CHAPTER 45

Tomtom Suites

Istanbul, Turkey

“REECE, WHERE IN THE hell have you been? We lost track of you. ”

“I’m safe, Freddy. He made contact. We need to talk, ASAP, ” Reece responded.

Reece was back in his hotel room, personal possessions returned and none the worse for wear.

“Roger that. How do you want to do it? ”

“I’m blown here, so it doesn’t matter. I’ll get cleaned up, grab my gear, and catch a ride back to the consulate. Meet you back there in an hour or so. ”

“If you’re blown, we’ll just pick you up. ”

“Check. Give me fifteen. ”

“You got it. ”

Reece changed and packed his bags. There was no sense staying at the hotel any longer. He was exposed here and, though he trusted Mo, he couldn’t know whether someone in Mo’s private army was playing both sides. An American intelligence officer would be a fat target to a jihadi looking to help the cause.

The Agency SUV was idling at the curb when Reece walked through the hotel’s front door, the anxious bellman trailing behind him. Reece loaded his own bags and nodded to the confused employee as he handed him a twenty and climbed into the backseat.

Freddy turned around in his seat with an extremely worried expression on his face. “You okay, buddy? ”

“Well, I can’t exactly claim to be a superspy. Mo’s guys Tased me and threw me into a van while I was sipping a latte. ”

“That would never have happened to Mitch Rapp or Scot Harvath. ”

“Hey, man, I’m just a vanilla frogman. ”

“I think the Hartleys would disagree, if they were still around. You want to give me the download? ”

“Let me have a minute to stew on it. I think I have an idea. ”

“I don’t know why that makes me nervous, ” Freddy replied with a shake of his head.

The case officer drove directly to the consulate and within a half hour they were inside a secure conference room. Reece began to go through the details of the meeting while Freddy scribbled notes on a yellow legal pad.

“Mo thinks he’s still working for the Agency. He admitted to coordinating the mortar attack on the British Paras and taking out the NATO commander, but he swears he was following our orders. ”

“Who gave him the orders? ”

“You ready for this? ” Reece paused for effect. “Jules Landry. He’s been handling Mo this entire time, first in Syria, then in Europe. ”

“You’re shitting me, ” Freddy said in disbelief.

“Nope. ”

“And you believe him? ”

“He was genuinely shocked when I told him Landry had gone rogue. I could tell he felt betrayed. Remember, I’ve been in combat with Mo. We’ve trusted each other with our lives. I don’t think he’d lie to me. ”

“Why would the CIA be running a pseudoterrorist to hit our allies? That doesn’t make any sense. ”

“I know, ” Reece said. “He’s been thinking that Landry was running him against Nawaz, getting him close, having him gather intel, and that Landry gave him CIA-approved targets to hit in order to prove his worth to Nawaz. Kind of like how the DEA assets operate in the cartels. They pass information to their DEA handler, who lets the majority of drug shipments continue into the U. S. to not blow their asset’s cover as they continue to move up in the organization. Same thing here. ”

“Jesus. ”

“And think about where he comes from: Iraq. He grew up under Saddam Hussein, who did the unspeakable to keep his people living in fear and in line. He told me Landry was specific with him about hitting military targets. Mo actually thought the supporting effort was to keep our allies involved in the GWOT and ensure they had the public support to do so. He admitted to organizing the attack on the Paras and he took out General Alexander with the drone himself, just like the CIA taught him. ”

“What about the Christmas attack in England? ”

“Swears he had nothing to do with it. He said he’d only hit military targets and, again, I actually believe him. He knows that Nawaz has multiple independent cells but doesn’t know specifics. He was working his way up but he wasn’t there yet. That’s why he believed that Landry was running him for the CIA. It’s actually quite genius. ”

“Yeah, but to what end? There is something we’re missing. Why would Landry go rogue and run a former STU commando inside ISIS in Europe? He’s not employed by the CIA anymore. What’s his endgame? ”

“I don’t know, Freddy. Landry isn’t bright enough to mastermind anything. He’s not a thinker. Whatever he’s doing, he’s in it for the money or the rush. ”

“I’ll pass all that to CIA and have them keep digging on Landry. Past associates, bank accounts, aliases. We’ll catch a break eventually. Does Mo know where Nawaz is hiding? ”

“He said he moves constantly but that he can lead us to him. ”

“Wait, he agreed? Just like that? ” Freddy asked dubiously.

“Not exactly. ”

“What do you mean, Reece? ”

“He’ll lead us to Nawaz, but only if we give him a shot at Landry. ”

“A shot, like to kill him? ”

“I’m sure he’d like to, but he wants answers. ”

“I would, too. Okay, let me talk to the bosses, but even if they agree, we are going to have to bring Mo in. We don’t have a choice, Reece. He’s a terrorist whether he was being run by a rogue CIA agent or not. ”

“I have another idea. Just hear me out on this. You ever hear of the Selous Scouts? ”

“The Rhodesian guys with the FALs and the nut-hugger shorts? Yeah, I’ve heard of them. Did you spend too much time in Mozambique? What in the hell do they have to do with this? ”

Reece detailed his plan, and Freddy gave it the critical review that his position demanded. In the end, Reece was able to counter each of his friend’s well-directed arguments. Now it was a matter of selling it to the decision makers back at Langley.

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