Ghost Sniper

18

CIA Director Robert Pope was talking with Clemson Fields in his office. Pope was tall, in his midsixties, with a head of thick white hair and boyish blue eyes peering out from behind his glasses. His professional relationship with Fields dated back to the Cold War. They weren’t what most people would consider friends, but neither man was the type who valued friendship a great deal.

“…and you have a soft spot for Shannon,” Fields was saying. “That could be problematic for us. He does whatever the hell he wants — like this nonsense with Blickensderfer’s fiancée. He wasn’t trained by the CIA, and I think you’re trying to teach an old dog too many new tricks.”

“His unpredictability is what makes him effective,” Pope said. “And his loyalty to me is unquestioned.”

“For the moment. What about Crosswhite?”

“Crosswhite belongs to me lock, stock, and barrel. If need be, I can use the girl and the baby to control him.”

Fields sat back in the chair. “And Shannon will stand for that?”

“Gil understands that Crosswhite is reckless and needs a firm hand.”

“And now Shannon is getting reckless.”

“He got horny,” Pope said dismissively. “Not having your ashes hauled will do that to a man.”

Fields was skeptical. “I think you’d better be careful not to ask too much of him. He’s too principled. And he’s not young anymore — he doesn’t have anything left to prove. If he stops believing in what we’re doing, you’ll have to retire him.”

A dark shadow fell over Pope.

“I don’t mean retire him,” Fields said. “I mean pension him out.”

“Know this now,” Pope said, pointing a finger at Fields. “No one ever touches Gil Shannon. Is that understood?”

“Completely,” Fields replied easily. “That was a poor choice of words. But my point stands. He’s too principled for what you have in mind for the ATRU. You’re selecting targets that won’t be defined well enough by his standards.”

“Gil’s a specialist,” Pope said. “I have no intention of using him as a general-purpose operator. That’s what men like Chance Vaught will be for, and the other men I’m recruiting. Speaking of which, I want you to activate one of our people in Europe — someone out of Berlin. I want Blickensderfer dead as soon as possible. If Gil ends up shagging Lena Deiss for more than a few days — and I have to assume that to be a strong possibility — Blickensderfer might move against him.”

“I’ll see to it,” Fields said. “And what happens if Shannon disapproves?”

“Gil will have nothing to complain about. He’s got the girl, and he doesn’t have to pull the trigger. If he has any complaints after the fact, they won’t be of any concern to me.”

“If you say so,” Fields remarked. “Now, what about Hancock?”

Pope rocked back in his chair, scratching at his neck. “That’s a serious problem. We have to neutralize him before the Mexican government can make a positive ID. If they can prove one of our own people pulled the trigger on Downly, they’ll throw this entire incident right back in our faces.”

“Will the president clear the ATRU to handle this?”

Pope nodded. “He already has. I told him I want Vaught, so Vaught officially belongs to me.”

“Then that takes care of that, but there’s something else.”

“Yes?”

“Mariana Mederos flew down to Guadalajara early this morning and then flew back to Texas a few hours later. I have no idea what she was doing down there. Did you send her?”

“She must have gone down to meet with Crosswhite.”

“About what?”

Pope chortled. “Kids pass notes in class when the teacher’s back is turned. A good teacher learns to tolerate a certain amount of it. They’re both patriots. Crosswhite is probably just looking out for Paolina. I can’t blame him.”

“Do you want Ortega to look into it?”

“No,” Pope said. “Don’t use Ortega any more than necessary. Crosswhite already had to punch his lights out. Next time he might kill him, and I don’t need the hassle of replacing the Mexico chief of station in the middle of this mess.”

When Fields was gone, Pope’s Japanese American assistant, Midori Kagawa, came into the room. She was in her early thirties, with shoulder-length black hair and a round face. Aside from being a genius in her own right, Midori was the single person in Pope’s life that he trusted absolutely. “Should I have him watched?” she asked. “He obviously has doubts.”

“Fields doubts everyone and everything,” Pope said. “That’s why he’s still in the game. But, yes, you’d better begin your electronic intrusion. Be extremely careful. Fields is nobody’s fool.”

“What about Mariana Mederos?”

“I’m not sure yet.” Pope was staring out the window. “Something happened between her and Crosswhite down in Cuba, something that brought them closer together. I have no idea what it was, but it’s been intriguing me for a while now.”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Midori said.

He looked at her. “You mean sex?” He shook his head. “No, whatever happened, it was nothing as trivial as sex. We’ll have to keep an eye on that relationship. Despite what I said to Fields, it could become a thorn in my side if I’m not careful. Mederos and Crosswhite are both too damn smart for my own good.”