by Drew Hill
“Have you done everyone yet?”
“Everyone but Trent Baker, the Secretary of War. He’s sick with the flu. Doesn’t that make him suspicious?”
“Well, it does. But he really could be sick.”
“Who have you told about these tests?”
“I only told you. I had the room we were in swept for bugs. Nobody else knew until today. He has been sick all day. How could he have known?”
“I don’t know, but I’m still suspicious of him. He has access to the documents that were stolen.”
“Yeah, as well as at least twelve other people,” Timothy pointed out.
“I think you should have him shadowed. Have four trustworthy agents get time off, disguise themselves, and follow him. That way, their superiors don’t know about it, in case one of them is a spy.”
“It’s a good plan, and I know just who to use for it. There are five young agents who are in a special division at Langley. They report directly to Frank, who reports to me on their progress. The hard part of your plan is how to keep people from getting suspicious about their leaving.”
“How successful have they been? Maybe you could have it disbanded, acting like you weren’t satisfied with the results. Then they could follow Trent over several weeks. If it didn’t turn up anything, you could act like you changed your mind and get them back together.”
“Good plan. I think I’ll do it. Goodbye, Agent Arlington.”
“Goodbye, Mr. President.”
҉
“Guys, I’ve got bad news,” said Oliver.
“What is it?” asked Landon.
“Our group has been disbanded for lack of results. We’re to go to our respective agencies in a week,” said Oliver.
The men left the office, stunned. As Oliver walked down the hallway, a man stepped out of a nearby room. “Come with me.”
The man led him into a small conference room. “Sit down. I’m CIA Director Carl Arlington. The President has asked me to offer you a new job.”
“What is it? The department I was in just got disbanded,” said Oliver.
“I know. But that was all faked so you could work on a new mission. We’re only postponing your previous mission until you finish the new mission I’m about to tell you about,” said Carl.
“What is it?” Oliver leaned forward.
“You’re to tail a suspected mole for a week or so. The other agents of your previous mission will also be part of this.”
“Who are we to tail?”
Carl leaned back. “Trent Baker,” he said slowly.
Oliver was confused. “Trent Baker? The Secretary of War?”
“Yes. It will be a tough job, but the President specially recommended you.”
“Is there a warrant?”
“The President signed an executive order giving permission to conduct surveillance on anyone possibly connected with the nuclear threat.”
“Alright, I will. But what about getting the others to join?”
“I’ll ask two of them, and you can talk to the others. Just make sure nobody listens in. Next, you’ll act like you’re leaving town. Then you’ll disguise yourselves. Don’t let him find out you’re tailing him. Alright?”
“Yes, I’ll get right on it. But wouldn’t it be better for the intelligence agencies to send us on missions in different parts of the world? That way it wouldn’t look so suspicious of us all taking time off at the same time.”
“Great idea, but we would have to let more people know. I’ll have to find a way to make it happen without their knowing what’s actually going on. Just don’t tell anyone you’re not actually leaving. Let’s get right on it.”
҉
“Landon, are you in position?” asked Oliver.
“Yes, I’m behind him,” said Landon.
“You’re not too close, are you?”
“No, I’m two hundred yards back.”
“Alright, over and out.” Oliver turned back to the window. He thought about where everyone was positioned. He was in a warehouse a block away from Trent Baker’s house. Landon was following Trent. Drew was following Landon. Malachi and Levi were also in the warehouse.
Malachi and Levi were flying a small drone in the woods behind Trent Baker’s house. They were watching the video while Oliver waited and listened for updates from Landon and Drew. In about an hour Malachi and Levi would switch with them. He hoped something would come out of this.
҉
Robert Hill barged into MI6 agent William Stanfield’s office. “William, I think I’ve broken the code on the encrypted calls.”
“What do they say?”
“The first is a short call from an unnamed male calling somebody named Gerald. The first person said, ‘Gerald, call me back from another location.’ Then the first person hung up.”
“What did the other call have in it?”
“The second call came a few minutes later. It was intercepted in front of The Barnabas McGee Family Inn, where we assume this ‘Gerald’ was staying. It was between the same two previous people.”
“And what did they say?”
“Here’s a copy of the call.
William picked up the paper and looked at it.
Unknown person: “Gerald?”
Gerald: “Yes?”
Unknown person: “Have you plugged in the encryption device?”
Gerald: “Yes, but why?”
Unknown person: “MI6 agents are monitoring all calls going in or out of London, or at least that’s what our friend told me.”
Gerald: “Okay, so what do you want me to do?”
Unknown person: “Just sit tight. Call me in two days. Don’t call me from the hotel. That way they can’t trace you to it. Did you get the cargo to the hotel okay?”
Gerald: “Yes, the lead covering let the suitcase go right through the radiation sensors at the airport.”
Unknown person: “Alright. I’ll tell you what to do in two days.”
William looked up. “Are there any more calls?”
Robert nodded. “Yes. Later there was another encrypted call. The caller had a new number, but after we broke the code on it, the person he was calling called him Gerald. Also, it used the same code as the previous two calls, so we assume this ‘Gerald’ got a new phone. Here’s the copy of that call.”
Robert handed William another paper similar to the previous one. William picked it up and read it.
Unknown person: “Hello.”
Gerald: “Hi. This is Gerald.”
Unknown person: “Gerald? Did you get a new phone?”
Gerald: “Yes, and I think you should too. I think they may have intercepted the calls. I was called in for questioning today. So unless they’re routinely questioning everybody who has been to France recently, they probably intercepted the calls.”
Unknown man: “Good idea. Anything else?”
Gerald: “No, just that.”
Unknown person: “Alright. I’ll call you tomorrow at ten. Be ready next to another hotel. It’ll throw suspicion on another area of London.”
William looked at it for a minute. “Have you found the call made at ten?”
Robert nodded. “We found the call. Once again it used the same code. Here’s the copy of that one. It was shorter than the last two calls.”
Unknown person (called himself the boss): “Gerald, this is the boss. Start the timer. Get out of town as fast as you can. The roads and airports will be crowded.”
Gerald: “What about the Thames River?”
Boss: “Crowded with boats. I don’t care how long it takes you to get out of the country. Just do it. Then head to Iran. I’ve mailed some presents from our friend to the post office box. It’ll be waiting for you.”
William exhaled slowly. “Is that all we have?”
Robert nodded. “They may not make contact until this ‘Gerald’ fellow gets to Iran. But now we know their two new numbers. We know their code. If we intercept any more of their calls, we’ll know their plans. Is the
re anything else you’d like me to do?”
William nodded. “Find me all our files on criminals named Gerald. Bring me the files on the five most likely to be this one. Now, I need to make a phone call.”
As soon as Robert left the room, William pulled out his phone and called David Copman.
“William?” said David.
“Yes. I’ve got some urgent news. I believe there’s a security leak in Timothy Michaels’ Cabinet.”
“What!” exclaimed David.
“We intercepted some encrypted calls. When we broke the code, they included details about the bombing of London. They also said there were presents from our friend. I believe this friend is a leak in the President’s Cabinet.”
“Thanks for the information, William. Keep working on this. I need to make a call. Goodbye, William.”
Chapter 16
“I just got off the phone with David Copman. He’s an MI6 agent. He has confirmed our belief that there is a spy in your Cabinet, Mr. President,” said Carl.
“That’s interesting. I wish we could find out who it was, though.” Timothy appeared glum.
“Our two main suspects are Isaiah Harkens and Trent Baker,” Carl reminded him.
“So how’s our group assigned to tail Trent Baker going?” Timothy took a sip of coffee.
“So far they haven’t given me very much information. They told me he stays in his house almost all day. The only time he ever leaves is to go to a small coffee shop down the street from his house.”
“That’s understandable if he really has influenza like he says.”
“Agent Haselry should contact me tonight,” said Carl. “We’ll find out if anything is happening out of the ordinary.”
҉
“Gerald, did you get out of the country okay?”
“Yes, I got out of London and made my way to the sea coast. I got to an airport and made a flight to Madrid. From there I caught a flight to Tehran. Are the papers still in the post office box?”
“Yes, they are. You know where the key is. Meet with Nazr Kahlil soon. Our friend is working on getting something else tonight. I’ll get it to you soon.”
҉
“Here are the profiles of the five criminals named Gerald you asked for.” Robert laid the files on the table.
William picked up the files and pulled off the top one. He opened it and looked at it. “Hmm. Gerald Hamilton. A young black market weapons dealer. So, Robert, do you think Gerald would do something this big? Before, he just did small weapons deals.”
Robert nodded. “Some of our agents in Iran have seen him. He disappeared shortly before the France episode, then just recently showed back up in Tehran. That matches what we’ve learned. Also, we know he was preparing for the biggest deal he’d ever made based on what one man who used to work with him said. Also, one of the agents here in London recognized him as a man they interrogated who had been staying at The Barnabas McGee Family Inn.”
William interrupted, “What! Why didn’t they arrest him?”
Robert answered, “They didn’t know it was him. When they interrogated him, he said he was a shoe salesman for Whirlwind 8s. They believed him and moved on to the next person.”
“What did he give his name as?”
“Martin Powers.”
“Robert, call Whirlwind 8s and see if there’s ever been a Martin Powers employed there as a salesman. While you’re doing that, I’ll read the files on these other four people.”
Robert returned shortly with the news that Whirlwind 8s didn’t exist. William nodded. “Yes, based on the evidence you’ve given me, I think we can be reasonably sure Gerald Hamilton was the man who’s selling the stolen plans to Iran and the man who bombed London.”
҉
Gerald exited the small hotel, walked to his car, and dialed the number his boss had given him. “Hello,” the man answered.
“This is Gerald.”
“How did the meeting with Nazr Kahlil go?”
“Great. They were highly satisfied with the last product I gave them, and they were equally glad to see these. I’ll wire you the money tomorrow.”
“Okay. Our friend is going to attempt to get something else tonight. He might have trouble, because he says he’s being tailed. If he gets it he’ll send it to your post office box.”
҉
“Okay, Amos, what’s going on?” asked Timothy.
“Well, sir, as I told you over the phone, you’re dominating the polls for your party. Although the race between George and Dominic is still close, Dominic is lengthening his lead over George.”
“So what was the problem?”
“Oh, it’s probably nothing,” Amos began, “but Dominic has spent a lot of money on his campaign. A few companies are supporting him, but they only made small contributions. I just don’t know where he’s getting the money. Have you checked the list of who’s contributing to his campaign?”
“Yes, we have. Almost all of the money came from his own pocket.”
“I think you should check up on the list.”
“Yeah, I think I will.”
҉
“Sir, I’ve got important news,” said Robert.
“What is it?” asked William.
“We’ve intercepted two more calls. We decoded them using the code we used to decode the other calls. They were between Gerald and the person whose name hasn’t been used.”
“What were the calls about?”
“The first was to see if Gerald made it out of Great Britain and to tell him where some plans were that he was to sell to the Iranians. The second is to see if the meeting between Gerald and Nazr Kahlil, the director of Iranian intelligence, went well. But it’s what he said next that’s important.”
“What did he say?”
“He said their friend, whom we assume is the spy in the American government, was going to try to get something else tonight, but he might not be able to because he was being tailed.”
“That’s important information. Good work, Agent Hill. I need to contact my superiors about this.” William stood and exited the room.
҉
“Do you see anything yet, Oliver?” Malachi’s voice came over the walkie-talkie.
“No, nothing yet. Wait, somebody just exited the building. Yes, he’s got Secret Service agents following him. Are you ready?”
“Yes,” said Malachi.
“Okay, here we go.” Oliver followed them on foot. Malachi followed in a small car. Levi, Landon, and Drew were at the warehouse, which served as their headquarters. They had been told Trent, if he was the spy, might try to steal more information tonight. So everyone was on alert.
Oliver followed them about one hundred yards back when his walkie-talkie squeaked, “This is Drew.”
“This is Oliver. What is it?”
“We were watching the back entrance when a man snuck out. We zoomed in on his face. It was Trent Baker. He’s heading in the opposite direction, toward the Pentagon,” said Drew.
“Okay. Thanks for the information. I’ll hitch a ride with Malachi. We’ll turn around and follow him. Over and out.” Oliver ran back toward the car and pounded on the door. Malachi rolled down the window, a puzzled expression on his face.
“Let me in,” Oliver demanded. Malachi unlocked the door and Oliver hopped in.
“What’s going on?” asked Malachi.
“Turn around. Go toward the Pentagon. Drew just told me he saw Trent Baker heading toward there,” said Oliver.
“But he’s going the other way,” said Malachi.
“No, that was a fake. He snuck out the back, but Drew saw him with the drone. I think he’s going to try to get more classified documents. We have to stop him. Keep driving until you see him. Then follow him. I need to make a call.”
As he dialed the number Malachi exclaimed, “There he is!”
Trent got into a small coupé and took off for the Pentagon. Oliver finished dialing and held the phone up to his ear.
“This is Agent
Odin.”
“Agent Odin, Trent’s heading for the Pentagon. Are your men in position?” said Oliver.
“Yes, they are. Keep following him.
҉
Confident he had shaken any tails with the group of Secret Service agents surrounding the man disguised as him, Trent entered the Pentagon and went into a small room. He walked up to the computer and disabled all the cameras. Then he exited the room and walked into another room. As he walked over to the filing cabinet, he heard someone say, “Stop! FBI!”
He turned around and saw four agents standing in front of the doorway. He put up his hands. “Okay, okay. Looks like you got me.”
One of the agents stepped forward. “Turn around. Put your hands behind your head.”
As the agent grabbed Trent’s hand, Trent suddenly spun around. He slammed the agent into the filing cabinet and pulled out a 9mm pistol. He fired at the other three agents, who were ducking for cover. He shot out the lights and dashed through the door. He sprinted down the hall and ran out the front door.
As he jumped in his coupé, he groped for the keys. They weren’t there. He looked around—right into the barrel of a SIG Sauer. Oliver said, “Slowly exit the vehicle. And don’t even think about running away, because my partner is right outside your car.”
Trent stepped outside the car, and Malachi stepped forward.
“Now, drop that 9mm and put your hands where I can see them.”
Trent dropped the pistol and put his hands up. Oliver stepped out of the car. “Put your hands on the back of your head.” As Trent did it, Malachi spun him around and handcuffed him.
҉
“So, it looks like we got the real leak. The Secret Service agents all said Trent told them he thought he was being targeted by a terrorist group and they needed to form a decoy. While they were waiting to escort Trent to a coffee shop, he snuck out the back door. Now we need to find this Gerald and catch him and this problem may be over,” declared Mark.
“That’s great. But we know they don’t have any more nukes, so Gerald will just go back to business as usual,” said Bill.
