It took almost four weeks for Shocklee to put a tentative plan together and to brief the special operators at Fort Bragg and to inform the field stations of his concept for conducting the operation. He had determined the size of the team, the best place to be inserted, and the mode of transportation to get the team in and out of Russia. He felt good about the plan but realized that it would require significant input from the Moscow and Tallinn Stations.
Estonia, being a friendly country with border access to Russia, appeared to be the best infiltration point. Mike liked the coastal area near Valaste as the entry point into Estonia and calculated the distance from there to Saint Petersburg to be roughly 100 miles overland, as the crow flies. From an ops security perspective, he didn’t see a reason the station in Tallinn needed to know the objective of the mission. Also, as for the Estonians, keeping the liaison service in the dark about the operation would allow the government bureaucrats to deny any knowledge about the operation if the team ran into trouble coming back into Estonia with Mauldin.
From looking at a map of Saint Petersburg and overhead imagery of the institute, Mike figured a team of no more than five would be adequate to nab Mauldin and make their way back to an exfiltration point. The size of the team could be adjusted up or down based on the type and level of support they could get from Moscow Station assets. He needed to wait for the input from Tallinn Station before being able to send something to Brandson in Moscow.
Finally, Mike reaffirmed his previous thinking and concluded that the navy was best equipped to support the operation. He briefed Windstrum and got her agreement on his preliminary approach before sending his first message to the COS in Tallinn. The message was classified TOP SECRET with the subject line “Operation NEEDFUL QUEST.” The message was short and succinct.
Request COS advise support for subject operation. Tentative plans call for an ops team of five men to be inserted into Russia via Estonia—date to be determined, but within the next four to five weeks. Exfiltration support will be required ten days after infiltration date. Team will be deploying via submarine with plans to enter Estonia near Valaste, unless the station advises of another location. The team will disembark from a navy sub and use an inflatable boat with outboard motor to get to a rendezvous point identified by the station. Station is to advise regarding the best area to cross the border into Russia and provide asset assistance re transportation and storage of boat and equipment. Also, provide security protocol for initial rendezvous with station asset. Team leader will be identified as Mike. This is an immediate action requirement. Please advise soonest.
While waiting for a response from Tallinn, Shocklee decided to pay a visit to the military folks at Fort Bragg. He had worked with the command on several operations during the past ten years. The command at Bragg is a subcomponent of the US Special Operations Command headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida. While en route, he thought about the relationships he had developed with some of the SEALs and other “special operators” with whom he had worked in the past. They were all great patriots.
Upon arrival at Pope Field, which was once the main runway of Pope Air Force Base before being realigned to the control of Fort Bragg under the Base Closure and Realignment Commission, he walked off the DDO’s plane, a Citation 10, expecting to be met by someone from the command, but not the commanding general. Mike was surprised when he was greeted by the general with a familiar handshake.
“Didn’t expect to be met by you, General,” he said. “It’s good to see you again.”
“Same here, Mike. I received a stand-up warning for an impending operation, but nothing more. When I saw that it was you who would be giving the briefing, it didn’t take me long to figure out who would be running the operation on the ground. Get in. Let’s head to the ops building. I want to hear more.”
As they drove away, the pilot was already turning the Citation 10 around and taxiing toward the runway. Upon arrival at the Secure Tactical Operations Building, Mike saw three officers standing by when they entered the facility. He nodded at them and followed the general into the briefing room. They had walked right past the officers and the clerk without the general saying a word to anyone.
“You’re not inviting them in?” he asked the general as they seated themselves.
“No, not yet. No need to until I hear more from you. Tell me what’s going on. What are we up against?”
“Something altogether different from some of the other ops we’ve been involved with.”
Shocklee spent fifteen minutes giving the general an outline of the operation and the CIA’s rationale for going after Dimitry Mauldin. The general listened and was quick to assess and identify some of the security constraints.
“That’s going to be one hell of an operation. Looks to me like the mission can best be served by assigning the work to a SEAL team. Don’t you agree?”
“That was my thinking.”
“Good. No use in me taking up more of your time and you of mine. I’ll send in the unit commander so you two can get on with your work.”
The general stood, and they shook hands again.
“Let me know if you run into any problems getting this op off the ground,” he said and then turned to leave the room.
He walked out, and moments later, a navy officer walked in. After delivering another briefing, the unit commander informed Shocklee that he would be working with a team from his specialized boat squadron dedicated to maritime operations. This would be his first time working with that unit, so Mike requested a meet-and-greet session with the team leader and three of his men.
“I can arrange it, but they’re out on a training exercise. I’m sure you can get a room at the Landmark Inn here on base if you want to spend the night and meet with them tomorrow.”
Mike wanted to get to know the men he’d be taking into harm’s way, and he didn’t have to be home until sometime the following afternoon. He and Marcie had plans to attend a wedding reception for Claire and Scott Sandowski later the following evening, but there was nothing else on Mike’s schedule that would preclude him from staying.
“Yeah, sure, I can stay overnight. Let’s see if I can get a reservation. I need to meet these men. I’ve got time now, which may not be the case in the coming weeks.”
The Landmark Inn was located within walking distance, about a half mile or so, to one of the larger base exchanges. The commander had other business to attend to but waited outside to ensure that Shocklee had gotten a room before leaving. Minutes later he saw the CIA operative coming out and walking back to the car.
“Room’s taken care of, Commander. See you tomorrow.”
“Sorry, I can’t stick around. I’ve got to catch a plane to retrieve some of my men who are out on that training exercise I told you about. I’ll pick you up at ten tomorrow morning, if that’s OK.”
“Sure, no problem. I’ll see you tomorrow. Thanks for all the assistance today.”
“No thanks necessary.”
As the officer drove away, Mike walked in the direction of the base exchange. On the way, he used his cell phone to call CIA dispatch and canceled his afternoon pickup and arranged for one the same time the next day. While at the exchange, Mike bought a small bottle of Jack Daniels, a six pack of ginger ale, a toothbrush, and some toothpaste. Being in the exchange reminded him of his days in the corps and being stationed at Camp Pendleton. On the way out, he stopped at a fast food place and bought a burger and some fries, and then headed back to the inn.
Mike sat in bed, leaning back against the headboard watching the evening news. He reached for the drink sitting on the nightstand and flushed down the last bid of food he had just eaten. He turned down the TV volume and reached for his cell phone. He wanted to let Marcie know that he wouldn’t be coming home as planned.
She was just opening the door to the apartment when her cell phone rang. It was a familiar ring tone: “You Light Up My Life.” She answered.
“Hi, babe. You on your way home?”
“Wish that I was, hon, but no. I’m sitting here in a motel room at Fort Bragg.”
“I thought this was a day trip, Michael.”
He winced as she continued.
“You are going to be home tomorrow for the wedding reception, aren’t you?”
“You bet, babe. A team of horses couldn’t keep me away. Some of the guys I came down here to meet won’t be available until tomorrow morning, so I decided to stay overnight. I’ve got Claire’s plane scheduled to pick me up at three tomorrow, so I’ll be home before you.”
“OK. Stop by the cleaners if you make it home in time. I took your best suit in for cleaning. It’s supposed to be ready by tomorrow afternoon.”
“OK, will do. Anything else?”
“No, I don’t think so. I just need to make sure he leaves before you get home.”
“He who?”
“My lover. The one I keep around when you’re off on one of your trips.”
Mike laughed.
“Well, babe, make sure he collects the garbage on his way out.”
He heard her laugh.
“I’ll do that, dear. Be safe. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Yeah, good night, hon. See you tomorrow.”
He got up to fix another drink, thinking of the conversation he just had with Marcie. He dropped two cubes of ice into the glass, poured the Jack in, and then the ginger ale. He walked back to resume his position on the bed, took a drink, and savored the contents before swallowing. The details of another conversation about Claire and Scott Sandowski came to mind. It had happened over a year ago, but the flashback was surreal.
***
Mike heard someone keying the lock to the front door of the apartment. Moments later, Marcie walked in. He got up and met her halfway to the door.
“Hi, babe,” he said, reaching out to take the bag she was carrying. “You’re home early.”
“I wanted to surprise you with dinner, so I left a little early to pick up some things, but since you’re already here, that’s not going to be the case, is it?” she asked, kissing his cheek as he took the bag from her arms. “You’re home early too,” she continued. “With everything that’s going on in the world, I figured you’d still be at work.”
He took the bag, turned, and headed into the kitchen.
She followed him.
Mike sat the bag down, reached to take a wine glass from the cabinet, and filled it from the open bottle sitting beside the grocery bag.
“Here,” he said, handing it to her as he walked by. “Mine’s sitting on the coffee table.”
They walked back into the living room. He picked up his glass as she kicked off her heels and sat down on the couch, placing her wine glass on an adjacent lamp table.
“So what’s going on?” she asked, picking up the remote from the middle of the couch and turning off the TV.
“Issues with the way ops are being run at work. I told Claire today that I was calling it quits and leaving the agency. She tried to talk me out of it by offering up a division chief’s job and later chastised me for complaining about operational bureaucracy within the agency and me not willing to stick around to help her straighten it out.”
“You quit?”
“Well, that’s what she thinks. I wrote the letter, sealed it in an envelope, and left it with Miss Betsy to send to her if I wasn’t back in the office by Wednesday.”
“You’re obviously undecided about what to do, or we wouldn’t be here talking about it, but I’m not quite sure why. If you are going to quit because you think it would make me happy that you’re home more and not putting your life on the line day in and day out, then think again. I don’t want you quitting because me.”
“I know how you feel, Marcie, and I appreciate what you’ve said, but a couple of things are bothering me. I don’t like being told that I’m running away from a problem, and, second, there’s a threat of a chemical weapons attack here in the States. It’s real and must be dealt with. If the man gets here and releases that gas, a lot of people are going to die.”
“I can’t help you with the first one, but as for the latter, if the threat is that real, and if it happens and you did nothing to try to stop it, you wouldn’t be able to live with yourself. Do you really think that you can find this guy?”
“Possibly, but he’s been on the move a little over a week now, and we’ve got a cold trail with no clue as to where he’s heading. It’ll probably mean another trip back to Somalia, or who knows where to look for him and try to get a lead on his plan of action.”
“Well, you’ve gotta do what your conscience tells you to do, sweetie. I’ll stand beside you whatever you decide to do.”
The doorbell rang.
“I forgot to tell you… it’s Sandowski. They’re teaming up on me, him and Claire, trying to get me to forego my resignation and get back to work looking for the man heading here with the sarin gas. He called earlier and wanted to come over for a while. I told him it was OK since I wasn’t expecting you home before six.” He looked at his watch. “And it’s four now.”
“It’s OK. Answer the door and let him in. He can stay for dinner if you want him to. I’ve got plenty.”
Marcie headed into the kitchen as he answered the door.
“Hey, Scotty. Come on in.”
Marcie walked back into the living room to greet Scotty, carrying another glass of wine.
“Hello, Scotty. Good to see you again.”
“Same here, Marcie; you’re looking mighty good. Keeping Mike away on assignment must be doing you good.”
“Thanks for the compliment, but he’s gone way too much for my liking.” She handed him the glass, and he took it, giving her a quick hug in the process.
“Mike told me you were coming by to talk, which is OK, but you are gonna have to stay for dinner. I haven’t seen you for ages.”
“It has been a while, hasn’t it? I spend a good bit of time at the home. Mary’s bedridden now and can’t bathe herself; she sleeps most of the day, but I think it’s comforting for her to know that I’m there.”
“That’s so sad. I wish things were better for her and you.”
“Yeah, it’s been two years of hell, but you gotta take what life throws at you. The good along with the bad. Lately, it seems as if it’s all been bad, but I’ll take you up on the offer for dinner. That won’t be bad, I know.”
“OK, good. I’m going to change so I can get started.”
As Marcie walked away, Mike motioned for Scotty to take a seat. When she was out of hearing range, he turned to face his long-time mentor and friend. He had a hunch and was curious to know the answer. Mike figured this was as good a time as any to satisfy his curiosity.
“I’ve been wondering about something, Scotty.”
“Sure. What is it?”
“Just how long have you and Claire been, you know, more than just colleagues at work?”
Sandowski lowered his head.
“Life can get to be pretty lonely sometimes. How long have you known? It’s not been obvious I hope.”
“Not long at all; it was just a hunch on my part,” Mike stated.
“We get along well with each other; she’s good for me. She wants more from our relationship, but it won’t happen in the near term, not while Mary is still alive. And, besides, it just wouldn’t be right after twenty-five years of marriage, but I’m not here to talk about me. I’m here to talk about you and your decision to quit. Tell me about what happened in the field.”
“One other question first. You were chief of ops in the Europe Division when Claire and I ran that op together. Did the techs ever report what happened to their A/V equipment to prevent her from recording the pitch she made to the Chinese ambassador? I mean, it left us all wondering just how she managed to pull it off.”
“Yeah, a rat gnawed through the power line, so nothing worked when she turned on the lamp switch.”
“Well, that explains it. We knew there were rodents in the building but didn’t think it would be a problem.”
“You OK with Claire, now? Anything else bothering you about her?” Scotty asked.
“Nothing except that she’s just a bit younger than you.”
“I’m a big boy. I think I can handle it.”
***
The flashback ended. Mike raised the glass for another drink; it was almost empty. He sat it on the nightstand and leaned back against the headboard. He fell asleep a few minutes later.