None of this was good news.
But there was some good news: very good news. The aircraft presumably carrying the bioweapon crashed shortly after takeoff, burning on impact, so the conference was already in full swing here this morning at the castle, and those few security officials who did know the reasons for the heightened vigilance and increase in sentries had already mentally ratchetted back their threat level, though they kept helicopter gunships in the air in case of any other aircraft flying low and close enough to pose a threat.
When he was finished listening to Hightower’s debrief, Hanley said, “I want Violator, you, and any of the Ground Branch men still in the fight here at the castle until we can get a fix on Zakharov.” He paused. “Who’s left?”
Hightower said, “Jenner, Travers, Lorenzi, and Greer are the only four up, sir.”
“Okay. Have the helo land outside the castle walls. Suzanne will acquire security credos for you and Violator. Jenner and his men already have them. We’ll set up a command center here on the third floor because this is the U.S. portion of the quarters. And from the command center we’ll hunt for Zakharov via satellite, traffic cams, and local police.”
Brewer said, “Matt, is it a good idea to bring the assets here?”
“I want all our paramilitary operations officers and singleton assets together, ready to go after Zakharov the moment there is a sighting. We know he’s got a large security force with him; he might not have the plague weapon anymore, but he can still cause trouble for the Five Eyes conference. The Ground Branch men are my security detail. We fold Gentry and Hightower into their remaining numbers, and no one will notice.” He looked at the phone; Hightower was still on the speaker. “Romantic, I know Gentry is the Gray Man; I need you to develop the power to blend in, as well.”
“Like a plant in the corner, sir.”
Hightower hung up, and Brewer headed out of Hanley’s suite to arrange for the badges for two new close-protection officers for the DDO of CIA’s detail.
* * *
• • •
Feodor Zakharov stood on the shoreline of an inlet on the western side of Loch Ness, outside one of four black Mercedes cargo vans he and his men had picked up in the underground garage of the Eastgate Shopping Centre in Inverness. The vans were full of equipment: scuba gear, firearms, ammunition, cases of explosives and rolls of det cord, all transferred from the white vans that made it away from the church.
And there was one more item: a large, locked, black plastic Pelican case that sat in the back of one of the Mercedes vans.
Zakharov called Fox over, and he arrived, as always, with Jon Hines at his back. The former general said, “Fox, I have eighteen mercenaries left. And we have a total of four sleepers working for us on the inside of the castle.”
Fox said, “And we still have three aerosol canisters of plague, along with all the plastic explosive, detonation cord, the acetylene unit, and ammunition.”
Zakharov asked, “What about the cases of syringes loaded with the injectable antibiotics?”
Fox said, “Yes. We have a full course of medicine for thirty men, more than enough.” The younger man cocked his head. “What are you planning, sir?”
“The men will penetrate the facility via the thirteenth-century passage; that part is unchanged. They will set the explosives in the subterranean levels, and then they will go upstairs and attack the great hall tonight at eight p.m. when the opening formal dinner is taking place. At that time, everyone will be in one large room. The entire event will become a hostage scene. We will make some demands, release a statement. Meanwhile the canisters will be brought into the room and discreetly released.
“The difficult part of this is the need to hold all the participants, or as many as we can, for eight hours. That renders the plague fatal. Then we leave, claim that our demands have been met. If we do that, then they will leave Castle Enrick, return to their offices, and infect thousands of others over the next ten days or so.”
“And that’s the reason to make this look like a hostage situation?”
“Yes. If the biological agent is detected or seen, or even if there is any presumption it might have been used and not destroyed in the plane crash, then everyone in that building will be quarantined and given antibiotics immediately in local hospitals. Most will live, and no others will be infected back in their respective intelligence facilities around the world.”
“So, take the building, hold the attendees hostage, infect them secretly, wait for them to turn into weapons themselves, then let them free.”
“That’s it. Honestly, I think we can be out in six hours, especially if we detonate the explosives under the building. The ensuing chaos will make it highly unlikely the attendees will be transported and treated correctly in only two hours for the strain Dr. Won created.”
Fox said, “I am no military man, you know this. Still, I don’t see how eighteen men can take over that building, not even from the inside. There is a company of Scottish military on-site, plus dozens of armed security. The original plan was an attempted covert entry and delivery of the aerosol, and only if our force was detected were they to engage. Taking and holding a massive building with that much security on-site . . . it seems impossible.”
“Yes,” Mars said, “but the sleepers on-site have informed me that seventy-five percent of the security and one hundred percent of the military will be outside the main building. Due to the classified nature of the items discussed in the conference, even during speeches in the great hall tonight, everyone without the highest level of access to secrets will be outside the keep itself.
“The mercenaries can hold the great hall as long as they get in quietly. And they can stall the response from authorities with good leadership, someone who can control the situation on the inside. Someone who speaks English.”
Now Fox understood. “You yourself are going in with the mercenaries.”
“We, Artyom Alekseyevich. We.”
Fox nodded slowly. He’d been sent here as a sleeper by Russia to take orders from Zakharov, and previous to that he’d been a member of the Vory. He was brave, committed, and skilled. Still, he asked, “Do you have a plan to get us out of there?”
“The original exfiltration through the passage is still the plan. We detonate the explosives in the subterranean level, and this will buy us time. They won’t find the exit for hours with the destruction we will leave them to pick through.
“But if they do detect the passage entry down at the water while we are in the castle and cut off our escape, we will demand a helicopter. Take the heads of UK, Canadian, American, Australian, and New Zealand intelligence services along with us. That should keep anyone from shooting us down. We can fly to the continent, land in a busy area, and disperse among the crowd before authorities arrive.”