"Help me, Jesus."
She pressed the walk button just in front of the embassy, bringing traffic to a halt. Quickly she stepped out onto the boulevard, walking across from the church to the compound. Better not to look around, she thought, so as to appear inconspicuous.
Her better judgment waned as she approached the middle of the boulevard. She looked back over her shoulder. Two stone-faced young men in black suits stepped rapidly into the crosswalk. They had to be Russian FSB.
She quickened her pace. The light changed as she reached the side of the road just in front of the U.S. embassy. Brakes squealed. A loud horn. The men were running for her in front of ongoing traffic!
She dashed toward the embassy, where several U.S. Marines were standing guard.
"Asylum! Please! I request asylum!"
The Marines grabbed her, twisting her arm behind her back. "Please, asylum."
"Sergeant, Corporal. Take her inside. Notify the political officer."
Masha looked over her shoulders as the Marines rushed her toward a guard shack.
The two young men in black suits were at the entrance to the compound. Other U.S. Marine guards stood at the entrance, blocking their way.
The White House
This is a travesty!" The president of the United States stood, pacing again. His Security Council had rushed into the Oval Office for yet another emergency session, and they were agape at images beamed from Moscow.
These were the images of an American submarine commander standing before a Russian military tribunal, then being hustled out of a Russian courtroom.
"They're calling it an attack against civilians, Mr. President, " the secretary of state said. "They have no idea still that the freighter had plutonium on it. They still think the plutonium is somewhere in Chechnya."
Mack picked up the Washington Post, whose headlines read, "Russians Capture U.S. Sub Crew – War Fever Hot Among Superpowers. " "This is just great." He tossed the paper back down on his desk.
"Why don't we approach the Russians about a prisoner swap?" the secretary of defense said. "We release the MiG pilot shot down over Georgia, and they release our crew."
"I don't think it'll work, " the secretary of state said. "They've got the grand prize, and they want to make hay out of it with the international community."
"Why not try?" Secretary Lopez retorted. "In 1960 when the Soviets shot down our U-2 spy plane, they swapped the pilot, Gary Powers, for a KGB colonel, as I recall."
"But remember, Mr. Secretary, " the secretary of state said, "the Soviets agreed to the prisoner swap after they first tried Powers on international television, convicted him of spying, and sentenced him to three years in prison and seven years hard labor. The Eisenhower Administration could do nothing about it."
"Well, if they insist on trying our sub crew, maybe we should try their pilot, " the secretary of defense said.
"Mr. President, " the secretary of state said, "we've gotten a request for individual military council this morning from the Russian embassy. Commander Miranda has requested that a JAG officer represent him."
The secretary of defense said, "Why should we go along with this kangaroo court idea?"
"Because we have a ser viceman that needs help, " the vice president said.
"Plus the Russians have offered it, " the secretary of state added. "And taking them up on their offer shows at least we have some respect for their system, which might lead to meaningful negotiation out of this crisis. At least it's more than they offered in the Gary Powers spy trial back in 1960."
"Admiral Ayers, have you spoken with the judge advocate general about all this, and if so, does he have a recommendation?"
"Yes, Mr. President. Admiral Stumbaugh, the Navy JAG, highly recommends Lieutenant Commander Brewer for the job. He's the best we've got."
"Hmm." Mack let that thought resonate for a moment. He knew Zack Brewer personally. Zack had prosecuted three of the most famous courts-martial in U.S. Navy history. In perhaps the most famous, he prosecuted three Islamic U.S. Navy chaplains for treason, securing the death penalty against internationally acclaimed defense attorney Wellington Levinson in what the press called "the court-martial of the century."
"Okay, stay on it, " the president said. "Personally I like the idea of Brewer too. I have total confidence in him in any international crisis. He's a proven commodity."
"Yes, sir, Mr. President."
"Okay." Mack eyed the secretary of state. "What's this about an asylum request?"
Secretary Mauney spoke up. "From a young woman claiming to be on board the Alexander Popovich when she sunk. The woman was the chaperone for these orphans. Claims she overheard a conversation between the captain and crew about transferring some illegal cargo at sea to an Egyptian freighter. Claims that there was actually a transfer of some small crates just a few hours before the sinking. Makes me wonder if it was the plutonium."
"I can't believe I'm hearing this!" The president stood and slammed his fist on the desk. "Don't tell me we've sunk a freighter full of orphans and lost the plutonium to boot!"
"We're checking it, sir, " the CIA director said. "We've asked the Turks for a roster of Egyptian freighters going into and out of the Bosphorus the last couple of days. One freighter, the Al Alamein, never made it to any ports that we know of, and sailed back out of the Bosphorus within eighteen hours of entering."
"So where's this freighter now?"
"We think in the Mediterranean somewhere, Mr. President, " the secretary of defense answered. "The Med's a big place. We're watching Gibraltar and the Suez Canal, which are the only ways out of there. Plus we've alerted the Brits, and they've agreed to let us know if they see anything pass by Gibraltar. Even if we find her, the plutonium may not be on board. I mean, we don't know how credible this lady is."
"All right, ladies and gentlemen, " the president said. "I want the State Department to follow up with this Russian offer to have military counsel present for Commander Miranda. Meantime, the Statement Department will offer a prisoner exchange of their pilot for our crew. I don't think it'll work, but at least it's still talking. We will also propose a partial cease-fire, whereby Russians will pull back all divisions but one from Chechnya and we would pull out everybody except the 82nd from Turkey."
"The Turks won't like that, Mr. President, " Lopez said.
"That's tough, " Mack said. "The Turks aren't president. I am. Right now, we've got American and Russian nuclear forces on high alert. That's hair-trigger danger. Besides, we will maintain the overflights of Georgian airspace. That'll keep both the Georgians and the Turks happy.
"Meanwhile, Secretary Mauney, Admiral Ayers" – the president looked at his defense secretary and Joint Chiefs chairman – "find that Egyptian freighter. Is that clear?"
"Yes, sir, Mr. President, " the responses came in unison.
"Very well. This meeting is adjourned. Be back in twelve hours."
The Al Alamein
Mediterranean Sea
There, Kapitan, that should keep you safe." Salman Dudayev snapped the last few buttons on the radioactive protection suit that would allow the commanding officer of the Al Alamein to inspect the top-secret engineering marvel that was being built in the bowels of his ship.
"We are working with raw, exposed plutonium which could expose us to lethal doses of radiation. There are a number of sharp objects in the lab. So we must be careful not to puncture our suits."
Captain Sadir nodded his head, and the men stepped into the sterile laboratory, lit by hanging fluorescent lights, where three other scientists in protective suits were working.
The bomb was being constructed on a long table, twenty feet in length. Metal cylinders were stretched out in a line along the table.
"Shall I explain the mechanics of all this, Kapitan?"
"Please, " the captain said.
"Now that we have obtained the materials that we need, the mechanics of a hydrogen bomb are relatively simple. At the heart of a successful hydrogen bomb is a successful atomic bomb. Or actually several atomic bombs.