The Measle Man

Contents

DEDICATION

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

INTRODUCTION

PROLOGUE

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER 2

CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER 4

CHAPTER 5

CHAPTER 6

CHAPTER 7

CHAPTER 8

CHAPTER 9

CHAPTER 10

CHAPTER 11

CHAPTER 12

CHAPTER 13

CHAPTER 14

CHAPTER 15

CHAPTER 16

CHAPTER 17

CHAPTER 18

CHAPTER 19

CHAPTER 20

CHAPTER 21

CHAPTER 22

CHAPTER 23

CHAPTER 24

CHAPTER 25

CHAPTER 26

CHAPTER 27

CHAPTER 28

CHAPTER 29

CHAPTER 30

GLOSSARY

DEDICATION

The men and women of the U.S. armed forces constantly face the prospect of the ultimate sacrifice every day. They deserve all the benefits promised to them when they took the oath. The officers and enlisted personnel of the Special Forces and Special Operations Groups have made additional sacrifices through their extensive training and the unique nature of the operational functions they perform at home and around the world. They are ready at a moment’s notice to Saddle Up and Move Out.

America’s finest are one in a thousand who earn the Green Beret with the full flash after completing all the phases, preceded by Airborne, Ranger, Pathfinder, Jungle, Weapons, Medical, Language, Mountain and Psychological warfare training. The physical and mental requirements of each professional soldier completing the Special Forces training are the most rigorous in the world. The dedication of each of the soldiers in the Special Forces and SOGs can never be equaled by this book alone. De Oppressor Liber is the motto of the Green Beret Volunteers.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This book would not be published had it not been for God Almighty allowing me to live through all the most dangerous experiences and to reach this point in my life. I could not have completed this work without the assistance and encouragement of my wife, Sabina, who served as my sounding board throughout the writing of this book. The other members of my family provided great encouragement.

A special thanks go to former 1LT Anthony Burdo, the U.S. Army Officer who inducted me into the U.S. Army in 1965. To General Mike Iron Mike Healy who inspired me as a great soldier; Staff Sergeant E. Cuthbert, my primary Drill Instructor during basic training. Dr. Jeffrey Berman, my cardiologist who saved my life and deserves special gratitude; my friend Wolfgang Dummer who encouraged me to keep writing and to the brave soldiers of the U.S. Army Special Forces as well as all men and women that proudly serve in our country’s armed forces.

INTRODUCTION

Ike Rayner’s legacy and reputation was legendary in the private business world, the U.S. military and some other government agencies. Little could be said that was negative. He was a good man, brother, son, father, husband, grandfather and friend. The country awarded him high honors for his service both on the field of battle and his outside humanitarian efforts. He was generous to those who benefitted from his gifts and Contributions. He was well respected as a leader. He created a corporation to serve people and governments because the requirements for unusual needs had to be met.

Operatives of the FBI and the CIA were handcuffed due to the laws and guidelines set up by the Congress. Rayner’s corporation had no such rules to guide his business operations. His company was paid with private funds by his clients and the financial agreements were based on trust. The lives and reputations of the company were on the line every day. The success of the business was built on that foundation. All work and efforts were done efficiently and completed without fanfare.

Rayner sought no glory for himself, the business nor his employees & associates. Ike Rayner was a truly unique individual with resources beyond the norm. Rayner’s family never fully knew the extent of his capabilities and they never tested him. Everyone knew better than to question this man. As a civilian, he was a warm, caring person. In business he had a reputation for excelling and achieving objectives. In the military, his enlisted and officers highly respected him. His superior officers had a range of opinions, mostly that of a hard charging soldier who was a highly capable leader. Some called him the only known living heart transplant donor.

Rayner built his own Inner Sanctum computer based technology that was the envy of his country. As the director of the special ops plans, training and operations department, he was affectionately known as the one and only MEASLE MAN.

PROLOGUE

The phone was ringing at 0849 hrs when Colonel Ike Rayner entered his office in the bunker. He wondered what the hell could this be about now? As he entered, the light switch flipped on automatically, everything in the bunker was automated. Rayner was in full suspense as he picked up the black receiver for the ringing phone. The manufactured voice on the other end of the line repeated 9 BLUE three times. Rayner responded with his countersign Roger Zulu 4 012540851". This designated the Julian date and time.

He replaced the phone and immediately grabbed a blue receiver and pushed the button to the On position. He listened intently to a short dial tone followed by a Morse code message…—. . . three dots, three dashes and three dots. Rayner replied by pushing the # six button three times, pushing the # seven button three times and the # six button three more times. His response was received immediately and he put the receiver down. The red phone receiver had barely rung after using the blue phone. Rayner picked up the red phone receiver and immediately recognized his boss’s voice. It was Major General Van Miller, the Deputy Director of Intelligence Operations at the headquarters. He was actually physically located in an office in the Core Ring of the Pentagon. The exact location was the nerve center for the Emergency Operations Command unit only a few steps away from the most heavily fortified location in the Department of Defense. It had a direct underground access tunnel to the bunker at The White House on the other side of the Potomac River.

Deep in the bowels of the most secretive government location, a chamber exists with an electronic display of the world. The entire operation has its own independent ability to exist. This is where one isolated man works to keep the U.S. safe and secure. He works on hundreds of tests trying to create responses to world-wide threats and attacks. To him, every individual, organization, state or national government is a threat to the U.S.A. regardless of the treaties, warmth or chill of the relations. This is the man tasked with performing the most sensitive work. He comes and goes to work without notice because the entrances and exits he uses are changed every day. He dons a maintenance man’s uniform and collects trash from small baskets containing non classified shredded papers.

While working his communications to the outside world, he is responsible to the Director of the most super secret defense agency. This is a non-descript person that is barely a shadow and is perceived as a drop out custodian. This is the Measle Man!

CHAPTER 1

Ike Rayner was a just normal ten year old kid who began life growing up in Connecticut, not far from New York City. Ike’s parents, Dottie and Abe Rayner, both originally from NYC, were a hard working couple. After twenty years of marriage, they were finally able to purchase a brand new home in a small developing town, Trumbull, Connecticut. It was a growing community just north of the Merritt Parkway. Ike’s parents opened and owned a women’s clothing boutique business for eight years at the intersection of two main roads before they purchased the house.

Ike had an older sister, Jocelyn, who was only fourteen at the time, and as a young teenager, she had a difficult time getting to see her friends from their previous neighborhood because the Rayners now lived several miles from their former apartment. The Rayner’s had only one car and needed it to get to their business.

Life in the new neighborhood was fun for Ike. He had lots of new young friends nearby. For the first year of school in Trumbull, Ike went to school in a station wagon provided by a local farmer’s wife. He didn’t have to walk for two blocks like before. After that first year, the town was providing regular yellow school buses. There was no high school in town and Jocelyn had a short walk to a public bus stop that ran on an irregular schedule. Ike’s father had to drive her to the bus stop early in the morning most of the time

There was always something to do during every season of the year in this new neighborhood. In the fall, raking the leaves into huge piles was an event for all the kids. They rolled around in the piles without getting hurt. Many times they’d climb a tree and jump in the pile of leaves.

The winter season brought much more snow because the town was in a higher elevation above sea level. The Rayner’s new ranch style home was half way up the street on the hill. When it snowed, it was difficult to get up the hill. Most cars could only get up half way and then had to go back down and park the car. When the snow plows did come, they created a trough on the side of the road. This was perfect for sledding down the hill. Otherwise, the neighborhood kids rode on a long toboggan, starting at the top of the hill and went down the hill across snow covered lawns and driveways.

There was a small private lake across the street from Ike’s house that froze over during the winter. The kids went ice skating there with their parents. Ike’s father was a speed skater as a youth in Brooklyn, New York and taught Ike how to ice skate.

The spring brought new leaves and flowers to this development of homes. Before they were built, there was an apple orchard. Ike’s mother was a great cook and knew how to make apple sauce, apple pies and anything else you could make with apples. She and the new neighbors’ wives shared some recipes and the kids benefited from their moms’ cooking.

The summer was a great time for Ike. He went swimming in the lake with the other kids. There was an old former U.S. Navy raft in the middle for the kids to dive off. This was also summer vacation time and parents would go to beach summer cottages on Long Island Sound. Ike’s father taught him how to swim at the beach years earlier. Several kids went somewhere with their parents or they went to day or sleep away camps.

After the apple trees blossomed, the apples began growing on the trees and many of them fell to the ground. The kids created a new game called ‘BOMBS AWAY’. They played it at an old abandoned house surrounded by apple trees. The apples that fell to the ground usually became rotten and the games began. The kids would pick sides for teams. Getting hit with a rotten apple not only hurt but also it was messy. Knowing how to avoid getting ‘killed’ by an apple was a tactical challenge for everyone in the game. Ike was particularly good at setting up his defense. That wasn’t bad for a ten year old kid. But no matter how hard anyone tried, they usually got bombed. Then, there was also the problem of avoiding the local skunk family. Getting sprayed by a skunk was worse than getting bombed by a rotten apple.

The fathers of the kids in the neighborhood were hard working people. Ike’s dad also owned a commissary for baking goods. He sold the business and then worked for a specialty machine company that produced government defense equipment. At the end of his working years, he eventually retired from that company as an x-ray technician. Ike’s dad was not always in excellent health. He had a chronic condition of high blood pressure and later on had skin cancer from the exposure from the x-ray equipment.

Ike now attended a middle school that was several miles away. For Ike, school was not really difficult, although he didn’t really try to be a great student. He earned mostly C’s and B’s except for A’s in phys ed. Ike was a very good athlete. Ike also attended Hebrew school several days a week after public school was done and on Saturdays & Sundays. He was a very good student, learning the Hebrew language, customs and rituals of his Jewish religion. The combination of public and Hebrew schools helped to shape Ike’s life. The synagogue was four miles from home on a straight road, up and down a few hills. Ike rode his English racer bike with three gears to Hebrew School. The biking strengthened his legs, which proved to be worthwhile. Ike’s parents prepared him for his Bar Mitzvah when he would turn age thirteen. This was the traditional age for boys when they were considered to be a man. The cost of this event would normally be very expensive. The religious services were held at the synagogue where Ike’s Mom and Dad had a family membership. The parties celebrating the event were held at their home. All of Ike’s relatives, close family friends and young friends came to the parties. His mom worked for days preparing the food and especially his favorite prune cookies.

As Ike grew, he was taller than other kids his age. His growth continued until he reached his adult height of six feet four inches. His pals gave him the nickname BIG I. He was also very trim. Ike tried out for the high school baseball team even though he had no experience in Little League. He became a pitcher for the new high school baseball team. Tried out for the swimming team and was one of the fastest swimmers. Although he was tall, he wasn’t all that good as a basketball player, but he made the team anyway. In his final years at the high school, Ike was named co-captain of the Cross Country track team. Ike really excelled in this sport, qualifying to compete at the State Championships. He won the state meet in record time.

The school didn’t have a golf team, but Ike, who was self taught, played very well. He got his first used set of golf clubs from a neighbor who was a sales representative for a major sporting goods company. Ike’s Aunt Jen took him to a nearby golf course to teach him the rudiments of the game that she loved. Ike’s cousins Irwin and Ilse gave him a new set of golf clubs for his Bar Mitzvah. It was a gift Ike would never forget. Ike then began making money by caddying at the nearby golf courses. Ike was an industrious young man, always looking to make some spending money, saving it to buy a car.

Jocelyn was just about to graduate from high school in the former city where they lived. Dottie Rayner was a great seamstress and showed Jocelyn how to produce pot holders. She sold them to raise money for the Red Cross. She graduated high school and went to a state university that was at the opposite end of Connecticut. At first, the town of Trumbull didn’t have a high school but was in the midst of building a new facility that would still require Ike be picked up by a school bus.

Getting through his high school education was not one of Ike’s primary objectives. While most of the kids in school were planning to attend college to become professionals such as doctors, dentists, lawyers, teachers and veterinarians. Ike dreamt of becoming a golf professional. Finally, high school graduation arrived on a bright sunny June day. Ike was prepared for the summer. He saved his money and bought a used car from a neighbor. Ike had applied and was accepted at a local engineering college. He was very good in math, but was not motivated to apply himself to the effort.

Ike continued to work hard at making money at the golf course while attending college. He earned enough money to pay for his own insurance and repairs on the car. Not bad for a 17 year old kid whose parents did not have the financial resources to assist him. Ike’s great aunt sent him a check to pay for his college application and Ike agreed to pay for college tuition himself by working at the golf course that summer, driving the range cart to pick up the balls. He also made extra money challenging some of the golfers at the range to hit the practice balls over the back fence. They would bet five or ten dollars. Ike made several hundred dollars when a local golfer professed his great skills. Ike watched this golfer’s swing and offered to bet with him. It was pitiful to watch as Ike collected the cash from this pigeon.

The first year courses at college were rigorous. Ike took electrical and mechanical engineering. This was in addition to chemistry, physics, trigonometry, industrial design, management, drawing, computers and phys ed. Ike commuted to school sharing rides with other students that lived near his home. The school had a basketball team and Ike made the first team. His teammates picked up on his nickname, BIG I. He was the tallest player on the team and was listed in the team’s program as six feet seven inches. That was done intentionally by the coach to scare the opposing teams on the schedule. By the end of the basketball season, the team won / lost record was not very good, they lost more games than they won.

Just before that Thanksgiving holiday, the school held a Turkey Trot cross country race. Ike won it and took home the turkey. It was also just about that time when news of President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. Ike was in the school gym getting ready for the basketball team’s practice session. Someone came running in to say the president was shot. Ike actually thought someone shot the president of the student council. At the tender age of 18, Ike was getting a real life history lesson.

There were all ready problems brewing with Cuba and the Soviet Union. The missile crisis had much of the nation in a nail biting mode hoping there would not be another world war. Viet Nam was nothing more than a tiny blip on the radar screen and most never would have conjured a thought about a war in that remote area of the world. The events of youth, education, athletics and history would prove to be important milestones for Ike. They were his preparation for the life he would soon live.

After graduating from the technical college, Ike got a job in a large local factory with the quality control department of a