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wealth he would have had if Kurt Ford hadn t snubbed him years ago.
But this plan, if it worked, would be even better than sharing in Kurt Ford s
wealth. This plan was his doing, and if it worked, he could revel for the rest
of his life in his own cleverness. This would be his last chance. He had to
act quickly and presume that Yale would come up with the cash. He knew a
suitcase with that much money in it would put the deal to bed.
He dialed his phone and when a gruff voice on the other end answered, he said,
Reeves, it s me. Get Vanecroft and meet me at the Tabard Inn on N Street
tonight at seven. Ask for Mr. Valance and come to my room. We all have to
presume we re being followed, so take every precaution to shake a tail. I ve
got a critical job for you.
Then he added, It s the job of a lifetime . . .
CHAPTER 43
Gentlemen, Claiborne said he always treated his thugs with great dignity,
that was part of the catch I am going to disclose to you information that s
so classified there are only a handful of people in the entire world who are
privy to it . . .
He paused, looking hard at his men. He already knew it, but even if he didn t
he could see clearly from their faces that they liked this kind of talk.
Claiborne was behind the desk in the small suite he had taken for the night.
Musty books lined the shelves on one wall and a lace-covered bed stood against
the wall, neatly made. Behind him was a large bay window that looked out over
the quiet tree-lined street. Dusk was nearly at hand, but the tall glass lamp
on the corner of the desk lit the men s faces with a clear orange glow. They
were grim yet eager.
The mission we have carried out over the last several months was not what it
appeared, Claiborne said somberly. He sighed long and low before continuing.
The president, gentlemen, is on the brink of destroying everything this
country has built over its two-hundred-plus-year history. He is on the verge
of implementing, along with a few key appointees in the military and
intelligence communities, the disclosure of a substantial body of military and
intelligence secrets to the Chinese. It will be done under the auspices of
diplomacy and a newfound alliance. It will be packaged and sold to the public,
who will buy it the way they buy everything else that s fed to them by the
media. But underneath it all will be the simple exchange of money for secrets.
It will undermine the United States in a way that will change history . . .
Claiborne searched their faces. A vein transecting Vanecroft s forehead had
swelled angrily and it beat a steady pulse. Reeves s reaction was less clear,
but Claiborne felt confident he d struck the right chord with them both, so he
continued.
Ford was supposed to do the job, he said. But he failed. Our role, as I m
sure you ve already guessed, wasn t to prevent Ford from carrying out his
mission, but simply to monitor it. But he failed. He wavered in the final
seconds. He missed his target . . .
The target, gentlemen, he said in a low tone, is the president.
Claiborne reached down to the floor before getting to his feet. He placed a
small suitcase on his desktop and flipped open the brass latches, boldly
revealing the cash. An inky scent filled the room and charged it with tension.
A symbol of the seriousness of what we re being asked to do one million
dollars in cash, he said, eyeing the men carefully. There was another
suitcase, but he was keeping that for himself in the event that these two men,
like Ford, somehow failed him. One million wasn t twenty, but in a worst case,
it was better than nothing.
I have for you here the address of a safe house in Maryland. That will be
your refuge once the job is complete, he went on. From there, you will be
transported by military helicopter to Fort Bragg and from there to Brazil.
You ll be provided with new identities as well as the remainder of the
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money another million and a half dollars apiece in offshore accounts.
There are other candidates for this mission, Claiborne continued, picking up
two bound stacks of hundred-dollar bills and handing one to each of the men.
But we re getting the first crack at it. This is a chance for you, and I
won t lie, for me if we succeed, I ll get two million as well to cash out.
It s this, in fact, or nothing. Gentlemen, this is the mission of a lifetime.
If we succeed, the viability of this country will be preserved and we will be
well compensated.
Our escape is secure, he lied. In reality, he had made no provisions for
these men. The address was a false one.
If you accept, I have here the president s detailed itinerary for the next
seven days. Despite Ford s attack, they ve decided to stick to his schedule.
He has to. It s campaign time and they don t want to give the impression that
he s afraid. I ll trust your judgment as to the best opportunity for success,
but I would strongly suggest you take a close look at the Acid Rain March he
plans on participating in down Fifty-ninth Street in Manhattan. The size of
the crowd and the multiplicity of hotel windows will provide an extraordinary
opportunity. I also have the location points of the counter-sniper teams, so
you can avoid falling into their direct line of fire. That s just my
suggestion . . .
Claiborne stopped speaking. He watched the two men think. Vanecroft was
massaging the packet of bills. He licked his lips.
I m in, he muttered. I m in all the way.
They looked at Reeves, who narrowed his eyes and said, I m in if my partner
here will agree to two shooters. We coordinate everything to the second, and
at the predetermined time, we shoot.
Like Kennedy? Claiborne said, arching his eyebrow.
Why not? Reeves said. It worked.
Art? Claiborne said, his heart beating fast.
Vanecroft nodded sullenly and said, I don t mind if he calls the shots as
long as I get my money and we take this traitorous piece of shit out.
Good, Claiborne said, not wanting to upset the momentum of the two men s
decisions by bogging them down with details. I have packets here for each of
you. If after looking over the information, you agree with my assessment, then
we ll meet at Clyde s on M Street Sunday night at seven. They have a back room
that will be reserved under the name of Jones. We can finalize the plans there
and I can update you on any itinerary changes.
Claiborne closed the suitcase and handed it over to Vanecroft, knowing he
would appreciate the gesture and that Reeves was a big enough man not to care
who was holding it. He walked with them silently down the stairs and out the
front door of the inn. Like strangers, they went in opposite directions.
At the corner, Claiborne caught a cab and headed back to his brownstone. He
closed his eyes briefly as the cab trundled along, wondering what the odds of
success were. Probably not bad. People thought killing the president was
harder than it really was. If you knew his itinerary, and you could shoot a
rifle, it wasn t that tough.
When he got home, he looked suspiciously up and down the street. He wondered
if there had been a tail on him when he left the house five hours ago. If
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Dobre pomysły nie mają przeszłości, mają tylko przyszłość. Robert Mallet
De minimis - o najmniejszych rzeczach.
Dobroć jest ważniejsza niż mądrość, a uznanie tej prawdy to pierwszy krok do mądrości. Theodore Isaac Rubin
Dobro to tylko to, co szlachetne, zło to tylko to, co haniebne.
Dla człowieka nie tylko świat otaczający jest zagadką; jest on nią sam dla siebie. I z obu tajemnic bardziej dręczącą wydaje się ta druga. Antoni Kępiński (1918-1972)
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