Thunderstrike in Syria

Chapter Three

Both Leah and I felt much better after the layers of makeup had been removed from our faces and hands and after we had changed into more comfortable clothes. Our mood changed to intense curiosity when we returned to our suite in the Samuel and found David Hawk and Jacob Ben-Zvi waiting for us. Hawk skirting on a sofa, Ben-Zvi on a cushioned chair. As usual, Hawk was smoking a cigar that smelted like a by-product of an experiment in gas warfare.

The two men only nodded as Leah and I looked at them in surprise. Leah sat down next to Hawk on the sofa and I ambled over to the small bar, knowing why the two Intelligence chiefs had come to us: because Leah and I didn't dare be seen going to Hamosad headquarters. The question was why were they here in the first place, especially Hawk. As the chief of the United States Special Espionage Agency, he wasn't in the habit of going out into the field. Something damned important had to be in the wind.

"The operation of the House of Medals was a success," Ben-Zvi said in a low voice. "The two of you are to be congratulated, especially you, Carter, since you originated the basic plan. Good work."

"I try," I said, glancing across the room at the Hamosad chief as I poured a generous amount of brandy into a glass. He was a short, stocky man with a square, blunt head topped with an enormous mass of gray-white hair. He had deep creases from his nose to his mouth, which turned heavily downward. His eyebrows were very busy, his hands bony and his skin burnt brown-tough from the hot Israeli sun. He was either in his late forties or early fifties.

"Nick is one of our best agents," Hawk said, then turned his shaggy head to Leah. "And Mr. Ben-Zvi has been telling me of your resourcefulness and daring. You are a very brave young woman, my dear."

Leah smiled and said, "Thank you, sir." I dropped several ice cubes into the glass, put down the tongs and leaned over on the bar, watching Hawk. Several years past sixty, he was a solid chunk of a man who, in spite of his advanced years, still had the strength of a bull. If he was ten or fifteen years younger, I wouldn't want to tangle with him.

Hawk gave me one of his hard looks. "If you keep wondering why I'm here in Israel, you're going to throw your brain out of gear," he growled. "I'm here to make sure our intelligence about the SLA dovetails with what the Hamosad has learned about the terrorist organization. The situation is worse than we thought previously."

For a moment I stared at Hawk, then took a swallow of brandy. Leah and Ben-Zvi remained silent. I could detect that they had that sharp sense of here and now — a keen awareness of the moment, a feeling of excitement and at the same time of dread.

"So what's the new development?" I looked directly at Hawk and put the glass on the bar.

"It's the overall seriousness of the SLA plot that poses such an extreme threat," Hawk said gruffly. He leaned forward and tapped his cigar into an ashtray on the low cocktail table. "We still don't know how the bombs are to be planted on board the supertanker, or the names of the terrorists assigned to do the job. We don't even know the name of the tanker." He chomped down on his cigar and spoke around it. "There are more than a hundred liquified natural gas installations in the world and eighty of them are in the U. S. Carter, you've been in this business long enough to know the other factors involved."

"Yeah, the SLA could have deliberately used disinformation," I said. "They could be planning to blow up a supertanker in some harbor other than in New York City." I picked up the brandy and swirled the ice cubes in the glass. "For that matter, the whole deal might be a cover-up for some other plot. As I see it, we're going to have to capture the top leaders to get the real truth."

Leah spoke up. "Let's hope the SLA member we captured will give us a solid lead. We must find Mohammed Karameh."

"The terrorist is being questioned at this very moment," Ben-Zvi said grimly. "We have our ways of getting the truth from even the most stubborn of fanatics." Folding his hands, he squeezed one set of knuckles, then the other. "But frankly, I doubt if he can tell us anything of vital importance. He's only a lower echelon member."

"Surely he must have some important information!" Leah protested, brushing a strand of raven hair from her forehead. "Otherwise we're right back where we started."

"Not quite," Hawk countered, only he looked at me as he spoke. He continued to hold me with his stare as he said, "For the last four months, AXE has had two Syrian nationals working for us in Damascus. A brother and sister team, who are members of the SLA, but who are also supplying us with important information — for a heavy price, of course. In fact, it was Ahmed Kamel and his sister, Miriam, who tipped us off to the supertanker plot."

Leah looked surprised, and I figured her thoughts were similar to mine. If the two Syrians knew so damn much, why didn't they know the location of SLA headquarters? I was angry as hell but kept a straight face out of respect for Hawk and because I knew a display of anger wouldn't have helped. The Second Coming of Christ wouldn't have fazed Hawk. I had a more diplomatic way of letting him know I didn't like being used.

"Sir, if Ahmed Kamel and his sister knew about the LNG scheme, why didn't we obtain the location of SLA headquarters from them."

"We didn't, because the Kamels didn't know the location of the main SLA base," Hawk said, taking the stub of the cigar from his mouth. "They weren't trusted members of the SLA — trusted to the extent that they knew the SLA's main base — until a week ago."

I finished my drink, put down the empty glass and looked at Hawk.

"You're saying that you and Mr. Ben-Zvi now know the location?"

Hawk nodded. "The Kamels managed to get word to us through a Control Officer in Damascus."

I glared at Jacob Ben-Zvi. "Yet you still let me and Miss Weizmann risk our necks in the House of Medals! Thanks a lot!"

Ben-Zvi's face contorted into a puzzled half-smile. "There wasn't any valid reason to call off the strike against the House of Medals," he said, gesticulating with one bony hand. "The place was scheduled to be raided. Your plan was the best, N3."

Hawk reached into the inside pocket of his rumpled coat and took out another cigar. "Actually we didn't get the message from the Kamels until yesterday afternoon. There was a fatherly tone to his voice. "Their report was on a need-to-know basis. You understand that."

I grinned crookedly at Hawk. "And now that I do know, I suppose the next thing you're going to tell me is that I've got to skip over to Damascus and check out Ahmed and Miriam Kamel?"

"That's only half of your assignment," Hawk said matter-of-factly, removing the wrapper from the cigar. "The second half is more complicated. Ahmed Kamel will lead you to within sight of Karameh's headquarters. You'll get the exact coordinates of the base's location, then get the hell out of Syria and back to Tel Aviv.

"We Israelis will do the rest," Ben-Zvi said passionately. "We'll bomb the base off the face of the earth."

I looked at Hawk. "Sir, I was under the impression that the Kamels had given you and the Hamosad the location of the SLA base! Besides, they're both double agents. How do you know they're telling the truth; unless, of course, their love of money is greater than their revolutionary fervor."

"It is," Hawk said and shoved the cigar into his mouth. "It was they who tipped us off to the House of Medals. Yeah, there's a possibility that the whole thing's a setup, but I don't think so. We'll have to chance it."

"What about SLA headquarters?" I asked.

"Karameh's main base is on the As-Suwayda hills of southeastern Syria," Hawk explained. "You have to go in because the Kamels don't know a thing about cartography. They can't pinpoint the exact location."

Ben-Zvi added, "You won't slip into Syria until after we've questioned the terrorist that you and Leah captured. He might have some information that will have a bearing on your mission."

"Which means I'll leave sometime tomorrow morning," I said.

"Before dawn," Ben-Zvi said flatly.

My eyes jumped to Hawk, then to Ben-Zvi. I didn't like the deal. I never have trusted double agents. And suicide has never appealed to me.