the murmurs of shock and amazement died down in the gallery.
‘In the absence of a Vice President, the office of President falls to me as Speaker of the House and the next most senior person in line. Although I have sought this office in the past, I would never have wanted to assume the position under these circumstances; but just as the democratic process that is the backbone of this great country determined the results of the elections I fought and lost, under a little known section of our Constitution, it allows for the arrest of a wayward President by the Senate Sergeant at Arms. Now is not the time for electioneering, now is the time for healing, but, if my colleagues so wish it, I will once again put my name forward for this great office. In the meantime, I do not intend to introduce any substantial items of domestic policy in the months remaining until the next election. In the area of foreign policy, I will do everything I can to restore the good name we once had among those with whom we share this planet. I am reminded of what the great President Harry S. Truman once said from this very spot. In his 1951 State of the Union address, when he was referring to the threat from Communism, he said, and I quote: “The United Nations, the world’s greatest hope for peace, has come through a year of trial stronger and more useful than ever. The free nations have stood together in blocking Communist attempts to tear up the charter.”
I am sad to say that, in recent months, it has been the United States of America that has been trying to rip up the charter. I read a report the other day from the Peres Centre for Peace where 70 per cent of Palestinians and Israelis favour reaching a peace agreement and a surprising number of those are in favour of a Palestinian state. That report suggests to me that one of the greatest obstacles to peace in the Middle East has been self-serving politicians and minority groups on both sides. The Peres Centre is one organisation that is bringing Palestinians and Israelis to work together, sharing ideas in fields like agriculture and business, but more importantly, enabling Israelis and Palestinians alike to get to know, understand and respect each other’s different cultures. You will not find it reported in the mainstream media but young people are bonding amidst the camaraderie on the sports field. Mixed teams of Palestinians and Israelis are being pitted against other teams of Palestinians and Israelis. Like an effective United Nations, if that sort of good will can be harnessed on a greater scale, and if I can move towards spending a billion dollars a week on health and education instead of bombing the populations of Iraq and Lebanon, then whether my fellow Americans decide I should stay put or leave the White House, I will be a very happy man.’ Burton paused again as the Democrats and many on his own side of politics applauded. The shock of the arrest of the President had certainly not subsided, but Davis Burton was widely respected as a man of vision by both sides and already he seemed to be providing hope for a far more peaceful future, not only for the United States, but for the world at large.
‘I don’t agree with Dr Kadeer’s methods but he is right in insisting that Palestinian families have the same aspirations as anyone else. We take for granted in this country that we are able to enrol in a school or a university. Many Palestinian children would give their right arm to have the same opportunity. There’s been far too much bloodshed, and we need to find common ground with other cultures. Just as we would not tolerate an Islamic army camped on the shores of the Potomac, perhaps withdrawal of our armies from around the Islamic holy sites might be feasible. I intend to try and find a way to do that through intermediaries in the United Nations.’
Thousands of kilometres away, Dr Kahlid Kadeer watched the address and wondered if this was an infidel who could be trusted, although Kadeer knew that it was now too late. He had received word from al-Falid that all the teams were in position and the final rehearsals for putting the virus into the airconditioning systems had begun.
‘Finally, to the fundamentalists of all religions who believe that theirs is the only path to salvation, I would ask them to ponder what sort of a God would oversee the creation of a billion Christians, a billion Muslims and over four billion people of other paths and faiths, then in some obscene cosmological joke, declare that only one group had been given the map. What sort of a God would rapture up a small proportion of his creation and leave the rest to burn in a sulphurous chasm? What sort of a God demonstrates his Greatness by destroying thousands of innocent women and children? That is not the sort of God I want to worship, and those who think their God sanctions horrific violence have not read the script, and it comes in more than one language,’ he concluded, mirroring the views of Kadeer.
‘In the time available to me I will do everything I can to negotiate a meaningful peace in the Middle East that is fair to all sides, but I cannot do it on my own, and I would appeal to the moderates of all cultures and faiths to meet me halfway. Compromise is not a weakness but a wisdom.’
As the distinguished Davis Burton left the podium, the members of Congress got to their feet and applauded. Not all Americans would agree with his decision to try and find common ground with someone like Khalid Kadeer, but given the alternative, they were prepared to let him try. America had not seen a politician of such vision in a long time.
CHAPTER 97
C urtis parked the car the US Embassy had lent him and he and Kate covered the last 500 metres to the entrance on foot. The bear farm was in darkness and Kate followed Curtis as he kept close to the pine trees surrounding the compound. Neither needed the satellite maps and imagery they’d been poring over to know when they’d reached the bear compound; the stench was enough. Curtis propped just past the gap in the mound and signalled Kate to stop.
‘Wait here,’ he whispered.
The continuous satellite surveillance of the bear farm had provided imagery of people coming and going between the administration building on the left and the accommodation building at the top of the small rise above them. The big KeyHole satellites had provided night vision of one or two guards patrolling but tonight the whole place seemed deserted, except for the vehicle outside the accommodation block. Curtis moved forward cautiously across the open ground and was nearly two-thirds of the way to the vehicle when a big set of sensor lights flooded the compound. Curtis ran towards the trees and dived into cover as three bullets whistled past his ears.
From behind the mound Kate could see whoever had come out of the building moving towards the edge of the trees and, holding her pistol against the mound to steady it, she fired off three quick shots.
Earlier in the evening, in the city of Shanghai, the residents had gone wild as the Olympic torch was paraded along the Bund beside the Huangpu River, past elegant and imposing buildings that reflected Shanghai’s colonial past. Across the river in the Pudong New Area, the viewing platforms in the Pearl TV tower and one of the world’s tallest buildings, the Jin Mao, had been packed.
Further north in a warehouse on the outskirts of Beijing, the team leaders al-Falid had trained at the bear farm were being issued with syringes.
‘Under no circumstance are the vials to be opened until you’re ready to use them,’ al-Falid’s commander in Beijing directed, picking up a cheap plastic syringe which could be bought in any drugstore. ‘The nozzles on these syringes have been modified slightly to produce a fine mist in the shape of a fan.’ He opened a vial of coloured water, filled the syringe and, holding it about 10 centimeters from the intake duct of an air conditioner, sprayed it with an even coat of the liquid. ‘Once you and your teams have completed putting the virus into the systems you’ve been allocated, wipe the syringes and vials clean of any fingerprints and dispose of them in a rubbish bin as far away from the building you work in as possible.’
Confused as to how the intruder might have got back to the bear enclosure so quickly, al-Falid fired three more shots towards the gap on the mound.
Kate winced as a bullet grazed her left shoulder. Ignoring the pain she lay on the ground and returned fire.
Curtis counted the shots as he worked his way up through the pine forest, circling back towards his quarry. He was 10 metres above the man when Kate fired again. Go girl! Curtis thought. He could see his quarry through the trees and as the man returned fire, his face was silhouetted by the sensor lights. Curtis would have recognised that nose anywhere. al-Falid fired at Kate twice more, then there was a resounding click. Less than 5 metres from the man who had set out to destroy civilisation, Curtis calmly took aim and fired. al-Falid grabbed his stomach, his pistol and the new magazine tumbling onto the pine needles.
