Operations Compromised

by Warren Conrad

  “No problem, boss. I’ll start on preparations.”

  Late in the day, Kaesar called to inform Stryker a meeting had been scheduled in Geneva in two days with Fayez, but without the Iranian. After the phone call, Stryker sat at a table and flipped through his files, staring at the photographs from Colorado Springs of squat log cabins and graceful steeples, of children piling into canoes or families pouring into a sanctuary on Sunday morning. Sanctuary. Wasn’t that supposed to mean a safe place? Was anywhere safe now, in this new war they were fighting?

  Seeing Jason Branch’s name on that list had rattled him, although he had not let it show. He had long ago sworn to protect his home country from all threats, both foreign and domestic—it didn’t matter if you were an Iranian terrorist or the vice president of the United States. But this complicated matters.

  Stryker continued poring through records and paperwork far into the night. On his fourth cup of coffee, as he scanned through a list of companies doing business with Herman Kaesar, he found a listing for Alpha Security Consultants. He stared at it as the truth sank in. Kaesar was the common thread between the Iranian, the Pakistani, Herb Miller, and the vice president; they were all Kaesar’s clients. The only players Stryker had not identified were the Pakistani’s associates.

  On into the night, he read through reports and data.

  He woke up hours later at the table with a sharp pain at the base of his spine and a headache throbbing between his temples. A sheet of paper was plastered to his face. Darkness still outlined his curtained window, but he picked up his cell phone, popped his jaw, and dialed Sparks.

  It took half a dozen rings before Sparks answered. “Geez, Jake, do you even know what time it is?”

  “No.” Stryker looked at his watch. “Ten ‘til five.”

  “You know what time that makes it here?” Sparks paused. “Really early, that’s what.”

  “Your pictures helped me put things in perspective. I’ve started thinking about how it all fits together.”

  “Personally, I think better when people don’t interrupt my sleep in the middle of the night.”

  “I found Kaesar’s client list. Turns out all the major players are his clients. He’s in the middle of something big, but I don’t know if we’re going to uncover it in time. The people and governments behind these attacks are powerful and with unlimited funding. Sparks, we need intelligence badly.”

  “I know where you’re going with this,” Sparks said. “The CIA has information, no doubt, but when I start digging, they are going to ask questions. They know about you but have no idea what to do with you. When you got out of the military, they wanted to recruit you, but you started on this personal vendetta and then up and partnered with the Mossad.”

  “I wouldn’t call it a vendetta.”

  “I didn’t say it was a bad thing. And the Agency likes your alliance with the Mossad. They needed a trusting relationship like what you’ve established. In fact, they want me to offer you a deal to work for both the Mossad and the CIA in a deep cover arrangement as a special contractor.”

  “When were you going to tell me this?”

  “After the sun comes up, like any sane person. I spoke with my contact last night.” Although Sparks still affected irritation, he was sounding more awake now, and Stryker knew it took a lot to genuinely upset him.

  “Who would have supervision?”

  “You’d continue to have your own operational authority, with full deniability from both agencies. You would never be an agent for either group but would work on projects where both sides were in agreement. Funding would be through my company into an account set up off shore. You would report through me and to Daniel.”

  “Have you guys run this by the Mossad?” Stryker asked.

  “Maybe you missed the part where the CIA needs the kind of relationship you’ve already got. We’ll leave it to you to tell Daniel what’s being offered and see if there’s a mutual interest. If Daniel decides not to participate, the Agency still would like to create the relationship with you.”

  Stryker was surprised, but the idea made sense. The project they were presently working on with the Mossad would be similar to future common interest assignments. “I’ll approach Daniel, and then we can talk more. Before we finish this discussion, though, let me say my agenda is to find and terminate threats to our country from both within and outside of our borders. I believe the mission of the CIA is foreign, so before we make any alliance, I need to let you know where I stand. The Agency will have deniability because I will be choosing the targets, but make sure everyone understands that my targets can include anyone, even popular politicians.”

  “That won’t be a problem. There exists within the CIA a small group of patriots, totally off the Agency’s books. I’m able to get intelligence and limited funding for special projects. These individuals are the ones that would like the special relationship with you and the Mossad. The Agency in total cannot be trusted. I mostly work my own agenda, and what I do stays hidden.”

  “I like what I hear. Keep working on gathering intel, and we’ll talk again soon. I’ll let you get back to sleep.”

  “Shoot, now I’m too wired up. I have two Hatchet teams ready to go in Colorado as soon as we find out the recon date.”

  “Good. Tell your assets inside the CIA that we are going to an operational security status and ‘need to know’ protocols,” Stryker said. “I don’t want any leaks on this one. Keep it tight, all right?”

  “Look who you’re asking,” Sparks said. “There are also investigative reporters with ties inside the different agencies we can use, maybe turn up some new intel. I’ve used some of them before.”

  “I think the Mossad already has lists of those individuals. Sometimes I think they know more about our intelligence community than we do.”

  “Quite possible. The question is, will they share with us?”

  “That’s why you need me to ask nicely,” Stryker said.

  Chapter 21

  Tel Aviv, Israel

  March 2010

  Stryker lingered in a hallway at the Mossad compound while Rachel and Sara caught up with other members of Kidon. Rachel had advised him to discuss Sparks’s proposal with Daniel in person, so they had caught an overnight flight to Tel Aviv, and now he waited outside the conference room for their meeting. His mind whirled, considering the many ways this meeting could go and what it might mean to the rest of his life—or to the likelihood of it ending in the near future.

  If he was honest with himself, he had been depressed since speaking with Sparks and contemplating the enormous tasks to be undertaken. Daniel’s agreement to this proposal could change his life and his effectiveness for the better, or it could result in his ending up dead or in prison. He would punish or kill the people on the list with or without anyone’s help and no matter the cost; he would never be able to live with himself otherwise. It would be easier with a support system in place and the resources he needed. Still, he felt he was getting drawn ever deeper into a web with strands that stretched far beyond his sight lines.

  “You doing OK?”

  Rachel had slipped away from the group, her eyes showing concern. She was dressed in blue jeans and a green top mostly hidden by a dark green Sparkset, with black boots and a cap. She looked more like a French girl out of some magazine than a hardened warrior. There was no telling where her weapons were hidden, but one thing was sure—they would appear as if by magic when needed.

  “Just thinking about this meeting,” he said. “I have no idea what to say to convince Daniel. Any ideas?”

  “To be honest, I don’t understand him at all sometimes. I’m not sure how he’s going to react.” She stepped a bit closer to him. “He’s a long-term thinker and reasonable to a fault, so you can appeal to his logic. But he can also get really emotional at times.”

  “Do you think he’s going to go for this?”

  Rachel shrugged. “Problem is, we’re two different countries caught up in ou
r own issues.

  At the same time, the problems in many cases are one and the same.”

  “As with the Iranian.”

  “Right.” She looked at the door to the conference room and then back to him. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll do this for you. I’ll discuss the arrangement with Daniel, and we can go from there. We’ve worked together for a long time, so he might listen to me. And I know about concerns that are important to Israel and should be considered, some that he might not feel ready to share with you.”

  “Are you sure?” Stryker couldn’t help smiling. “I would owe you one.”

  “You’ll owe me if he agrees. He’s not going to be convinced easily.” She leaned her shoulder against the wall, folding her arms and watching him. “Anything else on your mind?”

  “Well, you, to be honest. I find myself worrying about you all the time. I’m not sure what to do about it.”

  “The feelings are mutual,” she said, “and I don’t know what to do about them either.”

  “We’re both in dangerous jobs. We might live normal lives one day, but it’s not promising given the world we live in.”

  “Maybe for now we just enjoy the time we have together and see how things work out. You know, you and the team are my family. I rarely speak with my sisters or mother. Sara is more of a sister to me than my real ones. You have Sparks, I guess, and others who served with you in the military, but you seem alone too.” She let out a humorless laugh. “We are quite a pair, aren’t we?”

  “When the time is right, we could just disappear.” He held her gaze. “You should give it some thought.”

  She nodded but then shook her head. “You’d never leave this life behind. It’s too much a part of you. Same as it is for me.” He started to protest, but she laid her fingertips over his mouth. “OK. I’ll think about it.”

  Daniel approached from the end of the corridor, and everyone filed toward the conference room. As they all sat, Daniel greeted the group, looking exhausted. Stryker knew the prospects of war with Iran were becoming more likely, which put extreme pressure on the Mossad to provide intelligence. In spite of this, Daniel welcomed them all warmly and had coffee and tea served.

  Stryker wanted to get straight to business. “Daniel, thanks for allowing me to come see you on short notice. I want to propose an alliance concerning our common enemies. I hope you’ll give careful consideration to it.” He glanced over at Rachel, and she gave a slight nod.

  “However, Rachel can do a better job explaining the proposal than I. She can articulate the Israeli position and how an alliance might work. With your permission, I’ll leave the meeting and someone can come get me when you are finished talking.”

  Daniel agreed, and Stryker exited the room. He sat in the empty hallway, hearing only the muffled murmur of voices inside the room, Rachel’s for several minutes and then Daniel’s in response. He sipped his coffee and tried to sit still, but eventually he had to rise and pace. Contingency plans for either outcome of this meeting ran through his head.

  Sara slipped out of the conference room and walked over to him. “He’s ready for you.”

  “How did it go?” Stryker started walking back.

  “Rachel was persuasive. She emphasized that the alliance would be covert, with both sides having an equal say about everything. She assured Daniel that Israel would not be involved in any targets within the United States unless asked to assist.”

  Stryker paused just outside the door. “Did Daniel go for it?”

  “He’s hard to read. He did observe that we’re already in a similar alliance with you.” She opened the door for him. “After you.”

  Stryker entered the room. Daniel said, “Stryker, we have never done any mission together with the exception of our pursuit of this Iranian. What you have asked would be very unusual, and the failure of your plan might mean the end of my career or worse.”

  Stryker nodded. “There are similar issues on our side.”

  “There’s tremendous potential for the whole thing to blow up in my face. Taking such a risk would need to pay huge benefits, or we will only provide intelligence through third parties with no ties to you or your teams.” Daniel paused. “On the other hand, we are getting closer to finding Ali Shirazi and finishing his reign of terror, and I am told that without your help we would not be as close as we are. I understand your life is in danger, and I am appreciative of all you are doing.” Daniel steepled his fingers just beneath his chin. “My suggestion is that we finish our business with Ali and then form our new alliance. We will meet again soon, and I promise to attempt to make your proposal a working reality.”

  Daniel got to his feet and left just as dinner was delivered to the conference room. Rachel, Sara, and Stryker looked at each other and leaned back in their chairs. Rachel gave Stryker a smile.

  “Now you owe me,” she said.

  They had dinner, joined by other members of the Mossad, and made plans to return the following day to Washington, DC, after Sara attended to a few matters in Tel Aviv. Stryker slept surprisingly well that night, and Rachel worked with him on his knife skills the next morning until it was time to leave.

  Aside from some turbulence, the flight back was long and quiet, and they returned to a cold day in early spring with light snow flurries and clear blue skies. The capital was about to emerge from the grip of winter, its landscape melting into new growths and colors even as a last dusting of powdery white settled over it all. It was a welcome change from the harsh landscape of Tel Aviv, though their stay had been brief.

  At the Israeli Embassy, they moved back into their rooms and got ready to meet the team leader. While waiting, Stryker asked Rachel if she knew what Daniel told the CIA and FBI about potential terror strikes in the United States.

  “I think his discussion was more general than specific since we haven’t received much information as to time and place,” she said. “The agencies may wait to act until we have more information. I think we should assume we are on our own.”

  “Maybe we should leave your team out of the action and let Sparks’s team deal with the dirty part,” Stryker suggested. “Your team can provide intelligence and be in the background.”

  Sara scowled, and Rachel visibly hesitated. “If you think that’s what’s best,” she said.

  “Rachel, my biggest fear is that something goes wrong and the press finds out the Mossad is working on US soil without US involvement. We might lose the chance for a larger alliance.”

  “I guess Ali may not show up in person, anyway,” Rachel said.

  “Ali must be found and tracked no matter what happens in Colorado. Kidon can track him while Sparks takes out the Iranian team.”

  “There’s another option,” Sara said. “We could take out the Iranians in Detroit. Maybe we should discuss it with the T.L.”

  The team leader was a man in his early forties and all business. Stryker believed he had seen a lot of action by the way he presented himself. No one used his name, and he did not give it; everyone referred to him only as “Team Leader” or “T.L.” He had been supervising the surveillance of the Detroit cell and had been put in charge of the entire operation while they were away.

  His information on Ali did not amount to much. Ali had not returned to the Detroit location after the attempt on Stryker’s life a few weeks before. Team members were seen at the warehouse on different occasions, but for the most part the warehouse remained inactive. The Iranian team members had been followed and identified and their residences plotted on a map. These individuals had lived in the United States for many years and worked regular jobs, living under the radar.

  “What if we change our plans and take them out in Detroit?” Stryker asked when T.L. entered.

  “We risk not getting Shirazi.”

  “We may miss him, but the situation might be better with that cell taken out,” Sara said.

  “How long would it take you to come up with a plan for Detroit?” Stryker asked.

  “Based on w
hat we know, I’d say tomorrow after lunch,” the leader said.

  “Let’s think about the possibility and meet back here tomorrow at 2:00 p.m.,” Stryker said. “In the meantime, let’s check with all agencies on the whereabouts of Ali. We may have to move on his financial sources in order to bring him out. I guess we’re still trying to determine Saleh Al Fayez’s financial supplier in Geneva or Pakistan?”

  Sara raised her hand. “There’s an update on Fayez. A Mossad team has been following him since his meeting with Kaesar. They found the Pakistan connection may be a front for money coming from a Russian and a Pakistani Prince.”

  “If that’s true,” Stryker said, “the playing field changes.”

  “We’ll work on verifying it,” Sara said.

  “I’ll let Sparks know our plans may be changing so he can make arrangements.” As Stryker left the meeting, he had a difficult time believing what he just heard. If this is true, he thought, and we’re dealing with the involvement of even more countries, including Russia, then the mission just became more dangerous than ever.

  Chapter 22

  Washington, DC, and Chicago, Illinois

  March – May 2011

  Ali sat at the warehouse in Washington, DC, the morning after Stryker’s stabbing. He found himself thinking back over what had occurred at the St. Regis. Something about it felt off to him; his instincts told him that he was missing something.

  He replayed the events, recalling the faces in the crowd, the police officers who arrived much too quickly, the shocking amount of blood. He couldn’t pin down what was tugging at the back of his mind. He had been jostled, he remembered, a woman pushing past him. Feeling paranoid now, he shrugged off his coat—it was cold in the unheated warehouse in the morning, and he still wore it—and began to search the pockets, then the lining. Within a minute, he found the two bugs that Sara had planted.

  Ali thought in silence, knowing that somewhere, perhaps very close by, a surveillance team was listening. This meant they had heard the plans for Colorado Springs. He briefly considered scrubbing the entire operation but discarded the idea—too much preparation had already gone into it, and Ali refused to accept defeat on any terms. This team, the Detroit team, was undoubtedly compromised. He would need to lose any surveillance and regroup.