and see if you can pull out the next place that sub is going to take on fuel. He’s got to be thirsty by now. Where’s he going to stop for a drink?”
Ensign Cooper studied the chart. After a few seconds, he said, “Qatar.”
Commander Vargas looked at Captain Bowie. “Where did you find this kid? The Psychic Hotline?”
“It’s within the sub’s range, if it fueled up in Socotra,” Ensign Cooper said. “The current regime is not particularly friendly to the United States. It’s even roughly in line with the sub’s last known position and the Siraji port of Zubayr.”
“What about Iran?”Lieutenant (jg) Sherman asked. “They’re not big fans of the U.S., and they’ve got tons of coastline that a sub could slip up to.”
“Iran doesn’t like us much,” Ensign Cooper said, “but they hate Siraj a lot more. Those guys have been sniping across the border at each other for thirty years. I doubt the Iranian government would jump through hoops to break an arms embargo against one of their long-running enemies.”
“I’ll admit,” Commander Vargas said, “that Qatar is copping an attitude toward us. But would they risk international censure to help out Siraj?”
“They might, if the money was right,” Ensign Cooper said. “But, if they’re smart, they won’t let the submarine pull into any of their ports. They’ll keep it at sea, so they can claim ignorance if things go bad.”
Captain Bowie frowned. “Does Qatar have any oilers configured for at-sea replenishment?”
Ensign Cooper shook his head. “Not that I know of, sir. But they don’t need one. All they have to do is pull up to an oil platform.”
“An interesting theory,” Lieutenant (jg) Sherman said, “but subs don’t run on crude oil. They’re going to need diesel, and oil platforms aren’t set up to refine crude oil into fuel.”
“Actually, oil platforms
“For their generators and the small boats that work the rigs — that sort of thing.”
Chief McPherson whistled slowly through her teeth. “You
Commander Vargas nodded. “You could be right.”
Captain Bowie nodded also. “Maybe the pond isn’t as big as we thought.”
CHAPTER 43
The president held the receiver to his ear and verified that the green “secure” lamp was lit before speaking. “Okay, Emily. We’re green.”
The voice of British Prime Minister Emily Irons warbled slightly as it came through the encrypted phone. “I appreciate you taking my call at this hour, Frank. I should have checked the time difference before phoning.”
“Don’t give it a second’s thought,” the president said. He did his best to suppress a yawn. Emily Irons wasn’t known for wasting time on pleasantries, and she
“What’s on your mind, Emily?”
“The attack on my embassy,” she said.
The president automatically sat up straighter and tightened the belt of his robe. “I’m listening.”
“The attack was planned by Abdul Kaliq, the Siraji minister of defense, and financed by the government of Siraj through a series of blind bank transactions in the Cayman Islands.”
The president felt a twinge, deep in his bowels. “You’re certain?”
“There’s no room for doubt, Frank. I’ve seen the proof.”
“Are you going to take it to the UN?”
“No,” she said. “I’m going to handle the matter myself.”
“I see,” the president said. “Do you mind if I ask how you found out who was behind the attack?”
The British prime minister paused before answering. “That’s a bit of a sticky question, I’m afraid. I must ask you to trust me when I tell you that you will be
It was the president’s turn to pause. “I had a homeland security briefing yesterday evening. It seems that there was a third man involved in the attack on your embassy — a Mr. Isma’il Hamid. He was struck down by a ruptured appendix before he could carry out his part of the plan. My intelligence people tell me that Hamid disappeared from his hospital bed at Columbia Memorial just about a half-hour before the FBI showed up to take him into custody. The hospital staff is certain that Mr. Hamid was far too sick to escape under his own power. You wouldn’t have any idea where Mr. Hamid disappeared to, would you?”
Emily Irons sighed into the phone. “Frank, I’m a little deaf in my left ear, and I didn’t hear that question. But, whatever it was,
“I see,” the president said again. He rubbed his eyes. “No, Emily, I
“Friedrik Shoernberg
“What?”
“The BND, the German Federal Intelligence Service, had advanced intelligence on Abdul Kaliq’s plan to attack my embassy. I know for a fact that Shoernberg received a detailed brief on the attack at least a week before it happened.”
Frank swallowed. “You’ll have to excuse me, Emily, but I find that a little hard to believe. I’ll grant you that Friedrik has made some pretty dicey decisions lately, but the idea that he would …”
“He
She paused for a few seconds. When she resumed speaking, her voice had a strangely formal quality to it. “Under its current regime, the Federal Republic of Germany constitutes a clear and present danger to the security and the sovereignty of the United Kingdom. In a few hours, I intend to ask Parliament for a formal resolution authorizing war with Germany.”
The president sat in silence for nearly a minute. “Are you certain you want to do this?”
“The Germans attacked my ships, in clear violation of Article 5 of the NATO Charter,” the British prime minister said. “And under Article 5, member nations of NATO are required to take whatever action is necessary to restore the security of the North Atlantic Treaty area.” Her voice took on a hard edge. “The charter doesn’t say we’re
The president closed his eyes. “I assume you’re going to petition the other NATO countries as well …”
“Of course,” Irons said.
“You’ll have trouble getting support,” the president said. “Shoernberg is claiming that your ships fired first at Gibraltar. Without concrete evidence, it’ll be difficult to prove that Germany struck the first blow.”
“The German government
“I know,” the president said. “But both of our countries lost a lot of popularity in NATO when we took on Iraq. Some of our NATO partners will
