“I have you on speaker again, and Harv is still here.”
“One thing, Son, I can’t allow our conversation with George to be recorded. I’m not suggesting you’d automatically do that, I’m just saying it needs to be off the record.”
“We weren’t planning to record anything.”
“Good, because I can tell you with one hundred percent certainty he won’t talk to us otherwise.”
“Dad, may I ask you a question?”
“Sure.”
“Is everything discussed in your CDT meetings considered an issue of national security?”
“Most of the time. As you know, our committee is primarily a think tank; we don’t make or decide policy, we just propose it.”
Think tank, thought Nathan. Holly had used that term.
“Why do you ask?”
He wanted to ask his dad how much Holly knew about BSI, but changed his mind at the last second. Maybe it was better if he didn’t know. Covering, he said, “I don’t know very much about your committee; just curious.”
“We do discuss other things. Crime statistics, security for major events like the Super Bowl. High-profile trials. Polling data. You get the picture. All of those things, in combination with other factors, paint a picture of our nation’s overall perception of how secure its citizens feel. Right now, the index is fairly low, meaning that the vast majority of Americans don’t feel threatened or fear a terrorist attack is pending. The longer we go without a major terrorist incident, the more secure our citizens feel. We have an expectation of feeling safe in public places, and it’s the role of CDT to do everything possible to keep things that way without stepping on civil rights.”
Nathan rolled his eyes.
Harv smiled and shook his head, his message clear: don’t take it personally.
Stone continued. “I’ve never been a proponent of violating civil rights to combat terrorism. As soon as we go down that road, we’re no better than the terrorists. I guess I’m old-school when it comes to the Constitution.”
“As well you should be. We’ve had this debate before, and you know where Harv and I stand on it, so there’s no point in rehashing it.”
“Let’s agree to disagree,” Stone said. “I will say this: I admire your determination to go the extra mile when needed. I’ve always had your best interests at heart, I hope you know that. I’m not speaking as a legislator, I’m speaking as your father when I say it’s easier to sweep civil rights aside when it’s your own family in jeopardy. I would’ve broken every law on the books to rescue you from that madman’s camp if I could have.”
“I know that. I’m sorry for being abrasive.” Nathan rubbed his forehead.
“I wonder where you got that from.”
“Mom’s side, obviously.”
“No one’s keeping score.”
“I’ll try to do better. Will you level with me? Do you have any idea what’s going on?”
“If it’s related to what I think it is, then yes. But I can assure you, no action like this was either planned or sanctioned.”
“I know the situation is on a need-to-know basis, but I think we’ve met that threshold. Speaking of need to know, I’ll have to tell you about our last exploit down in Central America sometime.”
“Nicaragua.”
“You know about that? How—” Nathan stopped himself. “Do I want to know how you found out?”
“It wasn’t Holly, if that’s what you’re thinking. By the way, she’s got some news for you . . . it’s about her job.”
“She told me . . . tonight.”
“Tonight? You mean you just found out tonight?”
“Yes.”
“I’m a little surprised she didn’t say anything sooner.”
“You aren’t the only one.”
“About three weeks ago, I received a call from Director Lansing. He requested that Holly replace Leaf Watson on the CDT. I’d just assumed she’d told you about it right away.”
“Holly was Lansing’s pick?” Now Nathan felt doubly bad. How could he have been so narrow-minded?
“You sound surprised.”
He didn’t say anything and looked at Harv, who maintained a neutral expression.
“I’m sure she’d planned to tell you sooner, but she’s juggling twenty major projects with twenty more in the wings. It’s a prestigious position, but it takes a personal toll. She’s hopelessly buried, but I’d have to say she’s handling it well. I’m the one who suggested she take a few days off and spend them with you.”
“She’s been acting kinda edgy lately.”
“She’s got the right temperament for the job, but it still generates a lot of internal stress. You’ll need to be patient with her.”
“Like you are with me?”
“Well, maybe not that extreme.”
“So, what does a chief of staff for the FBI do?”
“Holly spearheads and coordinates new programs and oversees the daily operations of the director’s office and its personnel. She personally advises Director Lansing on administrative, criminal, and national-security issues. She also works directly with high-ranking DOJ officials, US attorneys’ offices, and the White House. And she oversees programs with federal intelligence agencies, as well as municipal and state law enforcement as needed. Her position as chief of staff made her the perfect candidate for the FBI’s seat on the CDT.”
“That sounded rehearsed.”
“Let’s just say I knew we’d have this conversation sooner or later.”
Nathan didn’t respond.
“Has she contacted Lansing about this?”
“She left him an urgent voice mail.”
“Then she’s planning to update him on everything?”
“Yes.”
“She must be torn about doing that. I’m assuming you’d prefer she didn’t?”
“Initially, but things have changed. At this point, we need the FBI’s help. We can’t protect our injured friend in the long term. He needs witness protection. There’s a woman who also needs it. Right after Mason attempted to kill my friends, he broke into her home with the intent to interrogate and kill her, just like Toby and his fiancée. Fortunately, she hid from Mason and we drove him off. We’ve hidden her in a secure location.”
“I’m sorry about this, Son. Very sorry. You and Holly are doing the right thing, though. The FBI should definitely be involved at this point, and it’s likely my committee will be too. I’ll call Director Lansing later this morning.”
“I hope Holly comes out of this okay with Lansing. I may have compromised his trust in her earlier tonight. I asked her to delay reporting all this.”
“Holly’s relationship with Lansing has already been tested. All debts have been paid in both directions. It’s now based purely on trust. I wouldn’t worry about it. The delay in informing him isn’t ideal, but it sounds like things have been hectic out there.”
“I hope you’re right. Now, before we talk with Beaumont, what can you tell us about Mason and BSI?”
CHAPTER 25
“What I’m about to share must never be repeated. Only a handful of people know about it.”
“No problem, Dad. We know the drill.”
“As you know, illegal weapons sales are front and center on the ATF’s radar screen.”
His dad told them how the borders of California and Arizona, specifically along the San Diego County line, currently sat on the leading edge of the interdiction effort. Over the past four years, Alfonso Alisio’s cartel, based out of Mexico City with dozens of criminal gangs in its network, had been smuggling weapons into Mexico from the United States.
Stone continued. “Although there’s no way to accurately gauge how many weapons have crossed the border, we believe the number’s in the tens of thousands. Around four years ago, a joint task force comma
nded by the ATF raided a Mexican-owned sweatshop where hundreds of guns were being stockpiled before being moved south. The undercover ATF special agent who’d infiltrated the local gang relayed the location of the guns, and the JTF set up twenty-four-seven surveillance on the sweatshop.”
“What kind of sweatshop?” Nathan asked.
“Wide-brimmed straw hats, like you see at the beach.”
Nathan exchanged a glance with Harv. Nathan liked wearing those hats when he worked outside in the yard.
“Two days later, a joint terrorism task force consisting of local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies conducted a raid. The ATF spearheaded the operation, and it was successful, but it came at a high price. One ATF agent was killed and several more were wounded in the ensuing firefight. Fifteen Mexican cartel members were killed. No civilians died, but several were wounded when the firefight spilled into the street. Two thousand German-made assault rifles were recovered, along with two hundred and fifty thousand rounds of NATO ammo, most of them armor piercing. I don’t need to tell you how devastating AP rounds are against law enforcement. We don’t know how it happened, but shortly after the raid, the undercover agent must’ve been blown because his mutilated body was found hanging from a streetlight a few blocks from the ATF’s El Centro satellite office. Needless to say, the man died a horrible, protracted death.”
“That’s a bad deal,” Nathan said.
“It gets worse. Tanner Mason took the fall.”
“Mason worked for the ATF?”
“Only as a consultant. Because his gunrunning interdiction ops were so successful in Afghanistan, he made many high-level friends, including ATF Director Martini. When Martini visited Shindand District, he personally asked to meet with Mason. Mason was a private military contractor over there, and . . . Well, we’re getting ahead of ourselves here. To be fair to George, I think we should wait to discuss this further until he arrives.”
“That’s fine.”
“Would you object to Director Lansing participating in the discussion?”
Nathan looked at Harv, who offered a “maybe” hand gesture. “I think Harv wants to jump in.”
Harv leaned forward a little. “I guess I’m worried about being told to stand down and let the FBI handle everything from here on.”
“You said it yourself—the FBI belongs in this. What’s wrong with that course of action?”
“Nothing,” Harv answered, “as long as Mason doesn’t know who we are, but there’s no guarantee he won’t eventually find us. Nathan shot his right-hand man. They might be looking for some payback, but more than that, we’ve become huge loose ends. Mason probably believes we know who he is, and he’s going to do everything within his power to find out who we are.”
“You guys told me you exchanged gunfire, but you didn’t say anyone was shot. Is he dead?”
Nathan answered, “His vest saved him.”
“At this point, maybe you’d better tell me the whole story. Don’t leave anything out.”
Nathan started with Toby’s initial call and ended with the exchange he and Holly had with Dr. Thelan in the ER. Stone asked a few questions, but for the most part didn’t interrupt.
Stone said, “The peso bills pinned on the dead men at the soccer field sounds like a signature of some kind.”
“We agree.”
“As I recall, the dead ATF agent hung from the streetlight had Mexican money tacked to his forehead.”
“There’s no way that’s a coincidence,” said Nathan. “Holly told us she thought she recognized the peso thing, but couldn’t place it. Maybe that’s what she was remembering.”
“We’ll ask George about it. It’s possible Mason knew or worked closely with the dead agent.”
“Was your committee involved with the ATF’s raid in El Centro?”
“No, not directly. The ATF’s seat wasn’t at liberty to discuss it. We knew something was in the works, but that’s all we knew. The ATF is a law enforcement agency that reports to the US Attorney General’s office.”
Harv asked, “Can you try to ID the dead guys on the soccer field? They might have INTERPOL records. Right now, we don’t have any leads to help us track Mason down.”
“Email me all the photos you took. I’ll forward them to Director Lansing.”
Nathan’s cell phone rang, and he saw it was Holly. “Hang on, Dad, Holly’s calling. I’d better take this. I’ll be right back, fifteen seconds max.”
Nathan hit the mute button on Harv’s desk phone. “Holly, we’re still on the phone with my father; can I call you right back?”
“Toby’s secure; our people have him protected.”
“Good to hear. I’ll send our security guards home.”
“The bodies are gone.”
“Gone? You mean from Hickman Field?”
“SDPD went out there and found nothing. They’re scouring the area as we speak. We need the photos you took.”
We? Nathan thought. “Sure, no problem.”
“I’m staying here until San Diego’s SAC arrives. I’ve got to let you go.”
And with that, the call ended. No good-byes. No promises to call later. Just a silent phone in his hand.
Shaking his head, Nathan brought his dad back on the line.
“Holly just said the bodies are gone. SDPD went out to the soccer fields and found nothing. She wants the photos we took. We’ll let her know you’re planning to forward them to Lansing.”
“Sounds good. Can you use the notes app in your phone to jot down the sequence of events as best as you remember them and send that to me as well?”
“No problem. I’ll do that right away.”
“Look, I don’t want to cut this short, but I’ve got to clear some work from my desk. I haven’t even looked at yesterday’s mail. You have my word I won’t discuss anything until George gets here and we’re all together on the phone.”
“We’ll be here. Call this same number. We’ll be waiting.”
“And Nathan . . . thanks for trusting me.”
“No problem. Harv’s sending the photos right now.”
“I’ll look for them.”
Harv terminated the call. “Well, that went much better.”
He slowly nodded. Something bugged him about the bodies on the soccer field. Something he’d seen. Aside from the cold way they’d been murdered, something was prowling just below the surface of his mind, like a submerged piece of cloth. He could sense its presence, but couldn’t grasp it.
“I know that look, Nate. What’s on your mind?”
“The dead men from the soccer field; I can’t get them out of my head.”
“Tell me what’s generally bothering you.”
“I’m not sure I can.”
“Let’s walk through it together.”
Harv quickly went through everything from the time they left Toby’s apartment until they hopped the fence and Harv’s TI saw the heat signatures of the two prone forms.
Harv’s calm tone had a relaxing, almost hypnotic effect, and Nathan found himself closer to the elusive thought. “It’s not the money tacked to their foreheads, it’s something else.”
“Let’s look at the pictures,” Harv said. “It might trigger something. Are you thinking it was the position of the bodies?”
“No. It’s an image, like a manga cartoon . . . I keep getting a glimpse of something strange . . . Wait, I know what it is! The Asian guy’s tattoo. I remember now. I kept thinking it looked expensive. Not like hundreds of dollars, but thousands.”
“I remember it too,” Harv said. “It was a two-headed dragon with hand-like claws.”
Harv pulled his phone and tapped on the photos icon. He thumbed over to the one he wanted and zoomed into the Asian guy’s arm. The image was a little fuzzy, but the dragon could clearly be seen. Like a medieval knight, one
of its clawed hands held a saber while the other grasped a shield. It had yellow eyes and green scales with some blue mixed in here and there. Nathan had to admit: it was a beautiful piece of artwork. He’d never seen anything like it.
Harv said, “That’s an expensive tat, way better than ninety-nine percent of what tattoo artists do in this country. The guy’s ID said he was from South Korea. I know Jin’s from North Korea, but it couldn’t hurt to have her take a look. She might recognize it.”
“I guess it’s worth waking her up,” Nathan said.
“Definitely. We need all the help we can get at this point. If Lansing can’t ID the dead men or decides not to share it with us, we’ll find ourselves out of the loop and on our own.”
“We’re hunting Mason down with or without the FBI’s help.”
Harv didn’t respond.
He knew it wasn’t disagreement, only concern. Finding Mason would be tremendously easier with Holly working in the background. The question was, would she still help them if Lansing wasn’t on board? He didn’t know. She’d clearly distanced herself, and Nathan couldn’t blame her.
Harv continued to scroll through more photos. “Was there anything about the other guy that stood out in your mind?”
“I’m not sure . . . Wait, go back. Keep going . . . That one. Zoom in on the guy’s head.”
“What did you see?” Harv asked.
“Something looked weird. Can you zoom a little more? There, check out the zeroes on that note.”
“Wow. I hadn’t noticed that. I didn’t look that closely. I’d just assumed they were 1,000. That’s a 10,000-peso note. I’m positive they don’t print them anymore.”
“Are they valuable?”
“Practically worthless,” Harv said.
“Then the large denomination might mean something.”
“It could be a cartel or gang signature, kinda like the Colombian necktie thing.”
“It’s a foregone conclusion that ROK has a gang problem similar to Japan’s.”
“It definitely does,” Harv said. “South Korea has organized crime and street gangs, especially a big city like Seoul. I’d bet the yakuza has a presence in ROK.”
Contract to Kill Page 20
