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As much as he disliked going by his American alias, Frank Andrews, he had to admit the name had served him well. And soon, he would be rich. He could choose another name in a short time. Any one he wanted. Perhaps he would go with one with a little more European flair. He was tired of masquerading as an American.
“There they are,” Red Stevens said. His real name was actually Rudolph Strogoff, and he, too, was a product of the highly secret American Assimilation School in Gdansk, only a generation later. As a result, his American accent was as flawless as Androkovich’s. His auburn hair had earned him the appropriate nickname, “Red.” He was fifteen years younger than Fedor, and consequently less experienced at staying deep within their established cover here in the United States. But just the same, during the past year Strogoff had all but vanished, and the advantage was obvious. He had become Red, but he followed Androkovich’s directions without question.
“Do you see them?” Strogoff asked, pointing to two sets of headlights parked about a hundred yards away on the highway.
“I hope their lights didn’t attract too much attention,” his partner replied. “Stop here and I’ll get the gate.”
Androkovich jumped out of the Jeep and jogged toward the seven-foot-high chain-link fence that surrounded the perimeter of Camp Freedom and secured the access to the compound via this back road. He unlocked the gate and swung it open, pausing to peer around at the desert terrain. A hot wind blew across the plains, capturing wisps of sand and adding a hint of grit to the air. Nothing seemed to be moving, but the Russian brought the night-vision goggles up to his eyes and did another quick scan. Nothing stirred except for an occasional tumbleweed. The timing couldn’t be better. All he had to worry about now was the possibility of some random patrol or the possibility of an over-inquisitive reporter or motorist happening upon them.
Thus, it was best to proceed with all due speed. He turned and motioned for Strogoff to pull forward on to the highway. Androkovich hopped into the open Jeep as it was going by him. They bounced over the juncture between the macadamized road and the asphalt and sped toward the two parked vehicles farther down. As they drove past the two cars, Androkovich perused them. The first was a dark limousine, the second the ambulance that they had purchased from a surplus municipality sale in neighboring Arizona. It was perfect for their purposes.
A limo in the desert, Androkovich thought. Leave it to the Arabs to be stupid as well as ostentatious. He wondered if their Bedouin ancestors were turning over in their sandy graves.
“Pull behind them and wait,” he said.
Strogoff slowed down again and then swung the Jeep in a wide circle, dipping on to the shoulder and coming to a stop behind the ambulance.
“Wait here,” Androkovich said as he got out. “I’ll go talk to them.”
His companion nodded, his black baseball cap riding low on his forehead.
Androkovich crossed in front of the Jeep and walked on the right side of the ambulance. He glanced inside as he passed, seeing the waspish face of George Duncan behind the wheel. He nodded as he passed, and Duncan responded with a halfhearted salute. The Russian kept walking and heard the sound of the locks being popped as he got close to the rear door of the limo. He reached for the handle and pulled the door open.
“Good evening,” he said as he slid inside.
Two men, both Saudis, stared at him. Androkovich knew the younger of the two well: Masoud, the youngest son of Mustapha Rahman. Masoud was slender and looked quite dapper in his cream-colored suit. His hair was stylishly cut and the hair on his face was trimmed to a neat mustache and goatee.
“You have seen the vehicle,” Masoud said. “Is it what you wanted?”
“It is,” the Russian replied. “You purchased it in Arizona, as I instructed?”
“Yes.”
Androkovich nodded. He waited a few seconds, not wanting to seem too presumptuous so as to upset the Arab, then asked, “Did you initiate the transfer of my money?”
The Arab nodded. “Of course. It was done earlier today, as you instructed.”
The Russian smiled. “And as soon as I have verified the deposit, I will proceed with the next phase.” He let his smile fade for the moment. “And I assume you brought my expense money tonight?”
Masoud snapped his fingers, and his associate removed a leather bag from the floor area and set it on the seat between them. The associate began unzipping it, but Masoud placed his hand on top of the other man’s. His dark eyes stared at Androkovich.
“Do you have the…how do you say it?”
“The English term is scapegoats. And, yes, they have been recruited, as your father instructed.”
“Your English is excellent, for a Russian,” Masoud said. “They are Saudi Shi’ites?”
“Yes. Also as your father instructed.”
Masoud lifted his hand, and the other man finished unzipping the case. Androkovich could see the bundles of currency. “As you requested, in various denominations of U.S. currency.” His lips curled back over his teeth in a mirthless grin. “You may count it if you wish.”
The Russian shook his head as he closed the case. “There is no need. Our relationship has been built on trust, has it not?”
Masoud uttered a short, harsh-sounding laugh. “Trust. Do you know that two of my father’s uncles were killed fighting the Russians with the Mujahideen in Afghanistan many years ago?”
“And now their sons fight the Americans.”
Masoud was about to speak when the driver lowered the shield behind the front seat and said something in Arabic.
“What did he say?” Androkovich asked.
The other man’s eyes flashed. “A vehicle is approaching from the rear.”
Androkovich took a small, handheld radio from his pistol belt and brought it to his lips. “Do you see a car approaching?”
“Yes,” came the reply. “From our rear.” A few seconds went by, then, “It looks like it’s pulling up behind me. Red police light on the dashboard.”
“Police.” Masoud leaned forward and grasped the Russian’s forearm. “We must not be discovered. This transaction must not be traced to us.”
Androkovich glared into the Arab’s dark eyes until the man removed his hand. “It will not be.” He slid toward the door. “Stay here until I return.”
He jerked the door handle and moved out of the limo with a smooth, fluid grace. He stepped quickly across the dusty shoulder of the road and into the darkened area approximately three yards to the side. The car behind the Jeep appeared to be a black vehicle with no overt police insignias. The passenger door opened and a man in a light-colored uniform got out holding a flashlight. Its bright light shone over the Jeep and then the ambulance. The fingers of Androkovich’s right hand closed over the handle of his pistol, drawing it slowly out of the tactical holster. His other hand withdrew the cylindrical sound suppressor from the pouch on his belt. He matched up the threads and screwed it in place on the end of the barrel as he listened.
“Federal agents,” the man on the driver’s side said in a loud voice.
Feds…FBI? But they didn’t wear uniforms or make traffic stops. Most likely these two were BLM bird dogs assigned to patrol the perimeter of the disputed territory, which most likely meant they weren’t in radio contact with any of the police dispatch centers.
The guy stood on the passenger side of the Jeep, shining the beam of his flashlight over Strogoff.
“What’s the problem, Officer?” Strogoff asked, his voice sounding like a typical American motorist.
“What are you doing out here?” the policeman asked.
“Just meeting some friends. Did I do something wrong?”
“Let me see some identification.”
“Don’t think I have any with me,” Strogoff said, sounding gregarious. “Wallet’s back at the ranch. We usually don’t drive this vehicle on the road. Just came to see if these folks needed help, is all.”
“You’re from Camp Freedom, aren’t you?” the man on the passenger side asked. “What are you doing out here this time of night?”
That was the wrong question, Androkovich thought as he ignored the three glowing tritium dots of the sights and switched instead to the laser light snapped on the laser sight. The circular bulk of the suppressor that rose over the end of the barrel rendered the standard night sights of the SIG Sauer useless. He centered the red dot on the back of the closer man’s neck. Of course, any question at this point was the wrong one. And the last, as well.
He squeezed the trigger and felt the reduced recoil of the round, and its accompanying ripping sound.
The man on the passenger side of the Jeep emitted a husking groan as his upper body jerked momentarily before he slumped forward.
“Jeff?” the officer on the other side said. “What’s wrong?”
Strogoff reached out the window and pushed the other officer, causing the man to take two wobbly steps backward as he began reaching for his weapon. Androkovich moved to the side, his SIG Sauer still held in the firing position. The small, circular red dot danced on the man’s face.
The Russian squeezed the trigger a millisecond later, the subdued crack of the round piercing the stillness of the desert night once again. The officer crumpled to the road.
Strogoff jumped out of the Jeep and straddled the man, while his companion ran to the unmarked squad car, finding it empty. A radio was mounted under the dashboard, but it was silent. Had they called in their location? Perhaps not. A mobile data computer sat on a metal shelf. He checked the screen and saw some sort of format for obtaining data, but the cursor blinked over an empty space. He wondered again if they had been in communication with their support base. Better to move quickly. The car and the bodies would have to be disposed of with cautious but immediate expedience. He glanced to his right and saw Strogoff going through the dead man’s pockets.
“See if they have handheld radios,” Androkovich called. His ears were buzzing slightly from the subdued reverberation of the rounds going off, but he knew this would subside shortly. He retraced his steps to the place from which he’d fired, shone his flashlight on the ground and looked for the expended shell casings. He found one, but the second one eluded him in the dust and darkness, despite the flashlight. The clock was ticking, and he felt like abandoning his search, thinking perhaps that the desert sand would sweep over the casing. But he also knew the devil, as they said, was in the details. Now was not the time to be careless. Shining the light again, sweeping it over the ground, he located and retrieved the second shell casing.
He went to the other dead man and began going through his pockets. The policeman had a Glock 19 in a nylon holster and two extra magazines. A cell phone was clipped to his belt. Androkovich immediately removed it, took out the battery and placed the items in his pants pocket. He found the dead man’s ID case and flipped it open. A Bureau of Land Management Park Ranger ID card was under a clear plastic flap opposite a small, gold-colored badge. He pocketed that also.
From the other side of the Jeep, Strogoff stood and said, “This guy’s a BLM park ranger. No radio that I can find.”
“Get his cell phone and deactivate it,” his companion said, rising. “Take their weapons and wallets and load them into the trunk of their car.”
Strogoff nodded and picked up the supine figure.
Androkovich considered their options. “We’ll leave them somewhere in the desert. They won’t be found for a few days, at least.”
Strogoff cocked his head toward the other vehicles. “And them?”
“I’ll get our money from the Arab. Duncan can take the ambulance to the barn. I’ll drive their car. You follow me in the Jeep.”
His partner nodded and began dragging the dead man back toward the unmarked squad car.
Androkovich strode to the side of the ambulance. Duncan had a white-knuckle grip on the steering wheel, and his face was covered with sweat.
“Did you kill them?” he asked.
“I had no choice.”
“Shit, I hope it doesn’t bring more heat down on us.”
“I don’t pay you to think. Just follow orders. Take this vehicle to the farthest barn on the compound and lock it up. Then you’re done for this evening.”
Duncan nodded and shifted the ambulance into Drive. Androkovich watched him ride out and around the limo toward the back road entrance and turn on to it. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Strogoff dragging the second dead BLM ranger toward the vehicle. He exhaled slowly as he walked toward the limousine.
The complicated plan had just become a little bit more complicated.
CHAPTER FOUR (#ulink_bd3af45a-15e2-596f-b356-209859790925)
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Mustapha Rahman sat on the soft cushions on the floor of his well-appointed apartment and watched as his second son, Mamum, poured some of the sweet mint tea into a cup for their three guests.
Mamum, the trustworthy. It had been he who had driven the three Shi’ites to Bahrain to conduct the attack on the nightclub, which had allowed Mahfuj, the protector, to perform the heroic rescue. That act had, in turn, ensured the trust and confidence of both the prince and the king.
Mustapha’s three guests were all high-ranking military men, and each had committed himself to the plan. Mustapha had no doubt as to their loyalty. With the assassination attempt the previous night, and the first part of the plan successfully initiated, they were well beyond the point of no return.
It was like a Bedouin pilgrim crossing the desert on his holy hajj, Mustapha thought. To stop at any point in the seemingly endless sands was to embrace death.
Colonel Tariq Matayyib, the weakest link in the chain, Mustapha knew, was perspiring heavily. He accepted the tea from Mamum and sipped at it.
Mustapha reached out and laid a hand on Matayyib’s thigh in reassurance.
“Do not worry, my brother,” Mustapha said. “All is well. It will work as I have foretold.”
Matayyib nodded, accompanied by a very nervous smile. “I have placed my faith and my life in your hands, but still I see the knife being drawn across my throat in my dreams, should we fail.”
Mustapha squeezed Matayyib’s leg again in reassurance. “I have just received a message from my youngest son, Masoud. All is going according to plan.”
This was not entirely true. Masoud had risked using his satellite phone to inform Mustapha about the near catastrophe of the previous evening. It was already morning here in Arabia.
Yes, Arabia, Mustapha thought. He would no longer use the name of the house of traitors to designate his country, the only one in the modern world named after a specific family. As if it were their personal possession.
He glanced at the chess board that the other two colonels had set up. The pieces were configured piecemeal around the board, without any clear strategy or plan of action on the part of either player. Thinking two or three moves ahead was something Mustapha prided himself in being able to do. Even as a boy he’d had the knack for strategy and planning. Perhaps it was a result of his grandfather’s careful instruction in the art of repairing the timepieces. It had taught Mustapha the intricacies of the most complicated series of motions, all seemingly working independent of each other, but collectively accomplishing one purpose.
He leaned over and moved the black queen belonging to Colonel Arak Hafeez, thus placing the white king of Colonel Kalif Samad in check.
The eyes of Hafeez widened. “You have virtually won the game for me with one move.”
He grinned and pointed at Samad. “You will be checkmated in two more moves.”
“Did you have so little faith that I could not?” Mustapha said.
Hafeez smiled. “Never for a moment.”
Mustapha turned back to Matayyib. “Do you not see? It is a sign from God. All is well.”
Matayyib nodded, but his face was still wet, and the perspiration had begun to seep through his tan uniform shirt despite the air conditioning.
“Why do you worry?” Mustapha asked.
“My father…” Matayyib lowered his head. “He told me of the scene of long ago. He was only a boy then, but he saw them lined up in the public square. Their heads rolled on the stones, and he swore he saw the lips of one of them moving in prayer, begging for forgiveness.”
Mustapha frowned. He, too, had heard the tales of the failed coup d’état of 1966. A group of air force officers had planned to wrest power from the decadent king, but the Americans had discovered their intentions and warned then-King Faisal. The monarch had immediately arrested them and, after rebuking their treachery, subsequently had all of them beheaded in the city square. Not a pleasant thought, but Mustapha knew this time his plan would succeed. The Americans would not be able to warn the king this time. He shook his head vehemently. This time we shall strike with the swiftness of a falcon…four desert falcons.
“Must I again tell you of my dream?” His voice was loud, steady, unwavering. “My dream of the four falcons? I was told by a holy man that it was a sign, a prophecy from God.”
Matayyib compressed his lips.
“Remember,” Mustapha said, increasing his grip on the other man’s thigh to convey the rectitude of his pronouncement, “that the prophet himself, blessed be his name, was guided by his dreams.”
Matayyib’s face looked distorted now and Mustapha realized he’d been exerting too much pressure in his fervor. He released the other man’s thigh. “You need to spend more time playing football.”
Matayyib’s expression showed relief now, but his body emanated the smell of encroaching fear.
But perhaps a little fear was good at this point.
“My son Mahfuj is now the most trusted bodyguard of Prince Amir,” Mustapha said. He reached down and moved the rook to block the retreat of the white king. “It has been insisted upon that Mahfuj, who saved the prince’s life, be placed in charge of the bodyguard contingent.” He reached over to make the final move to checkmate the white king. Everything was falling into place in life, just as on the chessboard. “Now, quit worrying and drink your sweet tea. But first, say it.”
