Chapter 27
MARY Joe peered out of the small postern gate at the wide plaza that lay outside. If she made a dash for the far side, she was sure to be shot down by the guards in the watchtowers. There was no cover for at least a hundred yards over the open expanse of the plaza and she had no wish to chance her luck a second time. She took out a small red handkerchief that she had with her and, extending one arm through the gate, she waved it about. This was the pre arranged signal that Lama Tsering had asked her to make. Immediately she heard a vehicle start up and come towards the gate. She looked sideways, as far as it was possible to do, without poking her head out of the gateway and saw, through the corner of her eyes, an old Land Rover coming towards the gate at a brisk pace. Before the guards could realize what was happening the Land Rover came to a halt in front of the gate with a sudden screech. One of the doors opened. Mary Joe could see Norbu sitting at the driver's seat. She was within the vehicle in one bound. The door clanged shut and again with a huge roar they took off, leaving behind a cloud of dust. The guards had started firing at the fleeing Land Rover, but its tough metal sheeting didn't give way. It was as good as being within an armoured personnel carrier.
Mary Joe, who had always favoured the Jeep Cherokee as a utility vehicle, with a proper American fervour, now revised her opinion. The British may be old fashioned but they did know a thing or too when it came to designing vehicles for the Tibetan outback. She thanked the Lord Buddha for this, among other things. Among a whole lot of other things she thought. Such as what? Such as the alpaca lined lightweight anorak which was handed over to her by Lobsang, who gave her a smile and a proper hug. Such as the metal flask which was then given to her and which contained a full draught of strong whiskey, a fiery strongly flavoured liquor that could have been made only in Scotland.
By now the whole of Lhasa garrison was in a state of red alert and all the roads leading out of the town were closed. Their vehicle was sure to be stopped if it headed out 'on any of the four roads leading out. of town. But they were not . heading for any of these roads. Norbu was driving at a breakneck speed over a dirt track which branched off from one of the main roads and headed out towards the hills. The nearest hills were at least ten miles away. The track on which they were travelling soon ceased to have any defined margins at all. It merged with the rolling laterite plain over which they were going. Yet Norbu did not reduce speed. "What's the hurry Norbu?"
Norbu pointed to a Chinese MI6 helicopter which had just appeared over the horizon. The helicopter was hovering over the centre of Lhasa but might turn in their direction at any time. "Do you see that bird Mary Joe? He is looking for us and the moment he notices the dust raised by our vehicle he will head for us. That chopper carries a 9mm machine gun as well as a 17mm cannon. If he spots us before we reach the hills, its curtains for us."
Mary Joe watched the big metal bird hovering over the twilit sky. It would soon be dark but there was still sufficient light to see by. It should only be a matter of minutes before the pilot spots us, she thought. She looked at the big brown bluffs which were not all that far away. The intervening stretch of ground was broken up into small gulleys and ravines. Only someone familiar with the terrain could find his way through such rough country. But Norbu seemed completely at home. He sent the Land Rover careering over the pits and bumps as if he was out for a spin on the broad Lingkhor -the Lhasa ring road. Meanwhile Mary Joe saw the chopper make a sharp turn and head in their direction.
She saw that Norbu was heading for a narrow canyon whose dark walls loomed straight ahead. Once they reached the shelter of the canyon they should be safe from aerial attack because the canyon was too narrow even for a helicopter. Its grim overarching walls shut out everything except a narrow ribbon of the sky. But would they make it? She saw the chopper aligning itself for the charge. Its nose cone dipped slightly and then it began its attack. She could see the pilot sitting behind the glass windshield of the cockpit, the sun glinting on his goggles. The chopper came straight at the vehicle with a thunderous roar, its guns opened up from quite a distance, raising puffs of dust as the hail of lead came towards them.
Norbu started driving in a crazy zig zag as several bullets hit the metal sheeting of the vehicle. Mary Joe and Lobsang ducked down as bullets whizzed through the open window, some of them going clean through the window on the other side and some embedding themselves in the door panels and body work with a thwack. As the chopper passed overhead it dropped a string of bombs which burst into flames with a whoosh, setting the enter landscape ablaze. Napalm, though Mary Joe. Had the pilot dropped the bombs accurately their vehicle would have been, by now, blazing like a comet, but he hadn't been accurate. The bombs had fallen well short of the target. They saw the chopper pass overhead and then bank sharply, as the pilot turned around for another run at the Land Rover.
He was however already too late. They were now only a furlong from the dark walls of the canyon and the sun had already set behind the mountains, leaving the valley floor in sudden gloom. The chopper had switched its lights on as it swung back for the attack As it turned, it looked like an enormous star falling from the sky. They were within the canyon by the time it came within range again. The pilot vented his frustration by dropping another load of napalm before flying away, turning the entrance to the canyon into a blazing inferno.
"Gee, that was a near thing." Said Mary Joe.
"A close call, yes, "said Norbu, who had picked up his English at an Indian Public School, where they do a passable imitation of the British model.
"What do we do now?" asked Mary Joe.
"We eat and drink." Said Labsang. "After all we must celebrate your freedom. Must we not.?"
"Really, isn't it a little too early for that. The Chinese could get us anytime. Couldn't they." Said Mary Joe.
"We got you out Drapchi, and we will get you out of this, don't you trust your friends." Said Lobsang.
"Better eat and drink, you don't know when you will get your next meal." Said Norbu.
So Mary Joe and Lobsang ate and drank while Norbu continued to drive 'along the dirt track, switching his headlights on. The track seemed to be following the left bank of a dry stream which went through the canyon. On one side was the steep wall of the canyon, rising sheer for hundreds of feet. On the other side was the preciptious bank of the stream. Any mistake and the vehicle would go tumbling over the loose scree and boulders, down to the rocky bed of the stream a full hundred feet below the track. They moved slowly therefore, the beams of the headlight lighting up vertical slabs of rock, and vast heaps of boulders which lay everywhere. It was a dry and desolate place. But after travelling for a while they came to spot where a cataract rushed out of a fissure in the rocky wall of the canyon. They stopped to drink here and Lobsang filled a large canteen with the clear sweet water. "This is the only spring for the next fifty miles. We must fill up or die of thirst later."
"How long will it take for the Chinese to get here, do you think?" asked Mary Joe.
"An hour, may be two hours. They can air drop commandos at the entrance of the canyon within the hour, but they will take time to catch up with us. We know the way and they don't." Said Norbu.
"What happens when we get out of the canyon. Surely then they will see our headlights and shoot at us?" asked Mary Joe.
"You are becoming, how do you say it, paranoid, my dear. We will not be using headlights once we are out of the canyon." Said Lobsang.
"You mean we will drive blind in the dark?"
"Wait, Dolma, you shall soon see for yourself."
They soon reached the end of the canyon. As they emerged from the defile in the open, Norbu switched 'the lights off and drove for a while in the dark, driving by sheer instinct and visual memory. They were once again on the open plateau which stretched away in the dark. A cold wind swept through them as they came out of the shelter of the canyon. Norbu stopped the Land Rover and came out of the vehicle. He gave a long low whistle which was immediately answered. Four men came forward out of the darkness. They all carried long-barrelled rifles slung on their backs and wore a peculiar head dress like a bandit's bandana. They were all mounted on horses. One man carried the bridle of two other horses which followed him. Both these horses were saddled and ready.
"Khampas," said Lobsang.
Norbu embraced one of the men and had a short conversation with him. This man who was obviously the leader of the pack, then shook hands with Mary Joe and Lobsang.
"I'll bid you goodbye here Miss Cameron," said Norbu.
"Mary Joe."
"All right Mary Joe. Wangdi here, will be your guide on the next leg of your journey and Lobsang will go with you. May the blessings of our Lord Buddha go with you!" "How will you get back Norbu."
"Don't worry about me. I'll walk back."
"In the dark, and in this weather"
"Yes Miss Cameron sorry Mary Joe, it is much the safest way. Remember the Chinese are looking for us. I'll pass the night somewhere and be on my way at the crack of dawn. No one will think of stopping a single man travelling on foot. I'll take a well known caravan trail to allay suspicion. So, I will be quite safe as you can see. Its your safety that we have to worry about.''
"Don't worry about me, you know I have a man of God with me. We'll get through."
"Well good bye then!" They embraced briefly and then Norbu was gone.
Wangdi the Khampa was a silent man. He merely asked Mary Joe and Lobsang to mount the saddled horses. Once they were in the saddle they set off in the dark, Wangdi leading and the other two horses following. The other Khamaps had gone off with Norbu, and as Wangdi was not disposed to conversation they rode in silence, going at a brisk trot that consumed the miles. Over them was the night sky, studded with millions of bright stars, all round them was a dark featureless expanse where a bitter wind blew furiously. Yet they could hear the hoof beats of their horses ring out in the night over the sound of the wind as they rode on towards their undisclosed destination.
