Pre-Adventure Training Camp

Practically everyone made it to dinner on time but missing were Sam and Gracie.

"They must be having a business meeting," said Derek, sending everyone including the two waitresses into near-hysterics.

Judith Henare added her bit, gaining nods of approval, when she said, "Those two are well matched."

Jill Reynolds bit her bottom lip before being late to nod because she had been rather attracted to Gracie's great body herself.

* * *

Gracie had scarcely finishing make her rat rat-a-tat-tat staccato knock on the door when it was flung open by Sam who filled the doorway.

"Hi, come in. Are you ready for sex?"

His guest, caught off-balance, squeaked c-c-could she first have a drink?

"Of course," smiled her benign host, who spun her around, pulled her hoodie off her shoulders, swatted her butt not too gently and invited her to take a seat.

He poured sparkling wine for Gracie and uncapped a beer from himself and sat opposite rather than beside her.

"I noticed you were the last to roll off your RIB and first to make it to shore."

"Yes, I decided to not muck around."

"Obviously, but you stayed knee-deep in water looking for anyone who appeared in trouble and you helped the last two stragglers wade ashore."

"Well, I am your deputy with responsibilities."

"Unspecified."

"But imagined."

He grinned and she requested a whisky chaser and that was delivered politely with no attempt at petting.

"Ah, here come our meals."

Gracie heard nothing and about ten seconds later heard the sound of a foot tapping low down on the door.

Sam was already at the door and said kindly, "Welcome Molly and she entered with a heavy tray loaded with two mains, two deserts and two large glasses of red wine.

"I'll leave this for you to serve, Gracie. Enjoy your evening guys."

Molly left giggling on hearing Gracie say, "Serve please Sam, you are the host."

Gracie removed one of her flat multi-lugged hiking shoes and when Sam was about to place the two glasses from the tray on to the table, she wacked him hard on the backside.

He lunged forward in surprise at the impact and only just managed not bend forward as he hit the table and thus avoided spilling any red wine.

She sat and asked sweetly, "Shall we eat?"

He nodded as he slid into his chair and they removed the insulated lids from their entrees and began eating enthusiastically.

"Sex is later, okay?"

Gracie nodded.

"What I wish to discuss are you satisfied in running a gym with a bit of training thrown in for variety?"

She sighed, shook her head and said the novelty and being on a learning curve had long gone.

"You spent three years after graduating from university with a science degree managing a branch of a travel agency, after finding it difficult to break into a science or scientific role was difficult, yes?"

"Yes, and you are well informed. I didn't state that in my application for a place in this training for adventure course."

"And in March next year you plan to kayak down the Lower Zambezi River for six days and then cruise the Upper Zambezi River above Victoria Falls and you have receive advice to defer that adventure trip for a year but, as yet, you have not responded to that advice?"

"Sam, how on hell do you know about such intimate detail?"

"First a couple of sips, before I answer. I have information that you are a person with high integrity but even without that, I'd believe you are trustworthy, right?"

She nodded and they sipped wine before beginning their meal.

Sam said, "First, this camp has a dual purpose, to train members of the public soon to embark on adventure trips in New Zealand and abroad."

"Secondly, it to trains new members of the New Zealand Government's array of specialist divisions coming loosely under the title of Secret Services, and tests the fitness and agility of existing field personal when under refresher training'"

"Both you and Jill Reynolds soon after your arrival here came here under surveillance as possible, indeed probable candidates, ripe for recruitment into the department responsible for secret service operations."

"The department is interested in Jill who speaks five languages fluently and teaches languages at university in Wellington. It is likely she will be trained at this camp or our North Island camp where boating and mountaineering are the twin areas of training."

"The interest in you is to manage both the department's team of recruiters who need to have what is loosely called, their warrant of fitness put under refresher training annually, and to manager our three specialists responsible for arranging all travel for secret service operations, with one based on the upper North Island in Hamilton, another based in Wellington covering the lower North Island plus Nelson and Marlborough and the third is based in Christchurch with responsibility for the remainder of the South Island."

"Omigod, just how large is this collection of secret service quangos?"

"Quangos, you know of the term?"

"Yes, doesn't everyone?"

"Ah, no; scarcely anyone. I recall the comprehensive report on you that stated you are highly intelligent, self-reliant and possessing impressive general knowledge."

Gracie said, "Oh, you read bullshit."

"Gracie, are you at all interested in being recruited by the department?"

"Actually yes, but not for the twin roles you outlined to me. I would be interested in being engaged and trained as a spy to investigate New Zealanders abroad who are of interest to the Government including its agencies such as being on the run as embezzlers or Kiwis overseas who threaten the good name of New Zealand or who are involved in the supply of illegal arms to gangs here in New Zealand. Oh, and Kiwis (New Zealanders) broad or at home who are known to be in contact with organizations involved in subversive activities such as assassin or terrorist training."

"Gracie, you would not have a chance to breaking into that elite group without years of secret service experience."

"I'm bitten by the adventure bug and the travel bug Sam, so enough of this chatter and accept that I'll finance my own way into those experiences as a private citizen seeking help to find runaways or missing persons."

"Hmm, you have oodles of latent potential to exploit, Gracie. Is it okay with you if I report back on this conversation to my peers?"

"Yes, it's okay and you probably are obliged to report back no matter what I say."

"Well, finally on this subject, would you be prepared to change your ID completely if required."

"Yes. Now I need to pee."

"Through that door to the left, which is the bedroom and the small bathroom is through the door you'll find in there. Don't pee on the floor."

"Oh, nice one, Sam. You should marry and have kids because they might appreciate your cute ways of expressing yourself. I'll stay the night."

"Then meet my wish and return to the table wearing only your dress."

"Yes Master."

Gracie went through to the bedroom smiling. She looked to be in for a ripper of a night and she was well overdue for sex. She loved taking Sam to the brink with her teasing, but she wasn't teasing about having sex.

Southern Alps Pre-adventure Training Camp for Imminent Travellers -- 06

Gracie Hart entered the gym after her third night of sex with Sam Cook and blinked, stepped off and after a pause stepped back on the quality-made scales.

The result was the same; she's dropped 3.4 kg in seven days.

"Sweat hard during sex and you lose weight," she muttered. "By sweat. I mean streaming sex."

She went through her gym routine with heavier weights and longer durations with gusto and during her thinking time almost concluded she should have heavy sex three times a day. But that thought collapsed with her Inner Voice screaming to her what about wear and tear?

"Whoops," she smiled, using her towel to mop up sweat. She was fairly confident she would soon be training as a spy for her country and wondered if she would choose a Glock 17, a Colt .45 or a Beretta 92FS if she was offered a choice. Guns were a very personal choice.

She heard the final call for breakfast, threw on her track suit and ran to the mess. During breakfast she wondered why people opted to stay sitting near her, she believing her BO would be repulsively high as she hadn't showered since preparing to visit Sam the previous night. Perhaps the hard slog of camp was dulling the sense of smell of everyone.

Sam announced everyone was to assemble at 9.00 at the truck for today's important exercise, meaning that day's slog.

Rusty handed everyone a GPS device that included an emergency locator beacon instead of a wireless voice communicator.

Sam said everyone would be divided into two teams, the Red team with Gracie Hart as leader, and the Blue team led by Jill Reynolds. The Blue team would board a chopper to be flown 15 miles to the south-west where it would land to deposit Jill and her team who'd be required to wait 20 minutes moving off to find their way to camp. The chopper would collect Gracie and her team and drop them 15 miles to the north-east and return to its base on the Canterbury Plains and that team could immediately start on its return. That arrangement would allow both teams to start off roughly at the same time.

A member of each team carried a back pack container biscuits, lunch and five bottles of water.

"Try hard to get back today," Sam said.

Was he joking?

As the Red team began walking off, Gracie asked, "Did anyone think of setting the coordinates of the camp before we left?"

"No," was the chorus.

Another chorus of the four noes sounded when she asked would they think anyone in the Blue team had entered those coordinates.

"Oh, aren't we lucky. We can tramp more or less directly home as I set the coordinates and my guess the Blue team will have plenty of stops to group around their map and look for landmarks to confirm their position and calculate progress."

The Red team arrived home mid-afternoon, and were showered and had were finishing late lunch when the Red team were clocked in 1 hour and ten minutes after the Red team.

Sam said, "Well done teams, everyone got home safely. Blue team, do you know the reason why the Reds were home more than an hour ahead of you?"

"They ran whenever and presumable the terrain easier than ours," said Felicity.

Sam asked for comment from someone from the Reds.

Derek said, "It was because Gracie had the brains to set the coordinates of the camp before we left. That meant we has the route home indicated on each of our GPS devices, and she assured us that no one had suggested her to do that. She said it was just the logical thing to do."

"Wow, great thinking," Sam said. "That's a lesson to all of us. Gracie, for outstanding leadership you win a Magnum of French Champagne."

Everyone clapped and she called, "And glasses for everyone, please Sam."

Cheering followed, making Sam grin.

Jill came up and kissed Gracie and whispered, "Has he arranged a meeting for you yet?"

Gracie nodded and whispered that she'd said she'd be interested by only as a fully-fledged operative working mainly abroad.

"Christ, did he fall over in shock?"

"No, but he was no longer optimistic about my chances of being recruited."

"I should think not," Jill giggled. "We all know how seniority is king in Civic Service rankings."

After champagne had been being expertly poured by Trevor, Sam made a toast to Gracie and that was greeted by calls of 'Hear, hear.'

He then said everyone was required to be on the sports field for another round of team play for the Southern Alps Training Camp Soccer Cup.

That was greeted by groans.

The tired players resulted in a scrappy game of footie, finishing in a 1-all draw with an estimated 40 achievable strikes missing the back of the net, either for being off-line or being booted so feebly that both of the goalies had time to yawn before stooping to pick up the goal attempts.

Half of the exhausted 10-member team failed to turn up for dinner, and that made Sam very pleased. His programs were meant to be physically challenging. Food packs of the chicken roast (now cold) were left on the bedside cabinets of the five who failed to make the dinner in the mess.

Sam and Gracie hadn't made an arrangement for the night and when the five diners left to cross for after-dinner coffee is the main lounge, she noticed Jill slip away in the gloom and in the distance saw her meet Sam. They kissed, and then walk toward his hut holding hands.

Traitors, she yawned and then smiled, thinking that Jill would be too weary to last the distance.

Laying on her bed, Gracie began making notes of points to make at her interview with the NZSIS (New Zealand Security Intelligent Service). When her Inner Voice scoffed and said she wouldn't get passed the initial interview, that is, if she got that far, Gracie yawned and wondered what her new name would be, her choice would be Susan Smith because there were heaps of women around by that name in English-speaking counties and that would help to make her a less distinctive person involved in covert operations.

* * *

At breakfast next morning, Sam said it was time for something different. At 9.00 everyone would board the truck and would be dropped off individually in a scattered pattern between fifteen and twenty miles from camp without any provisions, or cash and nothing to ID anyone and they would have to get back to camp as best they could, preferably to be back at the camp in time for dinner.

"That's all everyone, except to remind you to divest everything apart from clothing including a hat and sunglasses. You are not to wear a watch or conceal a compass or money and remove your camp ID tag from around your neck. As you can imagine, this will be a very testing time for you. If you fall ill, break a toe or begin to panic, flag someone down and ask them to call the local police who are aware that we conduct this testing exercise periodically."

Jill took Gracie aside and said, "Sam invited me to his cabin last night and I went off with him guiltily thinking I should have mentioned it to you first in case you two hadn't split. It's happened so it's too late now, but at least I feel better now that I told you."

"Thanks for that delayed sense of loyalty, Jill. Much appreciate though. However, there is nothing between Sam and me that prevents him screwing whoever he likes. When I leave here, he'll be history, but from this moment with what I know now, he's already history as far as my affection is concerned."

"God, I'm such a treacherous bitch."

"Bullshit Jill, you are a woman and we all know that basically most men are dogs."

"Do you mean that?"

"Yes Jill. When he's finished with you, try hitting on me."

"Oh my god, Gracie, you really are a surprise package."

Southern Alps Pre-adventure Training Camp for Imminent Travellers - 07

Precisely at 10.30, Sam Cook walked into the lounge at the Southern Alps Pre-adventure Training Camp with two females and a male dressed in suits following him.

At the same time, Gracie Hart entered through a side door.

"Hi, Gracie," Sam said. "I'll introduce these people as soon as you read this short document providing you sign it, with Molly as witness.

Molly entered carry a tray of five mugs and a container of hot machine-made coffee.

Gracie glanced at the document and saw the secondary title, Intelligence and Security Act, 2017 and said to Sam, "Does this simply commit me to say nothing or imply nothing about New Zealand Intelligence and Security and my association with it in any form whatsoever?"

Sam looked at the older female and she nodded and he said, "Precisely that."

Gracie said she would sign and he handed her a pen. When she signed, Molly, obviously pre-briefed, signed as a witness.

Sam waited until Molly left and said, "In the centre of the sofa is the senior representative of a Government department that you mentioned as being of interest to you, Jane Munro-Wilson, Mrs Beth Andrews a psychologist, and a field supervisor Mr Philip Wells."

"Hi everyone, I'm Elizabeth Hart, only child of Phyllis Mary Hart of Auckland and the late Dr Edward Timothy Hart, who was an agricultural scientist specialising in winter cropping research particularly applied to soils of New Zealand farming regions."

Philip asked, "What was your father's nickname?"

"I always referred to him as dad. His friends called him 'Hartbreak'.

Beth asked, "Would you consider you had a normal childhood?"

"Yes, although I was lonely within the family, being an only child, but the spin-offs from that included I quickly developed an enquiring mind and was easy to be befriend, but later developments made me exceptionally resilient that I find benefits me to this day."

Jane asked, "Do you think you could live for long periods alone while continuing to be relatively happy?"

"May I call you people by your first names?"

"Yes."

"Well Jane, I half-expected that question which is why I emphasised earlier my quality for being resilient. Does that answer your question sufficiently?"

"Yes. Why are you interested in joining what you believe is our department?"

"The idea of covert operations intrigues me and that suggests I should fit easy with that. I constantly yearn for adventure, and even though it would be considered work, I definitely like challenges as Sam will confirm if he so wishes..."

The interview continued for another two hours and ended with Beth saying, "To conclude Gracie, what follows are a couple of tricky questions for you to try to answer. Please turn your chair to sit facing away from us and to clear your mind to a degree, could you please recite the words, as accurately as you can, to the Beetles song Hey Jude. I guess you know the words."

"Yes."

She recited the words and Beth said, "Very good, 100% accurate I should think. What jewellery and I wearing?"

"An Apple-brand watch on your left wrist, a slender silver band on your right wrist, two rings with stones on your fourth left finger, your nail varnish is ruby red, you left earring has a yellow stone, very small, and oddly the stone in the right earring is red."

"Is that all?"

"Jewellery, yes. But there's a tiny multi-layer metal flower on the right lapel of your navy-blue jacket with a hidden cord from that microphone I guess, going to a recording device on the inside pocket. I noticed you checking your phone as you entered the room and you replaced it back into your white carry bag. I should say I expected to be asked something like this because it seemed logical in your kind of work and I suspect that at times you have worked as a field operative or whatever you guys call them."

Gracie heard Beth mutter omigod, as Jane asked, "Do you remember our full names given when we were in introduced?"

"You the panel were introduced as Jane Munro-Wilson, Mrs Beth Andrews a psychologist and a field officer Mr Philip Wellington. Jane, I believe your full name is Lady Jane Burrows of Wellington, and although you already bore the courtesy title from your husband Daniel knighted some years ago for services to industry. you received the title of lady in your own right two years ago when being created a Dame for services to the Government."

"I recalled reading from somewhere that you were a former high school careers adviser and a former New Zealand female water-ski champion. The only one of you that I have previously met is Philip, or Steven as he was called when I first met him.

Philip asked Gracie was she sure about that.

"Yes, it was in Auckland ten, perhaps eleven years ago when the Wellington Girls College Team played a team from Epsom Girls' Grammar School in Auckland, which your team was well defeated. I personally trained my cousin, Flo Jack, who is Mrs Garner these days. She made 83 runs not out, and took five WGG wickets and at the after match reception you came over, introduced yourself as Steven Wells and congratulated me for my coaching feat and you said you were amazed as I was practically a girl myself and I replied, 'You cad, I'm a young woman'. People hearing that laughed themselves silly."