Highest Order_An Action Thriller Novel Page 8

  “Mr. McConnell?” Prudence asked as she answered the call. “I’m just about ready…”

  “I’m afraid there’s been a change in plans,” Noah said. “I’m being recalled, and President Abimbola has arranged an immediate flight out of the country. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to take some of my special equipment. I need you to meet us at the hotel and take charge of it right away.”

  “Oh, okay,” she said, confused. “That seems unusual. Is something wrong?”

  “I don’t know the details,” Noah said.” You know how it is, they don’t tell us what’s going on while we’re out in the field. Another team is coming in to take over for me, so I’m sure they’ll be in touch with you as soon as they arrive. You can turn this equipment over to them. I just need it out of the hotel before we leave.”

  “All right,” she said. “I can be there in about fifteen minutes. I’ll see you then.”

  “Boss,” Neil said, “what’s going on?”

  “I’ll fill you in when we get to the hotel,” Noah replied. “I need to check on Mom once more before we talk about it.”

  All of them, including Sarah, appeared nervous. Being recalled from a mission had never happened before, and they were quite sure there was considerably more to the story. Still, they knew not to ask questions when they might be overheard, so they waited as patiently as their worries would allow.

  They arrived at the hotel ten minutes later, and Noah stopped them before they entered the building. He waited until they were away from the limousine and there was no one in earshot, then lowered his voice.

  “I got a Horatio call,” he said. “Allison has been arrested, but we don’t know all of the details, yet. There’s something about a Senate committee investigating some of the missions she has sanctioned, and the mission we handled in Arkansas has apparently sent up some red flags. The committee has apparently issued warrants for Team Camelot, so Donald wants us to get out of the country immediately. If we can get to Barcelona, the E & E station there can give us some assistance. Abimbola may have saved our asses by arranging this flight, but we don’t dare try to take our weapons with us. Donald told me to cut all ties with other intelligence assets, but I had to call Prudence to come get our equipment.”

  “She’s here now,” Sarah said. “Her car just pulled into the parking lot.”

  “Good. Let’s get everything ready, and then Marco and I will haul it down to her car.”

  They waited until Prudence caught up with them, then entered the building and took the elevator up to their floor.

  “So, what’s going on?” Prudence asked in the elevator.

  “I’m not really certain,” Noah said. “I got an emergency call telling me that we are being recalled and another team is coming in to take over. Because of the urgency, and the fact that we don’t have a plane waiting for us, the president offered us a special flight from their military and I accepted. We have to be at the airport in just under an hour, so we’ll help you load all the stuff up.”

  Prudence rolled her eyes. “Something about this is bothering me,” she said. “I’ve never seen any of your people be recalled in the middle of a mission before. Should I check in? Maybe I can find out something for you.”

  Noah shrugged. “That’s your call,” he said. “On the other hand, if this means any kind of problems, it’s always possible that being too close to us could be unhealthy for you. I wasn’t specifically told not to tell you, but I was told to leave the country with as little impact as possible.”

  Prudence looked at him, and the apparent innocence in his face must have been convincing. “Okay, fine,” she said. “Last thing I need is to get tangled up in anything that could expose our mission here. Just do me a favor, and let me know if you hear of anything that might affect me or my people. Can you do that?”

  Noah smiled. “I’ll be glad to,” he said.

  The elevator opened on their floor and they went to their rooms. Marco and Noah quickly repacked all of the weapons and equipment, then carried the four cases down to Prudence’s car. Only two of them would fit in the back, so the others went into the rear seat.

  “You want to get those secured as quickly as possible,” Noah said. “There’s some high tech in there, and we don’t want it exposed to the locals if at all possible. It would be best if you could leave the cases sealed until our replacements get here.”

  “Yeah, trust me,” Prudence replied. “I don’t want to mess around with any of your stuff. I can just imagine what getting caught with it could do to me, you know?”

  “Good thinking,” Noah said. “Just get it stashed somewhere no one will bother it, and hopefully our replacements will get here within the next twenty-four hours.”

  She shook her head ruefully. “I damn sure hope so,” she said, and then she got into her car and drove away. Noah and Marco went straight back upstairs, where Sarah, Neil, and Jenny had their luggage packed and ready.

  “I ran a quick sweep for bugs,” Neil said. “We can talk, if we need to.”

  Noah sat down on the bed. “Here’s the thing,” he said. “The only one of us that doesn’t have a warrant out right now is Jenny. I think we should put her on a commercial flight back home as soon as we get to Barcelona. That way…”

  “What are you smoking?” Jenny asked. “I’m not leaving you guys, not in the middle of this.”

  Neil scowled at her. “Jenny, you don’t need to get mixed up in whatever’s going on. Noah’s right, we need to get you away from us before you end up in trouble, too.”

  Jenny looked at Sarah. “You want to explain it to them?”

  Sarah sighed, but there was humor in it. “She’s saying that she won’t leave Neil,” she said, “for the same reason I won’t leave Noah. If you guys can’t understand that, then I don’t know what to tell you.”

  “Yeah, that pretty much sums it up,” Jenny said. “Besides, if things get nasty, you might need me. I’m not letting anything happen to Neil, or to any of you. You’ve all become part of my family, and that’s just how it is. Besides, you know what lengths I’ll go to for family.”

  Noah nodded. “I expected as much,” he said, “but I felt it was necessary to try. All right, let’s go. It’s ten o’clock and the flight is scheduled to leave at ten thirty.”

  They gathered their luggage and carried it down the elevator, then loaded it into the trunk of the limousine. The driver held the back door open as they climbed inside, then got behind the wheel and started toward the airport.

  Despite the fact that the airport was only two miles away, the ride took almost 20 minutes. Most of that time was spent maneuvering through city traffic, which was surprisingly heavy for that time of night. They arrived without incident, however, and the driver was waved through a gate and pulled up beside the airplane. Noah recognized it as a Beechcraft Super King Air, a large twin turboprop.

  The flight crew, as it turned out, spoke no English. Marco stepped up to interpret, because they did speak fluent French like most Algerians, and then turned to Noah.

  “We must rate,” he said. “Turns out this is the West Algerian version of Air Force One. This plane was assigned to the president, himself, but he’s never even seen it. This will actually be its very first flight as a diplomatic aircraft.”

  Noah nodded. “Thank the flight crew for us,” he said. “Let’s get aboard. The sooner we’re in the air, the better.”

  They climbed on board and took their seats while the flight crew stowed their luggage in the cargo compartment. Five minutes later, the engines started up and the plane slowly began to move, taxiing to the beginning of the runway. Noah, who was sitting just behind the cockpit, could vaguely hear the tower approve the airplane for takeoff.

  Noah’s phone rang at that moment, and he glanced at it to see that it was Prudence Mays calling. He answered the call and put the phone to his ear as the engines revved up to full power and the plane began its takeoff roll.

  “Hello,” he said.

  �
�Mr. Wolf,” Prudence said. “Are you out of the country?”

  Noah hesitated for a second, until the wheels left the ground. “We are.”

  “Damn good thing,” she replied. “I just received orders to arrest you, using any force necessary. Not sure I want to get into any kind of a gun battle with you, so I’m glad to hear you’re out of my jurisdiction.”

  “So am I,” Noah said. “I’d hate to be the reason you were compromised.”

  “You and me both, buddy. Look, the message I got said that your agency went rogue and has been performing missions that were off the books. Your director and some of her staff have been arrested, and there are warrants out for you and the people with you. I’m not sure going home is a real good idea for you, right now.”

  “I think it’s going to be necessary,” Noah said. “There is some kind of screwup back home, and I want to know what it is. Can’t really do much about it if I’m sitting in Africa, now can I?”

  “You ever read Rudyard Kipling?”

  “Yes,” Noah said. “Why?”

  “Because you’re a better man than me, Gunga Din. If I was facing the kind of things they’re saying about you, I’d be heading for the outback of Australia.”

  “Care to give me a heads-up? What kind of things are they saying?”

  “Murder for hire, basically. Word is that your team took out a number of Americans on American soil. The story is that it violates the prohibition on intelligence activity within U.S. borders. According to the relevant Executive Orders, such activities can only be pursued against foreign nationals, not against American citizens.”

  “I’m familiar with that executive order,” Noah said, “but it only applies to the CIA. Our organization is not part of the CIA, nor under its purview. Sounds to me like somebody is twisting some facts around to try to achieve a specific end.”

  “Hey, I’m just relaying the message. You and I both know there are some bad actors in the government, and it’s times like these when they stand up and shout for attention. I don’t know who your people pitstop, but they seem to have some clout. Anyway, I’m just glad you’re out of my hair. Do me a favor and stay that way, will you?”

  “I think you can count on it,” Noah said. “Try to stay safe. Things might get ugly before this is over, and I’d hate for it to splash onto you.”

  “Goodbye, Mr. Wolf.”

  Chapter SIX

  Four Hours Earlier

  Allison looked up when she heard the commotion in the hallway, and slipped a hand under her center desk drawer. The Mac 10 she kept in the holster mounted to its bottom slid easily into her hand, as she watched her office door closely.

  A knock came on it a moment later, and then it opened slowly to reveal her secretary of the day. She hadn’t even bothered to learn the woman’s name, but the look on her face made Allison wonder if she shouldn’t have made the effort. The gal seemed positively terrified, even though she had seemed fine only moments earlier, when Allison had come back from lunch.

  “You okay?” Allison asked. “What’s going on?”

  “Ma’am,” the secretary began, “there are some men…”

  The door burst open and the woman was shoved out of the way. Six men entered, and one of them had a pistol in his hand. Allison started to reach quickly for the Mac, but the gun was aimed at her face and she knew she’d never get it out in time.

  “What the hell? What is this?” Allison demanded.

  “Allison Michelle Peterson,” one of the men said, “I am United States Marshal Glenn Howard, and pursuant to the warrant I present to you now, you are hereby placed under arrest on the charge of disenfranchisement of citizens of the United States of America, and on the charge of conducting clandestine operations relevant to foreign security on U.S. soil. I’m instructed to take you into custody and transport you to a federal holding facility.”

  Allison stared at him for a moment, then shook her head in confusion. “What on Earth are you talking about?” she asked. “What you mean, disenfranchisement of American citizens?”

  “Ma’am, I am not at liberty to discuss these charges with you. I need you to get up out of your chair and turn around, right now.”

  Don Jefferson came through the door at that moment, his face white. “What on Earth is going on here?”

  One of the men pushed him against the wall and put a hand on the gun in the holster strapped to his belt. “Sir, please step back,” he said.

  “I’m being arrested, Donald,” Allison said. “Some bull crap about disenfranchising American citizens.”

  She got up from her chair and calmly turned her back, and the marshal put her in handcuffs. When he turned her around, she saw Jefferson clenching his teeth in rage.

  “Chill out, Donald,” she said. “Just get yourself busy finding out what’s going on. Somebody is playing games, and I want to know who it is.”

  Jefferson shoved down his anger and got himself under control. “I will,” he said. “May I see a copy of that warrant, please?”

  “Are you an attorney?” The man who was holding Allison asked the question.

  “Yes, as a matter of fact, I am,” Jefferson said. He held out a hand in expectation, and the copy of the warrant was placed into it. He snatched it open and began to read, but the marshals began leading Allison out of the room.

  “This is ridiculous,” Jefferson said. “This is referring to Executive Order 13470. That doesn’t even apply to this agency. We were created under an entirely different order, and we are not part of the elements of national intelligence, nor under the oversight of the NSA. And I see nothing about disenfranchisement of anyone. Where did that come from?”

  The marshal glared at him. “Sir, we are acting under the direct orders of the Senate select committee on intelligence. I read the charges to the accused exactly as they were given to me, and any questions should be directed to them. Senator Diana McCaskill is the chair of the committee, and you can direct any questions to her office. Now please, step out of my way.”

  “Donald,” Allison said, “under our articles of organization, you are now the acting director. Get busy and find out what’s going on.”

  The marshal looked at Jefferson and seemed to smirk. “For now, anyway,” he said. “I’ve heard there might be a shakeup in the top levels of your outfit.”

  Jefferson was still staring at the warrant, and his eyes were wide. “Marshal, what is this? There are vague references to other people to be arrested, but no names.”

  “That, sir, is an open warrant for any and all of your personnel who were involved in a recent mission to Arkansas. According to the committee, those personnel caused the deaths of a number of American citizens in clear violation of their civil rights. Since their names are not known to the committee, you will be contacted by the FBI with orders to reveal their names and assist in bringing them into custody.”

  “This is some kind of madness,” Jefferson shouted. “This agency is directly answerable to the President of the United States, not to the Senate or the House or the joint Chiefs or any other arm of the government but the executive. Allison, I’ll get Parker and we’ll get started on this.”

  Allison nodded to him. “You do that,” he said. “And Donald? You take care of my kids.”

  Jefferson looked her in the eye. “You know damn well I will.”

  The marshals escorted her out of the office and to the elevator, and then she was gone. Jefferson went to her desk and picked up the phone. He pressed a single button and waited for an answer.

  Doctor Nathan Parker was a psychiatrist who evaluated potential agents and employees for the organization. He had spent more than thirty years working with the CIA, where he had actually developed testing regimens that could help predict which human assets were at risk for psychological issues. Allison had recruited him to help her evaluate specific individuals and determine their capacity for killing without suffering adverse psychological effects.

  “Parker,” came a gruff voice.


  “Don Jefferson. Doc, we got a problem. Federal marshals just came in here and arrested Allison.”

  “They what? What are you talking about?”

  “Just do me a favor and get over here,” Jefferson said. “I’m calling in the attorneys to try to figure out just what’s happening. Doc, the warrant doesn’t make any sense, but it’s not just for Allison. They’re also trying to identify and arrest all of Team Camelot.”

  “I’ll be there in fifteen,” Parker said. “Camelot is in country on a mission; get somebody else on the way to take over, and call them out. Tell them to get out of Algeria immediately, and go to ground. Hell, give them a Horatio.”

  “I’ll do that as soon as I know more,” Jefferson said. “The mission is critical and time sensitive, I don’t want to abort unless we absolutely have to.”

  “Trust me, Donald, you have to. There are too many out there who know who Noah is. By the time you get any more information, word could be on its way to the CIA in Algeria to try to arrest them, and that might not go very well.”

  Jefferson sighed. “All right, I see your point. Let me get another team started on it, and then I’ll call them.”

  “Do that,” Parker said. “I’m on the way.”

  Jefferson hung up the phone, then picked it up again. He called Molly Hansen and told her to get all of the information together on the Algerian mission and meet him in the conference room in five minutes. As soon as he finished that call, he consulted his cell phone and then dialed another number.

  “Unicorn,” answered Jeremy Schaefer.

  “This is Donald Jefferson. Briefing in the conference room in thirty minutes. Bring your team.”

  “Yes, sir,” Schaefer said. Jefferson hung up the phone and leaned back in the chair, rubbing his hands over his face.

  Donald Jefferson had begun his career in the intelligence field as a case officer for the CIA in Brussels, recruiting foreign students who were attending the many universities there. Several of his recruits had gone on to be highly valued assets when they returned home to their own countries. Donald’s success had led to promotion, and he was eventually running a lot of the HUMINT operations throughout Europe.