She dialed again, started talking, then said, “They have a ping. East side of the zoo. It only lasted for a second, not long enough to get a fix, but it’s definitely east side.”
I said, “Okay, tell ’em we’ll both head east. If it got a ping, we’re in range, but they just killed the engine, which means it’s stationary. They take the first road going up and we’ll take the second.”
She relayed and we both went around a traffic circle in front of the zoo. I passed one road and kept going, leaving that to Aaron and Jennifer. I reached the second road and started up it, telling Shoshana to keep her eyes peeled. We drove at a slow pace, scanning the cars parked on both sides of the small lane. We went about a quarter of a mile when Shoshana’s phone rang.
She answered, then said, “They have it. On a road called Republic of India. That first road.”
I pulled over, letting cars pass me, then did a U-turn, saying, “Anyone in it?”
“No, but it’s the van. Jennifer’s confirmed the plate.”
I turned up India Avenue, saying, “Put it on speaker.”
She did, and I heard Jennifer say, “I see you. Keep coming. We’re on the right, three cars behind the target.”
I saw their vehicle and pulled alongside, seeing no cars behind me. Shoshana rolled down the window and I said, “You guys already checked it out?”
Behind the wheel, Jennifer said, “Aaron did a walk by. It’s empty.”
I looked around us, thinking. Jennifer said, “If they got out here, they’re coming back soon. There aren’t any hotels or anything else around here for a bed-down.”
I nodded and said, “Could be target reconnaissance. Are the PM and SECSTATE scheduled to come here for anything? Are they doing some kind of goodwill tour after the anniversary ceremony?”
Shoshana said, “I don’t know about your secretary of state, but theprime minister isn’t planning a visit anywhere near here. The only thing close is the airport he’s flying out of, but the route to it doesn’t pass by here.”
The problem with counterterrorism is that the enemy held all the cards. You had to assume everything a suspected terrorist did was some nefarious evil thing, when it might be nothing. A terrorist leaves a restaurant table and goes to the bathroom? Probably going to place a bomb in the toilet to kill everyone in the eatery. Or maybe he’s just taking a dump. I had no idea if the van’s current location meant anything bad at all, but I had to assume it did.
I said, “Okay, here’s the play. Shoshana and I are going to explore that zoo-park area, making a loop around it. You guys keep eyes on the van. We’ll see if anyone’s inside the park, and you guys give us a call if someone returns.”
Jennifer said, “What about Knuckles?”
“Get ’em a little closer, but not all the way here. I want them to be able to flex to a different location if we need to. We can handle whatever’s here.”
She nodded and I drove down the street until I found an open spot for our vehicle. I parked and pulled up a map of the park on my phone, seeing it was split down the middle with ponds and small lakes, a tangle of walking paths and various animal pens and bird sanctuaries threaded throughout.
I said, “Let’s start on the east and work our way up, then loop back down on the west. If we reach the entrance with no contact, then we’ll come back here and reassess.”
She agreed and I said, “You’re sure you’ll be able to recognize these guys?”
“Yes. Aaron and I tracked them for days before you showed up. I’ll recognize them.”
We exited and jogged across the street, then walked down the iron fence separating the park from the avenue, studiously ignoring the van and Jennifer and Aaron watching it. We entered through the stone arch, dodging around the crowds of kids and families until we reached a lake in the center of the park. I motioned to the left and then began walking down a concretepath. I’d gone about a hundred yards when Shoshana tugged my sleeve, then wrapped me in an embrace, planting her lips on mine.
Startled, I pulled back and she growled, “Act like you’re enjoying it.”
I leaned back in and kissed her. She broke the kiss and hugged me, planting her head on my shoulder. She said, “Target is fifty meters to your rear. He’s seen me. He knows who I am.”
I resisted the urge to turn around and look. Instead, I broke the embrace and put her at arm’s length, with my hands on her shoulders like we were having an intimate conversation. With a smile plastered on my face, I said, “What the fuck are you talking about, Carrie?”
With her eyes locked on mine, no longer looking over my shoulder, she said, “The Hezbollah target I followed in Iguazú is sitting on a bench to your rear. He saw me, and I can tell he recognized me. He may not know what I am, but he’s wondering why I’m here with him.”
“How do you know he recognized you?”
She just squinted her eyes at me. I said, “Okay, okay, he went red or something?”
She nodded, then said, “What do you want to do?”
“Back off and get Jennifer and Aaron in here.”
