— Chapter Six —
Grimes had planned the operation in his usual precise, meticulous, and methodical manner. He’d thought about the different scenarios of robbing the item directly from the temple, but decided after two already failed attempts, not to go down that route. Grimes knew he needed to get the relic and targets away from Thailand. He had been a guest of Mohammed now for three days and with the constant pressure being put on him by Mophi, who referred to him as Grimey, which Grimes hated, he wanted to get this job over quick and spend his millions.
He’d researched the male individuals on the newspaper clippings and while he studied the wedding photograph of Pon and Kim, he thought.
“What’s her story I wonder?” and tapped away at his computer for several hours and then he came up with an idea.
He and Akhim talked over the tactics and presented it to Mohammed, who approved the plan and told them to start straight away, time was of the essence. Over the next few days’, Grimes organised teams of surveyors, engineers and technicians.
The scheme was to build somewhere suitable in South East Asia that would be undetectable. He’d gathered information about Kim and her family and decided to focus his attention on her for the primarily target.
Grimes thought that with Kim being Vietnamese, could work in their favour and decided to carry out the operation in Vietnam.
However, his plan had to ensure that Kim travelled to Vietnam, alone.
The first phase would involve the Sheik. He would use his status as a Royal dignitary, to book a private viewing of the sacred light in Bangkok, which would require the Prime Master’s attendance. This would ensure Pon stayed in Bangkok.
The Sheik’s staff phoned Bangkok to enquire when the viewing would be convenient for the prime master. He made an appointment, informing Bangkok that this date must be set in stone and could not be changed,
Grimes knew the Sheiks illness would be a perfect excuse for him to miss the appointment. He now had his time slot.
Grimes knew that once Kim came to Vietnam they couldn’t hide her amongst the general populous as her father would eventually locate her. Therefore, he came up with a bold, albeit costly plan. He found a site that would best suit his purpose and studies satellite photos, maps and topographies of a specific area.
The site, an area of rain-forest close to the Cu Chi tunnels that he had surveyed, along with tunnel plans. He’d decided to attach his project to one of the many tunnels, within a 75mile maze of winding passage ways. Some of these tunnels contained man-made underground rooms, which the Viet Cong had used as HQ’s and hospitals during their American conflict and now a tourist attraction. He chose a vein cut off from tourist’s tunnel that they could block off inconspicuously, and use as an escape route to exit and mingle with the tourists and guides.
Mophi recruited a unit of ten, mercenary soldier’s, who were ex-foreign legion. Grimed hired a Vietnamese team of engineers and surveyors required for the plan. Grimes sent Akhim to Vietnam with a pot of cash and assigned him some other vital tasks.
Over the next few weeks, the project commenced. Grimes wanted the Vietnamese to believe that they intended to build a modern, technical museum underground containing war artefacts and high definition visual aids, movies, and 3D images depicting the lives of a Vietnamese tunnel fighters and the lives and deaths of the unsuccessful, U.S tunnel rats. They proposed building a high tech museum adjoining the tunnels. With a few bribes and computer generated images and movies, Akhim had convince the district government it would increase the tourism to the Cu Chi tunnels. Akhim arrived back in Saudi with planning permission, legal papers and licenses, which would keep both the locals and authorities none the wiser about their real objective.
They had surveyed the satellite photos, and printed pictures of treetops, to mimic a dense canopy, onto thin Lycra canvases, indistinguishable from the real treescape if viewed from the air.
They brought over tunnel boring machines, large generators, steel interlocking whaler walls, excavating and TBM moles onto the site. This had been a logistical quagmire and cost a lot in bribing a few senior officials on Phu Quoc island,* shared jointly by Cambodia and Vietnam.
They flew the heavy machinery in with an old C54 heavy helicopter, procured on Phu Quoc. This was the time they would be most vulnerable from the skies, but Grimes could monitor all satellites in the area from his Saudi Arabian H.Q, so he could direct the incoming flights without detection.
Once the equipment had arrived, the large building and survey team set to work at a frantic pace, using a shrinkage Stope technique together with Vietnamese tunnel making methods. They excavated a large area of land and dug a deep hole, approximately 30mx30m, and 6 metres deep using explosives, and small amphibious trucks to remove the dirt. They then fitted interlocking whaling steel panels to the sides and concreted on a roof 4mtre high then covered the top with earth.
A portion had been dug out from the topsoil at an angle, giving the appearance of a WW2 bunker entrance under a mud roof, which would be their entrance into the ‘Operations’ Centre’. A team of technicians went to work installing the environmental and electronic equipment that the team would require for their temporary stay and specialist security equipment was fitted. The builders and mercenary’s carried on refitting the inside for accommodation, offices, and dividing sections off for the confinement of the awaited guests.
A larger, main entrance was bored into the rain-forest. This tunnel, approximately 2 km long connected the jungle to the control centre. They used the printed camouflage jungle canvas to obscure any ariel view, blending in with the appearance of the rain-forest canopy.
They joined the small vein of the selected section of Cu chi tunnel network branches and closed it off with a removable panel doorway.
****
Grimes had a tumultuous few weeks, the supervisors on the site were always in dispute and, with the ever present Mophi, looking over his shoulder, when the day came that he’d received the phone call to say they’d finished became a welcome relief.
Grimes, Akhim and Mophi stood at Mohammed’s bedside, although wasting away and on high amounts of narcotic, analgesia, he still appeared as an astute, proud man.
“We have finished the building stage, Sheik,” said Grimes
“Well done” said the weak Mohammed and gazed at Mophi
“We fly to Vietnam tomorrow morning,” continued Grimes
“When can I expect my treasure and my other instructions to be carried out?” Enquired the Sheik.
“There is still a lot to do, but I estimate two months,” said Grimes
Mohammed, his strength waning as the cancer ate him away, still felt strong and alert. His Physicians weren’t really sure either, for some reason he seemed to have found new energy and strength. Mohammed was convinced he was still alive because Allah wanted him to fulfil his quest
“You have two months,” croaked Mohammed
They bowed, Grimes and Akhim left the room, and Mophi went and knelt down at Mohammed’s side.
“Keep a close eye on, Grimes” whispered Mohamed “and don’t forget my last instruction.”
Grimes walked with a spring in his step as he went to his quarters and stood in the shower, ‘I might have to live rough for a few months, but then the life of riley’ he thought and said aloud
“How should I going spend all that lovely money?”
Mophi walked passed Grimes’s room and smirked; he would ensure that Grimes wouldn’t be enjoying any money.
****
Grimes stood in the middle of the operations centre aghast. He looked around the underground room, it felt as if he’d just walked into a large dimly lit steel shipping container with a mud floor. The room gave of a pungent earthy aroma, making him feel claustrophobic, and gave the feeling of being buried alive.
Grimes, Mophi and Akhim had spent two days travelling to Vietnam by air and road, followed by a hot sweaty journey through the rain-forest, covered by stinging foliage that slapped against an open jeep that weaved its way around trees and thick vegetation on its route. They drove up to the bunkers entrance and went through the door and down a makeshift set of concrete stairs into the control centre.
Grimes was not amused, he felt hot and tired and in need of a shower. He surveyed the large room, and the Vietnamese workers trying to erect walls and partitions. Electricians and technicians scurried around with plans, monitor screens and various, other equipment.
Akhim went to supervise the unpacking and storage of the extra equipment they’d brought from their Saudi control centre and Mophi went to talk to his mercenaries.
A Vietnamese man with an interpreter came over to Grimes and, through the interpreter, said that he wanted to show him around. He went through the plans with Grimes, showing him where partition walls where to be built. Then he showed him over to a small door at the rear of the centre, and explained that was the entrance for the tunnels, which Grimes had planned as the escape route. He swung back the door and a look of horror came over Grimes face. Half way up the doorway was mud and a small arch tunnel approximately 3 feet high and 3 feet wide. The man handed Grimes a torch and he shone it into the tunnel. It was the same all the way down, a small brown, wet muddy pipe, it appeared to Grimes like looking through a miner’s elevator into a small hole between shafts.
“What’s this?” said Grimes as he pointed to the tunnel
“Tunnel” said the Vietnamese
“It’s very small,” he said sarcastically
“Why you think we win war, you people too big, can’t turn around, tunnels easy for us. . . . What did you expect?” replied the man in broken English
‘He had a point’ thought Grimes who had expected to open the door and stroll down a large well lit and aired tunnel.
This escape route was definitely out of the question, he imagined squeezing behind Mophi who would not have fitted. ‘This day couldn’t become any worse’ thought Grimes.
He was shown along the side of the centre where the T.B.M. had been discarded, Carbine cutters removed and the driver’s cabin and tube section was now home to a few Vietnamese. ‘Over three quarters of a million dollar piece of equipment and now just a shack,’ thought Grimes.
The large tunnel entered directly into the control centre. Grimes noticed a concreted covered passage way with a concrete flat road, and a LRCV-V amphibious vehicle parked there, which they used this to transport people and equipment through the tunnel.
The Vietnamese man drove Grimes through the two kilometre stretch of artificially lit tunnel. They came out of the tunnel under the artificial canopy.
Grimes stood and looked at the rain-forest, feeling glad that Mohammed had mentioned, money no object as this project’s budget had already run into millions and, as far as Grimes was concerned had little to show for it.
He had a short stroll to get the musty smell out of his nostrils, and ordered the Vietnamese to drive him back to the control room.
With activity still going on around the centre, Grimes searched out his office area and went through his unopened boxes of equipment and papers. He started to organise some documents, photo’s and copies of official papers.
“Now Mrs. Meesilli, Miss Doung, or should we now call you, Hern Tangh, what other secrets are you hiding”. he said aloud as he tapped on several photos of Kim ranging from early childhood through to her marriage to Pon along some recent prints taken by Thai ‘private eyes’ who he’d contracted.
He called Mophi and Akhim into his office and told them that the next phase must be started immediately. Mophi and Akhim never argued as they were in just as much hurry to get out of this unfinished and unhygienic underground chamber.
****
Phú Quốc [known as Koh Tral by Cambodians] is the largest island of Vietnam. Administratively the island is part of Kiên Giang province. The district of Phú Quốc includes the island proper and 21 smaller islets. The district seat, Dương Ðông, which is located on the west coast, is also the largest town on this island, whose total area is 574 km². On May 1, 1975, a squad of Khmer Rouge soldiers raided and took Phu Quoc Island, but Vietnam soon recaptured it. This was to be the first of a series of incursions and counter-incursions that would escalate to the Cambodian– Vietnamese War in 1979. Tourism plays an important part of the economy with the beaches being the main attraction. Phu Quoc is served by Phu Quoc Airport with air links to Ho Chi Minh City [Saigon]'s Tan Son Nhat Airport and Rach Gia's Rach Gia Airport.