Chapter 48

The ship slowly nosed up to the unloading point. The moon cast a faint glow on the desert landscape as everyone onboard held their breath. Then from the shore, a red light was seen flashing on and off. Shaun relaxed from the tension that had built up. They had not been discovered, Captain Stavros quietly gave an order, and the ship slowly came to a stop.

The ship was secured to the shore, and the ship’s derrick swung into action. Shaun could see from the bridge shadowy figures appearing on the shore getting ready to receive the first vehicle. He turned to Stavros, “I’d better get ashore so I’ll say my goodbyes Captain”.

Stavros smiled sadly “God go with you Major and your men”. They shook hands, then Shaun made his way to the deck of the ship.

He gave an involuntary shiver feeling the cold of the desert night. Finding his kitbag mixed with those of the others he slipped on the Shernaghs scarf around his neck and his goggles, then put on the old RAF fur-lined flight jacket, feeling the instant warmth of it. Clipping on the army belt with the holster that contained his grandfather’s 1911 Colt Semi-Automatic, his final act was to put on his Australian bush hat, satisfied he made his way to the ladder that led to the shore.

On the shore he could see Stanley’s men had everything in hand, already two of the trucks had been unloaded and moved away waiting for the bowsers to be unloaded. Bobby, Cookie, and the four trainees stood to one side allowing Stanley to organize his men.

Shaun glanced at his watch, they were on schedule. Bobby came over to him.

“You can tell they have done this before,” he chuckled. Shaun nodded, watching as a bowser was unloaded. In seconds a truck was reversed and the bowser, hooked on and moved away. He saw Cookie examining the back of the Bedford truck that had brought Stanley and his men and walked over to him.

“I see they have improved on what we told them at the Crater boss,” Cookie murmured.

Hanging down from chassis of the Bedford were two heavy canvas strips about three feet wide with steel strips riveted to the canvas dragging on the ground.

Shaun nodded, “they’ll obscure the tire tracks but kick up a hell of a lot of dust. Just as well we will be travelling at night”.

After ninety minutes the Jeeps had all been unloaded and the convoy was formed up. The Iona Star had moved away rebuilding the large packing cases, now empty on the decks. They were alone now.

Bobby had cheeked that all the radios in the vehicles were all on the same net, their kitbags, and bedrolls had been placed in the water bowser truck.

They had discussed the setup of the convoy with Stanley. The four Jeeps would lead with the two trucks behind and the Bedford bringing up the rear.

Stanley came up to them, “We are ready to move Shaun, and we have to get to our first point before daylight before the Egyptian’s have their aircraft up”.

Shaun knew that the Egyptians had Spitfires and patrolled deeply into the Negev. “We’re ready Stanley,” he said climbing into the truck to join Bobby and Cookie. Stanley walked back to the lead Jeep.

Shaun put the scarf around his face and adjusted the goggles on his face then settled down onto the bedrolls as the convoy moved off. He knew that they would only be doing about ten miles an hour, and even this would drop to a crawl on some sections. Laying back on the bedrolls he contemplated the night sky awash with stars. The adrenaline slowly draining away from the tension that had gripped him during the unloading and he relaxed into a restless sleep.

Cookie woke him shaking his shoulder, he blinked regaining his senses.

“Get this inside you, Boss,” he said handing over a mug of tea. The convoy had stopped and the first light of dawn was appearing in the east.

Sitting up he looked around through the netting of a camouflage net. They appeared to be in a narrow valley, vehicles were positioned on either side of it already covered with nets. Finishing his tea he jumped down from the truck, Cookie already had the Bengasi burner’s working, “breakfast in twenty minutes Boss,” he said. Shaun nodded stretching to free his body of the kinks.

Seeing Bobby in conversation with Stanley in the front of the truck, he joined them.

“Good sleep Shaun?” Bobby asked with a smile on his face.

“Yes thanks,” Shaun replied sheepishly.

“Stanley says we made good time last night, but the going will get slower from here on,” Bobby continued.

They were interrupted by Cookie shouting “Grub up”.

“Have you had your breakfast yet Stanley?” Shaun asked Stanley.

“Not yet,” he replied.

“Well you are welcome to join us, but it will be bacon and eggs I’m afraid”. Shaun continued.

Stanley smiled sheepishly, “After five years in the British army I’m afraid I’ve become a lapsed Jew regarding food”.

Shaun and Bobby chuckled, “There’s going to be another for breakfast Cookie”. Shaun shouted.

After they had eaten, Shaun and Stanley walked along the ravine checking the displacement of the vehicles. They had been placed either side of the ravine in the shadows cast by the steepness of the sides. Each was concealed by a camouflage net which broke up the outline of each vehicle. Shaun could make out the men wrapped in their bedrolls already asleep from the labours of the previous night.

“They had been on the go for over twenty-four hours straight,” Stanley explained.

Shaun nodded as he continued.

“I have lookouts placed on either side of the valley, they’ll be relieved after two hours by the next lookouts,” Stanley explained. Shaun nodded again.

Stanley carried on, “We have a further three nights travel until we reach base camp. The last night will be the most dangerous, we head north to bring us closer to the Sini road. We have to pass between two villages which we suspect of having Egyptian sympathisers housed there”.

Shaun left Stanley pulling out his bedroll from his Jeep, thinking he too had been busy over the last twenty-four hours.

He pulled out his silver cigarette case and selected one before lighting it with his zippo lighter. Drawing deeply on it he set off slowly back to the truck.

The next three nights they made their way slowly but carefully along the route Prof had mapped out. The last night their speed dropped down to only five miles an hour as they navigated between the two villages. Coming to a halt finally in an outcrop of cliffs. It was still too dark for Shaun to make out the details of the place, but he was thankful to pull out his bedroll and get some sleep after the tension of the previous night.

Cookie woke him with a steaming mug of tea, he drank it slowly getting his bearings of the location, whilst Cookie returned to the burner.

They appeared to be in an old dry riverbed that had been out of use for over a thousand years. The sides had been washed smooth by the river that had flowed through it but now it had crumbled in places. Some of Stanley’s men were putting the finishing touches to the camouflage net the hung above him.

Bobby crouched down beside him, “You slept deeply as well as I, it seems,” he said grinning.

“Yeah, I must be getting old,” Shaun replied sheepishly.

“No, you are just out of practice like Cookie and I. I had a word with Stanley ten minutes ago, after we have eaten we are to meet him in the command post, he’ll send someone over to guide us”.

Cookie handed him his plate and another to Bobby before taking, his and settling down by the truck. “It looks fairly secure,” he said glancing down the riverbed.

“I had a quick look when I met Stanley. It’s quite narrow so there is a lot of shadows cast down to hide the vehicles,” Bobby murmured.

“I can’t remember Prof mentioning anything about it. But again he only surveyed the Southside of the Sini. This is further north, closer to the Med and the main Sini road,” Shaun replied.

They were cleaning up their plates when Sol arrived to show them to the command post.

In conversation with Sol as they walked, it seemed he had been here at the base for seven months. And it didn’t look like he would get home soon.

The command post was a large tarpaulin suspended on poles covering a deep recess at the base of the valley wall. Inside a four foot by eight-foot sheet of plywood suspended on trestles was covered in maps and sketches. Around the makeshift table, three men stood, Shaun, recognised his father-in-law immediately, Ari Silverman and Stanley. The third he had never seen before.

A huge smile lit up Ari Silverman’s face as he saw Shaun. “So how are my daughter and my grandson, Shaun?”

“Sharron was annoyed I wouldn’t let her come, but David keeps her occupied, he’s into everything now he’s toddling”.

Ari chuckled, “Well let me introduce you to our third member, you already know Stanley. This is Professor David Wiseman, he’s head of archaeology at Tel Aviv University. But also a very fine cartographer and has produced most of the maps you see on the table”. Turning to Professor Wiseman Ari said, “David this is my son-in-law, Major Shaun Ramage, the one at his side is Major Robert Dole and the other is Staff Sargent Stan Yates. Between them, they know more about the type of fighting we will encounter them, anyone, we have presently”.