Khalehla shook her head, not in the negative but to bring herself back to the reality at hand. 'The “Adrienne” did it, MJ. Sorry.'
'Don't be. We're entitled to our glimpses of happiness, and you know I want it all for you.'
'It never happened for you, though, did it?'
'It was my choice, Field Officer Rashad.'
'Gotcha, pal, or should I say sir?
'Say whatever you like, but listen to me. The first report is in from the clinic—the prisoner. They're apparently travelling as priests, Maronite priests on Israeli passports. That boy doesn't know very much; he's an also-ran who was somehow permitted to be part of the team because of Kendrick. He was crippled while he was with our congressman in Oman.'
'I know, Evan told me. They were in a police truck heading down to the Jabal Sham. To their executions, they thought.'
'Things get fuzzy here… that youngster was told very little and rightly so, he's completely unstable. From what our chemists can piece together, however, the two teams were to make contact near an airport—“Command One” joining “Command Two”, which presumably means the Fairfax crowd was to hook up with the Colorado unit out there.'
'That's a lot of arranging, MJ, a lot of mileage. They've got savvy travel agents working on their itineraries.'
'Very savvy and very hidden. One might almost say bureaucratically obscured.'
'Speaking of which, I'm two floors above the grieving widow.'
'Her office has been alerted. She's been told to expect your call.'
'Then I'll straighten up and go to work. Incidentally, I had to buy a few things to dress the part, but I'll be damned if I'll pay for them. Let's say they're not me; they're a little on the severe side.'
'I thought, considering Mrs. Vanvlanderen's past associations, you might be somewhat more chic.'
'Well, they're not that severe.'
'I didn't think so. Call me when it's over.'
Khalehla hung up the phone, looked at it for a moment, then reached down for her bag on the floor. She opened it and took out a sheet of notepaper on which she had written Evan's telephone number in Mesa Verde. Seconds later she dialled.
'The Kendrick residence,' said a woman's voice Khalehla recognized as belonging to one of the nurses.
'May I speak with the congressman, please? This is Miss Adrienne of the State Department.'
'Sure, hon, but you'll have to hang on while I get him. He's outside saying goodbye to that nice young Greek.'
'Who?'
'I think he's Greek. He knows a lot of people the congressman knew over in Arabia or wherever he was.'
'What are you talking about?'
The priest. He's a young priest from—’
'Get Evan away!' screamed Khalehla, lurching to her feet. 'Yell for the guards! The others are out there! They want to kill him!'
The Icarus Agenda
Chapter 33
It had been so simple, thought Ahbyahd, watching from the woods opposite the despised enemy's huge house. A sincere and pleasant young priest whose papers were in order and, of course, had no weapons on him, bearing greetings from friends of the great man. Who could refuse him a brief audience, this innocent holy man from a distant land unaware of the formalities attached to calling upon persons of importance? His initial rejection had been countermanded by the enemy himself; the rest was up to a highly inventive
