Matthew Dunn - Spycatcher

“I’ve done some fast trips in my time,” Julian said with a smile, opening one of two duffel bags inside the trunk, “but the one we’ve just made takes the prize.”

Ben and Julian started withdrawing weapons and other equipment from the bags and laying them out in the trunk. Will saw Colt M4A1 assault rifles with attached scopes and flashlights, Heckler amp; Koch MP5-N submachine guns, MK23 pistols with KAC sound suppressors, a Barrett M82A1 fifty-caliber sniper rifle, combat knives, and waterproof tactical communications systems. Roger moved closer to his men and started checking the weaponry. Like Will, the CIA men were all dressed as if they were about to embark on a mountain hike.

Will breathed in deeply.

He saw memories and images: A young boy waving good-bye to his father. Megiddo carefully attaching a saline drip to his father’s body. The boy sitting on his father’s lap as the man read a story to him. Megiddo cutting off his father’s feet. His father smiling as the boy ran toward him. A man who no longer looked like his father being dumped into the sea. The boy now angry, scared, and alone. The boy changing into a man who had no fear, who embraced isolation, anger, and death and nothing else. He saw the man he now was-a man who had decided to change all that and be with Lana, a man who was now in severe danger of losing that woman, of losing peace, happiness, everything.

Roger came to his side. The man lowered his gaze for a moment before looking at Will. “There’s no turning back now. There’s going to be a lot of killing.”

Will stared at him. “That’s what we do.”

“It is.” Roger glanced at the vehicle and his men before looking back at Will. He took his arm, pulled him a few paces away from Ben and Julian, and spoke very quietly. “Patrick told me that Megiddo killed your father.”

Will nodded. “And no doubt Patrick gave you a secret instruction to stop me from killing him if we capture him?”

Roger shrugged. “He did. But I’m not going to.”

Will said nothing.

“If you let Megiddo live,” Roger said, “you’ll have to spend the rest of your life knowing that you could have avenged your father but chose not to. If you kill him, you may have to spend the rest of your life knowing that your vengeance allowed thousands of people in this country to die. I don’t have to live with the consequences of either decision, but you do.” He looked at Will. “What you do now must be your decision and your decision alone, and I’m not going to get in the way of that.”

Will nodded slowly. “There is a third option. I’ll get his secret and then I’ll kill him.”

Jogging, Laith emerged from the trees but then slowed to a walk. He approached Will and Roger.

“I counted eight of them around the place,” he spoke quickly. “There are almost certainly more of them inside.”

“What guns are they carrying?” Roger asked.

“Three of them have shotguns, and the rest are holding automatic machine guns. Plus they’re all carrying sidearms.”

“What about Lana?” Roger beckoned to Julian and Ben, and the two men walked over to join them.

Laith shook his head. “No sign of her since they took her in there.”

Will and Roger looked at each other. Will looked back at Laith and said, “Tell us about the place.”

Laith crouched down in front of the four men and pulled out a knife. “Lower Saranac Lake looks like this.” He began carving lines in the snow. “It’s got about twenty tiny islands, and most of them are in the middle here. The lodge is on the east side of the lake, on the lake’s edge.”

“Are there other lodges, properties, or sites near the place?” Roger was carefully studying Laith’s growing makeshift map.

“None.” The ex-Delta operative didn’t look up as he continued his task. “Unlike the other Saranac Lakes, this one’s state-owned, and there’s restricted property development around it. Our boys have obviously chosen it because they know they won’t be disturbed there.”

“What’s the layout of the building?” Julian wanted to know.

“It’s rectangular in shape, it’s got a boathouse to the north here, and a pier goes straight out from the porch onto the water here. The lodge is on two floors and by my calculations has twelve rooms in total. Entrances to the building are here, here, here, and here. There’s one road into and out of the place.” Remaining in his crouch, Laith took a couple of steps back. “The area to the south is clear of trees for twenty-five meters, but we’re fortunate because there’s not much open ground around the north and northeast of the building.”

Ben asked, “Where are the men?”

“They’re rotating around the building, but at all times there are men to the north, east, and south.” Laith jabbed his knife into the snow to show the positions. “And they always have two men on the pier to protect the lodge from the lakeside.”

Will looked at Roger. “What do you think?”

Roger stared at the map and said nothing for a moment. He then nodded and said, “I don’t think it’s worth waiting for nightfall, because I doubt they’ll cut back their numbers then. In any case, time is not on our side. I think we go for it now.”

“I agree.” Will looked at the other men, and they all nodded. He looked back at Roger. “You’re in charge of the assault. Where do you want us?”

Roger drew a deep breath and said, “Ben and I will approach the building from the northeast. We’ll take out the men there, and I’ll then enter the building through the north door and Ben will take this entrance on the east. Will and Julian are going to approach the building from the south. You’ll have to get wet to avoid the open ground. Julian can get into the building through the south door. Will, you keep going until you get to the pier.” Roger looked up. “Laith, you’ll be our sniper. I need you on this island, but to get to it you’re going to need to swim six hundred meters with the fifty-caliber rifle on your back. And judging by the weather, you may have to break through ice along the way.” He smiled with a look of mischief. “That’s a job for a SEAL, not a Delta man, but I need to be in the lodge to issue commands. Do you think you can make the swim?”

Laith returned his smile. “Do you think you’ll be able to shoot straight on dry land?”

“I’m sure we’ll both do just fine.” Roger looked down at the map again, and his face grew serious. “The first kills will have to be synchronized, and Laith will instruct us when that’s to happen. Once we’re in the house, we go through it room by room.” He swept a hand over the snow. “And none of the targets must be allowed to escape the property.” Roger stood up. “When it’s over, we’ll bring our vehicles to the lodge for extraction of any prisoners.”

Ben asked, “Where are we driving to afterward?”

Roger shrugged. “Patrick’s working on that right now.” He looked at each man. “Any other questions?”

They all shook their heads.

It was now midafternoon, and the air was clean and still. Will nodded at the men. “There’s nothing left to be said. Let’s go.”

They all walked back to Ben’s vehicle and began arming themselves. Will donned communications equipment, gathered up a knife and pistol, which he secreted in his jacket pockets, and strapped a Colt M4A1 assault rifle to his chest. He saw Roger, Ben, and Julian choose their own weapons and watched as Laith checked the workings of the powerful sniper rifle. Will placed his cell phone into a waterproof pouch and tucked the parcel into an inner jacket pocket. The vehicles were locked, their keys were hidden under front tires, and they all walked out of the picnic area into the forest that stretched before them.