TEMPLARS QUEST: LUCEM SANCTAM (THE TEMPLARS QUEST CHRONICLES: A Historical Mystery Book 3) Read Online Free PDF Page B

road in and out, which is called Loop Road. But you can come in from the southern or northern entrance off of Route 89. We’re gonna block both exits with our Hummers and trucks.” 
     
    Sunset Crater and Wupatki Ruins are located along the 34 mile scenic Loop Road that takes you through open meadows and the beautiful Ponderosa pine forests. It winds through Juniper grasslands and provides a view of the Painted Desert before reaching Wupatki National Monument. The road’s general direction takes it north and south but since it curves around so much you also travel east and west to some degree. It is a two lane paved road that the National Park Service used to maintain in the old days. The park HQ is between the north and south entrance on Loop Road.
     
    “Jack, since you’ve been there before, where do you think they’ll be bivouacked?”
    “Most likely they’re at the park’s visitor center or HQ,” as I pointed to it on the map.
    “Are you sure about that?”
    “I’m pretty sure because I would hold up there. It’s more comfortable than living in a 1,000-year-old ruin. Besides that, maybe it has lights and air, like the Petrified Forest center had.”
    Baldwin said, “We’ll split into two teams. Squad one will move in from the south entrance and squad two from the north entrance. Two Hummers and three trucks will take the south entrance on Loop Road. The other two Humvees, with the remaining trucks, will proceed to the north entrance. Both teams are to move within three miles of the visitor center and wait for further orders. The Humvees will block the road at that those points terminating anyone who tries to pass. Four men will be positioned at each roadblock.”
    “Sounds good,” I commented. 
    Baldwin continued, “Alright, Pete and I will recon from the south with squad one. Jack and Maggie, you’re with squad two, and will be coming from the north entrance.”
    “The squads will be support for the recon teams. Eight men will be in Jack’s squad, and eight in mine. The squads will surround the target area providing overwatch protection for us.”
    “Is everyone with me so far?” The warriors all nodded as he peered into their eyes, one at a time, searching for any negative reaction. None of the warriors spoke a word, as they waited for Captain Baldwin to continue. “Now here’s the key point, no one is to fire until I give the order. You have to wait until the rescue team is in place to extract Adam. Is that clear?”
    A question came from Jeff. “Boss, which way will you extract, north or south?”
    “It depends … but let me make it clear, we’ll extract the direction that is the safest, be it north or south. Your job is to make sure it is safe and cover our backs. Any comments?”
    No one said a word, so I spoke up. “Let’s take a closer look at the grounds, the buildings, and how they’re positioned.”
     
    This type of operation requires special attention to the details. You have to know the best way in and the safest way out. You need to know the layout of the buildings, inside and outside. The terrain needs to be known, so you can take advantage of strategic locations to use for cover. Timing is critical, so everyone needs to set a schedule and have go/no-go signals. The entire rescue operation needs to run like a well-oiled machine. If a mistake is made, some of our men or Adam could be killed, and that is not acceptable.
    However, we do have the advantage over the bad guys. They don’t know we are coming for them. They don’t know we’re going to kill most of them before they even see us. Using our night vision gear, we own the night.
     
    I grabbed a piece of plastic paper, a marking pen, and drew the following rough diagram, based on the map and from my memory. I wanted everyone to know more details about the area. Maggie made copies for everyone to study.   
    I said, “The X’s mark the suggested locations for the squads to take assault positions. The top of this