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Piha was only forty minutes away from the city, but the change in the scenery was drastic.
They had left behind the urban sprawl, and they were on the rugged west coast now. The roads here were narrow and twisting, and the landscape was marked by thick rainforest, jagged hills and beaches that featured black volcanic sand.
This was wild and rugged country, and the rural population out here was sparse.
Adam turned off into a side road. Gravel crunched under the SUV’s tyres as he manoeuvred through the foliage. Shafts of sunshine filtered through the trees.
Eventually they emerged into a clearing. Just ahead was a wooden cabin that had been built in a quiet alcove, surrounded by palms and ferns. A waterfall cascaded close by, emptying into a lagoon, the water glistening.
It was an idyllic hideaway.
Kendra saw that three Mercedes sedans were parked in front of the cabin. Their plates were diplomatic. Iranian. Meanwhile, eight men with dark jackets and reflective sunglasses were standing around the property. A close-protection team.
Instinctively, Kendra fidgeted and sucked in a breath.
Jim turned in his seat and gave her a reassuring look. ‘It’s safe, little girl. Trust me.’
‘Yeah, I’m trusting you, old man.’
Adam parked the SUV and killed the engine.
They got down, and they were met by one of the bodyguards.
He gestured, his voice flat but polite. ‘The ambassador is waiting for you inside.’
‘Thank you,’ Jim said.
They entered the cabin through the front door, and sure enough, Ambassador Ali Hatami was in the lounge, seated on the sofa. He wore a tailored suit, and he had an Iranian flag pin on his lapel. As was the Persian custom, he wore no tie.
He looked like a Middle Eastern version of Colin Firth, floppy-haired and square-faced, almost too prim and proper for a spartan cabin like this.
He rose and met Jim in an embrace.
They kissed each other’s cheeks.
‘Salaam alaikum,’ Jim said.
‘Alaikum salaam,’ Hatami said.
‘You look prosperous, my friend. You have put on weight.’
‘Ah, just a little. Just a little. The lush Kiwi cuisine is to be blamed.’
‘Too many buffets?’
‘I’m afraid so. I will have to ease up on them.’
‘And how is your wife and children? They are healthy and well?’
‘Yes, indeed. My youngest has just started secondary school. She is delighted by the experience. Already she is talking about what she plans to wear to the prom.’
‘Mm, they grow up so fast, don’t they?’
‘Truly.’ Hatami sighed. ‘We must enjoy our children while we’re still able to.’
‘I couldn’t agree with you more.’ Jim nodded. ‘Now, you already know Adam Larsen. But may I introduce Kendra Shaw? She is the agent I told you about.’
‘Agha-yeh Hatami.’ Kendra stepped forward, shaking the ambassador’s hand. ‘Az molaghat-e shomâ khosh vaghtam.’
‘Khanoom-yeh Shaw.’ Hatami smiled. ‘I’m pleased to meet you as well. You speak very good Farsi.’
Kendra demurred, as was the custom. ‘That is very kind of you to say. However, I still have a lot to learn. My written Farsi is not as good as I would like it to be.’
‘Ah, the willingness to learn is the most important thing. Knowledge follows naturally. This is what I tell my children.’ Hatami chuckled. ‘Now, would you like some tea?’
Jim nodded. ‘Of course. We would love some chai. Thank you.’
This was taarof. Persian hospitality. The host always offered tea, and the guests never refused.
Hatami spread his hands and gestured. ‘Please sit. Allow me to serve you.’
He moved to the kitchen, then returned with an ornate teapot. As they sat on the sofa, he began pouring steaming chai into the cups that were already waiting on the coffee table. The rosy smell was fragrant.
Kendra exchanged a glance with Adam, and she saw him pucker his lips and shrug. He was obviously bored by the preamble.
She understood how he felt.
Iranian culture was all about protocol. You had to be gracious. Maintain a dignified appearance. Read in between the lines.
That was hard for Kendra.
Like Adam, she was a scalphunter. Fieldwork was her specialty. Diplomatic sweet-talk? Well, not so much.
More than anything, she wanted to cut through all this bullshit and just get straight to the heart of the matter. However, she kept her simmering emotions in check and willed herself to be patient. She knew that it would be worth it.
After all, Ali Hatami was a rarity in the cutthroat world of geopolitics – a mild-mannered man who had a reputation for being moderate and honourable.
Despite the fraught relationship between Iran and the West, he had managed to negotiate some key breakthroughs. New Zealand food exports were allowed into Iran, while young Iranians could come and study at New Zealand universities.
This set Hatami apart from the ultraconservatives who ran the Islamic Republic. He genuinely wanted bilateral progress. And since Jim had vouched for him, Kendra was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Once Hatami had served them all with tea, he poured a cup for himself and took a seat in the armchair opposite the sofa. Head bowed, he inhaled the fragrance from the tea and took a sip. ‘Thank you for agreeing to meet with me. I am in your debt.’
‘There is no debt,’ Jim said, taking a sip of his tea as well. ‘This is what friends do.’
‘Please understand, I consider myself a patriot. I love my country. I want what’s best for it. This is why I strive to be a good diplomat – I believe peace can be achieved through dialogue and mutual understanding. However, there are days when I feel that this is a hopeless task, because zahir and batin are in conflict...’
Kendra understood what he meant.
Zahir was the public face that Iranians were expected to show the rest of the world, while batin was the private sentiment that was closely guarded and seldom expressed.
Hatami continued, ‘Today is one of those days, and I will admit that my faith in my countrymen has been shaken. Please accept my most sincere sorrow for the tragedy in the Auckland city centre. I am deeply ashamed and shocked at what Onyx has done.’
‘You had no idea that he was planning this?’ Jim asked.
‘Ah, I had my suspicions. When Onyx first entered this country under the name Behrouz Farhadi, something about him seemed off. So I performed my own investigation. I learned that his real name was Karim Movahed, and he had a classified military record. Not even my station chief was privy to this fact.’
‘He was Quds Force,’ Adam said.
‘Yes, this is the case. You have to understand, there are many factions within my country. Some are more extreme than others. And Onyx has certainly been drawn into that camp. He became this way when his younger brother in the Revolutionary Guards was killed while protecting a scientist...’
Kendra nodded.
In recent years, several key individuals connected to the nuclear programme had been singled out for assassination. These hits were carried out by Israel’s Mossad in an attempt to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. However, just like the Stuxnet cyberattack, these attempts were only partially successful.
Hatami continued, ‘I could see that Onyx was running a rogue operation. He no longer cares about national interest. He only thirsts for vengeance. This is why I contacted Trevor Walsh at the GCSB and warned him. I thought that would be enough.’
Kendra clenched her jaw and inhaled. ‘Well, apparently not. The situation was mishandled.’
‘So it would seem.’ Hatami fixed his gaze on Kendra. ‘Khanoom-yeh Shaw, is it true that you have a personal stake in this matter?’
‘I do, Agha-yeh Hatami. I was there to witness the bombing on Queen Street. And Ryan Hosseini is an old friend of mine. Well, more than an old friend.’
‘I see.’
‘Will you help us?’
Hatami paused. He took another sip of his tea, then he slowly set the cup down. ‘I am not a man of violence. I am a man of reason. As I have said, I have always believed that dialogue and mutual understanding offers the best hope for the future.’ Hatami shook his head and sighed. ‘But what can one do when faced with unreasoning violence?’ Hatami paused again, his eyes narrowing. He cleared his throat. ‘Yes, I shall help you. All I ask in return is that once you acquire Onyx, you neutralise him without hesitation. There is no benefit to keeping such a mad dog alive. His actions have proven harmful to the relations between our two nations.’
Kendra leaned forward. ‘Rest assured, once I have him in my gunsights, I will put him down. No question about it.’
Hatami gave a small nod. ‘Very well. I shall provide you with a contact. The rest will be up to you. Inshallah.’
Jim gave a thin smile. ‘Inshallah. Thank you.’