Chapters (96)
- Cover
- Berkley titles by David Ricciardi
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- CHARACTER LIST
- PROLOGUE
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- FORTY-SIX
- FORTY-SEVEN
- FORTY-EIGHT
- FORTY-NINE
- FIFTY
- FIFTY-ONE
- FIFTY-TWO
- FIFTY-THREE
- FIFTY-FOUR
- FIFTY-FIVE
- FIFTY-SIX
- FIFTY-SEVEN
- FIFTY-EIGHT
- FIFTY-NINE
- SIXTY
- SIXTY-ONE
- SIXTY-TWO
- SIXTY-THREE
- SIXTY-FOUR
- SIXTY-FIVE
- SIXTY-SIX
- SIXTY-SEVEN
- SIXTY-EIGHT
- SIXTY-NINE
- SEVENTY
- SEVENTY-ONE
- SEVENTY-TWO
- SEVENTY-THREE
- SEVENTY-FOUR
- SEVENTY-FIVE
- SEVENTY-SIX
- SEVENTY-SEVEN
- SEVENTY-EIGHT
- SEVENTY-NINE
- EIGHTY
- EIGHTY-ONE
- EIGHTY-TWO
- EIGHTY-THREE
- EIGHTY-FOUR
- EIGHTY-FIVE
- EIGHTY-SIX
- EIGHTY-SEVEN
- Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation
- ABOUT THE AUTHOR
- What’s next onyour reading list?
DESPITE THE EVER-INCREASING amount of circumstantial evidence that pointed to Yaxaas, CIA still had only a single piece of human-source intelligence indicating that the warlord was leading the pirates. And though the Agency didn’t need a witness who could stand up in court, they needed more than an accusation coerced from a man who’d thought he was going to be beheaded.
Jake needed to speak with the banker.
Pickens chose to skip the meeting, concerned that he’d crossed paths with the banker at some point during his weapons purchases. It was a legitimate concern, but Jake had wanted him along. Human-source contact operations were an art, and not Jake’s specialty. Slowly cultivating the banker over weeks or months wasn’t going to work when he had only two days left until Athena’s deadline to turn her ship around.
Jake needed the information now.
He started his reconnaissance at noon, driving past the banker’s office several times, using different cars and different disguises. It was a lot of time in chaotic traffic, and tempers were short on the already dangerous streets of Mogadishu. He saw a pickup truck driver ram a Bajaj that had cut him off and a fender-bender escalate into a gunfight, but he also developed a good mental map of the bank, noting security cameras and routes of ingress and egress, and, with another IMSI catcher on the seat next to him, he’d tracked the man’s mobile phone number and verified his presence inside the building.
Jake returned home, switched to the Toyota Surf SUV that he hadn’t used all day, and returned to the bank’s parking lot just before closing time. The banker emerged twenty minutes later.
Jake eased the SUV between the banker and his car. Though Jake was still wearing a fake beard and sunglasses, he was careful to shield his face from the surveillance cameras.
“Mr. Zakaria!” he said in English.
The banker turned and smiled politely. He didn’t recognize the man, but he didn’t feel threatened by him either.
“The bank hasn’t closed for the evening, has it?” Jake asked.
“I’m afraid it has.”
“A shame. My flight was delayed leaving Zurich.”
The banker’s ears perked up. He’d laundered a lot of money through Switzerland.
“Have we met before?” he said.
“We have not, but Mr. Kengeter is a mutual acquaintance.”
He was the Swiss intermediary who’d been taking the targeting information from Athena’s shipping agent and passing it to the banker.
“I have a business proposition for you,” Jake said as he opened the passenger door. “Please, join me.”
Zakaria looked around, debating his course of action. He and Kengeter had gone to great lengths to not be seen in person together and now this “mutual acquaintance” had arrived completely unannounced?
“I’m sorry,” said the banker, “I have a prior—”
Jake’s pleasant tone and fake German accent disappeared.