'No, I'll call you right back,' Kline insisted urgently.
'Why?' Hood asked. 'What happened?'
'The incoming call,' Kline said. 'It's news from Father Bradbury.'
THIRTY-MIME
Washington, D.C. Friday, 9:00 AM.
Before phoning Darrell McCaskey, Mike Rodgers needed to put in a call to his friend Lieutenant Colonel Matt Mazer at the Pentagon. Rodgers wanted Mazer to call ahead to the airport in Gaborone. He wanted to make sure the plane carrying Aideen Marley and David Battat to Maun was given a thorough security check. The airfield as well. Maybe it was an attack on the bishop himself. Or maybe someone was shooting Americans. Rodgers wanted to make sure Aideen and Battat were protected.
Rodgers had just hung up with Mazer, when Darrell meCaskey swung into his office.
'Mind if I come in?' McCaskey asked.
'No. I'm glad you're here, Darrell,' Rodgers said. 'I was just going to give you a holler.'
'What about?' McCaskey asked.
'I've heard from Maria,' Rodgers replied.
'And?'
'She's doing all right,' Rodgers said.
'Just 'all right'?'
'No, she's fine,' Rodgers said. This was not coming out the way he wanted. Rodgers had been in combat situations that were easier than this.
McCaskey eyed the general warily. 'I hear a 'but' there, Mike,' McCaskey said.
'What you hear is frustration, Darrell, because I feel like a genie in a goddamn bottle,' Rodgers said.
'Mike, what the hell are you talking about?' ^McCaskey asked.
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'I'm talking about things happening on the outside that affect what we do,' Rodgers said. 'The bottle gets rubbed, we jump into service with all our resources, and we have very little control over any of it.' He took a short, deep breath. 'Yes, Maria is all right. But she was at the airport in Maun when a security guard, or someone posing as a security guard, killed the American bishop.'
'What?' McCaskey declared. 'They killed the bishop who just flew over there?'
'Yes,' Rodgers said.
'How did it happen?' McCaskey asked as he eased into a chair. His voice was flat and professional. For the moment.
'He was killed by a gunshot at close range,' Rodgers told him. 'When the killer tried to board a small plane that was apparently waiting for him, the pilot shot him.'
'A patsy,' McCaskey said.
'No doubt,' Rodgers said.
'And Maria?'
'She was on the sidelines, but she's pretty sure she ID'ed one of the men who was on site,' Rodgers said. 'She thinks it was a Brush Viper. She's following him in a taxi.'
'Did the Brush Viper participate in any way?' McCaskey asked.
'Not that she could see,' Rodgers said.
'I see. Does Maria have backup?' McCaskey asked.
'Aideen Marley and David Battat will be arriving in Gaborone shortly,' Rodgers told him. 'They'll be in Maun in about three hours. I left a message for Aideen on her cell phone. Calls are being relayed by our consulate in Gaborone. She'll call before they catch the connecting flight, and I'll bring them up to speed.'
'What about local police?' McCaskey asked.
'They were not present, and she left without them,' Rodgers said. 'It would have taken them about a half hour to get there.'
'But you'll let them know where Maria is,' McCaskey said.
'She doesn't want that,' Rodgers replied.
'Does that matter?' McCaskey asked.
'Yes, it does,' Rodgers said. 'Maria is hoping the Brush
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Viper may lead her to Dhamballa and Father Bradbury. She doesn't want to do anything to signal her presence.'
