Sir Jeffery nodded. “Two hundred million is considerably more than the earlier figure and being caught trying to transfer the money illegally from a Seoul bank into Pyongyang – it’s surprisingly uncharacteristic to use only one bank for that amount of transfer. Not like the Koreans at all.”
“He would have to do it illegally; transferring a large sum like that would generate awkward questions.”
“Fortunately for us, the South Koreans picked him up.”
“No doubt they worked him over real good, confessing the way he did,” said Green. “As the interrogator on the tape said, and I quote: ‘His soul will be laid bare by the time we finish and he’ll squeal like a stuck pig.’ I think, however, they already have everything he knows about the deal. After all, we know he was only effectively the go-between.”
“A missile launched from a nuclear sub, I can hardly believe it. Where the hell did they get them from?” questioned Powell.
“Anybody’s guess,” shrugged Green. “What we need to know now is the payload. Have the Koreans told the Americans yet, I wonder?”
“This is serious intelligence, John; they might well have, but it is common knowledge there’s growing anti-American sentiment amongst the political fraternity in the South, now that Kim Jong Un is in charge. Reunification could be back at the top of the list, so I suspect not yet anyway. If they haven’t, we certainly will very shortly,” said Sir Jeffery, firmly.
“With that young hothead at the helm I doubt if any thoughts of reunification is on his list – more like total subjugation of the entire peninsula.” Green paused, then changed the subject. “The assassination of a high-ranking North Korean general in Seoul – yet no media coverage. Strange Pyongyang has said nothing. One can only assume they’re using it – by keeping quiet that is – to extract something of value from Seoul.”
“General Yang, the North’s chief negotiator, assassinated by his own people? If what’s on that tape is genuine, the South should be concerned. It now seems probable that Yang was killed because he intended to defect and spill out plans to attack Western targets. Unfortunately for us, we don’t know when or where,” said Sir Jeffery. Then, seemingly as an after thought, “Suxamethonium, isn’t that a sedative?” He was referring to the post-mortem report obtained by the network detailing the cause of the general’s death.
“Yes, muscle relaxant, starves the heart of oxygen if not properly administered causing cardiac arrest. It metabolizes after a short period making it almost undetectable post-mortem.”
“Cunning,” Sir Jeffery said, shaking his head. “You wouldn’t have thought the miniscule dart used to administer the stuff could be so effective. Must’ve been extremely concentrated.”
Green nodded in agreement. Sir Jeffery continued. “If the South is responsible and the North retaliates with force, the Americans will use it as an excuse to strike. China would no doubt back Pyongyang and then it would all be on. Many South Koreans want the Americans out. They are rejecting the ‘Cold War’ mentality and the confrontational aspect of the Demilitarized Zone; they would much prefer the U.S. negotiate with Pyongyang over their nuclear policy. Maybe this killing was done to ensure that the Americans stay; it’ll deter them from contemplating withdrawal of the thirty-odd thousand troops from the DMZ – indeed, from the entire peninsula.”
“Those who want the Americans out do so at their peril,” Green offered. “They don’t see Kim Jong Un as dangerous – not like his father – although his latest provocative antics belies that. Those who hate everything Pyongyang stands for, knowing their present freedom and liberty will be at risk if unification takes place, firmly believe, and I’m inclined to agree, the only thing that’s been stopping the North from invading the South since day one has been the presence of good ol’ Uncle Sam. Since the North pulled out of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, the IAEA has had no show of getting their monitors back in and never will in my opinion.
“Following the diplomatic crackdown in Pyongyang, our humint is sadly lacking. We now have only a few officers working out of the Swedish Embassy controlling low-level assets and they have heard nothing to confirm what we’re hearing from our other networks. I don’t see that likely to improve in the foreseeable future.”
“Pity,” Sir Jeffery cut in.
Green continued. “If the team we sent into the North verifies the Koreans have a lethal super virus, that’s bad enough, but if they’re intending to use this sub to fire a missile at a Western city with a bio-warhead, or nuclear, we’ll all be in real trouble. Pyongyang could well achieve their long-held objective.”
“If it’s a bio, no one would escape the effects unless they had a deterrent. Until that happens, no country or individual in their right minds would even contemplate that.”
“But if they have, and the defector said they have, you can see my point, John. Whoever does create a vaccine first will, by default, become the world power simply because they will have huge leverage. If the defector is telling the truth and the North Koreans are maybe near to developing a really deadly virus, we must hope our team finds it and returns with a vaccine.”
Green nodded. “Just what did Yang know that he had to be eliminated? Did he know of attacks that were about to be placed on Western targets?”
“We’ll probably never know.” Sir Jeffery stood and went to the drinks cabinet. “Scotch?”
“With a little water.”
“Sacrilege.”
“I agree, but there’s no accounting for taste, Sir Jeffery. Where would we all be if we felt the same about the amber liquid?” Green countered.
“Quite,” replied the spy chief, coming back to his desk and handing Green his drink. “Back to business.” He raised his glass as he sat down. “Cheers!”
Green acknowledged, savouring the single malt. “South Korean Intelligence seems to be convinced that sources in Pyongyang have the truth that General Yang was killed because he knew too much and was about to defect. They all but confirmed that the North is somehow involved with a missile attack – either on us, or on America – within two to three months, which at least narrows it down to when. However, not knowing the launch location, the target, or what type of warhead will be used remains quite frustrating.”
Sir Jeffery looked at his operations head thoughtfully. “Could be anywhere with a sub involved. The target: London, New York, Washington – your guess is as good as mine. As for the missile warhead, there really are only two choices: nuclear or biological. Bearing in mind the defector stated his government would use the super virus against its enemies, I am of the opinion a bio threat, not nuclear, is the more likely, initiated by the North and carried out possibly by al-Qaeda.” The chief removed his glasses and pinched the top of his nose; he was beginning to feel the pressure. He replaced the glasses after a few moments and looked intently at Green. “I am finding it difficult to accept al-Qaeda would be capable of having the technical ability to crew a nuclear submarine and fire missiles.”
Green agreed and added, “If the Americans were not sure who was responsible, they would not risk a nuclear war. If al-Qaeda, or some other terrorist organization, carried out the attack, a lot of people would die unnecessarily. And for what? A bunch of crazy fanatics. No, I don’t think the Americans would risk the human race for that. Nor would we, but they would certainly strive to get even some other way.”
“Recent satellite flyovers revealed nothing unusual happening in the Hamgyong Mountain area. The Americans don’t seem to be too concerned either about the intel we have or its implications.”