“Correct.”
“That’s it, then.”
“What’s that?” Joe asked.
“Whatever this is about has to do with Abbott in either the month before or the month after that meeting in Greece. Or whatever happened in Greece.”
“What makes you so sure?”
“It stands to reason that whatever happened, he made some kind of deal with Dalton. She was the first one involved with him. Then she went to Ukraine to recruit the others.”
“Possibly, but we cannot say for certain what that meeting was about. Could be anything at this point.”
“Where was Abbott before and after that meeting?”
“Right before that, he was in Italy,” Joe answered. “After leaving Greece, he went to Poland.”
“Wait a minute,” the analyst said, interrupting the conversation. “They met up again a few months after that.”
“What?”
“They were in Greece again at the same time.”
“When?”
“Two weeks before Abbott came home.”
Joe looked at the others. “That’s not a coincidence.”
“No, it’s not,” Bridge said. “Greece is the target.”
“Well, we still don’t know that for sure.”
Bridge sighed, then backed away from the others and started pacing the room. There were more things going through his mind.
“What is it?” Nicole asked.
Bridge stopped and folded his arms. His head shook a little as he tried to formulate his thoughts. “I still can’t help but think we got this all wrong.”
“How so?” Joe asked.
“All this time, we assumed this was about Abbott and a mole. Maybe it’s Kenny, maybe someone else, and I just can’t help but think this has nothing to do with that. Speaking of which, do you have any evidence that suggests anything he told you regarding a mole is true?”
“Just a lot of hearsay and rumors. He came through with some documents for us that never led anywhere.”
“There’s something else,” Nicole said.
Bridge took a deep breath before continuing. “This is what I think, obviously without proof. I have a feeling that Abbott and Dalton came to some kind of agreement, probably with something illegal, and their plan was to throw off their activities by coming up with this bogus story of a mole. They’d know you were more worried about that than finding out about whatever they were doing.”
“What about Kenny?”
“Well, I think that Dalton recruited him, and Magareth, when she went to Ukraine. All this time, we were going under the assumption that Kenny was the leader of this thing, probably because we were working under the theory that he was the mole. But if there is no mole, then that kind of takes him out of the picture. If he and Abbott never appeared together, then he’s not the main guy.”
“Unless he used a disguise and a different name to do that,” Joe said.
“Always possible with a man like him. But I’m thinking this was something between Dalton and Abbott. She recruited the others.”
“For what purpose?” Nicole asked.
Bridge shrugged. “Either she planned to betray Abbott all along, or maybe she got them for protection, or maybe they just needed some extra help to pull off whatever they were doing. I’m not sure.”
“That’s a lot of good theories,” Joe said. “But they’re just that. Theories.”
“But they make sense.”
“They do. But we can’t prove them anymore than we can prove the other ones we were working under.”
Bridge then looked at Nicole. “I think it’s time we booked a flight.”
“Where we going?”
“Europe.”
“Now hold on,” Joe said. “If you’re thinking of going over there to try to follow them, we don’t know exactly where they are right now.”
“I think we have a good idea.”
“They flew into Paris. How’s that play into it, if at all?”
“I don’t think it does,” Bridge asked. “If they think we’re watching, they’re not going to lead us directly to where they’re going. They’re going somewhere completely irrelevant.”
“We still need to figure out who that fourth man is,” Nicole said.
“Any ideas?”
“Not as yet,” Joe replied. “Until we get some type of lead, could be anybody at this point. Could be someone that any one of them know that’s not tied to the others.”
“I still think we should go.”
“As you may know, we do have teams over there.”
“But none of them are me.”
“Well, I can’t argue with you there.”
“And it’s my client who’s missing. No one else is going to have a bigger incentive to find him than I do.”
“He’s an American citizen, Luke. Last I checked, protecting them is part of our job description.”
“But there’s more in play than just that.”
“You don’t work for me. I can’t tell you what you can or can’t do.”
“But you could give me support,” Bridge said.
Joe smiled. “Are you offering your services in conjunction with an off-the-books CIA operation?”
Bridge nodded. “I guess I am.”
“Well then… I guess I accept.”
“What can you give me?”
“We have a substation in Athens. Go there. I’ll alert them that you’re coming. You’ll get everything you need and complete cooperation.”
“Assuming that’s where these guys are going,” Nicole said. “It’s well over a full day from Paris to Greece by car.”
“Maybe they drove into Italy or Germany, then took another flight under different names again,” Bridge said.
“I guess anything’s possible.”
“You’re convinced that Greece is the target here?” Joe asked.
“Not convinced. Just making an educated guess.”
“Well then, we’ll just have to keep digging here to make sure that that guess is supported then, won’t we?”
“Yes, sir.”
“How soon can you be ready?”
“We can be in the air by the end of today.”
“Looks as though you two need to get moving then.”
“I assume we’ll need some identification?”
“When you get to the substation, you’ll need a code phrase.”
“What is it?”
“I’m an American tourist.”
“His reply?”
“Aren’t we all?”
Bridge looked at Nicole. “Looks like we’re going on a trip.”
16
Once Bridge and Nicole arrived in Greece, they immediately checked in at the CIA substation in Athens. They didn’t even bother with a hotel first. They wanted to make sure they got off running as soon as they got on the ground. After going to the address that they were given, they stood outside of it. It was a small two-story building at the end of a shopping district.
“They sure picked
