Chapter 35

The next day, he returned to Kandahar. Once in Steve’s office he related what the others had discussed the day before.

When he had finished Mike said, “I take your point about their using lookouts. To bring you up to date, the second package arrived two days ago and the third is on its way. We expect the last one to leave in the next forty-eight hours. Robbie, we need to get our teams in tonight to take up position overlooking the mouth of the gorge. You will go in tomorrow night, I’m afraid it means a four mile hike up the mountain with a pack on your back, but someone will be there to guide and help you. Is there anything else you can think of that needs to be done?”

Robert thought for a moment, “If you have men on the ground is it possible for them to place a laser reflector about here.” He indicated a point about eight miles from the end of the track, “It would help enormously by giving the Hellfires something to lock onto. Also I’ll need radio contact with the flight back at Kandahar in order to tell them when to deploy.”

“The radio has already been sorted. Flight Lieutenant Burton will be receiving one tomorrow, it’s a special encrypted set that matches the one you will be carrying. That should ensure that the Taliban can’t listen in to it. The other planes will receive orders to come down to Kandahar, supposedly to service the aircraft. Regarding the reflector, I’ll have the men going in tonight take one in and set it up.”

“Robbie,” Steve said, “we have a company of Paras who have taken up position at the head of the valley. Unfortunately we couldn’t get them any closer than five miles away for fear they’d be spotted. There’s also a company ready to insert using Chinooks once the balloon goes up. They’ll come in at the gorge end. But it’s going to take up to forty five minutes for them all to get there. Until then you and the six-man team will be on your own, I don’t need to tell you what that means.” He paused to let that information sink in. “Well if there’s nothing more I suggest you have an early night, you may not get any sleep later. Don’t worry about your pack, it’ll be put together for you.”

Robert returned to his room, he toyed with the idea of contacting Terry on the laptop, but decided against it. She could read him like a book, and she would guess something was wrong. Instead he typed out a long letter, and down loaded it on to his memory stick, taking it to the communications annex he had it printed out, after signing it he sealed it and just wrote Terry on the front. He would give it to Tim; to pass it on to her if the worst happened.

The next morning he watched as the A10s circled breaking off to land, one after the other, the ground crews rushing to refuel them. He waited in his room until he heard their footsteps trooping into the compound. Tim was the first to enter his room. “I’m ordered to report to Steve.” He said something about a radio.”

Robert explained about it and told him about the laser reflector.

“Tim I’m going in tonight, it sounds like it’s going to kick off within twenty four hours.” He handed him the envelope, “If I don’t make it will you see Terry has this, and my personal effects.” He handed over the Rolex, wallet and gold signet ring, “Don’t let anyone have the photo case but Terry.”

“Robbie won’t you please reconsider and let me go,” Tim pleaded.

He shook his head, “When you have a squadron, you’ll have to make tough decisions too. Just make sure you’re there when I call you,”

He was called to prepare himself, an SAS Corporal helped him change into desert camouflage, handing him a 9mm Glock semi-automatic pistol that he strapped to his leg. He then showed him the basics of the M16 rifle, before putting his body armour on. He left the Kevlar helmet off for the time being. He winced when he felt the weight of the Bergen rucksack. “You have the radio in there sir with spare batteries, also ten magazines for the M16 and four for the Glock. There are four bottles of water and a forty-eight-hour pack of self-heating rations plus a medical kit. You also have 10x50 binoculars in there. We’ve kept the kit down to just the bare essentials to reduce the weight for you.”

“Thank you Corporal,” he said, wondering what a normal load consisted of.

At nine, pm, he was led out to a black Lynx helicopter, which, once he was on board, took off. It dropped him off an hour later and quickly departed. He was struggling to get the Bergen onto his back when a figure materialised out of nowhere, “Squadron Leader Barlow,” the figure asked quietly.

“Robbie’s fine Corporal,” noticing the chevrons on his tag attached to his body armour. He knew with these men rank didn’t cut it, only ability.

The camouflaged face smiled, “Its Bert, Robbie, follow me carefully.”

After the first two miles his back ached, then his legs. By the time Bert stopped every muscle in his body ached and he was covered in sweat. Bert had stopped at what appeared to be a ledge, he could see down to the valley below by the moonlight breaking through the clouds.

“Come here, and get down,” he heard a voice whisper. It seemed to come from the rock face behind him.

Bert guided him to one side and then he saw that the rock face was in fact cut back at the base revealing a shallow depression with two men laying in it. A camouflaged net was cunningly placed to give the effect of a solid rock face.

He shrugged of the Bergen and entered, the men moved over to give him room.

“Robbie meet Walt and Jim,” Bert said, Robert nodded to them, noticing that Jim was a Sergeant.

“Well Robbie,” Jim said, “You had better check your radio.”

He undid the Bergen finding the plastic case that contained the radio, on the case was a card with the various frequencies he would use. A10, Kandahar Opps, and Para. The radio was set for Kandahar Opps. He extended the small umbrella type aerial and fitted the head phones to his ears. Finally switching on the set he waited a moment as a soft glow steadied. He depressed the transmit button twice paused then twice again, he heard three bleeps in his headphones before closing down the radio. Kandahar knew he’d arrived.

“You had better get some sleep while you can,” Jim said.

Robert didn’t need any urging, he was worn out. He placed his head between his folded arms and was asleep almost instantly.

He felt his arm being shaken, and had to blink several times before getting his eyes to focus. Jim was staring at him, a finger across his lips. Robert nodded his understanding. Jim removed the finger replacing it with two fingers pointing to his eyes. He then pointed to two points across the valley, the finger pointing upwards. Robert moved his head slowly, and then he saw them. Two figures on each of the two highest points of the gorge, exactly as Tim had predicted.

He reached for his binoculars focusing on the nearest pair. which was 450 meters away. Both men had AK47’s slung on their shoulders, one had the black Taliban head turban. The second one had no head coverage, Al Qaeda Robert guessed. The one with the turban was sweeping the skies to the Northwest with powerful binoculars, the rising sun outlining them clearly. He focused on the farther pair, some 600 meters away. Again, one was checking the North and West approaches.

He felt Jim nudge him, and then whisper, “They’re coming,” indicating the end of the track were it appeared from the hills to the east and Pakistan. It took several minutes before Robert’s binoculars focused on the specks that were travelling slowly across the desert floor, trying to avoid making too much dust.

Seven Toyota 15-cwt trucks came into view. As they drew closer he could see three Taliban riding in the back of each truck. All the trucks appeared to be quite new he realised with some surprise. When the trucks reached the mouth of the gorge they swung round and reversed into the deep shadows of the gorge disappearing from view.

“More coming,” he heard Jim whisper. Slowly four more Trucks appeared unlike the first set these just contained a driver and appeared to be much older. When they had disappeared from view into the gorge, the men on the peaks started to make their way down to the gorge.

“We had better get ready.” Jim said, “It’s going to kick off today.”

Robert set up the Radio resetting it for A10, “Wild Boar 1 to Wild Boar 2 are you receiving over.”

“Wild Boar 2 to Wild Boar 1 receiving you 5 by 5 over.”

“Wild Boar 1 to Wild Boar 2 be advised a laser reflector is placed 7 miles from end of track. Deploy to station, I say again, deploy to station over.”

“Wild Boar 2 to Wild Boar 1 deploying, good luck. Wild Boar 2 out.”

Robert reset the frequency to Opps.

“Wild Boar 1 to Sierra Bravo 5 are you receiving over.”

Steve’s voice came in over the radio, Robert quickly explained about the eleven trucks that had arrived, and that the A10’s would be on station in twenty-five minutes. He knew that Tim would hug the desert floor on his approach with the other A10. He switched off the radio but left it set up. He noticed that Walt was removing an L115A3 sniper rifle from its canvas case and checking it.

“Where’s the other team?” Robert asked Jim.

Jim indicated a point 300 meters away and slightly lower than them. “When your aircraft begin their attack they’ll move back here as quickly as they can. Then we have to hold this position until the cavalry arrive,” he said, with a humorous chuckle. Robert noticed that the others were removing magazines from their packs along with grenades and placing them close at hand. He followed suit.

He glanced at his cheap Casio watch that he wore on missions, Tim should be deployed in five minutes he realised. He changed the radio frequency over to the A10’s radio, and left it in standby.

Seven minutes later Tim announced that he and Wild Boar 7 were on station, Bill was with him Robert realised.

Bert was talking into the mike of the team’s radio; he turned to Jim, “Four of the bases up North are under attack, they’re screaming for air support.”

Robert could imagine that Tornados would be scrambling from Kandahar, whilst the Apaches from Bastion would be doing the same. The Taliban observers would have noticed the A10s taking off and assumed that they were returning to Camp Bastion. “It’s just a matter of waiting now,” he thought. Jim had mentioned that the reflector had been set up pointing to a cluster of rocks about two thirds of the way along the track.

“Something is moving down there,” Bert murmured, his eyes glued to his binoculars.

Shadowy figures were coming out of the gorge, “They’re climbing” he announced. After forty minutes the figures reappeared on the crests again scanning the sky to the West and North.