Contract to Kill (28 page)

“I’m giving that low odds. If my father’s right, and Beaumont’s not complicit, he’ll cut Mason off. I seriously doubt anyone outside of Mason’s inner circle would be willing to do prison time for the guy.”

“I’m only saying we don’t know how many people are involved in whatever he’s up to.”

“At this point, I’m ready to kill anyone who sides with him. Mara’s murder really pisses me off. She didn’t have a mean bone in her body.”

“Did you love her?”

Nathan didn’t answer right away. He couldn’t recall Harv ever asking him that. “Yeah, I did. At least I thought I did. I’m not sure anymore.”

“Maybe you should tell Holly about Mara.”

“What would be the point? I’m in no-man’s-land. If she wants some space, I should give it to her, and at this point it’s looking more and more like that’s the case.”

“She’s on damage control with Lansing. Think about the headache she’s facing. The FBI’s chief of staff was scouting an unreported murder scene with her boyfriend in the middle of a rainy night, three thousand miles away from her office. Add to that, she participated in a hit-and-run firefight in the middle of a public street. I know she’s got Lansing’s confidence, but at some point it could be stretched too thin, even for her.”

“Maybe you’re right. I guess we’ve still got CIA Director Cantrell. I’m certain she can pull some strings. She’ll be able to—”

Harv’s desk phone bleeped to life. “Here we go. Maybe we’ll get some answers.”

“Hi, Dad, I have you on speaker and Harv’s with me.”

“George Beaumont is here, and Director Ethan Lansing is also on the line with us.”

“Hello, Major Beaumont, Director Lansing. Thank you for talking with us.”

“Please call me George; I’m long retired from the Marines.”

“Let’s all use first names,” Stone suggested.

“Hello, Nathan,” Lansing said. “I hear you’ve had a busy evening.”

“To put it mildly, sir.”

Stone jumped in. “George, I told Nathan I didn’t want to discuss anything involving BSI unless you were present. You should know that Nathan and Harvey still possess the highest security clearances possible. In theory, they could sit in on presidential briefings. Not even I can do that. Rest assured anything we discuss will be kept in the utmost confidence.”

“I’m not worried.”

Nathan said, “Thank you. I believe my father and Ethan are up to speed. Why don’t I start at the beginning and give you a quick summary of everything that’s happened and why we’re involved.”

It took Nathan about five minutes to tell the story again. Neither Lansing nor Beaumont interrupted, but Stone occasionally added something he thought relevant. When Nathan finished, no one said anything for a few seconds.

“If I may, gentlemen . . . ” Lansing said. “Nathan, you aren’t aware of this, but a little over three years ago, your father received a handwritten letter from President Obama. In it, the president wanted a two-phased plan for interdicting the gun smuggling taking place along the Mexican border between California and Arizona. Keep in mind what the president wanted wouldn’t be easy to do. The fight against ISIS and other radical Islamic factions, both domestic and abroad, had tied up a sizable chunk of our resources. Your father, with the help of everyone on his committee, came up with a totally new concept. We needed a test pilot, and that’s where George Beaumont and BSI stepped in. It’s called the November Directive.”

Nathan listened while Lansing and Beaumont outlined the idea of using privately trained undercover operatives in the fight against criminal gangs and cartels. It had been Tanner Mason’s job to manage everything and relay field intelligence to Beaumont, who, in turn, passed it on to ATF Director Martini and Lansing. There were three divisions within the November Directive: Mexico, Venezuela, and East Asia. Beaumont said he now had multiple undercover operatives up and running in each of those areas.

Nathan had to admit, the more he listened, the more he found himself in agreement. Often the best solutions to problems were found through invention and innovation in the private sector.

“The president has a vested interest in the ND,” Stone said. “Although he never made it a public campaign promise, he wanted the violence along the border and illegal flow of guns into Mexico stemmed.”

Lansing continued. “We knew one of the biggest risks facing the program would be one or more of our operatives being turned or selling out. We just never thought it would be the program’s director.”

“But hasn’t that always been a risk, no matter who the undercover agent is, or what agency he or she works for?” Harv asked.

“Yes, that’s right. Many federal agents have been seduced by the lure of the world they’re sworn to prosecute. That’s why BSI’s undercover operatives earn a healthy six-digit salary. While they’re inside, they can save a huge amount because they’re also on the cartel’s bankroll. We believe it helps alleviate the effect of all the money and glamour they’re exposed to, knowing they have a huge stash waiting when they come out.”

“Seems like a smart idea,” Nathan said. “Whatever you’re paying those people, it isn’t enough.”

“On that, we agree,” Lansing said. “The program’s start-up wasn’t without difficulty. It took quite a bit of work just to get the project on Attorney General Paul Ames’s desk. Even though it’s funded under the Department of Justice, and the ATF is playing the lead role in the interdiction effort, it’s a Homeland Security project.”

That didn’t make sense to Nathan, but he kept quiet. He’d ask his father about it later, privately.

Lansing went on. “At first, Ames didn’t buy into the concept of using privately trained undercover operatives on US soil because of the controversial nature of PMCs in general. Truth be told, they played a huge role and were vital to the war effort. Most people don’t know this, but at one point during Desert Storm, there were over a hundred thousand private contractors working in Iraq. Not all of them were military personnel, but they were integral to the war effort.”

“Your father pushed ND through,” Beaumont said. “He paved the way for the program’s funding, which is always the most difficult part. Paper is cheap; men and equipment aren’t. Because of its early success, the ND has grown into a vital program. Without it, the ATF’s gunrunning interdiction would be set back by months, possibly years. A lot’s riding on this for everyone involved, especially your father. If the ND succeeds, its address is 1600 Penn, but if it fails, its address changes to the Russell Senate Office Building.”

“Politics as usual,” Nathan said.

“And it looks like failure is what we’re facing,” Beaumont said. “Every undercover operative could be exposed and killed, probably horribly.”

“They’re only at risk if Mason blows their cover,” Nathan said. “Are you worried he’ll do that?”

“I honestly don’t know. I want to believe he’s not vindictive, but I used to believe he’d never betray his oath either. Our employees swear an oath, just like the military does. But if he felt up against the wall, the threat of blowing the program would clearly be a source of leverage.”

“So, gentlemen, what are we going to do about this?” Stone asked.

“Harvey and I think we have a lead, but we’ll need some help pursuing it. Dad, will you show George the photos we took at the soccer fields?”

“Photos?” Beaumont asked. “You took photos of the bodies?”

“It’s fortunate they did,” Stone said. “Mason went back and removed them. Without Nathan’s photos, there’d be no hard evidence the murders took place, even with Mr. Haynes’s testimony.”

“So Mason did that after he found out about Mr. Haynes?” Beaumont asked.

“Yes,” said Stone. “I think we can conclude he initially wanted the bodies to be discovered or he wouldn’t have left them there in the first place. I’m showing George the photos.”

A brief interval of silence followed.

“If we can ID the dead men,” Harvey said, “it might give us some answers. We’re also looking into why Mason chose a soccer field for the murder site. We’re thinking it wasn’t randomly chosen, that it has some underlying meaning.”

Nathan added, “Without giving any detail, I showed the double-headed dragon tattoo on the South Korean man to someone I trust. I was told it’s a North Korean assassin’s tattoo. Harv and I also think the money pinned to their foreheads is a signature of some kind.”

“It is,” Lansing said.

“We also think our interference in Mason’s scheme tonight puts us at risk.”

“I believe it does,” Lansing said. “That’s why I’m going to share some classified information. It’s clear you and Harvey are on the right path and you’d eventually discover what I’m about to tell you, so I’ll save you the time. The money pinned on the dead men’s foreheads is the signature of Alfonso Alisio. He’s the crime boss of a huge cartel out of Mexico City with dozens of satellite gangs all over the Western Hemisphere. He uses the gangs to distribute his wares. I’m assuming those are 10,000-peso notes?”

“Yes,” Nathan answered.

“They’ve been demonetized for years.”

“So why did Mason do it?” Nathan asked. “And why use a soccer field? Was he hoping to frame Alisio’s cartel for the murders?”

“No,” Beaumont said.

“You sound certain about that, George,” Stone said.

“I am. Our Mexican division of the ND’s main mission has been to infiltrate Alisio’s cartel. The tattoo on the Mexican guy, the one with the red heart and black dagger piercing it? That’s Alisio’s trademark. All his people have them, and once they’re on, they never come off. Alisio owns a professional soccer team along with several minor-league teams. I can only assume the soccer-field location is somehow related. Maybe one of Alisio’s minor-league teams is scheduled to play there tomorrow and Mason left the bodies out there to send a message to Alisio.”

“To what end?” Harv asked. “And why would Mason use Alisio’s murder signature on the guy’s own men?”

“That’s what we need to find out,” Beaumont said.

“More than that,” Nathan added, “we need to know why a North Korean assassin with a South Korean ID was murdered alongside Alisio’s man.”

“We’ve long suspected Alisio has a connection with criminal elements inside North Korea, but we’ve never been able to make a solid connection until a week ago.”

“A week ago?” Lansing asked.

Stone’s voice was calm, but urgent. “Please tell us what you know, George. Now isn’t the time to hold anything back.”

“As we all know, counterfeiting is one of North Korea’s biggest industries. They counterfeit everything under the sun, from pharmaceuticals to gold bullion. Paper money, tobacco products, liquor, DVDs, firearms, you name it, they’re illegally manufacturing it and shipping it all over the world. One of North Korea’s biggest markets for counterfeit products is Mexico because it doesn’t have nearly the resources to stem the flow.”

“May I interrupt?” Nathan asked.

“Of course,” Lansing answered for Beaumont.

“Are you saying North Korea’s doing business directly with Alisio?”

“Yes. The guns and other contraband from North Korea are being funneled through a South Korean organized-crime connection, probably via container ships. Think of it like a three-link chain, with South Korean smugglers being the middle link between Mexico and DPRK. Once we have our hands on Alisio, we’ll know more.”

“He’ll lawyer up,” Nathan said.

“There will be a brief interval of . . . questioning before that happens,” Lansing said. “Coupled with Ramiro’s testimony, we’ll be able to dismantle Alisio’s criminal organization and put him behind bars for the rest of his life. We’re also coordinating our efforts with South Korea’s Ministry of Justice.”

Nathan took a sip of water. “Ramiro? He’s one of the undercover operatives in the program?”

“Our first November Directive graduate,” Beaumont said. “Ramiro’s his code name. We’ve had him inside Alisio’s organization for a little over eighteen months.”

“I imagine getting him inside Alisio’s cartel wasn’t easy.”

“You’re right; it wasn’t. We set up a bogus hit on Alisio’s Santa Monica nightclub. Fake bullets, fake blood, you get the picture. We knew Alisio’s wife was in the club that night, and Ramiro saved her life. We’d spent months training for that sixty-second insert, choreographing the fight; we even built a mock-up of the nightclub at our academy. Needless to say, Alisio was extremely grateful. Adding to the deception, Ramiro refused Alisio’s initial offers to join his organization, but Alisio persisted and threw so much cash at Ramiro, he couldn’t turn it down.”

“And this was all orchestrated by Tanner Mason?” Nathan asked.

“Every step of the way,” Beaumont replied.

“So how do we find him?” Lansing asked.

“What I’m about to say,” said Beaumont, “is going to take everyone by surprise. There are certain things in an operation like this that must remain on a need-to-know basis, and before now, no one else needed to know.”

“What didn’t we need to know?” Lansing asked.

Nathan imagined his father’s expression mirroring Lansing’s: dismay.

“I built a safety catch into the program.”

CHAPTER 28

Two hundred miles off the

California coast—fifteen hours earlier

The
Yoonsuh
’s captain picked up the radar signature exactly where it should be.

When his ship closed to within three miles, he slowed to five knots and used field glasses to look for the other vessel’s nav lights. A quick radio call confirmed the other captain hadn’t encountered any problems and no other boats followed him. The
Yoonsuh
’s radar detector had picked up an occasional low-energy sweep, but nothing powerful like a cutter’s penetrating EM burst had bounced off them. He knew the Navy and Coast Guard could disguise their sweeps to make them appear more distant, but he wasn’t concerned. There weren’t any large surface contacts within the twenty-mile range of his own radar. Even at flank speed, a cutter couldn’t sneak up on him. He’d have at least thirty minutes to move the ten duffels back into their smuggling compartment and secure the boiler. If a Coast Guard Black Hawk overflew his ship, it wouldn’t see anything out of order: the bags were belowdecks. He supposed a submarine could surface next to him, but he gave that pretty low odds. The Navy had bigger concerns.