She tried once again but to no
avail. Her body would not respond. On her third try, she suddenly
felt as if she had grown wings. Someone heaved her from below and the
rope was suddenly within reach. She grabbed it, her legs still hugging
the tree and looked down at her savior.
It was Harley and he was
smiling silently encouraging her on. Talk was not allowed during morning
exercise. She smiled back at him, thankful, and looked ahead at the abyss
she needed to cross, not sure her muscles would support her. She let go
of the tree and flung her body in the air, her hands pulling at the rope.
At about half way she suffered
a setback, not sure she could bring her hands forward anymore, but when she
looked down to assess the fall below her, she managed just enough strength to
pull her the rest of the way.
She reached the tree on the
other bank and slid down its bare trunk, panting. Once safely on the
ground, she stood a minute, leaning against the tree.
Harley was right behind
her. He came down the tree and stood over her, staring. Then he
stooped down and kissed her on the mouth before thrashing ahead.
The crew, sprawled about in a
secluded forest patch, was already into their final stretching and loosening
exercises when Mai-Li appeared. She found a bare spot and lay on her
back. Ali came over to help loosen her legs. It was the fourth
consecutive day Mai-Li had performed the morning session and her body was
drained of energy. Upon their return, Harley had declared a “get-back-in-shape
week” and invited Mai-Li to join. Though she was quite an exercise buff,
frequenting pools and gymnasiums whenever time allowed, nothing could prepare
her for this.
Earlier in the week, Long-John
and Ali had been the welcoming party for the returning force with two Jeeps at
the airstrip near Inverness.
Mai-Li gathered her wits only
after a long hot shower and a rub down from Ali who took pity on her only woman
companion and offered to loosen her strained muscles. She was an expert
masseuse along with all her other qualities.
“I have a degree in
Physiology,” she explained as she dug her fingers into Mai-Li’s lubricated bare
thighs. “The job description here also involves strained tendon and
muscle treatment for the boys. I had to take a specialized course for
that.”
“It feels great,” Mai-Li said,
feeling Ali’s palms pressure her lower back, then move up her spine.
“Harley kissed me,” she said
matter-of-factly when Ali instructed her to turn over.
“He did what?
When??”
Ali exclaimed, applying oil to Mai-Li’s stomach, not
shy about touching her breasts and pelvis area as she spread the oil to her
shoulders and legs.
“This
morning, on the course.
He kissed me on the mouth after he
helped me cross the gully.”
“Has the old man finally
succumbed?” Ali said in wonderment.
“Succumbed to what?”
Mai-Li inquired.
“Love, I suppose,” Ali
observed. “I doubt he ever had time to become involved with a woman.”
“Has he ever been married?”
“Married?” Ali chuckled.
“His only marriage was to the regiment.”
“Has he ever been with a
woman?”
“Oh, that, well, I’m sure he’s
had his share of one night stands, if you know what I mean.”
“Hookers?
Escort services? Is that what you mean?”
“Among others,” Ali
surmised. “I guess he was never long enough in one place to experience
more than just sex with a woman.”
“Then why should it be
different now?”
“It may not be. I don’t
know. But I doubt Harley takes you for a one night stand.”
Mai-Li became quiet. She
shut her eyes, surrendering to Ali’s treatment. She knew Harley respected
her but had been surprised to find anything beyond. He was almost twice
her age, a legend. What would he want with her?
Yet she also felt something
for him.
Indebted?
Possibly.
Fondness?
Maybe.
Arousal?
Was she aroused by his kiss? She recalled how
he gently rubbed her lips with his for that brief second by the tree.
Ali’s hands were now massaging
her inner thighs and she felt like she had definitely been aroused. She
opened her eyes.
“Are you married Ali?”
“Not even close. Few
people are, in this line of business.”
“Who is married?”
“Lizzy’s married. He
comes from Glasgow.
Even got a grandson.”
“Oops, I thought he was
married to Harley,” Mai-Li remarked and they both chuckled.
“Copeland’s married, Long-John
and that's about it.”
“
You been
with anyone here?” Mai-Li asked,
then
regretted
it. “Sorry Ali, you don’t have to answer.”
Ali stopped her doing and
looked her over. Daubed in oil, Mai-Li’s skin looked ivory. Her
body glistened, her small breasts firm and round, her nipples dark and
erect. Her flat stomach heaved excitedly and she now had the palm of her
hand over her sex.
“How long has it been for
you?” Ali asked.
“Three years,” Mai-Li blurted
out.
“Then it’s about time.
Me, I’ve slept with several but only with Devlin here. We still do at
times.”
“It could complicate things,”
Mai-Li suggested.
“No
more than me sleeping with Devlin.”
“Do people know?”
“They suspect, but so
what? We’re all grown-ups aren’t we?”
“What do the others do for...
you know?”
“They get a monthly
leave. Some go to Inverness. Some go home if they live close.”
“What do you do?”
“My parents live quite close
so I split my time between home and shacking up with Devlin for a night.”
Ali wiped the oil off her hands
with a towel and began to undress. She unzipped her red sweatshirt,
unclipped her bra then stepped out of her sweatpants and panties. Mai-Li
admired her tall silky, white naked body. The muscular, yet agile frame
stretched in front of her as Ali loosened her limbs before stepping into the
shower.
“We go on leave this weekend,”
she raised her voice above the running water. “You can stay here with
him.”
“I got nowhere else to go,”
Mai-Li said to herself as she
lay
her head back
wanting to sleep.
A knock on the door drew her
out of her reverie.
“Breakfast at the bunker at
0900!” someone yelled from outside. She fetched her watch and noted they
had less than an hour.
Breakfast ‘at the bunker’
meant at the Intelligence bunker with Harley and company, otherwise they ate in
their room.
Showered and dressed in
military fatigues, both women marched into the Intelligence bunker at the
indicated time, Mai-li feeling sore and apprehensive.
The crew was all there eating
and Harley greeted them purposefully. A small buffet serving traditional
English breakfast of eggs, grilled tomatoes, grilled mushrooms, beans, hash
browns, and black pudding was erected at the far end of the bunker along with
pots of coffee and tea, away from the electronic equipment. Ali loaded
her paper plate and poured black coffee for herself and Mai-Li who settled for
the hot beverage only.
The small talk muted as Harley
stood up to speak.
“I owe each of you a pat on
the back for a job well done last week,” he opened. “There wasn’t much
time to elaborate with all the running around we did this week but we couldn’t
have done better than we did and that is all that matters in my book. No
casualties and no unnecessary complications. That’s all we ask for. Now
we can look ahead.”
The crew all nodded in
agreement. It was an attitude Harley had assimilated into his outfit.
Success, and failure, belonged to all because at the end of the day everyone
contributed, even the ones who remained behind.
“We’ve more or less completed
preparations for Kashmir,” Harley went on. “I plan one last exercise
tonight before we go on leave.”
“We are yet to finalize the
schedule and travel arrangements but in principal we all fly to India,
different routes, different airlines, and meet in New Delhi at the Taj Mahal
hotel there."
He looked around again.
Everyone nodded.
“The Indians have agreed to
assist us and will be supplying us with weapons and gear. Unlike our last
assignment, we will not be taking anything with us. No thermal cameras
and no video links. We take nothing that will give us away since most of us
will need to pass several sovereign borders and security checkpoints on the
way.
“The Indian Special Forces
will provide all our needs and escort us to the Kashmir border.
Copeland’s prepared a list of items which will be sent ahead to India on our
behalf. I suggest we all review it to make sure nothing was overlooked.
“We operate as a force of
twenty-one people. Devlin, Lizzy, the seven Scorpion team members, and
myself
cross the border and perform the job like we’ve been
training. Malcolm with the eight Red Tape team members
are
backup. You wait at the border crossing and pray we stay out of trouble.
“Ali, you and Mai-Li stick
close with the media. Once the shit hits the fan, they’ll be at our
heels. If we’re successful, I’d like you to make sure they get the right
angles. You’ll both have British media passes.
“We’ve done nothing if it’s
not photographed and videotaped,” he stressed, pointing at a large map
Long-John had displayed.
“We travel north from Delhi to
Kathua, enter Kashmir and advance along an annex of the Beas River toward
Jammu. The Pakistani border will be close by to our west.
“Our target is just past this small
village here, roughly ten kilometers north-west of Kathua.”
He suddenly looked at Mai-Li.
“The photos and video clip
Mai-Li provided of the children in cages were taken near here.” He drew a
line with a pencil where the village lay and marked a road that led past it
toward the labor camp.
“This road leads to the target
area, here.” He continued circling the area on the map with a red
marker. “Mike should be familiar with the surroundings once we are
there.”
“In Kashmir, we travel only at
night. We won’t even attempt to camouflage ourselves there. They’ll
detect us westerners a mile away.
“The Indian Special Forces
will meet us in Kathua with supplies, weapons and gear, thermal cameras, and
detailed maps of the target area. Once over the border, we hide our
weapons, use deserted roads if we can, but remain combat ready. Any hitch
and we shoot our way out of there.
“Past the village, we do
exactly as we trained. If everything goes smoothly, we free the children,
lock up their captors, let our Indian escort photograph and videotape the scene
for the media and clear out. We disappear and retreat back the way we
came in. Malcolm, you position yourselves by the river right on the
border. The short wave radios should be sufficient to alert you if need
be.
“Any
questions?”
Ali spoke up. “I’m not
clear on the media role, Joe. Where exactly do we wait?”
“The Indian media will pitch
camp at Kathua. They will not be allowed across the border. It is
our job to bring back photos and video for them.”
“What happens to the
kids?” Jimmy the driver asked.
“We point them to where they
need to go. We cannot afford to escort them though we may need to
consider taking a few with us to prove our point.”
“They’ll be hunted down by
those animals,” Mai-Li protested.
“Possibly, but if the world
acts quickly, many will eventually be saved. Once we get the photos and
videos and maybe some of those kids out, it will be your job, Mai-Li, to make
sure, not only that word gets around to the right places but that the right
officials act on it.”
Harley felt confusion in the
room.
“Look people, there is no
simple way to stop this thing. This operation is a drop in the sea if you
consider the numbers of children abused by this organization. Our only chance
is for world opinion to force the relevant authorities to act and terminate
this disease. We bring them the evidence they need to act upon.”
“I say we bring out as many
kids as we can,” Devlin asserted.
“I second that,” Lizzy joined.
Everyone was nodding around
the room.
“So be it,” Harley agreed,
“
provided it does not alter our plan and put us in
danger.”
“It’ll slow us down on the way
back,” Jimmy pointed out.
“I can live with that,” Harley
said scrutinizing his ranks. Putting added risk on a mission was against
his policy but it was a crucial moral issue in this case, which he presumed
would add authenticity.