Prose

A lot later they feel that they are being watched and when they look up, it is into the faces of Roberto and his officers.  “Thank you for the good work that you are doing here,” Roberto remarks.
 
“Everything has got a price with you.  I wonder how you are going to pay us, for this.   Roberto, you owe us.  You owe me your life and how do you pay me?”

It is clear that Roberto is embarrassed.  “Come with me Mister Burger, there’s a few things that we have got to discuss,” Roberto orders and nods to a few of his guards to stay with Maria.

Roberto gives some more commands and some of the officers and soldiers disappear into the town.  “It is for her own safety,” Roberto remarks when he notices the Ryno’s glance.  “Like we are kept here for our own safety,” Ryno wants to know sarcastically.

In silence they walk further to Roberto’s office, where he asks Ryno to sit down in one of the comfortable chairs and he fetches cold beer for them both from the refrigerator.

”What do you want from me and Maria,” Ryno wants to know directly.  “I have got something that you both want.  Let us call it your freedom and you can help us with something that we want,” Robert remarks.

Ryno drinks his beer in silence while he is watching Roberto Chipenda, where he is looking out of the window at Mavinga.  “If it wasn’t for those damned aircraft,” Roberto says and shakes his head despondent, before he turns to face Ryno.

Roberto picks up his pace-stick from his desk and Ryno reads something near to madness in his eyes when he says:  “I want you to destroy those damned Migs and Hind helicopter gunships.”  With his last words he breaks the pace-stick right through and throws the two pieces into the corner.

Ryno starts laughing.  “Yes, man.  You must be totally nuts?  And how do you want me to destroy them without ground to air missiles?  Your weapons could not do much to them during their attack, but maybe it could have gone slightly better...”

”Oh, like I have said before, you are a ingenious kind of man and you will come up with the one or other plan.  Just look at what you did to Petrofski and his men.”  “It was only coincidence and destiny,” says Ryno.

”And if I do not play along,” Ryno wants to know from him.  Roberto sits down in the chair across from Ryno, and there is a smile of self-satisfaction on his face.

”You do not really have a choice.  At the moment doctor Ramos can move freely in the camp.  Do not force me to lock her up like a criminal and to start torturing her.  I can let my men cut off her nipples before your very eyes, to convince you of my seriousness.”

”It will not be necessary!  You are similar to that damned Petrofski,” Ryno roars and forces himself to get control of his emotions.

”What guarantee do I have that you will let us go when we are successful,” he wants to know from Roberto and it is clear that he does not trust him.  “My word,” the black man says before he smashes a blowfly that was turning around him with both his hands.

”So far your word does not really mean anything,” Ryno remarks and he smiles when Roberto jerks open a draw and pull a pistol from it.

I have got Roberto snapping, he thinks with self-satisfaction.  Roberto however pushes the pistol into Ryno’s hands.  “I trust you, Ryno Burger and for me that is more than enough.”

Ryno removes the pistol’s magazine and it is full of nine millimetre bullets.  “Good grief!  What if I cock this thing and kill you right here and now?”  “That is the chance that I am willing to take...”
 
“Man, you are totally mad.  How am I going to destroy, the whole of the FAPLA air force and their Cuban pilots?  Get some more Stingers from the Americans and shoot the damned things down, or attack one of their military airports with your men, but leave me and Maria out of this war!”

Roberto shakes his head.  “Unfortunately the Americans do not want to supply as with Stingers anymore and that FAPLA airport is far too well defended for a direct attack.  You are our only hope and I will do anything to force you to help us.”

”Are you really insane!  What can I do that you cannot do?  Am I a god who like Thor can move my fist through the air, to let rays of lightning destroying their aircraft?”

Roberto smiles at Ryno and his smile makes Ryno angrier, but there is no emotion showing on his face.  “Did you not sneak in and out of Cassinga like a spectre?”

”To sneak into an enemy camp is one thing, but what you are asking of me borders on to insanity!  Again I am asking you:  What can I do that is impossible to you?”

”Make a plan or the lovely Maria, or do you call her Johanna, will suffer.”  The black man walks to his desk and pulls one of the drawers open.  He removes a piece of rolled paper from the drawer and rolls it open on the polished surface of his desk.

”Come look at this map en tell me if you still think that I am insane?”  He commands Ryno harshly and Ryno walks to the desk and looks down at the map.  It is as if Ryno suddenly stiffens, as if a life electric current is flowing through him.

”I see you lot have scouted that place thoroughly,” Ryno asks a rhetoric question and wipes the sweat from his face with one of his hands.  “This looks like a map of Cuito Canavale airbase,” Ryno remarks and follows the lines of the base with his fingers.

”This place is our biggest headache.  It lies barely a hundred kilometres from here and it is the place from where that fighter jets and gunships had come today,” Roberto remarks while his eyes burns into those of Ryno.

”Where did you get this plan?  It looks as if they have sharpened their security,” Ryno remarks and a smile touches the corners of his mouth.

”We have got our sources, but as you have said that place is difficult to enter.  The aria between the two fences is guarded by soldiers with dogs.  There are three shooting or lookout towers that are manned with heavy machineguns in some of the corners of the camp and one at the main entrance.  There are also barracks of the guards, at the front near to the main entrance.  Roaming pickets are the whole time on patrol throughout the camp.”

Roberto picks up his can of beer and drinks it empty.  In the south eastern corner there is some living quarters.  There are workshops and some other buildings in the north-western part of the camp, behind the hangars and control tower.  The hangars run right through the camp from east to west.  They have build a new control tower, in front of the hangars where their operational room is also situated and there are four Mig-23’s and four Hind helicopter gunships on the concrete surface that is waiting ready for action,” Roberto remarks while his finger points at the map.

”In which hangers are the Migs and the Hind situated?” Ryno asks while he is looking at the plan.  “The front four hangars on the west side are used for them,” Roberto remarks and walks back to his chair while Ryno is still looking at the plan.

”Your information sounds trustworthy and accurate.  You have got to have somebody in the camp?  Can that person not do something, as he or she is already on the spot,” Ryno wants to know when he looks up from the map.

”My hands are chopped off.  Do you really want me to do something to the doctor before I convince you of my seriousness,” Roberto wants to know.

”I am sure that you will make a plan to enter that camp and to destroy the aircraft.  My best soldiers and equipment will be at your disposal,” Roberto remarks while he gets another beer from the refrigerator for both of them.

”There is certain demands that I want to set, before I am committing myself,” Ryno remarks and sits down in the chair opposite Roberto.

Roberto smiles satisfied.  “So, you are going to help us?”  “Do I have any another choice,” Ryno wants to know somewhat tiredly.  “If you can just find a way to enter that base safely,” Roberto remarks.

”It is possible,” Ryno says and for another moment he studies the plan that he is holding in his hands.  “Do you already have a plan,” Roberto wants to know astonished from Ryno.

Ryno shakes his head.  “It’s only a vague idea, but firstly we have got to discuss my demands and I have got to go and scout that camp.  I want no harm to be done to Maria.  She must be able to move freely in the camp and I want her constantly near to me and during the attack she has to take part in it.”

Roberto shakes his head.  “Did I hear you correctly?  You want her to take part in the attack,” he asks sceptically.  “I know that I can trust nobody and I want her to be unharmed when we start the attack,” Ryno remarks frowning but there is other plan that also is going through his thoughts.

”I have already said that we have arranged for you to live together,” Roberto remarks, but his eyes are gleaming and Ryno opens his second can of beer.

”Doctor Ramos will be available to you, as soon as she has helped with the worst of the wounded,” Roberto agrees.  “You are sure that these plans are accurate,” Ryno wants to know from Roberto.  “Yes, they have changed nothing on them,” Roberto remarks and smokes a cigarette while Ryno walks over to the black board and picks up a piece of chalk.

He sketches a plan on the black board and after a while, Roberto gets curious and gets up and walks to the black board.  “What are you drawing here,” he wants to know from Ryno while he looks at the drawing on the black board.

”There is a way of getting into that airbase.  To pass the guards with the dogs is the biggest problem.  This water drain passes the thorn trees at the back of the camp and it ends on the other side of the last fence.  Near to where the shooting range is situated.  If we enter it near to the shooting range it will take us past the guards to the wall of ground at the front.  If we cut the security wires and creep through, we will be on the eastern side in the main camp.

”How do you know about this water drain system?  Only part of it is indicated on the map,” Roberto remarks.  “At a time a South African commando unit was planning a similar kind of attack on that camp,” Ryno answers.
 
“I knew from the start that you are the right man to lead this mission,” Roberto says while he pats Ryno on the shoulder.