Eddie, Hanley asked, can you have your men ready earlier?
Sure, Seng said, the first man aboard does most of the work. Once he sprays the paralytic agent into the air duct and the bad guys go to sleep, the rest is just mopping up and securing the ship.
Stone had walked back to his chair. He was studying a radio frequency graph that showed signal strengths on the various bands. Were picking up something down low, he said.
See if you can tune it in, Hanley ordered.
Stone fiddled with a dial then pushed a button on the console to boost the receiving strength. Then he flicked on the speaker.
Portland, Salem, Bend, a voice said, okay to transmit.
ON THE AKBAR , the prisoner had managed to free his hands again and his legs. Listening at the door of his cabin hed heard nothing, so hed cracked the door and peered out. There was no one in the hall. Hed slowly searched the ship from stem to stern and found it empty.
Then he had tugged off his latex mask.
Hed made his way to the pilothouse and had reached for the radio.
Portland, Salem, Bend, he repeated, okay to transmit.
ON THE OREGON , Hanley reached for the microphone to answer. This is Oregon, identify.
Six, eleven, fifty-nine.
Murph, Hanley asked, what are you doing on the radio?
THAT WAS A bold plan, Adams said as he flew the helicopter through the black sky, using a double for the emir of Qatar.
Weve known Al-Khalifa was planning a move on the emir for some time, Cabrillo said, and the emir went along with our little operation. He wants Al-Khalifa out of the picture as much as we do.
You eaten lately? Adams asked. I brought some sandwiches and cookies plus some milk. Theyre in a bag on the rear seat.
Cabrillo nodded and reached back onto the seat next to Ackerman. He opened a padded cooler bag and removed a sandwich. Do you have any coffee?
A pilot without coffee? Adams said lightly. Thats like a fisherman without worms. Theres a thermos on the floor back there. Its my special Italian roast blend.
Cabrillo retrieved the thermos and poured a cup. He took a couple sips then placed the cup on the floor by his feet and took a bite of the sandwich.
So it was planned all along to have the fake emir kidnapped? Adams asked.
Nope, Cabrillo said, we figured we could grab Al-Khalifa before he made his move. The one bright spot is that were certain Al-Khalifa has no plans to kill the emirhe just wants him to abdicate the throne in favor of the Al-Khalifa clan. Our man should be as safe as a cow at a vegetarians conference as long as hes not found out as a fake.
Cabrillo ate another third of the sandwich.
Sir, Adams said, can I ask you something?
Sure, Cabrillo said, taking the last bite of sandwich and reaching for the coffee.
What the hell were you doing in Greenland, and who exactly is that guy thats near death in the back of my helicopter?
AL-KHALIFA AND HIS men took off, Murphy said. Im the only one left on board as far as I can tell.
That doesnt make any sense, Hanley said. Is the helicopter still on board?
I saw it sitting on the rear deck, Murphy said.
And you walked the entire yacht?
Yep. Its as if they never existed.
Hold on, Hanley said, turning to Stone.
Thirty-eight minutes, sir, Stone said to the unasked question.
Murph, Hanley said, well be there in a half hour. See what you can
dig up before we arrive.
Will do, Murphy said.
Well be there soon, Hanley said, and then we can figure this all out.
I RECEIVED A call from our contact at the CIA, Cabrillo said. When we were in Reykjavik, Echelon intercepted an e-mail pertaining to a meteorite comprised of iridium. The CIA was concerned about it falling into the wrong hands, so they asked me to fly over and secure it. That gentleman, he said, motioning to the rear, is the man that discovered it.
He dug it out of the cave?
Not exactly, Cabrillo said. You didnt have a chance to take the tour. Theres a large shrine that was built on a shaft above the one you were invery elaborate. Someone long ago must have unearthed the meteorite and fancied it as a religious or spiritual artifact. The guy in back is an archaeologist who somehow found a clue and tracked down the site.
Adams adjusted his flight controls then spoke into his headset. Oregon, this is air one. Were twenty minutes out.
After receiving a reply from Stone in the control room, he continued. The whole thing seems odd. Even if the meteorite has historical value, I dont see rival archaeologists killing each other over a find. They probably dream about doing that, but Ive never heard about an instance.
Right now, Cabrillo said, it looks like Al-Khalifa and the Hammadi Group intercepted the e-mail and recovered the meteorite for the iridium. They must want to construct a dirty bomb with the material.
If thats the case, Adams said, then they must already have a working bomb of some sort to use as the catalyst. Otherwise they have a fuel and no fire.
My thoughts exactly.
Then after our team recovers the meteorite, we still need to locate the mother bomb.