“I just thought you would want to know because if the prisoner is one of your agents, I’d hate for him to get stranded over there.”
Blunt chuckled. “And you think I can just whip up some extraction team out of thin air to rescue him.”
“No, I just thought we might be able to make an exchange.”
“And negotiate with terrorists? Fortner’s not gonna go for that.”
White sighed. “Look, I’m trying to help you out here. Are you even missing an agent?”
“What’s the name?”
“So you are missing an agent?”
“The name, Al.”
“Well, it’s classified, J.D., and—”
“Are we gonna do some bureaucratic dance now after even protocol has been broken?”
“Fine. The name they gave me was Titus Black.”
Hawk’s eyes widened as he glanced back and forth between Blunt and Alex. A smile spread across Alex’s lips as she mouthed the words “he’s alive” to Hawk.
There was a long pause as the trio exchanged knowing glances.
“J.D., are you still there?” White asked.
“Let me get back to you,” Blunt said. “And, Al?”
“What?”
“Thanks. I trust you’ll remain discreet about the fact that you disclosed this information to us.”
“Always.”
Blunt ended the call and rubbed his hands together. “Sounds like we need to get to work.”
CHAPTER 3
THE NEXT DAY at the Phoenix Foundation offices, Hawk and Alex prepared for the prisoner exchange by plotting out all of the details necessary for a smooth operation. Blunt worked through back channels to arrange for the return of a high profile asset, noting how difficult it was without being able to give out Black’s name. By the end of the afternoon, they all reconvened to discuss their progress and share their prospects for a successful swap.
Hawk wore a hint of a smile on his lips as he settled into his seat next to Alex.
“What is it?” Blunt asked before snipping off the end of his cigar and gnawing on it. “You don’t look nearly as depressed as you did yesterday.”
“I’m not sure losing Ramin Torabi is that big of a blow for us,” Hawk said. “I did a little digging, and I think I know why Evana prioritized his return.”
“And are you going to tell us why, or do you want to make us guess?” Blunt asked.
“Ramin is family, second cousins with Evana to be precise,” Hawk said. “It’s not like he’s some key cog in the newly-formed Al Fatihin wheel.”
“And if he were, it'd be a surefire way to tip their hand,” Alex said. “Good observation.”
Blunt shrugged. “Maybe you’re right. However, I feel like there’s something more to this that we’re not seeing. This has all the makings of another setup.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Hawk said. “I think this was clearly a ploy to secure the return of Ramin, which is significant for reasons other than the mere construction of a viable terrorist group.”
“Pray tell, what is that reason?” Blunt asked before shielding his mouth with the back of his hand and turning toward Alex. “Remind me never to give Hawk analyst access again. He’s a little too eager to show off in this meeting.”
Alex laughed softly before cutting her eyes toward Hawk.
“Will you two knock it off,” Hawk said. “This is beyond serious.”
“Okay, fine,” Blunt said. “Please continue. Just don't make me guess anymore about what you found, all right?”
Hawk nodded and proceeded to share his findings. “Ramin also happens to be the son of Amir Torabi, the HadithTel cell phone magnate. He’s worth nearly a billion dollars, and HadithTel is experiencing significant growth throughout the region. It’s the perfect way for her to dip into his deep pockets and get some under-the-table funding.”
“Ramin has proven worthless when it comes to gleaning information, so if we trade him away, we’re not losing anything,” Blunt said. “But the relationship between HadithTel and Al Fatihin will be an important one for CIA analysts to delve into.”
“So, you think trading him won’t be a problem?” Hawk asked.
Blunt shrugged. “Depends on if they have some other value for him that we don’t know about it.”
“I can’t imagine what that would be,” Hawk said.
“That’s because you’re a field agent,” Blunt said with a wink.
“Are you suggesting that I didn’t do a good job with this?”
Blunt waved his hand dismissively. “Not at all, despite your eagerness to impress. However, sometimes there are other elements in play that we aren’t necessarily privy too. Even with the supposed cooperation between all the agencies, we can’t always access everything we need.”
“So, what’s next?” Hawk asked.
“I’ll make a phone call and see what I can get done.”
“Who are you going to call?” Alex asked. “Fortner?”
Blunt shook his head. “I’m calling the president.”
* * *
BLUNT EASED INTO HIS CHAIR before dialing President Young’s secretary. She said that the president was in a meeting and he would call back as soon as he was finished.
With the few extra minutes to prepare, Blunt mulled over the best approach to address Young. He wasn’t likely to be warm to the idea of trading prisoners with a terrorist cell, but if he could be convinced, maybe Fortner wouldn’t put up such a fuss about it.
A few minutes later, Young called back and the conversation started out just as Blunt had imagined it would after explaining the details of the situation.
“Come on, J.D.,” Young said. “You know our long-standing policy is that we don’t negotiate with terrorists.”
“You know that’s a bunch of bullshit,” Blunt said. “We’ve made all kinds of concessions with various terrorist groups over the years. It’s why she even asked in the first place. We trot out that mantra for the press every time there’s a hostage situation, but it’s not being taken seriously or even respected. These scumbags know the truth about how we operate. Besides, it’s not like this is some public demand.”
“Who else knows about this?”
“Just a handful of people within the CIA—and now you.”
Young sighed. “Look, I trust Fortner. It’s why I moved him out of the Pentagon and put him in
