“Put your hands high,” Ching ordered. The remaining men did. Lam had rushed up to kick away the wounded man’s weapon. Now he worked with the others, who closed in on the five standees, taking away weapons and cuffing them, hands and feet. The SEALs left them in the hall and fanned out to go up the steps all at once and check the elegant, impressive Planetarium with its huge ceiling screens and dozens of projectors and special lean-back seating.
“Could be fifty of them hiding in here,” Lam said into his mike.
“We might never find them,” DeWitt said.
“Let me sing out and see if I can raise anyone,” Ching said.
“Go,” DeWitt said.
Ching made three quick calls in Mandarin, then three more, but there was no response.
“Let’s call the game in here,” DeWitt said. As they started back to the front of the Planetarium the radio sounded.
“Skipper, we just missed something. We’re deployed along the front of Hawaiian Hall here. Thirty seconds ago we saw about fifteen Chinese rush away from that entrance pavilion, Jabulka, and storm into the foyer that leads into this Hawaiian Hall. I think they’re inside now.”
“Keep your powder dry, Dobler. We’re done in here and on the way out. We will have a confrontation with those kind Orientals shortly. Right now I want you to move up until you can see that door into the building and hold. We’ll be across that grassy area toward the entrance building. Don’t let any more go in or out. Use the EAR out there in the open if you need to.”
DeWitt turned to his men. “Let’s try those other doors over there and get out of here. We have friends waiting for us over in the Hawaiian Hall.”
28
“Mr. DeWitt, the Chinese have just barricaded the front doors to Hawaiian Hall and a couple of others by the looks,” Senior Chief Dobler said on the radio. “Not sure what they are trying to do. We need another door. Any ideas?”
“Seems to me I remember an open court around back,” DeWitt said. “Take your men around there and try it. You might beat them to it. We’ll check out the front and then the side.”
From the front of the Jabulka building, he looked at the closest big structure. It was Hawaiian Hall, and it appeared that two other buildings were attached. Maybe the far one would be productive. No sense trying the front door since the Chinese were watching it and had it barricaded. He took his men quickly down the sidewalk, across part of the Great Lawn, and around the far end of the building.
He spotted two doors. One that looked like it was for deliveries or for moving large exhibits. Another man-sized door was nearby. They tried the door. Locked. Minimum damage. He lifted his sub gun and fired three rounds into the lock mechanism near the handle. The door shook a moment, then swung outward two inches.
Lam jerked it open and darted inside. DeWitt went in right behind him. The room was large, with lights on and various displays and artifacts spread out on two rows of tables. A workroom.
They saw a door at the far end of the space twenty feet away, and rushed toward it. All six of the team were inside by then. DeWitt tried the door. Unlocked. He motioned for Ostercamp to come up with his EAR gun. Slowly DeWitt turned the knob and inched the door back so he could see out a slit. Nothing. He pulled it more, careful to stay on the wall side of the door handle. Inside he could see exhibits. He wasn’t sure what they were, but they looked like artifacts from the days of the kingdom. Busts of kings, brilliant robes, seashell displays.
DeWitt could see no Chinese soldiers. He opened the door all the way, staying against the wall. No rifle fire. He looked out, then rushed into the display area and crouched behind a wood carving of one of the kings. Nothing happened.
“Come,” he said into the Motorola. Lam was there quickly. DeWitt pointed toward an open archway that showed twenty feet ahead. They worked around the displays of ordinary items used in the earliest days of the islands.
Lam leaned around the side of a six-foot-wide archway and looked into the next room. More exhibits. These were all wooden products, bowls, bows, all sorts of carved artifacts. A huge koa tree was featured, with charts showing the many things the early Hawaiians made from the wood of the koa tree.
“JG, we have trouble,” Dobler said on the Motorola.
“What kind?” DeWitt asked.
“Found this back door, but it’s locked.”
“Three rounds into the lock and you should be inside. We’re in the far left end of the place.”
“Yeah, just realized this end of it is three stories tall. If we try to flush them, they could go all over.”
“Try not to do that. Let me know when you’re inside.”
DeWitt led his men through the next room and then came to an open area. Ahead he could see a reception desk with a small lobby and four Chinese soldiers evidently talking something over.
Ostercamp rolled into position beside DeWitt and fired one round from the zapper EAR gun. They saw the four men freeze in place for a second, then topple over and crash into each other and the floor.
“Move up,” DeWitt said into the lip mike, and his men rushed forward and took over the small area just inside the main entrance. Two rifle shots exploded in the closed area and sounded like rockets. The SEALs scattered for cover, and Train used the Motorola to say he saw two Chinese troopers at the back end of the main floor exhibit. He thought one of them had fired the shots.
“We’re inside,” Dobler said on the radio.
“We’re using the EAR on the first floor,” DeWitt said.
“There are some back stairs this side,” Dobler reported. “We can take over the second floor and see if any of them got up that way.”
“Go.”
DeWitt checked in front of him into the main floor display devoted to Ancient Hawaii. Overhead he saw the open area three floors tall where a giant whale hung. It was nearly as long as the building. In one terrible second he saw a Chinese soldier lift up from behind a display fifteen feet away and aim his rifle directly at him. The SEAL brought up his submachine gun and splattered six rounds into the invader before he got off a shot.
DeWitt ran through the displays to where he had seen the Chinese man. He lay across an ancient canoe, three bullet holes in his upper chest.
“Five down, ten to go,” DeWitt said into the mike. “Let’s dig them out.”
As he said it he heard the whooshing sound of the EAR gun go off. It seemed different this time, and then he realized he might be well in advance of where it was fired. The enhanced audio made a smaller sound when it hit.
DeWitt felt something pound him in the belly, then drive him to his knees. He dropped his machine gun, but grabbed it at once. He tried to stand, but his balance wasn’t working. He began to crawl back the way he had run only a minute ago. He crawled and crawled and came around a display, and found two SEALs with hands over their ears.
They saw him and ran to him, getting him onto his feet and walking him back toward the main entrance. He was aware that everything was silent, and that confused him. He saw lips moving but heard nothing. Then traces of sound slipped past the barrier.
He could walk again by himself. He shook his head and rubbed his ears, and more sounds came in. A moment later he could hear the men around him.
“JG, you okay?” Someone said it again. He turned and saw Ostercamp. “You okay, JG? We found you crawling back. I had just blasted three of the little devils. Afraid you were too close up there and caught some of it. We decided not to use the EAR anymore inside here. We have eight of them down and tied now, JG.”