Red Shark

Ellsworth cleared his throat. “Mr. President, Commander Scott has orders to Pearl Harbor. He’ll link up with Colonel Jefferson and the special-ops group being ferried to Matsu Shan aboard one of our ASDS-boats, I mean, a sub equipped to insert, er, put SEALs ashore and retrieve them.”

Ellsworth reviewed for the president the meeting held at the safe house, then described the technical details of the mission and difficulties Scott faced.

When he finished, the president said to Radford, “Scott did a hell of a job for us in the Baltic. He’s an asset we sorely need now, but is it necessary that he risk his neck ashore in this Matsu Shan operation?”

“I believe it is. Colonel Jefferson knows his way around special-ops, and he’s been part of the planning team we put together the day the North Koreans hit New York City. Jefferson knows how to conduct the tactical side of the mission and he’s sensitive to the political side as well, but he can’t be expected to also handle the intel side. Scott’s versed in intelligence collection, and I felt we would benefit from his experience. He’s got a keen analytical mind and won’t miss a thing.”

“Do you concur, Admiral?” asked the president.

“Yes, sir, I do. Scott’s one of our best officers, both as sub driver and in intel ops.”

“And now we’re putting him ashore in Matsu Shan. He’s carried out this type of mission before?”

“Yes, sir, a few years back, in Dubrovnik. A special-ops team launched from one of our subs and took out a Croatian Serb rebel headquarters. Scott went ashore with them to sweep up intelligence and to liase… um, I mean, stay in contact with our headquarters in Brindisi. He also had orders to find and capture the terrorist known as Karst. Scott almost had him, but the bastard got away. Scott knows how to handle himself, so a couple days of work with Jefferson and his men and a weapons refresher is all he’ll need.”

“What about Commander Scott’s penchant for taking matters into his own hands?”

“Sir, we’ve imposed severe limits on the interpretation of his orders. Mr. President, the purpose of this mission is strictly a sneak ’n’ peek, I mean, to find out what Jin is up to, not to engage him and his men. Scott understands that.”

“Very well, Admiral,” the president said. “I’ve put through your request for a citation for Scott. Seems to me he deserves it, if any officer does.”

Radford said, “Mr. President, I’d like to add that we’ve had help from the Japan Defense Intelligence Headquarters. One of their agents, Ms. Fumiko Kida, has provided us with everything they have on Marshal Jin. I’ve been impressed with the state of Japanese intelligence gathering and the high level of interpretation and cooperation they brought to it. Nevertheless…”

The president waited.

“I sense the JDIH has some problems with the identity of this Japanese who has had contact with Jin.”

“What kind of problems?”

“They’re trying to save face. They’re embarrassed that he’s a Japanese citizen.”

The president considered this. “Are they protecting someone?”

“I don’t think so. I know Director General Kabe, and he’s not likely to do that. Still…”

The president wiped an eye; he looked very tired. He recovered and held Radford’s gaze on the monitor as he spoke in a sharp tone. “If a Japanese national is involved with Jin and they know who it is and don’t tell us, then the Japanese are as guilty as the North Koreans for the murder of three hundred Americans in New York City.”

“Sir, if we can identify who it is, they’ll have to give us their full cooperation.”

“You mean, arrest him? Question him?”

“Yes, sir.”

The president blinked rapidly several times, then said, “Would they?”

“If we had irrefutable proof.”

“What’s your opinion, Admiral? No bullshit, please. Can Scott get in there and get what we need?”

“Yes, sir. It’ll be tight. Their TOT — time on target — is minimal, virtually timed to the minute. There’s no room for slippage, and exfiltration should be clean. He can do it.”

The president stood, walked out of camera range. His voice came as if from offstage, still earnest but sounding very tired. “Understand, gentlemen, if Scott can’t help us diffuse the situation, we could be at war with North Korea in a matter of days. Nuclear war.”

The president departed and the monitor’s screen went blank.

6

Tokyo, Japan