The presence of Israeli diplomats and businessmen in Athens was hardly an unusual occurrence these days. Generally, they lodged at the Hilton Athens Hotel on Vassilissis Sofias Avenue. It was preferred because of its proximity to the Greek Parliament and Greece’s various foreign ministry buildings. Greece and Israel had increased cooperation dramatically in recent years, primarily in the fields of natural gas, military defense, and a mutual interest in blunting the influence of Turkey in the region. Israeli businessmen were starting to take a great interest in the Greek real estate market, and tourism between the two countries was blossoming. In the last six months, Noam Elbaz had been to Greece five times for meetings that involved coordinating security for high-level meetings between top government officials, which included last year’s visit of the Israeli foreign minister to Athens. He was also heavily involved in discussing security measures between the two countries in their ongoing struggle with Turkey, which had now made it its mission to frustrate Israeli interests whenever possible. It was this issue that now brought Noam to Athens.
At precisely 9:00 a.m., Noam left his hotel and walked just over a kilometer past Syntagma Square and into the National Gardens. There he met his Greek counterpart. Noam extended his hand to Vasilios, a quirky, mustached man wearing square wire-rimmed glasses that had been out of style for several decades. The Greek intelligence official, who sported a tweed grey cap and matching overcoat no matter the occasion, made up in competence and dedication what he lacked in style.
“Shalom, Noam. Welcome back to Greece.”
“Shalom, Vasi. Good to see you. Come on, let’s take a stroll.”
The two men were strolling across the square when Noam said bluntly but respectfully, “What do you have for me, Vasi?”
“Well, I can tell you that your business in Ukraine has sure gotten a lot of people talking in Istanbul,” he answered while handing a manila file to Noam.
“No one would know better what our friends the Turks are talking about than you.”
“That’s why you keep me as a friend, Noam.”
“That, and your city’s baklava.”
Vasi smiled and handed his Israeli counterpart the file he had been clutching close to his chest.
Noam opened the file and read the synopsis at the beginning of the report. “You can see, Noam, we have picked up a fair bit of chatter between Kiev and Istanbul. It seems the highest levels of power in Kiev are not so thrilled about being made to look like Nazis.”
“They are Nazis,” Noam stated emphatically.
Vasi nodded in agreement, and then led Noam towards a bench beside a tiny pond. Sitting down, the two men looked at photos in the manila folder of everyone who had entered the Foreign Ministry on the days that Eitan was in Israel, including him. There was a great deal of information on Eli Davidov, whom the Ukrainians had already tried to kill once in his flat in Odessa. The files indicated that Eitan and Eli had been watched the entire time they were in Ukraine. This meant that the Ukrainians knew about their meetings with Noam at the Israeli embassy in Kiev. For a moment, Noam regretted not bringing any security backup with him to this meeting. He took a brief moment to scan the gardens around him. Vasilios could sense his consternation and assured him that his people had the perimeters of the National Gardens secured.
Noam continued reading. He saw that the Ukrainians were aware of the relationship between Eitan, Eli, and Yehoshua. The intelligence even revealed that they knew that Eitan and Vera had lodged at the Vert Hotel in Jerusalem, and that they were there to meet with an official named Noam Elbaz. Despite his deep concerns, Noam was impressed that the Ukrainians were able to leverage Turkey’s newfound enmity for Israel into obtaining such precise intelligence. The Ukrainian president’s anger was boiling over in the wake of the Jews’ departure. He was determined to seek revenge on a handful of Jews who had put his own political future in great danger and raised the burning hot ire of his wife.
Noam read further. He felt more and more concerned for Eitan’s safety back in Miami where he could not protect them. His heart stopped when he turned to the next page outlining the threat assessment. The second page of the file listed a number of bullet points found underneath a bolded heading that read “Possibility of Ukrainian Agents Inserted Into Israel and the United States.” The bullet points went on to detail intelligence intercepted by the Greeks from the Turks. It pointed to an inventive plot that both impressed and terrified Noam. From the look of the report, it appeared that the Ukrainians had considered planting agents disguised as evacuated Jews on one of the mass flights from Kiev to Israel. Though Israel did its best to identify and register every single Ukrainian coming into Israel, in all the confusion it was possible that agents with false papers could have fooled the beleaguered Israeli security team. In Israel, the orthodox world and some right-wing politicians were making noise about the validity of the Ukrainian’s Jewish identities. No one though was concerned about foreign agents attempting to penetrate Israel disguised as evacuees. There was certainly no thought given to Ukrainian agents making their way to Miami.
After reading all the intelligence, Noam stood up and thanked Vasi for his true friendship. He asked his friend for one more favor. “If anything should happen to me, will you please get this information to Jerusalem?”
“Of course, my friend.” Vasi tipped his cap and shook Noam’s hand. The two men walked off in different directions. Noam’s training allowed him to keep his composure, but once he was out of Vasi’s sight, he walked as quickly as possible back to his hotel room. His first move would be to contact Greece’s Israeli Embassy. He wondered whether he should go directly to the embassy or not. Appreciating that he was a known target, he wanted to get out of public sight as quickly as possible, and the hotel was closer than the embassy.
Noam entered the lobby of the Hilton fifteen minutes later. He raced up the elevator and into his room. Grasping his secure phone, he began dialing a direct number to the ambassador. Noam paused when he heard a movement behind him. Being in this business long enough, even the slightest sound triggered alarm bells in his head. Perhaps he had taken his safety too much for granted. Perhaps this mission was too dangerous to stay in a public hotel. He should have stayed at an Israeli safe house. Perhaps he should have been more careful entering his room. It didn’t matter now. He could sense a presence behind him. Then he felt a hard object pressed against his head. Noam tried to turn but there wasn’t enough time. Immediately, he felt sharp pain in his head, and then darkness.
For a moment, the intruder admired his handiwork. He carefully inspected the two bullet holes in Noam’s skull. Bending down, he retrieved the manila folder, which seconds ago had been in his target’s hand. Quickly, the intruder shoved the folder, along with his handgun and silencer, into his slim satchel. Unnoticed, he exited the hotel room and within minutes walked out the lobby door and into a waiting car.