The Riddle (A James Acton Thriller, Book #11) (18 page)

The
spinning stopped almost immediately and he felt the rockets fire to push him
away to avoid any potential shrapnel from his plane in case it exploded. When
the rockets finished he felt his freefall begin, his altitude too high for the
chute to open yet. He found himself falling backward with a perfect view of the
chaos overhead. His own plane was long gone, the bomber that had hit him had smoke
trailing from its wing as it rapidly lost altitude. The other bombers were all
banking in unison now, still spitting chaff, his squadron and the Canadians now
simply shadowing as there was no need to engage, his own wingman, Hagman,
breaking off to keep an eye on his descent.

And as
he continued his fall, waiting for his chute to open, he wondered just what the
hell the Russians had hoped to accomplish.

And
prayed he hadn’t just started a war.

Daewoo Hanoi Hotel, Hanoi, Vietnam

“You’ve gotta see this!”

All
heads turned as Secretary Atwater’s right-hand man Ronald Greer burst into the
room, making for the televisions they had set up with satellite feeds to all
the major networks. Half a dozen displays in one corner were all on but muted,
Atwater speaking to the President only moments before.

To say
he was concerned would be an understatement. Apparently an F-22 Raptor had
bumped a Russian Tu-95 Bear less than half an hour ago. The Raptor was lost but
the Bear was able to make an emergency landing at Joint Base
Elmendorf–Richardson, it unable to make it home. The Russians were screaming
bloody murder, as was the White House, blaming the Russians for violating the
twelve-mile limit to the tune of over one hundred miles. It was the greatest
incursion in history and according to the Pentagon they were seconds away from
splashing one of the bombers.

It was
an incident designed to provoke.

Again
demonstrating the different mindset of the Russian.

Americans
wouldn’t sacrifice an aircrew to gain points in the foreign press, but the
Russians wouldn’t hesitate to do it. They’d sacrifice their men for the greater
good of the country. Dawson would die for his country in a heartbeat, but he
also knew his country wouldn’t tell him to go provoke a war with the biggest
bully on the block by getting himself killed. He had met quite a few Russians
over the years, some he even liked. But he had to admit the supreme arrogance
was overwhelming at times. He was confident. His men were confident. But
arrogance could get you killed, arrogance could start wars.

Which
seemed to be just what the Russians were trying to provoke.

He knew
it wasn’t actually the case. Russia wouldn’t go to war even if they had lost
all eight bombers. But they would take advantage of the situation. A lightning
strike into the Ukraine was something Dawson was fully expecting to hear of
within the next few hours if things didn’t simmer down. Latest intel had Russia
activating armored divisions already deployed to the borders of Ukraine,
Belarus, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. And with NATO’s policy of not
stationing troops in former Warsaw Pact countries, the Baltic States were
vulnerable, and Poland, just west of Belarus, was as well.

And
would NATO actually stick to its mandate of going to war should a member state
be attacked?

He had
his doubts.

The only
solution to this entire situation was to prove that Niner wasn’t involved. He
hadn’t heard from the professors since they had left, and he couldn’t risk
calling their phones, just in case it was traced back to Atwater’s security
detail. The last thing they needed was the Russians or Vietnamese thinking they
were interfering with the investigation.

But it
had him worried.

And he
became even more so when the audio was cranked on CNN International, split
screen file photos of James Acton and Laura Palmer displayed with a talking
head in the corner. He stepped closer, as did everyone.

“—now
wanted in connection to today’s assassination of the Russian Prime Minister.
Vietnamese authorities are saying the two professors, husband and wife, are
co-conspirators, along with a Vietnamese national named Mai Lien Trinh. They
are accused of assisting the assassin, whom Vietnamese and Russian authorities
have identified as a member of Secretary of State Atwater’s security detail, a
member of the Bureau of Diplomatic Security named Jeffrey Green. A photocopy of
his ID card, taken just before the shooting when he entered the National Museum
of History, has been released by Vietnamese authorities. Authorities are also
claiming that Professor James Acton and Professor Laura Palmer, along with an
American camera crew from ABC assisted in the assault on a police car
transporting the Vietnamese suspect Mai Lien Trinh. Several police officers
were injured in the incident and the suspects escaped.

“The
White House denies any involvement in the assassination, instead insisting
their Agent’s ID card was stolen from his locked hotel room safe and he was at
Secretary Atwater’s hotel when the incident occurred.

“In
further developments, a joint American and Canadian operation sent to intercept
eight Russian bombers that eventually violated United States airspace resulted
in an F-22 Raptor being lost today in a mid-air collision with one of the
bombers. The Kremlin is claiming it occurred outside the twelve mile limit and
are demanding the United States immediately provide access to their bomber that
was forced to make an emergency landing in Alaska. The American pilot was
recovered with only minor injuries. This was only one of over a dozen incidents
today with Russian bombers around the world violating American, British and
European airspace, an unprecedented move that resulted in several shooting
incidents before the bombers turned back.

“At
the UN—”

“I’ve
heard enough,” said Atwater as she dropped back into her chair. “The Vietnamese
and Russians are certainly working overtime to get their version of the story
out to the press.”

“And the
press are eating it up,” observed Greer. “This situation is rapidly getting out
of control.”

“Agreed,”
said Dawson. “They now have named a second American as involved, along with his
wife who now lives in the United States.”

“I’ve
heard that name before. Acton was it? Where do I know it from?”

“They’ve
been involved in a few incidents over the years, Madam Secretary.” Dawson
hesitated. Should he reveal his relationship with them? Could it send Atwater
back into her initial conspiratorial bend when she thought Niner might actually
be involved? He decided he better tread lightly. “The two professors made the
papers a few years back when President Jackson targeted them for some reason.
They testified before congress.”

“Oh
yeah, the London incident, I remember now. Didn’t they also show up at the
Vatican, involved somehow with the death of the Pope?”

Dawson
nodded. “Professor Palmer had been kidnapped.”

“Please
tell me these two aren’t in any way connected with the United States
government, military or intelligence community.”

Dawson
shook his head. “Professor Acton was in the National Guard about twenty years
ago but other than that, not that I’m aware of.”

“Not
that you’re aware of.” Atwater sighed. “Where have I heard that before.” She
paused and Dawson decided it was best to say nothing. Finally Atwater spoke. “I
think it’s time we leave Vietnam.”

Finally!

“I’ll
arrange it immediately.” He turned then paused, looking back at Atwater. “What
about the two professors?”

“What
about them?”

“We know
they weren’t involved. Shouldn’t we try to help them somehow?”

“How do
we know for sure?” She quickly held up her hand. “Just playing devil’s
advocate.”

“They
were in the room when the shooting happened, just like we were. They were
standing in the corner between the two delegations.”

“They
were there?” Atwater was clearly surprised.

Dawson
nodded. “Yes. When the shooting began they hit the floor and we evacuated you.”

“But
they were there.” It was a statement which made Dawson uneasy. The tapping of
her finger on her chin made him even more so. “I can see now why the Vietnamese
are so sure we’re involved.” She sighed. “They’re on their own. We need to get
our personnel to safety. I’ll instruct the Embassy to provide whatever
assistance they can, but
we
and your friend need to get out of the
country.”

Dawson
didn’t like the answer but she was right. His responsibility was her safety and
that of the delegation, not to a private citizen and a foreign national who
were here under their own accord. “I’ll begin the arrangements immediately.
Fifteen minutes?”

Atwater
nodded.

A flurry
of activity instantly began as the staff executed their orders, each having a
list of duties they were responsible for. As Dawson left the room equipment was
already being broken down and packed. He walked down the hall to the room set
up as their security center and entered. He pointed to Spock. “We’re evacuating
in fifteen. Tell the jet to be ready and have the cars brought around to Echo
Two.” He looked at Niner. “What the hell are we going to do with you?”

“Have me
go in whiteface? All you honkey’s look alike to us Asians.”

“I
always knew it,” grinned Dawson. “But perhaps a disguise isn’t actually that
bad an idea.”

Niner
dropped his chin and raised his eyebrows. “Huh?”

“Not
whiteface, jackass. But you’re going to stick out like a sore thumb in our
security detail because they’re going to be watching us. Wander out like a
tourist or a local and you might just blend.”

Niner’s
head bobbed as he contemplated the idea. “I did bring some casual clothes for
when I was off-duty. But what if things go haywire?”

“Make
for the Embassy.”

“Which
is surrounded.”

“Hole up
until it isn’t. As soon as we’re off the ground we’ll release that you are
onboard with us and that will lighten up the security pretty quickly.”

“Unless
it’s in place for the docs. Those two are still out there somewhere.”

“True.”
Dawson squeezed his chin. “Atwater wants us to basically abandon the
professors.”

“I don’t
like that.”

“Neither
do I. They’ve helped us too many times for us to turn their backs on us.”

“So,
perhaps you’re suggesting I try to meet up with them?” asked Niner with a
suggestive inflection.

“Me? I’d
never violate orders like that.”

“Sure
you wouldn’t. Neither would I. But
if
I were to, hypothetically of
course, run into them, where exactly might I be running into them?”

Dawson
dropped into one of the seats as a team entered, beginning the dismantling of
the equipment. “I have no idea.” Dawson pulled out his secure phone and wrote
down several phone numbers. “These are their cellphone numbers.”

“Which
you just happen to have.”

“As soon
as we got back from the museum I pulled together all their info just in case.”

“Good
thinking,” said Spock as he stepped aside to let the crew finish their work.
“But we’re only doing this
if
Niner can’t make it out with us.”

“Yes.”
“No.”

Dawson
looked at Niner. “No?”

“No.
Like you said, these two don’t deserve this.”

“If you
get caught you’ll be put on a show trial and it could lead to war.” Dawson
shook his head. “You’ll be coming with us, understood?”

Niner
peered at Dawson through narrowed eyes. “Understood? Or understood,
wink-wink-nudge-nudge?”

Dawson
stifled a chuckle. “The first one.” He pointed at him. “I mean it.” He rose as
the last of the equipment was removed. He looked at Jimmy. “Make sure he gets
his ass out of here.”

Jimmy
gave a two figured salute. “I’ll beat his ass like there’s no tomorrow if he
tries anything.”

“You
know the egress route, meet us outside the security cordon, we’ll stop for you.
Jimmy, you drive the lead escort vehicle like planned, keep a constant
connection with him and pick him up. All of our vehicles are diplomatically
plated so they can’t touch him once he’s inside. They won’t dare interfere with
the motorcade. Once the vehicle is within the security perimeter of the plane
he’s on US soil.” Dawson jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “Now go.”

Niner
and Jimmy left the room, Dawson and Spock following. “Let’s walk the route.”
The hallway was still a buzz of activity. By now the eighth floor where the security
staff were lodged would have been cleared, protocol dictating that they were
constantly packed in the event of a quick egress. Their luggage would already
have been collected and placed in front of one of the two service elevators.
Since this wasn’t an emergency egress, but still an unscheduled one, the
majority of the equipment and luggage would be left behind for embassy staff to
collect and return to Washington.