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  Nightwatch

  Richard P. Henrick

  On an isolated highway in the Crimea, as the President of the United States races toward a top secret nuclear summit, high-powered weaponry suddenly opens fire on the motorcade, brutally slaying America's Chief Executive and those assigned to protect him.

  Above a rushing whitewater river in the Missouri Ozarks, a jet-black Huey helicopter appears from nowhere to rain death upon the traveling party of the U.S. Vice President. Only the quick, decisive actions of Special Agent Vince Kellogg of the Secret Service saves the V.P. from sharing the grim fate of the Commander-in-Chief.

  Without warning, the greatest nation on Earth been rendered leaderless. Liberty and democracy have been places under siege by a well-armed and organized foe — an enemy operating not from outside America's borders, but from within her own sacrosanct halls of power. And now a small handful of patriots must do whatever it takes to prevent America's legacy of freedom from becoming a thing of the past — and stem the tide of treason, nuclear terror, and death originating from the remarkable airborne sentinel called…

  Richard P. Henrick

  Nightwatch

  Author’s Note

  Time references in Nightwatch are recorded either in Zulu Time (Greenwich Mean Time), the time unit favored by the military, or in Central Daylight Time (CDT). CDT is six hours behind Zulu Time.

  Nightwatch (E-4B) Compartments

  1 Flight Deck and Upper Deck Rest Area

  The flight deck contains the pilot’s, copilot’s, navigator’s and flight engineer’s stations. A lounge area and sleeping quarters for flight crews and other personnel are located aft of the deck.

  2 Forward Entry Area

  The forward entry area contains the main galley unit and stairways to the flight deck and to the forward lower equipment area. Refrigerators, freezers, a convection oven and a microwave oven give stewards the capability to provide more than 100 hot meals during prolonged missions. Additionally, four seats are located on the left side of the forward entry area for the security guards and the stewards.

  3 Conference Room and Projection Room

  The conference room provides a secure area for conferences and briefings. It contains a nine-position executive table with executive chairs. A projection room serving the conference room and the briefing room is located aft of the conference room. It has the capability of projecting computer graphics, overhead transparencies or 35mm slides to either the conference room or the briefing room either singularly or simultaneously.

  4 Operations Team Area

  The operations team area contains the automatic data processing equipment and seats and console work areas for 29 staff members.

  The consoles are configured to provide access to from the following types of circuits or systems: automated data processing, automatic switchboard, direct access telephone and radio circuits, direct (“hot”) lines, monitor panel for switchboard lines, staff and operator interphone and audio recorder.

  5 NCA Area

  The NCA area is designed and furnished as an executive compartment. It contains an office, a lounge sleeping area and a dressing area. Telephone instruments in this area provide the NCA with secure and clear, worldwide communications.

  6 Briefing Room

  The briefing room contains a briefing table with three executive seats, eighteen seats, a lectern and two rear projection screens.

  7 Communications

  Control Area The communications control area is divided into a voice area and a data area. The voice area, located on the right side of the compartment, contains the radio operator’s console, the semiautomatic switchboard console and the communication officer’s console. The data area, located on the left side of the area, contains the record communications console, record data supervisor’s console, high speed DATA/AUTODIN/AFSAT console and LV/VLF control heads.

  8 Technical Control and Rest Area

  The aft end of the main desk is divided into a technical control area and a rest area. The enclosed technical control area, which occupies the left forward part of the compartment, contains a technical control console, multiplexer, SHF SATCOM, console, and patch and test assembly. The rest area, which occupies the remaining portion of the aft main deck, provides a rest and sleeping area for the crew members.

  9 Flight Avionics Area

  The flight avionics area contains aircraft systems power panels, flight avionics equipment, liquid oxygen converters and stowage for baggage and spare parts.

  10 Forward Lower Equipment Area

  The forward lower equipment area contains the potable water supply tanks, 1200 KVA electrical power panels, stepdown transformers, VLF transmitter and SHF SATCOM equipment. Electrically operated retractable stairs, located in the forward right side of the forward lower equipment area, are installed for airplane entry and exit.

  11 Aft Lower Equipment Area

  The aft lower equipment area contains the maintenance console and various mission equipment.

  12 Lower Trailing Wire Antenna Area

  The lower trailing wire antenna area contains the long trailing wire antenna reel, the antenna operator’s station and the antenna reel controls and indicators.

  Glossary

  (in order of appearance)

  CDT Central Daylight Time

  PL Patrol Leader

  BDU Battle Dress Utility

  NVG Night Vision Goggles

  OB Objective RP Rally Point

  MRE Meal Ready to Eat OpOrd Operations Order

  RTO Radio Telephone Operator

  R&S Reconnaissance and Surveillance

  Assistant Patrol Leader

  TOC Tactical Operations Center

  EPW Enemy Prisoner of War

  SAW Squad Automatic Weapon

  Ammunition Casualty/ Report

  Load Bearing Equipment

  Demolitions OPFOR Opposition Forces

  GMT Greenwich Mean Time

  MP Military Police

  SAIC Special Agent in Charge

  CAT Counter Assault Team

  SWAT Special Weapons and Tactics

  ATF Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms

  IED Improvised Explosive Device srt Special Response Team

  MIL AIDE Military Aide cid Criminal Investigative Division

  NAOC National Airborne Operations Center

  NCA National Command Authority

  NMCC National Military Command Center

  STRATCOM Strategic Command

  CO Commanding Officer

  POTUS President of the United States

  FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency siop Single Integrated Operational Plan

  CONUS Continental United States npr National Public Radio

  SITREP Situation Report ir Infrared

  FCO Firs Control Officer

  SSGT Staff Sergeant rpg Rocket Propelled Grenade

  SATCOM Satellite Communications

  TACAMO Take Charge and Move Out

  DEFCON Defense Condition

  NAS Naval Air Station

  EAO Emergency Action Officer

  MO Modus Operandi

  CG Commanding General

  EOC Emergency Operations Center

  CPR Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation

  DOD Department of Defense

  VLF Very Low Frequency

  ICBM Intercontinental Ballistic Missile

  AM Emergency Action Message

  COMSUBLANT Commander Submarines Atlantic

  XO Executive Officer

  COB Chief of the Boat

  NSA National Security Agency

  SOSUS Sound Surveillance System

  SINS Ships Inertial Navigation System

  SAR Search and Rescue

  ADI Altitude Direction Indicator

  SOG
Studies and Observation Group

  ALCS Air Launch Control System

  ACO Airborne Communications Officer

  NORAD North American Aerospace Defense Command

  PA Power Amplifier

  SOCOM Special Operations Command

  COMSUBPAC Commander Submarines Pacific

  INMARSAT International Maritime Satellite

  SHF Super High Frequency

  CNO Chief of Naval Operations

  IMF International Monetary Fund

  ETA Estimated Time of Arrival

  CRT Cathode-Ray Tube

  PFD Primary Flight Display

  MOUT Military Operations in Urban Terrain

  MIRV Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicle

  Epigraph

  “At what point shall we expect the approach of danger? By what means shall we fortify against it? Shall we expect some trans-Atlantic military giant, to step the ocean, and crush us at a blow? Never! All the armies of Europe, Asia and Africa combined … could not by force, take a drink from the Ohio, or make a track on the Blue Ridge, in a trial of a thousand years. At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we ourselves must be Its author and finisher. As a nation of free men, we must live through all times, or die by suicide.”

  — ABRAHAM LINCOLN

  January 27,1838

  Chapter 1

  Thursday, July 1, 8:38 p.m. C.D.T.

  Fort Leonard Wood Military Reservation

  Sergeant Sam Reed stepped over the fallen oak trunk without breaking his stride. The nine-man Sapper squad that he was following was making the most of the remaining light. They were moving quickly through the forest, in a modified wedge formation, a ten-meter interval between soldiers.

  The summer shower that had soaked them earlier in the day had long since passed. A cloudless, powdery-blue sky prevailed in its place, with the remnants of a glorious sunset visible through the tree limbs ahead. The plan was to remain on this westerly azimuth until they reached Penns Pond, where they’d turn north toward the ridge separating Hurd Hollow and Roubidoux Creek.

  This was where their objective was located — an illegal-weapons cache, controlled by the outlaw Ozark People’s Militia, that they intended to neutralize by force, if necessary.

  The men of Sapper One were already running well behind schedule, and Reed was somewhat annoyed when, from the center of the wedge, the Patrol Leader raised his open palm overhead signaling the squad to a halt. A slap on the cargo pocket of his Battle Dress Utilities indicated that he was calling for a map check.

  As the PL quietly conferred with the squad’s compass and pace men. Reed reached for the plastic tube that extended from his ruck and took a sip of the cool water stored in a Camelbak bladder. The humidity was fierce, and with his own BDUs long since soaked, Reed knew it was essential for the soldiers in his charge to drink plenty of fluids. With rucksacks weighing over seventy pounds, and the additional burden of their weapons and a full load of ammunition, the danger of heat stroke had to be taken seriously.

  Reed watched the rifleman standing directly in front of him take a drink from his canteen, and looked on as the PL stood erect, swung his arm overhead from rear to front, and pointed toward the sunset. A bare second later, the men of Sapper One were on the move once again.

  The fiery hues that had previously painted the horizon had faded by the time they reached Penns Pond. They changed azimuth here, and with the ever-gathering dusk, their pace further quickened. The forest was thick, and because of their desire to travel well away from any established trail, the going was difficult.

  Razor-sharp brambles tore at Reed’s jungle boots and the rip-stop cloth of his camouflaged BDU pants. As they began their way up a steep incline, the rocky soil offered little in the way of secure footing, and Reed found himself ducking and bobbing to escape the arched oak saplings. Ever thankful for his protective eye wear he accepted a hand signal from the soldier in front to tighten their formation.

  Upon attaining the slope’s summit, the men could see a crescent moon dominating the western sky. They hurriedly climbed off the ridgeline, preferring instead to travel by way of the sloping gradient that graced its far side. It was getting increasingly hard to see, and when they continued down into the hollow. Reed toyed with the idea of deploying his Night Vision Goggles.

  It was shortly after an oak limb slapped Reed hard against his cheek, driving home how frustrated he was getting with this march, that the PL signaled for a listening halt. He did so by removing his BDU cap and waving it overhead. The squad removed their own caps, took up security positions, and knelt, their knees protected by pads designed to cushion the weight of their rucksacks.

  Reed joined them. The purpose of this halt was to remain absolutely silent and absorb the sights and sounds of their new surroundings. They were finally closing in on their objective, and now was the time to find out if they were being followed, or if they had any unwanted onlookers nearby.

  Sam Reed was no stranger to the sounds of the forest at night.

  He’d grown up in the hills of Tennessee, in a hollow much like the one they currently traveled. The cicadas called to him like old friends, their throbbing chorus welcome and most familiar.

  When a barn owl began hooting mournfully in the distance. Reed found himself thinking about those first hunting trips with his father and his decision to enlist in the Army on the eve of his eighteenth birthday. The military had been his entire life ever since, with the Combat Engineers his adopted family of choice.

  The first visible stars penetrated the forest. A warm gust of wind caused the limbs to sway in unison, the creaking boughs seemingly moaning in protest. His night vision sharpening. Reed scanned the wood line in the direction they would be headed.

  The Objective Rally Point that the squad had picked lay at the bottom of the next ridge. From there, the militia cache was less than a kilometer distant.

  It had taken the better part of the day for Sapper One to plan this operation. The initial warning order arrived at daybreak, along with the morning rains. Over soggy Meals Ready to Eat, the squad created the detailed Operations Order that would ensure their mission’s success. This long, complex briefing included the creation of a terrain model, molded from the wet Missouri soil and given additional detail with colored chalk, strands of yarn, and toy soldiers.

  By the time the OPORD was completed, every soldier knew exactly how the unit would accomplish its mission from start to finish. The details included the actual order of movement, actions at halts, the precise route, location of rally points, actions at danger areas, response to enemy contact, fire control measures, priority intelligence requirements, and rules of engagement. Each soldier was given a thorough list of the specialized equipment he would be responsible for carrying. In case of a casualty, it was imperative that items such as demolitions, claymores, spare barrels, or star-cluster flares be accounted for. Code words were also distributed, along with radio frequencies for the Radio Telephone Operators, and the proper arm and hand signals. Though time consuming by its very nature, a proper OPORD could mean the difference between life and death on the battlefield, and Reed emphasized this fact each time a point was skipped over or improperly covered.

  The mission had gone off without a hitch so far. The proper azimuths were being followed, the pace count was accurate, and their objective nearby. The only problem was the late start of their movement. Because of Sapper One’s tardiness in the delivery of their OPORD, the raid would have to be set up without the benefit of the last light of dusk.

  A buzzing mosquito announced the arrival of the night. Reed swatted at the insect as it passed by his ear. He reached for his water tube, and could just see the PL stand, extend his arm overhead, point forward, and rotate it in a counterclockwise direction.

  This caused the squad to rise in unison, line up in a single-file formation, and contin
ue down into Hurd Hollow, where their Objective Rally Point would be located.

  Reed was last in line. From this position, he could clearly see the two rectangular, luminescent “cat-eye” strips sewn into the BDU cap of the Sapper in front of him. The file formation was used when terrain or limited visibility precluded the use of the more tactically flexible wedge. Like a single entity, they snaked their way down the sloping gradient.

  Even with the file, it took Reed’s full concentration to keep from colliding with a projecting limb or tripping over an exposed root. Night vision was an applied skill. Instead of looking directly at a faintly visible object, one learned to slowly scan it. Yet another technique was off-center viewing, looking ten degrees above, below, or to either side of an object.

  By the time they reached the hollow’s bottom. Reed’s eyes were fully adapted to the dark. This coincided with their arrival at the Objective Rally Point. The ORP was intentionally located out of sight, sound, and small-arms range of the objective. It would provide a temporary base of operations, and the men gratefully slipped off their rucksacks and initiated final preparations for the raid.

  Reed removed his own ruck, and watched as the PL positioned his security team. Once this was achieved, the PL assembled the squad’s Recon and Surveillance unit. A flashlight with a red lens was used to doublecheck their position on a folded map, and before leaving to reconnoiter the objective with his R&S team, the PL delegated responsibility for the ORP to the Assistant Patrol Leader.

  “Red Dog One, this is Red Dog Two, over,” whispered the RTO into the handset of his radio.

  “Red Dog Two, this is Red Dog One, over,” replied the gruff voice of the soldier occupying the Tactical Operations Center back at Sapper base camp.

  “Red Dog One, be informed that Red Dog Two has reached its Objective Rally Point at coordinates Whiskey Mike six-seven-six-five, six-seven-eight-zero, and is preparing to move on objective, over.”