“Reardon. I’d made sure that Noura was safe from any pirating of resources again. But Karim started to contact other countries and show them what Noura was accomplishing. He talked to reporters and showed them how Reardon had almost destroyed the villagers who had lived there all their lives. He started pushing to have laws enacted to prevent it from happening again.” He picked up a rock and hurled it full force into the lake. “He made himself a pain in the ass to Reardon, and that wasn’t going to be allowed. There were a few warnings by Reardon’s underlings to pull back and stop, but Karim ignored them. He felt as if he was getting somewhere and saving—” He stopped. “And he didn’t let me know what was going on. I could have told him that—I knew all the weapons and how they could be used against him. No, that’s not true. I didn’t know that weapon, but I might have found out if I’d had the chance.”

She wanted to reach out to him. She could feel his pain. “What weapon are you talking about?”

“Don’t be in a rush,” he said bitterly. “We’re only a little past the middle. You wanted beginning, middle, and the end. We’ve reached the point where Reardon had found Karim someone not to be tolerated. He was getting in the way of his business and even causing useful political contacts to draw back a little because of the media stories that Karim was beginning to generate. He had to be stopped quickly and thoroughly and with no hint of blame to Reardon or his corporation.” He looked at Alisa. “Are you ready for the end of the story?”

She didn’t answer.

“That weapon Reardon found was Jorge Masenak. He hired him to stage raids on Noura and two other countries on the west coast that year. The attacks were savage, particularly in Noura. Villages burned, new forests destroyed, over two hundred deaths. Including Karim, his mother, and his sister, who were beheaded along with thirty-two other victims. Reardon’s orders must have been explicit to make sure Karim and his family were singled out. The carnage was massive in all the countries he raided. In one of the raids Reardon even lost a substantial amount of money and personnel to avoid being thought complicit.” His lips twisted. “The attacks were over within a matter of a few weeks, and Masenak was gone. It was like a lightning storm, a blitzkrieg. The few forces that the villages could muster were helpless because Masenak seemed particularly well supplied and funded during the raids. It aroused a certain amount of suspicion, which was dissipated when Reardon sent help and money to all the villages under siege. He came out of the fray looking pristine and even a little patriotic.”

“Then how did you know he wasn’t?”