The limping man grinned at the use of his old moniker. He’d been using a different alias for the last two years, but it felt good to hear his old name again. “Radiation burns,” Ahab replied. “An unfortunate incident.”
“And the leg?”
“An American bullet shattered my femur.”
The general nodded. “Perhaps that explains why you’re here. I’m told you have something for us. Something the Americans want back very badly. It would be a grand act of revenge to give it to us.”
Ahab offered nothing that could be called a reaction. “I’m not into acts, General Borisov. And I don’t possess what I’m here to offer you. I have only a connection to the men who control it. You may look at me as a highly paid messenger.”
The suited man, whose name was Mishin, got right to it. “And who are these men you refer to?”
Ahab didn’t answer.
Borisov gave him a look and then asked a better question. “What is it they have? And why should we want it?”
Ahab could feel the suited man leaning in. No doubt they expected and hoped he was about to reference the missing American aircraft. He made them wait, just a moment or two, ensuring he had their full attention. “They claim to know the final resting place of the American C-17 and its lethally powerful laser weapon, which the Americans call the EAGL.”
“Then the rumors are true,” Borisov said. “The American aircraft went down after all.”
“Down,” Ahab said, “yes. But not in the way you think. Therewas no crash. No explosion. No rendering of parts in all directions. The aircraft is in one piece. And the laser compartment and systems are intact, ready for extraction and study.”
Ahab could see the men all but salivating at this point. “There are complications,” he warned.
This statement both knocked the enthusiasm out of the men and set up the next phase of the transaction. Nothing, Ahab had learned, was more motivating to men of power than to tell them they might not be able to have what they wanted.
“What kind of complications?” Mishin asked. The question was sharp. An attorney’s cross exam, or a policeman’s interrogation. It had no tact. All the better, Ahab thought. Mishin had already tipped his hand.
“The Chinese were and are involved. They have agents and a command ship looking for the aircraft, and they expect to receive the location from the hijackers very soon.”
“With you providing it to them, I assume,” Mishin snapped. “Do you really think you can play us against one another?”
“I will provide the Chinese with nothing,” Ahab replied. “They are as responsible for my injuries as the Americans. More so, perhaps. Someone in their government betrayed me. But these men have other avenues to get their message through.”
Mishin sat back, folding his arms. Whether he accepted the claim or not, Ahab couldn’t tell, but that mattered very little at the moment.
“All the more reason to give us the location,” Borisov interjected warmly. “We will take the aircraft and keep it from them.”
“Something I would be glad to do,” Ahab replied, “but I’m not in possession of that information. These men are not fools. It’s their only bargaining chip and they will not reveal it until the end.”
“Hmm,” Borisov replied. “I see.”
Ahab didn’t expect them to trust or believe him, but if theywanted the EAGL, they would have to pretend. This would keep him safe. It would keep him from disappearing in the labyrinth of tunnels and never emerging. It would keep him from the interrogation rooms and the doctors with their truth serums.
“And then we have the Americans,” he added.
“We’ve seen their satellites changing orbit to scan our borders repeatedly,” Borisov admitted. “Do they think we have the plane?”
“Initially, perhaps,” Ahab said. “But they’ve seen enough to convince themselves otherwise. They’re busy looking for it in the Barents Sea. And the men involved are well trained, well equipped, and highly resourceful. If the aircraft is findable, they’ll discover it soon.”
“You’re saying it landed in the sea?”
Ahab shrugged. “The Americans seem to think so. If they’re right, your chance to recover the laser will not last very long.”
The two Russian men looked at each other. This was an opportunity they didn’t want to miss.
“How much do the hijackers want?” Mishin asked.
“Two hundred and fifty million dollars in various cryptocurrencies,” Ahab said. “Another fifty million in gold certificates.”
