The Defector, page 15
Morrison smiled slightly. “If you shut up, I’ll tell you.”
Leroux’s jaw dropped as his eyes shot wide. “Wait a minute, you know?”
“Yes, I know exactly what’s going on, and I’ve been dying to tell you but I haven’t been able to until now.”
A mix of emotions whipped through his system, a combination of shock, relief, and anger, along with a hint of nausea that threatened to overwhelm him. He gripped the arms of his seat as he inhaled sharply. “What’s going on?”
“It’s actually quite the op Kane cooked up. Two months ago, one of this nation’s top nuclear scientists retired. The man is a genius by all accounts, but he decided at sixty-five he would keep his promise to his wife and retire and spend more time with her, something I applaud him for, obviously.”
Leroux flicked an impatient wrist. “Of course.”
“A week after retiring to a retreat they had purchased in Colorado, his wife reported him missing. Because of who he was and the security clearances he had, indicators were flipped, and we became involved. It didn’t take us long to determine the North Koreans had kidnapped him, obviously to work on their failed nuclear power program, and then perhaps even their weapons program. The man is as smart as Burkett is purported to be, just without the obnoxious social tendencies.”
Leroux paused. “Wait a minute. Burkett, is he real?”
Morrison held up a hand. “I’m getting to that. By the time we figured out that Dr. Gorman was in North Korea, it was too late. We knew he’d be buried deep within their system, and the chances of getting to him would be next to nothing because of the nature of his work. A file was automatically flagged and released, and that’s when we discovered the analysis that had been done by the real Dr. Burkett, who is every bit as brilliant and arrogant as Jack has been playing him. That analysis revealed what the Russians had been doing to subvert the North Koreans’ nuclear ambitions. It was confirmed that Dr. Gorman possessed the knowledge to figure out what the planted design flaw was, and that he’d be able to correct it given enough time. Then about a month ago, his daughter and granddaughter disappeared, which could mean only two things.”
Leroux leaned back. “That he was cooperating and they were being brought to him as a reward, or he wasn’t cooperating and they were going to be used as leverage.”
“Exactly. So, I called Kane in to discuss options, and he came up with the plan that you and everyone else have been drawn into. We planted Jack at a new job posing as Burkett, then had Kane fake his own defection, convince the North Koreans he was sincere, then give them the name of Burkett and the new job location along with the security surrounding him. The North Koreans took the bait, kidnapped him, brought him to their territory, and if all goes well, are going to deliver Jack, who if he played his part right will have also convinced them to have Kane accompany him, they’re going to deliver them both into the same facility that Gorman is in.”
Leroux shook his head. “Holy shit! That’s insane! And when they get there, what are they going to do?”
“Well, with Bravo Team in position, they’re going to kill him and die in the process, kill him and escape with the assistance of Bravo Team, or rescue him and escape with Bravo Team. And then of course, possibly die in the escape along with Bravo Team.”
“So, this is a potential suicide mission.”
“They both knew going in that they might not be coming out, but the risk is too high. That nation with a stable nuclear power supply is dangerous, and the nuclear waste that it produces would be worth a fortune on the black market. We could have dirty bombs going off constantly all over the planet if that reactor is allowed to fire up.”
“Can’t we just blow it up, or call in an air strike?”
Morrison shook his head. “No, they’ve had fissile material on site for a couple of decades. We could create a nuclear disaster that wipes out half of eastern China, which could lead to a nuclear war that would wipe out the rest of us.”
“But wait a minute. What about the mole? Who’s been triggering those messages?”
Morrison grinned. “You’re looking at him.”
Leroux cursed and laughed as he twisted his head away. “You’re effing kidding me. You’re the mole?”
Morrison shrugged. “Who better? You would never suspect me, and I have access to everything. And half the messages were going to me regardless.”
“But wait a minute, a message just went to you.”
“I just send the codes at the appropriate time. I didn’t realize one was coming to me.” He held up his phone and Leroux rose, leaning over to read it.
“So far, so good, don’t forget to let everyone know the truth, especially Fang.” Leroux sat back down. “So, what now?”
“Now we do everything we can to keep our eyes on him and do whatever we can to help get all three of them out of there if possible. Our people at a minimum.”
Leroux finally thought to ask the question burning inside him since this began. “Why did he lie to us? Why did you guys lie to us, especially Fang?”
Morrison frowned. “That was the worst part of it, for both of us, especially for him, but it was necessary. We needed genuine reactions from everybody just in case there was indeed a mole. You know that for years now the Agency has suspected there’s at least one mole within the organization. We couldn’t risk them finding out what was going on and passing it on to the North Koreans. It was essential that every single one of you reacted the way you did. Betrayed, shocked, disbelief. If any of you had known the truth and acted in an unexpected way, or overacted, if that had been picked up on, Kane would be dead and perhaps even Jack.” Morrison paused, regarding him. “How do you feel about that?”
Leroux shrugged. “I understand it now that it’s put in context. And I’m relieved that what I suspected all along was correct.” He smirked. “I’m not sure how understanding Fang is going to be.”
Morrison chuckled. “Oh yeah, that was the only part of the op that he was afraid of—the ass-kicking he was going to get from Fang if he ended up surviving.”
Leroux laughed. “I’d die to get that on tape so we can play it at his retirement party.”
Morrison snorted. “You find out where and when it’s happening, and I’ll have a team put in the surveillance equipment.” He pointed at the door. “Now, go bring your team up to speed and save our people’s lives.”
Leroux rose then paused. “But wait. The two unidentified numbers. Who are they? One of them just got a message.”
“That message was to Dawson’s people. Knowing Kane, he was taunting them.”
“And the other, the one that’s already received a message and is due to receive another at some point?”
“I have no idea. He wouldn’t tell me. He said it was his backup plan.”
“And when are you supposed to trigger that second message?”
“The moment the shit hits the fan.”
Leroux headed for the door then froze. “Sir?”
“Yes?”
“If you knew all along, why didn’t you stop Delta from executing their orders?”
Morrison pointed to a set of comms sitting on his desk. “I was jacked in the entire time and was about to give the abort order when Atlas recognized Jack. Kane and Jack were never in any danger. At least not from us.”
“Cutting it a little close?”
Morrison smiled. “It makes things more interesting, don’t you think?”
46 |
Sunchon Airbase Sunchon, North Korea
Pak shook Kane’s hand. “I’ll be traveling separately. I need to brief Command on the new arrangement. You two will be okay on your own?”
Kwan grinned and patted Kane’s chest. “I think we’ll find a way to pass the time.”
Kane smiled down at her. “Now, now, be polite. I do believe you’re making the major uncomfortable.”
Pak said nothing, though it was clear he didn’t like the sexual aspect of the relationship between his operative and his defector. Pak glanced over at another vehicle. “I’ll see you at the power plant.”
Kane nodded. “Looking forward to it.”
Pak walked away and Kane helped Kwan into the back seat then joined her. The car immediately pulled away, escorted by leading and trailing vehicles. Kwan reached forward and closed the divider between them and the driver.
“I think that went well.”
Kane had to be careful what was said here. He was still the defector, Jack was still Burkett, and they still hadn’t laid eyes yet on Dr. Gorman. Plenty could still go wrong here. The fact Dawson’s team hadn’t killed him meant they had figured things out in time, or Morrison, monitoring the op, had called off the kill shot.
He smiled slightly. He could just imagine the expressions on their faces when Jack stared up at the eye in the sky. “Yes, I think it did go well.” He forced a frown. “Though I’m not too happy I have to play BFF with that arrogant asshole.”
Kwan’s hand traveled up his inner thigh. “I think I can take your mind off of that for a while.”
He smiled down at her as she reached her prize. “I think you and I are going to get along just fine if you keep thinking like that.”
She undid his belt with her teeth and his heart raced with anticipation for what was to come as his stomach protested with the guilt over Fang. He had to remember this was an op, and they had both agreed that it wasn’t cheating if it was on an op. She just didn’t want to know about it. It was part of the job, and unfortunately, due to the nature of it, it was a pleasurable part of the job. It was different this time though. At least it had been last night. Because up until now, Fang had assumed he was a traitor to his country, and not only had betrayed everything and everyone he knew, but her as well.
He groaned as she reached her destination and he leaned back, spreading his arms across the seat back. He closed his eyes, enjoying the exquisite sensations while he planned out the rest of the op that so far had been going perfectly. Unfortunately, now they were heading into the unknown, the black box part of the operation that couldn’t be planned for beyond contingencies. They would be going in with no weapons and no idea how much access they would be given to the kidnapped scientist. If he could get his hands on Gorman, he could snap his neck in a heartbeat, and the North Korean nuclear power program would be just as crippled as it always was.
It was unfortunate that they now knew about the design flaw in the Russian-provided plans, but Gorman would have discovered it eventually regardless. Now they would know about it and that their major source of expertise, the Russians, couldn’t be trusted anymore. It should, however, still set them back at least another decade, by which time perhaps cooler heads will have prevailed on the peninsula.
The ultimate goal was to find a way to get free of security and the reactor, with Gorman in tow, meet up with Bravo Team, then get safely out of the country. The chances of that happening were slim to none, which was why he had that final message queued up for Fang. The Chief would explain to her why he had done what he had done, but she deserved one final message saying goodbye, and telling her how much he loved her and how sorry he was for causing her pain.
He just prayed he made it out of here alive so she’d never have to read it.
He had been in impossible situations before, yet they only appeared impossible to those without his skill set. And he usually had some sort of communications capability. Unless by some miracle Dawson’s team could do a handoff, they would be blind the entire time, praying that Langley and Bravo Team anticipated their next move. No matter what happened, it would be exciting, and it just might be the last exciting thing he ever did.
And if it was, it broke his heart that his last sexual encounter was with a woman like this, instead of the woman he loved.
God, what I would give to just hold you in my arms one last time.
47 |
Sunchon Airbase Perimeter Sunchon, North Korea
Dawson and his team were now well back from the road. Kane and the others had left the airport under armed escort, so their original op was essentially over, though he suspected a new one was about to begin, one they would have to come up with on the fly.
“Zero-One, Control Actual, do you read, over?”
Fist bumps were exchanged as everyone recognized Leroux’s voice. Dawson activated his comms. “Affirmative, Control. We read you. Good to have you back online, over.”
“Good to be back. Has anyone brought you up to speed?”
Dawson glanced at the others. “Is anybody actually up to speed? I got the impression that the entire intelligence community of the United States was just caught with its pants down.”
Everyone laughed including Leroux. “I know mine were around my ankles. The Chief was aware of the op, but he couldn’t tell us. They needed genuine reactions from everybody.”
Dawson leaned against a nearby tree. “So, can you tell us what’s going on?”
“Yes, I just got a full briefing. There’s a scientist named Dr. Gorman. His file has been sent to your tactical computer. He was kidnapped two months ago by the North Koreans. He’s the actual nuclear genius that we’re afraid will be able to get the North Korean nuclear energy program up and running very quickly. Jack was sent in as a decoy to gain access to Gorman, and in order to get him in position, Kane had to pretend to defect then dangle the fake Dr. Burkett as the carrot that could really lead to the breakthrough they needed.”
“So, what’s happening now? What are our orders?”
“Unfortunately, we’re all flying blind on this one. The plan was to try to get Jack in as Burkett and convince the North Koreans to allow him and Kane to meet up with Gorman. At the moment, it appears they’ve been successful, as everyone’s heading to the reactor.”
“And what’s the plan when they get there?”
“That all depends on what they find on the ground. We’ve had detailed plans of the reactor complex for years, and both Kane and Jack have familiarized themselves with everything they should encounter inside from a hardened standpoint. It’s the human and added security hardware that are black boxes to us.”
“I assume you’ve got every satellite you can get on that location?”
“We have since the moment the so-called Burkett became known to us. We’ve been recording everything, including all the patrol patterns and stations, twenty-four-seven. We can get you in, we can get you out, assuming you survive what’s inside, but I’m not going to lie to you. This could turn into a Charlie-Foxtrot in a heartbeat.”
Niner rolled his eyes. “Can’t they all?”
Dawson agreed. “I’m assuming neither he nor Jack have comms?”
“No, they couldn’t risk anything being found on their persons. All we can do is anticipate what they could do, and make sure we’re ready for whatever ends up happening.”
Dawson brought up the map on his tactical computer. “Well, that’s all well and good, and we’d like to help, but we’re going to have a hell of a time getting in position if this is going down any time soon. It’s not like we can just take the main road.”
“No, you can’t, and we’ve been working on that. We’re going to get you to head back on the road you came in on for two klicks, then there’s what appears to be a utility road cut through the forest that runs straight north. That’s going to take you almost the entire way, and as far as we can tell, it’s not patrolled.”
“Somebody has to use it,” muttered Atlas. “Otherwise, it wouldn’t be there.”
“My friend has a point,” said Dawson.
“I have no doubt he’s right,” replied Leroux. “But nobody’s seen anything on the road in the entire time we’ve been monitoring, and we checked satellite footage for the past twenty-four hours and nothing’s been on it. If you can get to it, you should be able to go full throttle depending on conditions.”
Spock cocked an eyebrow. “Control, has anybody actually zoomed in on this thing to see if it’s overgrown?”
“Yes, we have and it does appear a little rough, but the forest has been kept back, which could suggest it is well used and just hasn’t been for the past twenty-four hours, or it could also mean that an extremely efficient communist regime has been keeping that road clear for the past sixty years and just has forgotten why.”
Heads bobbed among the group, for it was a perfectly good explanation.
“An order was given in 1962 and the person who gave it is long dead, and the reason long forgotten.” Dawson pushed away from the tree. “Understood, Control. We’re going to retrieve our bikes and head to that road. We don’t have any time to waste jawing about it. We’ll contact you when we’re about to get underway, over.”
“Copy that, Zero-One. Control, out.”
Dawson swirled a finger in the air. “Let’s go, gentlemen. I hope you’re all wearing athletic supports because I have a funny feeling our balls are going to get a workout on that road.”
48 |
Nyongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center Nyongbyon, North Korea
Kane climbed out of the car, far more relaxed than a man in his position should be—Kwan was extremely well-trained. He noticed the driver give her a look as she stepped out. It was clear none of the North Koreans were happy with the part she was playing in this, yet they had to remember she was just playing a part. She wasn’t just there for sex. This was a full-on girlfriend experience. Her job was to make his entire life pleasurable, his new existence tolerable, and if at any time in his presence she showed anything but delight at what her current assignment entailed, it would blow the entire experience, and if he weren’t also playing a part, force him to request a replacement.
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