OUTCAST Ops: African Firestorm

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

When Riyad strode onto the Northstar Venture's bridge, Narsai could see that his commander was angry. For a moment, the specter that he had done something wrong rose in his mind, but Riyad's expression wasn't directed at him.

"It appears that the Americans are more troublesome than I thought."

"Sir?" Narsai prompted.

"I received a message from a contact in South Africa. It appears that Kamal Hassan tried to have the Americans killed and failed!" The last word was shouted, startling Narsai and the other two bridge crewmen.

"What happened?"

"Kamal tried to ambush the Americans at their hotel, only it was Hassan's men who were slaughtered. The Americans retaliated by attacking Hassan's estate later that night."

"Hassan is dead?"

"No one knows. They didn't find his body at the estate, but the police did find enough drugs to issue an arrest warrant. Also, the Satan-dammed Iranians are nosing around. If they catch Hassan, or if the Americans question him…." Riyad spat in disgust. "I should have ordered Ilshu to kill Hassan when he had the chance!"

"Hassan doesn't know the plan beyond us hijacking the warheads. He has no idea what they’re for. We're leaving in twenty-eight hours; after that it won’t matter anymore."

Riyad nodded. "Nevertheless, I'm assigning four more guards to the Northstar, and releasing Yabaal of any duties onboard this ship. Between his new toys and the enemy force approaching tomorrow evening, our good general will be distracted."

Narsai’s ears perked up. "Tomorrow evening? How do you know?"

The ICA colonel smiled. "Because I called and told them when to come."

Narsai blinked in confusion. "You called them?"

Riyad grinned. "Yabaal is a thug, but a useful one. But he is easily distracted. One of the easiest ways to do so is to give him a threat to his position, and he will forget everything else. And Yabaal has a lot of enemies."

"Do you think the Americans are going to come after us anyway?"

Riyad's expression darkened. "Only if they have a death wish."

Kabri Dar Airport was outside of the city proper, and consisted of a single runway running east-west. The first thing Tanner noticed when he climbed out of the Gulfstream was how hot and dry it was.

He looked around. The airport was surrounded by a mix of reddish-brown soil and low, green-leaf trees. The airplane had pulled into a siding at the western end of the runway. Except for the runway and a two-story building near what appeared to be the front gate, there wasn't much to indicate the area was inhabited.

"Fun place," Liam remarked as he stepped down the plane's stairs.

"Isn't it?" Tanner turned to Stephen who was the next to deplane. "Are you sure this is where your contact said to meet us?"

"Positive," Stephen said, checking out the surroundings.

"Can you trust this guy?"

"Yes, don’t worry." Stephen gave Tanner an annoyed look. "He's the Agency's top agent for this entire region."

The din of approaching engines stopped the conversation. Tanner and Liam scanned the skies and saw an object coming in from the northeast. After a few seconds, they could make out that it was a helicopter descending toward them. Its paint job— the same shades of green and red as the surrounding ground — would make it very difficult to discern when viewed from above.

Liam shielded his eyes with his hand while staring at the descending chopper. "Looks like a Mil MI-8 Hip. Soviet model that you can find all over Africa."

"Local military?" Tanner asked.

The Hip landed a hundred feet away from the Gulfstream, kicking up enough dust to make the three men shield their eyes from the swirling haze. The pilot killed the engine and the airport was suddenly silent again. After a few moments to let the blades wind down, the helicopter's side door slid open. Three men jumped out and strode toward the Gulfstream.

Tanner gave the trio a once-over. All were African, dark-skinned and wiry, dressed in civilian clothing.

When they got closer, the individual in the middle, wearing a Sex Pistols T-shirt, yelled in accent-free English, "Hey Infidel! What brings you out here to my neck of the woods?"

Liam and Tanner tensed, but Stephen smiled and walked toward the three. "Business, you khat-chewing slacker," he shouted back.

The native grinned. Stephen met him and the two shook hands and slapped shoulders. "Been a long time, Stephen," he said. "Iska waran?"

"Nabat," Stephen replied. He turned to the others. "Tanner, Liam — this is Axiam Osman. Axiam, these are two of my good friends, Tanner and Liam."

"Good to meet you," Axiam said. He motioned to the two men flanking him. "These are my cousins, Geedi and Madar. Their English isn't so great, but they're good boys." The two cousins looked a lot like Axiam, only younger, Geedi being a little taller and wearing a red T-shirt, while Madar was a little thinner and wore a green one.

The other OUTCAST operators began deplaning, and Axiam eyed the newcomers, his gaze locking on Naomi. "Whoa, hot babe alert!"

Naomi looked him over coolly. "You couldn't keep up with me.”

Axiam laughed. "I doubt I could. Especially after my loving wife, she who is the mother of my five children, castrated me for even thinking about another woman."

"How is Shariifo?" Stephen asked.

"She is well and waiting for us. We'd better get you loaded up. Hope you don't mind sharing the space with a ton and a half of khat."

"Cats?" Danielle asked.

Axiam shook his head, "Khat," he repeated, the word rhyming with cot. "Think of it as the African equivalent of the coco leaf."

"A drug," Tanner said with a frown.

"Easy, Tanner," Stephen said. "Khat is a part of Somali culture and has been for centuries."

"And most of the surrounding countries," Axiam said. "It's less addictive then tobacco and alcohol, but it's banned in most European and North American countries. Around here, it's used the same way the Brits use tea. Business deals and alliances are forged over a session of khat chewing." He shrugged. "Besides, the country's economy is all shot to hell. It was either become a dealer in khat, or a pirate."

"That's why we need him," Stephen said.

"Can you get us into Eyl?" Tanner asked.

Axiam's smile faded. "Yeah. Won't be easy, though. Place has been overrun with Yabaal's goons."

"Who?"

"'General Wardi Yabaal." Axiam used air quotes when speaking the man's title. "He’s your run-of-the-mill low-life with delusions of grandeur. He took Eyl several months back from the Puntland government, and they haven't managed to push him out yet."

"How many men does he have?"

Axiam shrugged. "Two to four hundred. Most of them have the military training of a six-year old, but they can still kill you. That's why when I make the khat run to Eyl, I always bring along extra guns."

He glanced at his digital watch. "We're burning daylight. I want to be home before nightfall."

Tanner made eye contact with the others. "You heard the man. Mount up!"