The Keepers of the Persian Gate Read Online Free PDF Page A

was going to be sitting behind a desk from now on, but one last thing has pulled me back into active duty…”
    ***
    Time passed quickly. Before Paddy knew it, an hour had slipped by and a Warrant Officer was at the door, ready to escort Paddy to the flight deck. It was quite a walk; the Nimitz, or ‘Old Salt’ as it was nicknamed, was a huge vessel. It was over a thousand feet long at the waterline and weighed over a hundred thousand tonnes. To put that into perspective, that was nearly twice the weight of the Titanic. Walking up onto the deck, the SEALs stood in a neat line, fully uniformed and ready to go. Their faces were difficult to make out due to the dark jungle camouflage that they had applied. Over the years, Paddy had had to do the same on a number of occasions on active duty. He had observed that some soldiers were better at applying the camouflage than others. However, Special Forces always seemed to have a particular skill for putting it on in a way that blended perfectly with their mission’s location.
    Although it was March in the Caribbean Sea, it was cold on deck and there was a strong breeze of about thirty-five knots. The Nimitz was keeping a deliberate distance from the coast of Venezuela. The reason for this was primarily so that the United States would not be vulnerable to any potential Venezuelan accusations that the Nimitz had acted as a staging post for the operation. It would also be of strategic relevance in case she had to make a fast dash for Puerto Rico. Moreover, it would be within the clear range of the protection offered by the US Atlantic Command (LANTCOM).
    Lieutenant Graham stood at the front of the line. The remainder of the team created a semi-circle around him opposite the SEALs. The Lieutenant then moved to address the international team.
    “Gentlemen, time to suit up. With the exception of Nasser, your attire during this mission will be that of bodyguards. We expect suits would be a little formal in these circumstances. Instead, you’re getting expensive watches, open shirts, jeans and a holstered pistol,” said Lieutenant Graham.
    “Holstered pistol? That’s probably not going to be very useful if we find ourselves in the middle of an all-out assault between the hotel and the beach,” said Paddy.
    “I’m afraid the CIA thinks that the full weapon approach for the security team may be a bit obvious. Don’t worry, the SEAL team has your back,” said Lieutenant Graham.
    The Lieutenant escorted the team to the side of the flight deck and onto a platform. “There she is, gentlemen, our transport for this evening’s event.”
    It was dark, but Paddy could make out the shape of the plane floating in the waves. The Beriev looked ominous and menacing. It was certainly nothing like any of the team had come across before. Despite the fact that most of the undercarriage of the plane was submerged, the visible section was absolutely enormous.
    “Jeesh, that looks like something straight out of Thunderbirds,” said Paddy.
    “Well, boys, I guess that makes this Tracey Island,” said Jake.
    Each of the five members of the international team was then taken into a side room off the flight deck in the main tower to suit up. They also each received a private, confidential briefing about what to do and say if captured. When all members of the international team had been briefed, the entire team moved to a hydraulic platform.
    “Hold on, boys,” said Jake. The platform on the side of the deck began to slowly lower towards sea level where several RIBs - Rigid Inflatable Boats - waited to take the team across to the Beriev.
    The Beriev had come directly from Russia the previous night, following the go-ahead from the Kremlin. The Russian pilots had been on duty for twenty-four hours prior to the call being made. After stopping for fuel in Franz Joseph Land, the Beriev flew direct to Texas, arriving into Ellington under cover of darkness in the early hours of the morning. She was