by John Lyman
While some would flee in a panicky zigzag battle just beneath the surface, others, particularly large game fish, would run for the bottom until the line played out, forcing them to turn. The curling slackness in the thin plastic line was a sure signal that the fish was now charging back toward the surface. An experienced fisherman would start reeling in as fast as he could, for he knew that if he allowed the line to remain slack, it would snap when the fish suddenly crossed under the boat or dived once again toward the bottom.
Leo thought the battle for survival at the end of a fishing line was a great metaphor for the way everyone onboard was feeling right now. For the past few days, they had all felt the panic of being caught at the end of a taut line while they moved in a zigzag pattern just out of sight of those who sought to reel them in.
Lev Wasserman entered the bridge, bringing Leo’s thoughts of a solitary life at sea to an abrupt end. Lev’s usual tendency toward casual banter was absent as he stared through the thick windows at a vacant ocean without speaking. It was obvious to Leo that Lev was trying to come to grips with something.
“I can’t seem to shake the image of that chopper burning on the ground back at the compound,” Lev finally said. “I’ve been running it over and over again in my mind. Do you remember when I told you I was planning on taking an early morning flight around the castle to check out the surrounding area?”
Leo nodded his head.
“If the chopper hadn’t been destroyed, Nava and I would have been in the air over the castle when those helicopters attacked.”
Leo nodded again.
“We would have been shot right out of the sky. Someone was watching over us.”
“It certainly wouldn’t be your first encounter with angelic intervention, Professor.”
Both men looked at one another in silence, because in truth, neither of them understood the strange series of explosions that preceded the main assault back at the castle.
“Back to Israel?”
“Yes. The world’s a very chaotic place right now, Cardinal. At least the odds will be more in our favor once we’re back on home turf.”
“I was thinking of asking you to drop me off somewhere near Rome, but I see no point in going there right now.”
“I’m glad to hear you say that, Leo, because we can’t go anywhere near the Italian coast right now.”
Lev’s tone of voice had changed. He had found something out. “It appears that Acerbi was behind the attack at the castle, and his people are actively looking for this boat as we speak.”
“So, it’s been confirmed?” Leo asked. “Acerbi was the one who attacked us?”
“I’m just now getting the details from Alex, but evidently the Carmela’s communication officer picked up some of the radio chatter between the helicopters and their base during the attack on the castle. She was smart enough to do a voice analysis on the person giving the orders. Turns out the voice print they recorded matched the one they had on file from one of Acerbi’s speeches. It was him ... no doubt about it. Also, when we called the boat to let them know we were under attack, they immediately linked up to an Israeli intelligence satellite in geosynchronous orbit over Europe. They watched in real time as the choppers that attacked the castle returned to an airfield next to Acerbi’s chateau.”
“At least now we know for sure who’s trying to kill us, along with millions of other people in the world. We’ve got to do something about this guy, and the sooner the better.”
“We’ve been working on that since we came onboard, Leo ... but there’s a problem.”
“What kind of problem?” Leo put his coffee down and let his green eyes zero in on Lev.
“Our intelligence people in Israel don’t want to tip their hand right now. They’re keeping the document we recovered a secret. The only thing that’s being reported to the authorities is the fact that Sarah was at his chateau. The French police did a cursory search of his property and came up with nothing to incriminate him.”
“Where is he?”
“Supposedly, he’s on one of his many business trips out of the country.”
“How convenient, but that won’t stop the investigation. It shouldn’t take long for the authorities to track him down and find out what he’s really up to.”
“That’s the problem, Leo. As soon as it was revealed that Sarah was at his chateau, several world leaders suddenly came forward to say he was the victim of a smear campaign ... that she was never there.”
“Unbelievable. What about his chateau? Didn’t they find anything?”
“Squeaky clean. No sign of anything that resembled an operating room in the basement.”
“Did they check the third floor ... the one Fredrick and Martha said was off limits to the staff?”
“Empty. The staff said it was being prepared for renovation.”
“They must have cleared the place out after Sarah escaped. What about the attack on the castle? How are they explaining that?”
“A sanctioned NATO raid on a heavily armed survivalist compound. The commander of the mission claims they were fired on first. If you remember, we activated our radar-guided ground-to-air weapons before we evacuated the castle. They were supposed to take out the inbound choppers. They fired as planned, but the choppers took evasive action and knocked them out. Apparently, their choppers were equipped with new, state-of-the-art systems that can defeat laser-guided weapons. NATO is also claiming that they were taking fire from large weapons from the castle itself, so they had to destroy it. Acerbi has managed to turn us into the bad guys and the French Navy is looking for us. Supposedly, we’re a rogue bunch of religious fanatics that were building a survivalist compound on French soil.”
“That’s crazy!”
“Crazy yes, but try to prove otherwise. According to international law, we had no business having the kinds of weapons we possessed on foreign soil. I’ll be the first to admit that we were allowing the Mossad to use the castle as a secret communications facility, but it was cleared through some of our friends in the French intelligence community. Suddenly, they’re not talking.”
“Damn! This Acerbi guy seems to have all his bases covered. It’s starting to look like he’s connected with some very powerful people.”
“Tell me about it. We walked right into a very tidy little trap.”
“So basically, you’re saying that we’re all now international fugitives.”
“Exactly. Acerbi played us perfectly. Rescuing Sarah led him right to us. He probably guessed that we had something on him and moved to eliminate us. We’re dealing with a totally ruthless individual who apparently has no conscience.”
“Any news on the spread of the pathogen?” Leo asked.
“It seems to have stopped spreading for now. There’s still no sign of it yet in Israel.”
Leo leaned back in his seat and stared out at the water. “Finally, some good news.”
“There’s more,” Lev said. “Dr. Diaz wants to obtain a sample of the virus.”
“What on earth for?”
“I have no idea, but I don’t want it anywhere near us. Even though Diaz has the expertise to study a lethal virus, we don’t have the facilities. We’d need a level 4 biohazard lab for something like that.”
“Diaz is a strange man, but he’s also a brilliant molecular biologist. I wonder what’s on his mind.”
“I’m sure we’ll hear from him again after we dock.” Lev lit a cigar and glanced over at the Carmela’s captain.
“Keep the boat at full speed, Alex. Make sure we stay in international waters until we’re directly off the coast of Israel ... then make a run straight for the harbor.”
* *
In the muted lighting of the conference room, Acerbi’s dark eyes glowered at the men who had failed him. “What the hell was the Bible Code Team doing here in France? And how could they have escaped completely undetected?”
“Apparently, there was an extensive tunnel system beneath the castle, sir. I’m afraid they�
��re long gone by now.”
“I know they’re long gone, you idiot!”
Looking down the long executive table, Acerbi saw that no one dared to make eye contact with him. They all seemed to be staring off into space at some invisible object hovering just beyond their field of vision. The room practically vibrated with fear.
“I want to know what that Catholic Cardinal and his Jew friends are up to.” Acerbi emphasized the word Catholic, as though the mere pronunciation of the word filled his mouth with an evil taste.
“They’re not Jews ... they’re Christians, sir.”
“Whatever! I thought we had seen the last of these people last year. If it wasn’t for them we would still have the book and the power it possessed ... it’s nothing but ashes now.”
Acerbi paused. He held his hands together as though he were praying before he leaned back in his chair and stared up at the ceiling. “At least we still have its words.”
Suddenly he leaned forward. His eyes blazed and he slammed his closed fists down on the table. “Until we can discredit or eliminate this Catholic and his friends, I want them moved to the top of the threat list. We have no idea what they know about us, but their presence here in France was no coincidence. I find that coincidences are usually linked to a larger truth with an invisible thread.”
Acerbi looked around the room. “What do we know about the two employees who helped the girl escape?”
A tall security man in a gray suit cleared his throat. “They were just common help, sir ... hired to maintain the chateau. He was a gardener and she worked in the laundry. They’ve been employed by us for almost two years. We did a complete background check on both of them, and I went back over the tapes of their interviews. They didn’t appear to be that bright.”
“Spies never appear bright, which makes me wonder about some of the people sitting at this table. Bright people attract attention, especially the needy ones. I want your men to find out as much as they can about these two domestic servants. I think you’ll find that their true identities are much more impressive. Let’s start by putting a price on their heads ... say, a million Euros apiece. Also, have our people in Europol put out warrants for their arrest. Even if we can’t find them, we might be able to learn who they’re really working for.”
“On what charges?” the man asked.
“What?”
“You said to have warrants issued for their arrest. What crime do we charge them with?”
Acerbi’s voice became progressively lower, a sure indication to those who knew him well that his patience was wearing thin. “Who cares? That’s your problem. Be creative.”
“What about the pathogen?”
“What about it?”
“Should we continue to disseminate it, sir?”
“The next man who asks me a question like that will live to regret it.”
A scholarly-looking man at the end of the table started to speak but changed his mind when he saw the darkening red color in Acerbi’s face.
Acerbi ran his hand around the inside of his collar and wiped away the beads of sweat that had formed on his upper lip. He blinked at the faces staring back at him. They were out of focus. He blinked again, but the faces looked even more distorted as he shook his head with the realization that his vision was becoming blurred, a psychologically induced physical manifestation resulting from an overload of built-up anger. It was a problem Rene Acerbi had experienced since childhood. His ears were ringing and he was beginning to sweat even more. He paused to take some deep, cleansing breaths, as he had been taught to do by his nanny, until finally he could see the faces around the table return to focus.
Acerbi took in another deep breath. He felt the strength returning to his body. “Has anyone here taken the time to read The Art of War? If not, I suggest you find a copy and read it cover to cover before our next meeting. There is a time to be aggressive and a time to be cautious. This is a time for caution. Allowing the girl to escape has caused an especially bright and inquisitive light to shine down upon us. As we sit here, some very powerful people are now watching ... people we have no influence over. There will be no further dissemination of the virus until I give the order to continue.”
Acerbi glanced at the security man in the gray suit. The man seemed to be pushing himself back into the padding of his chair in a futile effort to make himself invisible.
“Are you positive Dr. Diaz is with them?”
“As far as we know ... yes, Mr. Acerbi.”
Acerbi’s vision blurred once again. “I can’t believe it. The one man who can unravel our secret, and he’s with that Catholic Cardinal. He and all his Jew friends should be dead by now. We’ve missed two opportunities to take them out. We won’t miss a third.”
CHAPTER 41
It was just after midnight when the Carmela turned into the channel leading to the ancient port of Caesarea. Above and behind them, a dark gray UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter emerged from the darkness and flew directly overhead, rattling the windows on the bridge.
Alex handed Lev a cordless microphone. “The chopper is calling for you by name on the radio.”
“This is Lev Wasserman, go ahead.”
“Hello, Professor ... welcome home.” The female voice sounded vaguely familiar.
“It’s good to be home. Who am I talking to?”
“This is Gabriella, sir.”
Lev grinned. Gabriella had once been Nava’s co-pilot in the Israeli Air Force, but had chosen to stay in the military after Nava finished her tour of duty and went to work fulltime for Lev.
“Gabriella! My beautiful little dove. What are you doing flying around out here in the middle of the night?”
“I was told there were some international fugitives in the area. Do you see any around?”
Lev winked at Leo. “No ... no international fugitives here.”
“Good, just checking. Some of your friends from Tel Aviv are at the dock. We’ve cordoned off the area around the harbor to keep prying eyes away.”
“Sounds like you’ve got things covered.”
“I’m your eyes in the sky tonight, Professor. Tell Nava I’m sorry to hear she lost her little bird. I’m sure you’ll get her another one.”
“Daniel’s already put in the order.”
“I’ll be landing at the end of the dock to fly you to the villa. See you soon.”
An unsmiling Leo leaned back in his chair and ran his hands over the stubble on his face. “Should I ask who the friends from Tel Aviv are?”
“Mossad. We’re fully under the umbrella of their protection now. We’ve had a fighter escort circling above us for the last ten hours. My friends know what Acerbi is and what he’s capable of. We’re safe here.”
“And just who is Acerbi, Lev? The intrigue surrounding this man is beginning to grow tiresome.”
“Well, you better prepare yourself, Cardinal, because we’ve just arrived back in the Holy Land ... a land filled with intrigue. I’ve been advised that there’s a briefing planned for us once we get back to the villa.”
Leo still wasn’t smiling. “Good. Maybe we’ll finally have some answers.”
“I think you can count on it.”
Soldiers of the Israeli Defense Force lined the dock as Alex eased the Carmela into her berth. As soon as the Israeli commander was satisfied that the area was secure, he signaled the captain that it was safe for everyone to come ashore.
First off were the families with children, who were escorted to a waiting bus, followed by a sleepy-looking Sarah. As soon as she saw Daniel waiting on the dock below, she ran down the gangplank and threw herself into his arms. The two embraced, oblivious to the smiling soldiers all around them as the other members of the Bible Code Team walked off the boat behind her and headed for the idling helicopter that had just landed at the end of the dock.
After hearing that her best friend was piloting the chopper, Nava ran ahead of the group and squeezed into the co-pilot’s seat. In the red light of the cockpit, she gr
inned as she pushed a helmet down over her head and began to strap in.
Gabriella crossed her arms and adopted a mock frown. “Well, just make yourself at home ... civilian.”
“Don’t mind if I do, former co-pilot of mine. Do you mind if I fly?”
“Think you remember how?”
“I don’t know. Why don’t we see?”
Gabriella moved her hands away from the stick. “She’s all yours, but you might want to wait until all the passengers are onboard.”
“Good idea.” Nava winked. She looked out the window at the team members walking toward the chopper, then turned back to face her friend as her usual grin faded into a look of exhaustion. “The last few days have been really weird, Gabbie.”
“We’ve heard, but you’re home now. No one’s getting through the defensive wall we’ve put up around this entire area. The villa looks like a military command center. Soldiers and police are everywhere. They’ve even moved in some heavy armor and shut down the highway. No one is getting anywhere close to you guys.”
“You don’t know these people, Gabriella. They’re spooky, and they have people everywhere.”
“Who the hell are they?”
“We’re not sure. Right now we’re on our way to an intelligence briefing at the villa, so I’m hoping some of Lev’s Mossad buddies will be able to fill us in on what they’ve learned over the past few hours.”
“I know about the briefing. I received orders to get you guys there as soon as you stepped off the boat.”
The rear door to the chopper slid open and all of the members of the Bible Code Team piled onboard. They were still strapping themselves in when Nava brought the engines up to speed and jumped the fully loaded chopper into the air.
“Doesn’t look like you’ve forgotten how to fly this bird,” Gabriella shouted into her mouthpiece.
“Seems like yesterday. Flying that little chopper off the yacht has kept me in practice, but I miss the power of the big Blackhawks.”
The halogen lights around the harbor faded below as they rose into the night sky and tilted in the direction of the villa. Flying low over the beach, they could see the moonlight reflecting off the white sand and the crests of the breaking waves along the shoreline, while out in the dark void that was the Mediterranean Sea, bobbing pinpoints of light offered proof that there were people out there, going about the business of life on the ocean.
