Emerald Buddha

Chapter 37

Edward Cornett and Collins waited patiently for Senator Whitfield to arrive. Cornett had asked for a special meeting before the business day got underway on the Beltway, and Whitfield had instantly agreed. All parties knew better than to say anything on the telephone — the NSA’s eavesdropping extended to everyone, including elected officials, and caution was the natural state of affairs.

When Whitfield entered he was like a supernova of energy, the aura of power palpable as he strode into his office with a nod at the CIA men. Nobody else was working yet; the building was quiet at six thirty, which was why Cornett had asked for the meeting at such an early hour.

Whitfield set his briefcase on his desk and shrugged off his suit jacket. He beckoned to Cornett as he carefully hung it on a coat rack behind him, and then adjusted the blinds so that they were fully closed. Cornett and Collins took seats where indicated and waited for Whitfield to finish.

The senator sat down and folded his hands in front of him on the desk blotter. “Gentlemen, you mentioned that you had news? I gather it’s important, judging from the hour.”

“Yes, sir. We located the plane. Your daughter’s body wasn’t in the wreckage. Neither was her boyfriend, Liu.”

Whitfield’s eye twitched. “What does that mean?”

“We’re not sure, sir.” Cornett told him about the S.O.S.

“Then they’re alive?”

“Possibly. It’s too soon to make that determination. There’s a distant chance that they weren’t on the plane at all, and this was some sort of ruse.”

“A ruse? What are you talking about?”

“Sir, there’s a troubling aspect to this. Our people tell us that it looks as though the plane was tampered with. Sabotaged. In which case the crash was intentional.” Cornett met the senator’s stare. “Can you think of a reason anyone would do that?”

“It sounds preposterous. Of course I can’t think… unless it was the damned boyfriend. It has to be something he was involved in. Organized crime? Terrorism? Drug smuggling?” Whitfield hesitated. “Did your people find anything in the plane?”

“Negative. Although it had been looted.”

“Then someone beat you to it.”

“Yes, and it’s possible they have your daughter and Liu.”

Whitfield sat back. “Have?”

Collins took over for his superior. “Sir, we don’t want to get your hopes up. In all likelihood your daughter didn’t make it. But there’s now a better chance that she did, and that one of the rebel organizations in the area rescued her… or took her captive.”

Whitfield looked shocked. “To what end?”

“Kidnapping isn’t unknown in that region, sir. Again, it’s too early to speculate, but if one of the armed factions has her, it’s likely because they intend to make money with her. One way or another. There have been reports of tourists being abducted near the border. Usually Caucasian females.” Collins let the statement speak for itself.

Whitfield pushed himself to his feet and began pacing in front of the window. “Gentlemen, if Christine’s alive, you must do whatever is necessary to get her out of this. Whatever the cost, in dollars or in human assets, it has to happen. There cannot be even a whiff of my daughter being held captive, or serious questions would arise as to my motivations and whether I can be influenced. We are at a delicate time in the DOD hearings, and I don’t need to tell you what a story like this could do to the proceedings.”

“Yes, sir. Of course.”

“So break down for me exactly what steps you’re taking. Short of sending in an aircraft carrier and invading the country, it better be impressive.”

“We have an experienced field agent monitoring the situation as we speak. We’ve authorized him to put out the word that he’s interested in locating the occupants of the plane, regardless of the circumstances. And he’s indicated he’s not price sensitive.”

Whitfield’s intake of breath was a hiss. “Wait. You only have one man handling this? That’s it? Did I not make clear how important this is?”

Cornett nodded. “Of course, sir. However, more bodies won’t achieve anything but run the risk of driving whoever has them to ground. If they get spooked, their captors could be as likely to put a bullet in them and bury them in a ditch as get involved with something that smacks of covert ops. Better to handle this surgically.”

Whitfield sat back down, his shoulders slumping as he did. He glared at both men, and when he spoke, his tone was arctic. “If something goes wrong and we don’t get her back, I will hold you both personally responsible. This is your area of expertise, so I won’t meddle, but I want it on the record that I’m highly concerned that the agency isn’t putting sufficient resources behind this.”

“Message received,” Cornett said. “As of right now, all we know is that her body wasn’t at the crash site. We’re only guessing as to why.” He paused and checked the time. “We hope to have more information as the day progresses. But we figured you’d want to know everything we do, as soon as we know it.”

“Yes, yes, of course. I’m sorry. I don’t mean to bite your heads off. But this news is so unexpected, and the ramifications… well, you can imagine what I’m going through.”

“I can. One other thing, though. It wouldn’t be wise to share this latest bit of news with your ex-wife, sir. Not yet. We don’t want civilians complicating matters.”

“Yes, I understand. She was ready to put posters up on every light pole until I talked her down.”

“If your daughter and Liu are alive, we’ll find them and extract them. You have my word,” Cornett said. “And if they aren’t, we’ll obtain definitive proof that they didn’t make it.”

“Very well,” Whitfield said with a glance at his watch. “You better get out of here before the staff begins arriving. Wouldn’t do to have questions raised about why I’m meeting with a pair of agency personnel.”

Cornett and Collins stood and shook the senator’s hand. When they left the office, they walked wordlessly to their car. Once inside, Cornett turned to Collins.

“What’s he hiding?” Cornett asked.

“Don’t know. But you picked that up too?”

“Of course. He’s good, mind you, but not that good.”

“Well, he is a politician, so all he does is lie all day.”

“True. Something’s rotten, though.”

“Can you speak with the director, off the record, and see if there’s another layer to this request we’re unaware of?” Collins asked.

“I’ll give it the old college try, but don’t expect much. If the chief wants to run an op for reasons only he’s privy to, that’s his call.”

“Right. But I don’t like being the pawns in this game. What we don’t know could come back to bite us. Hard.”

Cornett put the transmission into gear and nodded. “We don’t need any more disasters.”

“Coffee?”

“I’m way ahead of you.”