by Brad Taylor
Bashir said, “Anywhere but from the sea.”
Sayid stopped fiddling with the drone. Bashir continued, “We do it from the boat. It’s already supposed to take us to Syria, so let’s load it, take it offshore, conduct the attack, then simply sail away. Only we go to Turkey instead of Syria.”
49
Kurt Hale knew his answer would be a grenade dropped into the room. He said, “Yes, that’s correct.”
The Council members erupted, all shouting questions. He stood there, stoically waiting for them to calm down, although he realized why they were upset. He looked at Kerry Bostwick for support, and got a nod.
He took a breath, thinking, This is going to be bad, but knew he had to bulldoze through the panic. Because there was a hit coming, and it would be catastrophic.
The president raised his hand, calming the room. He pointed at Alexander Palmer, saying, “One at a time.”
Palmer said, “You have a dead CIA case officer in Lucerne? Did I just hear that correctly? And instead of chasing the guy who killed him, you interdicted someone else in the river—the fucking river—of Lucerne, Switzerland?”
“No, sir. That’s not what happened. Can we get back to the briefing?”
“No, we can’t get back to the briefing. What the hell are you doing?”
“Sir. If I may. Let me continue.”
President Hannister held a hand up again, and the room became quiet.
Kurt exhaled and said, “Okay, yes, a CIA case officer was poisoned in Lucerne, Switzerland, by agents of the North Korean regime. That happened, but it’s not the reason I’m here. The North Koreans are also in the process of engineering a terrorist attack with Syrian assets, and they’re going to leverage it. That’s why I’m here. I need immediate Omega authority.”
Palmer said, “So you conducted an Omega mission without authority, and now you’re asking for Omega? After a CIA case officer was killed? I’d like to know what the CIA thinks of this. Whether they think this joint operation was a good thing.”
All eyes turned to Kerry Bostwick, and he said, “I’m with Kurt. There is nothing to hide here. The Taskforce did what they could. Nobody could have seen this coming.”
Kurt had talked to Kerry before the meeting, laying out his evidence of what Periwinkle had done, and both had agreed to just bury the culpability. Use the loss of Periwinkle as a soldier at war. The man was dead. Raising a stink about his subterfuge was nothing either wanted, and there was a greater threat out in the world. Now wasn’t the time to start pointing fingers.
Palmer said, “How are you going to continue with a CIA operations officer dead in a restaurant? I’d really like to know that.”
Aggravated, Kurt said, “Sir, he’s CIA. That’s not my portfolio. We don’t do anything with them for a reason. Except you guys said I had to this time.”
Kerry said, “We have it. We’re running the traplines right now. He’s a businessman from Turkey who had a heart attack. No issues.”
Palmer said, “No issues? The Taskforce just executed an Omega operation without sanction. The second one in as many weeks, in the same damn country.”
Kurt said, “Sir, Yasir was drowning. He was about to die. It might seem convenient, but the right to protect applied here as well.”
Palmer snarled, “Why was he about to drown? Why was that?”
“He jumped into the water, and he couldn’t swim.”
“And why did he jump into the water? A man who couldn’t swim? Was it because your walking disaster Pike was chasing him? Forcing an Omega without authority?”
Kurt took a breath, letting the emotion go. As much as he wanted to punch the guy in the head, it wouldn’t help him here. He said, “Sir, there were two North Koreans about to kill him. Pike prevented that, and he jumped. I’m not sure what you want me to say. I suppose Pike could have let them do it. Or he could have let the man drown.”
Palmer looked at the president and said, “This seems to be a trend here. ‘Oh, we had to do it, or he would have died.’”
Kurt rolled his eyes, looked at the president, and said, “Sir, there is about to be a catastrophic attack on a US military base in Syria, which will significantly affect your ability to prosecute the war.”
He locked eyes with Alexander Palmer and said, “I’m not sure what you’re trying to prove, but what Pike did was correct. Regardless of whatever crap you want to spout about the charter.”
Kurt saw George Wolffe wince, and waited for the flamethrower. Instead, President Hannister said, “Continue. Where is the Syrian now?”
Palmer stuttered, clenching his pen so tightly his knuckles turned white. Kurt exhaled and said, “Pike called a support team from Greece. We evacuated him to a black hole in the Med. He’s secure, and under Taskforce control. We can determine his final disposition at our leisure.” Kurt looked at Palmer and said, “And before you ask, there were no glitches. Ground vehicle to an LZ, helo to the ship.”
President Hannister said, “Good. What do we know about the North Koreans?”
“Sir, we don’t know why—and Yasir doesn’t either—but the DPRK tried to kill him. They succeeded in killing his contact—case officer Periwinkle—but we don’t know their motives.”
“What are they up to?”
“We know they passed whatever this Red Mercury is to Yasir. We have Yasir’s phone, and found an app for a safe-deposit box in Geneva, rented by an LLC from Luxembourg. We’ve cracked the rental chain, and we’ve found another bunker that this same LLC has rented, but this one is out in the middle of nowhere. We think the North Koreans are using it to store Red Mercury. We think they held it there, and then transferred it to the city center of Geneva for distribution. Meaning they used this to give Yasir Red Mercury for terrorists.”
“And do we know what this Red Mercury is yet?”
“No, sir. But it can’t be good.”
“So you want to go check the second bunker now?”
“No, sir, not now. Maybe later. Right now we have an imminent threat.”
Kurt paused, then went from face to face in the room. He said, “Look, from what we know from Yasir, two terrorists are going to take whatever this Red Mercury is and sail to a port on the Syrian coast. From there, they’re going to use it to attack a Special Forces base in Manbij, Syria. We’ve already alerted the base to the threat, but we have a thread. We know where they’re staying in Nice. We know it. Yasir gave it to us under interrogation. I’m asking for Omega right now. No more bullshit about ‘How will this expose us?’ I want Omega to roll up the terrorists while we still know where they are.”
He saw Palmer’s face cloud, and waited for the president. Hannister said, “Let’s take a break. Five minutes. Think about the decision we’re going to make. Nobody is going to be forced into it.”
Inwardly, Kurt winced. Because Pike had executed two actions using in-extremis authority, Kurt could tell the Council was reluctant to give him Omega, even though the threat was now a clear and present danger. It was politics at its most extreme. Had Pike not executed those two missions, there would be no reason to ask for Omega, because the terrorists would have never been found.
Kurt went to the coffeepot at the rear of the room and felt someone tap him on the shoulder. He turned around, and saw Amanda Croft, the secretary of state. She said, “Hey, what are you trying to accomplish here? Is there really a threat, or are you trying to expand Taskforce authority by these repetitive ‘Right to Protect’ actions?”
Kurt said, “Excuse me?”
She said, “Tell me this is right, and I’ll believe you. Because I believe the men who work with you. But don’t sell me a bill of goods if you’re prostituting your own men to execute an action to increase your power base. Would Knuckles do this?”
He was flabbergasted. He put down his cup and said, “Ma’am, let’s get something straight, right here, right now
. You deal in a world of politics, where everyone seems to lie for a living. I live in a world of absolutes. I am Knuckles. Right now, Knuckles is on the end of a phone begging me for permission. I’m not the bad guy here. I walk a fine line, and Pike crosses it all the time, but when he does, it’s because his instincts are spot-on. Not because he’s running amok. There is a threat.”
She looked at him for a moment, then said, “You’re sure about that?”
He picked up his coffee and took a sip. “You know Knuckles pretty well. What do you think? Would he be begging if it weren’t true?”
She blanched, reading through Kurt’s unstated words. He said, “There are no secrets here. I know about you two. Nobody else on this Council does, but I do.”
She said, “That’s not why I vote the way I do.”
He said, “It is why you vote the way you do. Because voting is based on what you know. He speaks highly of you, which counts with me. And that should count with you. Would he follow me if I was an egomaniac looking to do harm?”
She poured her own cup, then said, “Okay. But this vote isn’t because of our relationship. That won’t ever happen.”
Kurt said, “Yes it will. And it should. Because you know the heart of the man who’s asking. That’s what all of this is. Period.”
She considered his words, then nodded, saying, “You might have a point.”
President Hannister called the room to order and said, “Okay, do we want to interdict the men based on the intelligence from the Syrian we captured in Lucerne? This is a formal vote for Omega against them, using Taskforce assets.”
Palmer said, “Sir, we have no protections in Nice. No cover for Pike to even show up. We had cover in Monaco, and now we have a dead CIA agent in Switzerland. If we do something in Nice, it’s going to be kinetic. We aren’t talking about Alpha. We’re talking about Omega. My vote is to use the intelligence we have and either interdict them en route on the sea, or protect the base. We’ve done enough already with the Taskforce. We have the intelligence, and we can leverage that. Pull off the team.”
While he didn’t want to hear it, a part of Kurt actually agreed with the assessment. He couldn’t flex Pike to Nice without a plausible reason for his company, because if things went south, it would mean exposure. Pike would have no ability to explain why he was there if he were captured or compromised—but Kurt had already sent him to the city under Alpha authority, using the Syrian’s intelligence. Pike had found where the terrorists were staying.
Kurt said, “Sir, I agree, it’s a risk, but we know where the terrorists are holed up. We have the bed-down. We pass this off, and we’ll lose them. There is no time for international cooperation.”
“Tell the French right now. Let them hit the place. Let them deal with the fallout if it goes to shit.”
Kurt couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Did you just say that? Seriously? As long as it’s not us with egg on our face it’s okay?”
Palmer shot back, “You execute what we say. We decide policy. Stay in your lane.”
Kurt pursed his lips, waiting for the rest of the Council members to speak their mind, knowing Alexander Palmer’s words would hold weight.
Amanda Croft locked eyes with Palmer and said, “I understand the risks to the Taskforce. But I also understand the risks to life. I say yes. Let them go.”
Palmer’s face squinted like a child pooping a diaper, and he blurted out, “Woman, you have no idea about these actions. Why don’t you hold your voice until others have spoken?”
Everyone in the room heard the words, and all were similarly dumbstruck. Kurt glanced at George Wolffe, and he winked, mouthing, Dumbass.
Palmer looked at the president, saying, “Sir, what I meant was—”
President Hannister cut him off, saying, “I’d like to remind everyone here that if you sit on this Council, your voice is respected. Does anyone else have anything to contribute?”
Nobody said a word. He nodded, saying, “Let’s put it to a vote then.”
And Omega was granted.
The hands dropped and President Hannister said, “Okay, it’s settled. Kurt, I want a status in twenty-four hours.” He glanced around the table and said, “Principals meeting tomorrow at noon.”
Kurt nodded, saying, “Yes, sir,” then saw the president look at Palmer and say, “I think we need a word.”
The members stood, and Kurt dropped his eyes, breaking down his computer. He unplugged the cables, packed up the laptop, and then felt a presence. He looked up and found Amanda Croft standing next to him. He said, “Ma’am?”
“Tell Knuckles he owes me for that one.”
He said, “I’m not sure what you mean.”
She said, “Yes you do. I know what Palmer thinks about me and my experience in this arena. He believes I’m a neophyte, and because of it, I knew my vote would be discounted. He’s a pig. I led him to the trough, and he started to eat.”
Flabbergasted, Kurt said, “That was on purpose?”
She said, “Of course it was.” She picked up a cable and handed it to him, saying, “It’s all politics, and I learned how to play that early on.”
Kurt said nothing, putting the cable in the case next to his computer.
He zipped the container, and she said, “It’s all politics until it isn’t. I believe in you. Don’t let me see you fall into the trap of what I just did. Don’t become what we are.”
And he understood.
50
Colonel Park In-young rubbed his face and said, “This is a disaster.”
Pacing the room, Colonel Lee Dae-jung said, “That’s an understatement.”
“Should we inform the general?”
“Do you wish to die? No. Let’s work to contain the problem ourselves. What do we know?”
“It’s an American team. They were meeting Yasir at a restaurant. We thought it was just the single man, but it was an entire team. We failed to kill Yasir, and now they have him in their control.”
“CIA? Is that what this is?”
“I don’t think so. It doesn’t have that signature. They were using a child as a spotter. That’s not something the CIA would do.”
“A child?”
“Yes. The ghost team spotted her talking on a radio after our target exited the bridge.”
“We’re sure?”
“Yes. Positive.”
Colonel Lee nodded, thinking. He said, “You’re right. That’s not CIA. So what is it?”
“It’s definitely American, but I think it’s some contract team. The US has been outsourcing to corporations for years. They work for the United States, but they also work for profit.”
“Like Russia’s Wagner group in Syria?”
“Yes, exactly. And that may be a way in for us.”
“How?”
“The men are paid by the United States, but their goal isn’t patriotism. They aren’t like us. They won’t continue based on an ethos. They are motivated by greed. They have no core, and that is a fatal flaw.”
Colonel Lee tapped a pen on the table and said, “You want to interdict them?”
“Yes. Look, they’re cracking Yasir like an egg right now. We know they’ve gone to Nice, and we know why. He’s talking. We need to interdict them before they can stop the terrorists from leaving on their mission.”
“But if we do that, we compromise our own team. They are under official diplomatic cover in Switzerland. They can’t travel to Nice.”
“So we use Song Hae-gook. He’s got cover as a rich South Korean. And he’s already in France.”
“His people aren’t trained for this. He’s just a delivery boy with a couple of bodyguards. He’s already proven that he can’t execute.”
“I’m not talking about a shoot-out. We need to hit them where it hurts. They are attempting to prevent a terrorist attack,
but what they really care about is money and their own worthless skins. We need to threaten that.”
“How?”
Colonel Park said, “If it was up to me, I’d take the child. She’s not working for a salary. She’s doing it for some other reason. I think she’s tied to one of the team members. Possibly the woman, but maybe someone else. We take the child, and then let them know that we have her. They’ll back off.”
“But if we do that, we show our hand. We might bring on an attack from the United States. That’s insane.”
Colonel Park sat down across from him and said, “No. If that were going to happen, it would have occurred after we killed the man in the restaurant. Hear me out. We take the girl, and then tell them what we have. We make them choose between an American operation, or her life.”
Colonel Lee nodded, then said, “So you’re not talking about just short-circuiting the team, getting them to leave. You’re saying we have the ability to manipulate them into working against the CIA, even as we tell them what to do?”
“Yes. I believe if we get the girl, we can hold her until our attack is done, keeping that team at bay. We need to split them from their paymasters in the CIA. Force them to make a choice. They won’t choose the CIA, I guarantee it.”
“So let the CIA think they’re trying to prevent our attack while we prevent them from interfering?”
“Precisely.”
“But once again, the target is in Nice. We can’t use the ghost team. We can’t compromise them. They’re preparing for the real attack.”
“That’s why I say we use Song. He’s got men trained in security, and how hard can this be? They just grab her. She’s a child.”
“She might be a child, but she’s working with a team that has already shown skill. Don’t forget, they snatched Yasir from under our noses.”
“I agree, but that’s precisely why this will work. They think they’ve succeeded, and they’ll have their guard down, focusing on the terrorists. They won’t be looking for us. We seize the girl, and we facilitate the attack in Syria, and then our own attack. We control them.”