Date: Wed, 20 Jan 2010 02:01:36 +0000
From: Jacob Latson <jacob_latson@hotmail.com>
Subject: Agony & Ecstasy Chapter 43

Disclaimer:

This story will describe the life of John Miller from his time as
a man who has been devastated by divorce and into a new life of wealth.
This story will include descriptions of male sex, including M/M, M/T,
M/b, T/b and b/b.  If stories involving sex between consenting males of
all ages, including mainly gay sex, offends you, go back to the
Archives and pick a different story for your reading pleasure.  Don't
expect constant descriptions of erotic sex in this story.  I always
want to develop a plot and characters before the hot action starts.

There has been minimal research for this story therefore, names,
places, and events are mostly fictitious and similarities to real life
are coincidental.

Some companies and organizations mentioned actually exist, but
references to the activities, policies, programs and procedures are
fictitious. This story will include references to the United States
government, the FBI, CIA and other agencies.  Any references are purely
fictional, and only used to develop the plot and characters.

Thanks again to Bill for his editing skills.


Agony & Ecstasy Chapter 43


John regained consciousness and struggled against the bonds that held him
immobile.  His arms and legs were bound and he couldn't see anything.  He
struggled to catch his breath and agonized about Nicklas, his son.  He
prayed that Nicklas was still safe at his home in Nassau and that he was
the only person who had been abducted.  He had feared that someone would
kidnap him or one of his family members to get ransom and had talked to
Butch about the danger.  They had agreed that complying with any terrorists
would delay the inevitable: that John would be killed.  John realized that
he was in a vehicle traveling on very rough roads.  He tried to scream at
his attackers, but the gag in his mouth kept him from making any sound that
anyone could hear.  He felt another needle pierce his arm and lost
consciousness.

Nicklas thought that he was having a nightmare when he woke up.  His head
was throbbing from the effects of the cloth and pungent chemical that had
been forced against his nose and mouth until he passed out.  He knew that
he was a muscular teenager and struggled to free his hands and legs.  He
smelled his own waste and knew that he had emptied his bladder and bowels.
It was humiliating to him and he gagged and vomited against the gag in his
mouth.  He had only a few seconds of consciousness before his attackers
took control again.

"¡Él está estrangulando!  ¡Despeje su boca!" (He's choking!  Clear his
mouth!) a muffled voice yelled.  Nicklas only knew a few words in Spanish
from his friends in Michigan and thought he was going to choke to death.
He felt the gag being pulled out of his mouth and vomited everything that
had been in his stomach.  If the gag hadn't been removed, he would have
choked to death.  He moaned and collapsed against the bonds that held his
legs and arms.

"Consígalos en el barco" (Get them on the boat) a voice yelled.  John knew
enough Spanish to understand that he was being taken out on the water.  The
previous yelling worried him that Nicklas was still with the terrorists and
was vomiting.  He pleaded with his attackers, but they could never hear him
because of the gag in his mouth.  The drugs took over and he lost
consciousness again.

John woke up again and felt everything moving.  He tried to clear his mind
and realized that he was now on a boat going across the ocean.  The boat
was hitting hard against the waves and he could hear his kidnappers talking
in Spanish.  He knew that his life was going to end and prayed that it
would be a quick death.  He was exhausted and stopped struggling against
his bonds that kept him immobile.  He felt the boat slowing down and heard
several men yelling at each other in Spanish.  He was dragged onto what
felt like a pier and was thrown into some type of vehicle.  He heard
Nicklas begging to be let go and feared that he and his son would soon be
dead.

The kidnappers from the boat had transferred the victims to the van and
knew that their part of the elaborate plan was completed.  When the van
left the marina, they celebrated and got back into the boat for the return
trip to Nassau.  They were about half way back to their original port when
an explosion ripped apart their boat.  All of them were shredded and
incinerated in the explosion and fire.

"John, don't give up," Nicklas said to his father when he realized that
they had both been abducted.  "Don't let these pricks win!"

John heard his son's appeal and also heard the sound of a fist hitting
Nicky's face.  He wanted to kill whoever had just hit his son, but he
couldn't move or even yell at the attacker.  John was so exhausted from
struggling against his bonds that he barely remained conscious while the
vehicle bounced around on the rough road.  After what seemed to be an
eternity, he realized that he was being moved again.  He heard the sound of
a helicopter and guessed that he was being taken away from the islands of
the Bahamas.  He lost track of time and was unconscious until the
helicopter landed with a heavy impact.  He was dragged out and realized
that he was being taken across a metal deck and down several steps.


Butch Mendez met his strike teams at a private airport near Ft. Lauderdale,
Florida.  He knew they were almost 200 miles from Nassau and would need
clearance for the flights to get to the island where John, Nicklas and
Robert had been abducted.  L. Brooks Hardison, known as Hardy by his
friends, was the Director of the FBI and had already contacted the
U.S. Coast Guard asking them to work with the Bahamian Coast Guard to try
and find the three missing men.  Hardy had also managed to secure two
unmarked attack helicopters, inflatable boats, and a Harrier jet from his
contacts in the CIA.

Butch was using his satellite phone to make important contacts while his
strike team members were loading their gear into a UPS air transport plane.
Butch knew that using commercial airlines would attract too much attention.
He didn't know if the kidnappers were watching the Nassau Airport, but he
had to cover every possibility that the arrival of the strike teams would
be relayed to the kidnappers.  He talked to Dante Jenkins, Head of Security
for the gated community on the island and didn't like what he heard.

"Here is what we know so far," Dante said to Butch.  "Robert Ducharme found
John and said that a phone call from the orphanage in the Czech Republic
was being transferred to John's office in his home.  Nicklas has stomach
flu and has been vomiting and complained of diarrhea.  The boy went with
John and Robert to John's office, and then they disappeared.  We're finding
a trail of dead bodies that tell me that the people who took John, Nicklas
and Robert are professionals.  They aren't leaving any tracks or witnesses.
We suspect that our three men were taken from the house by Enrique and
Manuel inside their laundry truck.  My men know Enrique and didn't suspect
anything until too late.  I contacted the orphanage in the Czech Republic,
and they said that they had never called John."

"I'm taking notes and getting ready to leave Ft. Lauderdale to fly to the
airport in Nassau," Butch said.  "Can you arrange to have some trucks meet
our UPS airplane in the shipping hangar?  We want to slip into the Bahamas
without anyone knowing that our strike teams have arrived."

"I already anticipated some of your needs," Dante replied.  "Your plane
will be taken inside the UPS hangar where we will have several different
types of trucks to transport your people to our gated community.  My office
will be your command center if you wish to use it."

"Thanks," Butch said.  "I'm using some of my contacts in the CIA and FBI to
get more information.  We're getting information about unusual events that
might not be connected to our situation."

"I might be wrong, but I suspect that John, Nicklas and Robert have been
taken to Cat Island," Dante offered.  "I'm following a trail of dead
bodies, and so far we believe that Enrique and Manuel took our hostages out
of the gated community and to a pier.  Several boat owners will charter
their boats for fishing trips and we also have some high speed "Cigarette"
boats that everyone suspects are used for importing drugs.  One of the
cigarette boats connected to the Colombian drug cartels blew up out in
International Waters.  My sources tell me that the boat was chartered to
take some passengers to Cat Island.  It might not be connected, but if
someone wanted to take John, Nicklas and Robert away from Nassau, the
safest way to avoid detection would be by boat.  Then things get more
confusing."

"I'm using Taylor Coleman to reach out to his contacts in the drug
cartels," Butch admitted.  "Taylor is a talented private investigator, and
he knows people who might give us some leads.  Taylor just told me that
members of MS 13, a powerful gang that originated in El Salvador, heard
about a big deal that was going down.  I'll contact Andrei Datsyuk,
INTERPOL Inspector in Prague to see what he can do to help us.  If no call
ever came from the orphanage, things get very complicated."

"Mara Salvatrucha, or MS 13, is one of the most dangerous gangs in the
entire world," Dante said.  "We know that they have safe houses in remote
areas of the Bahamas, but we haven't had any direct contact with them."

"From what Taylor could determine four MS 13 members were on a helicopter
that left Cat Island and the men never returned," Butch said.  "This might
not be related to our situation, but we have to cover all bases."

"I just had one of my men tell me that a helicopter exploded and then
crashed in International Waters," Dante said to Butch.  "If they're part of
this situation, we won't be able to question anyone.  When the helicopter
exploded, there were no survivors."

"The trail of dead bodies is what we have to follow," Butch said.  "What
was the flight plan that was filed for the chopper?"

"Things work differently down here," Dante said.  "In your country, every
flight has to be authorized.  Here on the islands, helicopters fly from
island to island with no air traffic controller input.  I was able to
contact one of my sources who told me that the chopper had cargo and only
had enough fuel for a flight of less than 100 miles.  It's very possible
that our men were taken to a ship in International Waters."

"Jesus," Butch exclaimed.  "Can you find us a ship that can launch high
powered inflatable boats?  We might have to plan a mission to get our
people back.  Many of my strike team members are former SEALs and more
comfortable in the ocean than on dry land."

"I'll handle that immediately," Dante said.

Butch ended the call with Dante and used his radio to update all the
members of his strike teams.  "I might be wrong, but it looks like our
people were taken out to sea, and are probably being held prisoners on a
ship.  The motive has to be money.  I've already alerted Andrei Datsyuk,
INTERPOL Inspector in Prague and Tomas Pelska, head of security at the
Proud Les Domov orphanage.  The orphanage is locked down and all children
are safe with armed security officers patrolling the perimeter of the
grounds.  We have armed guards with Johnny Miller and his family and
Katelyn Albright and her children.  Andrei has alerted the Czech banks and
the Swiss banks that a ransom demand might be made.  The key to finding our
people is to follow the dead bodies and the money."

Dimitri Kostas, Master Captain of the Sea & Jungle IV, heard about the
kidnapping of John, Nicklas and Robert Ducharme.  Dimitri had told all of
the crew aboard the luxury yacht about the kidnapping and asked everyone to
help find John Miller.  The ship was headed through the Panama Canal after
traveling down the river that connected the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.  A
group of Sea & Jungle associates had been released in California and the 4
was headed back to Miami to pick up a new group of guests when the
emergency call came in.  Dimitri had many contacts in the shipping
industry, and not all of them were honest men.  He reached out to his
contacts and wasted no time contacting Butch Mendez with what he had
learned.  His ship had just left the Panama Canal and was headed out into
the Atlantic Ocean when he made contact with Butch.

"There's a freighter in International Waters with Dutch registration that
has been known to smuggle drugs into the U.S.," Dimitri began.  "My sources
tell me that the ship unloaded their freight in Miami and left empty.
That's very unusual.  Most captains only unload and wait for a new shipment
to cover their expenses.  The name of the ship is Abu Barden.  My sources
tell me that the ship was about 20 miles east of Cat Island and we suspect
that the drugs were delivered to the Capressi Syndicate.  The Capressi
Family distributes what the Colombians smuggle into the U.S."

"Dimitri, I thank you for this information," Butch said.  "We might be
chasing smoke, but I'm betting that people connected to MS 13 have taken
John, Nicklas and Robert to that ship.  I'll use my resources to find out
where that ship is located.  I'll contact Michael Costanza to see if his
sources know anything about a Mafia connection."

"Everyone on board the Sea & Jungle IV love John and Nicklas, and we are
all reaching out to our contacts to help you," Dimitri said.  "Please let
me know what I can do to help you."

Things were happening fast.  Butch knew that the pendants worn by John and
Nicklas could alert his security officers if John or Nicklas put their
right thumb against the back of their pendants.  He was in constant contact
with the Central Command for all security operations in Detroit, Michigan,
but no signals had been received.  He was frustrated but knew that the
special pendants would only activate the beacon when the owner grasped the
special coin.  The sensors would not be activated unless the person was
alive.  Butch hoped that some signal would be received so he would know
where to direct his strike teams.

Philippe Ducharme went to the home of his son and searched along with two
of his security officers.  When Philippe realized that all of Robert's
jewelry was missing along with his laptop computer, he called Dante Jenkins
and asked Dante to establish a conference call with Butch Mendez.

"Butch here," Butch said.

"I'm appalled that I'm making this call," Philippe said.  "I'm at my son's
home right now, and his personal items including his laptop computer are
gone along with some of his clothes.  We've been investigating some missing
funds from World Wide Investments and I'm afraid that my son wasn't
abducted along with John and Nicklas.  I suspect that Robert had a part in
their disappearance."

"Jesus!" Butch exclaimed.  "If Robert was part of the abduction, this
changes everything.  He's a financial expert and will know how to bypass
any security systems that were established for our company.  Why would he
be involved?"

"I've uncovered some irregularities in the financial transactions of World
Wide Investments," Philippe admitted.  "We've done some digging and we
suspect that money has been moved from one bank to another before landing
in the account of Julio Hernandez, the head of Mara Salvatrucha."

"I know this is painful for you, but I really appreciate your honesty,"
Butch said.  "I'm going to alert everyone that we might be looking at a
conspiracy that involves your son.  Our main focus is to get John and
Nicklas back safely."

Philippe was devastated!  His own son had betrayed him and the Sea & Jungle
Company.  Robert had a dream job with an annual salary of over 20 million
dollars, but that must have been insufficient.  Philippe knew that John
Miller had recognized and promoted him to a position that he had only
dreamed about.  Now that his only son was involved in kidnapping John and
Nicklas, Philippe knew that he would have to resign his position of
President of World Wide Operations of the Sea & Jungle Company.  He shed
tears when he thought about what his son had done and his own personal
losses.  John Miller was his best friend and now he knew that John would
hate him if John lived through this ordeal.


John regained consciousness and realized that he was now in a small room
with several men speaking Spanish.  When the blindfold was removed, it took
time for John's eyes to adjust to the lights.  He was relieved to see that
Nicklas was alive.

"Limpíelo para arriba" (Clean him up) a man ordered.

John could smell the mess that Nicklas had made in his shorts.  He felt
terrible that his son had messed himself, but knew that Nicklas had
complained of diarrhea when they were at the festivities.  He saw a man
arguing with another, and knew that no one wanted to clean up human feces.
He saw a man drag Nicklas away and tried to argue with the men, but the gag
was still in his mouth.

A man who was obviously in charge came into the room and spoke Spanish to
the other men.  The gag was removed from John's mouth and the duct tape was
removed from his hands and legs.  He rubbed his hands to restore
circulation and faced his abductors.

"If you try to escape, my men will kill the boy and then kill you," the
leader said to John.  "We will handcuff you and the boy, but will tie you
up again if you give us any trouble."

"What do you want?" John asked.  "Where is Robert Ducharme?"

"You don't ask the questions!" the leader exclaimed.  To emphasize his
authority, he punched John in the mouth and then spit in John's face.

John recovered and knew that he had to be strong for his son.  He was
relieved to see Nicklas being brought back into the room.  His son was
wearing a sweat outfit and had bruises on his face.  John bristled with
anger but knew that he had to remain calm or Nicklas would be killed.

Both John and Nicklas had handcuffs on, but their hands were in front of
their bodies.  They both hugged each other and pressed their right thumbs
against the back of their pendants.

Butch was aboard the UPS plane when he got the emergency call from the
Security Center in Detroit, "Butch here!"

"Butch, we've got tones!" the excited voice said.

"Tones?  As in plural?" Butch asked.

"Two tones!  Both clear and solid!  We're triangulating and have a position
for you," the officer said.  He then gave Butch the GPS location of the
twin tones that proved that both John and Nicklas were still alive.

On board the ship the abductors pushed John and Nicklas apart.  One of the
men noticed the gold chain and Kruggerand on John's chain and immediately
reached for it.  Another man saw the silver chain and pendant on Nicklas'
neck and several men began arguing about who should have each valuable
necklace once the owners were dead.

"We lost the tones!" the officer said to Butch.  "We had enough signal to
get a general location.  Now we can focus on the area east of Cat Island
and wait for another signal."

Butch was an expert in covert operations and knew exactly what he had to
do.  His biggest fear was that John and Nicklas would be dead before he
could organize any rescue operations.  John Miller had let him hire the
most professional security officers in the world and now they would be
tested in a life or death situation.

When the UPS plane arrived at the Nassau Airport, the plane was diverted
inside the UPS hangar and out of sight.  Inside the hangar, several
different types of trucks were waiting.  Dante Jenkins, Head of Security
for the gated community, was waiting along with several of his security
officers.

Butch shook hands with Dante and watched all of the security officers
loading their weapons and gear into the different trucks.  One of Dante's
men would drive each truck so that the perimeter guards at the gated
community would recognize them and let them drive inside.

"Did you find a ship for our strike teams?" Butch asked Dante when they
were inside the florist truck.

"I have two options for you," Dante replied.  "One just happens to be the
Sea & Jungle IV and the other is a commercial fishing vessel.  Captain
Dimitri Kostas has run at flank speed to get across the Gulf of Mexico and
has offered his ship for your use.  Actually, he begged me to let him be
part of the rescue attempts.  He has turned on the jamming device on the
ship just in case one of his crewmembers happens to be involved in the
kidnapping.  The only communications with the Four are through my office on
a secured line and you know the armament that Captain Kostas has aboard if
we need to attack another ship."

"A luxury ship might be a good diversion," Butch said, thinking out loud.
"We can launch the inflatable boats and the choppers from the Four."

Butch and Dante worked together to develop a rescue plan based on the
information that they had at the time and the available resources.  They
had three professional strike teams comprised of former Navy SEALs, Army
Rangers and mercenaries from around the world, along with the Bahamian
private security forces under the command of Dante Jenkins.

Johnny Miller and his sister, Katelyn Albright, were pacing back and forth
outside the security office where they knew that Butch Mendez was meeting
with Dante Jenkins.  They both anxiously waited for any information about
John and Nicklas, and Johnny finally couldn't wait any longer.  He opened
the door and interrupted the discussion, demanding to know about his father
and brother.

"I'm sorry for leaving you and Katelyn in the dark," Butch began.  "Let me
tell you what we know so far.  We suspect that John and Nicklas were
abducted by people associated with Robert Ducharme.  Philippe called me and
said that Robert's clothes, jewelry and laptop computer are all missing
from his home.  He also said that Robert was being investigated for
embezzling millions of dollars from the World Wide Investments Operations."

"I'm appalled at what my son has done," Philippe said when he walked into
the office.  "He worked for me and I'm responsible for his actions.  I'm
resigning my position of President of the Sea & Jungle World Wide
Operations effective immediately.  I'll do anything that I can to help
rescue John and Nicklas."

"There is something that you can do," Johnny said to Philippe.

"Name it and I'll do it!" Philippe promised.

"My father respects you and picked you to help him lead this company,"
Johnny said.  "Now is the time that we need your leadership more than any
time in the past.  Robert's a grown man and you're not responsible for his
actions.  You can help Butch and Dante predict what the kidnappers will
demand in ransom so they can be prepared.  Please don't walk away when we
need your leadership the most."

"I agree with my brother," Katelyn said.  "Our Dad and Nicklas are
hopefully still alive and praying for us to rescue them.  Please help us!"

Philippe wiped away his tears and saw that Johnny and Katelyn were being
honest in needing his help.  He choked back his tears and said, "I'm the
transfer agent for all of the international bank accounts that John
controls.  The largest accounts are at the UBS Bank in Switzerland and at
the Expat Center in Prague.  I can only access the funds if John is no
longer alive.  I transferred James Stanton's accounts into John Miller's
name, and I pray that I never have to do that again."

"How can John access his money?" Butch asked.  He already knew the answer,
and was testing Philippe.  He was angry with the President of the Company
for not knowing that his only son was a criminal, but he needed Philippe's
help.  He already knew from his talks with INTERPOL how John could access
his bank accounts from anywhere in the world, but he was testing Philippe's
honesty.

"He has options," Philippe began.  "Of course he could walk into the bank
and use his password along with voice and retina verification to gain
access to his safety deposit boxes or money that's in his accounts.  John
has cash, gold, and many very valuable diamonds in the safety deposit boxes
in several different banks.  I don't expect any kidnappers to even think
about taking John to Europe to get into the safety deposit boxes.  Instead,
they will probably have him use a satellite phone to contact the different
banks.  John has unique passwords for each bank and the voice recognition
safeguards can even detect stress in John's voice and refuse any
transactions.  They will probably demand that money be transferred from the
banks in Switzerland to other banks around the world.  The money will be
wire transferred, split, and combined many times before being sent to a
bank that doesn't ask questions."

"What kind of bank is that?" Johnny asked.

"Unfortunately, the banks here in the Bahamas have been involved in money
laundering and taking deposits from the drug cartels of the world,"
Philippe replied.  "Because my son's involved, I'm certain that he won't
use any bank here in the islands.  Our company has too much influence here
in the Bahamas and no bank would risk any connection to the kidnapping of
John and Nicklas.  I would expect the kidnappers to use banks in Mexico,
Panama, the Cayman Islands, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen.  Those countries
handle billions of dollars in legitimate business transactions and also
have reputations for not asking many questions."

Butch was pleased at what Philippe had shared.  He still had reservations,
but needed help from Philippe to thwart any ransom demand.  He asked, "How
can we fuck with the kidnappers?"

"I've already called the banks and alerted them to any demand for money,"
Philippe replied.  "With my status as transfer agent, I can flag any
financial transaction.  The money will appear to be transferred, but every
bank in the world knows that flagged money is worthless.  From the time
that John would request a transfer of what I expect will be a large sum of
money, the normal bank process will take at least 4 hours for verification.
After that, I'd expect the money to be transferred several times, with each
transaction taking at least two hours.  24 hours is the critical period of
time.  After 24 hours the flag will expire and the money will be gone with
no chance of retrieving it."

"I've alerted INTERPOL about the abductions," Butch said.  "When we hear
about any money transfer, we'll start the 24 hour clock.  I don't want
anyone to get angry with me for being very frank right now.  If John
transfers a large sum of money, his life is worthless to the kidnappers.
Once they can confirm that they have the money, I expect them to eliminate
any witnesses."

Johnny and Katelyn choked back tears when they heard what Butch had said.
They couldn't imagine losing John and Nicklas and prayed for God to help
rescue their loved ones.  They knew that many people had already died in
the series of events that had taken John and Nicklas away from the gated
community and away from the Bahamas.

"Your father's like a brother to me," Butch said softly to Katelyn and
Johnny.  "He saved my life in Northern Michigan and I'm gonna do everything
that I can to bring him back here safely.  Any rescue attempt will be
bloody.  I'm authorizing everyone on the strike teams to use extreme force.
We won't be taking any prisoners."

"Just bring our father and brother back here alive," Katelyn pleaded.

Butch told Johnny and Katelyn that they could stay in the command center,
but had to stay out of the way and not interfere with the plans he was
making with Dante.

On board the Abu Barden, John and Nicklas were deep inside the container
ship sub structure.  They were given water and some stale bread to eat, and
they sat together and talked in Czech.

"How long before they kill us?" Nicklas asked his father.

"They probably want a lot of money," John replied.  "After they get the
money they won't need us any longer."

"When I was living on the streets of Ceska Skalisce, I thought about
suicide," Nicklas admitted.  "Now that I've lived with you for a while, I
want to live a long life with you.  What can I do?  I love you!"

"When the men aren't watching, put your right thumb on the back of your
pendant," John said.  "You know that only you can activate the beacon.  I
really don't know where we are, but I'm afraid that the metal of this ship
will block any signals.  Whatever they do, don't you dare try to fight them
or piss them off.  I know that Butch will do something to try and rescue
us.  We have to be smart and stay alive."

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" a man screamed at John and Nicklas.  He only understood
Spanish and English, and wasn't going to let John and Nicklas talk in any
foreign language that he didn't understand.

John hugged Nicklas and they both used the distraction to activate their
pendants again.  They only spoke in English and told each other to stay
positive and pray.

"Butch here," Butch Mendez said when his satellite phone rang.

"We've got tones again and we're nailing down the exact location," Sean
Weatherspoon said excitedly.  "The feds are helping us and we're using
their satellite surveillance of the ocean around the Bahamas to pinpoint
the source of the tones."

"Put this call on the speakers and light up the screen on a macro view of
the Bahamas!"  Butch said excitedly.  To the others in the room he said,
"We have tones, and that means that both John and Nicklas are still alive!"

Everyone listened to the details from Sean Weatherspoon and were excited to
view the huge television screen in Dante Jenkins' office.  When more
information was added, the operator zoomed in on the GPS coordinates of the
double signals.

"The U.S. Coast Guard just confirmed the source of the signals with
cooperation from the Bahamian Coast Guard," Sean said excitedly.  "We
believe that the tones are coming from aboard the Abu Barden transport ship
that's currently sailing in a circle about 50 miles east of Cat Island.  We
have visual confirmation that choppers are going and coming from that
ship."

"The Sea & Jungle IV is too far away to use as a launch vessel," Dante said
to Butch.  "We need to go to Plan B and use the fishing boat to get in the
area."

"Dimitri will be here soon and he's begged me to let him help us rescue
John and Nicklas," Butch said.  "Here's what I want us to do."

Johnny and Katelyn listened to the elaborate plans that Butch had created
to try and rescue John and Nicklas.  They both realized that 3 teams of 8
men each would try to board the Abu Barden and rescue their loved ones, and
that people would die when the rescue mission began.  With three strike
teams activated, 48 men and women were in the area to provide firepower
when the rescue attempts were made.

"This is Operation Eagle One," Butch said to the 24 members of his strike
teams were assembled in the conference room.  "Extreme force is authorized.
Our mission is to board the Abu Barden ship, find John and Nicklas, and get
them out.  We won't have any way to know how many targets we have on board.
We have to assume that they are all armed and legitimate targets.  We will
board the stern of the ship, eliminate any guards and go down into the crew
areas where we suspect that our friends are being held.  Flash/bang
grenades are to be used for any challenging areas and shoot to kill.  When
we have John and Nicklas, we'll jump overboard and wait for the inflatable
boats to pick us up.  We won't have time to wait for the choppers.  We'll
all meet at Cat Island for chopper extraction to the Sea & Jungle IV.  The
rest of our strike forces will provide cover in the choppers and the
Harrier jet.  This is what you were hired for, and I'm depending on each
one of you."

All of the strike team members knew that Butch was painting a very positive
picture of what could be a massacre for them and their team members.
Boarding a ship in International Waters was always difficult, but they all
knew that members of MS 13 were probably on board.  The infamous gang
members loved killing and wouldn't cower when faced with armed intruders.
They all remembered when Butch had hired them and had warned them that at
some time they would be challenged to kill or be killed.  They all faced
their boss and friend and saw the determination in his eyes.  They were
enthused when Butch said, "I'll be leading the first team aboard the ship
and I promise that I'll be the last man to leave.  We're a family, and now
I'm challenging all of you to bring John and Nicklas back home!"

On board the Abu Barden, John and Nicklas were in the small room when they
heard a lot of commotion outside the tiny compartment.  John was shocked
when he saw the two men that came into the room where he was being held
with Nicklas.

"Jesus Christ!" John exclaimed when he recognized Robert Ducharme,
Philippe's son and Delano Genovesi, son of one of his closest friends,
Mario Genovesi.

"Robert, make them let us go!" Nicklas demanded.  He thought that Robert
had come to rescue them, but was shocked when Robert punched him in the
mouth.

"If you do what we ask, you'll live to get off this ship," Delano said to
John and Nicklas.  "We aren't going to be greedy, we only want two billion
dollars from your company so we can pay off some debts and live in
obscurity."

"Two billion?" John asked.

"I know your financial situation and two billion dollars won't put a
serious dent in the holdings your company has in the European banks,"
Robert said.  "Delano and I have made a pact and we both have agreed to
split the money evenly and pay off some debts that we both have
accumulated."

John was shocked that the sons of two of his best friends had conspired to
abduct him and Nicklas.  He realized that he had to delay any financial
transaction to give Butch a chance to rescue them.  He still feared that
the steel hull of the ship would block any signal from the pendants, but
gripped his pendant and pretended that he was praying.

Nicklas was a smart teen.  He had been in fights before and could take the
punches of the shitheads without turning into a wimp.  He used the mind
control from his martial arts training to block out any pain and joined his
father in praying.  He took the opportunity to grab the pendant, mirroring
the actions of his father.

"Butch here!" Butch said when Sean Weatherspoon called him again.

"Double tones again!" Sean said excitedly.  "Exact position has been
established.  Both targets are alive and on board the Abu Barden freighter
in international waters 50 miles east of Cat Island."

Butch contacted L. Brooks Hardison and asked for help.  "Hardy, can you jam
all satellite transmissions from that ship?" Butch asked.

"I'd be violating several international agreements if I even asked to do
that," Hardy replied.  "If you remember how I worked when you were here,
you know what I mean.  I won't ask.  This call is done."

Butch laughed and everyone in the office was surprised.  They thought that
the Director of the FBI had refused his request until Butch said, "We had a
saying when I worked for Hardy at the FBI.  It's easier to ask for
forgiveness than it is to ask for permission.  He's gonna jam all satellite
signals until we're ready to make our move."

Dante and Butch put together a plan that would be very dangerous, but they
didn't have any alternatives to an armed attack of the ship.  They knew
that the strike team members would be in harm's way, but also knew that
every member of the strike teams had been rescued from a life of poverty by
John Miller and Butch Mendez.  Trained killers could hire out as
mercenaries, but their life expectancy was very short.  Butch had hired
them and continued their training in protecting members of the Sea & Jungle
family.

"If any of you want to stay back, now is the time to say so," Butch said to
his strike team members.  "I won't hold it against you if you don't want to
take the risk of boarding a ship that's probably crawling with MS 13 thugs.
We're going into harm's way, and we're gonna get bloody."

The men mumbled until Gerald Wallace spoke up.  "When I left the Navy, no
one wanted to hire me.  I even put in applications at MacDonald's and
Kentucky Fried Chicken.  I have a wife and infant son that I couldn't
support working for some junk food outlet, and you offered me the job of a
lifetime.  I'm finally being paid what I feel that I'm worth and you know
what I can do under stressful situations.  Maybe I'm speaking only for
myself, but I've talked to the other strike team members.  We owe
everything to you and John Miller, and we won't let you down or turn and
run when we're needed.  I hope that I get the opportunity to smoke some of
the shitheads that abducted John and Nicklas."

Several other strike team members echoed the comments of Gerald.  They were
all ready to prove that it wasn't a mistake to hire the best security
officers in the world, and they all cheered their encouragement.

Butch choked back his emotions to face his officers.  He knew when he had
hired each one of them that there could be a time when they would be
tested.  Now he was standing in front of his teams and was proud of what
they were saying to him, Johnny Miller, Katelyn Albright and Philippe
Ducharme.

"Here's our plan," Butch said when the cheering subsided.  He laid out the
plan and asked his team members for any suggestions to improve the plan.

"The satellite phone won't work!" Robert Ducharme complained to Delano
Genovesi.  "It must be the steel of the ship that's blocking the signal.
I'll go topside and try again."

"Why" John asked Delano.

"You thought that you saved my life when you gave that crate of drugs to my
father," Delano replied.  "You fucked up the biggest deal of my life!
Instead of paying off a huge debt to MS 13 and the Capressi Family I've
been a hunted man.  My parents shoved me into another drug treatment
program in Canada but I finally escaped.  I'm gonna pay off my debts and
live on some tropical island with young boys and girls to suck and fuck for
the rest of my life.  My father is a total fuckhead for going legitimate
with his businesses.  He could have made a fortune importing drugs, but he
and his ass suckers gave up the legitimate Italian life.  He deserves to
die a terrible death for going legitimate."

"You want your father to die?" Nicklas asked.  "He gave up crime to build a
legitimate corporation that supplies concrete and builds malls and
apartment complexes.  I've met him and I really respect him."  Nicklas took
the opportunity to grab his pendant and prayed that it would send a signal
to someone who could rescue him and John.

"You have a father worth billions of dollars and you wear a worthless
necklace of silver with a pendant of a silver dollar!" Robert Ducharme
exclaimed while slapping Nicklas in the face.  "Your father has a gold
necklace with a Kruggerand pendant.  If he really loved you, you'd have a
necklace that was made of platinum."

John was proud of Nicklas for confronting Delano and Robert and saw that
his son was using a distraction to activate his pendant.  John did the same
and prayed that the signals would be received.  He saw that all of the men
in the tiny room were armed with 9 mm handguns or AK47 assault weapons.  He
had to develop a plan that would save the life of his son.  He wanted to
live, but he would lay down his life to give Nicklas a chance to escape
from this bunch of shitheads.

"Butch we've got tones again," Sean said.  "The location has been
confirmed."

"Great!" Butch exclaimed.  He turned to his strike team members and gave
them the good news that John and Nicklas were both alive, and that the
location had been confirmed.  "I'd suggest that you all get some rest, but
I also know how I feel right now.  I couldn't sleep without some heavy
drugs, and I don't want to miss anything that happens.  Here's how we'll
attack once we have all of our resources in place.  We attack at night.
Our night vision equipment will give us an edge."  Butch laid out his plan
and was confident that there was no better plan for rescuing John and
Nicklas.

"Goddamit!" Robert Ducharme exclaimed when he realized that his satellite
phone wasn't working from the deck of the Abu Barden.  He stormed below
deck on the ship and confronted his partner, Delano Genovesi about the lack
of satellite phone reception.  "I thought you said that you had direct
satellite connections that couldn't be jammed!"

"Let me contact some of my friends," Robert replied calmly.  "It's almost 5
in the afternoon here but it's only about noon in Switzerland.  I think I
can make contact, even if someone has jammed our satellite phone calls."

Delano was angry, but decided to trust his partner.  They would both be
immensely wealthy when the money was transferred out of the Swiss bank and
he could pay off his debts to the Capressi family and MS 13 and still have
a fortune to live on.

Robert Ducharme used his laptop computer and a wireless modem to connect to
the Internet.  He clicked on several different screens before he handed the
phone to John Miller and said, "If you do what we ask, we'll let you and
the red haired cunt go free.  All that we want is 2 billion dollars from
your major company account in the UBS bank.  Don't try to fuck with me or
we'll cut off Nicklas' balls to show you that we mean business.  I know
that you can access the account by phone and the voice recognition system
will recognize any stress in your voice."

"I don't know if we have that much cash money available," John replied.
"Most of our assets are tied up in stocks and bonds around the world."

"That's bullshit and you know it!" Robert exclaimed.  "You always held back
a huge amount of money to establish a new orphanage somewhere in the world.
The new orphanage is me and Delano."

John relented and knew that he had to do what he could to extend his life
and the life of his son.  He took the satellite phone and entered his
personal password and activated his voice recognition system for the UBS
Bank.  He authorized the transfer of 2 billion US dollars to the account
that Robert punched in, and knew that he had just signed the death warrants
for himself and his son.  His only hope was that Butch would rescue them
before the money was officially moved.  He still didn't know if the
pendants were sending out any signals, but it was his only hope.  He
watched Robert hit the speaker button on the phone and listened to the
automated system say, "Your transaction has been recorded and will be
processed within one business day.  Please contact us again to verify that
the requested funds have been transferred."

"What the fuck does that mean?" Delano demanded.

"We wait," Robert replied after disconnecting.  "All international banks
delay any large withdrawal.  That way they get to use the money for another
day.  It might not sound important, but having 2 billion dollars for an
additional day involves a lot of interest."

"When will we have the money?" Delano asked.

"Tomorrow the money will appear in a bank account in another country,"
Robert began.  "Then I'll start moving it around to other banks.  I'll
split the money up and make several transfers before I put your share in
the numbered account that you gave me.  The only way that our plan can be
fucked up is if John Miller calls the UBS Bank and cancels the transfer.
We'll keep him here along with the brat until we have control of the money.
Then we can release them."

Everyone knew that Robert and Delano had no intention of releasing John or
Nicklas.  Once the money was removed from the UBS Bank, John and Nicklas
would be killed and dumped in the Atlantic Ocean.

"When do I get paid?" Juan asked.  "My men are getting restless and none of
us trust you."

"I brought an advance on your payment," Robert said to the MS 13 leader.
He handed the man a gym bag and watched Juan open it and show it to his
men.  "There's 100 thousand U.S. dollars in that bag" Robert said.  "I'll
have another 100 thousand dollars for you when we have the transaction
completed.  I know that Julio Hernandez, the head of Mara Salvatrucha, is
waiting for a large sum of money to hit his personal bank account for
providing your services.  The money that I'm giving you is a tip.  Julio
said that he would pay each of you."

"Can I have the gold necklace and pendant?" Juan asked.  "He won't need
it."

"Take it," Robert said.  He saw the anger in John Miller's face and loved
it.  "You gave my father the job that I deserved.  He makes over a billion
dollars a year and I make only 20 million for running the most profitable
part of the company.  You fucked me and now I'm gonna fuck you back!"

Juan carefully removed the valuable necklace and pendant and immediately
checked the gold coin.  "Fucking Americano!  This one coin is worth more
than many of my people earn in an entire year."  He spit in John Miller's
face and put the jewelry on to impress his men.

"I want the silver one" Jose said.  He was excited to take the chain away
from Nicklas and looked at the silver dollar closely before putting on the
jewelry.  "If you didn't smell like shit, I'd like to take you in another
room and fuck that white ass of yours."

Nicklas avoided eye contact with the terrorists and used his mind control
exercises from his karate classes to fight back the urge to do something
that would anger them.  He hated all of the men responsible for abducting
him and John and wanted to kill them.  It was the first time in his life
that he felt anger strong enough to kill another human being.

"You and I need to talk in private," Robert said to Delano.  "Let's go
topside and get some fresh air.  Jose is right.  The entire stateroom
smells like shit.  The little brat should have a fire hose shoved up his
ass to clean him out."

"Have a cigar," Robert said to Delano when they were outside on the deck of
the ship.  "These are Cuban cigars that I brought to celebrate our
successful business transaction."

"The explosives are all set," Delano said.  "You and I both know the cell
phone number to call to detonate them.  There's enough C 4 explosives set
to blow up ten ships of this size."

"Good," Robert replied.  "I wired the money to the account that you gave me
for the Capressi family and hope we can trust their explosives experts that
did the job.  If they failed, I have a backup plan that you don't need to
know about."

"They came aboard last night and were gone in less than four hours," Delano
said.  "They're expecting a big pay day too when we're done with John
Miller."

"Everyone will get their fair share," Robert promised.  He puffed the cigar
and thought about his plan and how wealthy he would be with all of the
money for himself.  "We got the money transfer to the bank before noon in
Switzerland," Robert said.  "I have a helper in the UBS Bank who will
transfer the money before the close of business today.  I didn't want the
scum down below to know the truth.  We have to keep John alive until we
have the money and then he can be chum for the fish.  You and I will be far
away from this ship and on our separate ways to new lives of wealth before
we activate the explosives tonight."

Delano didn't trust Robert.  Both men had helicopters on the deck of the
ship and they both were anxious to leave as soon as possible after the
money was transferred.

Robert went to talk to the ship captain and Delano saw his male lover,
Franco Capressi coming out on the deck.  He hugged his lover and asked,
"Are we getting the information that we need?"

"I brought the best computer hacker in the world with me," Franco replied.
"Jake's already dumped most of the data and has installed the virus on
Robert's laptop.  The ship captain will keep Robert busy so we can
duplicate all of his data.  When we leave this ship, we'll activate the
virus and wipe out all of his files.  Then we'll be the only ones with the
access codes to the bank accounts."

"I want to call him on his cell phone before we activate the virus," Delano
said.  "The fucking nigger thought he could fuck us out of our share, but
he didn't suspect that we had our own plans."

"My explosives expert left the bomb inside your helicopter, but disarmed
it," Franco said.  "If Robert has one of his men look inside our chopper,
they'll think that the bomb is still active.  We have his detonator and
we'll have a special surprise for our black partner when we all leave this
ship."

"Start the clock!" Butch ordered after getting the call from INTERPOL.  "We
have 24 hours to pull the money back from right now!  The UBS Bank would
normally delay the transfer for one business day, but someone inside the
bank pulled a fast transfer.  The only one who can retrieve the money is
John Miller using his password and voice recognition system within the next
24 hours.  INTERPOL arrested the bank executive who authorized the transfer
without waiting."

Butch looked at Johnny and Katelyn and said, "Maybe now you should go to be
with your families.  I need to focus on getting my teams ready for the
extraction and you'll only be in the way."

"I want to help" Johnny said.  "I'll go crazy waiting to hear any good
news."

"Let's go to my office so I can contact some friends in the banking
industry," Philippe offered.  "Maybe we can find the money and track it
down.  I think I know the prime banks that would handle large sums of money
without alerting any law enforcement agencies."

"That would be a big help," Butch said.  "Katelyn, will you find the family
members and friends and update them?  Please don't say anything about our
extraction plans.  Just tell them that we know where John and Nicklas are
being held and that they are both still alive.  Only talk to your family
members, not any of the servants for any of the homes here.  We can't take
a chance that someone here is connected to the abductors."

Katelyn left the office and headed for John's mansion where she knew that
her family was waiting for some good news.  She knew that Johnny would call
her frequently with any new information that she could share with the
family members.

"It's time to move," Butch said to his strike teams.  "Trucks will take us
to the marina where Dante has a 115 foot ship waiting for us.  We have
three inflatable boats and a spare aboard and one attack helicopter.  The
Sea & Jungle IV is racing here and we'll have the Harrier Jet hidden under
tarps on the helicopter pad of the IV.  The second Blackhawk chopper will
be on board the IV as a backup.  We can't use the choppers to approach the
ship.  The noise will alert the shitheads so we'll use stealth to get
aboard.  Make sure your silencers are attached before we board the ship.
Take out anyone that you see.  We don't have time to interrogate anyone
aboard.  This is what you've all been hired and trained for.  No prisoners!
We get John and Nicklas and get off the ship."

John returned to the stateroom and saw that Jose was teasing Nicklas by
showing his son the silver pendant.  John admired his son for avoiding eye
contact with the shithead and for not getting hooked into displaying anger.
Butch had trained both John and Nicklas in how to handle abduction and the
training was paying dividends.

"I have to poop" Nicklas said.

"Fuck you!" Juan said.  "We're not your personal servants!  Just hold it
in!"

John listened to the two men arguing in Spanish and only understood bits
and pieces of their argument.  They both wanted to eat and were angry that
their replacements hadn't arrived.

"John, I have to go really bad," Nicklas whispered to his father.

"Do it in your pants," John whispered in Czech.  When he saw his son shake
his head "no" he repeated his words.

Nicklas had tears running down his face when he felt the pressure inside
his body erupt.  Even if John hadn't told him to poop in his sweat pants,
he wouldn't have been able to hold back the diarrhea.

"HE SHIT HIS PANTS!" Jose screamed.

Robert Ducharme had just walked into the stateroom and smelled the horrible
odor.  He screamed at Juan and Jose to clean Nicklas up and stormed out of
the room to get some fresh air.  "You clean him up this time," Juan said to
Jose.  "I'm not going to clean up shit again!"

"I'll clean him up," John offered.  "He's my son."

"Take them to the head and then bring them back here," Juan said.  "I'd
like to throw the brat overboard, but we can't.  I'll find you something
for him to wear."

Robert met Delano on the deck of the ship and talked very fast and quietly.
He didn't want any of the men aboard the ship to hear what he was saying.
"We have the money so we can leave now.  I'll meet you in Mexico City in
two days.  I'll be at the LaQunita Hotel and we can finalize our
partnership."

"What about John and Nicklas?" Delano asked.  "Should we eliminate them
before we leave?"

"When our choppers are clear of the ship, I'll make the cell phone call to
detonate the explosives," Robert said.  "That way, we'll eliminate all of
the witnesses to our successful plan.  Julio Hernandez, the head of Mara
Salvatrucha is very willing to trade some of his soldiers for 100 million
dollars."

"I want half of the money right now," Delano demanded.  "You say that I can
trust you, but you've eliminated everyone connected to this plan so far.
Why should I trust you to give me my share?"

"You can watch me transfer the money to two different accounts and I'll
give you one of the account numbers," Robert replied.  He knew that by the
time Delano accessed the account, all of the money would be gone.  He
opened his laptop and showed Delano that one billion dollars had been wire
transferred to an account in Saudi Arabia.  He copied the account number
and password and handed it to Delano.

Both men boarded their respective helicopters and left the ship.  They both
believed that they would eliminate their partner in the crime and be
immensely wealthy for the rest of their lives.


Butch Mendez was aboard the fishing boat and when they were two miles away
from the Abu Barden, the action plan began.  Twenty four strike team
members jumped into the inflatable boats along with Butch and Dante.  Both
Dante and Butch had decided to lead the attack on the Abu Barden and were
dressed for battle.  The inflatable boats were almost silent when they
arrived at the stern of the ship.  Three men were left in the boats to
drive them away until it was time for extraction and the remaining men
would board the ship.  Padded grappling hooks were used to allow the men to
climb aboard the ship without being heard.  The first men aboard
immediately eliminated the guards on deck with their silenced weapons.  One
team headed for the wheelhouse of the ship to shut down all power so the
night vision equipment would be effective.

John choked from the stench of human waste when he helped Nicklas remove
the sweat pants.  They both were handcuffed with their hands in front of
their bodies, but it was still difficult to try and remove the soiled
clothing.  John grabbed a roll of paper towels and started cleaning up the
streaks of pungent feces that streamed down the legs of his son.

"Here!" Juan yelled when he threw a pair of nasty sweat pants into the
head.  The smell was so overpowering that he immediately left Jose to deal
with the smell and the two prisoners.

John used the paper towels to clean up the feces and tossed the soiled
sweat pants against the wall near where Jose was standing.  He was counting
on the reaction from the stench and reacted immediately when Jose turned
away to avoid the foul odor.  John quickly used his handcuffed hands to
choke Jose.  All of the emotions of being abducted erupted from John's body
when he used the chain of the handcuffs to strangle Jose.  John used all of
his strength to choke the nasty man and then twisted his arms until he
heard Jose' neck snap.  He waited until he was sure that Jose was dead
before he faced his son.

"You killed him," Nicklas said calmly.  "I wanted to be the one to kill
him.  We need to get out of here!"

John took the silver chain off from the neck of the dead man and handed it
to Nicklas, saying, "Trigger the pendant.  We'll get mine when we go back
and take Juan out."

Nicklas had never dreamed that he would witness his father killing another
human being, but he knew that they had to kill or be killed.  He searched
through Jose' pants until he found the key to the handcuffs.  He unlocked
John's handcuffs and then his own before facing his father.  "How will we
get out of here?"

"We'll go back to the stateroom with the cuffs on our hands but not
locked," John said.  "I'll follow right behind you and have Jose's gun
hidden from view.  We'll surprise Juan and I'll kill him.  That will give
us at least two guns to try and shoot our way out of here.  You've been
trained in shooting, but I never dreamed that you'd have to shoot another
person.  Can you do it?"

"I can and I will," Nicklas promised.

"The sound of gunfire will echo around this ship and might confuse the
terrorists, but they'll come looking for us immediately," John said.
"We'll have to move fast and try to find our way out of here."

Nicklas opened the door to the stateroom where Juan was waiting.  John was
walking right behind Nicklas and had the Heckler-Koch 45 caliber
semi-automatic pistol ready with the safety off.

Juan was admiring his gold necklace and pendant and looked up and asked,
"Where's Jose?"

Nicklas ducked quickly and John fired two shots into Juan's head.  He
gagged when he had to remove his necklace from the bloody stump that used
to be Juan's head, but he needed the pendant.  He and Nicklas both
triggered the beacons while they left the stateroom and tried to find a way
out of the bowels of the ship.

Butch's earpiece cracked with a message that he was thrilled to hear.  Sean
was reporting that two tones were now activated, indicating that John and
Nicklas were still alive.  He had seen the two choppers leave the ship and
was worried that the hostages had been removed.  The tone lock proved that
John and Nicklas were still on the ship.  "Launch the Harrier and the
choppers!" Butch ordered.  "Track the two helicopters that just left this
ship and take them out!  John and Nicklas are still aboard this ship!"
Butch was alarmed that he heard what sounded like two muffled gunshots from
the belly of the huge ship.  He and his men swarmed into the passageways,
eliminating any people that they met.

Robert Ducharme sat back in the helicopter and started laughing.  He had
outsmarted Delano Genovesi and would have all of the money for himself.
Julio Hernandez, the head of Mara Salvatrucha, would believe that Delano
had betrayed him but had died in a helicopter crash.  MS13 would lose many
men but wouldn't know that Robert had robbed them.  His laughter was
interrupted when his satellite phone rang.  He was going to call Delano and
give him the last surprise of his life, but Delano was making it even
easier.

"Thank you for your generosity," Delano said.  "It was wonderful working
with you."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Robert asked.

"Turn on your computer and you'll know," Delano said.  He waited and heard
the exclamation that told him that Robert realized that his laptop computer
was totally fried.  "I warned you not to cross me," Delano said.  "You took
all of the money and the account in Saudi Arabia is empty.  You put a bomb
on my chopper and were going to eliminate me and my friends.  I had my
friends move your detonator to your chopper.  Goodbye Asshole!"  Delano
pressed the button and Robert's helicopter exploded, showering debris all
over the Atlantic Ocean.

John and Nicklas were sneaking down a passageway when they met two MS 13
terrorists armed with AK 47 assault rifles.  Both John and Nicklas opened
fire and eliminated both men.  John stepped over the two dead men when all
of the lights went out.  Now he and Nicklas were blind and couldn't see to
try and escape.

"Your pendant!" John said excitedly.  Both he and Nicklas activated the
pendants and prayed for help.  They bumped along the passageway until they
stumbled into a staircase.

Butch was listening to the earphone and was pleased that two tones were
being transmitted.  The only sounds on the ship were the muffled shots from
the special weapons and the sounds of bodies hitting the metal decking.
Butch was headed down a staircase when he heard several shots.

John and Nicklas were on the staircase when one of the MS 13 members opened
fire with his assault weapon.  The flashes from the weapon lit up the
staircase and they both fired several shots at two men.  Both men fell down
the steps and nearly knocked John and Nicklas down.

Butch was afraid that John and Nicklas had been killed, but listened to his
radio reports that two tones were still activated.  He decided to take a
big risk and yelled down the passageway, "JOHN MILLER!  IT'S ME, BUTCH
MENDEZ!  GIVE ME THE SIGNAL!"

John's emotions soared when he recognized the voice of his true friend.  He
knew what Butch meant by "the signal" and hugged Nicklas and used his son's
weapon to fire 3 shots down the passageway.

"EXCELLENT!" Butch exclaimed.  He alerted his strike team members that he
had located John and Nicklas and warned everyone that they had guns.
"John, don't shoot our strike team members!  Listen to my voice.  Walk
towards my voice."

John and Nicklas stumbled up the staircase and to a landing where Butch was
waiting with three other men.  John and Nicklas couldn't see Butch or the
other men until Butch turned on a flashlight.  They both wanted to hug
Butch, but knew that they were still in danger.

"This ship is loaded with explosives!" John said excitedly.

"Strike teams, we have the package!" Butch said excitedly.  "Evacuate,
NOW!"

John stumbled and was shocked when a man grabbed him and threw him over his
shoulder.  Another man had done the same with Nicklas, and the group headed
for the deck of the ship.  John couldn't believe that a man could pick him
up and carry him up the staircase of the ship without slowing down.  For
the first time he was hopeful that he and Nicklas would survive the
abduction.

"Over the side!" Butch ordered.  "Inflatable boats will pick you up!"

John and Nicklas saw several men jump over the side of the ship, but they
both were afraid of jumping into the dark without a life preserver.  The
strike team members saw the hesitation and made the decisions for John and
Nicklas.  They grabbed their two former hostages and jumped into the night
air.

Nicklas screamed when he felt the weightlessness and heard the man yell at
him to take a big breath. It seemed like an eternity before he felt the man
cover his nose and mouth at the last instant before they hit the water.
The impact dazed him and he fought to stay conscious.  He felt the man
thrashing around in the water and feared that they would both drown, but
the thrashing was the former Navy SEAL swimming to the surface.  When they
broke above the waves, Nicklas gasped for air and coughed up sea water
before he calmed down.

John feared that he or Nicklas would die from the jump, but he was relieved
to hear his son coughing and gasping for air very close to where he had
surfaced.  Both Nicklas and John felt strong hands pulling them aboard the
inflatable boat.

Butch and Dante were the last two men to leave the ship, just like they had
promised the strike teams.  Butch used his radio to make certain that all
strike team members were accounted for.  Three team members were wounded,
but none seriously.  "Hang on!"  Butch ordered John and Nicklas.  The
inflatable boats sped away from the ship towards the fishing boat, but
weren't far enough away before the explosion tore the ship apart.

Delano Genovesi and his friends were almost to Cat Island when he used his
satellite phone to make the call to activate the detonators on the Abu
Barden.  The night sky was lit up with the fireball that erupted from the
hull of the ship, spreading fuel and debris over a huge area.

The inflatable boat that John, Nicklas, Butch, Dante and strike team
members were riding in was the boat nearest to the Abu Barden when it
exploded.  The concussion flipped the inflatable boat over and John's head
hit the housing of the powerful outboard engine, knocking him unconscious.
His lungs filled with sea water and he slipped below the surface of the
dark water.

The former Navy SEALs quickly righted the overturned boat and made a quick
head count.  John was missing along with Butch.  Team members turned on
powerful flashlights and feared that John and Butch were gone.

Nicklas screamed for his father and had to be restrained from jumping into
the dark ocean water to search for John.  He was dizzy and his hearing was
muffled from the impact of the explosion and he didn't hear Gerald Wallace
yelling.  "THERE!"

Two men dove into the water and helped Butch drag John's unconscious body
to the side of the boat.  Nicklas watched in fear when the men pulled John
inside the boat and he didn't see any movement.  He immediately started CPR
with the help of Gerald.

Butch watched Nicklas and Gerald working on John Miller and prayed that his
friend would live.  He had seen John's body slip below the surface of the
ocean and had dove down.  The moonlight had reflected off the gold chain
and pendant, and Butch had followed the shiny metal beacon down to rescue
his friend.  He joined his men in cheering wildly when John began coughing
and vomited up sea water.

Three inflatable boats pulled alongside the fishing boat and all 36 men got
aboard for the short ride to Cat Island.  Butch used his radio to send the
most important message of his entire life.  "Central Command come in!"
Butch began.  After hearing "CENTCOM here" he continued.  "Is Johnny Miller
there?"

"He's right here with Katelyn," the voice replied.

"Eagle One Mission has been accomplished!" Butch exclaimed.  "John and
Nicklas are both alive!  We're headed for the IV with our buddies and three
casualties!"

Johnny Miller and Katelyn Albright hugged and shed tears of joy after
hearing that their father and brother were alive and safe.  They hugged
everyone and went out into the hallway where their family members were
waiting for any news.  All of the family members had heard the cheering
from inside the office and had to hear the good news several times before
they would believe that John and Nicklas had been rescued.

Butch was on the radio and heard reports from the two choppers and the
Harrier jet that one helicopter that had left the Abu Barden had exploded,
and the other was over a populated area before they could intercept it.
Butch was disappointed, but wondered who was aboard the destroyed aircraft.
His wounded men were flown to a hospital on Nassau while the other strike
team members and John and Nicklas were flown to the Sea & Jungle IV.

Master Captain Dimitri Kostas was waiting on the top deck of his ship and
was proud that he and his crew would have a part in the rescue of John and
Nicklas.  When the chopper landed, the crew of the IV cheered wildly.
Dimitri was normally very formal, but he thrilled his crew when he ran and
hugged both John and Nicklas.  "Your family will be here within an hour,"
Dimitri said.  "You'll have time for a shower and a drink before the
banquet starts."

John was surprised that Dimitri had planned a banquet in the middle of the
night, but he knew that he wanted to see his family and hug everyone after
the horrible ordeal.  He was exhausted, but he wouldn't miss the
celebration for anything!


Stay tuned!!!

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