Eddy's Current (30 page)

Potential heroes from miles around encircled the affected area. None could go in to save, though. There was nothing to save. There were no bodies to be recovered. There would be no stories of heroics, of heroes rushing into buildings to save a helpless elderly woman, or a baby or even a wounded pet. The victims were vapors in the space above Crimpton, or somewhere else. They were not there in any form to be saved or even retrieved and buried. Their molecules existed in another dimension now? Perhaps. If so, it was a dimension no one dared visit or even contemplate. What about DNA, that tiniest clue of hope for finding that which is lost? DNA could not cooperate. It, too, was gone.

Rescue workers’ equipment sat on counter tops, dangled, prepared for action, silent. Nothing. Ambulances and airplanes and heroes dressed in their fatigues, were all ready for battle, ready to fight the odds, save the victims, and capture the enemy. The enemy fooled them, though. It destroyed itself. It couldn’t be captured. It stole their victory, not as the brave soldiers of Masada did in ancient times, though. At least they left bodies behind that could be buried with dignity. This enemy left no trace of itself. This was not dignified.

The odds were not merely overwhelming, which is just as heroes like them. The odds were impossible. The odds would win this one. They could not be overcome.

U.S. president, James Ian Barnes, was set to address the public on television. After meeting with his advisors, it was decided that he would speak, even though there was extensive debate about the possibility of Tyler Peterson speaking in the president’s stead. Those in favor of having Peterson speak cited his growing worldwide power and influence and the deep mistrust of the U.S. as reasons to have Peterson address the globe rather than President Barnes.

President Barnes should be careful, his advisors made clear, because no one had any idea who was responsible for the attack. The world was watching, so any retaliation needed to be appropriate. The world would side with the U.S., but not if the U.S. did as she did in 2002, in response to the 9/11 attacks.

The president’s advisors were not the only people who debated the possibility of a nationwide address by Tyler Peterson. Many in the world tried to make the case for Peterson to speak in the president’s place. The American public was not told of the debate. A compromise was reached between U.S. authorities and U.N. representatives. The president would speak on nationwide television, which would also be broadcast throughout the world. Peterson would deliver his previously scheduled U.N. speech one month later.

The president was advised to talk about the suffering, about the immense damage, about the fact that all humans must stay far away from Crimpton, about the casualties, and about the horrific effects of a broader nuclear war, a war that the president would do all he could to avoid. Words to be avoided included, but were not limited to: terrorist; Muslim; Jew; Christian; left wing, right wing; Islam; Arab—any word that might be interpreted to mean that the United States had assigned responsibility for the bombing of Crimpton to any particular group based on a stereotype rather than on hard evidence.

The president stepped in front of the television cameras to speak to his country and to the world.

“Just a few hours ago our nation experienced unimaginable suffering. At 6:44 this morning, Mountain Standard Time, Crimpton, Idaho, was wiped from the world’s maps. It is, today, a former location—a previously known dot on a map. An unknown person or persons exploded a nuclear bomb there. The bomb was far more powerful than that needed to destroy a community of the size of Crimpton. All life was vaporized. All buildings are gone. Even their foundations are gone. There remains no trace that Crimpton ever existed. Initial estimates are that there are seven thousand dead; no survivors. We have every reason to believe that the number of dead will rise. There is no chance that the number will shrink.

“I am asking all the people of the U.S., and I am asking all the people of the world, to pray for the United States as we attempt to cope with the immense suffering and destruction we now face. Please pray for the friends and families of those killed in today’s bombing. Ask God to give wisdom to the leaders of the U.S. and to give us the answers we must have. Only God can guide us. Only God can give us those answers.

“I state clearly, and for the record, that at this time the United States has no idea who is responsible for the bombing of Crimpton, and that we have no intention of an ill–conceived retaliation for the bombing. I have instructed our nation’s intelligence organizations to proceed immediately with an investigation and to determine precisely who was responsible for the attack.

“On behalf of the United States government and the American people I am using this speech to inform the world that, while we have every intention of conducting a responsible, fair and careful investigation, our investigation will be followed immediately by responsible and appropriate retaliation. We intend to destroy the person or persons responsible for the bombing of Crimpton. In fact, I state emphatically that we will destroy those who are responsible for this inconceivable act of mass slaughter.

“During our investigation we will cross any border, investigate any person, and interrogate using any method we choose. We expect and, in fact, we demand, full cooperation from all governments. Access that is denied to our investigators will be taken by force. No person or government will be permitted to interfere with our investigation.

“Our retaliation will be targeted, it will be accurate, it will be swift and it will be jaw–dropping. The United States will not tolerate this bombing. All those responsible will be killed without consideration for lessor degrees of retaliatory punishment.

“To those of you who would jump to conclusions at either extreme of the scope of possibilities, I insist on your patience. Some might say that it is obvious that radical extremist Islamic terrorists are responsible for this act of sadistic murder. Others might make the case that home grown terrorists who have nothing to do with Islam are to blame. Still others will insist that a single independent madman did this deed.

“With all due respect to those who feel that they have reason to believe in any of these or any other extremes, I must and I do insist on clear thinking, logical analysis and thorough and fair investigation in order to find those responsible. Please understand this, though: Regardless of who it is that is responsible for the bombing of Crimpton, our response will be one of total destruction of our enemy, irrespective of which extreme he calls home.

“I am asking all citizens of our nation to contact the USFIA with any information you might be able to provide about this attack. We will explore every lead. No stone will be left unturned. No lead will be ignored. By Executive Order I am expanding the power of Sydney Albert, the head of the USFIA, to enable him to solve this mystery as soon as possible so that we can destroy those who are responsible.

“To those who demand immediate retaliation I say, simply: Be patient. Your vengeance will be satisfied. You can trust me when I say to you that we will strike, and that we will strike the right people. It’s over for those who are responsible for this reign of terror.

“I will give periodic updates as to the status of the investigation; however, I will not give specifics. And I now warn the people of America and entire world that the U.S. has no intention of reporting exactly when and how we will retaliate. I, alone, will give the order to retaliate, and I, alone, will determine the timing of our retaliation.

“Thank you for listening. Good night. May God bless you all.”

President Barnes’ public assurances for a thorough, careful, fair and accurate investigation were complete nonsense. He was furious over the bombing of Crimpton, and he was determined only to exact revenge for it without any regard for the rules of careful investigation. His blind rage set the tone for his advisors. The president had convinced himself that Afghan or Pakistani terrorists, either Al Qaeda, the Taliban, or both, were to blame. He had no proof to back up his beliefs, but he had settled on the general identity of his enemy, and he would not be dissuaded. His rage had supplanted logic and reason early on. The bombing of Crimpton happened on his watch, and he was determined that swift retaliation would also happen on his watch. Any evidence, however scant, that showed that one of the groups he suspected was involved would suffice.

“Get me the person or persons responsible for this. I will meet with my military advisors this evening. We will begin to plan our retaliation then,” President Barnes said to his cabinet during a hastily called cabinet meeting held immediately after his speech. “All outward appearances are to reflect careful consideration and cautious investigative work, nothing less. But when we’re around this table we will openly discuss what it is we plan to do to respond to this attack. All possibilities are on the table until I take them off.”

Within an hour of President Barnes’ command to Albert to begin the investigation into the Crimpton bombing, a turf war exploded between the U.S. intelligence agencies. The FBI claimed full rights to head up the investigation. The CIA and even the Army Intelligence Service also claimed to be in charge. Albert’s initial organizational meetings were disastrous.

The crisis exposed the fact that the USFIA was really no different than the organization it replaced. Albert was a good man and a strong leader, but he and the ruling three above him should have long ago dismantled the infrastructure of the competing agencies, retired all the senior agents, and melded the remaining components into a national intelligence service that could be focused, efficient and effective.

Albert was instead faced with scattered, incapable and, some would even say, useless organizations whose agents spent their days protecting turf instead of protecting the U.S. citizens. They were investigating each other for petty reasons rather than investigating the Crimpton bombing for national security reasons. This atmosphere allowed Peterson’s cronies to establish a strong influence early on that few were aware of until it was too late.

FBI special agent Frederic Hernandez was still obsessed with discrediting the USFIA, and he had more reason than ever to hurt them. He was completely dedicated to Peterson now, and Peterson had promised that he would move Hernandez from obscurity — buried under a dark cloud of suspicion — to the hero’s chair, basking in the fresh sunshine of his complete exoneration and heroism.

Peterson instructed Hernandez to offer a plan that would move the retaliation for the Crimpton bombing into motion in short order and at the same time irreversibly tarnish the reputation of the USFIA and its most coveted agent, Golden Boy. Hernandez would convince the FBI brass that he knew who the responsible terrorists were, that the FBI could prove it, and that the USFIA had ignored it. He went to his boss, Andrew Downing, to put things in motion.

“USFIA has screwed up again,” Hernandez said, as he and Downing began their meeting.

“What’s going on?” Downing replied.

“You’re not going to believe this, sir.”

“Try me.”

“Two Russian nuclear suitcase bombs were discovered to have been missing, were located by the USFIA, and then stored by them in a ‘top secret location,’ a nuclear storage chamber in Pakistan.”

“Okay, tell me something we all don’t know already.”

“They’re missing again. Both bombs are missing.”

“What are you talking about? You had better know exactly what you’re talking about, Hernandez.”

“Believe me, I know.”

“Are you absolutely certain?”

“Yes.”

“Who stole them?”

“Pakistani terrorists.”

“Al Qaeda?”

“No. No. Not them. The responsible group is known as the Pakistani Resistance Force. They’re entrenched in Pakistan. They’re highly effective, smart and capable, and influential. They knew exactly what they were doing. They gambled that the U.S. would have little if any credibility to retaliate and they figured that Islamic extremists would be blamed by default or that Muslims or even radical Christians or Jews would be identified and targeted. In other words, they believed that scapegoats would be held accountable rather than the real culprits. They figured that there would be the typical brutal and knee–jerk retaliation by the U.S.”

“Prove it.”

“Okay. I will.”

Hernandez rose from his chair and called the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan into the meeting. Namito Yamamoto, a longtime American of Japanese birth who emigrated to the U.S. in the 1960s, entered the room and sat comfortably in the vacant guest chair. Yamamoto had been the unlikely U.S. ambassador to Pakistan for ten years. He had done a great job as ambassador, and he was trusted because his record of service was impeccable. He had served the U.S. Army Intelligence Service during the 1991 Gulf War, and his record of diplomatic achievements was extensive and well known. Yamamoto’s father and grandfather both served in the Japanese Army during World War II.

“I am here to tell you all I know about the bombing of Crimpton. I am certain that I know how it was pulled off, maybe not the details, but certainly the main events. I know who got the bomb and I know how they got it,” Yamamoto said calmly.

Hernandez spoke up, “At the end of this meeting you will have confirmation of the same story from two independent credible sources: an agent of the FBI and a U.S. ambassador. We have others who can confirm as well. Four independent confirmations mean that we will have to go to the president with it all.”

“My underground contact in Pakistan told me of the bombs that were stolen from the storage chamber in Pakistan. You can confirm with him. Additionally, you will have our other person. That’ll be a total of four sources,” Yamamoto explained.

Downing never did follow up on the details of Yamamoto’s “underground contact.”

Yamamoto proceeded with his explanation. “Here’s how it went down. After the bombs were taken, they were brought to a scientist in Pakistan by the name of Alari al Istaad. He’s the key guy. For a fee of four hundred fifty thousand U.S. dollars, al Istaad armed the bombs. You need to know that they were both armed. Only one was used in Crimpton, which means that the other is out there somewhere, ready to go.