Chapter 7 #2
Heath exhaled and waited a couple of beats before checking his surroundings and jogging up the gangway. At the row where the crew member was, he checked carefully, but the man was walking away from him.
Good.
Heath continued, climbing up the ladder he needed. Because he knew what to look for, he noticed the container doors were open, but it wasn’t too obvious.
Zoe peered out, checking one direction and then spotting him. She stepped out and started gesturing to the others.
Heath smiled. Good. She was getting them to move.
He assessed the girls first. Two were still unsteady on their feet, leaning against the ones who were stronger, but at least they could move.
One boy was on his feet, but looked like a zombie, another was more alert, and as he reached the container, he spotted the last boy still unconscious on the pallets.
“You got to the lifeboat OK?” Zoe asked.
“Yeah. There’s a crew member between us and it, but I’m hoping he’ll head down the other side.” Heath pulled the boy out of the container and gently placed him on the ground.
He wanted to do this in one trip if possible. He could carry two boys. “Zoe, can you carry the more alert boy?”
She nodded. “I can piggyback him.”
“Do that.” He placed the unconscious boy over his shoulders in a fireman’s lift. “Get the girls moving. Stop at the end of the row. I’ll be right behind you.” He shut the container, loosely tying the lashing rods in place, and then picked up the zombie boy in his arms.
The others were halfway down the row, not moving very fast.
Hopefully with a bit of encouragement, they’d pick up the pace.
It was awkward going, and he’d have to put both boys down if they ran into trouble, but he wanted to be off this ship.
He caught up with the group and took the lead. “Faster now.” He broke into a jog so he could check the gangway was empty and they wouldn’t be caught.
Way too many people to protect. He just hoped the crew wasn’t involved in the smuggling and therefore wouldn’t try to stop them.
Heath peered down the gangway. At the far end he spotted crew members carrying what looked like a big roll of barbed wire down the stern of the boat.
Shit. They were preparing the boat for pirate waters. Maybe they weren’t stopping in Iran.
Which meant they might have armed guards already on board.
Heath needed to get everyone off this boat before they went through the Strait of Hormuz and into open water.
The others reached him and Heath said to Zoe, “I’ll go first. I’ll tell you when to follow. You come last.”
She nodded and put the boy down so she could rest.
“I need you to pass the boys down to me.” He was skilled, but descending a vertical ladder without hands was beyond even him.
He passed the child to Zoe, checked the corridor and then descended and held his hands out for the child again.
The boy on his back shifted, and Heath jerked him back into position before taking hold of the second boy.
He moved to the closest pillar and gestured for the first girl to follow him.
One by one they descended onto the gangway, the boy Zoe had been carrying making it down the ladder on his own and then standing, staring down the passageway. Zoe followed him and shifted him out of view before lifting him in a piggyback again.
Slowly they made their way towards the lifeboat with Heath checking each row before giving them the sign to move. The crew were most likely busy at the stern, because he didn’t see anyone else, but it wouldn’t be long until they started protecting the sides of the ship.
He really hoped they did the port side first.
When they reached the lifeboat, Heath lowered the boy he carried to the ground. Quickly he undid the chains and opened the hatch of the lifeboat. “Inside.”
The girls lowered themselves in and greeted the others.
“Sit and strap in,” Heath called in two languages.
Zoe helped the boy in and glanced at the children with Heath.
“I’ll pass them to you.”
She jumped in and turned to him. He handed her one and Mohammad appeared to help her carry the boy to a seat.
Heath checked the surroundings. At the far end a sailor was heading towards them, but his gaze was on the clipboard he carried.
Shit. “Zoe, quick!” He shoved the other boy at her and she stumbled back, but Heath was already releasing the safety cables needed to lower the lifeboat.
He glanced at the crew. Their eyes met.
The man shouted and reached for his radio on his belt.
Fuck. Heath released the final cables and leapt into the lifeboat, shutting the door behind him. “Everyone strap in.”
Zoe was still strapping in the unconscious boy. He waited a beat for her to finish and sit, then he pressed the release for the lifeboat to lower.
The cables creaked but moved fast, and he mentally thanked the crew who made sure the equipment was well maintained. The boat lurched from side to side and Heath could only see the side of the ship and the ocean through the window.
The boat jerked to a stop and a couple of girls shrieked.
Damn. Maybe there was an override on deck.
Heath scanned the controls and spotted the one he wanted. He hit it and the boat released, dropping the remaining distance to the water with a crash.
Some children screamed.
“It’s all right,” Heath called as he started the engine and steered the boat away from the ship. He drove straight towards the setting sun to make them more difficult to spot and checked his GPS.
They were in the middle of the Persian Gulf, pretty much at the intersection of Qatari, Iranian and United Arab Emirates territorial waters, but their options for landing included the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Iran and Qatar.
There weren’t any Australian naval vessels in the area. They’d reviewed that as part of their mission brief yesterday.
Iran was out of the question since he was a wanted man in the country due to a recent mission.
Qatar made sense for the kids, but not so much for him and Zoe.
There was an Australian embassy in Abu Dhabi, but he wasn’t sure of the political implications of bringing the kids there.
He checked the ship was still on its way and hadn’t done anything daft like sending another lifeboat after them.
All was clear.
“What now?” Zoe asked.
“Plan B,” he said.
“Which is?”
“I’m working on it.” He smiled to reassure her. Qatar was the best option for the children. He could get Zoe and himself out of there when the children were safe. He pointed the boat in that direction and tried calling Dobby. They would still be in the air but might have phone signal.
“Status,” Dobby barked.
Heath grinned. “In a lifeboat with Zoe and a dozen kids in the Persian Gulf.”
Dobby swore. “Why do you have a dozen kids?”
“They were being trafficked out of Qatar. It’s why Zoe was late.”
“Copy. What’s the plan?”
No more explanation needed. That was one reason he loved his team.
“Heading back to Qatar to get the kids home. Comms are out so when we get them there, we’ll head for the Saudi border.
” He glanced out the windows and spotted a naval boat heading towards them at speed.
He swore. “Zoe, get the binoculars out of my bag. What flag is on that boat?”
“Trouble?” Dobby asked.
“To be determined.” He accelerated as Zoe unstrapped and dug through his bag to find binoculars. She focused on the boat. “Iranian.”
His muscles tensed as he pushed the boat faster towards Qatar. “Iranian navy.”
“Can you outrun them?”
“Going to try. What’re the coordinates for Qatari waters?” It might not matter to the navy as there were always disputes over where the territory lay.
Dobby yelled a demand at the rest of the team, and Radar responded with the details. Heath checked his coordinates. “We’re a mile out.”
Zoe glanced at him, concern on her face. He smiled. “Strap back in.”
The water was choppy and the border patrol boat had a far superior engine. They were already closing the distance. They must have seen the lifeboat launch from the container ship and most probably had contacted them and discovered what had happened.
But if Heath was caught by the Iranians, this entire mission could go south immediately. He pushed the engine as fast as it could go, and Zoe stumbled on her way back to her seat.
“Status,” Dobby said.
“They’re quicker than us.” He glanced behind again.
“Can’t they help?” Zoe asked.
He shook his head and then paused. The Iranians would help Zoe and the kids. He was the only issue. “Might need to hide,” he told Dobby. “Let’s go with the Darius ID.” He couldn’t risk them finding out his true identity in case they linked it with his identity, which had an arrest warrant attached
“Copy. Give Zoe this number. One of you call us within two hours. I’ll contact Arash and let him know to be on the lookout.”
Their Iranian contact. Good idea. “Copy.” He hung up. The boat was only a hundred metres away. They would start hailing the lifeboat soon. “Zoe, take the wheel.”
“What’s going on?” Mohammad asked, coming to stand with them.
Zoe took the wheel. “Keep heading there.” He pointed to the compass. “That will take you back to Qatar.” He wrote Dobby’s number on her palm. “Memorise this. It’s Dobby’s number. You call him within two hours if you can. Give him an update.”
While she memorised the number, he turned to Mohammad. Contingencies. There always needed to be contingencies. “I’ve been in trouble with the Iranian authorities,” he said. “Do you know how to steer a boat?”
Mohammad shook his head.
Heath glanced around at the other children. “Anyone here can steer a boat?”
They shook their heads.
Damn. “Imam, Maryam, come here.” They were the oldest and most coherent of the children.
He glanced out the window to see the naval vessel almost on them.
“This is a compass. You want to make sure the needle is always pointed here.” He made a mark with his pen.
“The throttle is here. Forward is to accelerate, backwards is to go in reverse and straight up is neutral, which means you won’t go anywhere. ”
The girls and Mohammad nodded.
“Why are you showing them?” Zoe asked. “What do you think is going to happen?”
He grimaced. “Making Plan C. Just in case.”
He couldn’t hide. The container ship crew had seen him.
The Iranians would be looking for him. Even if he hid in one of the under-seat compartments, they would find him.
If he slid into the water, he might evade capture, but there was a chance he’d lose his grip and get stuck in the middle of the gulf.
Nope. The best chance was to hope they didn’t run his photo through any databases. He was known by a different name in Iran. “Do you still have your phone?” he asked Zoe.
She nodded, tapping her pocket.
“Can you hide it in your underwear?” She was wearing layers of clothing but would likely be searched. Hopefully not thoroughly.
Though her frown deepened, she grabbed her phone out and then hesitated, one hand going to her chest, before she untied her pants and slid the phone into her underwear.
Of course. She already had the cable ties and powder in her bra.
“Tell them the truth.” He slid his passport into his shoe.
Outside the navy hailed them in Farsi.
They were still some distance from Qatari waters. He turned to the kids. “The Iranian navy will stop us but hopefully let us continue to Qatar.”
Mohammad frowned at him.
“We’re still in Iranian waters,” Heath told him.
The boy nodded.
“Don’t panic,” he told the children. “Tell them what happened to you.” He placed his hand on the throttle and slowed them. “Whatever happens,” he murmured to Zoe. “I will see you and the children get safely home.”
“You’re frightening me, Heath.” She glanced out the window as the border patrol came up alongside them. “What did you do?”
“I can’t tell you that. Don’t worry. If they call the Australian government, we should be fine.” Unless the Iranian government was holding a grudge about Australia deporting their ambassador.
Bad timing. “And call me Darius.”
Two men boarded the lifeboat armed with guns and approached the door.
Heath stiffened as he recognised the tall man at the back with a scar under his right eye.
What the hell was Kamran still doing working for the Iranian navy? He should be in prison for what he’d done.
He cursed.
Right now that didn’t matter.
He was screwed.