“Don’t worry about Bob,” Thorny said. “He’s had a complete briefing. I didn’t want him involved in the dynamics of this operation unless he knew everything. Bob’s very resourceful.”
“Being the personal aide to the commandant of the Marine Corps has its advantages?” Harv asked.
“Indeed it does,” Halliday replied.
Thorny rolled his window down a little. “So what’s your plan?”
“Harv and I talked about this. Whatever we do, it has to be covert. It can’t be leaked that we’re after him. We’ll only get one shot. If we miss, he’ll disappear forever. We’ll start at Lake Powell, where Kramer’s body was dumped. We’re getting some help from the FBI, but there’s a number of things we want to look into. Where Kramer was staying, and why. Where Montez stayed, if anywhere, and the location he used to torture Kramer. We plan to look into every rented, leased, or stolen boat in the area just prior to Kramer’s death. I doubt Montez is doing much himself, it’s not his style. He’ll have mercenaries doing the heavy lifting. They’ll probably be Hispanic. Maybe they were seen. Harv and I are flying out there this afternoon. In the meantime there’s something you could do for us.”
“Name it.”
“See what you can dig up on Kramer and Montez with any intelligence agencies you have trusted contacts in. Discreetly, if possible.”
“In my circles, there’s no such thing as discreet. Harv, you’ve been awfully quiet.”
“It’s no secret I’d like to see Montez skinned. But we can’t let that compromise our mission, assuming we’ve officially agreed to find him. Have we?”
“Yes,” Nathan said.
“Then you should know,” Thorny said, “this is purely a Marine Intelligence operation, and off the books at that.”
“Sounds familiar,” Harv said under his breath.
“You know the score. It’s your call how it goes down.”
“As in dead or alive?” Nathan asked.
“If the opportunity presents itself, we’d prefer to get Montez alive for obvious reasons. He’s a walking gold mine of military intelligence. We’ve got MIAs all over the globe, some in Central America. We might be able to close some files and give some families closure.”
Harv said, “I guess it wouldn’t break my heart to see Montez get a dose of his own medicine.”
“Look, I’m only asking you to bring him in if the opportunity presents itself. But under no circumstances are you to risk your lives. Clear?”
Nathan’s cell interrupted them. He looked at the screen.
“General, I’m sorry, but I should take this. It’s SAC Simpson.”
“Go ahead.”
“Hi, Holly, I have you on speaker. Harv, General Robert Hawthorne, and his aide Major Halliday are with me.”
“Hello, gentlemen.”
“Nice to meet you, SAC Simpson.”
“A few hours ago, a woman was kidnapped at gunpoint from the Fashion Valley Mall in San Diego. I think it could be connected to Kramer’s murder.”
“Why is that?” Thorny asked.
“I was doing a search in the NCIC database with the keywords
“Hungarian,” Thorny said.
Nathan glanced at Harv.
“And she was abducted today? There’s no way that’s a coincidence,” Thorny said. “No way.”
Nathan squinted. A slideshow of a woman being tortured by Montez invaded his thoughts.
“There’s more,” Holly said. “Her two daughters are also missing, presumed kidnapped. The report said they’re eight and nine years old. San Diego PD activated the amber alert system.”
“That’s a bad deal,” Harv said.
It was no secret Nathan held a soft place in his heart for kids. He forced the images aside and tried to stay focused. “We need to find out all we can about any potential Kramer-Dalton connection as soon as possible. Holly, can you send us more info on this? Pictures of Ms. Dalton and her daughters, the police report, and anything else you’ve got?”
“Sure. Can we set up an encrypted fax line at your office?”
Harv jumped in. “No problem, I’ll take care of it within the hour.”
“General Hawthorne,” Holly said. “I hate to tell you this, but there was another victim in this morning’s kidnapping. An off-duty Miramar MP was shot to death while trying to stop Dalton’s attackers.”
“One of my Marines was murdered? I want the details,” Thorny said.
“I’ll forward a copy of the police report to you, General.”
“Well, if I wasn’t before,” Thorny said with venom in his voice, “I am thoroughly pissed off now.”
“Don’t worry, General,” Harv said. “Well get them.”
“Think about what this means,” Nathan said. “If Montez
“That’s not necessarily true,” said Harv. “Given the time that’s elapsed, he could be anywhere.”
Nathan thought for a moment. “I still say we go out to Utah. But let’s keep a close eye on developments in the Nichole Dalton case. General, can you add her to the list? See what your sources can dig up?”
“I report to the secretary of the navy. He’s friends with the NSA’s director.”
“Will the secretary of the navy keep your inquiry confidential?” Nathan asked.
“He will if I ask him to.”
“What about the NSA’s director?”
“I can’t guarantee that. All I can do is ask a friend to ask a friend. You know the drill.”
“It’s your call, General.”
Thorny grunted, obviously still upset about his murdered Marine.
“Is it possible the Hungarian government might be involved in both cases?” Harvey asked.
“It’s a possibility,” Nathan conceded. “Pretty bold move if they are. Hiring Montez to torture and murder a U.S. citizen on U.S. soil?”
“Gentlemen, I need to step into a meeting,” Holly said. “I’ll be back in touch shortly. Nice meeting you, General, Major.”
“SAC Simpson,” Thorny said, “the pleasure’s been mine. Great work on the NCIC search. Sharp thinking.”
“Thank you, General,” she said. “Nathan, I’ll call you with anything new. Have a safe flight.”
Nathan ended the call.
“Make sure you copy my office on that police report when Simpson sends it to you. If Montez or his goons killed my Marine, I want that Nicaraguan’s skin hanging on my wall.”
Nathan looked away. So much for capturing Montez alive to track down MIAs.
Harv executed an illegal U-turn and reentered traffic.
When Thorny spoke, he sounded calmer. “Nate, I know you’re worried about leaks, but at the pay grades we’re talking about, I highly doubt Montez has any way to find out what we’re doing. I think we’ll be okay.”
He wasn’t sure he was in agreement, but he didn’t see a better way to proceed.
“I’ll call the secretary of the navy once I’m airborne and ask him to call the NSA’s director,” Thorny said. “Since there won’t be any real way to keep this under wraps at that point, I’ll also ask him to call CIA Director Rebecca Cantrell. And since both of them report to the Director of National Intelligence, it’s a good bet the DNI will become involved. And you know who the DNI reports to.”
Nathan did.
