A Deceit to Die For (89 page)

Murat’s voice trailed off.

“If you think it’s too risky, I understand,” said Yusuf quietly.

“It
is
too risky,” said Murat solemnly. “But so was opening that trap door in the brothel when you thought Bekir Kaya was on the other side. It didn’t stop you.”

“Everyone has to make their own call.”

“You know they’re going to come after us. They will have their lackeys over at the Ministry of Internal Affairs all over this.”

“Most likely.”

“Nobody touches this guy and escapes unscathed.”

“So far, but that is no reason to shirk my duty.”

“Count me in then. If you’re willing to go down this rat-hole, I’m going down with you.”

“One more thing, these men may be carrying a canister about fifty centimeters long. It’s a document. If you find it, deliver it to me and me only.”

“Sure thing.”

“Alright, go ahead with the briefing then. I’ll join you in a few minutes. I promised Bülent I’d give him a call.”

“You haven’t told me where we’re going to rendezvous with the prisoners.”

“I’m still working on that. I’ve got a friend in the Navy who may be able to help. Don’t worry. I’ll figure something out.”

Murat stood up and extended his hand towards Yusuf, who grasped it between his own two hands.

“It’s an honor to work with you, sir.”

“I am the one who is honored, Murat. Be safe.”

Murat left the room, closing the door behind him.

Yusuf’s cell phone rang. He didn’t recognize the number.

“Hello?”

“Hello. This is Matt Connor. I’m with The Coalition against Trafficking in Women, and I’m calling to speak with Captain Yusuf Demir.”

“Speaking.”

“Captain, I am trying to find some information about a Romanian girl named Bianca Ionescu. We believe she has been abducted and forced into prostitution here in Turkey . . .”

“Mr. Connor, I’m in Counter-Terrorism. The department you need is the Organized Crime Bureau. Call the Security Directorate. They can give you the appropriate contact information.”

“Does the name Elvir Zubak ring a bell?”

“Mr. Connor, even if it did, you are talking to the wrong person. Who gave you this number?”

“I’m not sure you want to ask me that on the phone.”

“On the phone? I don’t understand.”

“Let’s just say we have a mutual friend.”

“Mr. Connor, I don’t know you or your organization, so...”

“Sanliurfa 1986.”

Yusuf stopped. This was the second time today a friend of Zeki’s had contacted him.

“I spoke with the younger brother earlier this afternoon. Go on.”

“I found out that you led a raid on the Black Sea almost two weeks ago. Apparently, there a number of women were rescued from traffickers. I’m wondering if your department might have learned anything about Bianca Ionescu?”

“You can obtain a list of the women from the Public Affairs Bureau.”

“I just got off the phone with them. She wasn’t on the list. Do you think I could have access to witness statements from the debriefing? Somebody might have referred to her. I’m here with her sister. As you can imagine, this is a horrible ordeal for the family.”

Yusuf hesitated. Matt filled the gap.

“Captain, I’ve been tracking Elvir Zubak for a year. I know he works with Bekir Kaya, the terrorist you were hoping to capture. I’m in this for the long haul. We might be able to help each other.”

Yusuf made up his mind.

“Mr. Connor, I’m going to give you a name and a number. There are some videos that might be helpful, though I must warn you they are not pleasant. The name is Bülent. The number is 0212 322 2114. I’m busy today. Let’s talk next week after you’ve seen the videos.”

“Thank you, Captain.”

“You’re welcome.”

Yusuf terminated the call and dialed another number.

“Bülent? It’s Yusuf . . . Yes, Murat is leading the operation. Are we ready? . . . I need you to get me in the building and down to the basement without having to swipe my ID . . . The Coast Guard cutters will only be given coordinates, no details about the op. Can you swing that? . . . If all goes well, we grab these guys, and nobody outside of our team knows what’s happened . . . If it doesn’t, well, I’m ready to face the music . . . No, I’m not just going to let them waltz away from this. These people can’t be stopped if they aren’t exposed . . . Listen, I just got off the phone with somebody named Connor. He’s looking for a Romanian girl. I told him he could see the videos . . . Of course, you’re protected. But, if anything should happen to me, I’ve left detailed instructions in the Akbank safety deposit box . . . Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”

><><><
 

Murat put the last pin in the map, picked up a pointer and turned to the twenty rapid-response tactical officers sitting in the room.

“Everyone will get a copy of this to study on the way over. Make sure you know it by heart. If you have any questions, ask now. We’ve had to throw this together pretty fast. Last Saturday, two women and three children were kidnapped in Italy and brought to Istanbul. They are scheduled to be released tonight at sunset. Unfortunately, that means we won’t have much daylight to work with. Planned that way on purpose, no doubt. We are under strict orders not to interfere with this exchange in anyway. If, for whatever reason, the exchange does not take place or any of the individuals are not returned, our operation will be called off.”

The door at the back of the room opened. Yusuf slipped in and took a chair. Murat moved the tip of the pointer to a location a couple of miles west of where the Bosphorus joined the Black Sea north of Istanbul.

“Now, this is the beach where the exchange will be made. It’s less than a kilometer long.” He moved his pointer away from the sea to the south. “We will be in two separate choppers located here and here. We inserted a spotter half an hour ago in an apartment building in the village. He has a clear view of the beach and will tell us how many men there are, providing us with information about their movements. Once the women and children are safely away, he will give us the go ahead.”

He moved the pointer over a large patch of green on the satellite image. “This is a heavily wooded hill overlooking the beach.”

One of the team leaders raised his hand.

“Couldn’t we insert a couple of snipers on that hill just to keep an eye on everything? It would make us all feel a lot better about this.”

Murat nodded in agreement.

“Me too, but it’s too risky. My guess is that they have had someone on that hill since the site was chosen. An insertion would risk alerting them to our presence. They may even have firepower of their own up there. If they do, we could come under fire as soon as we clear the crest of the hill. That is why you are all being issued body armor along with night vision equipment. We have to expect a firefight. Our choppers will come over the hill at the same time from opposite directions so that if they do fire at one of us, the other chopper can respond.

“Now, there are only two roads leading into the area; here, through the village on the east, and here, through the forest on the west. As soon as we move in, local police will be alerted and told to set up a road block with a loose perimeter along this line of approximately two kilometers.” He drew the pointer across the narrowest part of the woods behind the hill.

Another hand went up.

“It looks like they’re cornered. Why would they do that?”

“If they’re operating from land,” replied Murat, “They’d be cornered. I think they’ll be arriving by boat. So, we’ll have two Coast Guard cutters just over the horizon. One will be cruising here to the west to prevent them from entering Bulgarian waters. The other will be to the northeast. We don’t want to spook them. If they make a dash for international waters later, we’ll be able to intercept them. Our quick response on the water is going to be a long-range interceptor coming up the Bosphorus here—seven miles to the east, hopefully arriving just a couple of minutes behind us. The vessel will have to remain in the straits until we get the go-ahead because we have to assume that they will have at least one more vessel at sea looking for a trap. They would be suspicious of any boat loitering in this area,” he said, drawing a five-mile semi-circle around the beach.

“This gives them more time than we would like, but it’s the only way to ensure the safety of the hostages. If they’ve returned to the boat before we arrive, we’ll pursue in the helicopter, directing the Coast Guard and our rapid response team at sea. We will only engage them if necessary.”

Yusuf stood up and began walking to the front of the room.

“Thank you, Murat. Men, our job is to apprehend these kidnappers alive. Do not shoot to kill unless absolutely necessary. We need information, not dead bodies. I can get those at the morgue. Is that understood?”

“Yes, sir.” The whole room responded in unison. These were good men. His Counter-Terrorism unit had one of the toughest jobs in the country and plenty of adversaries. The Kurdish PKK had waged a war of attrition for over thirty years. They fought religious fundamentalists and communists, taking on both sides of the ideological spectrum. The pay was not nearly enough for the risks they took.

“One more thing,” he added. “We lost Bekir two weeks ago because somebody tipped him off, somebody in one of the agencies that knew about the operation. We all know that the enemy sometimes walks down the same halls we do wearing the same uniform. I’m not going to let that happen again. Only the people putting their lives on the line know about this assignment. No one outside of this room knows anything about this operation. Even the helicopters we will be using are, according to official reports, sitting in a maintenance yard south of the Marmara Sea. The local police will only be informed after the operation commences. Effective immediately, you are all dark. There is to be absolutely no communication with anyone outside of this team. If anyone violates this order, I’ll shoot him myself. Is that understood?”

Again the room rang with the hearty response of men who loved and respected him. “Yes, sir!”

CHAPTER
69

L
ONDON
   
There was a knock at the door. McIntosh didn’t look up. He was too absorbed in the email he was writing to the Commissioner.

“Come in.”

The door swung open. He heard people filing in and then the door closing. McIntosh raised his head to see Bob, Jack and Adam lined up in front of his desk.

“I thought I told you to escort Parker out of the building, Bob? I don’t want to see the man until this investigation comes to a conclusion.”

“Sir, I think you need to hear what Jack has to say.”

“He could tell me Jesus is coming back tomorrow, and I’d still tell you to get Parker out of this building. I will not tolerate insubordination in my officers, nor will I speak with a man under suspicion of double-crossing his fellow officers. Do I make myself clear?”

“What if I told you we think Parker has given us a lead in the O’Brien case?”

“And what if I told you that I just received a scolding from the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis for devoting so many resources to this homicide?”