Robert Ludlum - The Parcifal Mosaic.txt

by The Parcifal Mosaic [lit]

  I just know it works. He's free to associate with a degree of simulated

  confidence-in a way, a replica of his former self."

  "Then his day begins? His ... simulated day?"

  "Exactly. Read the monitors from right to left. His day starts with

  breakfast in the garden. He's brought intelligence reports and newspapers

  corresponding to the dates of whatever issue is being probed. Then in the

  next screen you see him walking out of his Iome~ and down his steps with an

  aide who's talking to him, refining the options of the problem, building up

  the case, whatever it is. Everything, by the way, is taken from his logs;

  that remains constant throughout 'the day.'" Berquist paused, and gestured

  at the third monitor from the right "There you see him in his limousine,

  the aide still talking, bringing his focus back. He's driven around for a

  while, then gradually brought in sight of places that are familiar to him,

  the Jefferson Memorial, the monument, certain streets, past the South

  Portico-the sequence is irrelevant. 11

  "But theyre not whole," insisted Michael. "TheYre fragmentsl"

  "He doesn7t see that; he sees only the impressions. But even if he did see

  that they are fragments, as you call them, or miniatures of the existing

  places, the doctors tell me his mind would reject that and accept the

  reality of the impressions. just as he refused to accept his own

  deterioration, and kept pressing for wider and wider responsibilities,

  until

  440 Roi3ERT LuDLum

  he simply reached out and took them.... Watch the fourth screen. He's

  getting out at the State Department, going inside, and telling his aide

  something; it will be studied. In the fifth, you can see him walking into

  his office-the same in every respect as his own on the eighth floor-and

  immediately scanning the cables and reading the day's appointments, again

  identical with those that were there at the time. The sixth shows him taking

  a series of phone calls, the same calls he bad taken before. Often big

  responses are meaningless, a part of him rejecting a voice, or a lack of

  authentic repartee, but other times what we learn is mind-blowing. . . .

  He's been here nearly six weeks, and there are times when we think we've

  only scratched the surface. We're only beginning to learn the extent of his

  massive excesses."

  "You mean the things he's done?" asked Havelock, recoiling from the

  frightening turn of events.

  Berquist looked at Michael in the glow of the console and the flickering

  light emanating from the screens across the room. "Yes, Mr. Havelock,

  tbe-2things~-he's done. If ever a man in the history of representative

  government exceeded the authority of his office, Anthony Matthias is that

  man. There were no limits to what he promised-what be guaranteed-in the

  name of the United States government. Take today. A policy was set and in

  the process of being implemented, but it did not suit the Secretary of

  State at this particular moment of irrationality, so he altered it. . . .

  Watch the seventh screen, the one marked Current. Listen. Hes at his desk,

  and in his mind Vs back about flve months, when a bipartisan decision bad

  been made to close an embassy in a new African country slaughtering its

  citizens with mass bangings and death squads, revolting the civilized

  world. The aide is explaining."

  Mr. Secretary, the Pre&kfent and the Joint Chiefs, as well as the Senate,

  have gone on record as opposing any further contact at this time ...

  Then uw won't tell them, will we? Antediluvian reactions cannot be a

  keystone of a coherent foreign policy. I shall make contact myself and

  present a cohesive and judicious plan. Arms and well-sweetened butter are

  international lubric4nts, and we shall provid_- them.

  Michael was stunned. "He said that? He did thatr

  THE PARsiFAL MosAic441

  "He~s reliving It now," replied Berquist. "In a few minutes he'll place a

  call to the mission in Geneva, and another unbelievable commitment will be

  made. . . . This, however, is only a minor example, one theyre working on

  this morning. Actually, as outrageous as it is, ifs insignificant compared

  with so many others. So many-so dangerous-so incredible."

  "Dangerous?'

  "One voice overriding all others, entering unthinkable negotiations,

  processing agreements contrary to everything this nation supposedly stands

  for-agreements that would make an outraged Congress impeach me for even

  considering. But even that fact-and it is a fact-is insignificant. We can't

  let the world know what hes clone. We'd be humiliated, a giant on its

  knees, begging forgiveness, and if it was not forthoomIng there would be

  guns and bombs. You see, he's put it all in writing."

  "Could he do that?"

  "Not constitutionally, no. But he was the superstar. The uncrowned king of

  the republic had spoken, a god had given his word. Who questions kings or

  gods? The mere existence of such documents is the most fertile grounds on

  earth for international extortion. If we can't quietly invalidate those

  negotiations-cliplomatically void them by anticipated congressional

  rejection-they tviU be exposed. If they are, every treaty, every agreement

  we've concluded during the past decade-all the sensitive alliances we're

  currently negotiating everywhere in the world-will. be called into

  question. This country's foreign policy will collapse; we'd never be

  trusted again. And when a nation such as ours has no foreign policy, Mr.

  Havelock, it has war."

  Michael leaned over the console, staring at the Current screen, and brought

  his hand to his forehead; he felt the beads of perspiration. "He's gone

  this farF'

  "Beyond. Remember, he's been Secretary of State for nearly six years, and

  before he took office his influence was significant perhaps too much so, in

  the two previous administrations. He was nothing short of an

  ambassador-plenipotentiary for both, roaming the globe, cementing his power

  bases."

  "But they were for good, not thisl"

  "They were, and no one knew it better than I did. I'm the

  442 RoBERT LuDLum

  one who convinced him that he should chuck the consulting business and take

  over. I said the world needed his imprimatur, the time was right. You see,

  I appealed to his ego; all great men have outrageous egos. De Gaulle was

  right: the man of destiny knows it before anybody else. What he doesn't know

  is the limit of his capabilities. God knows Matthias didn't."

  "You said it a few minutes ago, Mr. President. We made him a god. We asked

  too much of him." Havelock shook his head slowly, overwhelmed.

  "Just hold it there," answered Berquist, his voice cold, his eyes

  penetrating in the incandescent reflections of light. "I said it by way of

  an oversimplified explanation. No one makes a man a god unless that man

  wants to be one._ And, Christ-on-a-raft, Matthias has been looking for that

  divine appointment all his lifel He's been tasting the holy water for

  years-in his mind, bathing in it.... You know what someone called him the

  other day? A hustling Socrates on the Potomac, and that's exac
tly what he

  was. A hustler, Mr. Havelock. A grade-A, high-IQ, brilliant opportunist, A

  man with extraordinarily persuasive words, capable of first-rate global

  diplomacy-the best we could field-as long as he was the eye of the

  worldwide hurricane. He could be magnificent and, as I also said, no one

  knew it better than I did and I used him. But for all of that, he was a

  hustler. He never stopped pushing the omniscient Anthony Matthias."

  "And knowing this," said Michael, refusing to permit Berquises stare to

  cower him, "you still used him. You pushed him as much as he pushed

  himself. You appealed to a 'man of destiny,' wasn't that it?"

  The President lowered his eyes to the dials on the console. "Yes," he said

  softly. "Until he blew apart. Because I was watching a performance, not the

  man, and I was blinded. I didnI see what was really happening."

  "Jesusf" exclaimed Havelock his whisper a cry. "It's all so hard to

  believel"

  "On that assumption," interrupted Berquist, regaining his composure, "I've

  had several tapes prepared for you. They're reenactments of aetual

  conversations that took place during his final months in office. The

  psychiatrists tell me they're valid, and the papers we've unearthed bear

  them out. Put on

  THE PARsrrAL Mosmc443

  the earphones and ni press the appropriate buttons. The images will appear

  on the last monitor on the right."

  What took place on that screen during the next twelve minutes was a

  portrait of a man Havelock did not know. The tapes showed Matthias at

  emotional extremes as he was psy~ chologically stimulated by the combined

  effects of the cbemicals and the visual trappings, and prodded by aides

  using his 9:wn words. He was screaming one moment, weeping the iRext,

  cajoling a diplomat over the phone with charm and flatfery-and brilliant

  humility-then condemning the man as a fool and a moron once the

  conversation was finished. Above all were the lies, where once there had

  been essential truth. The telephone was his instrument; his resonant voice

  with its European cadence, the organ.

  Ms first," said Berquist, angrily stabbing a button, "is his response to

  me when I bad just told him I wanted a reassessment of foreign aid in San

  Miguel."

  Your policy is firm, Mr. President, a clear call for decency and human

  rights. I applaud you, sir. Good-bye. . . . Idiod Imbecilef One does not

  have to endorse a brother, one must merebj accept geopolitical realitiesl

  Get me General Sandoza on the line. Set up a very private appointment with

  his ambassador. The colonels will understand we back theml

  "This little number followed a joint House and Senate resolution, which I

  thoroughly endorsed, to withhold diplomatic recognition . . ."

  You understand, Mr. Prime Minister, that our existing ac6cords in your part

  of the world prohibit what you suggest, but you should know that I am in

  agreement with you. Tm meeting with the President ... no, no, I assure you

  he will have an open mind ... and I have already convinced the chairman of

  the Senate Foreign Relatiow Committee. A treaty between our two countries

  is desirable progress, and should it be in contradistinction to prior

  agreements . - -well, en4ghtened self-interest was the essence of BismarcWs

  reign.

  "I canI believe this," said Havelock, mesmerized.

  'Neither did 1, but it's true." The President pushed a third button. "Were

  now in the Persian Gulf . . ."

  You are, of course, speaking unofliolally, not as your countrVs Minister of

  Finance but as a friend, and what you are

  4"ROBERT Lur)Lum

  seeking are additional guarantees of eight hundred and fift million for your

  current fiscal year, and one billion two hundred million for the next. . .

  . Contrary to what you may believe, my good friend, they are entirely

  plausible figures. I say this confidentially, but our territorial strategies

  are not what they appear. I shall prepare, again on a confidential basis, a

  memorandum of intent.

  "Now we~re In the Balkans, a Soviet satellite, loyal to Mos

  cow, and at our throats.... Insanityl" - I

  Mr. Premier, the restrictions on arms sales to your nation, it they cannot

  be lifted outright, will be overlooked. I find Vecific and considerable

  advantages in our cooperating with you. "Equipment` can and will be

  funneled through certain North African regimes considered to be in our

  adversa?V& camp but with whom -rve met-shall we say ex- et non-offl-

  cio-recently and frequently. Confidentially, a new geopolitical axis is

  being formed ...

  "Being formedl" exploded Berquist. "Suicidel Here's a coup in the Yemens.

  Instability on course, wholesale bloodshed guaranteedl"

  The emerging of a great new independent nation, Sirach Bal Shazar, though

  slow to gain the recognition you deserve, will have the quiet support of

  this administration We recognize the necessity of dealing firmly and

  realW*xlly with internal subversion. You may be assured that the funds you

  ask for will be allocated. Three hundred million once tran&terred will

  indicate to the legislative branch of our govemment the faith we place in

  you.

  "Finally," said the President, touching a last button, his whisper

  strained, his lined face looking exhausted, "the new madman of Africa."

  To speak frankly and in the utmost confidence, Major General Halafi, we

  approve of your proposed incursion north into the Straits. Our so-called

  allies them have been weak and in4ectual, but, naturally, our

  disassociation must, because of the current treaties, be gradual. The

  educating process is always difficult, the reeducating of the entrenched

  unfortunately a maddening chess game, fortunately played by those of us who

  understand. You shaU have your weapons. Salaam, my warrior Men&

  What Michael had watched and listened to was paralyz- THE PARsiFAL MosAic445

  Ing. Alliances not In the Interests of the United States had been tacitly

  formed or half formed, and treaties proposed or negotiated that were in

  violation of existing treaties; guarantees of billions had been made that

  Congress would never tolerate and the American taxpayer would never accept;

  mifitary obligations had been assumed that were immoral in concept, crossing

  the bounds of national honor, and irration-

  * eIt was a portrait of a brilliant mind that had ftrYgmPZritvse in

  a profusion of global commitments, each a lethal missile.

  Michael slowly recovered from his state of shock. Suddenly the gap came

  into focus; it had to be filled, explained. Havelock took off the earphones

  and turned to the President. "Costa Brava," he whispered harshly. "Why? Why

  'beyond salvage"?"

  "I was part of the first, but I did not call for the second. As near as we

  can determine, it was not officially sanctioned."

  "Ambiguity?"

  "Yes. We don't know who he is. However, I should tell you, I personally

  confirmed the salvage order later."

  "WhyP"

  "Because I accepted one aspect of the oath you signed when you entered the

  service of your government."

  "Which wasP"
/>   "To lay down your life for your country, should your country need it

  desperately enough to ask for it. Any of us would, you know that as well as

  I do. Nor do I have to remind you that untold thousands have done so even

  when the needs were questionable."

  "Meaning the need for my life-my death-was not questionable?"

  "When I gave the order, no, it was not."

  Michael held his breath. "And the Czechoslovakian woman? jenna Karas?"

  "Her death was never sought."

  'It UV81"

  "Not by us."

  "Ambiguity?"

  "Apparently."

  "And you don!t know ... Oh, my God. But my execution was sanctioned. By

  you."

  446 ROBERT LUDLUM

  The President nodded, his Nordic face less hard than before, his eyes still

  level, still steady, but no longer a hunter~s eyes.

  'May the condemned man ask why?"

  "Come with me," said Berquist, rising from the console In the dim,

  flickering light. "Ifs time for the last phase of your education, Mr.

  Havelock. I hope to God you~re ready for it."

  They left the monitor room and entered what appeared to be a short, white

  corridor, guarded by a huge master seir-' geant whose face and display of

  ribbons conveyed many tours and many battles. He cracked to attention the

  instant he saw the President; his commander in chief nodded and proceeded

  toward a wide black door at the end of the enclosure. However, it was not

  a door, Michael realized as he drew nearer behind Berquist. It was a vault,

  its wheel in the center, a small hand-sensor plate to the right of the

  frame. The President pressed his right palm against it, a tiny row of

  colored lights raced back and forth above the plate, settling on green and

  white. He then reached over with his left hand and gripped the wheel; the

  lights were tripped again, a combination of three greens this time. .

  rm sure you know more about these devices than I do," said Berquist, "so

  III only add that it can be released solely by myself . . . and one other

  person in the event of my dmth.-

  The significance was obvious and required no comment. The President swung

  the heavy vault back, reached up and pressed an unseen plate on the inner

  frame; somewhere crossbeam. trips were deactivated. Once again he nodded at

  the soldier, gesturing for Havelock to enter. They stepped inside as the