Weapon of Vengeance (23 page)

The rest of the lunch passed with only sporadic attempts at polite conversation.

*   *   *

The troubleshooter from Aligarh watched as the shift changed; a new set of cops came by, in ones and twos, and relieved the old set. He did nothing while they settled down.

Then, when he felt things appeared as normal as they could get, he rechecked his weapons and got ready.

Everything was in place for him to set the example Pasha had ordered. The jihad allowed for no mistakes.

*   *   *

Ravinder had signed the charge slip and was returning his credit card to his wallet when his mobile rang. He grimaced when he saw the number.

“Good afternoon, sir. How are you?”

“I am fine, Mr. Gill.” Thakur's unmistakable nasal tone came through loud and clear. “Where are you?”

“I am at the Ashoka Hotel, sir.”

“Good. I am reaching there in a few minutes. I would like to review the security arrangements.”

“There is no need for you to bother, sir. I have just finished doing that.”

“It is no bother, Mr Gill. This is my duty. I am here in the neighborhood, so why waste the opportunity.”

“Right, sir.” Ravinder sighed. It was going to be a sheer waste of time, but he
was
the Home Minister and had to be pandered to. “I will meet you in the lobby.” Ending the call, he turned to the others. “Duty calls. I have to go.”

Chance and Jennifer thanked him for the lunch and left.

“Come, Ruby, let me walk you to the car.” Ravinder wanted to restart the conversation they had started before lunch, but now suspicion had joined with the anger he felt between them.

They were halfway through the lobby, when Ravinder heard Thakur's voice. “Ah! There you are, Gill?”

He turned to see Thakur saunter up to them, with his complement of Black Cat commandos around him. Thakur's Gandhian white kurta and pajamas contrasted sharply with the black combat dress of his PSOs. The thick gold chain around his neck and the gold-plated Rolex on his wrist were not Gandhian, though. And Ravinder was not surprised to see a nattily dressed Mohite walking beside him. What he had been planning to say to Ruby went unsaid.

Then Thakur spotted Ruby, and his politician's smile switched on. “And who is this lovely young lady with you? Is she the one from the CIA?”

“No, sir. This is my daughter, Ruby.” Ravinder introduced them. “Ruby, this is Mr. Thakur, our Home Minister.”

Thakur was beaming as he shook Ruby's hand. “You are beautiful, my dear. How come I have not seen you before?”

“She has just returned from London, sir.” Ravinder kept the explanation brief. “We were having lunch. I was just dropping her off to the car.”

“What is this, Mr. Gill?” Thakur's smile was now in full flow. “If you had told me you were busy with your family, I would never have bothered you. Anyway, don't let me disrupt anything. Just show me the security arrangements, and then you two can go ahead.” He turned to Ruby. “Come, my dear, stay with us. I shall only take a few minutes of your father's time.”

“I don't think that is a good idea, sir,” Ravinder protested. “That is a restricted area.”

“Come, come, Mr. Gill. You must stop being a policeman all the time.… She is family, after all. Isn't that right, Govind?”

“Of course, sir.” Govind did his Yes-Minister bit.

Ravinder had to struggle to keep his exasperation in check. Before he could respond, Thakur had taken Ruby's arm and was heading for the elevator, talking to her about London. Mohite, fawning over them, led the way.

Ravinder had to follow. They were getting into the elevator when an idea struck him. He chewed on it.
Why not? If I can't avoid it … and
if
Ruby is somehow involved with disrupting the summit … I can use this opportunity to pass on some disinformation. That will …

Mohite's voice intruded. “Let me explain the security plan to you, sir.” Ravinder's heart sank; Govind, in an attempt to impress Thakur, was going to spill the entire plan to him, right in front of Ruby.

He was right. Mohite was leaving no stone unturned. “Every entry point to the secure floors is manned by ATTF personnel, two per post. Similarly, we have a section-sized picket on both the hotel gates and another section at the two roadblocks set up on both sides of the road leading up to the hotel.”

The elevator doors now opened on the seventh floor. Leading the way out, Mohite continued. “We have two men securing the staircases on either end of the floor. Likewise, two men at either end of the elevators, so no unauthorized person can enter. This seventh floor will be totally occupied by security and admin staff, and the eighth one is for the delegates … and, of course, meetings.”

Turning left from the elevators, Mohite led the way to the first room on the outer side of the corridor.

“This room and the adjacent two have been converted into our security control room. We will be monitoring and supervising the complete operation from here.”

He held open the door for Thakur. The minister sauntered in with his entire party in tow. Men were busy setting up a bank of monitors, with wires and cables strewn all over.

“They are setting up the closed-circuit television network.” Mohite explained, “Both gates, the hotel lobby, the elevators, staircases, and all entries and exits to the seventh and eighth floors will be monitored twenty-four/seven from here. The camera feed is also to be piped into Mr. Gill's room, which is just down the corridor on the other side.”

“What are these?” Thakur pointed at an open cardboard carton containing neatly tied bundles of colored plastic cards.

“Security access cards, sir, for issue to all authorized personnel. No one can enter without these cards. The blue cards are for the seventh floor only, and the red for access to the entire secure zone.” He eased a red card out and handed it to Thakur. “This one is for you, sir. It allows you complete freedom of movement over the secure zone.”

Thakur idly flipped the card around in his hand. He knew he would not need it, but the card had a nice, important feel. He pocketed it with a smile.

Mohite threw the bundle back in the cardboard box and led them out, again holding the door for Thakur.

With one card taken out, the bundle had become loose. When the bundle got tossed into the box, some cards slipped out and scattered, a few falling out of the box. The PSO standing closest to the box bent down to pick them up. Ruby, next to him, stepped forward and helped him before joining the others in the corridor. No one noticed her palm a red card and slip it into her handbag. Ravinder, on the other side of the minister, saw her bend, but was more focused on what Mohite was saying, trying to spot a way to stem his blabbering.

When Ruby joined them all out in the corridor, Mohite was saying, “Also on the other side of the elevators are the rooms for the MI6 and CIA agents.” He pointed them out. “Directly opposite is the room we have kept for you, in case you want to rest.”

Ravinder was disgusted.
Did the man have no shame?

Standing a little apart, Ruby was watching this interplay with interest; she picked up on the stress between her father and his second-in-command. But she was taking care not to appear to be paying attention. Her trained mind, however, was recording every detail.

Mohite was continuing. “Next to your room, sir, is mine—and beyond that is Mr. Gill's.” He turned to the minister and waved his arms. “The others are for the security personnel traveling with the delegates.”

“Very good planning, Govind. Your boys have done an excellent job.”

“I am not done yet, sir.”

“Oh, but I need to get back to my office now.” Thakur threw a look at his watch.

Ruby was dismayed. The opportunity for a visit of the floor where the delegates would be located was slipping away. She hoped Mohite would not be dissuaded. He obliged.

“Certainly, sir, I am sure you have much to do. So I shall just tell you about the rest from here only.” He marshaled his thoughts. “The eighth floor, also the hotel's top floor, has been sealed off. Everything coming into it, including food and drink … even water … is coming from safe, tested sources.” Thakur nodded approvingly. “It's only for the delegates and, of course, for meetings. We have four conference rooms; one on every corner of the floor.”

“Why four? Will they need more than one?”

“Well, there is one main one on that side”—Mohite pointed to the right—“and three smaller ones in the other three corners, just in case the delegates need to confer in private.”

“Good thinking, Govind.” Thakur turned to Ravinder and beamed. “You have a good man here, Mr. Gill.”

“Most definitely, sir.” Ravinder tried to sound enthusiastic but did not quite succeed.

Even Mohite noticed, and his expression altered. Of course, Mohite caught himself immediately; his fleeting frown was replaced by an ingratiating smile.

“Then, sir,” Mohite resumed, eager for the limelight, “the roof is secured by snipers.”

“Excellent.” Thakur was clearly bored by now. “I better get going.” He headed for the elevators.

Mohite raced ahead and pressed the elevator button. While they waited for it, he persisted with his briefing. “From day after tomorrow, no one will be able to use these elevators to come up to the two secure floors unless they have the special access cards. Without them, the elevators will not rise beyond the sixth floor.”

The elevator arrived with a pinging chime. Led by Thakur, they all trooped in. With the minister's security officers, Mohite, Ravinder, and Ruby, it was a tight fit. An awkward silence set in as Mohite realized that he had run out of things to say. Suddenly he burst out again, “I forgot to mention that the air force is going to enforce a strict no-fly zone around the hotel once the delegates arrive. As a matter of fact, the whole city is a no-fly zone … because of the games also. So no chance of any nine/eleven-type of attack.”

“Excellent, excellent. I can see that you guys have looked out for everything.” Thakur now kept glancing at his watch.

“Of course we have, sir.” Mohite became animated again as he remembered something else he had forgotten. “Just as a precaution … not that we are expecting any trouble, but just in case of an emergency, we have also secured the top two floors of Hotel Samrat and duplicated the same arrangements there also.”

“Samrat? The hotel next door?”

“That's the one, sir. It is a logical choice, since we have an interconnecting, easy-to-secure corridor between the two hotels … from the rear side.”

The doors opened with another ping as the elevator reached the ground floor.

“All this seems to be very good. I am sure everything will go off well,” Thakur announced as they walked through the lobby; one of his PSOs ran forward to summon the car. “In any case, I shall be here every day.”

“Every day, sir?” Ravinder kept his tone neutral, but the thought of Thakur messing around, adding to their security hassles, was scary. Mohite pandering to him all the time would be a nightmare.

“Yes, of course. I must give the delegates confidence and let them know that we are taking our precautions very seriously.”

“But of course, sir.” Mohite again preempted Ravinder. “That will be perfect. I will receive you at the gate every morning.”

“I like his enthusiasm,” Thakur declared to Ravinder. “I will be here about half an hour early on the first day so that I can spend some time with the delegates, but from the second day onward, I will come just a few minutes before the summit starts.” With that, he turned to Ruby again. “Sorry for keeping your father so busy, but this is an important event we are hosting.” Thakur beamed as he shook Ruby's hand. “I hope to see more of you, my dear.”

“I am sure we will, sir.” Ruby watched him get into his car and drive away. An idea had begun to germinate in her head.

“I am sorry you had to be put through all that,” Ravinder said to her as Thakur drove off. “You must have been bored stiff.”

Ruby noted a watchful look in his eyes. “Not at all. Fascinating stuff.”

“Even for you? Don't you see enough of this in your agency?”

So that is what Chance told him.
Ruby kept her face expressionless.
What else did he tell him?

“
Each one is different. I had no idea you guys were doing such a massive event.”

“Oh well.” Ravinder broke off as Mohite came back to them. Whatever he was going to say got lost as a clamor of mobile phones erupted, both Ravinder's and Mohite's. Ruby watched as both took the calls. She saw their expressions turn serious.

“Excuse us for a minute, Ruby.” Ravinder pulled Mohite aside.

Ruby watched them converse intensely. Ravinder seemed angry. Mohite looked defiant yet sheepish; she had a feeling it was something to do with her.

*   *   *

“How the hell did they get past our men?” Ravinder was yelling at Mohite. “You had assured me that you were looking into this personally.”

“I don't know, sir. I had briefed them thoroughly. They must have done something stupid.”

Ravinder clenched his teeth; this was not the time to teach the idiot basic leadership lessons.

“Whatever! Let's go and find out what happened.” He headed back toward Ruby. “Please go back home in my car; something urgent has come up. I need to go somewhere with Mr. Mohite.”

An hour of hectic driving later, they reached Saket and walked into the carnage that had once been Rizwan Khan's house.

Ravinder quickly realized that the killer must have known about the surveillance. One car, a Tata Safari parked across the park, had been bombed into oblivion and the occupants of the second had been gunned down as they ran out to respond.

“It was detonated remotely.” The bomb disposal squad man told Ravinder, “Most probably from in front of the subject's house. That allowed him to shoot down the men in the second car when they ran out on the road.” Both men lay sprawled in front of the gate. A professional, for sure, Ravinder noted. Both had been classically shot, mob-execution style, once in the head and once in the heart. “Then he ran into the subject's house and took him out.”