders, their deputies and most of the officers across the
four sites had, unbeknownst to each other, all been tied up on these urgent
family matters. They were all too engrossed in their own private emergencies to
realise what was happening around them. Nobody knew what to do, so nobody did
anything.

Within three minutes, London and Paris were clear. One hundred
terrorists were down. The attack had taken place in absolute silence. Not a
single bullet had been fired. The islanders made one last sweep and then woke
up four children at each school. They left as quietly and invisibly as they had
arrived. Moscow and Washington were slightly larger and took the islanders nearly
the full five minutes to clear the schools. They too woke up four children and
disappeared into the night.

After exactly five minutes, the lights came back on at all sites.
Family emergencies had suddenly become mistakes and misunderstandings. As the
lights came on at each school, two lone students stood at the gates of their
school. The world watched and listened as the students shouted, in unison, the
message they had been given.

“We are OK. The building is clear. The terrorists are down.”

The other two children at each location did exactly what they
were told. They started moving all the children out of the building. Soldiers
raced past the escaping children into the apparently “safe” buildings.
 

Within minutes, the world received confirmation from the elite
teams that the schools were safe as each Commander
shouted
“CLEAR!” as they emerged from the buildings.