Point of Contact

78

The rifles fired a third time. The seven CIA Honor Guardsmen lowered their weapons and stood at ceremonial rest.

Jack Junior stood solemnly, his eyes glued to the casket as it lowered into the ground. It should’ve been him being put into the cold earth today, not Paul. He felt grateful, and ashamed.

The funeral ended. President Ryan shook hands and offered condolences to the friends and family in attendance, ignoring his chief of staff’s silent reminders. They were supposed to be wheels-up in forty-five minutes for the flight to Beijing and they were more than an hour away from the airport. Ryan shot him a look that finally drove Arnie off. First things first.

Jack Junior approached a distinguished, silver-haired gentleman chatting with John Clark. He offered his hand. “Captain Miller, good to see you again. I just wish it wasn’t under these circumstances.”

The airline pilot smiled. “I understand, on both counts.”

“How do you two know each other?” Clark asked.

“I could ask you the same thing,” Jack said.

“David and I go back a long way, don’t we?”

“When dinosaurs ruled the earth.”

The two old vets shared a chuckle, and obviously an unspoken bond.

“And you both knew Paul,” Jack said.

“All of us old-timers knew Paul Brown,” Miller said. He glanced back at the grave. “It’s a shame more people won’t.”

Jack shook Miller’s hand again. “Take care.”

“Same to you.”

Jack drifted over to the other gravestones, weathered but well maintained. A lot of Browns. Paul was laid to rest next to Carmen, but he was surrounded by five generations of family. A long history in one place. Jack felt a hand on his shoulder.

“How’s that busted wing coming along?”

Gerry’s voice was unmistakable. Jack turned around and lifted his cast. “You know, this thing would make a pretty good weapon.”

“I bet. And how are you doing, son?”

Jack shrugged. “Can’t shake the feeling I let Paul down.”

Gerry shook his head. “You were out of commission. Paul stood up when it counted.” He nodded back toward the grave. “He’s with Carmen now. He would tell you everything is as it should be. The two of you did a helluva job. Thanks to you, the world economy is still humming along, and the world never knew about it. That’s a good day’s work, as far as I’m concerned.”

“Paul was the one who figured it out while I was running around chasing my own tail. Speaking of which, any news on Yong Fairchild?”

“Probably in China for the foreseeable future. The Dalfan deal with Marin Aerospace is dead in the water. Dalfan stock took a hit because of that, but not too bad, and the Singapore authorities are combing over their databases and records to see what Yong might have stolen. It’s a mess, but not a catastrophe, thanks to your tail chasing.”

“Thanks.”

“I just got off the line with the AG. No charges will be filed against you by the Singapore authorities for anything you did over there.”

“You read my after-action report. That’s hard to believe.”

“Dr. Fairchild is an influential man, and Lian made you out to be quite the hero. The government of Singapore is officially ‘grateful for your service.’”

Jack shrugged. “I’ll take it.”

Gerry pulled him closer. “And the thirty million dollars of emergency aid we’re sending them for the cleanup effort didn’t hurt any, either.”

Jack rolled his eyes. “Seriously?”

“They need the help after that typhoon, believe me.” Gerry turned serious. “I also wanted you to hear this from me. Rhodes cut a deal with the FBI.”

“What?”

“It’s the way the world works, son. You bait the hook with the little fish in order to land the big fish. That software on Rhodes’s USB drive was dangerous stuff. Our people are sure it was written by the North Koreans, but Rhodes never dealt with them, only a middleman by the name of Zvezdev. We need to roll up Zvezdev if we’re going to nail Choi’s hide to the wall. So it’s going to be fifteen years at a Club Fed for the ex-senator, seven with good behavior.”

Jack shook his head, disgusted. “Can I at least get in on the action?”

“I’m afraid not. Mary Pat is running the Zvezdev operation. But I’m certain we’ll have some black-side work coming up soon — if you’re up for it.”

Jack grinned. “Are you kidding? A black-side op sounds great. After a white-side gig like Singapore, I could use the rest.”