The copilot rapidly nodded his head, and the Ghost motioned for Omar to follow him. They went back into the cabin and the Ghost said, “How doyou know he’s not flying us to some airfield that the authorities gave him? Can you hear the radio calls?”
“No, but he’s so scared I can’t believe he would do that. You really do have a vest, after all. Even if he managed to land without us realizing it—which would be impossible—we could still kill them on the ground.”
The Ghost nodded, and Omar said, “Why haven’t you killed the prime minister? Why is he still alive? We should have slit both their throats and dumped them on the road to the airport.”
“We had no idea who was going to stop us. If they had been even halfway organized and had set up roadblocks or sent a commando team to interdict or anything else, they were our ticket out. If we’d have killed them, then our vehicle would have been declared a free-fire target.”
“Well, what about now? We should kill them right now and leave their bodies on the plane when we get to Ushuaia.”
“We’re not killing them now for the same reasons we didn’t in the car. We’re in an airplane that every radar in this country is tracking. The minute they determine that the hostages are dead, they’ll blow this thing out of the sky. We have nowhere to hide, and if proof of life is demanded before they shoot, I want to be able to give it to them.”
“Proof of life? Are you going to put them on the radio?”
“Maybe. It depends, but either way, they’re staying alive for now.”
“They won’t shoot us down with the pilots on board!”
“They will if they think the pilots were in on it.”
The Ghost heard a ringing and glanced around, confused, then realized it was his cell phone. He pulled it out and Omar said, “Who is that?”
He looked at the screen and said, “I have no idea.”
He turned away from Omar and answered it, simply saying, “Yes?”
“Hello, Ghost. It’s been a long time. I see you’ve been up to your usual tricks.”
The voice brought him back to a prison cell, when the man who’d captured him had inexplicably asked for his help. It was the predator.
He said, “Hello, Mr. Pink. I must say, I was surprised to see you today,although I shouldn’t have been. I suppose they called you when I left my prison.”
When he’d asked for the predator’s name in the cell long ago, he’d replied with what he thought was a hilarious joke, saying the Ghost could call him Mr. Pink. The Ghost had not understood the humor, but had used the name nonetheless.
Mr. Pink said, “They did, and I must admit, you’re a hard man to find. Originally, my mission was just to bring you back alive. Now, depending on what you’ve done with your hostages, I might bring you back on a slab.”
The Ghost said, “Mr. Pink, I respect your skill, but I do not fear you. The threats will get you nowhere. We all are going to die. The only question is whether the death is worth it.”
“Okay then, say your prayers. Just turn to the right so you’re facing east, because it’ll happen before you’re done.”
So he knows we aren’t headed to Brazil. He’s tracking the aircraft.Which was unsurprising. The Ghost said, “What do you propose to prevent that eventuality?”
“Put on Amanda Croft. If she’s alive, so is the prime minister. And if that’s true, I’ll let you fly a little longer.”
The Ghost went to the back of the plane and handed the United States secretary of state the phone, saying, “State your name and occupation.”
She did so and he snatched the phone away again, putting it back to his ear and saying, “This will be the only concession I grant you. Now what can you do for me in return?”
“Thank you. I appreciate it. In return, I’ll let you in on a little secret. The Iranians you’re working with do not have your best interests at heart. And by best interests, I mean you and the people you’re doing all this killing for. They’re going to sacrifice you both for their own selfish interests.”
“Goodbye, Mr. Pink.”
“Wait, wait. I know you better than you think, and so do the Iranians. We intercepted a Signal chat between the men you’re with and the Iranian here in the United States. You want to know what it says?”
The Ghost glanced at Omar, then turned away, saying, “I’m listening.”
“To show you that this is, in fact, from your friends and not something I’m making up, the Iranian in the US is working with a group of Americans to attack Washington, DC. They’re the same Americans who broke you free. That’s all in the chat. How am I doing so far?”
The Ghost was surprised at the level of knowledge, but it didn’t necessarily mean it came from an intercepted chat. Mr. Pink could have discovered this through a myriad of different methods. Or he could simply be guessing. Even so, he said, “Go on.”
