They were on a conference call the next day. Zeb and his team, split up, each one of them shopping separately in the Grand Bazaar, speaking softly in their collar mics while Clare took the call at home in DC.
‘Meghan’s sent you a tape,’ he began. ‘You listened to it?’
‘I did,’ his boss replied calmly. ‘Why don’t you run it again. From the beginning.’
Meghan took over, knowing how much Zeb disliked going over the same ground.
No discernible reaction from Clare when the elder twin had finished. Any other agency head would have exclaimed in anger or would have gasped.
The Agency’s Director wasn’t like other intelligence bosses.
‘I will speak to President Morgan,’ she said calmly. ‘He needs to be aware. I’m sure he’ll want to loop in Randall and Bill too.’
Bill Mullins is Secretary of State. She’s right. He and the Energy Sec will need to know of the oil attack.
‘You know them well, ma’am?’ Zeb asked.
‘Mullins, yeah. He knows about us.’
Which means he knows about the Agency’s existence, but not much more. That wasn’t how Clare worked.
‘I’ve met Hocker several times. Why do you ask?’
‘We don’t want this to leak beforehand.’
‘That won’t happen. The virus … Meg is right. Nothing anyone can do at this end until you know about the vaccine.’
‘Working on it, ma’am.’
‘Mission objective’s changed. Vaccine, Golzar, in that order, and then get the hell back home. Forget Mostofi.’
‘Ma’am, he will be speaking at a public event on the Fourth of July.’
‘Yes, you briefed me earlier.’
‘Mission stays the same, ma’am. Scope has increased, that’s all. Vaccine, Golzar and Mostofi. On the Fourth.’
‘Are you nuts?’ Meghan yelled at him when Clare had dropped out. The Agency boss had tried to talk Zeb out but had given up soon. She knew her lead agent, how stubborn he could be.
‘You think we can still go after Mostofi? He will have every civilian looking for us,’ the elder twin vented furiously. ‘Getting the cure itself is a challenge. Golzar on top of that—’
‘I have some ideas about that,’ Zeb cut in and outlined them swiftly.
‘Carter must be laughing,’ Mostofi said darkly. He wanted to yell and shout, whip his gun out and shoot Habib Nassour on the spot, but he restrained himself. Congratulated himself briefly on the control he showed.
His aide stood at attention, beads of sweat on his forehead, his face impassive. But the commander knew Nassour was terrified.
The Quds officer had brought more details of the Fereydoun attack from the previous night. Carter and his crew had turned up in the alley. They had rescued the hairdresser who was being interrogated by several soldiers.
The American had killed Reza Jehangir and he and his people had disappeared like ghosts. That salon owner had vanished as well. Quds soldiers had ransacked her house and found nothing there.
‘He is able to go at will. No one recognizes him. He kills our people. We haven’t even scratched him. DON’T!’ He crashed his fist on his table when Nassour made to speak.
‘I KNOW WHAT YOU’RE GOING TO SAY. That you think we wounded him. If we did, it must have been a scratch, nothing more. There seems to be nothing wrong with his ability. Habib,’ he said softly, knowing his words would have more import that way. ‘You are disappointing me. I chose you for this mission because I thought you were the smartest. I wonder if I made a mistake. Perhaps Jehangir, Babak or Salar would have done better.’
He let his aide stew for a while and to Nassour’s credit, he didn’t offer any excuses. He stood ramrod stiff, his eyes straight ahead, taking his punishment.
‘However, it is not your fault,’ Mostofi exhaled and gestured at a chair. ‘Carter is the leader of a wolfpack. I have tangled with him longer than you. I know how wily he is.’
‘We will get him, agha. He has had luck on his side, but we have numbers. There’s no way he can escape detection. That man, Bwana, … he’s the one we are looking for now. He will stand out despite his disguise.’
‘I hope you do before Golzar leaves. I have had difficult conversations with Jehangir and Salar. They lost their best men. They are bitter and angry. No,’ he held a hand up to stop Nassour. ‘Don’t say anything about them. I have deployed them on different missions and have promised them we will find these killers. You still have Radan with you and the entire Quds force to support you. I get it that you are busy with Golzar—’
‘Why don’t we send him right away, agha? It will be safer.’
‘No,’ Mostofi said implacably. ‘I have agreed with the Supreme Leader. It will happen on the Fourth. Not a day sooner or later.’
‘But, agha, it’s not as if USX acts in a spectacular manner. On the Fourth, nothing noticeable will happen. Golzar will breathe on a few people and will die later. Americans will start dying three days later. Not on the Fourth.’
‘Oil dumping will start on that day.’
‘Yes, agha, and that will result in the stock market reacting. Deaths will happen only later.’
‘Nothing will change, Habib. Don’t argue.’
Changing the dates would mean going back to the Supreme Leader, who would ask why Mostofi hadn’t considered the finer points in the first place. No. I won’t do that. I failed the leader previously. I promised him a big New York attack and I failed. He has not forgotten that. He will think I have poor judgment if I tell him I am altering the plan.
The cleric liked people who were resolute, who gave their word and stuck to them. Besides, he had his network of spies so deeply enmeshed in the country that nothing escaped him. He would know of Golzar’s movements. He’ll even know of the attacks in Fereydoun, Mostofi thought morosely. That would be another club he would beat the Quds boss with. That the killers were still out there. At least, he thinks they are Mossad. That was a saving grace.
‘We inject Golzar on the second of July. He travels the same day. He’ll have one day to work out the venue. One day. Make preparations,’ he commanded his aide and dismissed him.
‘Karim,’ Nassour grouched into his cell phone. ‘Where are you?’
‘Bathroom, agha,’ his aide replied. ‘You were with the commander for so long that I had to go. You sound excited.’
‘We have a date for you.’
‘Date?’
‘For your injection and deployment. Second of July.’