Archer pulled The General back and Jacob retrieved the contents of the safe, four amulets, also within the safe was cash, jewels and bearer bonds.
‘Nice retirement fund you have here Vincent.’
‘Help yourself Jacob, you have everything else.’
‘I am only reclaiming what is mine, this would fund a lot of research but the way you obtained it would taint anything it came into contact with.’
Archer secured Mastasson to a chair with multiple security ties. He took the guard from the lift, placing him in front of the double doors, using more ties to restrain him, blocking access.
Mastasson taunted Archer, ‘so still a lap dog eh Archer? Still doing as you are told.’
Archer lashed out hitting Mastasson in the jaw with a punch that came from his shoulder, knocking him over onto the floor, still attached to his chair.
‘That is for Khan, General.’ He applied duct tape to Mastasson’s bleeding mouth and left him.
Jacob had placed all the amulets into containers and secured them in his rucksack. He checked the monitor linked to the room outside, the assistant was not at her desk.
Jacob closed the safe and set the room back as it was, except for the two hostages on the floor, he wanted any discovery of the safe opening to remain secret until they could escape.
‘Call the flight office, give Katherine our travel plans.’
Archer rang from Mastasson’s phone to the flight office, getting the extension number from the list on the desk. Mastasson’s computer was still turned on, and Archer called Jacob over, a mischievous glint in his eye, ‘Want to go phishing?’
Katherine had drawn attention when she entered the flight office, the duty officer and clerk both silent upon her approach. Katherine had always been surprised by how men could stop thinking rationally when an attractive woman was present.
‘Hi, I am waiting for some orders from The General’s office.’
The duty officer checked his email, ‘nothing here, what was your name? I can call up to the General’s office.’
He lifted the phone but Katherine stopped him, ‘no! Don’t bother him, I am sure it will come through, I suppose I can spend some time with you.’
‘Yes you can.’ The clerk was a little more obvious and slightly greasy in appearance. Katherine sat on the chair, upright with her knees close together, giving any indication she was not interested.
Jacob had sent all the emails he needed to from Mastasson’s computer and loaded some files onto a pen drive he had found in the desk. Archer nodded, ‘Better than killing him.’
Then a new mail arrived, surprising Jacob, ‘Oh dear.’
‘What Dad?’
‘It would appear that we have two problems now?’
Katherine was getting nervous, five minutes had passed since she entered the room and he two men were getting impatient at her presence.
‘Are you sure I cannot call The General for you?’
The Duty officer’s computer beeped the corporate mail delivery tone; a relief to Katherine.
‘Here it is, you get, oh, you get any aircraft you select and it must be ready to fly now.’
‘That’s right, can you get the CV22 Osprey out for me please, a private mission for The General.’
The men knew not to question what the aircraft were used for, and the email had come direct from The General’s office. Within ten minutes Katherine was entering through the tailgate of the Osprey transport.
It appeared like a plane, a squared off body, with a large glass front screen like a helicopter for maximum visibility, the tail section was split with two vertical tail sections on the rear ailerons looking like an H shape. On the wing tips were the engine nacelles, capped with two large three bladed props thirty-eight feet in diameter. They appeared disproportionate to the body, like a child had designed them too big. The engines could be tilted to allow the plane to take off vertically then move to horizontal flight, a highly versatile aircraft.
She wondered how The General had got his hands on one, considering they were at least ninety million dollars each. The CV22 was the Air Force version, and production aircraft were only delivered in fall 2006. Still she was not qualified on the aircraft, but had to make it look good. The aircraft needed two pilots and two flight engineers, but it appeared the General had modified the controls to allow two crew. She hoped the automated systems could cope.
Jacob and Archer had taken the elevator back down to the private hangar, snapping the key card off in the lock discreetly disabling it. Jacob had wiped Mastasson’s computer hard drive, and downloaded a virus from the internet which had bypassed his firewalls, and was now beginning to eat his internal network, a gift from Eli Rothwell. Father and son moved through the hangar into an access tunnel linking up to the main complex on the other side of the hill. Carved from the rock, unlined, it was damp and many creatures had decided to make their homes in the shelter of the cool dark. The blast door on the other side was slightly open, careless housekeeping by the residents, but it was an advantage to the uninvited. The hangar had plenty of aircraft, which one was Katherine in? Archer had sent instructions, but knew she could send no reply; they would have to just see if she had the machine outside yet.
The CV22 Osprey had been towed to a landing pad, only fifty-seven feet in length, with a wingspan of eighty four feet she looked odd shaped compared to conventional aircraft, but Katherine liked unconventional. She was already fully fuelled the small tractor strained with its substantial load. Katherine knew that with a full fuel load, and only three people, she could easily reach the Ecuador jungle and refuel on her own airstrip, might even get back before her Global Surveyor. She began pre-flight checks, her headset informing her that the seaplane had already departed and that all other aircraft were to be fuelled and leave the island in the next few hours, a tap on her shoulder almost stopped her heart.
‘Hi Katherine, where you going?’
She turned around and smacked her assailant on the head hard, ‘Archer! I nearly died then! Who would fly you out then huh?’
Archer staunched laughter was only matched by the broad smile upon Jacob’s face at her reaction, ‘How about we close up the back before you get any other uninvited passengers.’
Katherine flicked a switch on the console, and the rear door flap began to whine shut.
‘This bird armed?’
‘No Archer transport only, she has sensor systems to defend and distract but they have retro fitted a 50 cal mount at the back. The gun is stowed in the rear compartment.’
‘So why did you pick her?’
‘Because she can take off like a helicopter and fly like a turbo prop plane, low and fast. She does burn through oil, so wherever we are going, I will have to do some running repairs.’
Archer did not continue questioning her choice. Katherine had completed the pre-flight and started the two Rolls Royce Allison engines, the slow hum increasing in volume by the second as they came online. She secured her borrowed helmet and instructed Jacob what actions to take from the pilot’s seat. Archer was sitting in one of the flight engineers’ chairs, ‘If anything turns red or beeps I should tell you right?’
Katherine laughed, ‘Very technical Archer, but if anything looks like it is changing rapidly, you holler, okay?’
‘Yes Ma’am.’
‘Oh, so you can get him to do stuff, but to me it is just, do I have to Dad?’
‘Well Jacob, fifteen years older and nothing changed.’
‘True Katherine, so true.’
They were relaxed even though they were in hostile territory, still aware they had to beat Enzi back to camp. Jacob had cheekily emailed the Arcadia from Mastasson’s computer, but was not sure if they had received his warning about Enzi.