“He told you about this hot information he had, sure—and then he left the base without any authorization and was getting ready to go to freakin’ Brazil…!”
“They almost got Zakharov.”
“They almost got themselves killed,” Bolton insisted, “and they still did it without authorization. Why are you defending them, Kel? They screwed up, but it’s our careers on the line! Just forget about these guys, Kel. By lunchtime we’ll be in Washington tracking these terrorists down, and we’ll do it the right way.”
Kelsey fell silent. If she had any hope of falling asleep again before dawn, she was disappointed.
The Oval Office, Washington, D.C.
Later that morning
Attorney General George Wentworth, National Intelligence Director Alexander Kallis, Secretary of Defense Russell Collier, and FBI Director Jeffrey F. Lemke stepped into the Oval Office and found Robert Chamberlain standing right beside the President of the United States, going over some documents. Victoria Collins was on the President’s phone, noticeably apart from the others.
That, Lemke thought, was not a good sign.
“C’mon in, guys,” the President said, standing and motioning to the chairs and couches in the meeting area in front of the fireplace. A steward brought in a tray of beverages and fixed one for each of the attendees according to their preferences. Again, Chamberlain sat on the chair just to the President’s right, the chair normally reserved for the Vice President. He took that chair not only because the Vice President was not in Washington—it had been decided after the attack in Kingman City to have the Vice President stay out of Washington and move locations to ensure the continuity of the government in case of an attack in the capital—but also to highlight the status and power the National Security Adviser held in this meeting.
Robert Chamberlain was in no uncertain terms the de facto vice president—and many in Washington, like Wentworth and Lemke, would say he was more like the copresident.
“Thank you, Mr. President,” Wentworth said. “We have some positive news to report, and a request.”
“Go right ahead, George,” the President said, taking a sip of tea. Wentworth outlined the details of the search for Yegor Zakharov in the San Francisco Bay area. “Interesting he decided to come to the States,” the President observed.
“Any reasons for that would be speculative, Mr. President,” FBI Director Lemke said, “but I think it was a mistake on his part. It’ll make it that much easier to nail him.”
“Robert has been reviewing Zakharov’s background with me,” the President said, motioning to the folder he and Chamberlain had been looking at before the meeting began. “As commander of this Russian tactical nuclear missile battalion, he would certainly know where the warheads were stored, who was guarding them, and who to bribe to get his hands on some.”
“Do you need me to bring you up to speed on Zakharov, Alex?” Chamberlain asked.
“Zakharov was commander of a regiment of short-and intermediate-range nuclear ballistic missiles near Kirov, northeast of Moscow,” Kallis said before Chamberlain could begin. Alexander Kallis had degrees in international relations from Dartmouth and Harvard. He joined the CIA after receiving his master’s degree and quickly rose through the ranks to become a deputy director in charge of policy before being nominated to serve as the National Intelligence Director, the office that combined all the federal, civil, and military intelligence activities of the United States of America. “After the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty was put into effect in 1988, his unit was deactivated. Zakharov publicly denounced the treaty and was quickly retired.
“He entered politics and joined the new Liberal Democratic Party of Russia in 1990, which was started by ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky,” Kallis went on. “Zakharov was the party boss in Kirov Oblast, the district in which his unit was headquartered, and was considered a major factor in Zhirinovsky’s rise to power and a candidate for a major office in Zhirinovsky’s government, perhaps minister of defense. But he obviously saw the handwriting on the wall, because after Zhirinovsky’s defeat in 1991, even though Zhirinovsky and the LDPR were still very powerful, Zakharov left politics and became a vice president of a pretty good-sized independent Russian oil company, KirovPyerviy.
“Zakharov became very wealthy, and combined with his military and political following, was starting to enjoy another tremendous surge in popularity,” Kallis said. “That might explain why the Russian government just a few years ago announced the decision to allow a foreign company, TransGlobal Energy, to acquire a majority stake in a private Russian oil company—and why that company turned out to be KirovPyerviy. Zakharov left KirovPyerviy…”
“No, Director Kallis—Zakharov went berserk,” Chamberlain interjected, quickly tiring of being upstaged by the youngster Kallis. “He threatened to blow up his wells, stage a coup, kill the Russian President, kill our President, kill Kingman…”
“Did you ever meet him, Mr. Chamberlain?” Kallis asked. “Sounds like you know him pretty well.”
“I met him once, at an energy conference in Scotland,” Chamberlain said dismissively. “He was full of himself, all right—acted like he still had the Red Army uniform on. We dismissed him as a stressed-out nutcase and figured he’d just drink himself to an early grave, like most of the nouveau riche in Russia.”
“Well, he didn’t,” Kallis said. “He sold off all his shares, took his fortune, and disappeared. He then shows up aligned with GAMMA, an environmental and human rights group based out of Brazil, helping the terrorists bomb dams and energy facilities, most of which belonged to TransGlobal Energy.”
“According to the report from your task force that went down to Brazil, Mr. Chamberlain,” Lemke said, “this Zakharov is not just ‘aligned’ with GAMMA—he’s taken over and tried to assassinate both leaders of the group.”
“It would appear so.”
“And now he’s back in the United States,” the President observed. “Any idea where he could have gone or what he might be up to?”
“No, Mr. President,” Wentworth said, “but it’s imperative that we do everything we can to hunt this guy down. At one time this guy commanded a force of hundreds of battlefield nuclear weapons ranging in size from ten to two hundred kilotons. Stripped of their safety devices, fusing mechanisms, and reinforcements, making them suitable for mobile ballistic missile use, the warheads he commanded would make ideal portable nuclear weapons. He’s apparently not only got his hands on some, but he’s managed to bring them into the United States—and it’s obvious he’s continuing to exact his revenge on TransGlobal Energy.”
“I would agree, Mr. President,” Chamberlain agreed. “We need to find this guy right away. It should be our top priority.”
“What do you suggest, George?” the President asked.
“The biggest worldwide manhunt since the hunt for Osama bin Laden, centered right here in the U.S.,” the Attorney General said. “A joint coordination effort of all Cabinet-level agencies and Homeland Security military forces, headed by Director Kallis, reporting directly to you. All operations coordinated by Director Lemke from Washington for the U.S.”
Chamberlain shifted in his chair and nodded slightly but said nothing. “I delegated operational control of antiterrorist activities to the National Security Adviser,” the President said. “Director Kallis can continue to coordinate his activities with me through Mr. Chamberlain.”
Both Wentworth and Lemke looked decidedly uncomfortable at that point. Wentworth finally took a deep breath and said, “Mr. President, we feel that Mr. Chamberlain’s efforts at organizing and directing our nation’s antiterror activities have been completely ineffectual, and we request that you take control away from him and give it to Directors Kallis and Lemke.”
Chamberlain’s face remained impassive. The President glanced at him, trying to gauge his reaction but was unable. “Robert?”
“The Attorney General is referring to Task Force TALON, I’m sure,” Chamberlain said. “I admit that the team hasn’t lived up to expectations…”
“ ‘Lived up to…’ Chamberlain, are you serious?” Lemke exploded. “The task force never came together— there’s been infighting and a lack of coordination right from the beginning. Then several members of the task force—including the commander you picked, Jefferson—head off to Brazil…”
“I authorized that mission and got White House approval…”
“Chamberlain, those people nearly started a war in Brazil—not just in one city, but two,” Lemke went
