Ramey held up his hand. “Wait one.” He spoke into his headset microphone. “We’re moving east to find their car. Philly, tell me when you’re ready.”
Jerry heard their answers on his headset, and saw the other SEALs moving. There was only the slightest sound. Ramey explained to the civilians. “My men are taking screening positions. We can move in a moment — with your permission, XO,” he said, nodding toward him. Jerry thought he heard a hard edge on the remark.
A moment later, Ramey said softly, “Please, stay close,” and motioned with his right hand. He raised his rifle and scanned ahead with his night-vision sight, then set off at a walk, his weapon at the ready.
Jerry followed, trying to be as quiet as possible, feeling clumsy. The two Iranians were behind him, walking close together. The young Pasdaran captain was holding his wife’s hand. Each step on the gravelly surface sounded like a thunderclap. He wished for night-vision gear. Each of the SEALs had a set, but as the ASDS pilot…
Phillips’s hushed voice came over the headset. “Two soldiers just got out of a jeep. Flashlights. They’ve got AKs, but they’re slung. They’re looking at a car parked along the road. Light-colored sedan.”
“Hold.” Ramey held up a hand and dropped to one knee. Jerry and the two civilians followed, more slowly.
“Philly says two soldiers are looking at a light sedan.”
Shirin had whispered a translation to Yousef. “Yes, that is mother’s car.”
“Well, it looks like a Basij patrol has found it.”
Even in the dim light, Jerry could see the confusion and fear in her expression. “What do we do?”
“We wait, and get ready in case we have to fight.” Jerry heard Ramey give orders to Fazel and Lapointe, guiding them to positions flanking Phillips.
“Please don’t shoot them,” she begged.
“As long as they don’t spot us, or call for reinforcements, we won’t have to.” Ramey’s tone was matter-of- fact. Jerry knew the SEALs could kill the two soldiers in seconds, but that would not help their cause.
“They’re both back in the jeep now and moving, heading west on the highway.” Philly’s voice was as flat giving the “all clear” as it was with the first warning.
After Shirin translated, Yousef spoke and she explained, “They’ll report the car. The next patrol will check to see if it is still here.”
Ramey ordered, “Okay, everyone, let’s move. Philly, we’re joining you.”
A few minutes’ walk brought them to a dune where Phillips lay prone near the crest, facing the car. Spotting them, he eased back down the slope and knelt near the base. “Two guys in fatigues, in their early twenties. They had radios, but I didn’t see either one use them. They wrote down the license plate.”
Joanna Patterson had come in early, and had heard
She’d brought along work and managed to get some of it done between glancing at the clock and checking radio intercepts. An RC-135 with the call sign “Pinto” was patrolling over the Saudi coast at high altitude. At that height it could pick up transmissions hundreds of miles away, including not just military and commercial radios, but cell phone and microwave communications as well.
The U.S. routinely kept a plane on station over Saudi Arabia, so Pinto wasn’t directly connected with the operation. In fact, they knew nothing about it, but the operators on the plane had been told that signals coming from the vicinity of Bandar Kangan, on the south coast of Iran, were to have top priority for both detection and analysis.
So far, Pinto’s reports had been routine. There had been some traffic: Basij units on routine patrols, Pasdaran boats off the coast, but it had been clear-language transmissions, and no reports of contact.
Images from the UAV signal had also been piped in to the Situation Room. Being shown on a supersized wall monitor didn’t improve their clarity, but she’d seen two people on the beach waiting.
She’d fidgeted, sent out for some coffee, and thought about all the people who had waited while others risked their lives.
The SEALs were late coming ashore, and that was enough to start her worrying. What had slowed them down? Then the UAV’s image showed figures arriving on the beach, and joining the other two, but they didn’t leave. What had happened?
The ASDS was supposed to transmit one of a series of code words once Opal was aboard and they were headed back to
Captain Guthrie’s report was grim. After reporting the loss of the ASDS, Higgs’s death, and the team’s rendezvous with Opal,
After giving her Higgs’s name and rank, Guthrie listed the others on the beach. When she heard Jerry’s name, she was surprised. What was
She’d known Jerry for years, and had once sailed with him on a mission. He was a dear friend. Jerry had also served under her husband, Lowell, before he’d left the Navy to run for congress.
Distracted by the news, Patterson automatically thanked him for the report and said she’d pass on his request. Her mind filled with activity. Someone had died, and there were things to be done. When a mission starts going bad, it often gets worse, quickly. Kirkpatrick would have to be briefed, and after that, the president.
And she would call Lowell, and see what he knew about Guthrie. She wanted to tell him about Jerry, as well, but that would mean telling him about the mission.
And the waiting was not over yet.
7
HUNKERING DOWN
Ramey ordered Lapointe to keep watch along the highway to the west. The petty officer split off from the group to take up a flanking position. The lieutenant sent Fazel to the east.
Jerry hurried with the others down to the car. It might have started out as a pale blue, but the sun had faded the upper surfaces to mottled white. There were dents in the grille and rear fenders. But it was transport, and his immediate thought was to get as far away from this place as possible.
The two Iranians, Yousef and his wife, were speaking softly in Farsi and looking at the car, then the SEALs, and back to the car. Finally, Shirin said, “You cannot all fit inside.”
Ramey didn’t hesitate. “Three guys go in the backseat, and two ride outside. We keep our weapons, but anything bulky goes in the trunk.” After a pause, he added, “With your concurrence, XO.”
Again the edge, but Jerry just said “Fine.” This was not the time or place. “Is that all right with you?” Jerry asked the Iranian couple.
“What else can we do?” Shirin replied. “If we split up, the Basij or VEVAK can still find us. And I do not wish them to find us.”
