Tammy: Flying High Part 1: Capture Shiraz Turvey & Alecia Snowfall

 
This story follows on from Tammy: Rank Stupidity and Snowfall's Butterflies, Asphalt & Insanity

Part 1 - Capture

Tammy and Maisie had spent another week at the Isle of Man TT Races and the pair were exhausted, but the end was in sight. The girls really wanted a quiet evening but they also had an informal party to attend, which meant another frock for Tammy and no exemption for Maisie. Tammy was flying the next morning so kept away from the alcohol, whilst Maisie had said she would now avoid it throughout her pregnancy.

They finally made it to bed at midnight, and were asleep with only the minimum of cuddling.

Tammy’s phone had been on Do Not Disturb but had started to ring and it was getting louder as she reached for it. The only light in the room was the flashing display, fortunately her blurred eyes could identify the name; the reason for the sleep interruption was rapidly becoming apparent given Krystel was in the same time-zone.

“What’s the emergency?

"Wake up, gear up and have Maisie get the rest of your stuff ready to go. Burgess is about to bail and we only get one shot at the asshole. Meet me at the back door in ten minutes."

The call ended but Tammy didn’t put the phone down, she had to have the last word. “It’s four in the night! Damn you!”

“What’s up?”

“Burgess. Beyond that I know very little, I guess Krystel will brief me.”

Tammy had shrugged off her nightwear and dug into the secret compartment of her case while she’d been speaking.

Adrenalin was kicking in and her body was fully away despite the hour. Tammy pulled out her black all-in-one battlesuit, along with the utility belt. A whole load of accessories followed including her Mad Dog knife, a small pouch and a holster.

Her handbag Glock had been retrieved from her plane a week or so earlier so that went in the holster. Finally she added an infrared night sight given the hour.

She gave Maisie a kiss. “My guess is Lonestar will come for you, get everything stowed and ready to bail out.”

“Stay safe. Our babe needs you.”

A minute later Tammy opened the back door of the Guest House spying Krystel in a SUV.

"Are you sure about the information?" Tammy asked as she climbed in.

Krystel nodded. "When somebody hates the target just as much as you do, it's as good as it gets."

"I don't understand." Tammy said as they drove off into the early morning darkness.

"Somebody made a deal. Somebody with a personal axe to grind. The Major closed that deal. We get Burgess and whatever he has, except one thing." Krystel explained.

Tammy looked over. "What is that?"

"A book. An old book the British want nothing to do with and neither do we. The other guy can have it. We get everything else. Burgess and any material relating to British concern go with you." Krystel instructed then gave her a hard look. "You will say nothing about what this cost. No third party. No deals. Got it?"

Tammy nodded. "Yes. I got it."

Tammy wondered who this third party could be that had Krystel so agitated. Were they Russians, Chinese, a Middle Eastern service or even Mossad? Whomever they were, it was obvious that Krystel did not want to deal with them. Quietly the pair drove on until arriving at an open field to park by the only tree cover. Together they climbed out after applying their facial camo. Krystel also tied a black rag over her hair to hide it. She gave one to Tammy and she did the same. Krystel handed her a slim cylinder.

"Auto-injector. It's got Twilight Zone in it. Slam it against his ass or thigh and hold it for eleven seconds. The needle is spring-loaded. A little pressure and it automatically deploys. Hold it firm against him." Krystel instructed then added. "And don't get yourself with it."

"Right." Tammy said taking the injector then scanned the field with her night vision monocular. "I think we're alone here."

Krystel was also looking around, but without a scope. "We aren't. Somebody else is around, we just don't see them. They won't get in our way. They'll wait until we're done then show themselves."

They crouched in concealment and waited. Finally, when Tammy felt like she was about to cramp up, the sound of a car approaching caught their attention. Headlights cut through the early morning gloom as it slowly entered the cliff-top field. The car stopped and turned off its lights. The front passenger door opened and man in black stepped out. He looked around slowly then knocked on the window. The opposite front door opened and another man stepped out. Both men spoke quickly then scanned the area again. Tammy looked to Krystel.

Krystel shook her head. "Not yet. Wait for the helo. When Burgess makes his move, so do we."

Tammy nodded and continued to wait. Her position was uncomfortable and she decided to use that. She decided to direct her discomfort toward the reason why she was there and uncomfortable: Burgess. Her annoyance for the man was now rapidly turning to hostility. For several minutes they waited then heard the sound of a twin turbine helicopter approaching.

"The helo is mine, I'll drop the guys on the right. You take the guy on the left and Burgess. No slip-ups. Get 'im or he's gone and we might not get this close again." Krystel told her.

Tammy became angry at the prospect of the man getting away again. "No Krystel. We get him this time. He's not getting away again."

Krystel continued to stare ahead. "There's our girl, welcome back. Let’s GO."

The helicopter had landed, powered down and disengaged its main rotor to receive passengers. The man on the left opened the car’s rear door then stood back, in deference to the passenger. That passenger now stepped out carrying a case then began walking purposefully toward the awaiting helicopter and one bodyguard. The second bodyguard followed behind.

Tammy took a quick glance to her right and saw Krystel fire a shot from her silenced pistol as she literally passed the driver at full sprint before another shot dropped the bodyguard. Tammy forced everything she had into moving her legs and closed on the two men. Two meters from them the first bodyguard turned and raised his hand to his mouth, presumably to instruct the other and froze in confusion. The man wasn't there, but something dark was moving fast toward their helicopter.

"SIR!" The Bodyguard started to yell, but Tammy had drawn even and without thinking, triggered her Glock at the centre of his body. and he cried out as he fell.

Burgess heard something and turned to check his men and saw a small dark something closing on him a meter and a half away. Just as he determined the shape to be a person, a fist connected with his face. Tammy had launched herself with all she had, at full speed, leading with her left fist. Tammy smiled as she felt her hand connect with his face and drive him to the ground. Burgess groaned in a daze then felt himself rolled over roughly and an object hit him in his right buttock then something sharp went in. Seconds later his world went black.

Tammy looked over as the Helicopter went silent and saw Krystel drag the pilot out onto the grass.

"GOT 'IM?" Krystel asked.

Tammy answered. "DEFINITELY!"

Krystel joined her and pointed. "Grab the case."

Tammy grabbed the briefcase with one hand and Burgess' arm with the other and together they dragged him back towards their car. Krystel hand her a pair of heavy duty zip-ties to secure his wrists and ankles.

Tammy sighed from her efforts. "Finally!"

"You said it." Krystel agreed then looked to the helicopter. "Nice ride."

"Is that a Bell? No, it's longer than a Bell." Tammy debated.

Krystel nodded toward it. "AgustaWestland. One-oh-nine. Grand I think."

"Well he won't be needing it, any more." Tammy said angrily to the unconscious man.

Krystel commented. "Exactly."

Tammy just stared angrily at him then the words registered. "Wait. Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Krystel grinned and winked at her.

Tammy snorted then began laughing and looked at Burgess. "There was this Dude!"

"Ah, she sees the light." Krystel chuckled then froze and spun around.

"Pax non venio pugnare." A man said as he stepped out of a shadow into half light.

Tammy demanded. "Who are you?"

"Domini Dei nostri servus." The man in Priest's robes answered.

"I can't understand him." Tammy told Krystel.

Krystel slowly lowered her pistols. "He's speaking in Latin. Lower your gun. It's deal time."

Krystel set the case on the hood of the car and opened it. "Alright. Is it in there?"

The priest stepped close and saw something wrapped in cloth. He took out a pair of white gloves that had marking all over them and unwrapped the cloth to reveal a large book.

He nodded and said. "Hoc est quod quaero."

The priest then marked the cross while whispering then re-wrapped the book and tucked it into a satchel he carried.

"That's it." Krystel said then closed the case.

"In Dei nomine, vade in pace." The Priest said as he backed away, marking the cross.

Krystel shook her head. "We don't do peace, Iscariot. Neither do you. Deal, done. You go, we go and this never happened."

The Priest nodded, turned and walked away into the shadows.

"Just so I can sleep at night, who was he and why should I not want to see him again?" Tammy asked.

Krystel began dragging the unconscious Burgess with one hand and carried the case with her other. "He's an Iscariot. Vatican Black Ops. Yes, even the Vatican has a Black Ops unit. They're not nice, don't play well with others and a real pain in the ass. Normally they speak in English or whatever language is local. It's rare for them to speak only in Latin, but he may have come from another order originally that requires it. There's a few like that."

"So he came for a book? Was it a rare bible?" Tammy asked.

"No. That was a Grimoire. a spell book. The kind you don't find in a store. Real world lesson, Tammy; magic and all that might not be real, but there are many people that believe in it and other mumbo jumbo. They get a book like that and you'll wish for a dirty bomb to go off. Just about anything is better than the things they do in rituals." Krystel explained.

Tammy understood that. "Right, I don't anything to do with that at all!"

"The Vatican will lock that away and bury it deep." Krystel said as they reached the SUV.

Burgess was loaded into the back and they climbed into the front and drove away, heading for the airport. Soon they were pulling in and found Tammy's plane waiting with the lights on and door open, dawn was still an hour away. Maisie was stood by the cabin door, alone waiting and clearly worried, as LoneStar and Eddie were talking off by the wing.

Krystel parked and opened the back so Eddie and LoneStar could retrieve Burgess from the back before carrying him into the plane and securing him.

"TAMMY! You won't believe this! Eddie found a bomb on the plane!" Maisie said and hugged her tight.

Tammy gasped for breath then eased her back. "Did you say a bomb?"

Eddie came came out and nodded. "Yep. Somebody don't like you, kid."

"Probably the same asshole we just put in the plane." LoneStar's muffled voice remarked.

Eddie handed Tammy a bundle. Two blocks of Semtex with a small electronic box the size of a pack of cigarettes.

"Okay, how does it do us in?" Tammy asked.

"Altimeter. You climb to a certain altitude and the timer activates. Boom, bye-bye plane and everybody in it, probably when you’re over water." Eddie informed her.

Krystel sighed. "So much for subtle."

Eddie shrugged. "That guy really hates you Tammy. Make sure you tell him he's on your plane, but don't mention the bomb."

"Don't. He'll piss himself and she'll have to clean it up." LoneStar shook his head then said to Tammy. "Your flight plan is already filed. Fully fueled and your squawk is set for your NATO identifier. You get a couple of hours then your guy MacTaggart gets a nasty phone call."

Tammy nodded. "Right. What about the helicopter?"

Eddie looked over. "Somebody just became a Dude?"

"Yeah. We'll go back for it and clean up the mess when she's in the air." Krystel replied.

LoneStar nodded. "It's getting light out here, let's get started. You two get that bird in the air."

Tammy saluted LoneStar and hugged Eddie. "Thank you both."

Tammy pushed Maisie to get in the plane and started the engine. within five minutes she had priority clearance and took off, heading Northwest into the dawning sky.

They had been in the air for an hour when the satellite phone started to ring. “Can you get that, Maisie?”

She shouted back, “I think it’s the Colonel, he wants to know where the hell we’re going?”

“Wick!”

Maisie shouted back. “Wattisham.”

“Damn! Not there.”

Maisie reported. “Yes.”

Tammy checked the fuel, it was doable on a single load, but she needed diversion options as well. She took the phone from Maisie.

“Sir, I need better options.”

“What’s wrong with Wattisham, Captain?”

“Too many people, and bad memories. Is this call being recorded anywhere?”

“It’s insecure, and you know that.”

“Yes sir, let’s just say that I don’t think my passenger needs publicity and that I don’t want recognition for my services. I’m effectively a civilian until I get orders in writing to the contrary.”

“I see.”

“Therefore, sir, my authority is minimal. I need to put down somewhere sensible and handle a small matter quietly before flying home.”

“What is your suggestion?”

“North Weald, and a private ambulance. My plane is known there, but is seen often enough that this won’t be out of the ordinary. I wouldn’t mind betting that there’s been a medical incident on board this plane previously?”

“I’ll make a few enquiries.”

“Thank you Sir.”

“What’s your ETA?”

“Ninety minutes, Sir.”

“Not enough time, but we’ll cope.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Tammy killed the call then returned to the cockpit.

“Okay Maisie, let’s head towards Stansted. We’d best let NATS know what the hell we’re doing, and perhaps get any make-up or camouflage off ourselves. Do we have a change of clothes available?”