was going to turn into a disaster, and she needed it to be over quickly. She snapped a shot at Nishin, hitting him in the side. As Shibimi turned in confusion to see who had fired, she sent a three-round burst into the old man's legs.
"Abu Sayif!" Fatima cried out, stepping out of the shadow into the glow of one of the arc lights. "Bind those two men," she ordered as the closest armed villagers recognized her.
Araki turned to her in surprise as a half-dozen men ran to the two wounded men, securing them. "Who are you?"
Fatima turned the smoking muzzle of her weapon toward Araki. "I am the leader of the Abu Sayif. And perhaps now you can tell me who you really are before I kill you. And then I will extract the truth from our two wounded friends over there."
CHAPTER 4
Oahu, Hawaii
"It appears I wasn't the only one to get a packet from David," Royce said.
Vaughn and Tai had been discussing what they had learned from MacIntosh, combining it with the information that Royce had given them earlier, when Royce walked in the door of the bungalow.
"What do you mean?" Tai asked.
"I just received a message from the Organization. The new head of the Abu Sayif, a woman named Fatima Al-Sheef, apparently got either the same or a similar packet from David that we received."
"Why?" Vaughn asked. "Why would he do that?"
"I don't know," Royce said.
"How about venturing a guess," Vaughn prompted.
Tai jumped in. "To put the pressure on. If Lansale had just sent the information here, then we could sit on it. But by sending it to the Abu Sayif, he's rung the starter's bell from his grave. And it's actually a three-way race because the Organization now knows about the Abu Sayif package."
"Race to where?" Vaughn asked, although he already knew.
"To find the Citadel," Royce said, "and uncover what's in there. And its link to the Organization."
"If it still exists," Vaughn said. "It's been down there a long time."
"I guess you're going to find out," Royce said.
"And what are you going to be doing?" Tai asked.
"I'm going to do what the Organization has ordered me to: try to stop the Abu Sayif before they get too close. So in a way, I'm taking out your competitors."
Vaughn considered that. "But won't the Organization simply send some people down to the Citadel and take care of things?"
Royce smiled. "From the way the message was worded and the way David sent us this information, I have a feeling that the Organization doesn't quite know the location or contents of the Citadel either."
"How can that be?" Tai demanded. "The Organization ordered it built."
"I think part of the Organization ordered it built, and David organized it and oversaw it," Royce said, "but I have the feeling the information was never sent all the way up to the top."
"Left hand not knowing what the right is doing," Vaughn said as he considered that. "So there might have been people like Tai and me before, inside of but not part of the Organization who did their own thing."
"I have no doubt David played a very dangerous game," Royce said. "Just as I am."
Tai ran a hand through her short hair. "My big question is: what did they build down there and why? We're talking 1949. Truman is President. The Cold War has just begun. We know about the nukes, but it doesn't make much sense that the only purpose of this base was to store some nuclear weapons in Antarctica with no delivery system."
"Whatever the Citadel is," Vaughn said, "it was important enough to kill a lot of people to cover it up."
"So how do we find it?" Tai asked.
"We need an expert," Vaughn said. "Someone who knows Antarctica." He looked at Royce. "I don't suppose you have one handy?"
"Actually" —Royce drew the word out—"I do. And I already made an initial contact. A man named James Logan. He works for the environmental group Earth First."
"Great," Vaughn said. "A tree hugger."
"There aren't any trees in Antarctica," Tai said.
"Logan has done work for me before," Royce said. "He might love
"Abu Sayif!" Fatima cried out, stepping out of the shadow into the glow of one of the arc lights. "Bind those two men," she ordered as the closest armed villagers recognized her.
Araki turned to her in surprise as a half-dozen men ran to the two wounded men, securing them. "Who are you?"
Fatima turned the smoking muzzle of her weapon toward Araki. "I am the leader of the Abu Sayif. And perhaps now you can tell me who you really are before I kill you. And then I will extract the truth from our two wounded friends over there."
CHAPTER 4
Oahu, Hawaii
"It appears I wasn't the only one to get a packet from David," Royce said.
Vaughn and Tai had been discussing what they had learned from MacIntosh, combining it with the information that Royce had given them earlier, when Royce walked in the door of the bungalow.
"What do you mean?" Tai asked.
"I just received a message from the Organization. The new head of the Abu Sayif, a woman named Fatima Al-Sheef, apparently got either the same or a similar packet from David that we received."
"Why?" Vaughn asked. "Why would he do that?"
"I don't know," Royce said.
"How about venturing a guess," Vaughn prompted.
Tai jumped in. "To put the pressure on. If Lansale had just sent the information here, then we could sit on it. But by sending it to the Abu Sayif, he's rung the starter's bell from his grave. And it's actually a three-way race because the Organization now knows about the Abu Sayif package."
"Race to where?" Vaughn asked, although he already knew.
"To find the Citadel," Royce said, "and uncover what's in there. And its link to the Organization."
"If it still exists," Vaughn said. "It's been down there a long time."
"I guess you're going to find out," Royce said.
"And what are you going to be doing?" Tai asked.
"I'm going to do what the Organization has ordered me to: try to stop the Abu Sayif before they get too close. So in a way, I'm taking out your competitors."
Vaughn considered that. "But won't the Organization simply send some people down to the Citadel and take care of things?"
Royce smiled. "From the way the message was worded and the way David sent us this information, I have a feeling that the Organization doesn't quite know the location or contents of the Citadel either."
"How can that be?" Tai demanded. "The Organization ordered it built."
"I think part of the Organization ordered it built, and David organized it and oversaw it," Royce said, "but I have the feeling the information was never sent all the way up to the top."
"Left hand not knowing what the right is doing," Vaughn said as he considered that. "So there might have been people like Tai and me before, inside of but not part of the Organization who did their own thing."
"I have no doubt David played a very dangerous game," Royce said. "Just as I am."
Tai ran a hand through her short hair. "My big question is: what did they build down there and why? We're talking 1949. Truman is President. The Cold War has just begun. We know about the nukes, but it doesn't make much sense that the only purpose of this base was to store some nuclear weapons in Antarctica with no delivery system."
"Whatever the Citadel is," Vaughn said, "it was important enough to kill a lot of people to cover it up."
"So how do we find it?" Tai asked.
"We need an expert," Vaughn said. "Someone who knows Antarctica." He looked at Royce. "I don't suppose you have one handy?"
"Actually" —Royce drew the word out—"I do. And I already made an initial contact. A man named James Logan. He works for the environmental group Earth First."
"Great," Vaughn said. "A tree hugger."
"There aren't any trees in Antarctica," Tai said.
"Logan has done work for me before," Royce said. "He might love
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