Operation Chaos: A Gripping Action Thriller (15 page)

''The stakes are too high.'' Jacob gave his typical one liners.

The month of November went by without any other documents going missing.

It was on the morning of 15th December 1997 that a new rumour broke out at the Pokharan facility.

Shashank asked about it during their tea session.

''You guys heard the rumour? The ISI is equally interested in our work as the CIA. RAW just sent in the Intel that they intercepted a radio communication which referred to Pokharan and nuclear blasts frequently. Why would Pakistan be interested in our research?''

Jacob sipped at his tea, remained silent as ever.

''Pakistan's nuclear program started in 1970's. Maybe they too are developing their own nuclear arsenal. Can't trust anyone these days. Even amateurs have started playing with big bombs,'' Ajay said, smiling sarcastically.

That instant, Ajay had no idea that one of the top espionage agents of the ISI was standing just a metre away from him.

Chapter 41

''Take us south. Near the city of Aurangabad, Maharashtra. Miss Shonali has a hunch that the next marker is the hidden somewhere in the Ajanta caves,'' David instructed the pilot.

''How can you be so sure that the Ajanta Caves is the place to look for that artefact?'' Ranjeet asked, climbing aboard as the chopper set course towards its destination.

''It's our best shot. Three of the four things on that
dhvaja
directly point out to Ajanta caves,'' Shonali replied.

''And which are those?''

''The picture of the cave, the horseshoe shaped valley and more importantly a picture of the Reclining Buddha. Ajanta Caves were built over a horseshoe shaped terrain. That
dhvaja
might be one of the earlier designs of the caves. The sculpture of the Reclining Buddha, also known as the Sleeping Buddha, is considered to be one of the best artworks of these caves.''

''So what about the lamp?'' Ranjeet asked.

Sameer tucked in his head into the conversation.''The lamp has always been the symbol of wisdom in the Buddhist literature. Maybe they have kept their wisdom hidden in the caves.''

''And we haven't found that yet? The Ajanta Caves have been open for public viewing since a long time.'' Ranjeet looked suprised.

''The best secrets are the ones hidden in plain sight. I know these caves have been thoroughly inspected by many historians but there might be something they could have missed,'' quoted Shonali.

Meanwhile, David was busy contacting the headquarters for more updates about the happenings in Delhi.

''David to HQ, any clues from the IB about the blast incident?''

''This is HQ. Negative, David. The trace of jamming device is also proving a waste of time. What is your status?''

''Me and my team are heading towards the Ajanta Caves. I am not sure if that is the next marker or the location of the artefact or simply a dead end. It is Miss Shonali's prediction. You do not have ANY leads until now?''

''Well, we do have a lead, but it goes nowhere. Just complicates the case. We had a suspect who might be connected to tonight's events. We had his location in Paharganj but our officers lost him somewhere on the metro. The guy running this operation is one hell of a mastermind and he has chosen his men well. There are absolutely no loose threads. We just got one rough lead. It was found in the dustbin at the suspect's hotel room. It was burnt from one side and the only legible text was - ASSIGNMENT 6.00. Our cyber cell and intelligence are working on it right now. We will notify you in case of any updates. Right now our job is to keep the President safe and yours is to follow the trail. Will update you about the situation at Wheeler Island soon,'' the operator at the Headquarters instructed.

''Roger that.''

''HQ out.''

David instantly turned towards Ranjeet whose fingers were moving swiftly on the keypad of his laptop. He had to take down the security firewalls one at a time. Fortunately, the guys at the Wheeler Island were not veteran computer experts and they had left some glitches. Ranjeet had been trying to find some significant glitch for the last half hour and now he had found his window. He started to make his way past the firewalls.

''How are we doing? Any close to shutting off their security systems? Our NSG commandos are waiting on the coast guard boats. You take down the firewalls and they move in. They are trained for such hostage rescue scenarios,'' said David, taking a peek at Ranjeet's laptop screen. All David could see were meaningless sentences, illogical words, hyphens, slants and colons typed in by Ranjeet.

''It's not easy to break down the system. It is like a virtual safe with many layers of metals and I have to drill through it bit by bit. I am through the primary firewalls, but I have access to only 13% of their passkeys and data. I need the complete set of passkeys to override their system. I am working on the next bit. Will keep you posted,'' replied Ranjeet, without taking his eyes off the screen.

A minute later, David got another incoming message from the HQ.

''HQ to David. Do you copy?''

''Loud and Clear.''

''David, this is Colonel Rana from HQ. We just got an update from the personal assistant of the President that he has a press conference to attend tomorrow morning. He was supposed to fly directly from Assam to Delhi for the press conference''

David looked up at Raghav who nodded in agreement. Raghav and Ashraf had been there when Ajaysingh had scheduled that press conference about a month ago.

''I think we should cancel it, Sir. Tell the media that the President can't make a public appearance currently,'' David answered.

''David! Try to understand. We have our orders. The President has to make it to the conference in the morning. There are rumours going around already that the President was also killed in the blast. The media is spreading it like a wild fire. Unless Mr. Ajaysingh makes a public appearance and gives his statement, these rumours won't stop. Moreover the ruling party is requesting a statement from the President stating that the Government is doing its best to investigate and control the situation and that everyone involved would be apprehended by the law.''

''But why don't they get it that if we do so and bring the President for a press conference, whoever is planning all this gets a pinpoint location of the President. The only reason why the President is safe is because currently nobody except us and the IB knows where the President is. When he goes public, we lose that advantage, Sir. I was promised by the Home Minister that he will let me carry out things as I wanted. He said there would be no interferences.''

''David, I know that and I am aware that we are endangering President's life by doing this. But it's a protocol and needs to be done. I have my orders. Mr. Ajaysingh is currently being transported to the second bunker in Haryana. It is your responsibility to bring him back from that bunker by tomorrow dawn to the capital. Our special task force will take over from there. Is that clear?''

David knew something was not right. He figured that it was a play by the government to pacify the public and maintain the dignity of the ruling party. But he also knew that it was important for the President to go public considering the chaos that would be created if the President didn't show up.

''All right, Sir. I understand. When is the press conference?'' David replied after a brief pause.

''Morning 6.00 am,'' replied Colonel Rana.

That instant everything blanked out before David.

6.00 am 

He closed his eyes.

Six point zero zero a.m
.

He was shuffling through his memory boxes trying to reconstruct what he had heard earlier.

And then he had it before his eyes-

one rough lead.... in the dustbin at the suspect's hotel room.... only legible text was- ASSIGNMENT 6.00.

Chapter 42

''But why do I have to be at a conference? I know it was scheduled a long time ago, but now the situation is different. We need to find that artefact. Returning back to Delhi would just be a waste of your time!'' President Ajaysingh was not happy to hear the proposal of being at the conference. He had received persistent phone calls from the ministry pressurising him to be at the morning press conference. They had assured him total security.

In the last hour, the President had been shifted from his initial bunker to another. David's commandos were well trained and had carried out the task smoothly.

''Sir, they do have a point. You need to appear before the press. They are loaded with questions and if they are not answered, they will turn their rumours into news. And the result of all this will be more chaos and panic which we do not want. Don't worry about the security. I would be personally escorting you,'' David replied.

''It is not about security. We have a deadline to keep. That artefact has to reach him before 9.00 am tomorrow morning. Can't we postpone the press conference until then?'' Ajaysingh suggested.

''Sir, I have a hunch that during the press conference, our secret caller is going to make a move. Earlier tonight I got a report from the HQ about something called Assignment 6.00. I think it has something to do with the conference,'' David explained.

The President pondered for a second and then spoke, ''You have a plan or something?''

''I am working on it. But it is a bit risky. I was planning on using you as bait for the fish.''

''I am not worried about the risk, David. Whatever you plan, I would help you in executing. I will go to the conference with you in the morning, but your team will keep looking for that artefact for now.''

''Okay, Sir!'' David agreed.

Chapter 43

Far away, the mastermind was thinking of unravelling his next move. The phase two of his 'Operation Chaos'.

He knew that there would be a hell lot of security at the conference hall as well as the airport where the President would land. He had predicted that Commander David D'costa would be accompanying the President
.
The only window he had to launch an attack on the President was the travel route between the airport and the conference hall.

Dr. Ajaysingh Chauhan, this is it. My final act - Assignment 6.00. Tomorrow you will see the sun rise. Maybe your last sunrise. I won't kill you fast. Nah - you are too precious for me. I WILL kill you. Slowly. I will make you feel the pain. Just like you made me feel 14 years ago. That night.

He called Muhammed on his satellite phone.

''Muhammed, are you ready to do what it takes to achieve your purpose?''
The voice was soft and tender.

''I would be very pleased, Sir. I have made the necessary preparations,'' came a determined reply.

''Good. They would be expecting us. So when you attack, do it right. We won't get a second chance.
Allah Hafis
.''

''
Allah Hafis.''

The mastermind rested on his wheelchair and chuckled.

Ajaysingh, breathe in your last pints of oxygen. At 6.00 am - you won't know what hit you.

Chapter 44

In his new bunker, President Ajaysingh grew restless every passing moment. He tried to keep avoiding his memories, focus his mind on something else but they just kept coming. He remembered the night when he had experienced the fear of death. The night he had narrowly missed death.

Operation Shakti

14th March, 1998

Time - 11.24 pm

Indian Army - PTS (Project Testing Site), Pokharan

The pressure from the bureaucrats in Delhi and the constant arousing suspicion from the CIA had speeded up the activities at Pokharan. The shifts stretched up to twelve hours and Ajay ended up working all night long every two or three days. But the only thing left on his checklist today was submitting his work report to the co-ordinator. He dashed to A.K. Das's cabin with his overcoat in the left hand and the report tightly clenched in the right.