In a seventh-floor conference room, Christine O’Connor was joined by Deputy Director Monroe Bryant, Deputy Director for Operations PJ Rolow, and several other deputy directors and staff. The primary topic of this morning’s meeting was the status of the hunt for Lonnie Mixell.
Tracey McFarland, the agency’s deputy director for analysis, began with the headline item. “We have a lead on Mixell. The FBI has been analyzing video feeds from the major New York City transportation hubs, and facial recognition programs got a match at one of the JFK airport gates. Mixell boarded an Emirates Airlines flight to Dubai three hours after he assassinated the ambassador, traveling under an alias: Mark Alperi.”
“Have we located him in Dubai?” Christine asked.
“Not yet. We’re running about two days behind Mixell, so he could have already left the city. We’ll do what we can, but we don’t have many officers on the ground and have limited access to surveillance video in the city. We’re moving assets into Dubai and pulsing our contacts there, plus we’re monitoring the transportation hubs. Hopefully, something will turn up.”
“Speaking of assets,” Christine said. “What about Jake Harrison? Have we hired him yet?”
“He turned down the offer,” Rolow replied.
“How much was he told? Does he know Mixell is involved?”
“It would have been a standard job offer. No details would have been provided.”
“But that’s the key issue. He needs to know we’re hunting down Mixell.”
“We’re not authorized to disclose that information. I’ll admit it’s a catch-22 situation, in that if Harrison was already an agency employee with the proper clearance, we could reveal the information.”
“Who’s the classifying authority?”
“The FBI.”
“What authority do I have as director? Can I supersede the FBI’s determination?”
Rolow looked to the deputy director. Bryant answered, “Technically, no. But if you were to direct us to disclose this information, those who could hold you accountable have much bigger fish to fry. Plus, the FBI has leaked far more sensitive information to the public lately, and they probably won’t bark up that tree. If you direct us to disclose Mixell’s involvement, I’ll have HR reengage Harrison.”
“I have a better idea,” Christine replied. “I haven’t made the trip to the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Washington state for the surveillance program review. Harrison lives nearby. We have a long history and I’m sure I can talk him into assisting.”
Bryant shrugged. “You’re the director. If you want to spend your time hiring folks, that’s your prerogative.”
Christine replied in an icy tone. “Thank you for your blessing. Set up the trip and meeting with Harrison as soon as possible.”
When the meeting ended, Christine and the other deputy directors and staff departed the conference room, leaving only Bryant and Rolow. The deputy director closed the door, then returned to his seat, eyeing Rolow before commenting.
“She’s a royal bitch.”
“I like her,” Rolow said. “Give her some time. Right now, she’s asserting herself, making it clear who’s running this place. Of course, that’s not entirely true, but don’t dispel the illusion. Once Christine settles in, she’ll be fine. In fact, she’ll be better than fine. She’s perfect for the job.”
Bryant shot Rolow a curious look.
“Have you reviewed her file?” Rolow asked.
“Just her professional qualifications. Enough to know she’s even less qualified to lead the agency than your standard political appointee. She hasn’t even served on an intel committee. She’s a weapons expert and policy wonk.”
“Read the rest of her file. You’ll find Appendix C quite interesting.”
“Classified personal incidents? She’s been a congressional and White House staffer. What could she possibly have done to warrant an Appendix C?”
“She has a remarkable knack for ending up in the wrong place at the wrong time. Fortunately for us, although she might be a royal bitch, she’s also a vindictive one.”
“How’s that?”
“She killed Russia’s defense minister and SVR director.”
Bryant raised an eyebrow. “I thought Elena Krayev did the deed.”
“That was the plan, but we couldn’t get Elena in place. The defense minister didn’t take the bait and instead invited Christine to spend the weekend with him.”
“I’m not surprised,” Bryant said. “I’ll admit, Christine is pretty easy on the eyes.”
Rolow continued, “Elena convinced Christine to complete the task. It was pretty straightforward, but Christine got caught. Semyon Gorev, Russia’s SVR director, strung her up and subjected her to a mild case of physical and psychological torture. If you look closely at her left cheek, you’ll see the faint scar where Gorev sliced into her face.
“To make a long story short, Christine managed to call an extraction team and could have slipped safely away. Instead, she searched the villa for Gorev and blew his brains out.”
Bryant pulled back slightly in his seat as Rolow added, “If I were you, I’d mind your p’s and q’s around her.” Rolow grinned. “The important takeaway is that Christine isn’t afraid to do what it takes to accomplish the mission. I think you’ll find her more receptive than previous directors to proposals that fall into the gray area.”
“She’s not going to learn about any of that,” Bryant replied. “We feed her, like the previous directors, what she needs to know and nothing more. Keep her desk full of paperwork and engaged enough for her to think she knows what’s going on. We leave the tough decisions to you and me, unless we need her buy-in to cover our asses.”
Rolow nodded. “Business as usual.”