Chapter 37 Pointe Noire, 4° 46′ 43″ S, 11° 51′ 49″ E, Antonio Agostinho Airport Neto-Geneva-St. Moritz
Cecilia, Akiko and Lian Xi climbed the steps of the Gulfstream with mixed feelings. Happy and anxious at the same time. They had Sefu and on the way to the Gobi Facility, but the incident at the Zaire River left a lot of anxiety. Organization people and OWC or one of them could also track their whereabouts.
The drone attack made them think that this mission could jeopardize their lives. Had The Kitchen not taken the initiative to send a Gulfstream, amphibious planes, and giant drones, along with their departure for the Congo, perhaps the ending would have been different. Possibly they could become corpses floating in the Zaire River as the result of the attack.
Luigi sent a Gulfstream piloted by Darko Ivankov and an amphibious plane piloted by Park Sung Hoo to Pointe Noire to anticipate when Cecilia and her team managed to find Sefu and the evacuation process must be carried out as soon as possible. Luigi was on standby at The Kitchen to monitor the situation.
Luigi asked Darko Ivankov to bring an attack drone if at any time Cecilia and her team needed help in the forest. Luigi's anticipated move was correct. Cecilia did manage to catch Sefu in a short time and on the way was attacked by drones deployed by OWC.
They would return to the Last Alamo to work out their next plans while monitoring Andalas. Luigi had received news that two Organization figures and one OWC leader had been successfully eliminated by Andalas.
"So where is Andalas now, Darko?" Akiko asked curiously as she poked her head into the cockpit to Darko Ivankov who acted as the pilot and was assisted by Lian Xi. The Gulfstream plane was already flying to Geneva.
"His last position was in Buenos Aires and now I think he's going to Brazil. He'll be hunting in Rio De Janeiro." Darko answered while turning to Akiko because the question had a slightly worried tone.
Deep down Akiko was sad. Andalas must have done something he did not like for the success of this mission. She knew Andalas wanted to give up being assassin and wanted a normal life. But this situation had compelled him to do thing that he did not like. He eliminated three people in less than a week and those people weren't just average persons at all.
Cecilia Pondered. Even though they had gone through half of the Tropical Bacteria mission with the discovery of Sefu, Cecilia knew that formidable obstacles still lay ahead of them. The organization and the OWC obviously did not want this pandemic to end. Cecilia prayed that Andalas would be able to rattle these two powerful and dangerous organizations by killing as many of their leaders as possible.
Lian Xi was thinking something else. She knew that Akiko fell for Andalas. But she admitted to herself that she was attracted to Andalas too. But Akiko….hhhh never mind. Why should she thought about this. After all, Andalas didn't necessarily like Akiko and might prefer her. He would see the end of the romantic story between the whirring of bullets and the turmoil of this pandemic. To be sure, she was not a woman who gave up easily when she fell in love.
The tiring trip to Geneva went smoothly without a hitch. The trip from Geneva to St. Moritz was also uneventful. Darko Ivankov insisted that he should drive when Lian Xi offered to take his place. This was the task that Doctor Aslan had assigned. That was how it went.
At the Last Alamo, the three women slept for hours in their comfortable rooms. Cecilia dreamed of burning cities, but the fires were starting to go out. Akiko dreamed of taking a walk-up at Mount Fuji alone with Andalas. Meanwhile, Lian Xi dreamed of fighting with Akiko after it turned out that Andalas chose her instead of Akiko.
-----
"This is our second loss! I don't want anyone else of the Organization members to continue to fall! Any suggestions on what we should do to prevent this?" The Chairman sat listless in his chair. The death of Giovani Sirigu and Xavier Santino hit him hard. The Organization only had ten members left.
"Chairman, We have to activate the 13th member." a woman who looked elegant and aristocratic made a suggestion.
"No! It's too risky. I want you all to be on high alert from now on. Whoever did this, he has extraordinary abilities. Shooting steadily while swimming in the sea is something that make little sense to me. But that's what happened." The Chairman answered firmly while contemplating the activation of the 13th member.
These people had absolutely no idea that the 13th member was their biggest opponent. Adli Aslan! He seems to hold a grudge against me for terminating his membership a few years ago. But he really is a traitor because he has forgotten the Organization's vision to always maintain balance in the world!
The Chairman certainly didn't want to talk about his dispute with Doctor Aslan because up to now the termination was not known by the others at the request of Doctor Aslan himself. They knew the real reason; that the Organization would split in two. The Chairman knew that some people in this Organization were very close to Doctor Aslan when he was still active as the 13th member. Especially the Huang brothers who were sitting restlessly in the corner over there.
They must not know. He still needs them. Not for financial reason but more for their influence in their respective countries.
-----
Stepmother was furious. The gaunt-faced woman blushed. The death of Hugo Caciedo was a huge loss for OWC. She lost an accomplished diplomat who had exceptional skills in recruiting terrorists and criminal organizations to become members of the OWC.
Damn whoever killed Hugo Caciedo! She would find out. And she knew who to call or threaten. The Consultant was the most knowledgeable person in the world of assassins and the latest developments.
Stepmother picked up the phone.
"Find and arrest the Consultant! First priority!"
Stepmother slammed the receiver down.