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Authors: Gary Williams, Vicky Knerly
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already low in Europe, so the fuse to the powder keg was lit. If the Sudarium was proven to be missing on September 14 th , all hell was going to break loose, and the target would be any and all U.S. citizens in whatever locations the terrorists could reach them. The whole sordid affair had taken on a life of its own. Tannacay had immediately been relieved of his position. Vakind had assumed the acting role of DO, controlling a staff of more than 1,000 clandestine service operations officers. If he thought his job was hard before, the difficulty had just multiplied exponentially.
“Madam President,” Vakind spoke, “Samuel Tolen is now assisting in the matter.”
There was a pregnant pause. “You pulled him off leave?”
“I didn’t see that we had a choice.”
President Fane stared at Vakind for a long moment. “Given the circumstances, you made the right decision.” Another pause ensued. “Director Vakind, I have no choice but to warn U.S. citizens abroad by this Thursday, September 13 th , if the Sudarium has not been found. I’ll have a press release prepared which will say America has received terrorist threats, and we’re going to DHS security threat level red for citizens traveling overseas. We’ll have to put our overseas embassies and military bases on highest alert. Every consulate must be told of this situation.”
“Madam President, the actions will be noticed. You’ll be tipping off the fanatical groups that we are, indeed, responsible for the Sudarium’s theft if you do so. We’ll be admitting guilt.”
“We’ll blame the terror alert on some anti-American faction based in North Africa. It’ll have nothing to do with Spain or other European countries.”
“You realize it won’t matter, right? It will be seen exactly for what it is: preparation against attacks when the Sudarium is confirmed to be missing a day later.”
“At this point, Director Vakind, I don’t give a damn. We owe it to our citizens. They will be warned,” she said resoundingly.
“Understood,” Vakind relented.
The transmission went dead.
Morris Vakind leaned back in the chair, locking his fingers behind his head. He stared at the ceiling, contemplating the ramifications. The room was still. Only the low hum of white noise filled the audible void. He agreed with the president’s decision. The protection of American citizens was a top priority. On the flip side, in doing so, it had effectively cut the time to search for the Sudarium and return it to Spain by a day.
Tolen had been integral in the 2010 on-site surveillance which had identified Osama bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan. Vakind had the utmost confidence in him, as did President Fane, especially after the ordeal in Sri Lanka a month ago. Compared to those missions, the odds of successfully recovering the Sudarium were miniscule, and the timing for Tolen and Diaz, which had already been impossibly tight, had just been squeezed even further.
CHAPTER 10
September 11. Tuesday – 2:26 a.m. Flying over New York State
“Once on the ground, we’ll head directly to Cambridge. Analyst Bar and a CIA operative, Agent Lattimer, are on their way to the Washington, DC, site to check the stone sphere there,” Tolen said after returning from the cockpit. He took a seat beside Jade. Diaz sat across from them. Outside, the engines rumbled, propelling the jet through the dark night.
Jade felt a continuing rush of optimism. The fact they might actually find information which would lead to Joseph of Arimathea’s tomb brought a feeling of anticipation, yet she tried hard to temper her excitement. She kept reminding herself it was probable the creature of anonymity was not an overt image. If, after checking these last two stone spheres they came up empty, it meant one of two things. Either they had been unable to locate all of the spheres, which was a distinct possibility given how they had been spread throughout Costa Rica over the centuries, or it meant she
“Madam President,” Vakind spoke, “Samuel Tolen is now assisting in the matter.”
There was a pregnant pause. “You pulled him off leave?”
“I didn’t see that we had a choice.”
President Fane stared at Vakind for a long moment. “Given the circumstances, you made the right decision.” Another pause ensued. “Director Vakind, I have no choice but to warn U.S. citizens abroad by this Thursday, September 13 th , if the Sudarium has not been found. I’ll have a press release prepared which will say America has received terrorist threats, and we’re going to DHS security threat level red for citizens traveling overseas. We’ll have to put our overseas embassies and military bases on highest alert. Every consulate must be told of this situation.”
“Madam President, the actions will be noticed. You’ll be tipping off the fanatical groups that we are, indeed, responsible for the Sudarium’s theft if you do so. We’ll be admitting guilt.”
“We’ll blame the terror alert on some anti-American faction based in North Africa. It’ll have nothing to do with Spain or other European countries.”
“You realize it won’t matter, right? It will be seen exactly for what it is: preparation against attacks when the Sudarium is confirmed to be missing a day later.”
“At this point, Director Vakind, I don’t give a damn. We owe it to our citizens. They will be warned,” she said resoundingly.
“Understood,” Vakind relented.
The transmission went dead.
Morris Vakind leaned back in the chair, locking his fingers behind his head. He stared at the ceiling, contemplating the ramifications. The room was still. Only the low hum of white noise filled the audible void. He agreed with the president’s decision. The protection of American citizens was a top priority. On the flip side, in doing so, it had effectively cut the time to search for the Sudarium and return it to Spain by a day.
Tolen had been integral in the 2010 on-site surveillance which had identified Osama bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan. Vakind had the utmost confidence in him, as did President Fane, especially after the ordeal in Sri Lanka a month ago. Compared to those missions, the odds of successfully recovering the Sudarium were miniscule, and the timing for Tolen and Diaz, which had already been impossibly tight, had just been squeezed even further.
CHAPTER 10
September 11. Tuesday – 2:26 a.m. Flying over New York State
“Once on the ground, we’ll head directly to Cambridge. Analyst Bar and a CIA operative, Agent Lattimer, are on their way to the Washington, DC, site to check the stone sphere there,” Tolen said after returning from the cockpit. He took a seat beside Jade. Diaz sat across from them. Outside, the engines rumbled, propelling the jet through the dark night.
Jade felt a continuing rush of optimism. The fact they might actually find information which would lead to Joseph of Arimathea’s tomb brought a feeling of anticipation, yet she tried hard to temper her excitement. She kept reminding herself it was probable the creature of anonymity was not an overt image. If, after checking these last two stone spheres they came up empty, it meant one of two things. Either they had been unable to locate all of the spheres, which was a distinct possibility given how they had been spread throughout Costa Rica over the centuries, or it meant she
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