The sound of the jungle that surrounded the structure was inaudible through the walls, or maybe it was just overpowered by the snoring of the men scattered along its edges. Footsteps sounded on the metal roof and he instinctively turned his attention upward. The men on it were hooking up a few additional solar panels to power exterior surveillance equipment.

The CIA database had included a description of this place and anyone with the brains to access Ward’s file would also have the brains to understand the hangar’s purpose. If there was a problem on the mountaintop, Ward could be evacuated by chopper, brought here, and put on a plane to Johannesburg in less than an hour.

If Rapp had been trying to get his hands on the world’s first trillionaire, the hangar would figure heavily in his plan. It was too risky to send a significant force to the compound. Even if it managed to arrive unnoticed and breach the fence, the fog of war could cause accidents. Ward wasn’t worth much full of bullet holes.

No, the smart money was to send a small, disciplined team to kick up just enough dust to force Ward’s evacuation. Then it would be a relatively simple matter to ambush him and his minimal security team here.

Or at least that was the theory.

After spending four days shuttered up in this place, Rapp was starting to wonder. The much simpler theory of some CIA executive searching for insider investment information was looking more and more plausible.

He heard the steady gait of someone approaching. They’d cut a few ports high in the hangar’s walls to provide enough starlight for night vision gear. Whoever was closing in on him would be using a monocular to avoid stepping on his sleeping comrades.

The footsteps went silent when they were still a couple feet away and Rapp heard the rustle of cloth as someone crouched.

“We’re all hooked up, Mitch. Everything’s operational.”

The quiet voice was immediately recognizable. Levi Mizrah—a former Israeli operator whom Rapp had known for years.

“Is it going to be enough?”

“The cameras aren’t too bad a draw, but when you add in the night vision gear and communications, it’s tight. They’re calling for overcast on Thursday, but with backups and a little prioritization, we should be all right until we get full sun again on Friday.”

“What if the cloud cover lasts longer than that?”

“Unless we’re willing to risk bringing in precharged batteries, we’ll have to start conserving, including intermittently cutting power to the surveillance equipment. It’s a tolerable risk, though. Like you’ve said, anyone wanting to secure this piece of ground would probably just drive up the road like we did. There’s no reason for them to think anyone’s here.”

“And the protocols for all this are worked out?”