B00H242ZGY EBOK

by Unknown

  With almost a relieved look on his face, Rojas thanked the man and took his purchases. Verdes remained at the game until the end, then packed his truck up and set off to where he was staying while in town. Tonight he would have a little extra wine with his meal. Meetings like this seemed to drain everything from him.

  Washington, DC

  “It’s the same latitude and longitude as we got before,” said Kurt West, the head of the FBI.

  Craig Harris nodded his head. “Concur. The report from one of my people said it was short and sweet. These two guys are frightened. This guy, Rojas, says our people are in danger. I must say I believe him.”

  “I can imagine,” said the President. “Now what have you turned up so far on these phone calls – especially since you called this hurried meeting with me.”

  West sat forward in his seat. “Mr. President, I need to inform you that I am commissioning a special prosecutor for this case. So far, I have let you know only about phone calls between Washington and our ambassador’s office. My agents arrested an Air Force captain named David Ferrell. We have both the phone call and video of the captain making the phone call at the exact time. We took him in for interrogation and charged him in violation of Title 18. At first he asked for a lawyer, but after a very persuasive recommendation by General Richardson, at which time the captain fainted, he began asking for consideration for his testimony. We now have ample evidence to charge other parties under the same act.”

  He sat back in his seat slightly. “Sir, as of now I cannot tell you who will be charged or what evidence we are gathering, but it should be said you do not need to know as yet. I am requesting this special prosecutor have full jurisdiction and authority to get to the very bottom of this incident. The Justice Department has agreed and you need to know it is being done. I am sure a special grand jury will also be convened to hear the evidence and decide on certain actions. Sir, as soon as I can, I will give you more information,” said West as he finally sat back in his seat.

  President O’Bannon sat back as well. It wasn’t often that a President could not be told something. “It’s okay, Kurt. I understand and appreciate what’s going on. If you can’t tell me, you just can’t. I take it CIA agrees?”

  Harris nodded. “Yes sir, it’s best all round as I see it. The one thing we don’t need is someone going around some judicial process. If we’re going to get these bastards, we need to do it right.”

  “I will ask one thing though,” the President said. “It makes it sound like this is some guy I know. Is that the case?” he asked.

  West looked a little uneasy, but finally nodded slightly. “That’s the reason behind all this, sir. You know him very well.”

  The Presidential Palace

  “It is only seventeen miles away from our borders!” Parente nearly screamed. “According to my valued assistant, it can strike my shores from where it is and we can’t do anything about it! Now what do you propose to do?” he asked his assembled generals.

  “Señor Presidente, we have our largest artillery pieces in place nearby, but they do not have the range to hit the ship. I have also been assured that even if we could strike it, the effect would be minimal. There is nothing the army can do,” said the highest ranking general in the room.

  “We can always use aircraft to strike the ship, but as General Aquilla stated, the effect would be negligible. There would also be the problem that our planes would be bombing a target within the boundaries of a neighboring country. Although the Dutch couldn’t really harm us for now, the international repercussions would be great,” said General Hidalgo of the Air Force.

  The Admiral of the Venezuelan Navy, Bakan Oroso sat back in his seat. “The Navy would normally have the same problem, but I have some assets which may do the job, Señor Presidente,” he said calmly.

  Parente eyed the man. “Tell me of your plans, Admiral.”

  “Do not forget we have divers which could sneak into the harbor undetected by the ships,” said Oroso. “We simply need to deliver a diver into the harbor and then have him place a mine against the great ship’s hull. He sets if for a predetermined time and then swims away and is picked up. The mine could go off in five minutes or five days. It simply needs to be set appropriately,” he said smiling.

  Parente smiled at the man. “How soon could you send this diver into the harbor?”

  “As early as tonight, Señor Presidente. I have already placed a team on orders to be ready to move.”

  “There may still be repercussions,” said Aquilla.

  Parente held up his hand, silencing the men. “Not if no one knows who did it. These ships are old. I recall one in the 1980s having an explosion onboard. We simply need to make sure the timer is set so that there is no way to determine who might have done this. After all, America still has enemies around the world,” Parente said with growing confidence. “Do we know how long the ship will be in port?”

  “We do not,” said Aquilla.

  “”Then I suggest we send the diver in and set the timer for three days from now. By then, the ship may even be out to sea. That will make fighting the rising waters even more difficult,” he said. “Give the orders, Admiral.” Placated, Parente turned and left the room. He would need to congratulate Rojas on his insight about the battleships. But now they had a weapon that even a battleship could not deter. The thought made him almost giddy.

  The Compound

  It was fruitless. The prisoners had thought up a number of ways to try and break out of the prison, but every one of them had been doomed to failure. Donado had told them all of the plans and efforts made to keep the mayors exactly where they were. He even informed them of the guards on the towers and an extra one sitting outside the door to make sure no one could get by the one inside. At one point one of the mayors suggested trying to scratch through the mortar holding one of the concrete blocks of the wall in place. But with the guard at the door watching them like a hawk, it would be impossible.

  By nightfall, everyone was exhausted. Even the idea of ambushing the men bringing the meals was thrown out. With the two guards, it would simply be a slaughter. Tonight, everyone ate in silence. When done, the stacked the pots and plates neatly and placed them by the cell door as usual.

  Once again, Patricia Hammond made her way around the room, trying to cheer up her colleagues. She sat down beside Manuel Donado. “You feeling better?” she asked in Spanish.

  Donado smiled and nodded his head. The swelling on his face had subsided and she could finally see his eyes more clearly. One was still very red, but at least he could see. “Why do you always check on me? Don’t you remember I was one of the guards?” he asked.

  Patricia chuckled. “Of course I do. But now you are in here with us. Since I have come to know you, it appears you are a very nice young man,” she said. She could see him blush slightly through all the bruising and reached out to place her hand on one of his cheeks. “Manuel, don’t worry about what has happened. I know we will get out of this. I don’t know when or how, but we’ll get through it. When we do, I’m going to make sure you are taken care of,” she said.

  Donado lifted his eyebrows slightly. “I wish I was so confident. I know my Sergeant and our Presidente. They are not known for their benevolence,” he said. “I am afraid that before this is done, they will certainly kill us all.”

  She grinned. “Hasn’t he heard that it is very difficult to kill Americans? We are like a tough old piece of steak. We don’t go down easy,” she said.

  Donado’s face widened to a grin of his own. “You don’t look so tough,” he chided.

  “Oh, we’re tough and we’re mean. We have teeth that bite and claws that scratch. And if I get a big stick in my hand, you better watch out,” she said, pointing her finger at him.

  Now even Donado had a laugh.

  “Oh, you think I am funny? I also have a leg to kick. Your Sergeant better watch out if I get loose. I know where to kick him where he can really hurt,” she boasted with a smile.
Now Donado was laughing so much he let out a gasp of pain from one of his ribs, but even that couldn’t stop him. The others in the room watched the boy transform into a much livelier and likable person before their eyes. Even those few who understood Spanish were laughing. After a moment everyone calmed down.

  “Maybe someday I will be as tough as you,” he said to Patricia.

  She nodded her head. “You’ll get there. Now just sit back and rest. When the time comes, we’ll all need our strength – to do a little kicking,” she said. She leaned down and kissed him on the forehead. It was amazing. Just that little encouragement had made a big change in the boy. The look on his face was no longer defeat, but a growing confidence that something would happen for the good. The smile was still on his face as he leaned back and placed his head against the wall and closed his eyes.

  Patricia moved back to her own little corner. She was dog tired, but wouldn’t let the others see it. As she sat down, Tim Sweeney leaned over.

  “You’d be a great Den Mother,” he said as he patted her on the arm.

  She chuckled again. “He may be right though. Things don’t really look that good for us,” she said. “I know they’re coming for us, but at the rate it’s going, we might not be able to help much.”

  Sweeney grunted. “I can kick too, you know.” He sat back with a smile on his face and gave her a wink. She lay back and closed her eyes. In her mind, she could see her husband coming to her on the bridge of a great ship.

  Washington, DC

  Deshawn Jackson had worked his way up the party chain to become one of the prime executant assistants with the campaign. He was proud of his work and for what he truly believed was the best thing for his nation and his family. Of course, it had meant 20-hour days and tons of behind the scenes work, but now he was determined to get Congressman Gregory Foster elected to become the next President of the United States. He had even been approached to have a position in the Foster White House.

  It was already after ten in the evening. He had gotten back to his small apartment and had plopped down in front of his television with a beer to let the tension of the day drain off. The news on CNN was good. The day’s electioneering speech was being reported and looked favorable. At the same time they were tearing the President apart for the hostage situation, as usual. A part of him felt sorry for the President. After all, he hadn’t been the one to kidnap the mayors, but he was paying for it none the less. A knock on the door caused him to slump. Will it never end, he thought as he glanced at his watch. He stood and walked to the door and opened it.

  “Mr. Jackson?” asked one of two men standing at the door holding some sort of badge.

  “Yes, I’m Deshawn Jackson.”

  One of the men smiled and lowered the badge. “Mr. Jackson, I’m Agent Kelly of the FBI, and this is Agent Hunt. Have you got a few minutes to talk to us,” he asked.

  “Come on it,” said Jackson ushering the men to his small living room. He turned off the television. “Am I in trouble?”

  Kelly smiled. “No, sir, not that I know of, but you could be a great help.”

  “What can I do?”

  “I need you to promise us that what we are about to talk about will go no further. Please don’t talk about this, especially around the office. Can you do that?” asked Kelly.

  “Is it that important?”

  “Believe me,” said Hunt. “It’s that important. The security of the nation depends on it.”

  That got Jackson’s attention. He nodded. “I promise. Now what do you need?”

  Kelly pulled out a tape recorder and placed it on the table. “Can you identify the voices you hear?” He played a part of the communications recorded from the telephone conversation.

  Jackson’s eyes suddenly widened, and Kelly knew he knew who they were looking at. Jackson got a pained look on his face. After all he had done to achieve his goals; the men he worked for were being investigated by the FBI. He looked at Kelly. “Okay, I guess you know that I know who these two men are. The first is Williamson and the second is Foster. Now can you tell me why these men are under investigation?”

  Kelly could see the conflict in the young man’s eyes. He took a moment to reassure him. “First of all, I need to reassure you that we have gone out to no one regarding this investigation. Before we do anything we will need to make sure of all the facts. That’s one reason why we asked you to keep this under wraps. But the second reason is that if there is something going on that is illegal, we do not want to jeopardize it by letting anyone know before we are ready. Do you see our position?”

  Jackson nodded.

  “Good. Now we need to ask you a few questions. Were you in the office night before last between 8 and 10 pm?” asked Kelly.

  “Yes, I was there until about 11:15. I was there helping Congressman Foster with today’s speech and to run some interference with our public relations people. They have a habit of putting too many things on the Congressman’s plate,” Jackson explained.

  “Okay, who else was there?” asked Kelly.

  “There were several people working late. Williamson was in his office and Foster was back and forth between me, Williamson and Mr. Loring in PR. We also had Josh Becker and Jamie Cavanaugh, our interns running around doing things. But the rest left after 7 to attend a party at Glenda and Hal Shoup’s house over in Alexandria. They are celebrating their first anniversary,” Jackson said.

  “That helps,” said Kelly. “Now do you remember any special phone calls around 8:45?”

  Jackson laughed. “You’ve got to be kidding. Those phones ring off the hook. There may have been fifty calls around that time, between calls from the party to us getting some take out and calls the Congressman received from supporters.”

  That didn’t help. Kelly changed tack a little. “I can imagine, but I’m talking about any calls that seemed to preoccupy these two men,” he asked.

  Jackson thought a moment. “Nothing comes to mind. Do you know what line it came in on?”

  Kelly read off the phone number.

  Jackson shook his head. “That’s not any of the main lines coming into the office. That’s one that only rings in Williamson’s office. It was set up so that private calls from supporters and other politicians could come in and not tie up office lines. Only three people can pick up on that line – Williamson, Foster and Foster’s secretary, Mary Ellen.” He stopped and thought a minute. “You know, that line was in use that night. It lights up on the phones even if we can’t use it. I remember thinking they might be on with some big donor or something that night. I remember Foster practically running from his office into Williamson’s and shutting the door. A few minutes later that light went on. I noticed after a few minutes it went off, then a few minutes later it came on again. When it finally went off, Congressman Foster came out. He looked a little shaken. I just figured they had a slight setback, but Williamson came out smiling like the whole world had changed. I remember he walked up to Foster and told him to cheer up, that everything would work out just fine. Foster said something like, ‘That’s what you say,’ and went in his office. Williamson went in and there were some raised voices, but I couldn’t make out what was being said. I was kind of busy at the time, but Mary Ellen was a little closer. She might have heard something,” he said.

  “Mary Ellen was there? You didn’t mention her before,” Hunt said.

  Jackson chuckled. “Mary Ellen is always there. We kind of take her for granted. Everybody says she and Williamson have something going on together. He’s the one who got her the job. She nearly always leaves after I do,” said Jackson.

  “You mentioned that Foster and Williamson were arguing, do they do that often?” asked Hunt.

  “Well, they weren’t really arguing as far as I could tell, but we could hear them over the rest of the office noise. I guess that’s why I noticed it. They usually don’t make such things public. It’s only the second time I recall hearing their voices raised,” Jackson said.

  “W
hen was the last time?” asked Kelly.

  Jackson thought a minute. “It was about a week ago. They were in Congressman Foster’s office and nearly everyone heard Foster almost scream, ‘I don’t need something like that to get elected.’ A few minutes later Williamson came out all angry and Foster closed his door again. A while later, Williamson went back in, and when he came out, he was smiling. We all thought Williamson had come up with some crazy scheme and Foster shot him down. The rest of the time it’s been all business. Williamson runs the office and does his behind the scenes stuff and Congressman Foster does his schmoozing to keep the funds coming in and appease the voters,” Jackson said.

  “You remember the date of that event?” asked Hunt.

  Jackson shook his head. “Not really. I mean, we’re running a campaign and it keeps us so busy the dates get all blurry. Congressman Foster is in and out all the time and Williamson is with him half the time.”

  “Do you think anyone else might remember the date?” asked Kelly.

  “Maybe Mary Ellen. Like I said, she is there almost all the time and helps keep the Congressman on track.”

  Kelly and Hunt looked at each other. If she was that close to one or both of the men, it might not be a good time to bring her in. “Well, if you think of someone who might help, let us know. We may have more questions, but for now, we have what we need to proceed,” said Kelly.

  “I’d like to ask you something, if I can?” Jackson blurted. His face was now a mask of concern.

  Kelly knew what was coming, but smiled and said, “Go ahead.”

  “Does this mean everything I’ve been working for will come to an end soon? I’ve been working with Congressman Foster for over a year and I like the guy and his politics. Is what you are looking at going to ruin all that?” Jackson asked.

  Kelly reached over and patted his arm. “Look, you know I can’t say what we’re looking for, and you know I don’t really know how this will turn out. But what I will tell you is that it is a serious enough matter for us to look into it and it seriously involves the security of the United States. Quite frankly, we weren’t sure if we would get any cooperation at all tonight. Some political staffers would have just clammed up and made our job much harder. In your case, you realized how serious this might be and helped us out. Our job is to get to the bottom of all this and we will. I know I appreciate what you’ve told us. Just remember that you cannot speak about any of this with anyone. It could ruin a very serious investigation and possibly cost people their lives. I don’t think any of us really want that,” Kelly said as he reached into his pocket and gave Jackson a copy of his card. He wrote something on the back. “Here is my business card and my personal phone number on the back. If you have any questions, or it something happens that you think I should know, please call me.”