Chapter Two Thousand Thirty-Five
21st December 1970
Berlin-Brandenburg International Airport
First a telegram and then a form letter informing Ben of things he already knew. Kiki had gone missing on the 4th of December in Argentina, and the Ministry of War said that they would notify him when they had further information, presumably from the Chilean Government. Then nothing for the next several days. He had gone to the Chilean Embassy and had refused to leave until he got answers. Eventually, using the title as Burggraf of Balderschwang he had tried to get through to the Chilean Ambassador to argue his case.
Kiki was one of the most harmless and caring people Ben knew, all she wanted was to help people. If the Chilean Military had her, it was because she was on a medical mission at the time. Instead of listening to him, they had thrown him out, but not before giving him the runaround. It was at that point that his brother-in-law told him to cut it out. They were working through diplomatic channels to find out what had happened, and his actions were not helping. The entire time he’d had the feeling that something was going on that Friedrich wasn’t telling him.
Finally, enough was enough. They had made the mistake of not taking him seriously and underestimating him at every turn.
Walking through the open doors of the hanger, Ben looked at the Black Knight. The aircrew had fitted her with three large ferry tanks for the long journey ahead. If the Chileans, and even Kiki’s brother, wanted to play games with him them they were about to find out that he was actually the sort who could change the rules if he wanted. And he knew for certain that they were going to be begging him to stop if they didn’t become a lot more forthcoming in a hurry.
Estancia María, Santa Cruz Province, Argentina
It came as no surprise to Jesus Aiza that the Argentine side of the border looked exactly the same as the Chilean side. The difference as he had discovered was that in this side there were people shooting at him at every turn. In the weeks since the war had started, the Army had swiftly discovered that they had a problem with partisans who knew every detail of the land they were fighting on.
Getting sent to the rear to help with this problem was seen at first as a godsend to Jesus and his men who had fought against boredom on the outskirts of Rio Gallegos. They had been swiftly disabused of this notion as they had suffered from repeated hit and run attacks and ambushes in unlikely places. It felt like they were chasing ghosts and not getting to the root of the problem. So, it was fortuitous that Intelligence finally came through regarding the suspected location of a German BND Hunter/Killer Team. It was what Intelligence regarded as the monster under the bed, for obvious reasons. They said that such teams usually had four or five members and they could look like anyone so be cautious. He brought along a half dozen of his men who were all armed with the automatic rifles that had the name Eugene Stoner stamped on the lower receivers for some reason. He had seen what those rifles could do if anyone were stupid enough to cause trouble. So, a small team of German soldier-spies didn’t scare him.
Pulling into the sheep station, Jesus looked with disgust at the small buildings made of wood that was heavily weathered and covered in peeling paint. It was a poor place in a country that was full of such places. The only reason for its existence was the river that flowed by. It was a wonder that people lived in a place like this, it certainly didn’t look habitable from his perspective. Getting out of his jeep, he walked over and started pounding on the door. He was surprised by the woman who answered.
“Is there an emergency?” She asked, Jesus couldn’t help but notice that she spoke with an instantly recognizable accent as he pushed his way into the laborer’s hut.
“No, Siniora” Jesus replied, “We have had reports of partisan activity.”
“Doctora” The woman said, correcting him. “This is a medical mission that has been complicated by your war, which I want no part in.”
Jesus stood there awkwardly. There was nothing to see here. Just a bed, a table, a few chairs, and a stove to heat the place.
“While you understand our nations are not formally at war” Jesus replied, “The are certain considerations that need to be taken. If I could see your papers, please.”
With a bit of reluctance, she handed him a passport that had an identification card in the fold. It identified her as Kristina Fischer and gave a street address in Berlin as her residence. The ID card was from something called Universitätsklinikum Friedrich-Wilhelm and had a picture which matched the passport photo. His saw the blue “Star of Life” symbol for Medical Personnel throughout the world printed on it, which was consistent with what she said she was. Then he noticed another symbol, one he had only seen once in a movie a few years earlier. An eagle with outstretched wings superimposed over a compass rose and wreath, German Special Forces FSR.
Jesus reached out and grabbed a fist full of the woman’s hair and twisted it. Outraged that she had tried to gull him like this.
“Where is the rest of your team?” Jesus demanded.
“There is no team” She replied, her voice filled with pain.
Then Jesus noted a sharp pain spreading from his arm and saw something flash in her hand below his chin. He was unable to say a word or take a breath as the strength went out of his legs and he crumbled to the floor.
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“It wouldn’t have killed you to have left me alone” Kiki said as she heard the rifle fire outside as the Chilean Lieutenant’s men were swiftly dealt with. Her attempt at a bluff had clearly failed.
It was not as if the Lieutenant could answer her as he was leaning against the wall in a spreading pool of blood. She had cut the vagus nerve in his neck just after severing his brachial artery. It really hurt her to use her medical knowledge this way, but he had given her little choice. She had hoped to wait out this mess in this isolated location, but that plan clearly wasn’t going to work, Kiki thought to herself as she wiped the blood off her karambit.