Sword of God

basic medical and dental care. But in emergencies, USAF flight surgeon support was available from Prince Sultan Hospital and other neighboring bases.

'Obviously, we didn't admit our fuckup. We rarely do. But we knew we couldn't send Schmidt's crew right back into action. Half his men were hospitalized; the other half were pissed. So we decided to give them some extended downtime in the plush confines of Al-Gaim.'

Jones smirked. 'Not exactly a trip to the Ritz. Yet better than Baghdad.'

Payne ignored his partner, focusing on the missing details of Harrington's explanation. 'Unless I'm mistaken, you still haven't mentioned the incident.'

Harrington nodded. 'Schmidt and his men were valuable assets, and we tried to smooth things over by flying in the families of the wounded. Some of them were in intensive care, so we figured it was the least we could for morale purposes. Turns out it made things worse.'

'How so?'

'Just look at the report. Everything's in there.'

Payne shook his head. 'I'd rather hear it from you.'

Harrington stared at Payne, still trying to figure him out. Payne's credentials were impeccable, yet he still didn't have a feel for the man. Who was he? The decorated soldier who captained one of the finest fighting units in modern warfare, or a burned-out officer who retired from the military in his midthirties for a cushy desk job in a penthouse office? Until he figured that out, Harrington was going to analyze Payne's every move and second-guess his every action.

But for the time being, he decided to play along and answer his questions.

'As I mentioned, we brought in their families. I'm talking parents, wives, kids, girlfriends. We even flew in a dog. We had extra housing at Al-Gaim, so we figured what the fuck.' Harrington paused, garnering his thoughts. 'The third morning we bused them over to the hospital for visiting hours, just like we'd done the previous two days. Schmidt actually drove them himself, making sure his wounded men and their families were as comfortable as possible before he left for a briefing back at Taif Air Base.'

Jones smiled. 'That sounds like Trevor. He was a top-notch soldier but a better person.'

'Maybe back then. But after the incident, the Schmidt you knew ceased to exist.'

Middle East

4

Friday, December 29

Taif, Saudi Arabia

(Forty-one miles southeast of Mecca)

A cloud of sand followed the car as it turned off the main highway and bounced across the rough road that led to the compound. Fred Nasir was a tanned middle-aged man wearing a baseball cap, sunglasses, and casual clothes. He grinned as he parked his Toyota Camry, the most popular car in Saudi Arabia, near the front gate. Thrilled to finally be there.

A team of American soldiers, wearing desert camouflage and carrying assault rifles, swarmed the car before Nasir had a chance to open his door. Some looked under his vehicle with mirrors attached to long poles, while others probed his trunk for explosives. The men moved in unison, like a NASCAR pit crew, doing their designated task without getting in each other's way. Finally, after thirty seconds, an all clear was given.

But instead of returning to their posts, the soldiers took five steps back and aimed their weapons at the car. Suddenly Nasir was in their crosshairs, a split second away from death. Certainly not the greeting he was expecting.

His heart leaped into his throat.

The lead guard moved forward, raised his handgun, and aimed it at Nasir's face. He held it there. Silent. Poised and ready to shoot. He did not smile. He did not blink. He simply waited for Nasir to do something stupid. A flinch. A twitch. Even a sneeze would have resulted in a nasty scene. But Nasir remained frozen. Calm. At least on the outside. Internally, he was having a far different reaction. His heart was racing, his stomach was churning, adrenaline was surging like a tsunami. Yet what could he do? At this moment he had to play by their rules.

Seconds ticked like minutes while the tension continued to mount. Finally the guard tilted the angle of his gun upward and used its muzzle to tap on the glass. The click, click, click was a welcome sound to the driver, who took a deep breath and slowly lowered his window. A rush of hot desert air surged into the car, returning the color to Nasir's cheeks.

'Papers?' the guard asked. It was more of an order than a question.

Nasir obliged, careful not to move too quickly. Still conscious of the crosshairs.

'Nationality?'

'I'm an American.'

'Really? You look foreign to me.'

'Yet I'm an American. Look at my passport.'

The guard sneered and leaned closer. 'Are you telling me what to do?'

'No! Of course not. I would never do that. I'm just-'

'You're just what?'

Nasir took a deep breath. He couldn't believe he had been talked into this. It was going all wrong. 'I'm just an American. That's all I'm saying.'

The guard stared at Nasir's face, then glanced at his passport. It looked valid. So did his travel visa and the rest of his paperwork. He lowered his weapon and signaled the on-duty officer in the security booth. 'State your business.'

'I'm here to meet a friend in the main dining hall.'

He glanced at a list of visitors and noticed Nasir's name. His visit had been preapproved. 'Good choice. The delivery truck just rolled in from our commissary over in Riyadh. Those guys hook us up whenever they can. Rumor has it they brought in a case of Oreos today.'

Another security guard, who heard the tail end of the conversation, approached with Nasir's parking pass. 'Double Stuf Oreos. That means twice the cream.'

Nasir tried to look enthused but had more important things to worry about than cookies.

'Put this on your dash and park your car in the guest lot.' The guard pointed to a row of cars just inside the compound walls. Flashing his gun, he added, 'And don't worry about it being stolen. It's the safest parking lot in the world.'

If not for the snipers and the barbed-wire fence, Al-Gaim would have felt like Main Street, U.S.A. Nasir was surrounded by dozens of American-style homes of all shapes and sizes, each of them furnished with televisions, dishwashers, microwaves, washers, and dryers. An Olympic-size swimming pool graced the community, as did racquetball, tennis, and basketball courts. Farther down, there was a movie theater and a four-lane bowling alley.

All in all, it wasn't a bad place to live-as long as the first axiom of real estate was ignored. The one that stressed the importance of location, location, location. Despite having all the charms of suburbia, Al-Gaim was nestled in the volatile foothills of Saudi Arabia, deep in the heart of Islam. Where the average daytime temperature was pretty close to hell's.

Thankfully, Nasir's walk to the rendezvous point was a short one. He strolled quickly, trying to ignore all the snipers who were watching him. His only concern was getting to the dining hall, where he had to follow the strict orders he'd been given over the phone.

Take a seat. Pour a glass of water. Try to remain calm.

But the truth was, Nasir was petrified. If he were caught, he would be killed. It was as simple as that. There wouldn't be a trial. There wouldn't be a jury. There would simply be an execution, one where his body wouldn't be found and his family wouldn't be notified. He would simply disappear into the desert, a mystery that would never be solved.