— Photoshopped, he said, handing back the photos.
— In these times, all too possible, I admit. Hererra presented him with the micro-recorder as if it were a prize. -Perhaps this will convince you the photos are undoctored.
When Bourne pressed the PLAY button, this is what he heard above the reduced background clamor:
“Terminate Jason Bourne and I will use the full might of the American government to put Abdulla Khoury where he belongs.”
“Not good enough, Mr. Smith. An eye for an eye, this is the true meaning of quid pro quo, yes?”
“We don’t assassinate people, Colonel Karpov.”
“Of course not. No matter, Secretary Halliday. I have no such compunctions.”
After a slight pause, Halliday said: — Yes, of course, in the heat of the moment I forgot our protocols, Mr. Jones. Send me the entire contents of the hard drive and it will be done. Agreed?”
“Agreed.”
Bourne pressed STOP and looked at Hererra. -What hard drive are they talking about?
— I have no idea, but as you can imagine I‘m trying to find out.
— How did you come into possession of this material?
A slow smile reemerged on the Colombian‘s face as he put a forefinger across his lips.
— Why would Boris want to kill me?
— Colonel Karpov didn‘t inform me when he asked for the favor. Hererra shrugged. -But as a matter of routine I ran a check on the phone he was calling from. It was a satellite phone and it was located in Khartoum.
— In Khartoum, Bourne said. -Perhaps at Seven Seventy-nine El Gamhuria Avenue, Nikolai Yevsen‘s headquarters.
Hererra‘s eyes opened wide. -Now, truly, I am impressed.
Bourne lapsed into a meditative silence. Could there be a connection between Boris and Nikolai Yevsen? Could they be collaborators instead of adversaries? What grand scheme could bring these two disparate men together, could cause Boris to try to kill him and, once discovering that he was still alive, hire the Torturer to finish the job?
Something didn‘t make sense, but there was no time now to figure out what because Tracy was opening the French door to enter the room, and Hererra, smiling at her, said, — Has your principal made a decision?
— He wants the Goya.
— Excellent! Don Hererra rubbed his hands together. He was grinning like a cat that has caught a particularly rare and tasty morsel. -The world has no idea who Noah Petersen is, but I have a suspicion our friend here does. He lifted his eyebrows as he gazed at Bourne.
— Not talking? He shrugged. -No matter. Mr. Petersen is Seńorita Atherton‘s principal.
Tracy stared at Bourne. -You know Noah? How is that possible?
— His real name is Noah Perlis. Bourne, thunderstruck, looked at both of them in turn. The spider‘s web had presented an entirely new dimension. -He works for a private American military contracting company by the name of Black River. I‘ve had some dealings with him in the past.
— What do you know? Hererra said. -The world is filled with chameleons and, not surprisingly, they all know one another. He turned from Bourne and gave Tracy a mock bow. -Seńorita Atherton, why don‘t you tell the gentleman where you‘re to deliver the Goya? When she hesitated, he laughed goodnaturedly. -Go on, you‘ve nothing to lose. We all trust one another here, don‘t we?
— I‘m to deliver the Goya by hand to Khartoum, Tracy said.
Bourne could hardly catch his breath. What in the world was going on?
— Please don‘t tell me you‘re to deliver it to Seven Seventy-nine El Gamhuria Avenue.
Tracy‘s mouth opened wide in an O of astonishment.
— How did he know? Hererra shook his head. -That‘s a question we‘d all like answered.
Book Three
21
AMERICANS! Soraya said. -God in heaven, what madness is this?
She half expected Amun to make an acerbic comment, but he remained mute, watching her with his large scarab eyes.
— A cadre of American military men who just happen to be on leave here in Al Ghardaqah are given a mission that begins in Khartoum two weeks or so before an Iranian Kowsar 3 missile brings down an American passenger jet in Egyptian airspace. It‘s unthinkable. She raked a hand through her thick black hair. -For God‘s sake, Amun, say something.
They were sitting at a seaside restaurant, eating because they knew they had to. Soraya had no appetite and, she saw, Amun apparently didn‘t have much more. Three of his men were sitting nearby, guarding Stephen, who was scarfing down a meal as if it was going to be his last. The sun was a ruddy, flattened disk near the horizon. The cloudless sky arched above them, vast and somehow desolate.
Chalthoum pushed his food around his plate. -I still think he‘s lying to save his skin, he said sourly.
— What if he‘s not? The dive shop owner corroborated his story. There were four Americans diving off the boat approximately two weeks ago. They dived for three days, paid cash, and left abruptly, without talking to anyone.
— Sounds like anyone and everyone. Amun shot a poisonous glance over at the prisoner. -It does make a compelling story, doesn‘t it?
— Amun, I don‘t think we can afford to take the chance he‘s lying. I think we should go to Khartoum.
— And abandon the probability that Iranian terrorists were here in Egypt?
He shook his head. -Not a chance.
Soraya was already on her phone, punching in Veronica Hart‘s number. If she was going to go to Khartoum-with or without Amun-she had to confirm her decision with the DCI. Heading into Sudan was serious business.
She frowned as the phone continued to ring and no voice mail intervened. At length, a male voice answered.
— Who is this?
— Soraya Moore. Who the hell are you?
— It‘s Peter, Soraya. Peter Marks. Marks was the chief of CI operations, smart and reliable.
— What are you doing answering the DCI‘s private cell?
— Soraya, DCI Hart is dead.
— What? The blood drained from Soraya‘s face and all at once she felt the breath rush out of her. -Dead? How could-? Her voice sounded thin, attenuated, faraway. Dimly, she realized she was in shock. -What happened?
— There was an explosion-a car bomb, we think.
— Oh, my God!
— There were two individuals with her: Moira Trevor and someone by the name of Humphry Bamber, a software designer with his own boutique firm.
— Are they alive or dead?
— Alive, presumably, Marks said, — though that‘s pure speculation. We have no idea where they are. For all we know, they were responsible for the DCI‘s death.
— Or they fled for their lives.