“Good,” Hawk said. “I’m going to need you to help us set up some visual surveillance around the facility and along the pipeline.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem.”
“We also need to talk to this Dorman guy, make sure he understands we’re not here to step on his toes.”
Moore sighed. “This ought to be interesting.”
* * *
THE TEAM TOOK TWO HOURS to rest and get situated in the house Moore rented for them for the week. Samuels stayed behind with Alex to get all the computer equipment fully functional. Moore rode with Hawk out to Verge’s plant to get a quick face-to-face meeting with Dorman.
When they pulled up to the security office, Dorman was standing outside, hands on his hips, with a dark green hardhat on, chewing on a cigar. He barely acknowledged their arrival other than to swat at the dust cloud kicked up by the braking Humvee.
“Moore,” Dorman said in a gravelly voice, “is this meeting really necessary? You know I’m going to say no to whatever it is you’re asking for.”
Hawk offered his hand. “Brady Hawk.”
Dorman didn’t move, glancing down at Hawk’s hand. “Who is this newbie? He’s way too enthusiastic to be from around here.”
“He’s the agent I told you about on the phone,” Moore said. “They believe there’s a credible threat to the Verge pipeline and facility that could occur within the next day or two.”
Dorman laughed and crossed his arms. “What kind of credible threat are we talking about here? Certainly not one I’ve heard of.”
“It came straight from the Pentagon,” Hawk said.
“Oh, the Pentagon,” Moore roared. “As if Washington doesn’t have enough problems of their own that they have to come mucking around in our sandbox. Need I remind you that it was Washington that created this mess out here in the first place?”
Hawk took a step back. “Look, Washington didn’t send me. It’s complicated, but I’m not here to meddle in your operation. However, I am here to assure that Al Hasib doesn’t turn Kuwait’s sand black and take down the world’s economy.”
Dorman broke into a hearty laugh, taking his cigar out of his mouth. “You think something like that is going to happen on my watch? You’re sorely mistaken. I’ve got some of the best trained security professionals in the world who could handle anything thrown at them.”
“Normal sabotage, one-off attacks—sure,” Hawk said. “I think you could defend against those, but that’s not how Al Hasib operates.”
“I didn’t know Al Hasib even existed any more. I thought they went the way of the dinosaur.”
“Well, they’re back and itching to make a splash in Kuwait City by bombing the Verge facility.”
Dorman shook his head. “That still makes no sense. From what I know, they used to get most of their funding through people making money off this pipeline. It’d be crazy for them to do that.”
“Not if they’re getting a new source of income. But I can’t get into all that right now. All I can ask is that you trust me on this one.”
Dorman put his hands back on his hips and rocked back and forth from his heels to his toes. “I’m afraid you traveled a long way for no good reason, Mr. Hawk. I’m not inclined to give carte blanche access to my facility to some wet-behind-the-ears operative, especially when you can’t even tell me anything beyond your veiled statements.”
Moore finally spoke. “Come on, Dorman. Hawk and his team are legit, certainly not fresh meat. They’ve taken out more than their fair share of terrorists.”
Dorman scowled. “According to who? Them? Or is that just another piece of information they aren’t at liberty to disclose?”
“According to a longtime friend of mine who supervises them.”
“And who might that be?”
“J.D. Blunt.”
Dorman’s face relaxed, and he turned to look at Hawk, eyeing him closely. “You work for J.D. Blunt?”
Hawk nodded.
“Why didn’t you say so in the first place? Blunt is a good friend of mine, too. He taught me the finer points of chewing on a cigar.”
Hawk exhaled. “So, you’re good with us assisting your security team over the next couple days to make sure we neutralize this threat?”
Dorman stroked his face with his hand and stared past Hawk. “I guess we can make that work. But I need to set up some clear boundaries. And you need to understand one very important thing.”
“What’s that?” Hawk asked.
“I’m in charge, no matter what. No engagement with hostiles unless I get the okay for it. Understand?”
“Absolutely,” Hawk said.
“Good,” Dorman said. “Let me connect you with one of my assistants who can get you everything you need.”
After the meeting concluded, Hawk and Moore returned to the house to gather the rest of the team and set up additional motion detection cameras at key points along the pipeline near the oil production facility. Moore volunteered to drive farther out and set some up as far as two hundred kilometers away. Four hours later, Hawk was satisfied they had the surveillance equipment necessary to spot an attack, and they went back to the house to catch a few hours of sleep before monitoring the pipeline and facility during the night.
* * *
FIVE MINUTES PAST 1:00 A.M., the first motion detection alarm went off on Alex’s machine.
“That didn’t take long,” Alex muttered while Hawk and Samuels scrambled out the door and into the Humvee.
The two men raced out to the point along the pipeline where the movement had been detected. Hawk peered through his infrared binoculars across the rising sands for a sign of the aggressors.
“I see them,” Hawk said. “Three hostiles to the northwest.”
Samuels looked in the direction Hawk suggested. “I see them too. I also see two hostiles in the northeast.”
Hawk set down his binoculars and pulled out his sniper rifle.
“What are you doing?” Samuels asked. “Moore said we weren’t to engage any hostiles without Dorman’s permission.”
“Have you ever heard the saying, ‘Act now, ask for forgiveness later?’”
