Read Online The Debriefing by Robert Littell - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Robert Littell
Tags: Thriller & Suspense
Ads: Link
Mozart. “Do we get to see what’s inside?”
“I was just coming to that,” says Stone. “CIA will be doing with the paper what we’re going to do with the warm body. I’d appreciate it if you would personally establish a liaison link on this, Mozart. You’ll deal with Charlie Evans directly. I would hope it will be on a daily briefing basis, but you may not find him that forthcoming, so take what you can get.”
“Will I be filling him in on our product too?” Mozart wants to know.
“In principle, yes.”
“That’ll give me all the leverage I’ll need,” says Mozart. “Tit for tat. If they want information, they’ll have to trade.”
“I knew I picked the right man for the job,” says Stone. “You wouldn’t give away the time of day unless you got something in return.” Stone says it lightly, and smiles, but Mozart doesn’t smile back.
An elderly man in charge of Entries and Exits raises his hand at the back of the room. Stone nods in his direction. “I beg your pardon, Stone. As I understand it, you’ve already spent some time with the subject of this debriefing. I think it would be helpful for us to know whether you actually entertain the idea that he may be a plant.”
Stone chooses his words carefully. “It seems to me,” he says, “that we’ve got to accept this as a very real possibility in order to attack the debriefing material with any kind of enthusiasm.”
There is some discussion of Topology business. One of thesection chiefs has come up with a newly arrived Russian émigré in Israel who, through a bureaucratic oversight, still owns his own cooperative apartment in Moscow, just off Gorky Street. The section chief is interested in exploring the idea of setting it up as Topology’s first and only safe house in Moscow. Stone vetoes the project. “There are too many unknowns,” he says. “Who is the Russian in Israel? What do we know about him other than the fact that he claims to own an apartment in Moscow? Also, a safe house in a Communist country, according to our operating charter, would have to be registered as a ‘potentially dangerous asset’ with the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. And that just might prompt this same Select Committee on Intelligence to inquire what the hell a group called Topology is doing with a safe house in Moscow.”
“We could probably get the DIA to front for us,” suggests the section chief lamely.
“And they’d scream their heads off to the admiral about us poaching,” warns Stone. “No, it’s just not worth the candle. I think our penetration readiness will survive nicely with the methods already worked out—living with people who take roomers without residence permits, whorehouses, that sort of thing.”
Mozart asks if Stone has decided about budgeting three thousand dollars to finance the Russian-speaking Cornell student on a summer camping trip through European Russia. “The boy is an excellent prospect,” argues Mozart. “His grandfather fought with Wrangel, his father fought with Vlasov in the Ukraine during the war, and escaped through Czechoslovakia afterwards. His Russian is fluent. He’ll make a good recruit for us someday.”
“I’m okay on the three thousand dollars,” agrees Stone, “on the condition that the money isn’t linked to Topology.”
“The money will be funneled through a DIA front in New York that hands out summer scholarships,” Mozart explains. “The guy who runs it is a Harvard classmate of mine.”
“If there’s nothing else?” inquires Stone.
The elderly man who specializes in Entries and Exits has his hand up again. “I’m sorry to bring this up, Stone, but there have been too many rumors making the rounds in recent weeks for comfort. They all point to the same thing—that penetrations, which is our basic brief, are no longer considered to be even remotely possible; that Topology is going out of business.”
“I have every reason to believe,” Stone answers,
“I was just coming to that,” says Stone. “CIA will be doing with the paper what we’re going to do with the warm body. I’d appreciate it if you would personally establish a liaison link on this, Mozart. You’ll deal with Charlie Evans directly. I would hope it will be on a daily briefing basis, but you may not find him that forthcoming, so take what you can get.”
“Will I be filling him in on our product too?” Mozart wants to know.
“In principle, yes.”
“That’ll give me all the leverage I’ll need,” says Mozart. “Tit for tat. If they want information, they’ll have to trade.”
“I knew I picked the right man for the job,” says Stone. “You wouldn’t give away the time of day unless you got something in return.” Stone says it lightly, and smiles, but Mozart doesn’t smile back.
An elderly man in charge of Entries and Exits raises his hand at the back of the room. Stone nods in his direction. “I beg your pardon, Stone. As I understand it, you’ve already spent some time with the subject of this debriefing. I think it would be helpful for us to know whether you actually entertain the idea that he may be a plant.”
Stone chooses his words carefully. “It seems to me,” he says, “that we’ve got to accept this as a very real possibility in order to attack the debriefing material with any kind of enthusiasm.”
There is some discussion of Topology business. One of thesection chiefs has come up with a newly arrived Russian émigré in Israel who, through a bureaucratic oversight, still owns his own cooperative apartment in Moscow, just off Gorky Street. The section chief is interested in exploring the idea of setting it up as Topology’s first and only safe house in Moscow. Stone vetoes the project. “There are too many unknowns,” he says. “Who is the Russian in Israel? What do we know about him other than the fact that he claims to own an apartment in Moscow? Also, a safe house in a Communist country, according to our operating charter, would have to be registered as a ‘potentially dangerous asset’ with the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. And that just might prompt this same Select Committee on Intelligence to inquire what the hell a group called Topology is doing with a safe house in Moscow.”
“We could probably get the DIA to front for us,” suggests the section chief lamely.
“And they’d scream their heads off to the admiral about us poaching,” warns Stone. “No, it’s just not worth the candle. I think our penetration readiness will survive nicely with the methods already worked out—living with people who take roomers without residence permits, whorehouses, that sort of thing.”
Mozart asks if Stone has decided about budgeting three thousand dollars to finance the Russian-speaking Cornell student on a summer camping trip through European Russia. “The boy is an excellent prospect,” argues Mozart. “His grandfather fought with Wrangel, his father fought with Vlasov in the Ukraine during the war, and escaped through Czechoslovakia afterwards. His Russian is fluent. He’ll make a good recruit for us someday.”
“I’m okay on the three thousand dollars,” agrees Stone, “on the condition that the money isn’t linked to Topology.”
“The money will be funneled through a DIA front in New York that hands out summer scholarships,” Mozart explains. “The guy who runs it is a Harvard classmate of mine.”
“If there’s nothing else?” inquires Stone.
The elderly man who specializes in Entries and Exits has his hand up again. “I’m sorry to bring this up, Stone, but there have been too many rumors making the rounds in recent weeks for comfort. They all point to the same thing—that penetrations, which is our basic brief, are no longer considered to be even remotely possible; that Topology is going out of business.”
“I have every reason to believe,” Stone answers,
Similar Books
