After traversing his pod into Jacob’s, Hiram had suffered a nagging headache and found himself walking away from the group to excise the demon that seemed to have moved into his belly for two full days. He had avoided going back into his pod since then and only this morning decided he had the guts to climb down into his pod. He was terrified of going back into Jacob’s pod and almost as scared to go into the one he had been issued. Parts of him still didn’t feel quite right, but they now had the tools they needed to put on a hell of a show.
Hiram’s C2ID2 displayed the long column of approaching trucks from a drone feed. The drone also captured images of each individual vehicle. The drivers appeared to be civilians. A single guard rode shotgun in each vehicle. Earlier, the drone had captured the Spanish rebels digging their rifle pits and planting an explosive charge in the roadbed. He deduced that the rebels planned to blow up the lead truck and riddle the rest of the convoy with rifle and light machine gun fire. Hiram had a better plan.
Maxime adjusted a six-shot Milkor grenade launcher, sliding the barrel through an opening in the low brush. The grenade launcher, designed in the late 20th century, was the only weapon in the pod’s arsenal older than Hiram’s sniper rifle. Later designs proved to be no more effective and less reliable. Although a few bells and whistles had been added, the weapon remained nearly unchanged. Eight more launchers were trained on the roadway below. Team Two awaited Hiram’s order to open fire.
The trucks hauled wool destined to be fashioned into German military uniforms, probably by slave laborers. The material would not mix well with the 40mm incendiary grenades about to descend on the convoy. Destroying such a load would cause quite a headache for the poor soul responsible for clothing Hitler’s minions.
Hiram waited for the last truck to enter the kill zone. “Fire!”
Around him, 40 mm grenades sailed out of the launchers in near silence. Every sixth truck in the forty-vehicle convoy exploded into flames. One of the women nearest him laughed. The sound was unnerving amidst the destruction.
A driver emerged from of one of the undamaged vehicles and examined the flames coming from the truck in front of him. He looked up the hill toward Hiram and his team as a grenade made contact with his vehicle. The explosion picked up the back end of his truck and sent his body a few more feet from the mayhem. The women worked their way through the remaining trucks, turning each one into a pyre. Within a few minutes, the fires slithered toward the woods on Hiram’s side of the road. Flames climbed upward toward them, determined to engulf everything in their path.
“Time to move,” Hiram called. Trailed by the nine women of Team Two, Hiram sprinted north along the deer trail, heading away from the flames. The path took them into the flank of the Maquis ambush position. As they approached, Hiram slowed and signaled the women to spread out on either side of the trail, while he, Maria and Sarah continued at a walk. The rebels waited for them, weapons at the ready.
“Hola,” Maria said to the first man they saw. She had volunteered to negotiate with the rebels.
Maria said a few more words to the man. Another man stepped up to the front, his weapon slung over his shoulder. He spoke to Maria, gesturing to Hiram more than once.
“This is Jose,” Maria said. “Says he’d be happy to discuss a trade if it means he’ll be able to put on a show like yours.”
Hiram smiled, stepped forward. “Tell him what we’ve got.”
Maria discussed the terms of the arrangement. Hiram only picked up a few words, mostly those he’d heard in another time.
It was a simple trade. In exchange for eight Milkor grenade launchers and one hundred and sixty rounds of ammo, the Maquis would agree to transport Sarah and Maria to Gibraltar, along the same routes they ferried downed Allied pilots from Southern France. Once Hiram received word that Maria and Sarah arrived on the Rock, he would provide the Maquis with another three hundred and sixty grenades.
“He’ll take us as far as Gibraltar for eight of the grenade launchers, but he wants one hundred rounds per weapon,” Maria said. “Eight hundred total.”
Hiram feigned reluctance. “Tell him the grenades come in crates of ninety-six. I’ll agree to give him one crate per weapon when the two ladies reach Gibraltar.”
Maria translated Hiram’s reply to Jose. “He wants two crates now.”
Hiram agreed. He shook Jose’s hand, then turned and walked back down the trail to collect the six remaining grenade launchers from the rest of Team Two. He kept the more modern weapons out of sight. Advanced weapons like the nearly silent M22 rail guns would be too tempting a tool for the leftist Maquis. And if the Maquis decided to share those weapons with their good buddies in Stalin’s Communist regime, the death toll would rise ever higher. When planning the trade, he feared his new business partner might share the grenade launchers with the Red Army. But Russia, in the effort to overpower her enemies with firepower, had already developed a similar weapon. The Milkor grenade launcher was a hell of a lot more accurate at longer range, but not a giant technological leap forward.
Hiram took three trips back up the trail to gather the launchers and the crates of ammo. By the third trip, the advancing flames were now only a few dozen yards away from Team Two’s position. He handed the last armload over to one of Jose’s men and turned towards Maria.
“You and Sarah can teach them how to use and maintain the weapons later. Right now, we need to get moving before we all burn to a crisp.” Maria translated for Jose and his men. The men started heading away from the flames with their new toys in hand, leaving Jose behind.
“One more thing,” Hiram said. “You two need a new call sign.”
“How about Raven?” Sarah asked. “They’re very clever birds, and I hear the English Crown is very fond of them.”
Hiram nodded assent and said, “Raven it is.”
Maria then turned and hugged Hiram, whispering a thank you in his ear.
“Go with God.” Without another word, she headed off down the road, adjusting the straps of her pack as she walked. He turned to hug Sarah. “You’re our best hope.”
Sarah pulled away. “If I can get an audience with Eisenhower.”
“You might have to convince Churchill and Roosevelt as well.”
She smiled and shrugged. “It has to be easier than stomaching another of those terrible protein bars.”
Hiram tried to laugh. “Hopefully, we’ll see each other on the other side of this.”
Sarah hugged Hiram once more and took off down the road after Maria, backpack in hand. When she caught up, Maria put an arm around her. They looked like children on their way to school, small and innocent. Jose and his men would pay a hefty price if anything happened to them.
Hiram and Jose shook hands once more. Jose followed his men back to the road. Hiram turned and headed back down the trail. He looked back once and saw Sarah hoisting her pack onto her shoulders. God forbid that should fall into the wrong hands. Then he shook his head. You’ve taken precautions. Sarah has the self-destruct code for the C2ID2. She understands the dangers. She can be trusted. Along with the communications interface, her pack contained a Mossad Icarus drone, which provided a secure, long distance method of communication. Once Sarah and Maria reached Gibraltar, she would use it to signal her arrival and Hiram would make good on his deal with the Maquis. Assuming they make it to the Rock, and assuming the British let them in.
Just then his C2ID2 chimed, indicating a radio call from Deborah. He tapped an icon and said, “Deborah?” He had managed to steal away for a few minutes to talk to Deborah every day since he left to meet Team Two. They most often spoke in the evening when he could find a quiet, secluded place to talk. Her call surprised him. “What’s wrong?”