Page’s advice to Bambridge was to stay out of McGarvey’s way. And after his DDO was gone, he asked Patterson to remain. “I’d like an extra set of ears.”
“Do you think he’ll take your call?”
“Won’t hurt to try,” Page said, not at all surprised that the company’s general counsel had suspected what was coming next. “We’ve talked before. Unofficially.”
Patterson nodded.
Page phoned the ISI’s director general on an unofficial private line. It was a little past four in the afternoon in Islamabad, and the call was answered on the second ring.
“Good afternoon, Tariq. I hope that your day was not as difficult as mine has started out to be.”
“Good morning, Walter. My day has been interesting, but then it is an expected part of positions men like us manage to get ourselves into.”
“How are Maryam, and your children and grandchildren? In good health, I hope?”
“Yes, of course, thank you for asking. But I don’t spend as much time with my wife these days as I would like; she is almost always with our daughter and the two babies.”
“She must be in her glory.”
“And Betty is well?”
“Yes, I’ll send her your regards.”
“Please do,” Bhutani said. “What is on your mind, my friend?”
“The developing situation in Kashmir. It has us concerned.”
“It has been a running debate for some years now; you know this as well as anyone. But I can assure you that there will not be a war any time soon.”
“I thought not.”
The line was silent for several beats, until Bhutani came back. “Kashmir is not the reason you telephoned. What is on your mind, Walter?”
“The recent trouble in Rawalpindi. I’ve been told that one of your officers had been shot to death in some altercation.”
Bhutani chuckled. “I must congratulate your Mr. Simmons and his agents for their fast work. Our Federal Investigation Agency is conducting an independent inquiry. The first reports I’ve seen indicate that Major Naisir was gunned down by bandits. We call them dacoits. Very probably hired by enemies of the major’s wife. Her family is wealthy, and wealth always attracts its adversaries. I’m told that there have been incidents of the same nature in the past, and unfortunately there may be others in the future.”
“It is unfortunate,” Page said.
“What concern is the death of one of my junior officers to the CIA?”
“We were trying to track the whereabouts of one of our citizens—Indian-born—who we think might be dealing in arms smuggling to the Taliban fighters on the border. We traced him as far as a hotel there in Islamabad, and perhaps he was in Rawalpindi on the day of the shooting. I was hoping that if he was involved, you would let us know.”
“Yes, we too are investigating this man. Poorvaj Chopra. He has disappeared, and it may be possible that he was involved, but there have been no witnesses.”
“If an American citizen was involved, then you have my apologies, and a promise that I’ll do everything within my power to see that it does not happen again.”
“But then it is an internal problem, one that we will handle. Once he is arrested, he will be placed under the jurisdiction of our legal system.”
“If he were to reach our embassy, however, he would be placed under arrest, and I would hope that he could be brought back to the United States to stand trial.”
“That would be a matter for our governments to decide,” Bhutani said.
“Of course.”
“Is there anything else that we need to discuss?”
“No, but thank you for your assurance on the situation in Kashmir. May I pass it along to the White House?”
Bhutani hesitated for just a beat. “Merely as my opinion, Walter. My job, like yours, is merely to gather information and offer advice. Whether our governments actually take such advice is another matter.”
“I understand, Tariq. A pleasure talking with you.”
“Likewise,” Bhutani said, and he rang off.
“He knows that Chopra does not exist,” Patterson said. “I could hear it in his voice. It’s very difficult to lie in a language other than your own.”
“But he didn’t name McGarvey.”
“It would not have accomplished a thing, except to admit that there might be something to the story that Pakistan is financing an operation against SEAL Team Six.”
“Even the White House and the navy can’t accept it, because of Pakistan’s tacit acceptance of our drone strikes, and now because of Kashmir. The situation is too incredibly delicate.”
“I agree. So what do we do?”
“Just like I told Marty, stay out of McGarvey’s way.”
“We can’t support him.”
“No,” Page said. “But Otto will and so will Ms. Boylan, and I’m sure that Otto’s wife still has her connections. The real problem is the same as it has always been. There’s not much that we can do for him.”
“One of these days he’ll find himself outgunned,” Patterson said gloomily. He got to his feet. “I’m getting too old for this.”
“So am I,” Page said. “Let’s hope Mac isn’t.”