“What else?”
“We’re not sure, but we’ve reason to believe there’s more to this plot than what we’ve discovered so far.”
“Yes, yes, you explained it to me once, half an hour ago, when you talked about another target. The suicide bomber’s confession on the platter, the Sheikh’s strange request, and inconsistencies with the unexploded bomb. But these are all circumstantial evidence. Inconclusive at best.”
“True enough,” Justin said, “and this is exactly why we can’t abort our mission now. Not before we have all pieces of the puzzle.”
Matthew shook his head. “You really believe this is all smoke and mirrors?”
Carrie and Justin exchanged a thoughtful glance.
“Give me everything you’ve got if you want another stab at this,” Matthew demanded. “After all, it’s my ass on the line, since I’m lying about you being American diplomats.”
“All right.” Justin showed Matthew his BlackBerry phone. “Our post in Dubai has intercepted a wire transfer from Saudi Prince Husayn bin Al-Farhan to Sheikh Yusuf Ayman, the Islamic Fighting—”
“Yes, I know who he is, and we know of Prince Al-Farhan alleged financing of terrorism. However, there has never been any hard evidence of his—”
“Hold on a second, Matthew.” Justin raised his left hand. “No one is accusing the US of having a cozy relationship with the Saudis. I’m just stating the fact that Prince Al-Farhan transferred twenty million dollars from one of his offshore holdings to the main terrorist group active in Libya.”
“OK, let’s assume this intel is true. Maybe this money was transferred to finance the attack against my President. There’s no reason to believe in the existence of another target.”
“Still, no reason to exclude other possibilities,” Justin insisted. “That’s why it’s crucial we continue our investigation.”
“By all means.” Matthew pointed at Justin’s BlackBerry and at the phone set on the desk. “Work at your heart’s content. But neither of you is leaving this building. Don’t even go out for a cigarette break.”
“You’re crippling us,” Carrie protested.
“Just making sure you stay alive, at least until you board a plane, first thing tomorrow morning. Anything else?”
Before Justin or Carrie could answer, there was a quick knock on the door. Nour barged in without waiting for anyone to call him.
“Sir, you should have a look at this.” He handed his boss a single sheet of folded paper. “A communication we just received from our source in the Alliance.”
Nour glanced at the two Canadian agents, their faces pale with surprise. “Yes, we’ve covered all angles,” he said.
Matthew read the short printout. He blinked and glanced at Justin and Carrie. He looked again at the sheet of paper in his hand and shook his head.
“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think you’re right.” Matthew stared at Justin. “This intel confirms that the US President is not the target of this plot.”
Chapter Nineteen
“So, who is the target?” Justin pointed at the document. “May I see that?”
“We still don’t know.” Matthew gestured for Justin to pick up the folded sheet lying on the desk.
Justin scanned the half page transcript of a phone call. Two short paragraphs from someone identified as “Seif” indicated the US President was not the intended target of the assassination attempt. Furthermore, the transcript noted that Sheikh Issa Mahub Al-Arhabi, the head of the Islamic Fighting Alliance, was planning to travel to Yemen the next day.
“Who’s Seif?” Justin handed the transcript to Carrie.
“Our man within Sheikh’s intimate circle,” Matthew replied.
“Can you trust him?”
“So far his intel has never failed.”
“Why didn’t you tell us about this Seif?” Carrie handed the document back to Justin, who gave it a second look.
Matthew shrugged. “Homeland Security protocol. Plus, I wasn’t sure what Seif was going to find out.”
Justin finished reading the transcript a third time and placed it back on the desk. He rubbed his palms together and took a step forward, getting closer to Matthew. “What’s next?” he asked.
Matthew spread his arms. “Business as usual,” he said with a chuckle, “as long as my President is not the target, I don’t really care. Terrorists can blow up whoever they want.”
“You can’t be serious,” Carrie said. “We have solid evidence that something big is under way, and you’re simply going to stand and watch from the sidelines?”
A stern gaze froze Matthew’s face. “No.” He shook his head. “I’m going to be right in the middle of the shitstorm, right in front of the presidential limo, on the lookout for any son of a bitch who dares to smile funny at the convoy. So, don’t you dare tell me how to do my job!”
Carrie raised a protective hand. “Hey, no need to be pissed off at me. We both want the same thing.”
Matthew’s left side of the face twitched as he produced a fake grin. “We do, but the two of you have a reckless way of getting results. I want my President’s visit to go as smooth as possible: in and out the country without firing a shot. The two of you, you want to get to the bottom of this story, which is beyond my interests.”
The phone on the desk rang.
“What is it?” Matthew barked at the caller. He listened for a minute then shook his head. “Ehe, ehe,” he said. Then he hung up.
“Guess who that was?” Matthew pointed at Justin. “Your minder from Internal Security, Abdul. One of the extremists they’ve been torturing since last night finally spilled his guts. And you’ve got your answer. The target of the Alliance is the Prime Minister of Libya.”
“What?” Justin shouted. “You must be joking.”
“What? The islamists want to kill the Prime Minister?” Carrie asked.
Matthew nodded. “If you believe this poor man’s confession.”
Justin’s lips pursed. “A man under torture would admit to anything.”
“Well, your initial suspicions came because of information obtained through torture. Whether you like it or not, this is how things are done in Libya,” Matthew said.
Justin decided it was not worth correcting him. The agents had received the details of the assassination plot from Sheikh Ayman, in exchange for Canada’s mediation between the Islamic Fighting Alliance and the Libyan authorities. The confession of the wannabe suicide bomber had served as collaborating evidence to support their theory. However, this latest piece of information came as a fierce blow, knocking down the idea about a conspiracy to assassinate the American President. Justin realized Sheikh Ayman had lied to them about the true target of the plot.
“Well, I’m out of here,” Matthew said. “If you’d like to tell the Libyans more about the extremists’ plot, be my guests. But since this intel came from them in the first place, I’m sure they have a handle on things. This isn’t the first time an attempt has been made on their Prime Minister’s life.”
“But—” Carrie began, as Matthew walked to the door, but Nour interrupted her with a promising wink and a flick of his wrist.
“As I said earlier, this is no longer my business.” Matthew turned around and raised his left hand to his eyes, making a quick I am keeping an eye on you gesture. “And it’s none of your business either. Nour will arrange for your transportation tomorrow at zero six hundred. Is everything clear?”
“Yes, sir, it is clear,” Justin replied.
Carrie just nodded.