Tropical Terror Read Online Free Page A

listening. Murdock waved him over. “Ed, take one man and check out the air-conditioning intake on the back of the place. See if we can get four men in there without being seen. We’ll go with a hot firefight if we need to, to get to the intake. That will be a big factor here.”
    â€œAgree. I’ll check it out now.”
    Ten minutes later the six-by came with the rest of the gear the SEALs had bought from the mainland, including the four EAR weapons. These are Enhanced Acoustical Rifles, and are non-lethal. They pump out a blast of sound waves that hit a target or go inside a room and bounce all around. A hit or near miss can put the target man down and unconscious for two to four hours. When the target wakes up, he is not damaged physically. The SEALs first used the weapon in the mission to Northern Japan.
    Being non-lethal and non-destructive, the EARs would be important elements here.
    Murdock assigned the EARs, two weapons to each squad. He had a mix of the H & K MP-5SD4 9mm submachine guns with suppressors, and the Bull Pups with the exploding rounds. When he was happy with the mix he called over Chief Natterby.
    â€œWhere are the sensitive areas, the transmitters, receivers, all the electronics equipment in the commo center?”
    â€œAlmost all of it is on the third floor. It’s sealed up separately from the rest of the building for security and protection from an attack that would produce explosive fragments, shrapnel, accidental damage.”
    â€œFirst two floors administrative?”
    â€œYes, sir.”
    â€œHow many friendlies do we have in the building? How many would normally be there on a working day like today?”
    â€œBetween a hundred ten to a hundred thirty. Usually there’s a commander and a captain aboard.”
    â€œNow, how many terrorists would it take to capture and neutralize the communications center?”
    â€œMy guess would be at least ten, maybe fifteen. There are six separate master control centers. They would have to be shut down and locked down.”
    â€œAre there weapons in the building?”
    â€œNot that I know of. Nobody wears weapons during working hours. The guards at night have side arms. Interior guards.”
    â€œThere must be a weapons locker somewhere. You’ve never seen one or heard about one?”
    â€œNo, sir.”
    â€œSo there’s little chance for any armed resistance from inside. Let’s hope that the tear gas and the EARs do their job and we don’t have to use any of the 20mm.”
    Ed Dewitt came back with his report.
    â€œThe air intake is plainly marked, and we’ve got clear passage to it out of sight of anyone at the rear windows. No need to wait for darkness.”
    Five minutes later the two Humvees boiled into the parking lot with the weapons and ammo. DeWitt’s squad grabbed the cases of tear-gas canisters. They came twenty to a carton and there were four cartons.
    DeWitt talked to the Humvee driver, and took from his toolbox a heavy pair of side cutter pliers, a three-foot pry bar, a heavy hammer, and three screwdrivers.
    Murdock looked at the tools.
    â€œAll we have to do is lift off a screen over the input pipe and we’re in business,” DeWitt said.
    Murdock had scouted the area fronting the communications building. It was an administration office of some kind, with a two-foot-high rock wall in front of it next to the sidewalk. Plenty of cover for his riflemen.
    â€œThis is a radio net check,” Murdock said on his lip mike. “Alpha Squad report.”
    He listened as six of his seven men reported. Kenneth Ching had not logged on.
    â€œJaybird, find Ching and get him wired,” Murdock said.
    Ed DeWitt checked his squad and counted all of them.
    â€œEd, it’s your lead. Dump in at least forty of those canisters as fast as you can pop them. We’ve got another twenty rounds up here we can lob into the windows if we need to. We’ll give it five