they descended down the steps to the Bay, where they repacked their gear in the waterproof backpacks and swam back to the boat.
Stroble and Hackett were waiting for them. As soon as Coleman and O’Rourke were on board, they raised the anchor and headed back out into the Bay. Once they reached the
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other side, they turned north for Baltimore. All four of them were gathered on the fly deck. The windscreen shielded them from most of the breeze, but the night air was still frigid. Hackett was telling them that he didn’t think it would be difficult to take Arthur out. “I can’t believe that a guy who’s that paranoid about security is dumb enough to step out in the open like that just to smoke a cigar.”
“They’re all alike … all over the world,” scoffed Stroble. “They all have a weakness.
some little habit that they won’t let go of.”
“How hard do you think it would be to kidnap him?” asked O’Rourke. “A lot harder than shooting him in the head from one hundred and fifty feet,” responded Hackett.
“You’re not really considering that as an option, are you?”
“I would like to get inside his head and find out what in the hell he and Mike Nance were talking about.” O’Rourke looked at Coleman, who was concentrating on the water ahead of them. He knew Coleman was thinking the same thing. Without taking his eyes off the water Coleman said, “It can be done, but we’ll have to take the guards out.”
“Why?”
“Those guys are not your average security guards. If they’re guarding Arthur, that means they’re good.”
“How good?”
“Good enough that if we try to sneak up on them, one of us will end up dead.”
“What about shooting them with a tranquilizer gun?”
Coleman thought about it for a second and asked Hackett, “Any chance we could take them out with tranquilizers?” Hackett shook his head. “Too much wind coming off the
Bay, and the distances are too far. It looked like the guards were wearing body armor, so we’d have to hit them in the neck. From the distances we’d have to shoot, I wouldn’t give us better than a fifty-fifty chance of hitting the mark.” O’Rourke thought about killing the guards. He had killed several Iraqis during the war, but this would be more personal.
“What type of men are they?
Do they work for CIA?”
“No. They’re professional mercenaries. Probably men who have worked for him in the past.” Coleman scanned to the port and starboard sides, checking for any other vessels in the area. “Michael, the only way we can do it is to take the guards out. We can either take Arthur out, without knowing what’s going on, or we can grab him and find out what he and Nance are up to I say we grab him, but the decision is yours.”
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IRENE KENNEDY WAS SOUND ASLEEP. AFTER ARRIVING HOME FROM
THE Pentagon late the previous evening, she didn’t even have the energy to take off her clothes. She plopped down on the covers and was out in seconds.
Through her deep sleep she sensed that she wasn’t alone in her bedroom.
Someone was watching her. She opened her eyes’and saw the intruder.
Looking back at her were a pair of little brown eyes. They belonged to her four-year-old son, Tommy. He was staring at her with a frown on his face and a juice box stuck in his mouth. Irene blinked her eyes several times and tried to rub the sleep out of them.
Tommy pulled the juice box away from his lips and asked, “Why are you sleeping in your clothes?” Irene ignored the question and held out her arms. “Give Mommy a hug.”
Tommy set his beverage down on the nightstand and jumped up onto the big bed.
Irene gave him a warm hug and kissed his forehead.
“How have you been?” she asked as she rubbed her hand through his blond hair.
“Good.” Tommy liked to give one-word answers. “How have you and Mrs. Rosensteel been getting along?”
“Fine. She told me to let you sleep.”
“She’s here?”
“Yep.” Irene bolted upright. “What time is it?”
She looked at the bedside clock and suppressed the urge to swear. She jumped off the bed and picked up Tommy. “Mommy’s late, honey. Go ask Mrs. Rosensteel to make me a cup of coffee, please.” Irene patted him on his little butt and headed for the bathroom.
She showered in under three minutes and got dressed. Today would be a pants day. No time to shave the legs. With her hair still wet she shoved her makeup kit in her purse and headed for the kitchen. Tommy’s nanny handed her a cup of coffee in a large to-go mug, and Irene thanked her. She dropped down to one knee and kissed Tommy on the forehead. “I’ll call you from the office.”
Standing, she added, “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” Tommy waved as she ran out the door. Minutes later Irene was battling traffic on her way downtown. She reminded herself to call her mother and ask her to stop by and see Tommy. Since these
