The Shooters (Presidential Agent 4)

"How many helicopters do you think you can borrow from Pevsner, Colonel? How many does he have? Enough for even a 'simple helicopter assault operation'?"

"Excuse me?"

"Isn't that why you're going to Bariloche?" Duffy asked, almost triumphantly. "To borrow a helicopter again from that Russian criminal Aleksandr Pevsner?"

"No, that's not why I'm going to Bariloche, not that that is any of your business. The helicopters involved in this operation will begin to arrive somewhere around midnight on the eighteenth of September. In one week, plus one day, plus however many hours between now and midnight. This is tentative; I haven't had much time to plan. And, frankly, I need your help with the planning."

Castillo noticed that that got Duffy's attention.

"Between now and then-this is where you come in, Comandante-we are going to have to set up refueling stations for the helos, a landing field between where I plan to initially land the aircraft-which is on the playing fields of the Polo Association in Pilar-and then somewhere near Asuncion. The landing field will need to be big enough for a JP-4 fuel cache for each helo every three hundred kilometers. And be an isolated field, of course. And we need a base of operations in Argentina, also isolated, where we can conceal the helicopters from anyone flying over, and from which we can operate into Paraguay."

Duffy considered all of this a moment.

"How many helicopters will you have?"

"Four, at least."

"And you think you'll be able to fly four U.S. Army helicopters across a thousand-fifteen hundred-kilometers of Argentina and get away with it? Undetected?"

"U.S. Army helicopters? No. But I don't think one or two Argentine Army helicopters flying anywhere-across the pampas or up the Rio de la Plata or the Rio Paraguay-are going to attract attention from anybody."

"Your helicopters will be painted like ours," Duffy replied, "is that what you're saying?"

Castillo nodded, and thought, Now I really have his attention.

I just have to sink the hook.

"Except maybe other Argentine Army helicopters?" Duffy pursued. "Their pilots might say, 'I wonder who that is?'"

"Mine will be flying nap of the earth, very low-"

"I know what nap of the earth means," Duffy protested.

"-and will have radar on board, which will permit my pilots to take evasive action should they detect any other aircraft in the vicinity."

"Like a sudden turn of course which will take them right over an airfield, or a city?"

"They're equipped with satellite navigation systems to keep that from happening," Castillo said. "And the pilots do this sort of thing for a living."

"You seem very sure of yourself, Colonel."

"This is what I do for a living, Comandante," Castillo said evenly. "Now, would you like to hear our very preliminary plans for the actual assault? I really need your input on this."

Duffy nodded without hesitation.

Got him!

Castillo glanced at Munz, who nodded just perceptibly. Castillo then motioned at D'Elia.

"This is Captain D'Elia, Comandante," Castillo said. "He will be in charge of the actual assault."

Duffy offered his hand.

"Mucho gusto, mi comandante," D'Elia said, then glanced at Castillo. "With your permission, mi coronel?"

"Go ahead," Castillo said.

"Generally speaking," D'Elia began, "as I understand we not only intend to rescue our men but plan to take prisoners-and if we determine our people are being held at a refinery, or transfer point, to either seize or destroy both the drugs and the plant itself-"