He sat back in his seat slightly. “Sir, as of now I cannot tell you who will be charged or what evidence we are gathering, but it should be said you do not need to know as yet. I am requesting this special prosecutor have full jurisdiction and authority to get to the very bottom of this incident. The Justice Department has agreed and you need to know it is being done. I am sure a special grand jury will also be convened to hear the evidence and decide on certain actions. Sir, as soon as I can, I will give you more information,” said West as he finally sat back in his seat.
President O’Bannon sat back as well. It wasn’t often that a President could not be told something. “It’s okay, Kurt. I understand and appreciate what’s going on. If you can’t tell me, you just can’t. I take it CIA agrees?”
Harris nodded. “Yes sir, it’s best all round as I see it. The one thing we don’t need is someone going around some judicial process. If we’re going to get these bastards, we need to do it right.”
“I will ask one thing though,” the President said. “It makes it sound like this is some guy I know. Is that the case?” he asked.
West looked a little uneasy, but finally nodded slightly. “That’s the reason behind all this, sir. You know him very well.”
“It is only seventeen miles away from our borders!” Parente nearly screamed. “According to my valued assistant, it can strike my shores from where it is and we can’t do anything about it! Now what do you propose to do?” he asked his assembled generals.
“Señor Presidente, we have our largest artillery pieces in place nearby, but they do not have the range to hit the ship. I have also been assured that even if we could strike it, the effect would be minimal. There is nothing the army can do,” said the highest ranking general in the room.
“We can always use aircraft to strike the ship, but as General Aquilla stated, the effect would be negligible. There would also be the problem that our planes would be bombing a target within the boundaries of a neighboring country. Although the Dutch couldn’t really harm us for now, the international repercussions would be great,” said General Hidalgo of the Air Force.
The Admiral of the Venezuelan Navy, Bakan Oroso sat back in his seat. “The Navy would normally have the same problem, but I have some assets which may do the job, Señor Presidente,” he said calmly.
Parente eyed the man. “Tell me of your plans, Admiral.”
“Do not forget we have divers which could sneak into the harbor undetected by the ships,” said Oroso. “We simply need to deliver a diver into the harbor and then have him place a mine against the great ship’s hull. He sets if for a predetermined time and then swims away and is picked up. The mine could go off in five minutes or five days. It simply needs to be set appropriately,” he said smiling.
Parente smiled at the man. “How soon could you send this diver into the harbor?”
“As early as tonight, Señor Presidente. I have already placed a team on orders to be ready to move.”
“There may still be repercussions,” said Aquilla.
Parente held up his hand, silencing the men. “Not if no one knows who did it. These ships are old. I recall one in the 1980s having an explosion onboard. We simply need to make sure the timer is set so that there is no way to determine who might have done this. After all, America still has enemies around the world,” Parente said with growing confidence. “Do we know how long the ship will be in port?”
“We do not,” said Aquilla.
“”Then I suggest we send the diver in and set the timer for three days from now. By then, the ship may even be out to sea. That will make fighting the rising waters even more difficult,” he said. “Give the orders, Admiral.” Placated, Parente turned and left the room. He would need to congratulate Rojas on his insight about the battleships. But now they had a weapon that even a battleship could not deter. The thought made him almost giddy.
It was fruitless. The prisoners had thought up a number of ways to try and break out of the prison, but every one of them had been doomed to failure. Donado had told them all of the plans and efforts made to keep the mayors exactly where they were. He even informed them of the guards on the towers and an extra one sitting outside the door to make sure no one could get by the one inside. At one point one of the mayors suggested trying to scratch through the mortar holding one of the concrete blocks of the wall in place. But with the guard at the door watching them like a hawk, it would be impossible.
By nightfall, everyone was exhausted. Even the idea of ambushing the men bringing the meals was thrown out. With the two guards, it would simply be a slaughter. Tonight, everyone ate in silence. When done, the stacked the pots and plates neatly and placed them by the cell door as usual.
Once again, Patricia Hammond made her way around the room, trying to cheer up her colleagues. She sat down beside Manuel Donado. “You feeling better?” she asked in Spanish.
Donado smiled and nodded his head. The swelling on his face had subsided and she could finally see his eyes more clearly. One was still very red, but at least he could see. “Why do you always check on me? Don’t you remember I was one of the guards?” he asked.
Patricia chuckled. “Of course I do. But now you are in here with us. Since I have come to know you, it appears you are a very nice young man,” she said. She could see him blush slightly through all the bruising and reached out to place her hand on one of his cheeks. “Manuel, don’t worry about what has happened. I know we will get out of this. I don’t know when or how, but we’ll get through it. When we do, I’m going to make sure you are taken care of,” she said.
Donado lifted his eyebrows slightly. “I wish I was so confident. I know my Sergeant and our Presidente. They are not known for their benevolence,” he said. “I am afraid that before this is done, they will certainly kill us all.”
She grinned. “Hasn’t he heard that it is very difficult to kill Americans? We are like a tough old piece of steak. We don’t go down easy,” she said.
Donado’s face widened to a grin of his own. “You don’t look so tough,” he chided.
“Oh, we’re tough and we’re mean. We have teeth that bite and claws that scratch. And if I get a big stick in my hand, you better watch out,” she said, pointing her finger at him.
Now even Donado had a laugh.
“Oh, you think I am funny? I also have a leg to kick. Your Sergeant better watch out if I get loose. I know where to kick him where he can really hurt,” she boasted with a smile. Now Donado was laughing so much he let out a gasp of pain from one of his ribs, but even that couldn’t stop him. The others in the room watched the boy transform into a much livelier and likable person before their eyes. Even those few who understood Spanish were laughing. After a moment everyone calmed down.
“Maybe someday I will be as tough as you,” he said to Patricia.
She nodded her head. “You’ll get there. Now just sit back and rest. When the time comes, we’ll all need our strength — to do a little kicking,” she said. She leaned down and kissed him on the forehead. It was amazing. Just that little encouragement had made a big change in the boy. The look on his face was no longer defeat, but a growing confidence that something would happen for the good. The smile was still on his face as he leaned back and placed his head against the wall and closed his eyes.