Missile Intercept

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Ruiz blinked in surprise, then seemed to recognize Bolan. The other man, small and slightly built, wearing a blue suit and glasses, smiled under a bushy mustache and said in Spanish, “Excuse us, sir, but we are in a hurry.”

“Sí,” Bolan said, adding in English, “I just wanted to say hello to Captain Ruiz.”

Ruiz spoke rapidly to the other man in Spanish, then added in halting English, “These are...American agents who assisted on raid against cartel.”

The bespectacled man smiled and nodded. “Ah, you are American? The captain tells me you are very brave men. You are meeting some friends here, no?”

Bolan and Grimaldi nodded.

“Bueno. We are meeting some people as well, but perhaps we can assist you,” the man said. “Captain Ruiz brought me along to act as his official translator.”

“The people you’re meeting are from the United States?” Bolan asked.

“What?” the bespectacled man said, then turned to Ruiz and fired off a quick sentence in Spanish.

Ruiz smiled and shook his head. His companion turned back to Bolan and Grimaldi and smiled in turn. “I am sorry, but it is a private matter. It has to do with his family.”

Bolan nodded and said, “I understand. By the way, I heard that one of the prisoners we took on the raid was killed.”

Again the bespectacled man did a rapid-fire translation, after which Ruiz nodded, lifting an eyebrow and giving a sigh of regret. “Very bad thing.”

“We have made arrangements,” the shorter man said, “to safeguard the remaining prisoner so that nothing unfortunate happens to him. He has been placed in a secure location.”

“I appreciate that,” Bolan said. He glanced at Ruiz, who seemed calm. “Captain, I know I can speak for my friend when I say that we look forward to our next meeting.”

Ruiz nodded and smiled. “Thank you very much.”

Beyond them, Chong and Stevenson walked through the customs’ doors, each pulling a small carry-on.

“Looks like our friends are here now,” Grimaldi stated.

The bespectacled man whispered something to Ruiz, who turned toward the approaching special agents. “Welcome to Mexico,” he said in English, punctuating it with a wide smile.

Stevenson replied in Spanish, as did Chong. Ruiz raised his eyebrows, and mumbled something to the bespectacled man, who then said, “The captain is impressed that you speak our language so well. He hopes you both have a fortuitous stay in our country.”

Ruiz held out a card bearing his name, title and cell phone number. Bolan took it with a nod of thanks.

“Please let us know,” the translator said, “if there is any way we can be of further assistance.”

“We certainly will,” Grimaldi replied jovially.

The captain and his assistant walked off in the direction of domestic arrivals.

“I’m Henry Chong. You must be Matt Cooper and Jack White,” the agent said, extending his hand toward Bolan, then Grimaldi. Chong nodded toward Ruiz and the other man. “Looks like a friendly bunch down here.”

“Looks like,” Bolan said. He turned to the female agent. “Welcome to Mexico, Agent Stevenson.”

She smiled and shook his hand.

Grimaldi thrust his hand toward Stevenson in turn. “I second that. Anything you need, just ask ole Jack.”

“Let’s get out of here,” Bolan suggested. “Time’s wasting.”

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National Police Warehouse Number 7

Panama Canal Zone

From their vantage point within the dense forest, the industrial center spread out before them like a lit-up shopping mall. The trees and shrubbery had been cleared for approximately thirty meters around the warehouses, and a metal fence surrounded the compound, topped by concertina wire.

These were pathetic safeguards. The task seemed almost too easy, and Yi did not want his men to be lulled into a false sense of security. Eventually, they were bound to meet stiffer resistance, but a wise man gratefully accepted good fortune when it was presented to him.

Yi ordered Lieutenant Yoon to have the Black Tigers spread out and remain undercover while the scouts cut through the fence and reconnoitered. He then turned to the Panamanian gangster, who was bound with his hands behind his back. The Mexican, also bound, was next to him. After the confrontation at the warehouse during the acquisition of the weapons, Yi felt it was prudent not to trust either man any longer, and to treat them as captured collaborators.