Interrogation Room 8C, CIA Headquarters
Langley, Virginia
Nadja Katz regarded Dylan Kane as he sat across from her. It was an interesting question he had posed. Why shouldn’t he just shoot her? She was, after all, the enemy. She had tried to kill his friend, had killed countless members of law enforcement, and she had worked for an organization that had sought to start a war. If the roles were reversed, she’d probably have put two bullets in his head and been done with it.
But he was constrained by rules, and she wasn’t.
Though from what she knew about him, few rules applied, at least when on assignment, out of the country. In here, in this room, in this building, she suspected his options were extremely limited.
“I have your women.”
If Kane had a reaction, he hid it well. “So you do work for the Assembly.”
She shook her head. “No. They took your women from you, then I took them back.”
“Why?”
“To give you an incentive to work with me.”
“And why would I want to do that?”
“Because we want the same thing.”
“Which is?”
“To destroy the Assembly once and for all.” She leaned back, folding her arms, her breasts squeezing together. Kane’s eyes remaining glued to hers.
He’s got willpower.
“You damaged them a year ago, but they’ve replaced those who died already, and now have decided the time is right to implement their endgame. They took your women to keep you off balance, to disincentivize you from interfering.” She leaned forward slightly. “Now I’ve eliminated that leverage they had over you. Now you’re free to act.”
Kane continued to stare at her, emotionless. “Hand over our people, and I’ll listen.”
“No.”
Kane rose. “Then I’ll arrange transport to one of our black sites. The Constitution doesn’t get in the way there.”
A hint of a smile crept up the side of her face. “One of them was wounded.”
A quick breath that would probably have been missed by most, betrayed Kane. “Who?”
“Does it matter? Isn’t one your girlfriend, the other the girlfriend of your best friend? Shouldn’t you care about both?”
Kane didn’t respond. Even her emotionless nature knew it wasn’t a fair question. Of course he’d care about Fang more, though he was moral enough to at least struggle with his preferences.
“Who?”
“Not your concern. Just know that one of them will die without medical assistance, and both will die if I don’t send a coded signal within”—she checked her watch—“twenty-two hours.”
Kane returned to his seat. “What do you want?”
“I want your cooperation. I can help you bring down the Assembly, but I need access to your resources. Help me, and I’ll set your women free.”
“Why? Why do you want to bring them down?”
Katz leaned forward, staring deep into his eyes. “Because they tried to kill me. And I don’t like it when people try to kill me.”
Kane pursed his lips then nodded. “I can understand that.” He leaned back and she mirrored his moves. “What are they up to?”
“The implementation of their ultimate agenda.”
“Which is?”
“A war that will fundamentally change society for the betterment of mankind. Every great war triggers a surge in technological advances, a unification of society against a common enemy that sets their petty differences aside, then an economic boom that lasts decades. The Assembly stands to profit from all this, as well as use it as an opportunity to reshape the democracies of the Western world to more suit their vision of what’s best for mankind over the long term.”
“Which is?”
“Think elected authoritarian rulers, providing the illusion of peace and freedom within the borders, and zero-tolerance for any dissent, or threats, from outside.”
“So dictatorship. I presume military.”
“Of a sort. Closer to the modern Chinese model, I would guess. Can you imagine how great a country the United States would be if it weren’t constrained by the laws that currently hamper its leaders? You could rule the world, unchallenged. Problems like ISIS, Russia, North Korea, even China, could be dealt with swiftly and brutally. Do you think in World War Two, that your leaders worried about how things would play out on CNN? They leveled cities, destroyed factories with civilians inside—they did what needed to be done to win.
“Do you think today, the public would let them drop two nuclear bombs on Japanese cities, despite the fact it saved millions of lives? Of course they wouldn’t. Your society has become too moral for its own good, and those who don’t share those values, will drop those bombs, will kill those innocents, and in the end, they will win the war you refuse to fight. The Assembly has seen this, and wants to prevent it the only way they know how. By triggering the next great war, by forcing America and her allies to choose life or death. By eliminating the gray areas in between, they know you will choose life. And once the choice is made, you will prevail.
“The price will be high, but they think in the long term. Eventually what will emerge will be stronger and more advanced than ever before. Mankind will rid itself of the problems that plague it today due to indecision and political correctness, and thrive. This is what the Assembly offers, this is what their agenda is.” She leaned forward. “The question is, does this excite you, or terrify you?”
Kane said nothing, though his eyes spoke volumes, the laser-like focus of moments ago gone, his eyes distant, as if imagining what the world she described would be like. She guessed it would appeal to him. He killed for a living, and rules got in his way. If he were given free rein, he might get his job done a little easier, a little more effectively.
It was people like him the Assembly counted on to achieve their goals. Those who had lost their faith in the government, lost faith in the pillars of democracy like freedom of the press and freedom of speech. In a world where the news media continually reported opinion as fact, and lied through falsehoods or omission, where speaking your mind labeled you as a racist or fascist or some sort of “phobe” if you didn’t agree with the Social Justice Warriors, in a world like that, it was the people who recognized these problems that would say “Hell, yeah!” to a government that would promise to end the insanity.
And if that meant giving up some freedoms, it would be embraced.
The proof was 9/11.
More than fifteen years later, few complained about taking off their shoes at airports, about not being able to bring a bottle of water or shampoo on a plane, of being subjected to random searches despite not being in the target demographic responsible for 99% of terrorist attacks, or the countless other forms of security and surveillance that Western societies now took for granted.
The Patriot Act had been embraced by most, and though parts had expired, most were renewed with the USA Freedom Act, with few now questioning it.
And it would be the same when the Assembly had their way. Things would change, a promise made that it would be short term, then eventually the public would forget what it used to be like, the generation that had fought for the freedoms they enjoyed would be gone, and the youth, so quick to take offense at anything that didn’t meet their narrow worldview, would never have experienced the nation that once was.
A prime example was today’s Russia, where too many of the youth cheered on a leader mired in the Soviet past, a past none had ever experienced. They wanted strength and respect, yet didn’t understand the oppression and atrocities committed to maintain those desires.
Were Western democracies that vulnerable?
She felt they absolutely were, as did the Assembly. Would the world that came out the other end of the Assembly’s plans be better? Perhaps, though she didn’t care.
They had tried to kill her.
She was going to kill them.
That was all she cared about. Mankind had done nothing for her, so why should she care what happened to it? She wasn’t here to stop the Assembly’s plans. She was here to stop the Assembly.
Somebody rapped on the glass behind Kane then the television mounted on the wall to her right flicked on, a series of images showing the chaos around the country played—tankers spilling oil, derailed trains, traffic chaos.
And terrified people.
A computerized voice spoke. “We are the Utopians. We are responsible for bringing your cities to a standstill. We have poisoned the reservoirs of ten cities in the continental United States with an undetectable poison. Anyone who drinks this water will become violently ill within five to seven days, then die as your hospitals are overrun and unable to treat the infected.
“We have the antidote, and are willing to share it, if your leaders are willing to meet our demands. You will hear from us again soon, but know this: Your leaders are no longer in control, you are no longer safe, and your cities are no longer habitable. Return to the country, return to your origins, and never let what will happen over the coming days happen again.”
The screen went blank then the broadcast repeated. Katz stared at the images, the human suffering of no interest, though the carefully chosen script had her curious. The screen turned off and Kane looked back to her.
“So, if the Assembly is behind this, then who the hell are the Utopians?”