Criminal Mischief

46

There were places where the road was pretty much obliterated by the shifting sands of the desert, but mostly, he felt he could drive at seventy mph in safety. They were comfortable in their seatbelts and with the vehicle’s air-conditioning on.

“The Jeeps are configured with special ACs for the desert,” Wilcox said. “I know because I configured them. The cooling systems are beefed up.”

“That’s comforting to know,” Stone said. He put on his sunglasses, as did the others. “Brio, call your guys on the radio and ask them to keep an eye out for that half-track.”

“I don’t think they would drive it on the road,” Wilcox said. “The noise of the tracks on asphalt would be intolerable.”

“I’ll bet they’re following the road,” Stone said. “I mean, they’re not going to be using celestial navigation. They’ll use the GPS, just like us.”

Brio made the call to the other cars.

“When we refuel at the oasis,” Brio said, “I hope they take credit cards.”

“Why?” Stone asked. “When we’ve got two and a quarter million dollars in cash in the trunk.”

“Why didn’t Zanian take it with him?”

“They were in a big hurry. Maybe they just forgot to transfer the trunk to the half-track.”

Another hour of driving, and Stone pointed. “Is that a mirage? I see palm trees.”

“That’s the real thing,” Wilcox said. They drove into the palms, and at the direction of Henry Wilcox, found the pumps, in what looked like an ordinary service station.

Wilcox got out of the Jeep and conversed in Arabic with the attendant. He pointed at all the Jeeps.

The man looked at them in consternation. Wilcox said, “He says he hopes he has enough gasoline, but he’s joking. He also says his tanks were filled by fuel trucks yesterday.”

“Does he take credit cards?”

Wilcox asked him and the man nodded assent.

“Ask him if he’s seen the half-track,” Stone said, and Wilcox did so. Wilcox came back to the car. “He says the half-track was filled more than an hour ago, then drove back in the direction of the airfield we just left.”

“He’s remembered the trunk,” Stone said, “and he’s going back for it. Brio, radio everybody to return to the airport when they’ve refueled, and to watch for the half-track along the way. They’ll be armed and dangerous.”

“Right,” Brio said.

“How are your men armed?” Stone asked.

“With M-16 assault rifles and Beretta 9mm sidearms. Standard military issue. Ours are in the trunk.”

“Let’s get them into the cabin with us,” Stone said.

After moving the weapons, while waiting for all twenty-four Jeeps to be refueled, Stone and Brio walked across the road to a little hillock and surveyed the view. It would be sunset soon, and that would make the half-track harder to find, unless they used their headlights.

“This is gorgeous,” Brio said of the sunset.

“Yes,” Stone said. “I wish we had a blanket and no FBI agents traveling with us.”

She pinched him on the ass. “A one-track mind,” she said.

Wilcox was taking a turn at the wheel, and Stone, now in the rear seat, got his phone out.

“Who are you calling?” Brio asked.

“Faith,” he said. “No answer on her cell. I’ll try the satphone.” He dialed another number, and the copilot answered.

“Put Faith on,” Stone said.

“Yes, I’m here. I can hear you on my headset.”

“What’s your location?”

“About an hour out of Dubai,” she said.

“Go ahead and land there, and while you’re refueling, see if Zanian’s Gulfstream is at that airport.”

“And if it isn’t?”

“Return to the Sultanate because that’s where his airplane is going to be repositioned to. They forgot something important and had to go back for it. You’ve got enough fuel to return to the Sultanate, and still make Cairo, haven’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Then don’t refuel at Dubai. Wait and do it at the Sultanate.”

“Okay, we’ll just look for the Gulfstream, and then take off, if we don’t find it.”

“Let me know if you find it.”

“Will do.”

Stone hung up. “I’ve never played cat and mouse with twenty-four Jeeps and two Gulfstreams,” he said.

“Thank God Zanian forgot the trunk,” Brio said.

“I agree. He might be gone by now if he hadn’t.”

The group mounted up and made a U-turn back to where they came from.

An hour later, Faith called.

“Yes?”

“Stone, the airplane was at Dubai, but it left shortly after we landed.”

“Where did they file for?”

“The coordinates of the Sultanate’s airport.”

“Okay, go flat out, and damn the fuel use. When you get there, whether the other airplane is there or not, park in the middle of the runway and leave the APU running and all the lights on, especially the wingtip strobes.”

“Why?”

“Because if you get there first, I want to keep their Gulfstream from landing, and if you don’t, I want to keep them from taking off. But listen, if they fire on you or threaten you, even with small arms, get out of their way. I don’t want our airplane shot up.”

“Got it.” She hung up.

“You know,” Brio said. “I really did underestimate you at the outset. I apologize. Just one thing, though.”

“What’s that?”

“Are you and the ambassador aware that you are both wearing tuxedos?”

“We do what we can with what we’ve got,” Stone said.