“Macy, did you get the names of the people working with the Controller?”
“No Sir, but there is a list of names and phone numbers of Nevsky’s thugs who apparently were following Speaker Stockman and took pictures proving that he practices the Muslim faith.” She relayed the names and numbers to him.
There was a moment of silence on Macy’s end. Then she spoke again.
“Gerry there was a hand-written notation at the bottom of this particular page. It states that all of the weapons for the attack are situated in a mosque in Washington, DC. It doesn’t say which one. It also states that a nuclear bomb is in place, but doesn’t say if it’s in the same mosque.”
“”Oh my God!” Stewart exclaimed. “Call me if you uncover any other actionable material. I especially need locations. Where are you headed now?”
“I’m going to Washington DC. The Director provided a safe house for undercover Agents in Washington. I’ll work there and be at your disposal. Also I need to talk to the Director. What is his condition?”
“He’s much better. Senator Roberts and I are flying there now. I’ll give the Director this information and tell him that you need to talk to him.”
“Gerry, are you aware that there’s and FBI Informant working Capital Hill? The Director has not divulged to me who she is or who she’s embedded with, with but he did indicate during our last conversation that she’s relaying critical information to him.”
“I’ll ask him about her when we talk,” Stewart replied.
“I did call Russ Brennan and gave him the information about Nevsky. He’s watching the house for Nevsky’s people to return. I left them a note indicating that Nevsky took me to his vacation retreat. I don’t know whether they’ll believe it or not. If not Russ can handle them. We can’t allow the news of Nevsky’s death to reach The Controller.”
“Good work Macy,” Stewart replied. “Stay in touch.”
He hung up the phone and turned to Michael Roberts.
Chapter 62
I saw the look of astonishment on Agent Stewart’s face as he talked on the phone. He hung up and sat silent for a moment.
“Okay Michael,” he said. “Now we have some hard information to work with.” He repeated to me the information that the undercover Agent conveyed to him.
“Gerry, it’s apparent to me that they plan to bomb the President’s State of the Union Message. Since they used the word “Bombs”, that indicates that there are multiple targets. We could call the Secret Service and report this, but we don’t know who to trust, and we have no idea what the other targets are. We have one day to uncover the details of the conspiracy. If we can’t do that in twenty-four hours, we’ll have to take our chances and notify the Secret Service.”
“I agree,” Stewart replied. “Michael, I’ll discuss this with the Director and will focus my efforts on locating the mosque where the bombs are located. If we secure the bombs, we can prevent the attack.”
“Gerry, I’ll work on confronting Speaker Stockman. If I can get to him alone, I’ll not be bound by any rules.”
I made notes of the information Macy relayed to Stewart.
“Fasten your seat belts, we’re on our final decent to Washington,” Jim Stancil announced.
We exited the plane and Jim Stancil met us on the tarmac. “Guys, I going straight over to see my brother. He told me to make myself available to you until this mess is cleared up. You have my cell number. Call me if I can be of further assistance. Your automobiles are over there.”
There were two vehicles parked beside the hanger. One was a black Escalade and the other was a white Lexus SUV. Steward took the Escalade and I took the Lexus. I loaded my suitcase, and stuck the pistol in the small of my back. My jacket covered it. I placed the notes from Macy’s phone call on the passengers seat.
“Okay, let’s keep in touch,” Stewart said. “Things are going to happen fast. Good luck.”
Standing beside my vehicle, I watched him drive away. I opened the door of the Lexus, slid behind the wheel and reviewed the notes again.
I punched in the Speaker’s condo address into the navigation system. I figured the best place to start was to drive to the address and stake it out. The only way I could get him alone was to intercept him at the condo.
I used the navigation system to locate the nearest motel on route to the condo. Capital Hill Hotel and the Hyatt Regency were less than five miles away. I had plenty of cash that I had taken from the safe on the island, so I decided on the Hyatt Regency.
The young Nigerian girl at the desk looked at me suspiciously when I insisted on paying for three nights in cash, but she smiled when I tipped her fifty dollars. My appearance did not fit the standard clients of that establishment. At four hundred dollars a night for a Club Room, most clients were lobbyist or high rollers.
Before unpacking and settling in, I ordered room service from the Article One American Grill. I ordered the grilled swordfish with steamed fresh veggies, garlic mashed potatoes, and a large pot of coffee.
I unpacked, took a hot shower and dressed in fresh clothes. I was careful not to alter the makeup on my disguise. The food arrived just as I finished dressing. I didn’t realize how hungry I was until I began eating. When I finished the delicious meal and a couple cups of coffee, I took another few minutes to study the information Macy provided. Then it was time to go. I stuck the pistol in the small of my back, and put on a jacket.
Following the directions from the navigation system, I arrived at the Condo building, parked across the way, and watched the front door. I was playing everything by ear.
My cell phone vibrated, interrupted my concentration. The caller ID showed that it was Agent Stewart.
“Hello Gerry.”
“Listen Michael, I came directly to the hospital from the airport. Director Stancil just gave me some critical information. Where are you?”
“I’m parked outside the Speakers condo.”
“Director Stancil has long suspected that the Speaker Stockman may be involved in political corruption. He opened a top-secret investigation on the man. It was determined that Stockman was seeing a high-end escort. After being threatened with exposure and jail time, she agreed to become an informant. A highly paid one, I must add. She hasn’t been able to prove any type of corruption, nor has she seen anything about the takeover, but she has provided the Director with a couple of things. Stockman installed a code-activated padlock on the front door of his condo. It’s condo fourteen C on the third level. He apparently didn’t trust the building management. The informant provided the code to the lock, 10147. In addition, she recently observed him opening the wall safe in his study and noted the combination. Left fourteen, right three turns to forty-six, left one turn to twenty-seven. If you can get into the condo there may be essential information in the safe. The wall safe is behind a picture in the study.”
I made note of the numbers. “Thanks, I’ll figure out a way.”
Finally I decided to attempt to fake my way into the building.
Just as I was approaching the entrance, a green van pulled up and parked in a reserved parking spot. Painted on the side of the van was Capital Cleaning Services. A Spanish man dressed in green coveralls got out. The idea hit me. That’s the way to get in.
I confronted him. “Excuse me please. May I ask you some questions? I’ll make it worth your while.”
The guy gave me a strange look, but replied, “What do you want?”
“You may find this a strange request, but I own a cleaning service and I need information.” I pulled a fifty out of my wallet. “We can’t talk here, the guard inside will think it’s strange. If you meet me one block over and answer a few questions I’ll add a hundred to this fifty. It won’t take ten minutes.”
“You’re shitting me,” he said, and laughed.
I handed him the fifty, “I’ll make it another hundred and a half if you agree.”
“Hell I hate this job anyway. I don’t care if you try to steal this clien
t from my boss. He’s an asshole. I’ll give you ten minutes.”
I breathed a sigh of relief that he made that assumption.
“Jump in and we’ll go around the block. I don’t think Gus has seen me. He’s asleep most of the time anyway.”
I got in the passenger seat and he drove around the block. He parked in the back of a McDonald’s lot. The parking lot was virtually empty.
“Money up front,” he said, and grinned.
I pulled out the $150 out of my wallet and handed it to him.
“Fire away,” he said.
“What’s the guard’s name? And tell me a little about him.”
“His name is Gus. All I know is that he’s a big Redskins fan. He lives and dies with that shitty team.”
“How much does your company charge for the services provided for this building?”
“We only clean the hallways, bathrooms on the first and forth levels, and the lobby. They pay directly to Capital Cleaning and I don’t know how much they charge. I get paid a measly fourteen dollars an hour.”
“What’s your name?”
“Okay pal, your ten minutes are up. Get out of my van.”
I reached behind my back and pulled out the pistol. “Listen I don’t want to hurt you, so shut up and answer my questions.”
His eyes widened, “Easy pal, fourteen dollars and hour is not worth getting shot over. My name is Bernie.”
“What’s your routine in the building, Bernie?”
“The maintenance closet is to the right of the elevator behind the reception desk. I get my cleaning cart there. It contains all I need to do my job. I start on the top level and work my way down.”
“Is it unlocked?”
“No sir.” He reached into his pocket and handed me a key. His hand was trembling. “This unlocks it.”
“What’s your boss’s name?”
“Jack Scott.”
“Okay Bernie, here’s what we’re going to do. First we’re going to the back of the van and get inside.”
“Just don’t shoot me dude,” Bernie said. “I’ll do whatever you want.”
I grabbed the keys from the ignition, got out of the van and walked to the driver’s side. Bernie got out, and we walked to the back of the van. I stuck the pistol in his ribs as we proceeded. I opened the back door of the van. “Get in Bernie.” I flowed him inside and closed the back door. “Take off the coveralls,” I demanded. He complied, and was wearing shorts and a T-shirt underneath.
“What supplies do you have back here Bernie?”
“Nothing much, a tool box, towels and cleaning cloths.”
I spotted the toolbox on the side, and plastic bags full of towels and cloths. “Get the tool box and open it.” He complied.
I looked through the items, found a roll of duct tape, and grabbed it. “Bernie, I’m going to use this tape to restrain you. If you cooperate with me, no harm will come to you and you can keep the two hundred dollars.” He nodded.
“Tape your feet together,” I ordered, handing him the duct tape. He wrapped the tape around his ankles. “Put your hands behind your back and roll on your stomach,” I said, taking the duct tape from him. His hands were trembling more severely as I taped them together. I strapped tape around his neck and connected it to his wrist.
“What the hell, dude?” he croaked.
I wrapped tape around his head and around his mouth. “Don’t worry Bernie when I finish, I’ll release you, but I want to warn you. If you report this, I’ll hunt you down, skin you alive and slowly execute you. Then I’ll torture and slaughter your love ones. Do you understand?” He nodded. “I’ll take that as a yes.”
I put on the coveralls, got out of the back of the van, and locked the back door. I dropped the pistol into the large back pocket of the coveralls, and put the keys in the front pocket. Getting into the drivers seat, I cranked the van and proceeded to the front of the building. I parked in the reserved space where I had first approached Bernie.
I got out and advanced to the lobby.
“You must be Gus,” I said, as I approached the reception desk.
“Who in the hell are you?” was the gruff reply.
“Bernie’s sick and Jack sent me to fill in.”
He looked at me for a moment. “Okay, go ahead.”
I walked to the back where Bernie told me the cleaning supplies were located, unlocked the door and removed the cleaning cart. Beside the cart was a Vapamore MR-1000 Commercial Steam Cleaning System. I had no idea whether Bernie did the floors first or the bathrooms. I closed the door and pushed the cleaning cart to the elevator. I gazed toward the reception desk and Gus was nodding off.
I got on the elevator and pushed three. When I exited the elevator on the third level, a well-dressed Asian guy was standing there. He was carrying what looked to be a lunch bag, but the bag glowed faintly and appeared to be made of a weird fabric. He stared into my eyes as we passed. I was startled, but the door closed and he was gone.
I shook it off and went directly to condo fourteen C, and knocked on the door. I had no way of knowing if Speaker Stockman was here or not. After knocking three times, I decided to enter.
The hallway was empty as I punched in the code for the door lock. There was a click, and I pushed open the door. I pulled in the cleaning cart and closed the door. My objective was to open the safe and see if there was relevant information inside.
Walking through the living area, I approached the study. A large picture was hanging the right wall across from the desk. I removed the picture, and revealed the wall safe. Checking my notes, I put in the combination and opened the safe.
There were only three items in the safe. The first item was a metal box. I took it out and looked inside. Eight thick packets of hundred dollars bills were on top. Beneath that was a ledger book. It had a series of account numbers from banks in the Cayman Islands, Switzerland, Mexico and others.
The second item was a smaller metal box. It was filled with diamonds. The Controller had his bases covered with the emergency cash and diamonds.
The last item in the safe was an accordion folder. I opened it and removed several files. The first one was marked Final Plans.
I opened the file and began reading.
The targets are as follows:
1. CIA Headquarters, The Center is located at 1000 Colonial Farm Road, Mclean Virginia.
2. FBI Headquarters at 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C.
3. Department of Homeland Security at 245 Murray Drive SW #14 Washington, DC.
4. National Security Agency at 9800 Savage Rd, Fort Meade, MD.
5. The Van bomb is reserved for the Pentagon at the Intersection of Army Navy Dr. & Fern St., Arlington, VA.
I was breathless as I read the next page…..
Abus Salaan Azad will be assigned the CIA Headquarters. He is nineteen years old and a soccer player. He is fast and can get to the entrance of the building quickly. This target will be heavily guarded.
Dahi Fawzi Dajani will be the martyr for the FBI Headquarters. Labib Yafi Laham will be assigned to the Homeland Security Headquarters. Papak Luay Mian will handle The National Security Agency. Abdul Moham Islick is the most mature and will be the best agent to drive the van and destroy the Pentagon. Aabish and The Chosen One will be honored to destroy the Government of the United States. We will reserve Gadi Nabeel Javid as the Alternate in the event anyone has an unforeseen problem and cannot complete the task assigned.
The most critical attack of all will be handled by Aabish Lini Malik, the only female of the group. Her association with the young Secret Service Agent Josh Hammond will allow her access to the Capital Building. Aalim Mohammad Alam will be nearby to remotely detonate in the event she freezes.
I was so engrossed with the documents that I hardly noticed the loud noise coming from the hall. When it got louder, I stopped reading, went to the front door and looked through the peephole. I wondered if Stockman was returning to the Condo.
Across the hall
, a young raven-haired woman was standing in the doorway of a condo wearing a red velvet robe. The robe was standing open and her sweaty, thin, naked body was in plan view. She was yelling at an older grey haired man in a blue silk suit.
“Just go now, I’ll pack and be out by morning,” she screamed. He stood silently for a moment, and then just walked slowly to the elevator. She slammed the door.
I let out a sigh of relief and went back to the study.
The next document was even more shocking. It was titled… “Future Leaders of the United States of America.” My Partners was written in pen beneath that title. The list was astonishing.
Major General Issac Stearns, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Henry L. Dickerson, President of the AFL-CIO. He controls 12.5 million workers.
William P. Lister, National Security Advisor to the President. He will unexpectedly become ill and not attend the State of the Union address thereby surviving the blast.
Hector W. Lopez, President of The National Council of La Raza.
Percy B. Hinson, President of the Fraternal Order of Police.
Jackson Forwith, National President of the New Black Panther Party.
Victor Q. Brent, Agent in Charge of the Regional FBI offices in Washington, DC.
Bently V. Ackerson, Vice President of the National Chamber of Commerce.
Abraham T. Shipley, Director of Intelligence of the CIA.
Donald R. Brown, Governor of the State of California.
Below that the a note was scribbled…Final meeting….at 3451 South Windsor Avenue, Washington, DC, January 18th at 8 pm. Maria and Alexander Debue and will also be in attendance.
It was apparent that this list of powerful officials would be meeting at the date and time listed.
I sat down at the desk for a moment and attempted to calm myself. The information was impossible to believe. The web of conspirators was so complex that reporting this earth-shattering information was impossible.
Lost in the Maze Page 33