"Just a second." She quickly scanned the rest of the article. "The FBI is investigating the incident, which they suspect was a case of mistaken identity on behalf of the bomber." She paused and placed a hand on his shoulder. "You're going to love this. The couple who rented the Lincoln returned to their home in Alabama and were not available for comment. The FBI said their names were being withheld and would not be made available while the incident is being investigated.'"
Scott glanced at her. "Which means the incident will be under investigation until everyone forgets about it."
"Thank you, Hartwell."
"Speaking of Hartwell, let's try the satcom system. Give him our ETA and add thirty minutes for the drive from the airport."
"I'll take care of it," she said, turning to leave.
"Oh, one other thing," Scott said. "Would you mind canceling our reservations in Hawaii?"
"I canceled them while you were in the shower."
"Gulfstream Nine-Five-Seven Golf Alfa, contact Salt Lake Center on one-three-four point three-five; good day."
Scott keyed the radio. "Salt Lake Center, thirty-four thirty-five; Fifty-seven Golf Alfa."
He checked in with the center and wrote a note to pick up a good bottle of wine on the way to Prost's home.
"We're all set," Jackie said, stepping into the cockpit. "The satcom system works like a dream."
"How's Hartwell doing?"
"Zachary answered the phone. He said Mr. Prost is on his way home from the White House. He will deliver our message the moment Mr. Prost arrives."
On day five of their voyage, Brett Shannon and members of his staff were enjoying tea in the Winter Garden. Afternoon tea is served with white gloves, a tradition of Cunard s White Star Service. Shannon and his aides were partaking of an assortment of scones, finger sandwiches, fresh cream cakes, and warm Daijeeling. Grown in the mountainous districts of northern India, the tea was worthy of the high standards set on the QM2.
Relieved that the summit on international terrorism had been a reasonable success, the secretary of state was sampling a wide variety of activities on the ship. He had attended an enrichment program about wine appreciation, perused the quaint library, indulged himself with a seaweed treatment at the Canyon Ranch SpaClub, practiced his golf swing in a simulator, played shuffleboard, visited The Planetarium, and bought presents from a wide variety of Mayfair Shops.
Tonight would be the last hurrah before the mighty ship arrived in New York the next morning at 8 A. M. sharp. Shannon and his staff would dine in the elegant Britannia Restaurant and then assemble in the Royal Court Theatre to watch a Broadway musical. Afterward, they would adjourn to the Commodores Club for a nightcap while they listened to jazz.
Although he was a wealthy man in his own right, Brett Shannon relished the knowledge that U. S. taxpayers were footing the bill for the extravagant cruise, including the considerable bar charges. Shannon believed that only the best things in life were good enough. He found that especially true when someone else was picking up the tab.
Chapter 4
Khartoum, the capital of the Republic of the Sudan, is located south of the confluence of the Blue Nile and White Nile rivers. Long a hub for international terrorists, Khartoum serves as a safe haven, meeting place, and training center for al-Qaeda (the Base).
A military Islamic fundamentalist regime, Sudan also plays host to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hamas, the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Egyptian Gamaat al-Islamiyya, al-Jihad, and the Abu Nidal organization known as Ghanem Saleh. Other Islamic extremist factions of lesser notoriety have called Khartoum their headquarters for over three decades.
Sudan does more than provide a safe haven for terrorists; Sudan is the place to secure a base for organizing terrorist operations. Everything is available to the groups, including weapons, forged travel documentation, and false identification papers. It is a refuge for international fugitives who have been linked to bombings, assassinations, kidnappings, hijackings, and various other atrocities around the world.
A grayish-pink twilight was settling over the sprawling city of Khartoum when a gleaming Boeing Business Jet began its final approach to the international airport. A hybrid of the popular 737 airliner, the privately owned BBJ was a graceful combination of airborne office, conference center, executive stateroom, galley, and entertainment/ dining room.
Equipped with a self-contained air stair under the forward entry door, satellite communications, and computer capability, the airplane combined a work environment with the ambiance of a comfortable vacation home. Capable of nonstop flights over 6,000 nautical miles, the spacious aircraft was considered an ultra-long-range time machine for business leaders.
Saeed Shayhidi, an Iranian shipping magnate, oil trader, investment banker, and international power broker, had recently purchased the lavish corporate jet through a third party based in Bermuda. The negotiations, like many of Shayhidis transactions, were time-consuming and nerve-racking. Before the deal was finalized, Shayhidi managed to whittle over $2 million off the asking price for the Boeing.
Shayhidi, a multibillionaire, typically enjoyed badgering his opponents to the point of exhaustion. In this instance his adversary was a hard-nosed hard-drinking aircraft broker. The act of haggling was one of Shayhidi s favorite sports: the intellectual version of fencing. Both men would duel again when Shayhidis newer, larger BBJ-2 was ready for delivery. It would have more powerful engines, a larger passenger cabin, and greater storage capacity in the lower lobe.
The money Shayhidi saved on the initial purchase of the BBJ went into an interior completion that re-created the atmosphere of his chateau in the Graves district of the Gironde. Not surprising, the wine served aboard the BBJ came from the vineyard adjacent to his chateau.
The eldest son of a wealthy hotelier who retired in London, Shayhidi was not unlike many successful entrepreneurs. Ivy League-educated, he was extremely shrewd and pernicious. Though hopelessly narcissistic, he was a brilliant tactician in the boardroom. As one might expect, regardless of the location, time, or circumstance, Shayhidi required painstaking care from his throng of personal attendants.
There was another side to Saeed Shayhidi, a much darker side. Unknown to his associates in the business world and the political arena, Shayhidis influence reached far beyond the boardroom. He was a master terrorist with an obsessive passion that enveloped every aspect of his psyche: the passion to rid Muslim-inhabited lands of Western control and influence.
An entirely new breed of terrorist leader, Shayhidi was less dependent on state or political sponsorship and more dependent on his own sizable financial empire. This understated leadership arrangement was accomplished with a minimum of one or two intermediaries, allowing him to remain a comfortable distance from the disreputable individuals who actually carried out his orders.
Shayhidi s hatred of Americans and their culture began during his first year at Princeton University. Initially, the transformation was insidious, but it rapidly began to affect every aspect of his life. Shayhidi s fiery personality and cantankerous attitude provoked uneasiness and annoyance among his fellow students. By the beginning of his sophomore year both students and faculty, for the most part, quietly shunned the wealthy Iranian. Two weeks into his junior year, Shayhidi desperately wanted to leave school and return home to Iran. Much to his dismay, his father insisted he remain at Princeton and receive a proper education. Grudgingly, he stayed the course and became a recluse.
During the many years after Shayhidi s graduation from Princeton, his disdain for the American people expanded to include contempt for their powerful military Over a period of five years, with no direct ties to Osama bin Laden, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Bassam Shakhar, or any other prominent Islamic zealot, Shayhidi managed to recruit dozens of key members of al-Qaeda and other well-known terrorist factions. With Bassam Shakhar dead from a massive stroke, and the al-Qaeda organization in disarray, Saeed Shayhidi felt compelled to accept the mantle of authority and leadership in the jihad against American imperialism.