Andrew Britton - The American

“Who was Shakib talking to?”

“Guy by the name of Elgin, Thomas Elgin. He’s a piece of shit — his sheet makes for extensive, if unimpressive, reading. Even worse, he’s a registered sex offender. Raped a thirteen-year-old girl back in 1990, did ten years in Marion for it. You have to wonder why March would deal with a man like that, directly or indirectly.”

“If you’re looking for someone to move explosives into the country, you can’t be too picky,” Ryan said.

Harper had noticed the expression that came over Kealey’s face when he mentioned the rape part. He was well aware of how Ryan dealt with such people. “March must have been pretty confident. I wonder why he didn’t just try to get the explosives here.”

“There’s a lot of risk associated with the entire process if you go that route,” Kealey said. “First, you have to find what you’re looking for in the quantities you need. If you want C4, the best bet is going to be a military facility or a construction site. Either way, security is going to be tight, and the theft is going to be reported immediately. If you try to buy it through a third party, you could be walking into an ATF sting. On the other hand, port security is almost nonexistent in places like West Africa. Then you only have to worry about U.S. Customs and the Coast Guard on our side of the pond. The risk is confined to one part of the operation. No, I think he definitely had to bring it in.”

“Well, this guy Elgin might be able to tell you more. He’s a loadmaster at the Norfolk International Terminals, working directly with the cargo coming off container vessels. It’s the only lead we’ve got.”

“It sounds weak. What do you mean, ‘tell me more’?”

“It means I want you to go to Virginia,” Harper said. Ryan started to speak, but the other man lifted a hand to stop him. “I know, I know. Let me explain something to you. The president is out of options. The U.N. won’t support an air strike, but the public is demanding a response. He’s in a tight spot, so he was pretty receptive to new ideas when the director showed him your file. Ryan, the president is scared of Jason March. He’s scared of the man’s capabilities, his connections, and his willingness to kill Americans. Brenneman wants somebody who can work fast and get results. The logic is flawed; he thinks that if March can be found, then Al-Qaeda’s ability to operate will be seriously hindered. He also thinks that March might lead you right down the snake hole. It’s unrealistic, I know, but Director Andrews is willing to humor him. They want you to go after him.” Kealey didn’t say anything for a moment. His face was empty as Harper waited for a reaction. “Ryan-”

“I remember when you asked me to look at some videotapes, John.”

Now it was Harper’s turn to fall silent as he stared into his empty wineglass. He could hear sounds of laughter from the two women downstairs, but it seemed much farther away than the actual distance allowed. “Listen-”

“No, you listen. You know I’ll do it — that’s why I’m here. We’ve known each other for a long time, ever since I was in the service and running jobs for your department. That’s too long to bullshit each other. You should have told me the way it was from the very start. Barring that… I mean, come on, John. At the very least, you should have known that I would figure it out on my own. What I don’t appreciate is you trying to mislead me. I don’t ask for much, but I think I deserve better than that.”

“You’re right.” A brief pause. “I mean that. I have to deal with a lot of people, Ryan. Most don’t have the drive. Everything has to be spoon-fed to them… Sometimes I get caught up in that. I’m sorry.”

Kealey waved away the apology; he didn’t want to make a big speech, but the point had to be made. “Don’t worry about it. I just want you to be straight with me. That’s all I ask.”

That last statement caused a little smile to work its way across Harper’s face. “You’re looking for straight talk… I want you to work with Naomi Kharmai on this.”

The deputy director was surprised when Kealey did not immediately refuse. “In what capacity?”

“I don’t want her waving a gun around, if that’s what you’re worried about. She’s capable, Ryan. Her Arabic is better than yours, and I know you don’t have any Farsi. Besides, she’s…” — Harper was searching for the right word, but couldn’t find it — “a more acceptable representative of the Agency. She might be able to open some doors that are closed to you.”

“That’s an interesting way to phrase it.” Ryan was laughing, and Harper couldn’t help but join in. “I could be acceptable. Give me a suit and a badge, see what happens.”

“That would be a first,” Harper said. The smile was broad across his face, but it faded with his next words. “There’s one other thing, Ryan… Technically, you are retired from the Agency. As far as this situation is concerned, you’re working as an independent contractor. That’s straight from the director.”

“He’s covering his bets, huh?” The younger man frowned. “Is this because of…?”

“No,” Harper said. Then he hesitated. “Maybe. Bosnia might have had something to do with it. You know about the bad press we got in connection with the torture of prisoners in Iraq. Andrews is desperate to avoid more of the same.” The other man started to speak, but Jonathan held up a hand. “It’s not about him, anyway. I’m asking you to do this, and I know that I don’t have to convince you, so let’s not pretend otherwise.”

Kealey didn’t say anything. After what seemed like a very long time, he nodded, almost imperceptibly.

Harper let out a long breath and said, “Great. And thanks, Ryan. I hate to put you in this kind of position, but I really appreciate it. And believe it or not, the director appreciates it, too.”

“I appreciated dinner. Julie’s a great cook.” Both men stood and moved toward the door. “One more thing.” Harper turned to look at his guest.

“After this, I’m out. All the way. It’s getting serious with Katie, but she wouldn’t be able to handle it if I stayed at the Agency. She deserves more, and she’s going to be angry enough when she finds out that I’m going to Virginia. Besides, I don’t want to push my luck.”

A look of understanding came over the older man’s face. He had once served in the field as well, and knew what his friend was talking about. “You’ve done enough, Ryan. More than enough. I never thought I’d see you settle down, though.”

“That makes two of us,” was the amused reply as the two men went back down the stairs. Ryan collected Katie from the living room and walked with her to the door.

“Thanks again for dinner. It was so nice to meet both of you,” she said.

Her golden-brown hair seemed to glow in the warm light of the foyer. Ryan couldn’t take his eyes away from her.

Julie gave her a warm hug. “You too, Katie. Bring her back soon, Ryan, okay?”

He smiled and gave Julie a quick kiss on the cheek. “Absolutely.” Turning to Jonathan: “Naomi’s back tomorrow, right?”

“Hopefully.”

“I’ll talk to you in the morning. We’ll probably leave for Norfolk in the afternoon.”

“Sounds good. It was nice to meet you, Katie.” He leaned forward to peck her cheek.

“Careful, John,” Kealey said, a grin spreading across his face.

There was general laughter as they went back down the stone steps in the frigid night air, but the car was cold in more ways than one as Ryan turned the key and the engine purred to life.

They were halfway back to the hotel before he ventured an attempt at conversation. “So, it seems like you got along well with Julie.”