“You obviously succeeded,” Wood said. “Now, let’s get on with this meeting before Evana Bahar lights the city on fire.”
Hawk and Alex sat down across from Wood, who was seated on one corner next to Blunt at the head of the table.
“Proceed,” Hawk said.
“Now, I reached out to J.D. because you two know the inner workings of this terrorist cell as much as anybody, Frank Stone withstanding,” Wood said. “Even though we can’t risk tying the two of you to the CIA’s official search for Evana Bahar—especially with the FBI involved in this now—you really need to be the lead agents on this case. At the risk of duplicating our efforts, I want you to feel free to conduct your manhunt and simply keep me informed about what you’re doing. Or if you have other suggestions on places we should be looking for her, I’ll send agents over to do that tedious work. But we have to cooperate on this if we’re going to catch her before Young’s speech tomorrow night.”
“Unfortunately, the president is insisting on moving forward with putting A’isha on stage during his address,” Blunt said. “I’m not sure we’ll be able to dissuade him from that, so the next best thing is to capture Evana so we can breathe easy.”
“Actually, thatwould be the best thing,” Hawk said. “The quicker we remove her from Al Fatihin’s leadership, the better. She’s more skilled than Karif Fazil when it comes to organizing a serious threat.”
“How so?” Wood asked.
“Fazil was great at leveraging what he could into attracting more followers, but he didn’t have the ability to pull off a massive culture-shifting attack like 9/11, even though he aspired to. Evana Bahar is smart and has friends all over the world. And on top of that, I think she’s getting some help.”
“From who?” Wood asked.
“We’re not positive yet, but it appears that she’s formed some strategic alliances with other groups to help further her cause,” Alex said.
“Is this all speculation, or do you have proof?”
“At this point, we’re still investigating these connections,” Alex said. “But there seems to be strong evidence that points to her utilizing some of her relationships built while running her nonprofit in London.”
“So, you’re suggesting all those refugees weren’t necessarily entering the country with peaceful intentions,” Wood said.
Alex nodded. “I’m sure that isn’t news to you, but until we started to grow suspect of her, she was a media darling. We just had no idea that beneath the surface, she was assembling the pieces for a global terrorism organization.”
“How do we proceed?” Blunt asked. “I know you’re a busy man, Randy, and we don’t want to take up any more of your time.”
“I’ll forward you any leads we get the moment we get them,” Wood said. “If you want to investigate any of them, I’ll let you choose. If not, I’ll let our people look into it. Do you know where you want to begin?”
Hawk nodded. “We’d like to visit Georgetown Hospital and speak with A’isha to see if Evana visited her. I know it might seem unlikely that she would go there given that the entire city is looking for her, but she’s brazen and prone to do the things you wouldn’t expect her to do.”
“That’s what makes her so dangerous,” Alex added. “Her unpredictability is about the only thing you can predict when it comes to pinning her down.”
“You should’ve taken your shot when you had the chance,” Wood said.
Hawk widened his eyes. “What are you talking about?”
“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” Wood said. “You tried to leverage her for some other fishing expedition you were going on, never realizing you had the shark in the boat before you released her back into the water.”
“I suggest you stop right there,” Blunt said as he glared at Wood. “Some of those issues are above your pay grade.”
Wood sighed. “Fine. But if you get her in your sights again, just don’t miss this time, okay?”
He gathered the stack of documents in front of him and then tossed them into his briefcase.
“We’ll be in touch with a report as soon as we speak with A’isha,” Hawk said.
Wood pushed his chair back and stood. “I look forward to working with you two.”
“Good seeing you, Randy,” Blunt said.
Wood sneered and left the room without another word.
“What did you do to him?” Alex asked.
“He still thinks I cheated the last time we played poker,” Blunt said, waving dismissively. “That’s just Randy. With a mind like a steel trap, the man knows how to hold a grudge. But I’ll let him win next time and all will be forgiven. Now, you two better get going. We don’t have any time to waste.”
* * *
HAWK AND ALEX ENTERED the hospital and went straight up to A’isha’s room where she was recovering from the surgery. A pair of agents stood outside her door and weren’t about to let Hawk and Alex inside without authorization.
“Fine,” Hawk said. “Call Randy. I just left a meeting with him.”
“Sorry, sir,” one of the agents said. “I have to check. I have a list, and your name isn’t on it.”
Hawk dialed Wood’s number and handed the cell to the agent. After a brief conversation, the man handed the phone back to Hawk and apologized.
Hawk patted the man on the shoulder. “You’re just doing your job. And I promise you that you need to be vigilant.”
The man nodded and slid aside so Hawk and Alex could enter. Inside, they found A’isha sitting up in her bed.
“How do you feel?” Hawk asked in Arabic.
"Good," she said with a big smile. "I'm supposed to get my new leg this afternoon, and tomorrow I'm supposed to be on stage with the president."
“Welcome to America,” Hawk said with a smile. “All your dreams can come true.”
“Do you know
