“You remember they were flying over a Kidon team?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, they made it on the ground after you left. They didn’t do anything, but they were there. It turns out that during Shoshana’s ownkidnapping drama, Aaron went in to see her and they had a conversation in Hebrew to prevent the police from knowing what they were saying, so it backs up the story. When we finally reveal that the Israeli prime minister is alive and well, he’s going to take credit for the entire thing, saying it was the Kidon team.”
“What about the helicopter pilot? Surely he’s blabbing.”
“Yeah, he’s a weak link. We asked him to keep specific details secret, only telling them the bare minimum, and he was really thankful we’d arrived, so maybe he will. If he doesn’t, he’s way the hell down in Ushuaia and pretty hard to find. Either way, right now we’re more worried about news revealing the prime minister was rescued getting out than we are about who did it.”
Aaron and Shoshana came over to me, Shoshana taking the seat next to the window and Aaron standing in the aisle. I said, “What’s up?”
Aaron said, “We have a serious issue with the RDD. We aren’t going to find it in time.”
“I know, I know, but we can only do what we can do. You have the town of Jenin, right? And the PM has all your assets focused there, correct?”
Shoshana said, “Yes, but we need more time. Jenin is huge. We have the technical capability to find the emissions from the uranium, but we have to do so surreptitiously, in a manner that won’t cause them to panic and initiate it on their own, so that we can mount a surgical, pinpoint assault. That could take a day or two.”
“They’re waiting on the word to initiate, and we have the guy who was supposed to give it. You have some time. We aren’t on the clock yet.”
Aaron said, “Weareon the clock. Yes, the IRGC command is waiting on Sardar to report before they give the order, but when word gets out that our prime minister has been rescued, they won’t wait on Sardar. They’ll send the order in a fit of rage. That news is going to leak sooner rather than later.”
I thought about the helicopter pilot, then said, “What can we do? I mean, we’re thousands of miles away.”
Aaron said, “We need to cut the command out of the loop and increase the timeline. Shoshana has a plan, and I think it will work.”
I said, “Does it involve going to the Iranian embassy in Buenos Aires and taking the ambassador hostage?”
She scowled and I saw a little grin form on Aaron’s face. He said, “Her action will end up working in your favor. In the end, it will help your cover.”
I said, “Okay, Carrie, what do you have?”
She said, “We know the command is aware that our prime minister and your secretary of state have been taken hostage. All they’re waiting on is a report from Sardar about the attack in the United States.”
“Yeah, I’m tracking that.”
“Okay, well, we can assume the group behind this is tiny, maybe four or five people total. I’m not even sure the ayatollah sanctioned it, but even if he did, they’re so afraid of our Mossad that this operation would be held to a very small group. The only ones that can order the attack.”
“Okay?”
“Knuckles has Sardar’s computer, correct?”
From the screen Knuckles said, “That’s right. We have it.”
She turned to the screen and said, “Can you access his Signal account? Can you locate how he’s talking to the command?”
“I don’t know, but I’d say yes, we could probably do that.”
I said, “What, you want to send them a fake message? Saying he had to roll over a day or two and they need to wait? Is that it?”
“Sort of. Yes, I want to send a fake message, but I want it to say Sardar has important information, and he needs everyone together when he sends it. While they’re getting everyone together, we track the signal to its source.”
I saw where she was going, saying, “And eliminate the source?”
She showed her teeth and said, “Yes.”
I said, “How are you going to do that from a computer?”
Aaron said, “We own the skies over Israel.”
