Roger Ellis - AK-239

An older man with a white beard appears in a small, beat up Honda 4-wheel ATV. He waves to them as he approaches. I can’t see well from my angle looking through binoculars.

“Is it Ruddy?” I ask.

“No,” Jennifer quickly answers.

As the man rides onto the long steel dock, he is dressed in a big parka and a pair of blue jeans. He looks harmless enough as he is about 60 years old.

As he drives out to the edge of the dock where we are, Jennifer and I both pull our Glocks and have them in our ridiculous yellow rain gear.

“Hello,” he says with a thick Russian accent.

Jennifer answers, “Hello. We’re with the FBI and would like to ask you a few questions.”

The man, a little too eagerly, says,

“All right.”

The man walks to the barge from the dock. Looking closely now, I realize Jennifer is right, this dock is designed to move heavy machinery as it’s definitely made of heavy reinforced steel!

As the man approaches the boat he puts out his hand and I help him aboard.

“I am Doctor Vladimir Peskov, senior scientist, Russia Uranium Specialty Company (RUS), how can I help you?”

“I am Jennifer Tavana and this is John Denning, Special Agents, FBI. Have you seen this man?”

Jennifer shows the doctor a picture of George Ruddy.

“Nyet. No, no, can’t say that I have,” answers Doctor Peskov. “We’ve purchased mining claims all over this mountain. Looks like it’s a big waste of money as all of the uranium is under water and not economically feasible to get out. We’ll be packing up soon and leaving.”

Jennifer later told me this too was suspicious as recent news articles on Bokan Mountain have valued the rare earth deposits alone at six and one half billion dollars, and that doesn’t even include the uranium!

Jennifer asks, “Are you here alone?

The doctor pauses before answering, “I have several associates around here somewhere.”

“How many?” I ask.

Once again, after a long pause the Russian answers,

“Three.”

Jennifer: “Mind if we look around?”

The scientist is acting a little too helpful, “No, no. Not at all.”

Jennifer, “Could we talk to your partners?

“Sure but they are deep in the mine and I can’t contact them. They won’t be back ‘til late,” says the Russian scientist.

This is suspicious to me as Jennifer said her satellite passes only indicated one person.

Jennifer looks at me, then hands the doctor a picture of George Ruddy,

“Please call me if you see this man. Don’t approach him, he’s to be considered armed and dangerous.”

“Absolutely,” says the Russian.

“Okay then, thank you. We’ll be going now.”

Jennifer and I know we’re likely in way over our heads and we begin to leave.

The scientist stops me saying,

“By the way, did you look in my suitcases?”

Apparently, I hesitated just a tiny bit too long before I said,

“No, No I did not.”

The Russian scientist put his left arm in the air and made a fist.

While I was looking at this, puzzled, when the utter silence of the woods was shattered by the thumping of silenced rounds tarring into the wood around us.

Jennifer and I immediately dive for protection as we both instinctively know that a thump with no crack means:

Damn!

Those are suppressed rounds!

And they’re close!

Then silence again.

Several more suppressed shots and then silence once again.

It’s funny:

No matter where you are, you instinctively dive and always remember the smell of dirt, wood, or whatever is near your face.

I look around the corner of the heavy wood frame.

Nothing.

I’m looking for Jack and Mike but see nothing.

No answer.

I look around and cannot see the doctor or anyone.

I look at Jennifer and only now realize:

Fuck!

She’s hit!

And unconscious.

Only now do I realize my fall was instinctive.

Jennifer’s is possibly lead induced.

Fearing the worst I grab her, unzip her jacket, and now notice a buckle on her overalls has been shattered.

I continue to look around, worried that the doctor and his accomplices can’t be far away.

I pull off her shirt and see she is wearing a bulletproof vest but it appears to have done little good. Her Glock is nearby teetering on the edge of the deck. When I reach for it another shot goes off knocking the Glock into the water.

Now I know I’m dealing with expert marksmen.

I turn Jennifer on her right side and see blood coming out her upper back. The bullet has gone through her body and has exited near her left shoulder.

It’s so near her carotid artery, she’ll bleed out in seconds.

I look to Jack’s boat to see if I can somehow get to that first aid kit when a sniper round flies about an inch from my head.

Okay, I’m not doing that again!

I hustle back inside the barge and can see the old Russian scientist taking off on his ATV down the dock.

I find a role of duct tape, grab it, and tear a piece off, slapping it on the entrance and exit wounds.

This appears to stop the blood so I do it again.

I peek through a hole in the wooden barge and now, for the first time, get scared.

Ya, even Navy SEALs feel fear!

I see five operators with high-powered rifles in full military tac gear only about 100 yards away and closing fast.

There likely is at least one other sharpshooter looking at us from a covered position.

In any event, my Glock is worthless at that range.

My Navy SEAL training comes flooding back.

My first thought:

We’re outta here!

But I cannot leave Jennifer.

First, I take three very slow and very deep breaths as I continue to work on Jennifer.

You can do this, JD!

I begin dragging Jennifer to the back of the barge away from the sniper’s line of fire. I check her neck again and finally feel a faint pulse.

I peer around the corner of our boat and can see through the deck railing onto The Black Pearl . Both Jack and Mike are lying in their own pools of blood, dead.

I look at the water then back to the boats.

I then peer around the barge and, for the first time, identify what appears to be an unmarked Russian GRU Special Forces team closing fast.

Little green men?

I hated that Ukrainian term!

Ukrainians coined the term when Russian Special Forces Teams in unmarked military uniforms quietly began taking over the Crimean Peninsula in 2014. From airports to military bases previously owned by Ukraine, these units sowed confusion and put down anyone who resisted. God help us if this is who they are. They are the best of the best.

Later came the marked units but the little green men had done their job: Cause confusion, diversion and pave the way for armored units.

These guys are all dressed in black.

I shake Jennifer,

“Jennifer!”

She’s still unconscious.

I now realize I still have on my ridiculous yellow jacket and bright red fishing pants thinking:

We might as well have been wearing bull’s eyes!

I look at the water and realize this is our only escape route.

Just my luck:

Again, with the cold and the wet.

And I’m the slowest swimmer in the U.S. Navy!

I take a deep breath, breathe into her mouth and then close it, holding her nose. I turn Jennifer around so her back is directly against my chest.

Then I fall on my back, protecting her as much as I can.

My first thought as I hit the water:

Damn!

This’s cold!

I take another breath and give it to Jennifer. I then immediately place her on my side and begin a sidestroke, pulling Jennifer, so I can see around the back of the barge.

The Special Forces team is half way down the dock heading right for me.