Transfer of Power

Rapp continued down the street, his alert eyes taking inventory of everything on the block. He noted every window and every doorway. He looked beyond the door frames and the curtains, into the shadows. If this was a trap, that was where they would be waiting.

Rapp turned onto an even narrower street. Sixty feet down, the American ducked into an alley that had been built long before cars were envisioned. The tu

White House Situation Room GENERAL CAMPBELL FINISHED the mission briefing and stood at the far end of the room with Ke

After a minute of silence President Hayes looked at Director Stansfield and asked, "Who is this man we have on the ground?"

Director Stansfield closed his mission summary and placed it on the table.

"He is one of our best. Fluent in three languages, not counting English, and he understands another half dozen dialects well enough to get by."

"Is he American?"

"Yes." President Hayes nodded slowly, and then asked the million dollar question.

"Instead of exposing ourselves by trying to grab Harut…" The president paused and formulated the most tactful way to say what he was thinking.

"Why don't we have your man—"The president looked to Ke

"What is his name?"

"His code name is Iron Man."

"Why don't we have this Iron Man… eliminate Harut?"

President Hayes looked cautiously around the room, nervously aware that what he had just suggested was against the law.

"We have looked at that as an option, Mr. President, but there is another issue we haven't discussed." Ke

Stansfield sat leaning back in his chair with one leg crossed over the other. He removed his left hand from his chin and said, "We have just recently come into some information," Stansfield stated evenly, "that is directly related to this operation.

Yesterday I received a call from one of my counterparts abroad. They informed me that Hamas is targeting Washington for a terrorist attack.

When and where is not certain, but we have a corroborating source that can confirm this intelligence."

Hayes shook his head and uttered a curse under his breath.

"Where did you get this information?"

"Our Israeli friends brought it to my attention several weeks ago, and it was corroborated by the British this morning."

"Elaborate, please." Hayes made a rolling motion with his index finger.

"The Israelis picked up a Hamas commander during one of their sweeps through the West Bank about a month ago.

While they were interrogating him, he made several references to an attack that was being pla

President Hayes swiveled in his chair and looked up at the smaller screen that vividly showed the carnage left from one of Aziz's bus bombings in Israel. The mere thought of the same thing happening in Washington, D.C." caused the president's blood to boil.

"This dovetails," continued Stansfield, "with the NSA's report that Saddam has offered to bankroll any terrorist attack that is carried out in the United States."

President Hayes looked at the director of the CIA and rose out of his chair. He reminded himself to stay calm. Saddam had become the unreachable thorn in America's back, and it was time to start dealing with him in a more ruthless ma

With sarcasm dripping from his voice, the president said, "This is just wonderful." All Hayes could think about was the lunatic terrorism of the Middle East playing itself out in the streets of America. He knew there was no way he could allow it to happen, not if he could take the battle to them first.

Irene Ke

Ke

The anger she felt in the wake of the tragedy had led her to the CIA, and it didn't take Langley long to make up their mind about Ke

But that was only part of Ke

That risk was very real, and by no means marginal. If the wrong people on the Hill, or over at Justice, ever got wind of the Orion Team, they would hold an inquisition, and Ke

The truth was, the American people would never be able to stomach the escapades of Mitch Rapp and the Orion Team.

In the political grandstanding that would take place under a congressional investigation, everyone would forget the fact that it was a war. The team would be portrayed as a group of rogue operatives with complete disregard for the Constitution.

Someone like Rapp, who was at this very moment putting his life on the line, would be eaten alive by the country-club liberals and conservative opportunists looking to make a name for themselves.

Ke

Thirty-five students from Syracuse had perished on Pan Am Flight 103, and one of them had been Mitch Rapp's high school sweetheart. Irene Ke