We watched it sink. I threw on the NVGs to make sure it was completely submerged. It took about five minutes, but it worked.
***
On the positive side, Min-Ji and I were more than ten kilometers north of our last hideout. There was no chance in hell any dogs had our scent trail.
On the negative side, DPRK troops were aware that Min-Ji had at least one armed operative assisting her escape—me. They knew I had killed. They knew we stole a car, and there would be a massive manhunt for us. Finally, we weren't 1600 meters from the border anymore; we were about seven kilometers away.
There was precious little to celebrate.
I refilled our canteens with filtered water from the river. Then, I took her hand, helped her onto my back, and began to move into the hills to the east.
That's when we heard the helicopter. A searchlight beamed down to the ground about 800 meters south of us, scanning the roads. The chopper zipped away to the west.
I checked my watch: 2108. I continued.
Once in good cover, I stopped us and checked the map.
The paved road—the main drag—we had earlier been on bent to the east and hugged the Imjin River. The bad guys would probably know we took that road, and it would soon be extremely dangerous. We needed to stay away from it.
But, as I scanned the map, it became clear to me that the only relatively safe route was east, across the road before it became too dangerous.
But where from there? I scrutinized the map.
Southeast into the hills, I decided. It would be safe, and I could make more decisions from there. It was about three kilometers away.
"Min-Ji, let's go."
"Go."
Less than a kilometer from us lay the road crossing, and it ended up being fairly easy—a 120-meter sprint with Min-Ji on my back. No cars appeared, and we disappeared into the hills.
Helicopter patrols continued circling the area. Twice we had to leap on the ground and freeze with our cammy netting pulled over us. We saw no troops.
At 0147, we arrived at a hillside covered in pines near the river. I set down Min-Ji, stretched, and rehydrated. She ate the last of her three bars. I had two left.
That was something to consider at a later time.
The map showed me a few things. First, it was clear that if I remained west of the Imjin River, while the terrain offered greater concealment, the more I traveled south toward the border, the more outposts and garrisons I would encounter. The east side of the river had fewer enemy outposts, but a lot of low, exposed ground in the river valley.
Plus, it was a no-shit river, 50 meters at its widest, maybe slightly under 20 at its most narrow.
You can't just ford it in this cold, I thought, can you?
The river was just 150 meters from me. I pulled down the NVGs and checked it out.
With all of the rains, the water moved along swiftly. I scanned east to west, and I stopped.
A narrows. Rocks with rapids running around them. A person could skip from rock to rock and stay dry.
Shit, I thought, I could get across right there. More exposed, low ground over there, but way fewer bad guys.
Could I make the jumps with Min-Ji on my back?
Scanning along the western side of the river, I could see lighted facilities, distant helicopters, and vehicles. Surveying the east, I saw darkness.
We're crossing if I can. Need a closer look.
I picked up MIn-JI and moved down the hillside to the low ground. There, I low crawled the final 100 meters to the river's edge with her on my back.
When Min-Ji saw me examining the rocky rapids, she said, "No. Ski-pa, no." Then, she rattled off some Korean.
I shushed her and mentally mapped each step of the crossing. The tops of the rocks were not wet, and that was the key.
I can do this, I decided. After one last infrared scan around me, I picked up Min-Ji.
She protested, and I shushed her again.
Her arms clutched me tightly, and she began moaning as I stepped to the edge of the river.
First jump.
Boom, safe.
A few easy steps and then my next big jump. About five feet.
Min-Ji whined.
I jumped and stuck it.
The river whistled through these rocks, and at about the halfway point, I scanned around me and felt nervous about this decision for the first time.
The next boulder was also about five feet from me, but the top wasn't flat; it was oblique and pointy. The rock after that one was maybe three feet beyond the pointy one, and it had a nice flat surface.
Two jumps, back-to-back.
I rocked once, twice, and I jumped hard.
Too far.
My right foot landed just beyond the tip. I shoved off of it, but it was an awkward jump.
I had to land on my hands and knees.
I did, and with Min-Ji on my back, it didn't feel too good.
I remained on my knees, recovering, and to my relief saw that the rest of this crossing was steps. No more jumps.
Four steps, though the last one looked a bit questionable.
I rose and made the first three.
The last one was submerged. Three feet in front of me, it had a reasonably flat surface, but damn did the water look fast. Beyond it, about three more feet away was the bank.
Fuck it, I decided, I'm jumping the whole thing. Six feet with 90 pounds on my back and the rest of my gear.
Min-Ji felt me prepare for the jump. Her fingers dug into my chest. With a grunt, I hurled myself for the bank.
My left boot sunk into the muddy edge, but my right swung through, carrying my momentum onto the bank. I fell forward, and Min-Ji tumbled over me. I rolled onto my back, and we both lay on that bank, panting.
Time on deck 0225.
No time, I knew, to lay about. I needed progress.
I crawled over to Min-Ji and put her on my back. There was 600 meters of low ground between us and the first of the hills.
I fucking low-crawled it.
I thought I knew what exhaustion was. The low crawl taught me a new level. My shoulders were on fire. The rest of my arms felt like dead animals.
We made it to the hill at 0346.
To our right was a dam, one of many, I knew, on this river. I knew we had to go on. It was the last thing I wanted, but we had to.
I rose to my knees. "Min-Ji," I whispered, waving her to my back.
"No Ski-pa go. No go."
I waved her over again.
She whimpered and climbed on. I continued southeast into the hills.
We made another 1600 meters progress. It was 0502 when I began to cut us a new tunnel.
Softer earth, I finished as the sun rose.
I didn't need to look at the map. I knew how close we were. The border was two kilometers away. The first of the two fences was a mere 200 meters from us.
Min-Ji climbed into the shelter naked.
I climbed inside after her, too tired to undress, but she carefully removed all of my clothes for me. She massaged my back and shoulders. I felt the light touch of her lips on my shoulder blade as sleep swept me away.
***
I awakened to the feeling of my erection being stroked and my ass being gently kissed.
I was on my left side. MIn-Ji was behind me; she had scooted down inside our tunnel and reached over my hip to grasp my cock.
I felt her back there. She kissed each cheek several times. She cuddled against my ass with her face. She whispered things—to me or to my body, I had no idea. She kissed more—little pecks, but soft ones, infused with tenderness.
If my body reeked of perspiration, of river water, of not being able to shower for days—she didn't seem to care.
Her hand felt warm and soft. She held my cock with a firm, but delicate grip as one might hold a precious pet for the veterinarian. She stroked me very, very slowly. It was as if she didn't wish to wake me, as if she simply wanted to enjoy the feel of my erection in her hand.
Her body moved; I felt her inch upward. She kissed my lower back, and I felt her nipples poke the flesh of my ass. Then, it was her breasts. She pressed them against me and dragged them over and back again.
I rolled toward her.
She looked up at me and blushed over a shy smile.
"Ski-pa yes?" she whispered.
Two-hundred meters from the fence, there would be patrols—close by. They might even walk right past this tunnel. I needed to remain alert. A distraction now could be deadly.
About to shake my head "no," I saw my cock bulldozed against one of Min-Ji's tits. I opened my mouth to speak, but I couldn't. My heart began to thump harder in my chest.
And MIn-Ji looked so eager and young. And those tits were so fucking big on her little body.
I reached down and rearranged my cock, placing the shaft neatly in the cleavage.
Watching the snug placement of my erection, Min-Ji whispered something as if surprised. Her eyes were wide when she looked at me and finished speaking. She leaned forward and kissed my belly. Then, her eyes went back to mine, and she waited.
I drove my hips and gasped.
Min-Ji's mouth fell open.
Again, I thrust my cock into the soft breach. I was hard like gun steel now—so rigid that, despite the mass of Min-Ji's breasts, the tip began to slip out.
Min-Ji blinked and spoke to me. Then, she reached down and, cupping her higher breast and drawing it against my cock, she ensnared the shaft inside her supple, downy cleavage.
Quick learner, I thought. I began to rock my hips.
Min-Ji watched me and whispered to me. When I couldn't help but respond to the intensity of my pleasure, her eyes widened, scanning and searching my face, reading my reaction. When I said her name and whispered, "Yes," a timid smile unfurled upon her lips.
I wanted to thrust harder—her body summoned that ferocity out of me—but I didn't need to. My blood was already lit. My body soared. I fucked her tits gently and quietly.
The satisfaction grew so acute, I pinched my eyes shut and stifled a groan.
Min-Ji let slip a tiny squeak of a moan.
It swept me to the end.
She felt it, turning to watch. Together, we watched the head of my cock flush and plume in the tight gap between Min-Ji's thick breasts while streams of cum jettisoned free. The fluid dashed her neck and coated her chest.
When the flow ended, Min-Ji sighed. I caught my breath.
Min-Ji rolled onto her back and pushed herself up to me. She whispered something and kissed my nose.
I was so perfectly relaxed that I didn't want to ever move. I wanted to watch her, right there as she was, for as long as I could.
Min-Ji began to play with the semen on her chest. She dipped her finger into it and felt its texture with her thumb. She pressed a finger into the fluid again. This time she lifted the tip straight from her chest, watching a gossamer line of cum stretch between the two points, thinning until it finally broke.
She giggled and whispered.
She scooped a dollop and smelled it. She closed her lips over it. I watched her cheeks suck inward, and her finger emerged clean. Her eyes darted to mine and she gave me another shy grin.
She scooped another—larger—amount. Holding her hand near to the top of our tunnel, she pointed her finger down. Together, we saw gravity take hold of the thick glob and drag it to the very tip of her index finger.
Min-Ji's mouth opened. Her tongue emerged flattened, waiting. The drop fattened, remained for a few seconds, and fell. A tiny whimper eeked from her throat as the semen landed on her tongue, and she instantly swallowed it.
Immediately after, she sucked the fingertip clean and scooped yet another glob.
She spoke, offering the finger to me.
I shook my head.
She shrugged and licked it off, speaking in an excited whisper. Continuing, she swept up and swallowed the rest of my body's deposit. When she finished, she kissed my forehead.
I was getting drowsy. I held my finger to my lips and pointed out of the tunnel.
She nodded and put her finger to her own lips. Then, she rolled away and backed into me.
I wrapped my arm over her, clutching one of her breasts, and I slept.
***
I woke with a start, instantly cupping my hand over MIn-Ji's mouth.
Footsteps nearby.
No chatter—these were disciplined troops.
I counted at least seven, so it was likely more, spread out over a much larger frontage.
A sprinkling of dirt rained down upon the solar blanket. Suddenly, a soldier dropped into view directly in front of the tunnel entrance. He must have leaped down the bank into which I built our shelter.
Min-Ji and I absolutely froze. I don't think either of us breathed.
He remained there for a moment. Scanning left and right, I saw the Type-58 rifle in his arms at the ready position. Then, he moved on in a direct line away from us.
Peering through the tunnel's camouflage covering, I saw a soldier on both flanks of the first one, spaced at about 10 meters. The one on the right stopped and looked back.
I uncovered MIn-Ji's mouth and slowly reached for the rifle behind me, wrapping my fingers around the stock.
The soldier's eyes crossed over our shelter but didn't stop. Apparently satisfied, he continued onward to the east.
When I could no longer see them, I waited another five minutes, listening intently. Hearing nothing, I sighed.
Min-Ji did, too. She rolled over and wrapped her arms behind my neck. I let her kiss me, and her lips were firm and energized as if in an outpouring of relief.
When she drew back, I checked the time. 1326.
"They won't be back," I whispered to her, knowing she could understand me no more than I could her. "They'll consider this area clear for the time being."
She shook her head.
I smiled to let her know it was good news.
She kissed me again, and this time I kissed her back. Our tongues joined and caressed. Her body seemed to melt beside me. The change felt like a bodily sigh, a kind of rendering of herself to me.
I grew hard.
My middle finger found the heat between her legs, and her body bathed the digit in slickness as it passed inside of her.
She whimpered sweetly into my mouth.
Fuck, I wanted her. I broke the kiss—still fingering her pussy—and surveyed the tunnel. There was no space to get on top of her. The best angle would be on our sides from behind. I cursed to myself because I wanted to see her face.
Min-Ji watched me, her eyes barely open, her mouth agape.
Absolutely beautiful, I thought, driving my finger into her. I realized, then, how good my finger felt. I knew it was good for her, but I could not believe how snug, how tautly embraced my finger felt inside of her.
"Ski-pa," she airily cooed.
I drew my finger out of her, and I rolled her over. Inching closer, my cock slid between the two hills of her ass.
Her face turned toward me, and I leaned in to kiss her, feeling the head of my cock nestled against her anus.
I reached down, grasped my cock, and brought the tip under her until the tip pressed firmly against her pussy. I felt the opening of the tight passage.
Min-Ji whispered to me. She shook her head.
I stopped.
We stared at one another.
I reached over her and raised her thigh. Nudging my hips, the tip of my cock parted her labia and garnered a coating of her fluids. I held in place.
Min-Ji whispered to me—hushed, urgent words. Her lower lip trembled as she spoke. Her face seemed pallid. Fear radiated from her eyes.
"No?" I asked gently.
"No-no," she whispered, finishing with a few words in Korean.
I shifted my body to move away from her, but her hand clutched at my hip.
"No-no," she repeated as if clarifying. Then, she whispered, "Yes."
"Yes?" I asked, maneuvering the head of my cock back to that slick, warm cleft.
"Yes," she murmured, nodding and adding some desperate last words in Korean.
I held her hip and applied gentle, unyielding force.
Min-Ji's face immediately contorted. She bit down on her lower lip; her eyes pinched closed. The strain flushed her skin. Veins arose on her neck and forehead. She had been holding her breath, but with a sudden burst, the air rushed out, and she began panting energetically.
The resistance upon the head of my cock slowly yielded, and suddenly the tip sank into her.
Min-Ji stifled one cry with her lips. The second she covered with her hand, wailing into her palm.
I dared not press onward.
"Holy fuck," I whispered, feeling on the head of my cock what my finger had already sensed and more. My body flooded with newfound energy and power. She had been like a dam, collecting and holding back the ever-increasing tidal wave of young, raw sexual energy. Once the connection had been made, the floodgates opened.
Every sense except that of feeling went white-blank; I was totally overcome by her. I felt the head of my cock pulsing rapidly inside of her. I was not climaxing, but it almost felt like I was.
For the first time, I felt I understood: she's a virgin—at everything. Since we'd met at the intersection, I had assumed that her elevated rank of Colonel at so young an apparent age meant that she was a kind of sex toy for the big wigs and politicians.
Clearly that was not so.
This reaction—her reaction—could only be that of someone utterly inexperienced. This was her first cock.
I wasn't packing some fucking anaconda between my legs. Sure, my cock was as hard as it had ever been, but it wasn't some kind of monstrous abnormality.
Admittedly, I had to acknowledge that Min-Ji was small down there. No, not just small—tiny, but even so, no way a woman with experience reacted the way she just did.
And yet she had known things—known sexuality. She had known what to do with a hard cock. She sucked it—extremely well, in truth—but it was clearly a first effort. Moreover, she had helped me—actually helped me—fuck her tits. It surprised her, surely, but she knew how to help make it work.
So she had knowledge, but no experience.
I understood American girls—ones coming of age—having knowledge, but no experience. There was, after all, the Internet.
But, a North Korean girl? There was no fucking Internet here—none but some bullshit propaganda. Women, as I understood it, were taught about the basics, but not about the other stuff—oral sex, tit-fucking, and so on.
But, MIn-Ji had known.
Perhaps my assumptions about North Korean women had been wrong. Or, maybe, she had been given a different kind of education; she just hadn't yet been "deployed."
With every breath, Min-Ji moaned as the head of my cock remained seated inside of her, pulsing.
After a minute, she opened her eyes and turned to me. She whispered and nodded, bearing down in anticipation of deeper, thicker penetration.
I pushed.
My cock trudged, gaining fractions, not inches.
Min-Ji's mouth fell open. Her eyes went wide with shock. She snatched a desperate breath, holding it. She pushed against my hip with her hand.
I stopped myself despite the instinctual urge to send the whole shaft hurtling home at once.
Her passage was extraordinarily wet. Lubrication was not the problem; she was simply too tight. My cock felt as if it were stuck inside a hot, fleshy vice.
Min-Ji's cyclic panting began to abate. Soon, she was blowing puffs of air. She sucked two long gulps of air and turned to me, nodding.
I thrust, and my cock continued to dilate her pussy as it plodded deeper inside.
Min-Ji winced. She covered another anguished cry with her hand—this time biting down on her thumb.
Almost there. I was so close to being perfectly joined with her. Releasing her hip, I put my hands on her shoulders.
She turned to me, glassy-eyed.
I nodded at her.
She took a deep breath and nodded back.
I pulled on her shoulders and drove with my hips, stabling my cock fully and irrevocably inside of Min-Ji. Our pubic hairs mingled.
She turned bright red. I covered her mouth with mine, and she bawled down my throat. More cries followed, all muffled by my mouth. Soon, they subsided. She broke the kiss.
Tears welled in her eyes, and I asked, "No?"
She shook her head, saying, "Yes."
"Min-Ji OK?"
She nodded. "Ho-kay."
I smiled, and she slowly breathed through the pressure.
Then, I felt her hand on my hip. She pushed and pulled twice.
Clutching a breast, I drew my cock back and gently pushed inside of her again.
She gasped, but it was me having the stronger reaction.
My mind felt like it exploded. Grasping that fat breast, with its abundance of feminine sexuality, exhilarated me. But it was her pussy. Her pussy was a fucking pleasure outlet, and my cock was plugged into it. The shaft throbbed reflexively.
Min-Ji urged me on, and I thrust into her again, muttering, "Oh, fuck that's good."
Our eyes met, and it seemed that when she saw how much pleasure her body gave mine, Min-Ji forgot about any lingering pain and suddenly soared to new heights of ecstasy.
We kissed to hide our vocalizations, but we kept fucking.
Every undulation together seemed better than the previous. Her body channeled more sweetness, more pleasure, and more life into mine with each thrust.
We broke the kiss, and she caught a cry in her throat. I put my finger to my lips. She nodded, raising her arm and biting down upon her wrist.
I could see on her face the satisfaction reaching its crescendo. She wailed into her arm as I drove inside of her with ever-mounting energy.
I covered my own mouth, grunting into it.
Instantly, I felt her body throb on my cock. Her eyes closed. Her head tilted back, and she sang into her arm.
I gritted my teeth and let go, squashing my body against hers and feeling my cock sling barrages of cum into her very guts.
No climax of mine had ever climbed to such heights. My mind was pure fire. I froze against her, the only part of me moving was the throbbing of my shaft as it finished emptying all of that sweetness back into her.
Our bodies slumped, and we gasped for air. My erection flagged and slid from her body as if it had died giving its life.
We were like two catatonics. I have no idea how long we laid motionless but for breathing.
Gradually, my energy returned. I drew her long hair aside and kissed her neck.
She turned to me, grinning as I'd never before seen. Her face seemed robust and alive with joy. She began whispering to me. Her words didn't sound urgent or excited. Happy, I would say. Adoring and affectionate. She kissed me tenderly. She giggled and caressed my stubble.
At some point, she quit speaking as if waiting for me to say something.
I kissed her lips and whispered, "I want to stay in this shelter with you, Min-Ji, and I never want to leave."
She murmured my name and grinned. Before long, she slept.
I admired her for a time, remembering how after we first met I decided that the man she decided to love was going to be extraordinarily lucky.
I was right.
***
My thoughts had to return to the present situation in North Korea, so I pushed thoughts of Min-Ji aside.
We had to leave tonight; there was no question. One energy bar each remained. It would carry us through the night, but no further, and I couldn't just go hunting. Sure, there were certain edible shrubs, nuts, and berries here, but I couldn't go scouting during the day, and doing it at night would be impossible.
With my filter, water would be no problem as long as we could find a source—didn't matter whether it was from a river or a muddy boot print. I could make it potable.
But without food, my energy would sap, and I wouldn't be able to carry her.
Tonight was the night of nights.
My original plan for breaching the fences still applied, so long as one decisive factor did not change. Since the place of my exit had already changed by necessity, the major concern now was the status of the fences in this new location.
The DPRK had been updating sections of their fence line to a new system that prevented power outages from disabling the electrical circuitry at one central point. It was a computer-based system that also kept the cameras running; the lighting was on a separate system.
Electrified fencing generally emits pulses of current as a warning. North Korea's fences did that, too. At least, one of them did.
Both the inner, DMZ fence and the outer, Civilian Control fence were double fences with a few feet in between. The first fence one encountered would give a powerful shock. The second would emit lethal current—the kind that made fingers unable to let go, the kind that set fire to clothing and skin. Lethal.
The Civilian Control fence was a mere 200 meters southeast of us.
Here was my problem. I knew the fences had been updated at my original breach position. At this new location, however, I was unsure, and I needed both the Civilian Control and the DMZ fences to be updated to the new system.
Yes, the newer, computer-based system was the easier one for me to pass through. In fact, with the gear I had, I would not be able to breach the old-style fencing on the North Korea side.
I mean, sure, if I had a few nights to work on it, then I could get through, but with one night and an injured fellow traveler? No. Not an option.
The way for me to know if the fence 200 meters in front of me had been updated was simple. Every 50 meters, there would be a six-inch cylindrical housing or junction.
The one beyond that—the DMZ fence?—well, I'd find out when I got there, I guessed.
I broke out my map and began studying it, committing this new locale to memory—every terrain feature, every structure, the course of both the CC and the DMZ fence lines, the route of the river and its little feeder creeks, everything.
One of the things I knew from my study was that every building this close to the border was DPRK military. There were no civilians around here.
My notes described some of the nearby buildings—"barracks," "mess," "ASP," "fuel dump," etc.
There was a barracks to our immediate southwest at 220 meters.
When I finished my studies, I checked the time—1558. Three hours until sunset.
Time enough to get a last bit of sleep before the night of nights.
***
I woke and checked my watch—1830 on the button. Twilight was setting in.
I spent a few minutes listening, and then I grabbed my gear and climbed out of the tunnel. Min-Ji stirred, but remained sleeping.
Geared up and ready, I did a quick 360-degree recon about 15 meters around our shelter. All secure, I moved up the hill a few meters shy of the crest and surveyed the area.
Helicopter to the southwest. Sparse vehicular traffic. Across the river to our west, I saw a fuel tanker roll up and refill at the fuel depot. A couple of other military vehicles rolled along the roads west and north of us.
No dogs, thank goodness.
As true darkness set in, I climbed down the hill to the river bank and refilled our canteens with my filter. Then, I made my way back to the shelter.
Min-Ji was wide awake and nervous. She whispered my name and kissed me with relief.
"Time to go," I told her.
"Go," she said, climbing out. I checked her ankle and spent some time rewrapping it. She tried to walk on it, winced, and shook her head. I helped her dress, and by 1929, we were ready to go.
Tunnel sealed, I told myself, last night in the fucking DPRK.
We moved east, easing into saddle-shaped terrain with high ground all around us except in front where the fence line stood. Bright floodlights turned night into day along the road that ran in front of it.
Two parallel wire fences stood separated by about one meter, both 12 feet high and topped with four coils of concertina wire—razor wire.
Taking a deep breath, I switched my NVGs off, using them strictly as binoculars.
Yes! I found the cylinders. This was the new fencing. Our protected position was almost halfway between two of the little 6-inch housings.
Before getting to work, I needed to see how often this road was patrolled by foot or vehicular traffic.
Min-Ji and I ate and washed down our last 3500-calorie energy bars.
Over a two hour period, we saw one team of four soldiers and two troop-carrier trucks pass us.
Leaving Min-Ji, I took the gear I needed and, remaining outside of the floodlighted area, moved into a firing position.
In my pack was an ASR-19, a short-barreled and very special rifle. I was reasonably familiar with it. I assembled it, finishing with the flash suppressor/silencer, and loaded it with the special rounds.
Assuming the prone position, I sighted in on the first cylinder. Then, I sighted in on the second. Switching back and forth, I rehearsed my shots. Over. And again. And again until I felt perfectly ready.
Placing the weapon down, I scouted down the hill to the south with infrared engaged on my NVGs—clear. Then, I moved to the north—all clear.
Moving back to my shooting position, I took aim at the first cylinder and shot.
Shifting to my next shot, I never even watched the first sink home. I had heard it strike.
The ultra-thin wire coming out of my rifle tugged a bit, but I lined up and took the second shot.
Hit. Got 'em both.
Two wires ran from my rifle to the two separate cylinders.
There would be an interruption to the fencing now, and the North Koreans would know about it.
I had to move like lightning.
Grabbing the two wires with my insulated gloves, I used the trimmers on the rifle barrel to sever them. Twisting the ends together tightly, I pulled out a small remote box and shoved the wires inside. A flick of a switch on the remote box and the connection was restored.
Back at some terminal, an alert North Korean operator would have witnessed a less than eight-second interruption to the CC fence line's power at these junctions. Did he call it in or did he see the power come back on and ignore it?
Easy question for me to answer: assume the worst. With Min-Ji's escape fresh in mind, these guys would be told to report anything, and troops would be ready to roll. DPRK troops were en route. No doubt about it.
My remote box had a small spike which I then used to secure the device in the trunk of a tree. Pulling down my NVGs, I engaged infrared and saw the steady glow of the light on the remote. Then, using a small controller, I remotely turned it off and on again to check if it all worked properly. It did.
Power is back on, and I can control it. Good to go.
There were two schools of thought about what to do next. Option one was to wait out the inevitable patrol—let them come, see that all was well, and leave. It assumed the razor-thin wire would not be seen. Option two was to go now, instantly.
I chose option two.
I raced back to Min-Ji, put her on my back, and crawled down to my firing position. From there, I depressed the controller button and checked it with my infrared. Power off.
I ran to the fence, set Min-Ji down, and broke out my diamond-titanium snippers. They had short handles, but I wouldn't need the leverage to cut this fence. The cutting blade on this was diamond. The other side was a titanium-aluminum alloy, exponentially stronger than steel.
But there were a lot of cuts to make.
I laid the back of my bare hand against the fence. No shock.
I began cutting. Each cut took about three seconds.
A minute later, a semi-circle about two feet wide and one foot tall was finished. I went through first, and then I held it down for Min-Ji.
In between the fences, I held Min-Ji tightly and hissed, "Do not touch the fence. No touch." I pointed at the fence, pointed at my hands, and shook my head vigorously.
She shook her head, saying, "No."
I took out a special stake I had made. It was steel with a long, thin piece of fabric tied to one end. Shoving the stake into the ground, I tossed the end of the fabric against the second, inner fence.
I didn't burst into flames.
Good.
I touched the fence with the back of my hand.
Good.
I took out a hand-held scanner and ran it over the ground outside the fence. Back and forth. Back and forth. A wider arch, back and forth. Nothing. No mines.
Putting the device in my thigh pocket, I began snipping.
About halfway around my next semi-circle, I heard the truck coming from the northeast.
It's on the fence line road, I thought, and it's coming with troops to check out this fence.
Min-Ji cried out. I shushed her abruptly. Still cutting, I listened. Half a mile, maybe.
One minute at 30 MPH. Less if my estimate is wrong.
Fuck!
I finished the second breach and waved Min-Ji through, but I remained in the middle.
Min-Ji called for me. I silenced her again, pointing and ordering her into the tree line a few meters east of us. She hopped away.
Fishing in my pack, I pulled out a small tub of gray adhesive goo—we called it cement. I bent the first fence opening back into position. Then, I "glued" about four of the joints together—no time to do them all. The glue set almost instantly on contact with metal—the chemical reaction was intensely hot, so my insulted gloved were critical.
I saw the lights of the truck.
Darting under the second breach, I went back to work with the cement.
The lights were coming up over the hill. Ten seconds.
Two joints. Three. Fuck it. I ran for the tree line, spun around, and engaged the power to the fence with my controller.
Troops were climbing out as I confirmed through infrared that the controller had worked. Power restored. Cameras back on.
I grabbed Min-Ji and put a tree between the two of us and the soldiers on the other side of the fence.
One fence down. One to go.
Hugging her close, I slid down the trunk to a sitting position, breathing deeply.
No time for this! my mind screamed. If they find the breaches, they can practically punch through and you can't outrun them with Min-Ji.
Instantly I laid down, put her on my back, and low-crawled slowly away, scanning every few meters for any mines.
Once we were a good 50 meters from the fence and into the denser foliage, I rose, put Min-Ji on my back, and continued southeast with my mine scanner running continuously.
We had been made aware that the North Koreans put some mines between the CC line and the DMZ, but not many. I was being careful. The real minefields began once you crossed into the DMZ.
We made it to a road and stopped. I felt something. What the hell was that?
The ground trembled.
Vehicles. At high speed. A bunch of 'em.
"Fuck!" I hissed, turning southwest and sprinting with Min-Ji on my back. Mines no longer mattered.
They found the wires. They called it in. They were coming in force from the east.
A helicopter appeared, searchlight scanning the trees all around us.
I had to watch for it and wait, darting from tree to tree.
The vehicles were closing in.
Fuck this. I dropped MIn-Ji and raised my silenced CBQR, sighting in on the helicopter hovering 180 meters in the sky and 200 meters east of us.
Disengaging the safe, I squeezed one. Two. Three. Four rounds. The searchlight vanished with a crash of glass.
I picked up Min-Ji and ran southwest.
A road appeared. I darted across it without even stopping to look. But, it told me where I was. I could see it on the map in my mind. More southwest. More. More.
My NVGs were on continuously, but every few seconds I switched between night vision and infrared.
A troop bunkhouse approached on my left about 100 meters away.
Don't care, I told myself. No heat signatures. Fuck 'em. I ran right past it.
Another 300 meters on, I began to see headlights north and south of me on the two fence line roads.
All the way to the river, I realized. They had the fence lines covered all the way to the river. I was trapped between the CC line, the DMZ fence, and the Imjin River.
But, this was life or death. I had to try something.
Flipping to infrared, I could see the heat silhouettes of dismounted troops forming picket lines and moving toward me from both directions.
I kept running. My legs were on fire. My heart battered. My lungs pumped air.
Veering slightly north of due west. I ran straight for the river, remembering a small bend where it narrowed into two channels with an island in between.
I had run almost two kilometers with Min-Ji on my back when we emerged from the trees and found the river. The narrows were a bit more to the north. We ran along the bank, and I waded into the surging stream without stopping.
How I stayed on my feet, I don't know. The rains had made this river run fast.
Onto the island, I ran across it and waded the rest of the way across bent double to hold onto the submerged rocks. Water plowed into my face. I was sopping, but Min-Ji was mostly dry.
No time to rest now. The nearest cover was a tree line 500 meters across an open field.
I ran for it, hoping like hell my pursuers were focused on their side of the river.
About 300 meters into my final sprint, I came upon a creek—about six feet wide, but with good banks. I dropped into the bank and set down MIn-Ji, panting.
I knew this creek. It ran right back into the Imjin about 800 meters downstream of where we crossed.
At both the CC line and the DMZ, the river had been dammed. Impassable above or below the surface. This creek joined up with the Imjin below the second dam.
But.
But, it had to pass under the DMZ fence line first, and it would be protected. Wire. Grates. It wasn't really an option.
I rose and scanned 360 degrees on night vision and on infrared.
They might, I thought, be learning right now that we crossed the river.
Then, I heard the trucks. I began seeing the heat signatures. They were closing in on this side of the river, too.
I looked at Min-Ji. She looked terrified.
I smiled. "We're okay," I whispered.
"Ho-kay," she responded, and she seemed to calm.
I liked how she trusted me.
That thought helped me make my decision.
I waded into the creek. It was as fast as the river. The deepest it went was about four feet. I signaled for Min-Ji to join me. Laying on my back, she climbed on top of me between my legs, facing me. I let go of the root I was holding onto, and the current swept us downstream.
This creek wound erratically, back and forth. Now east, now north, now south, now west. The longest straight patch we hit lasted about 25 meters.
I hadn't noticed it while running from the river, but now I did: the water was incredibly cold. I could feel it sapping my strength. With her tiny frame, Min-Ji would not last much longer.
The DMZ road was approaching. At one point, the creek ran parallel to it a mere 40 meters away. Trucks and troops were arriving. We heard the yelling of what had to have been a sergeant. NCOs all sound the same when they holler at troops.
As we continued winding through, I caught a glimpse of the place where the creek went under the DMZ road. Two minutes, maybe. If they see us, we're dead.
How wide was the culvert underneath? Narrow enough to capture and drown us, buried alive in a tunnel of rushing water? Or, would we be caught up in submerged razor wire first?
Can maybe I get lucky here one time? Please?
I heard the sound of rushing water. The bright lights illuminating the DMZ fence and its road splashed upon my face, blinding me. I heard soldiers running and leaders yelling. We crossed back into shadow, and when I opened my eyes the creek disappeared from view.
We plummeted down a man-made falls. Landing in a pool, I sunk and hit hard on corrugated steel. The current swept us into a culvert about four feet wide. There was no way out. None.
The power of the current would hold us here until we died.
Min-Ji hollered, but the rushing water was so noisy even I could barely hear her.
My feet slammed up against a rebar grate. Min-Ji slipped from my grasp, spun, and got pinned with her back to the steel mesh, barely keeping her mouth and nose above the waterline.
She gasped for air. I held her hand, saying, "We're okay."
Comments