He handed one to Lucas. "Your health."
"Health," Lucas said.
They sipped.
"How's your arm holding up?"
Lucas had taken a bad hit in the ambush that had cost Stephanie her unborn child. A bullet had smashed through his shoulder and almost killed him.
"Pretty good. It's stiff and motion is still restricted but I'm working on it."
"How's Stephanie doing?"
"She's dealing with things," Lucas said. His face closed down.
Hood decided not to pursue it and went back to his desk. "What do you think is happening over there?"
"Orlov and Golovkin are old-school hardliners. They're using that money to build up their military. I'm worried that they'll make a mistake and underestimate us. You've seen the troop movements they're claiming are part of an exercise?"
"I have."
"What if it's not an exercise?"
"You're not the first person to wonder about that. I got a call from Elizabeth Harker this morning. She's of the opinion that Orlov intends to invade the Ukraine."
"That's what I mean about making a mistake," Lucas said.
"It would be a mistake if we decided to get involved."
"You don't think we would?"
"We're under no obligation to defend them. It's not like the Ukraine is part of NATO. Besides, we couldn't do it on our own. As far as the Europeans are concerned I'd say it's uncertain at best," Hood said. "Hell, you put all their forces together and it wouldn't be anywhere near enough if the Russians invade. The French and the Germans won't lift a finger without our full participation. Going to war with Russia over the Ukraine wouldn't be an easy sell with Congress."
"If Orlov thinks we won't respond he's liable to risk it."
"President Rice isn't going to abandon Kiev, whatever Congress decides. He has enough legal authority to respond in force. It would take time for Congress to block him. They can't do it right away. Rice wouldn't like sending troops and he's certain to open diplomatic channels but I know him. He's not going to wait for Moscow to gobble up the country. Once it's clear a real invasion is underway, he's going to respond."
"If I didn't know better I'd say someone was trying to set us up for a war," Lucas said.
"That doesn't make a lot of sense. What's happening in Albania is bad enough but NATO will handle that. War with Russia over the Ukraine is a different story. It could go nuclear and if that happens nobody comes out ahead. I think it was Einstein that said World War IV would be fought with rocks."
"If there was anyone left to throw them," Lucas said.
"See if you can track the source of the money paying for all those nice shiny weapons," Hood said. "I want to know who's making it easy for Orlov to play Napoleon."
CHAPTER 34
Elizabeth watched a live feed from a German satellite passing over Albania and Macedonia. The Europeans had pulled the rapid deployment force out of Poland and sent it to Albania. The politicians were trying to avoid the firestorm of public opinion certain to follow if they sent a new levy of troops to Albania as a peacekeeping force. It looked like the Russians had pulled back from the Ukrainian border. NATO high command in Brussels wanted to believe the retreat was genuine. It made things so much simpler. But the war in the Balkans promised to be anything but simple.
Ground forces from Albania and Macedonia were dug in along a rugged mountain front in Eastern Albania. Mitreski's main thrust had only gotten as far as the town of Librazhd before it bogged down. His army had followed the improved highway leading from the border of Macedonia to the Albanian capital of Tirana, the only road suitable for wheeled vehicles. Both sides had brought up artillery and the town was being shelled. Streams of refugees lined the road west of Librazhd as they fled the fighting.
An attempt by Mitreski's commanders to initiate a pincer movement toward Tirana from the north had stalled out at the town of Bulquize against stiff resistance. Reports of atrocities were beginning to drift in as the old regional hatred between Muslim and Christian flared anew. Memories were a thousand years long in the Balkans. In the Balkans, no one forgave and no one forgot.
The NATO peacekeepers idled away the time in Tirana while the allies argued in Brussels about the mission. As always, the main problem was the rules of engagement. Elizabeth had never understood the mentality that sent armed soldiers and equipment into the heart of a conflict and then couldn't decide whether or not to use deadly force. The Europeans wanted American air strikes and were waiting to see what the White House would do. American airpower cost them nothing and if the strikes succeeded there would be no inconvenient deaths of their nationals to explain back home. But Rice had yet to commit American planes.
Stephanie came into Elizabeth's office. She looked up at the monitor.
"What's happening?"
"A miniature replay of World War I," Elizabeth said. "Both sides are dug in along a static front. It's snowing like crazy and civilians are fleeing toward the capital. Neither side has an advantage."
"NATO?"
"Nothing yet. The forces in Albania are waiting for orders and sitting on the outskirts of Tirana cooling their heels."
"What's happening in Russia with the troop movements?" Stephanie asked.
"It still looks to me like Orlov is going to invade. NATO command thinks it's all just an exercise but I think Brussels has its head in the sand. There are columns of support equipment and troops moving in from east of the Urals. I think that once Orlov has everything in place he's going to move fast. I can't be sure but I think I've identified some of the new T-14 Armata tanks. It's hard to tell with the camouflage. If he's got them there it's a bad sign."
"If he does invade, how do you think it will start?"
"If I were Orlov, I'd go right for Kiev. He has an army group in Belarus that he could send across the border. He could drive toward the city from the Russian side through Chernihiv and Sumy, making a three-pronged advance. There are tanks and motorized transport positioned on the border near Kharkiv and Donetsk. Ukraine is perfect country for tanks, mostly flat steppes. It wouldn't take him long to reach the major cities."
"A modern blitzkrieg."
"Exactly."
Stephanie sat down on the couch.
"I spoke with DCI Hood half an hour ago," Elizabeth said. "He's asked for our help. Someone has been shoring up Orlov with a lot of money. It's one of the reasons he's in power and one of the reasons he's been able to buy all those new weapons he's getting ready to try out."
"Where is it coming from?"
"That's where you come in, Steph. I'd like you to try and find out. The money ended up in the Russian central bank. I'm hoping you can get into their servers and backtrack it from there. Clarence wants to know where it came from. So do I. It has to be someone with access to enormous funds. We're talking about billions of euros."
Clarence? Stephanie thought. Is something going on between them?
She filed the thought away.
"How come Langley didn't spot it before?"
"Good question, I don't know."
"The Russian central bank," Stephanie said. "I don't think I've tried to get into them before."
Elizabeth watched Stephanie brighten with the prospect of a new challenge.
Just what she needs to keep moving through the grief. Something to keep her mind occupied until she comes out on the other side.
Elizabeth knew what it was like. The loss of her own child still echoed in a distant chamber of her mind.
"I'll get on it right away," Stephanie said. She headed off to the computer room.
Elizabeth looked at the monitor. The satellite was passing out of range. She turned off the display and leaned back in her chair and thought about Nick and the others.