Nuclear Surprise
Page 25
"That helps a lot Sir. We will be careful."
Chapter 123
Aboard Coast Guard Cutter Invicta
San Francisco Harbor, California
* * *
THE RADIO crackled to life "Tango Three to Invicta, we are upstream from the bridge. We just got a small hit over a group of boats there. It could be nothing, but it was a definite blip. I rechecked the recording and there was a spike."
"Tell them to go back and look for dark hulled boats" said Matt.
"Invicta to Tango Three. Take another run and rescan. Make dark hulled boats your priority" said the Commander into the microphone.
"Tango Three to Invicta. We will try, but it is really hard for us to see the color of the hull from up here. All we can see is the deck."
"Get us back over there" said Matt to the Commander, "let’s check out those dark hulled boats. We better be right, time is running out."
Chapter 124
Aboard Coast Guard Cutter Invicta
San Francisco Harbor, California
3.55pm
* * *
BOB EVANS spotted the boat first. The hull color was midnight blue, but looked black to anyone except a color consultant. The sails were down and she was motoring toward the Golden Gate Bridge.
"We don’t have time to board every boat and search, just pull alongside" said Matt checking his watch.
He took off his jacket and unconsciously brushed his pancake holster just to make sure the gun it was easy to draw if needed. At least it was a Yarygin he mused.
Natasha was still below decks monitoring the video feeds.
They soon overtook the boat and Matt noted the name.
"Ahoy Surprise" yelled Matt as they pulled alongside.
"Hello there, a beautiful day to be out on the water" said the dark skinned sailor. He was wearing a captain’s cap and spoke with an East Coast accent. He took a swig from a Budweiser bottle.
"Where are you headed?" asked Matt.
"Back to the dock at the yacht club, have had a spot of bother and sprung a leak" announced the man as he rose and pumped the bilge pump handle.
"How long have you been out?"
"I left early this morning, my wife was still in bed" said the man.
Matt noticed the wires running across the deck but figured it was something to do with the bilge pump.
Chapter 125
Aboard Coast Guard Cutter Invicta
San Francisco Harbor, California
3.58pm
* * *
NATASHA HAD a beta test version of the latest Russian facial recognition software running on her notebook computer.
She had grabbed an image of the man from the video feed and the file copy of the web picture she had for Kamal Pashwari. In addition she remembered the picture from the boatyard in Minsk and input this for scanning as well. The program compared points on the face looking for pre-programmed facial characteristics. The program was almost foolproof, and Natasha was hoping the beard would not cause it any grief.
She clicked on the icon for compare, and she saw the disk light flicker then pause while the processor did the calculations based on the algorithm of the programmer.
Natasha waited the longest two minutes of her life, but finally there was a beep and a big green check mark appeared on the screen indicating a positive match. All three pictures were of the same man.
Before Natasha could process all the information in her brain, the Coast Guard cutter shook and there was a tremendous sound of an explosion.
The stinger missile fired by Roy hit the boat just aft of the bridge and did terminal damage. However, she did not sink immediately.
At the top of Natasha’s voice she screamed "Positive id match to Pashwari!"
Chapter 126
Aboard Surprise
San Francisco Harbor, California
3.59pm
* * *
MATT HAD just heard the telltale clicking of the Geiger counter when the explosion hit the boat. He just regained his feet when he faintly heard Natasha yell.
"Positive id match to Pashwari!"
Kamal had to do something quick, so he ran across the cockpit and grabbed for the control box on the end of the wire.
Matt finally realized what the wires were on the deck. He had no time at all to think about what to do.
On pure instinct he snapped the Yarygin out of its holster and he put a slug into the back of the diving Pashwari, who had just picked up the box at the end of the wire.
Kamal dropped the box instantly and it cluttered to the deck.
Pashwari knew that now the bomb was armed, breaking the circuit would cause detonation.
Kamal was injured, but not fatally. The bullet went right through his body without hitting any major organs. His right hand slowly clawed for the wire, but Matt saw his hand moving toward the box again and fired another two shots, both into a one inch circle centered on Kamal Pashwari’s heart.
Kamal had time to kiss the bracelet on his right wrist and wonder whether Geraldine would be waiting for him in Paradise. He died looking at the small cardboard box sitting beside him on the deck.
His time as a terrorist had ended as he faded into oblivion.
Matt silently thanked God for the shooting training from Natasha.
The radio came to life but it was hard to hear over the noise from the helicopter "Tango Two, we have strong contact above a black hulled boat beside the coastguard ship!"
Chapter 127
Long Beach, California
* * *
NOW THAT the stitches from his head wound had been removed, Greg O’Brien had one last task to do in relation to the Pashwari matter. His face was still swollen and bruised.
This was his second flight to California is as many weeks. This time he was paying for his own ticket.
After he landed in L.A., he rented a small Toyota and drove the 15 miles down to Long Beach.
He located the house not far from the coast, and knocked on the door. He thought it better not to telephone first.
A good looking middle aged woman opened the door. She had striking red hair.
Greg flashed his badge "I am Detective O’Brien from Cambridge police in Boston. Are you Mrs. Flynn?"
"Yes, my name is Rebecca Flynn. What happened to your face?"
"I had an accident on duty."
"You look like shit. What can I do for you Detective O’Brien?"
"Could I come in Mrs. Flynn?"
"Of course, come this way."
Rebecca directed Greg to a couch in a small living room. Greg sat down.
"Mrs. Flynn, is your husband at home?"
"Yes said Rebecca" indicating an urn sitting above the fireplace, "but he died two years ago."
"I’m very sorry for your loss Mrs. Flynn."
"He just faded away after we lost our daughter. You have come about Geraldine haven’t you?" asked the woman.
"I am afraid so."
"Did you find her body?"
"Not exactly Mrs. Flynn. But I do have some news."
"I have been dreading this visit for a very long time. I think maybe I need a drink before you tell me." Greg noticed a tear slide down Rebecca’s cheek.
"That would be a great idea, can I have one too?"
"I thought police were not allowed to drink on duty" suggested Rebecca.
"I’m not actually on duty today Mrs. Flynn."
"Oh, I see. Actually I don’t see, but let me get the drinks first. I think we have some scotch somewhere" announced Mrs. Flynn as she walked back to the kitchen.
She came back a couple of minutes later with two doubles on ice, "Sorry no scotch, but Jamiesons Irish whisky will have to do."
"That’s near enough for with me. Hey I’m an O’Brien from Boston. That’s close enough to Irish!" said Greg.
"Detective, I have waited a long time for this conversation. We said our goodbyes to Geraldine many years ago, but it is not the same as knowing precisely what happened to her." Rebe
cca patted at her eyes with a tissue.
"Mrs. Flynn, as I hinted, I am not here in an official capacity. I was one of the investigating officers when you first reported Geraldine missing all those years ago. I have been working on another case recently, and the two cases are interrelated."
"In what way?" asked Rebecca quietly.
"After your missing person report, my partner and I interviewed a man in relation to Geraldine’s disappearance. This man studied at the same school as Geraldine and they sailed a boat together."
"That makes sense, she loved sailing here. She learned as a young girl" explained Rebecca.
"We believed that he was Geraldine’s boyfriend. This man was recently shot and killed by security forces, but I am afraid the whole episode is classified in the interests of public safety."
"Can’t you tell me anything?"
"I am not supposed to, but I also have a daughter. In no way can I imagine what you have been through. But I am sure if I was in your shoes I would want to know what really happened to her. That’s why I came to see you."
"Thanks Detective, please give it to me straight" pleaded Rebecca.
"Ok. The man that was shot was a terrorist and as I said before the whole thing is now classified. However, later when we examined the man’s body, we found that the man was wearing a piece of very unusual jewelry. It was a most unusual custom made bracelet. We had our crime lab take a good look at it. Woven into the gold band were strands of red human hair."
"Oh my God!"
"When we originally located Geraldine’s car in the mall, the lab team took a look at it. They found a few strands of her hair on the seat. I managed to dig up the evidence box from our original investigation and got the lab to do a comparison on the hair in the bracelet and the hair from the car. There was an exact DNA match."
"Of course this does not prove anything at all, but we strongly suspect that this guy murdered Geraldine and kept some of her hair as a souvenir."
"I just thought that you would want to know."
Rebecca could hold back no longer, and a river of tears streamed down her face.
Greg did not have the heart to tell her about the skull they found in the red cardboard box next to Kamal’s body. He had originally intended to share the medical examiner’s report with Rebecca, but finally decided that some things are better off left unsaid.
Greg had read and re-read the contents of the report.
"The skull was in generally poor condition and we were unable to extract DNA to do a full work-up. It has traces of coastal soil, probable from one of the north eastern states and had obviously been buried for a considerable period of time. The skull is that of a young adult female, aged between 18 and 25. I cannot accurately determine the time of death but I would speculate it to be approximately 25 years previously. There were signs of severing of the spinal cord, but the actual cause of death could not be determined."
Chapter 128
White House, Oval Office
Washington D.C.
* * *
PRESIDENT CONNOLLY was sitting behind the huge timber Resolute desk in the Oval Office when Matt and Natasha entered.
"Come on in folks, please shut the door."
Matt and Natasha walked in and took two of the four seats on their side of the desk. As soon as they sat, another door on the opposite side of the office opened and two other people walked in.
Oleg Karpov sat next to his daughter and Bill Simpson sat down next to Matt.
"I am glad you could all make it here today" said President Connolly "I wanted to thank you for the fantastic work you did in finding Pashwari and averting a tragedy, not to mention saving my own life."
"Natasha and Matt please stand."
When they were on their feet, the President took some things from his desk drawer and walked around to the other side of the desk.
"It gives me great pleasure to bestow on you both a small token of thanks on behalf of the American people."
"Natasha Orlov, I hereby award you the Presidential Medal of Freedom, for services to the United States. This is the highest civilian award I can present." The President passed over a small box and shook hands with Natasha.
"Thank you Mister President, I am most honored to accept this."
Then President Connolly walked over to Matt.
"Matthew Peterson, I award you the highest award possible within the CIA. The Distinguished Intelligence Cross is awarded for acts of extraordinary heroism involving the acceptance of existing dangers with conspicuous fortitude and exemplary courage."
The President extended his hand and they shook firmly as the President passed over the small box containing the award.
"Bill and Oleg, I wanted also to thank you for your confidence in these two fine young officers. With young people such as these in the world, I am confident that our generation will leave our destiny in safe hands for the future."
It was clear that the meeting was over when the President stood and extended his hand to all.
As they walked down the corridor leaving the Oval Office, Matt offered "Natasha, I am buying, where would you like to go to celebrate?"
When they were clear of recording devices, Natasha pulled Matt close, put his arms around his neck and whispered into his ear "I have a better idea. How about we go back to your place?"
Acknowledgements
* * *
Firstly I want to thank my friend Brian (sorry I can’t mention his second name here!) who gave me the idea for this story. He was on-board a U.S. warship in the Gulf of Arabia when it shot down a light aircraft.
I must also thank my mom and dad (posthumously) for giving me an interest in firearms from an early age. They also introduced me to gambling, and we had a lot of fun together in casinos!
Tom Cullen was my first martial arts instructor and has been an inspiration to me from our first meeting over thirty five years ago. He taught me nothing worthwhile is ever easy.
Nabil, thanks for the kidnapping idea. It happened to him in real life, but in Beirut not Riyadh.
I borrowed the names of some friends, hope you like seeing your namesake in print!
Jenny, my partner, is a police officer and has been a help with police procedures and someone I can generally chew-over my plot with. Natasha’s chest burns from the hot bullet casing really did happen to Jenny at the firing range.
Debbie Brown was a willing editor of my draft manuscript, and helping me tidy up some of my writing.
Lastly, I want to thank Qantas Airlines. As well as being a wonderful airline, (in fact I have flown on most and I rate them Number 1), the Qantas Clubs around the world are great places to sit, grab a drink, plug in a laptop and work on a book! Most of this book was written in them.
Thanks to all, any errors are my own.
Of course this is a work of fiction, and I have taken liberties to make the plot flow.
However, the Bali bombings, the jailing of Schapelle Corby and the London bombings are real life events, although I had to modify these slightly to fit into my story.
I hope you enjoy my first book! I am working on a sequel right now.
About The Author
* * *
Rob Carnell was educated at Trinity Grammar School in Sydney, Australia. He later attended the University of New South Wales and University of Technology Sydney where he studied Engineering and Business Management. He works as a senior manager in the IT industry.
He has been a member of the Australian Benchrest Shooting Team, and is a former World Championship silver medalist. He holds black belts in both traditional karate as well as kung-fu and was a former full-time martial arts instructor. For a time he worked in security and worked back stage security for bands like AC/DC and Police.
He holds a private pilot license, and is a keen sailor. Rob has 4 children and lives in Sydney Australia with his partner Jenny who is a police officer.
www.robcarnell.com.au
rob@robcarnell.com.au
Table of Co
ntents
Cast Of Characters
Part 1 - Beginnings
Chapter 1 Pashwari Palace Saudi Arabia October 11, 3.50am
Chapter 2 Guided Missile Cruiser USS Port Royal Gulf of Arabia October 11, 5am
Chapter 3 White House Mansion October 11, 02: 47am
Part 2 - The Making of a Man
Chapter 4 The Ivy Men’s Club London, England 29 years ago
Chapter 5 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, Massachusetts 26 Years Ago
Chapter 6 Boston Mosque Boston, Massachusetts 26 Years Ago
Chapter 7 Charles River Boston, Massachusetts 25 Years Ago
Chapter 8 Boston Muslim Brotherhood Cambridge, Massachusetts 25 Years Ago
Chapter 9 Boston Central Post Office Boston, Massachusetts 25 Years Ago
Chapter 10 Smiling Bean Coffee Shop Boston, Massachusetts 25 Years Ago
Chapter 11 Boston Muslim Brotherhood Cambridge, Massachusetts 24 Years Ago
Chapter 12 Ocean View Motel Wells, Maine 24 Years Ago
Chapter 13 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, Massachusetts 24 Years Ago
Chapter 14 Boston Muslim Brotherhood Cambridge, Massachusetts 24 Years Ago