Mission of Honor

Chapter Forty-Nine

"Edgar, Paul Hood just arrived," Bob Herbert said.

Herbert was talking into the speakerphone on the desk of the conference room, which was familiarly known as the Tank. The Tank was surrounded by walls of electronic waves that generated static to anyone trying to listen in with bugs or external dishes.

"Good afternoon, Paul," Kline said.

"Hello," Hood said. He strode behind Herbert and stopped there. Mike Rodgers, Darrell McCaskey, and Lowell Coffey were also in attendance. The men looked grave.

There was a thin monitor built into the arm of Herbert's wheelchair. When he was in the Tank, he jacked his computer and phone into a land line. He angled the monitor toward Hood and pointed toward the screen. There was a photograph of a small airplane. Herbert typed on the keyboard, "Just in from Maun. Assassin's getaway plane. Tracing number now."

Hood patted Herbert's shoulder.

"Paul, I was just telling Mike and the others that the Vatican wants to move against the people who are holding Father Bradbury," Kline said. "We are under a lot of pressure to take action."

"Your office or the Vatican?" Hood asked.

"My office," Kline replied. "Officially, the Vatican is calling for patience and a peaceful resolution to the crisis. Unofficially, they want the assassins caught, Father Bradbury released or rescued as quickly possible, and his captors apprehended and tried."

"I can understand why," Hood said.

"We found the driver who took the two 'deacons' to Maun," Kline said. "His description pretty much confirmed what we suspected. They were not affiliated with Father Bradbury's church. We are looking into the whereabouts of all the deacons who serve or have served in Botswana, though we are relatively certain these men will not be among them. It looks like your agent may have been right. They could very well be Brush Viper imposters."

"Could they have stolen vestments from one of the church residences?" Hood asked.

"Easily," Kline replied. "We may have more information soon, however. The driver did tell us where he dropped them. The entire Spanish unit is converging on the area. The driver also put us in touch with the man who brought your agent to Maun. He won't tell us anything."

"Maybe he doesn't know anything," Hood pointed out.

"I don't believe that," Kline said frankly. "He won't even tell us where he dropped your agent. Surely he knows that."

"I can't answer for what he does or doesn't know," Hood said. "Maybe he doesn't want to be involved in this. He could be afraid." That would not surprise Hood. Either Maria had terrified the driver or charmed him. Either way, he would not be talking.

"Paul, I gave you access to that church to use as a data drop," Kline said. "I have told you what we know. As I was just telling Mr. Herbert, I thought we were cooperating on this."

"Mister?" Herbert muttered. He scrunched his face.

"Edgar, we are cooperating," Hood said.

"Then I'll ask you the same thing the other members of your staff refused to answer, Paul," Kline said. "Where is your agent now? Is she still in Maun, or has she followed the two Brush Vipers?"

Hood looked at Rodgers.

"Edgar, this is Mike," Rodgers said. "As I told you a minute ago, we don't know where Maria is. She has not contacted us."

"You have an agent in the field, closest to the scene, and she has not called in to let you know where she is?" Kline said.

"I have to assume she's been very busy," Rodgers said.

"Either that, or she's not in a position to talk to us," Herbert said. "She could be hiding in a goddamn closet somewhere, eavesdropping."

"Edgar, what reason would we have to withhold information from you?" Hood asked.

No one said anything for a moment. Hood could think of many reasons. No doubt Kline could as well. But this was not the time to go into them. Which was why Hood had asked the question.

"You've got other agents en route," Kline said. "How are they going to rendezvous with her?"

"We're hoping she will contact us so we can relay the information to them," Rodgers said.

"Well, while you're waiting for that, we're going to find the Brush Vipers," Kline said.

"I wish you luck, Edgar," Hood said. "I sincerely do."

"We're going to find them and do whatever it takes to stop them from terrorizing our missionaries. What I don't want is for your people-more of your people, General Rodgers-to be caught in the crossfire in a foreign land."

That last dagger was a reference to the loss of Striker in Kashmir. The general took the hit impassively. Hood did not.

"If you want our cooperation, Edgar, you'll address my people with a little more tact," Hood said.

"What I will do, Paul, what I am concentrating on doing, is bringing down the people who are attacking my Church," Kline said. "If anyone gets in our way, I'm sorry if they get clipped with a little tactlessness. They'll recover."

"What about Father Bradbury being caught in the crossfire?" Herbert asked. "How much does that matter?"

"I'm not even going to answer that," Kline said.

"No, you wouldn't," Rodgers said. "Because you and I both know how the Grupo del Cuartel General and their Unidad Especial del Despliegue work."

"Explain," Hood said.

"Paul, those soldiers hit hard," Rodgers said. "And they protect their own. They would sooner take out everyone in the line of fire than suffer any casualties. If you pursue your publicly stated policy of patience and peace, our people might be able to get Father Bradbury out safely."

"And the Brush Vipers?" Kline asked. "How do we keep them from attacking us again?"

"That's the responsibility of the government of Botswana," Hood said. "The United States government will push for intervention over the death of the bishop. There's no need for a skirmish."

"Unfortunately, that call will be made by Rome, not me," Kline said. "And they feel they have to respond in order to protect missionaries in other lands. My job is to get them any assistance I can. What I need to know is whether you will provide assistance."

Hood looked at the others. He did not see a consensus in their eyes. He punched the mute button on the phone.

"Do we need to talk about this?" Hood asked.

"Yeah," Herbert said. "We do."

"Do we have Edgar's number?" Hood asked.

Herbert nodded.

Hood deactivated the mute. "Edgar, we'll call you back in ten minutes," Hood said.

"I'll be waiting," Kline said and hung up.

Hood moved from behind Herbert. He leaned on the table. "All right. First, where is Maria?" he asked.

"She's heading north, off-road, to points unknown," Herbert said. "Her driver, Paris Lebbard, saw where Maria went."

"Is he following them?" Hood asked.

"No," Herbert replied. "But Lebbard saw the off-road direction they took. That was all we needed. We had Viens look for them with the GOSEE-9."

The GOSEE-9 was the Geosynchronous Observation Satellite and Electromagnetic Eavesdropping platform. The bus-sized satellite was positioned over southern Africa. It had wide bandwidth audio eavesdropping capabilities. Maria, Aideen, and Battat had each been given an OLB, an otbiter locator beacon. It was a device that looked like a pen and never caused a problem at customs. The OLB sent out a highfrequency pulse every thirty seconds. The GOSEE-9's onboard computer placed the pulse on a map and sent the exact location to a corresponding map in the NRO's computer.

"What was Maria's last reported position?" Hood asked.

"She was about four miles north of where Lebbard had reported seeing them," Herbert said. "We left that information on voice mail for Aideen and David. They rented a car in Gaborone. Their cell phone can't reach Op-Center."

"Hell of a roaming charge if they could," Coffey said.

"The towers in Botswana are too remote for a direct call," Herbert said. "However, they were able to call the satellite line at the United States embassy in Gaborone. The communications officer there is going to pipe them into a U. S. trunk line so they can collect their messages."

"Why can't they just call Mike directly?" Coffey asked.

"They can," Rodgers said. "But they may be in a place where they're free to listen but not talk. Or maybe they don't want their voices picked up and recorded by electronic eavesdropping."

"Any call longer than two minutes is relatively easy to pinpoint through triangulation," Herbert explained.

Coffey nodded with understanding.

"According to the OLB signal tracked at the NRO, Aideen and Battat turned west before they reached Maun," Herbert went on. "They appear to be on an intercept course."

"So there's a chance they can actually reach Dhamballa and get to Father Bradbury," Hood said.

"Well, without knowing how and where the priest is being kept, that's difficult to say," Rodgers answered. "In theory, yes. That's why we want to give her a shot before the Spanish army goes rolling in."

"But a clean rescue like that doesn't satisfy the Vatican's needs," Hood observed.

"No. They got into this to crush a rebellion," Rodgers said. "We got in to save a priest and help an ally."

"Still, we may end up with a war," Herbert said. He tapped the photograph of the airplane. "We still don't know who shot Bishop Max or why."

"Put aside the ethics of this for the moment," Hood said. "Does preventing the removal of the Brush Vipers and Dhamballa from Botswana hasten or delay a war? Does it buy us time?"

"You mean, if there's a third party involved?" Herbert asked.

"Right," Hood said.

"I would say it slows things down," Herbert said. "Whoever killed Bishop Max obviously wanted Dhamballa to take the fall for the murder and get crushed for it," Herbert said.

"So an attack by the Spanish soldiers against the Brush Vipers helps whoever killed the bishop," Hood said.

"This is all very speculative, but yes," Herbert said. "For all we know, the Spanish could have done it. Or the assassins could have been sent by Gaborone. Maybe they were looking for a reason to shut down Dhamballa."

"Excuse me, but aren't we obligated to support the legal government?" Coffey asked.

"Is a government that murders an innocent American citizen lawful?" Rodgers asked.

"That's assuming Botswana had a part in his death," Hood said.

"I said legal not lawful," Coffey pointed out. "We all know that legal governments sometimes do unlawful things."

"I'm shocked," Herbert said.

"Look, that's not a minefield I want to cross if we don't have to," Hood said. "Right now, I want to focus on our people."

"Hear, hear," McCaskey said.

"Do we let them go ahead on their own, do we abort this thing, or do we allow them to lead the Spanish soldiers to the target?" Hood asked.

"If the Spanish are killing Botswana citizens, we don't want to be a part of that," Coffey said.

"Why not?" Herbert asked. "The president might view that as a viable coalition."

"Spain and the U. S. ganging up on Botswana?" Rodgers said.

"No," Herbert replied. "Two nations surgically striking against the rebels, who are holding a Catholic priest as a hostage. Botswana wiil thank us for not having to move against their own people."

"I'm not so sure of that," Rodgers said. "None of us has been given permission by the 'lawful' government to stage any action."

"We'll get that authority after the fact, assuming it all works out," Herbert said. "They'll be happy to give it to us."

"Mike, I'm inclined to agree with Bob, but not for the reasons stated," Hood said. He was looking at the photograph. "A third party, as yet unknown, killed Bishop Max. Maybe Spain, maybe Gaborone, but maybe someone else. The someone else is the one that scares me. Especially with Beaudin on the perimeter. It would suggest that there is something larger going on. The sooner the Brush Vipers and the Vatican are removed from the equation, the sooner we can find out who is behind the killing."

"You're assuming the Brush Vipers can be removed from the equation," Rodgers said.

"They haven't fought for years," Herbert said.

"True. But there are dozens, possibly hundreds of them," Rodgers said. "And they will be fighting on terrain they know well."

"Yes, but we have an advantage they do not," Herbert said.

"Which is?" Rodgers asked.

"We have someone on the inside," Herbert said. "Someone of whom they are unaware."

"Someone who isn't going to be risking her life to stop what smells like a revolution we have no business in," McCaskey said.

"Darrell, she has no instructions to intervene," Hood said. "We'll monitor this closely, I promise."

McCaskey's arms were folded tightly across his chest. He leaned back in the chair and was rocking. Hood considered ordering him home. He would see how things developed.

"You know, I'm missing something here," Coffey said. "How does having Maria on site help us? We can't contact her directly."

"Aideen and Battat will be able to do that," Herbert said. "And we'll make sure they are fully briefed via voice mail. They'll check for instructions and fresh intel before they do anything."

"Gotcha," Coffey said.

"We'll let them know the Spaniards are going to move in," Rodgers said. "Their job will be to get to Father Bradbury, if possible. Get him out if they can. That accomplishes our original goal, and it gives us the moral high ground."

"In other words, our people get in and out before the shooting starts," Coffey clarified.

"Either that or they lay very, very low," Herbert said.

Rodgers's hands were folded on the conference table. He was staring at them intently. "I do want to make this observation," he said. "This started as an intelligence-gathering operation. It now has a potential political objective with a military component. The military end will be undertaken by soldiers who will not have the time nor inclination to check passports before they open fire. The people we have sent are not qualified to participate in that kind of operation. I don't want them involved in any way."

"Maria speaks Spanish, doesn't she?" Coffey asked.

"Yes," McCaskey said. "But Mike is right. They should not be interfacing with the Spanish soldiers."

"I didn't mean to suggest that," Coffey said. "Only if it comes down to that, she can communicate with them."

"Yes," Rodgers said. "Communicate. Not collaborate." He looked at Hood. "Are we on the same page about that?"

"Unless I'm mistaken, it's your call," Hood said.

Herbert made a face. "I have a couple cents to put in, too, Mike. Darrell's not going to like this, but safety aside, they are our only resource in the region."

"For intelligence," McCaskey reminded him.

"Yes, but only if we exclude the one objective we have not discussed," Herbert said.

"Which is?" Hood asked.

"Whether our people can prevent bloodshed," Herbert said. "We aren't just there for the greater glory of Op-Center. I believe that part of our mission is to try to save lives."

"Starting with the lives of our team," McCaskey said. "You heard Kline. He wants them to lead his soldiers to Dhamballa."

"That doesn't necessarily mean 'For a bloodbath,' " Herbert said. "Our people can be a moderating force. And for that matter, the Spanish soldiers can help to protect them."

"Like they protected the bishop?" McCaskey asked.

Hood held up his hands. "People, these are all good points. But I'm thinking that maybe we can do both."

"Do both what?" McCaskey asked.

"Keep the peace and free Father Bradbury," Hood said.

"How?" McCaskey asked.

"Aideen and David will be intercepting Maria before long," Hood said. "Suppose they tell her and Seronga what is coming. If they can persuade him that the cause is in serious jeopardy, they may convince him to split up. One or two of our people go with Seronga to free the priest. The other one or two lead the Spanish soldiers off-trail. Meanwhile, we work with Kline to convince Gaborone that the Brush Vipers were not responsible for the killing of Bishop Max."

The Tank was silent for a moment.

"Not bad," Herbert said.

"What if Seronga is not as reasonable as you think?" Rodgers asked. "He's a soldier. If he decides to fight, we could be leading the Spanish soldiers and our own people into an ambush."

"Seronga cannot want that kind of a showdown," Hood said. "Especially if Maria can convince him that we're on the trail of whoever it was that really did kill Bishop Max."

"It's not risk-free, but it's solid," Herbert said as his wheelchair phone beeped. "I like that better than cutting bait and running." He picked up the phone and wheeled himself from the table.

Hood turned to Rodgers. "Mike?"

Rodgers thought for a moment. "There are still a lot of variables," he said.

"When are there not?" Hood asked.

"True, but the biggest is what three men will do-Seronga, Dhamballa, and Beaudin, if he has any influence in this. Religious zealots are not known for rational behavior. Even when it comes to survival. And industrialists are not known to give up plans for mega-expansion, if that's what he has in mind."

"Nothing's guaranteed," Hood agreed.

"And of course, it's not our asses on the line out there," Coffey added.

"No, but we're going to get them through this," Hood said as Herbert wheeled back over. "Bob, you want to get Kline back on the phone?"

"In a minute," Herbert said. He tapped the photo of the airplane. "That was my guy at Air Force Intelligence. He tracked the identification number on the airplane and located the registration."

"And?" Hood asked.

"It was rented from a local company named SafAiris" Herbert said. "The plane landed in a field and was abandoned."

"Who rented it?" Rodgers asked.

"The name they gave was Don Mahoney of Gaborone," Herbert said. "I'm willing to bet there's no such person."

"Fingerprints?" Rodgers asked.

"If there are, we may not be able to get to them before the plane is impounded by the Botswana military," Herbert said. "Police in the region have already spotted the aircraft. Anyway, it probably wouldn't tell us much. People this thorough don't forget to wear gloves."

Hood knew the intelligence chief well. There was something else on Herbert's mind. "Out with it, Bob," Hood said. "What's the rest of it?"

"The rest is a real kick in the head," Herbert said. "Air Force Intelligence Signal Surveillance picked up a transmission from those same coordinates at four-thirty-one P. M. Botswana time."

"Why were they listening to that area?" Rodgejp asked.

"They weren't. They picked something up because they've been monitoring our outgoing calls," Herbert said.

"Come again?" Coffey said.

"It seems that since the showdown in Kashmir, the AFISS has been keeping track of our foreign communications," Herbert said.

"What are they doing?" Coffey asked. "Making sure that we behave ourselves?"

"On the books, they probably want to make sure we don't field any military missions that might backfire," Herbert said. "Trigger something that could involve more U. S. forces."

"We haven't done that so far," Coffey said.

"That's a bullshit reason," Rodgers said. "The Air Force is doing this because they don't want us showing them up."

"That would be the off-the-books reason," Herbert agreed. "Look-the fact that our own people are spying on us is not what, surprised me. It was the nature of the signal they received."

"What about it?" Hood pressed.

"The AFISS routinely monitors radio transmissions that are sent to major intelligence agencies around the world," Herbert said. "Even if they can't decipher the code, they keep track of activity. Not just content but volume and frequency are also important."

"Like a surge in credit card activity sending up flags," Coffey said.

"Bingo," Herbert replied. "That's how we knew when the Russians were going to move into Chechnya. Increased cornmunication. The radio transmission from the landing area in Botswana was noticed by the AFISS computer because it matched a foreign office we've been calling."

"Which one?" Hood asked.

Herbert replied, "Shigeo Fujima at the IAB."