“Well,” Knox continued, “there are certainly people in Washington who want to shut this case down.”
“Why?”
“I’m not sure. We’ve kept Headquarters updated. The ‘drones’ at Hoover and DOJ have immediate access to our entire case file. They know everything once we input the information. Something has changed. It’s more than Gabe’s death but it’s something State’s not sharing.”
Jake said nothing.
Knox leaned forward almost as if the two were about to engage in a romantic conversation. In a voice just loud enough for Jake to hear she said, “Look, the regime in Pyongyang is dangerous and unstable. Lately they have been very bold.
“The NKPA has shelled South Korea, tested nuclear weapons, and test-fired ICBMs capable of delivering a nuclear warhead. Kim Jong Un even declared the 1953 armistice nullified. Blackmail is their favored avenue of political negotiations. We know North Korea has enough weaponized fissile material for at least six atomic bombs. They’ve admitted to possessing thirty-seven kilograms of plutonium.”
“Sounds like a worthy target,” said Jake, not giving any ground.
“They are, but the FBI doesn’t make foreign policy. That’s the purview of the White House and the State Department. We take our orders from DOJ and right now those orders are for me to pull you out. It’s above my pay grade and it doesn’t matter whether I agree or not. They don’t always clue me in on everything that goes on in the Washington decision-making process. I can only pray those issuing a final verdict have our nation’s best interests at heart.”
When the server returned to take their order, Knox said, “I’m sorry. We just got to gabbing. It’s been years since we’ve seen each other and we have so much catching up to do. Give us just a sec.”
She said it without stumbling, like a skilled liar. Jake was impressed.
Picking up the menu, Knox said, “Maybe we better look at the menu and we can finish this discussion after we order.”
As Jake was opening the menu, Knox said, “I love their cold poached salmon.”
Jake looked at the price and quickly said, “I’ll probably just get the club sandwich.”
Knox moved a stray hair behind her left ear and said, “This is coming out of my budget, not yours.”
“In that case, I’ll take the sliced filet mignon sandwich and fries,” said Jake with a smile.
Knox laughed and signaled the server, who took their order.
“Okay, where were we?” she said. But before Jake could assist, she continued, “Oh yeah, I remember. Look, here’s the bottom line. Without the proceeds from their criminal activities, North Korea can’t afford to do any of the nuclear and missile research they conduct.”
Jake gave her a look.
Knox continued, “It takes tens of billions of dollars. It’s not just the Supernotes. They counterfeit everything — from clothing to cigarettes to pharmaceuticals. It’s a multifaceted conspiracy and if our information is correct there may be more than a billion in Supernotes already in circulation. We have no way of telling how much counterfeit money is floating around the international markets.”
“And this doesn’t make our case important?”
“Of course it does, but State wants us to put this operation on hold and the AG agrees. Regardless of where you’ve been or where you’re going, we need to shut this down.”
“So Gabe died for nothing and two victims of a kidnapping don’t come home because somebody in D.C. wants us out of the game? We’re going to let two innocents die and nobody cares.”
“I care, Jake,” said Olivia with a sincerity Jake believed.
“Then I have to meet with Park this afternoon. I’ll get the container to him; otherwise he can’t pay the ransom.”
She paused for an extended moment, her eyes gazing in the distance. Jake maintained his focus on her, refraining from offering any more comments. When she turned back toward him she said, “Jake, you can meet with Park. I don’t want to see the little girl or the daughter killed. Turn over the container, but I think then we have to pull you out.”
“So you’ll give me until the end of the day?”
“If that’s how long it takes to get the container processed and unloaded, you have until the end of the day.”
“Okay. Midnight. That’s all I need.”
As the server approached with their plates, Jake stood up. “I hate to ask this but an emergency just came up at work. Could you box this up for me?”
Jake smiled at Knox as he followed the server to the swinging doors into the kitchen. Before leaving the restaurant via the same back door he had used to enter, Jake waved to Olivia, mouthed the words “Thank you” while holding up the Styrofoam container, and blew her a kiss — hoping it would drive her a little bit nuts.
CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE
As he started the Range Rover, Jake heard his backup cell phone, the one Katie used to carry, chirp in the door pocket. He pulled it out — saw the caller ID was blocked — and answered with a curt “Hello.”
A voice he recognized said, “It’s Grizzly Six. If you’re not alone, just answer ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ ”
Jake smiled. No one who ever served with Peter Newman would ever forget his radio call sign.
“I’m alone. Good to hear your voice, sir.”
“And yours, Jake,” said the retired Marine major general. “I’m calling because I just left a meeting where your name came up several times.”
With a hint of levity, Jake said, “I hope you weren’t meeting with bill collectors or IRS agents.”
“No,” Newman replied. “Unfortunately, it was much worse than that. Do you have a few minutes?”
Now serious, Jake said, “Yes, sir. I have time — but we’re on an open line. And I’m in bad-guy territory.”
“I know where you are; I’m looking at the GPS locater on your phone. But this is important and time is not an ally today. How long before you can call me back from a secure phone or a hard line so we can have a ten-minute conversation without committing too many security violations?”
Jake pulled over to the curb to give the call his full attention. He looked around, saw the Marine recruiting substation in the strip mall less than a hundred yards from where he was parked, and said, “I’ll call you back, collect, in five from a hard line.”
“Good,” said the general. “But use the 800 number I gave you. It’s direct.”
“Roger that, sir.”
It took less than three minutes for Jake to flash his Marine Corps League membership card, his FBI credentials, and the promise of an FBI baseball hat for him to be seated in Gunnery Sergeant Barry Simon’s office. He dialed the 800 number. The general answered on the first ring.
Newman got straight to the point. “Since we talked a few weeks ago, CSG has been contracted to do vulnerability evaluations for a bunch of three-letter organizations back here. I just left a damage assessment meeting — where you and another of my Marines were prominently featured. You with me, so far?”
Jake knew his former commander had retired as a major general when the Senate wouldn’t approve his third star — and that he had taken over as the CEO of a company called Centurion Solutions Group. But other than hearing about CSG being awarded some classified contracts with CIA, NSA, DIA, and the FBI, Jake didn’t really know much about the company’s business. In response to the general’s “you with me?” query, Jake responded, “Yes, sir.”
Newman continued: “You know about Gabe?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Have the people you’re working for told you the op you are on is being shut down?”
“I was told just a few minutes ago the plug gets pulled at midnight tonight.”