Separation of Power

Ke

"Any idea who she is?"

Rapp stared at the grainy image. He remembered the whole thing very well. It had been less than two weeks since he'd stepped off that elevator with Scott Coleman. They had only moments' earlier discovered the identity of the man who had failed to kill Rapp in Germany and then attempted to lure him into a trap at his own home. The man was Peter Cameron, and by the time Rapp and Coleman made it to his office he was dead. A sharp object had been shoved through his ear and into his brain. Cameron's death had been extremely painful, but quick.

In response to Ke

"I'm having Marcus run a search on her against known assassins."

Feigning indifference, Rapp simply nodded.

Ke

Rapp rolled his eyes at the obvious. "And what exactly do you want me to do about it?" With a genuine smile Ke

The grin that had spread across Rapp's face melted away at the mention of Donatella. Rather than say anything stupid he stayed silent and let Ke

"It's all in there. Most of it you already know. Some of it will be new to you, and some of it you might like to correct. You know her better than anyone in this building."

He looked down at Donatella's file. It was rather thick, at least two inches. He tossed it back onto the coffee table without opening it. "How did you know?"

"An educated guess, and then I had Marcus do some digging. Customs shows her arriving in New York the day before Cameron was killed." She tilted her head and asked, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wasn't sure," shrugged Rapp.

"It didn't have anything to do with the fact that you were involved with her?"

He thought about it for a second and said, "I'm not sure. On some level it may have ... but ..." Rapp gave up on trying to explain.

Ke

Rapp respected Ke

"You didn't trust me." Ke

He looked away and said, "I trust you."

"Then what's the problem?"

"The problem is that you have a leak." Rapp sat forward on the edge of the couch. "No one was supposed to know I was going to Germany, but someone did. I know Donatella. She'll talk to me. If it really was her who killed Cameron, I'll know. If you send someone else to pick her up, either they'll end up dead or she will, and that's the last thing we need right now."

She wasn't pleased to have to admit it, but he was right. Still, though, she didn't like being kept in the dark. "Do you want me to send along any help? Have some of our people over there keep an eye on her until you get there?"

"No. The fewer people who know about this the better."

Ke

Rapp looked away from his boss and out the window. He thought of how desperately he wanted to close this chapter in his life and said quietly, "I know."

CHAPTER FIVE.

Washington, D. C. Monday evening

Approximately two miles north and a little west of the White House is one of the most formidable embassies in Washington. Located atop a hill off Co

The Israelis had ample experience with car bombs, and that experience contributed greatly to the design of the embassy compound. Humans are creatures of survival, and there is perhaps no greater modern day example of a tribe fighting for its survival than Israel. The western world is very familiar with the horrific atrocities perpetuated against the Jewish people by the Nazis in World War II. Unfortunately, in Israel's opinion, the west considers the Holocaust a historical event: the Nazis are gone and Israel now has a country of its own. What most of the west has failed to realize is that Israel is a piece of land surrounded on three sides by Arab countries that have at one time or another over the last fifty years, attacked the tiny Jewish state and threatened to wipe it off the face of the earth. In addition to their neighbors, the Jews must also deal with a threat from within. The Palestinians, the people who occupied the ancient lands before Israel settled there after World War II, have also sworn to destroy Israel. Israel is a country, a people, a tribe that must fight every day for its very survival. When dealing with the Israelis this is something that must always be remembered.

Senator Hank Clark never lost sight of this important fact. People who had to fight for their survival tended to be quite a bit more motivated. The senator's limousine pulled up to the main gate of the Israeli embassy. As the limo's headlights bathed the sturdy gate and the security perso

Parties at the Israeli embassy were never known to be lush affairs. Now the French, for all of their complaining and lack of devotion to their allies, were an entirely different matter. The French knew how to throw a party. The Israelis tended to be quite a bit more serious about life, and their parties had a rather austere atmosphere.

Even so, Senator Clark made it a priority to attend as many functions at the embassy as he could. Everyone simply assumed Clark was pandering to the Jewish vote in Phoenix, but that wasn't the case. Clark enjoyed immense popularity in his home state, and his getting reelected did not depend on whether or not he attended a party. But it was fine, if his staffers, his colleagues and the press thought he was currying favor with the Jews. Like most things with Clark, one had to dig a little deeper to find his real motive.