Order of Succession: Getting Away with Murder (Brian Sadler Archaeological Mystery Series Book 5)

by Bill Thompson

  Jim Perkins checked out with no red flags; the agency would keep his name on their list for now, but they were beginning to home in on the other NCO at the base. The FBI and CIA put new checks in place that Lail didn't know about. While the sergeant was diverted to other duties, dogs and men with sophisticated equipment swept every inch of every plane that the sergeant had signed off on. They got nowhere for a few weeks, but they kept the checks going.

  During those few weeks, a plan came together to nab the perpetrators, whoever they were and wherever this plot led. It was code-named Operation Condor and it came straight from the President himself.

  The three of them had been talking for two hours. After a short break Bob said, "This next part was told to me verbatim by Don Case. I'm going to repeat it to you the best I can. I have to admit it gave me cold chills."

  Not long ago, Case had been in a meeting at the Oval Office. President Harrison had brought several of his key advisors together to help finalize his game plan for the upcoming Barbados meeting of the Organization of Central American and Caribbean States, or OCACS.

  As others were talking, the CIA chief stared at the briefing sheet that had been handed out. He looked at the dates of President Harrison's trip to Barbados. Something caught his attention, something he couldn't put his finger on. Then it came to him.

  He shouted, "Mr. President!"

  The deputy chief of the Drug Enforcement Administration was answering a question from President Harrison and he stopped abruptly, miffed at the interruption.

  Harrison glanced over, surprised at the normally reserved CIA director's outburst. "Don? Do you have something to add?"

  "Sorry, sir. I was just looking at the dates of your trip. Aren't the Vice President and Secretary Clancy away at the same time?"

  "Yes. They're going to Hong Kong to meet the President of the PRC. What's your point?"

  Case's heart was beating wildly now. "Which plane are they taking?"

  Unsure what was happening, Harry Harrison replied, "Where are you going with this? What does it have to do with this meeting?"

  "Stay with me a moment on this, Mr. President. Are they taking the 747?"

  "That's my understanding, yes. It makes sense because it's long range –"

  Case interrupted again. "And which plane are you taking? Which plane will be Air Force One for that trip?"

  Harrison was known for his friendly, outgoing demeanor, but this had gone about far enough. He was beginning to get a little irritated. "I don't know. One of the smaller jets, I guess. Don, are you feeling okay?"

  All of a sudden Donovan Case knew exactly what was going to happen.

  This meeting wasn't the place to discuss it. He and Harrison were the only two in the room who knew about Operation Condor.

  "Sorry, sir. I've got something to go over with you when we break up."

  Case told Bob that the next thirty minutes were the longest in his life. He had squirmed and fidgeted in his seat until he and the President were alone at last.

  Once everyone else had left, Harrison said, "Let’s hear it. What was so important you had to interrupt the meeting? This had better be good."

  "It's about Condor, sir. I think they're going to bomb both planes. I think they're going to surpass everything they did on 9/11 by killing the President and the Vice President at the same time!"

  Harrison sat in silence for what seemed to Don like an eternity.

  "It would be a brilliant plan, wouldn't it? But how could they possibly accomplish it? The planes are at Andrews Field, where the security is tighter than anywhere else in the country. Is this guy Kaya involved?"

  "That's what we have to find out. I've got to get started now, sir. It's only a week until the Vice President leaves. I'll keep you advised."

  Parker paused. "Quite a story, don't you think?"

  Brian took a deep breath. He was captivated – this was like something out of a novel, but it was real. Nicole was sitting with arms folded, shaking her head. How could a plot of this magnitude be pulled off? She couldn't wait for the ending to this crazy saga.

  Just then there was a rap on the door and Harry came in.

  "Are you guys about to wrap it up? You've been in here holed up for hours, and if I know my friend Brian Sadler, it's cocktail time!"

  Parker said, "Yes, sir. Folks, I'm happy to resume tomorrow morning."

  Brian glanced at his watch. It was, in fact, cocktail hour, and he wanted only one thing more than a drink with the Harrisons. He wanted the rest of the story. He turned to Nicole.

  She said, "We can't stop now! That's like walking out of a movie before the ending!"

  Everyone laughed. Bob said, "Twenty minutes, Mr. President. I'll have them out then for sure!"

  Harrison nodded with a smile and closed the door.

  "As you've undoubtedly surmised, Director Case was right. I won't go into details of all the surveillance that was used to watch the people involved, but the CIA learned within days that Kaya facilitated a man who'd worked at Andrews for two years. Joe gave Jeremy the fanciful bucket-list selfie-photo story, and Jeremy made it happen, not once but twice. That night when agents took the bomb dogs aboard Air Force Two, they found a sophisticated device the size of a paperback book attached with Velcro under the flight engineer's seat. It had a timer that could be started remotely using the plane's Wi-Fi. I don't know what was inside. They removed it and took it to be detonated. When the bomb went off, it blew a hole in the ground five feet deep."

  Parker explained that the entire scenario was repeated two days later when the Gulfstream, now Air Force One, was outfitted with an identical device. This one was in a closet just outside the cockpit. It exploded with the same force as the first one. The planes would have been decimated.

  "What happened to the man who planted them?"

  "He resigned his job the morning after he planted the second bomb. He's on everybody's watch list, but he's gone. The CIA thinks he either left the country, maybe by car to Canada, or he was killed by the people he worked for."

  Nicole wondered how the CIA knew exactly when to implement Operation Condor. "The terrorists, presuming that's who they were, started the timers remotely. How did the CIA know when that would happen? How could they know exactly when to make the planes disappear? It could have happened anytime after the planes took off, correct?"

  "Yes, and they were ready for anything. However, given where they were both going, the CIA believed the most likely scenario would be to detonate the bombs over water. Air Force Two would be taken down on its outbound flight, they thought, and Air Force One the same day on its return flight from Barbados. There were a dozen contingency plans, and the avionics on both planes had been modified so the pilots could disable everything that allowed tracking, even the black boxes. As long as they flew very, very low, they wouldn't be detected by radar. There were thoughts about having the planes land at abandoned airfields inside the US or somewhere else along their routes. Palmyra Atoll and this island were the ideal spots, and it worked perfectly.

  "Agents had the timers from both bombs. They watched them constantly. Once they started, they would count down for two hours, then the bombs were supposed to explode. The timer for Air Force Two started shortly before the refueling stop in Hawaii. Director Case immediately notified President Harrison and the pilot, and the first phase of Operation Condor started.

  "As the timer ticked down to zero, the copilot on Air Force Two shut off all the instruments and the pilot took the plane down until they were a few hundred feet above the waves. They landed at Palmyra Atoll half an hour later. Two CIA agents with supplies for a month's stay had gone in a week before. The place was perfect; it had an adequate runway built in 1941 – that place had been a Naval Air Station until the end of the war. B-17 Flying Fortress bombers were stationed there for possible use against the Japanese, and there were a couple of hangars, one fortunately large enough to accommodate the 747.

  "Once everyone had gone through the drill and Air F
orce Two had disappeared, they knew exactly what to expect. In fact, it had been much easier with the small Gulfstream. The CIA had leased the tycoon's private island months before and they'd used it for several secret meetings with Cuban officials over the normalization of relations. No one was there now, so it was perfect. They decided that the Gulfstream would appear to crash into the Caribbean while actually flying here. A day later they took a seat from the plane and dumped it in the water. The CIA was directing the search for wreckage and, conveniently, there it was. A seat with the Presidential logo. Confirmation that Air Force One was gone."

  The Chief of Staff stopped. "I promised to have you out in twenty minutes and I'm already late. You know the story up to today. We're waiting to see what happens next. Agents are tracking money movements and intel worldwide, and the Falcons of Islam have claimed responsibility. Jeremy Lail's dead, which is actually too bad. It would have been helpful if the CIA could have interviewed him to see if he and the man who planted the bombs were working together, or if Lail simply thought the guy just wanted to see the cockpits. That's a little far-fetched for me, but it could have happened. Regardless, Lail knew someone had been on the planes and he signed off anyway. He was unquestionably involved."

  They thanked Bob for the briefing and commented on how brilliant Operation Condor really was. It was perhaps the boldest covert act in history, and so far no one suspected anything.

  "One more question," Brian said as they walked onto the porch to join the others. "I know President Parkes can be . . . well, difficult. Plus he's a Democrat and no friend of Harry's and Vice President Taylor's. Was it hard to get him to sign off on the mission?"

  "That's not something I'm authorized to discuss," Parker replied affably. "You'll have to ask your friend the President that question."

  Brian made a mental note. Right now the things he wanted most were close at hand. He and Nicole pulled up chairs, joined their friends and ordered drinks. Nicole opted for white wine.

  "This may be too much to ask, but can you do an extra-dry XO Vodka martini?" Brian asked the steward.

  Harry shot out a reply. "Are you asking if we knew you were coming? Of course we did! So of course we can arrange an XO Vodka martini! Kelly, fix my friend here his favorite drink!"

  CHAPTER FORTY

  The sun became a giant orange ball as it slowly slipped into the ocean. When it was gone, the darkness was immediate and intense.

  Brian and Nicole joined in a game of Monopoly with the children, something Harry said had become a routine every evening since they arrived. When it was over, Harry's dad said, "We're on babysitting duty tonight. There's nothing better than grandchildren. You two had better get started or you may never know what I'm talking about!"

  "Henry!" his wife said in mock disgust. "Now you leave Brian and Nicole alone!"

  Their grandparents accompanied the girls to their bedroom as Henry, Jennifer, Brian and Nicole walked outside to a candlelit table on the veranda. Everyone else stayed indoors to allow the old friends time to reconnect.

  "Thank God this place has a state-of-the-art exercise room, because we eat well here," Harry said as they were served a beautifully prepared grilled fish filet, rice with beans, and a medley of fruit. "Air Force One's chef is a master – thank goodness he's here. Everything on your plate is from this island or the sea around it.

  "Somebody ends up going fishing every day or so. There's a boathouse down at the shore with a couple of nice boats, and the guys and gals usually catch enough for everyone. Jen and I aren't allowed to go, of course. We're a long way from civilization, but it might cause a stir if someone saw the dead President out on a fishing trip!"

  On that note, Jennifer apologized again for putting them through the agony of funerals. "I can only imagine what I'd have felt had it been yours," she said, tears welling up in her eyes. "Hopefully everything Bob told you explains why we're doing this. This is so bizarre, but we believe it has to be done for the sake of our country."

  "It's an amazing story," Nicole agreed, "and Bob gave us a lot of information. But he said only Harry could answer some of our questions."

  "Now's your chance," the former President said. "Ask away!"

  "If there's something you can't answer, we'll understand. I was sick of the words national security when they were bringing us down here against our will, but now that I'm here, I understand that national security's what this is all about. So here goes. Harry, you were willing to allow this to happen – to lose the presidency – for the good of the country. But how can it be good for the country to let a buffoon like Parkes get into office?"

  "Good question, and trust me, Parkes is far worse than a buffoon. Here's the logic. He's already running for President. The Democratic convention's in less than four months and the election is three months after that. He's probably going to get the nomination since his only remaining opponent is a political lightweight. The nominal danger the country might be in as a result of his being President these few months is offset by the chance to watch and see what he's up to. The CIA wants to know what Cham Parkes is all about. In my opinion, the people have to know that too. I think it would blow people's minds if they knew what his agenda really was. I don't often speak badly of other people, but this is a fact. Parkes is a liar and a criminal. Hopefully all we're going through will help us catch him red-handed."

  In all the years he'd known Harry, Brian had never heard his friend speak badly about another person. He was passionate about this, no doubt.

  Brian said, "When I asked how hard it was to get President Parkes to sign off on this mission, Bob said to ask you. From what you just said, I'm beginning to think Parkes doesn't know about Operation Condor, but how is that possible? Bob told us only three people in DC know you're alive. He didn't name Parkes, but he has to know, right? He's the President."

  "Only those three know. Don Case is the most important one. He keeps me informed on everything Parkes is doing, in particular how the President's addressing – or to be more accurate, ignoring – the threats made by the Falcons of Islam. I'm worried that the President's going to fire Don as CIA director. If he does, we lose our eyes and ears behind closed doors. I just hope all this will be over before it comes to that."

  Brian couldn't make sense of it. "So the sitting President of the United States doesn't know . . ."

  Harry paused to gather his thoughts. "According to the officers who were with him, Cham said some very odd things as Operation Condor was unfolding. When they ran into his office to secure him, he was very calm and said something like, 'It's been a long time coming.' As crazy as this was – he was being taken out under a Code Red, the highest alarm we have – but he was peaceful, like he knew what was going on."

  Harry paused a moment and then spoke more quietly. "Cham Parkes doesn't know about this because Don and I think he's involved in the plot to kill the Vice President and me. He may be the major player. We also think that's why he's ignoring the Falcons of Islam and their threats."

  "Holy shit! A sitting American President may be involved with terrorists? I can't believe it!"

  "It's so unthinkable it makes all the deceit, all the grieving mourners and all the plotting totally worth it. We have to learn what's going on and we have to stop it."

  They ate in silence for a few minutes, and then Nicole smiled. "When the world learns that all of you are actually alive – especially when Cham Parkes and his buddies find out – there's going to be a massive, collective uh-oh from a lot of people."

  "You're being too polite," Harry responded with a laugh. "I was thinking more of an oh, shit!"

  The steward removed their plates and they ordered coffees all around. "We also have some excellent brandy, courtesy of our host," Harry advised. "Will you join me?"

  Since the wreck Nicole had been careful around alcohol, given her regimen of medications. She and Jennifer passed, but Brian opted in.

  "Okay, Harry, here's my question. Were you all just missing us a lot? Is that why you had
the spooks whisk us away in the middle of the night off to this desert island? Or was it the 'events that were unfolding' that Bob said to ask you about?"

  "I figured you'd get around to this eventually," he replied, raising his brandy glass for a clink with Brian's. "You mean you weren't ready for a little vacation?"

  "The part about bringing clothes for warm weather pissed Nicole off a little," Brian admitted. "She wasn't too excited about a vacation with the CIA."

  Nicole shrugged as Harry and Jennifer laughed.

  "Okay, here's the part you don't know. You know that little task you did for the Agency? Unfortunately that appears to have created a problem."

  Nicole jumped in. "What task did you do?"

  "She doesn't know?"

  "Your father and Don Case both told me not to tell her."

  Nicole's voice quivered, betraying the anger she felt. "Harry, I love you guys, but I'm getting tired – and frankly a little scared – of what you all got Brian involved in. So let's hear it. What have you and Brian done that makes us part of all this Condor thing?"

  "Let me try to explain. First, for the record, I have to remind you about the confidentiality agreement. This is ultra-top-secret information. Only a few people know what I'm about to tell you."

  Even Brian hadn't known the reason why he'd been recruited to put listening devices in Amina Hassan's office, so this was news to him. Harry said that Amina's billionaire father wasn't only involved in the things you read about in Forbes magazine. The CIA had kept an eye on the Hassan Group for years because of its suspected involvement in the funding of Middle Eastern terror groups, including the Falcons of Islam.

  It had been Don's idea to bug Hassan's London office. The company's Dubai headquarters would have been best, but there was no way to make it happen. A general wariness in Dubai concerning Americans, the airtight security in Hassan's building, and a company policy that no outsiders were ever allowed to venture above the first-floor conference rooms – all these things made it impossible to penetrate Hassan Group there.