“Okay, here’s my plan. We are at the bottom of the complex now. This elevator will take us to the top level, which should be the hangar deck. That’s where Hugo and I came in,” explained Dane. I’m not certain where the closest egress point is located but at least we will be only one level underground. I figure we can find a way out. That is if we don’t run into a large group of Germans who disagree with our leaving. So once I close the door I want you two to stand on this side of the elevator.”
Dane motioned to the left side of the elevator. “I will be here. I can’t guarantee where the elevator will stop. Hopefully it will give us a non-stop ride, but I doubt it. So be ready if the door opens and the bad guys are waiting for us. They shouldn’t be expecting us, which gives us an advantage. Is everyone clear?” Both Dana and Randall bobbed their heads, still contemplating what they were about to experience.
Dane leveled his weapon at the doorway, reached over and pressed the hangar level button. After what felt like an eternity the elevator doors closed and the car began slowly to rise. Dane and the group watched intently as the lights denoted their movement up. Two levels, four levels, then the elevator stopped. “Get ready!” said Dane as he aimed his silenced MP-5 at the door. Dana and Randall followed his lead. The door opened revealing a startled group of two women and a man dressed in white coveralls. They were unarmed. One woman screamed while the man turned to go get help. Dane took his finger off the trigger of his weapon and reached over and closed the door. The car began to rise again.
There was a collective sigh of relief among the elevator passengers as the car began its upward climb.
“Ready?” Dane asked rhetorically as the group saw the panel lights move to the hangar level. The door opened.
They were immediately faced with an enormous cavern of a room. This was the hangar deck, more than four stories tall, not a hallway as they had experienced up to now. The elevator was in one corner of the room but was out in the open. Dane pulled the stop button so that the door would stay open in case they needed to use it again to escape.
He scanned the area. He saw a black helicopter over to their right. The way to the left was clear. Dane motioned to Dana and Randall to follow him as he dashed to his right, closely following the wall until they were behind the helicopter.
There was activity everywhere. It actually did remind Dane of an aircraft carrier hangar deck. He could see maintenance crews working on equipment and helicopters. Several vehicles and aircraft tugs were moving throughout the hangar level. So much for sneaking out unseen, he thought. He continued to scan the room.
“Holy crap!” remarked Randall, beginning to see for the first time the enormity of the complex they had stumbled upon. “This place is huge.” Dana said nothing. She too was in awe of this underground world.
Dane’s eye caught something. It was a flight of steps that went up to an opening four stories above the hangar floor. He had no idea where the stairs led but he was happy they went up and there was cover at the top. The staircase was about thirty feet farther to their right but very close to a group of technicians working on a large Russian-made Hind heavy-lift helicopter.
Dane pointed the stairs out to Dana and Randall. “Our way out,” he said. Dane surveyed the area further. Between them and the Hind were two small jeep vehicles and a large wooden crate over against the wall. Dane figured they could easily get to the crate and move behind the two jeeps but the last several feet to the stairs were in the open. And then there were the stairs themselves. They were attached to the wall of the hangar in plain view of the entire room. Once they began their climb to freedom, they would be in a clear kill zone for anyone with a weapon on the hangar level. What they needed was a diversion. Dane knew exactly what to do next.
The small group gathered together closely. “Okay, we are leaving now. You see the stairs over there? That’s our way out. We will sneak behind the crate here and past the two jeeps. Once we are in position I will throw a grenade down the hangar deck that will get everyone’s attention while we scramble up the stairs to that door up there,” he said, pointing to the top of the stairs. “You ready?”
“Let’s go,” said Randall.
Dana chimed in, “Ready.”
Dane reached into his vest and pulled out a grenade. Still in a crouch, the threesome scurried behind the large crate and on along behind the jeeps. They were now a few feet from the mechanics working on the Hind. They could hear the conversations clearly in German between the workers. Dane looked at Dana and Randall and nodded. Both gave a thumbs-up signal.
Dane pulled the pin on the grenade and threw it as hard as he could down toward the far wall of the hangar level, about fifty yards away. Dane saw the grenade hit the floor and skitter between several fifty-five gallon drums. Almost immediately there was a deafening explosion. Flames bolted from the area of the explosion and flaming fuel raced across the floor of the hangar. People ran in all directions. An alarm klaxon sounded. Chaos ensued.
“Go, go, go!” screamed Dane. Without hesitation the trio raced in a full run to the stairs and began climbing. As they turned to take the next flight of steps, they saw two burning men screaming and running through the flames. Others were running toward the men with hand-held fire extinguishers to douse the flames. Heavy black smoke was beginning to overwhelm the area, rising to their level on the stairs. The acrid black smoke served to shield the fleeing group from those below.
They kept climbing, climbing for their lives. They were only one flight from the top when Dane noticed an armed German stepping out of the doorway above to see what happened. Dane raised his silenced MP-5 and fired twice. The man fell back from the railing of the stairs and onto the top landing.
Seconds later the group reached the top. Dane ducked into the doorway hoping to find a clear way out. Dana and Randall stood outside on the stairway landing, horrified at the mayhem below.
The grenade had landed among several aviation fuel barrels. When it exploded, the blast sprayed burning fuel all over the area, igniting a jeep and another helicopter which was armed with machine guns and rockets. The rockets exploded causing a massive blast that either killed or injured nearly everyone on that end of the hangar level.
Fire and smoke filled the area. No one saw their escape since those that were not killed or injured were fighting the fires. Some personnel had broken out hoses and were beginning to spray the deck with water. Several men clad in silver fire suits were breaking out other fire equipment and clamoring onto firefighting rigs. The fire alarm klaxon was still blaring. The scene was utter chaos. Neither Dana nor Randall had ever seen such destruction and loss of life.
Dane stuck his head back out of the door. “Come on,” he yelled over the din of the hell below them. The heat was getting intense.
The group ran through the door. Dane closed it behind them. The roar of the fire and the klaxon subsided. Dana felt that she could think again. “This way. I found a hatchway out.” They ran down a short hallway to a set of stairs leading up to a closed hatch. Dane ran up the stairs and looked for a lock. He had Maas’ keys so he felt they should be able to unlock the hatch. To his dismay, he noticed a keypad lock on the wall just under the hatch cover. Damn, he thought. Not as easy as he thought it might be. He stepped down to Dana and Randall.
“Randall, you watch that door. I don’t expect anyone to come up but they could try to use it to escape the fire. You must kill anyone that sets foot through that door. Do you understand me?” asked Dane. “Can you do it?”