Chapter 02

’Tinker’ Taylor: Spy

Helping Hand

One Saturday afternoon Madeline and Jack are having a cook-out for a group of their friends who recently left the Army for various reasons. A lot of them had served with Madeline on different operations with the largest group of them being recently retired from the same company on medical grounds or their enlistment expiring and them not re-enlisting.

A year before they were all on a recovery mission with Madeline in charge when it went to hell. They did successfully complete the mission, but most of them were seriously wounded when they had to fight their way to their secondary extraction point because of a number of enemy forces at both extraction sites and along their travel routes. It was clear to all involved their plans had been leaked to the enemy at some point soon after they were able to rescue the people they were sent to help get out of the country. After Madeline reported the intelligence breakdown the people in charge of the operation’s intelligence said the problem had to be at her end. Madeline didn’t accept that because her troops didn’t have the exact location of the second pick-up point but the enemy forces had it. Since she didn’t tell the enemy then the location had to have been given out by someone at the operational command center. When the details of this dispute became known the troops involved decided it was time to leave the Army to put all of that trouble behind them, so they did.

Many of the retired soldiers are discussing setting up a company of their own to contract with the government for the people to do the same sort of work, but without the usual government oversight to approve all of the aspects of the operation. A lot of them like the idea.

The discussion slows when Jack asks, “Have you written a business plan yet? Do you plan to work full-time or part-time? Thought about the hardware you want and the costs? What about getting intelligence on the task, the people, and the location?” He pauses to let that sink in before adding, “A lot more is involved in putting together those operations than hitching a ride and going to the location. Also, those types of operations aren’t all that common. Although, there are some segments of the government who would love to have a private company to call on to take such risks when they want to be able to disavow the operation if things go wrong or if they go exceedingly well.”

They move to talking about resolving all of the issues and what they can do when not on a mission. The biggest issue for them is obtaining reliable intelligence on the operation and area. The one they talk about the most is what to do for a living when not on such rare operations. The next most important part is how they go about finding clients and work.

The meal is well in the past and the evening is closing in when Lee says, “You may want to consider operating as a part-time business along the lines of the old televisions show ’Mission Impossible’ where they had folders on people’s skills and selected a team to suit the operation after the basic plan is decided on.”

Jack laughs as he says, “Lee, you must’ve been digging around in the TV archives to find those shows! I’m surprised a thirteen year-old knows about the TV show. Although, that does seem a good way to set up for those types of operations if they don’t also want to work as bodyguards and building security.” The discussion moves on, but nothing is settled.

A few days later Madeline has a quiet word with one of the generals who often tasks her with the recovery operations. After she explains what they talked about on Saturday he promises to sound out a few people then get back to her. The General later talks to some senior people at the National Security Council (NSC). Two months later word is passed back to Madeline the NSC would like to see such a group set up. While they could loan equipment for a task they can’t create it. Madeline mentions it to Jack and Lee, then Lee talks to his grandfather and a new company is set up under Lee’s personal trust account to finance the new business.

Having Lee’s grandfather set up the company under Lee’s personal trust helps to distance the company from the US government and the Army while also providing the initial funds for the company.

The retired soldiers all agree to work part-time as required by the business whenever an operation comes their way. Sergeant John Turner is the administrator. They have to rely on word of mouth for clients since it’s not the type of business you can advertise on television. However, clients are slow in approaching them as those involved are being very choosy about who they let know about the new company named Omega Recovery Company with a short name of Omega or ORC with an Omega symbol as their shoulder patch logo while they also used a stylized image of the fictional Orc on their letterhead along with the Omega symbol.

The first ORC operations aren’t quite along the lines they expect, while they are dangerous and deadly. In the first year of operation they retrieve several kidnap victims from criminal groups within the US and Mexico. They also help a few people to escape from the compounds of some of the more extreme cults as well as a few other groups who make it hard for people to leave them. With each successful operation the word spreads through the people with power, those with money, and some government groups about the skills of the Omega People, as they’re often called, to get a hard job done at a reasonable price for the task without all of the hassles required to have it done by government organizations. Their reputation grows with each successful operation due to them never failing a task they take on, becase they research and plan them very well.

A large part of their success is due to them insisting the client pays them to conduct their own evaluation of the job before writing a contract and planning it. This lets them confirm the intelligence given to them by other sources before they plan the operation. What does surprise them is when they find out which government supplied intelligence sources can be trusted all of the time, and which can’t always be trusted. Why some of the intelligence work of those organizations is good and some is bad is something they can’t work out, but they do note the results and they take great care with what they get told from some of the organizations.

Distant Drums

On a Saturday in late April fifteen year-old Lee is wearing BDUs while he hides in the bushes near the back door of his home. He’s sitting with his legs crossed while working hard on pretending to be a part of the bushes. He has his paintball marker loaded with a dozen paint balls of a special chemical mix a friend made for him. The contents of the balls won’t leave a color mark on the target, but they will make it smell like a skunk had sprayed it. The gun is sitting on a support ready to fire with Lee’s arm also supported in the ready to fire position. This way he won’t have to move his arm to shoot his target when it appears. The laser sight Lee has mounted on the gun and sighted-in will ensure his aim is good.

About an hour after Lee takes up his position he sees movement in the bushes near the back of the yard. His target has arrived. Lee waits for it to move further into the yard to be sure of his aim while thinking, Now I’ll make that damn cat attacking the birds at Dad’s feeders very sorry. Maybe this will encourage it to stay away. The cat is halfway from the rear bushes to the feeders with the local birds feeding there when Lee turns on the laser and he starts to slowly bring his weapon on target. The sound of the patio door sliding open and voices has the cat immediately spinning in its own length and streaking for the back fence bushes again. Lee thinks, Damn, now I’m going to be sitting here for another hour or more.

Then he hears his mother say, “General, much as I hate to say it, this Operation Sunflower just won’t work. I’d like to close the scum down, but there’s a leak you can’t find, so you’ll only be sending people out to get killed. Find the leak and deal with it, then I can put together a team.”

Lee sits still and he listens while they talk about the operation and the problems with it. When he hears the operation is to close down a ring of people kidnapping young children for the sex slave trade he realizes how upset his mother is about not being able to deal with these people. But he agrees they can’t take any action until they can counter the leak in the HQ area. From their talk Lee knows operations from three different groups have been compromised by the leak, and that makes it hard to locate the source of the leak. The only thing the two discussing the project can agree on is it seems the leak is more than one source, and that makes it almost impossible to locate. After a fifteen minute talk they go inside, and a little later Lee hears a car drive away. He continues to sit still and wait.

Thirty minutes later the cat returns. Lee waits until the cat is almost at the bird feeders. The cat often freezes while watching the birds as it stalks them. Lee waits. The cat moves a little then it stops. The laser is on the cat’s middle so Lee fires two rounds very fast. The cat’s head comes up at the sound of the gas discharge to launch the paint ball on its way. For a fraction of a second the cat stays still before it spins in place and starts to run away. The first ball hits the cat’s side as it starts its turn and the second round hits the cat’s back just after it finishes turning. Lee thinks, Got ya! I wonder what your owner will think of you when you get home smelling like that? Lee starts to stand up, but the cat is out of sight before he can get to his feet. Lee walks over to where he shot the cat, he pulls a small handheld sprayer from his pocket, and he sprays the ground where some of the chemical splashed after the balls hit the cat. The chemical in the sprayer will negate the chemical that was in the paint ball so the area will smell OK in a few minutes. Lee smiles as he walks back inside.

For the rest of the weekend Lee thinks about the conversation he overheard. Like his mother he doesn’t like not being able to take down the bad guys involved, but it’s just too risky with the leaks in the system letting them know when a team is on its way in to deal with them.

During the week Lee has a thought, makes a call, and visits a retired soldier after school on the following Thursday. At a house a few blocks away he walks around the back to find a man in his workshop, and Lee says, “Sarge, what do you know about Operation Sunflower?”

Sergeant John ’Wood’ Turner, US Army retired, turns to Lee to say, “I know enough to know I don’t want to go near it, that you shouldn’t even know about it, and it pisses me off we can’t deal with the scum. Why?”

“Well, I don’t know the location or the other details, but it seems to me the only real problem is the fact no one can get an operation activated without their spies knowing about it.” Turner nods his agreement. “Well, what if we can get a small team in to do the recon and get the recovery done before anyone here is told it’s being done?”

Turner smiles at Lee as he says, “That’s a good basic idea! It has only a few problems. One, the people in the remote target area will be very careful of any unknown men in the area. Two, the cost of getting the team to the location without help from higher up. Three, we need somewhere safe to stay in the area. Solve those three and we may have a chance.”

“OK! I’ll work on it. While I do that why don’t you list a support unit of four or five people to support the field agent and to provide cover fire in the extraction phase. Where are we talking about?”

While slowly shaking his head Turner grins as he says, “I can do that.” He then tells Lee where the operation needs to occur. Lee sighs on hearing the location, slowly nods, and walks away to go home while he thinks about this. He already has item one covered and he’s sure he can cover item two, but the third is the real problem for him to solve.

The following weekend Lee is with his grandfather for the weekend. At one point they’re alone and Lee says, “Gramps, I don’t know if you know who to talk to, but I know you know who to talk to so you can find out who to talk to about what I want.” His grandfather smiles at the convoluted statement. “I need to talk to someone in the Mossad who you have reason you can trust my life to. Can you arrange it?”

Randolph Leyland turns to stare at Lee for a moment before he sighs and replies, “I know someone I can speak to. What’s this about?”

“Sorry, Gramps. Need to know. This has already cost too many lives for me to not keep it close to my chest.”

“I see! I think. I’ll set it up. I suppose you want it to be face to face in a secure environment where I introduce you and vanish!” Lee simply nods his agreement while he gives his grandfather a weak grin. “Each day you’re more and more like your mother. Is she a part of this?”

“No! I can’t afford to involve her because she would have to notify a few others who I need to keep it from. I also need to try and get this done this summer, so we need to move quickly. The longer this takes to get ready the more chance it will come apart on me.”

Randolph sighs as he nods his agreement while thinking, I don’t like this, but he’s way too much like his mother. Well, he’s better trained than she was when she started on these activities. I just hope he knows what he’s doing with this one. The rest of the weekend is a good time of fun activities and Randolph teaches Lee a few things about scuba-diving as well.

A Friend of a Friend

On the Friday a week later Lee and Randolph leave immediately after school to fly to Washington, D.C., in a small jet. On the flight Randolph and Lee change into evening dress suits. At Dulles International Airport they’re met by a car with a driver to take them to the Israeli Embassy in Cleveland Park, D.C., where Lee is surprised to find they’re attending a dinner party where he’s the youngest person there by over two decades.

After the meal the fifteen people there move to a large lounge room to talk. When they’re almost to the lounge room door Randolph stops to introduce Lee to a man by saying, “Lee, I can’t tell you this gentleman’s real name but I’ll introduce him to you as David. I trust him a lot. He’s the man you want to talk to. I’ll go chat with some folks while you have your talk.” Lee smiles, nods, and turns to follow David to a room.

A few minutes later David shows Lee into a room, shuts the door, turns on a switch beside the door, turns to Lee, and says, “This room is shielded. Normally I wouldn’t speak to someone as young as you, but I owe Randolph a lot for his past help. I’m surprised I could not get any information on you from any of the regular sources in the time available to me. So who are you, and what do you want to talk with me about?”

Lee grins as he says, “I bet you were told my name is Lee Taylor and that was all!” David nods his head yes. Lee adds, “I’ve been called Lee since the day I was born, so that’s all people know me as. However, my legal name is Randolph Leyland Taylor, my father is Master Sergeant Jack Taylor, retired, and mother is Lieutenant Colonel Madeline Leyland. I’m sure that helps you to put things into perspective.”

David laughs as he says, “The checks on Randolph showed his son-in-law as Taylor and Randolph had a grandson, but none of us equated Lee Taylor to being his grandson. We all thought you were just a friend of Randolph since Taylor is a common name and we couldn’t find any of your father’s family with the name Lee. OK. That explains why Randolph was pushing to have me talk with you. Why?”

“I’m sure your sources know about a proposed US plan that’s on hold called Operation Sunflower and why it’s on hold.”

“Yes, I do know about that operation and why it’s held up. I’d like to see it done by my people, but we can’t afford any backlash if we do it.”

“Good, David. It’s likely you know more about the details than I do. As I see it the issues with the operation are the US has an information leak that stops them from getting the operation off the ground and the targets are very wary of new men in the target area. I believe the first can be countered by not having any US government involvement until after the recovery is made. The second can be dealt with by having a ground agent they won’t think is an agent. That leaves a few issues I need some help with to get this show on the road. First is intelligence on the target and target area without involving the US intelligence services. Second is a way to reach the target area without any US help. Third is an extraction method without any US help. Last is somewhere in the area to safely hide a four or five person support team while the agent is busy at work.”

David scrutinizes Lee for a moment before saying, “ I’m surprised at someone your age organizing this, but I can help you with all of that if I think you have a chance. Also, I don’t need to get any help or approvals to help you in this as I can authorize what’s needed. However, I need to be convinced they won’t pick out your agent on arrival there.”

Lee grins as he replies in Arabic, “I’m short for my age and I think I can easily look like I’m younger than I am.”

After a long and hard laugh David says, “That’s one answer I was not expecting.” He switches to Arabic with a slightly different accent as he asks, “Can you do this accent which is what they use in that region?”

Copying the accent Lee says, “I’m sure I can with a little practice. Can you get me some tapes to listen to so I can practice the accent?”

In English David says, “You almost have it. Yes, I can get you tapes. I can get you into the area via Jizan Regional Airport in Saudi Arabia and the extraction will be from the entry point to Ovda Airport in Israel. You will need to get your group from the target compound back to my people in Jizan. The target compound is in the mountains east of Jizan. While it’s near a Saudi village we believe the actual compound is across the border in Yemen. I’ll get everything to you through Randolph.” After a little more discussion they shake hands then they leave the room. While they walk out David thinks, He’s young and smart. I think he may be able to deal with this devil we’re after. However, if he can’t deal with him there’s no way to link Lee back to us or the US government or Israel. I hope this plan of his works as it’s the best chance I’ve heard about to stop this group’s evil activities.

The next week Lee receives a packet of information delivered by his grandfather. It has a lot of details about the compound, the village near it, and recordings of people from that area in daily conversations. While the local accent is a little different to what Lee was originally taught it’s close enough he has no trouble learning it. He also copies the recordings to give to Sergeant Turner for the support people he selected so they can all practice the local accent as well, because they all speak Arabic well.

When Lee hands over the tapes he tells Turner, “Sarge, I’ve arranged an independent insertion and extraction. I need a support group to be on hand if there’s an extraction issue and we have to fight our way out. I figure the target won’t see me as a likely risk to them.” Turner sighs when he simply nods as he takes the recordings. In the following days he organizes a support team and he gives them the recordings.

A Country Boy Can Survive

On the Friday of the first week in June the team of Lee and four combat veterans who speak Arabic well are leaving a plane at the King Abdullah bin Addulaziz Airport in Jizan. David got the team into the country near the east coast and they took a commercial flight across the country. While the preparation time is short it is sufficient for the small team to get ready for the task on hand. The biggest advantage they have in this operation is the very high level of secrecy. Other than the team involved only David and Sergeant Turner know about the mission. David organized for the people getting them into the country to be different to the ones who’ll help with the extraction, and they’re different to the local village helpers. None know who they’re helping, nor why, nor who else is helping them. No one in the US intelligence or military organizations are aware of them going in, nor does anyone within David’s organization or government know about the team being deployed.

At this time the plan is to get the team in place so they can evaluate the situation. If they can organize the recovery of any kidnap victims they’ll do so while inflicting as much damage as they safely can do to the kidnappers prior to leaving. Otherwise they’ll plan for the recovery to take place later while setting up and asking for more people. There’s just too many unknowns for them to do a detailed plan yet. One aspect of the plan is for Turner to contact the General to get a contract for ORC to do the job signed by the NSC once the team is on the way out.

While moving through the terminal the team members find a place where they can change their clothes and their facial disguises to cut the links between their insertion and their on-site activity. As a result of the changes Lee looks a lot younger than he did on the aircraft while the others look older than they did on the aircraft. On leaving the terminal the team makes it’s way to where they were told to meet up with their local contact. Code phrases are exchanged and they climb into the back of the truck loaded with things to be delivered to the village nearest their target. The trip is only around fifty miles with most of it on good roads without a lot of traffic, but the vehicle isn’t the best and the roads near the end of the trip aren’t the best, either. Thus it takes them close to an hour and a half to travel from Jizan to the village that’s their destination.

The truck stops at a farm on the edge of the village for the team to get out and enter the farm where they’ll be staying while in the village. Only Lee will leave the farm while they’re here, the rest will help work the farm and stay out of sight as much as they can.

Two days after they arrive Lee walks into the center of the village with the other farm children: a boy Lee’s age, another boy of about ten years-old, and two girls between their ages. Their job is to deliver some of the excess produce to a woman in the village market area and to collect some items wanted at the farm. The girls are doing the carrying while the three boys provide their male escort. This task is done every two or three days. The process has Lee being accepted by the locals under his cover name of Aziz while it also allows Lee to learn what he can about the area from what he can see and what the locals say near him.

At other times Lee and Abdul, the oldest farm boy, wander the hills. They claim to be out hunting, but the main reason is for Lee to get a good idea of the terrain and to find places where he can watch the compound from. He finds a few vantage points to watch the compound and the road to it. He can also tell trying to reach and climb the compound walls isn’t going to work at all due to the terrain and what looks like landmines near the walls and the road. Watching how the compound’s vehicles go along the road makes it clear it has some mines along it as well. There’s two points where the vehicles deliberately drive on the wrong side of the road, and they always drive on the same side of the road when they go through those two areas. Each area is only about a hundred yards long and there appears to be markers beside the road, but they are a concern.

Each night Lee describes what he’s done and what he’s seen to his support people so they know what’s happening, then they discuss it all. One night about two weeks after they reached the farm they all agree there’s no way to make an external entry to the compound, unless they can find its secret exit. They’re sure there is one, but they can’t find it.

On the first day of July the farm children are in the market with food when a truck from the compound drives into the market place and stops. Four men get out and stand beside the truck. Half an hour later a bus drives up beside it and a dozen mid-teen boys get off the bus.

Lee asks Abdul, “Do you know what this is about?”

Abdul replies, “I’m not sure, but this happens every two or three months. I think they’re new staff for the compound. I don’t know.”

Lee and Abdul watch while the men check the bags of the boys, they search the boys, then they check off their names on a list they have. One of the men says, “That’s all on the list and they’ll do for recruit training, but we still need two more boys for errands in the house.”

The one in charge looks around, spots Lee and Abdul, walks over to them, and demands to see their identity papers. The two boys don’t like this but there’s little they can do with the four armed men watching them, so they get out their papers and hand them to the man. He reads the papers, looks the boys over, and says, “Get on the truck. You just got hired to work.” When Abdul goes to object the man says, “Someone here will tell your family about your new work. Move.” He hands them back their identity documents but he doesn’t write their names down.

Lee sighs, grabs Abdul’s arm, and they move toward the truck. They climb in and look for seats. The only spot big enough for them both is at the front of the truck on the driver’s side, so Lee goes there to sit down and Abdul sits beside him. Lee quietly says, “I don’t think it wise to say anything to him.” Abdul gives a short laugh before nodding agreement. Lee adds, “I hope they pay us for the work.” Which gets another nod.

The man is correct in the other children saw what happened and they tell everyone at the farm about it when they get back. Lee’s team discuss what this means, then they decide to sit and wait to see what happens.

Because all of the background checking of people is done before they get sent to the compound no one checks the background of Abdul and Lee. Also, because all of the boys had been searched before they told Lee and Abdul to get in the truck the two boys aren’t searched. So they get to enter the compound with all the materials they normally carry on them. Thus they’re the only new people who are armed. Both boys have knives while Lee has some drugs as well as a .25 ACP pistol in his pocket.

Interlude

Jack and Madeline go to Randolph’s home to celebrate the 4th of July with the rest of the family. When they don’t see Lee there Madeline asks, “Jack, when is this camp you sent Lee on over?”

He lowers the drink he’s about to sip from as he says, “I thought you sent him on the camp. I only know he told me he was going to a camp for the summer, but he didn’t say how long.” Madeline’s eyes go wide while she shakes her head no.

Just then Randolph walks over to them. He hears what Jack said and says, “Lee hoped to be back by now, but he does plan to be back before school starts. I don’t know where he went, but he did ask me to cover for him if anyone asks. So I ask you don’t make an issue of his absence.” Both of Lee’s parents turn to give Randolph hard stares, so he adds, “I’ve no idea what it’s about, but I did promise to cover his butt.” They both sigh and nod agreement while they wonder what their son is up to.

While they trust Lee a lot they don’t like how he tricked them and he didn’t clear this with them before going away to wherever it is he went.

In various parts of the world a number of men are kidnapping eight to twelve year old children to order. Some are for their looks while some are selected as a way of hurting their families. In all, fifteen children are kidnapped and smuggled around the world over a ten days in July.

One by one the kidnapped children all arrive in an old warehouse set up to house them as prisoners. In the last week of July there are nineteen children in the warehouse. Their hands are tied together, their mouths gagged, and they’re loaded onto a bus. The bus leaves on a long drive to a remote compound. They arrive at the compound on July thirtieth.

Around the same time a dozen men head toward the same compound after they either fly into the area or drive across the country. All of the men arrive at the compound on the thirty-first of July.

Bad Moon Rising

Within a week of being taken to the compound Abdul and Lee are hard at work within the household. They’re fully accepted by the other workers there while the other boys from the truck are being trained as fighters for some group the two boys don’t know the name of because it’s never said in their hearing. Within two weeks both boys are running errands all over the compound without anyone asking what they’re doing or why. It’s just assumed they were given orders to do something and they’re now doing it. Thus the two boys are able to acquire a few things for their own use without being noticed by anyone in authority.