Local time – 6.15pm, Sunday 17th June, 2011.
Prague, Czechoslovakia.
‘This is all rolling forward way too fast! We need to pull the soldiers back!’ Edelstein was pleading with David Spelman, who was still fuming at learning the news about the weapon in Pakistan.
‘I wouldn’t have agreed to surround the crowd if I had known there was a rogue missile in the hands of dissenters! Would I?’ Spelman kept his voice low, but still managed to convey an anger that was close to exploding.
He had left the main conference room with Edelstein and Freeman, so not to draw too much attention to this problem. The Bilderbergers were on the cusp of a moment that was going to change the course of the future of the world. Trying to slow them down, and God forbid, stop them, was near impossible now.
‘Can’t you just give us another half an hour? This North girl is the key. If we can get onto her, I’m sure we can talk some sense into the situation.’ Edelstein followed Spelman as he stalked angrily towards a smaller meeting room.
‘The troops are there now. Do you understand what that means? The crowds can see them. They’ll be asking why they are there. They’ll be scared. We already decided, once they are in place, we act. I don’t see any way to put this off any longer!’
‘You know the consequences of acting before we have that weapon! Who knows what they might do with it! In the wrong hands, it could undo everything! We’ve discussed this!’
‘Yes! And you were tasked with getting it back into the right hands. You’ve failed! And now you’ve made it my problem!’
‘Either way it’s all of our problem!’ Leo finally cut in. It was clear Edelstein’s pride had taken more of a beating than he could presently deal with, and his white face showed disappointment and alarm which filled Spelman and Leo with consternation. The three men entered the small room and then hovered in a tight circle. They said nothing, each searching the other’s faces for some solution. Spelman finally broke the tension.
‘To say the crowd is getting anxious for news of Santos is an understatement. The troops will have raised that anxiety. We can’t announce they are there for crowd control when it’s so obvious that there isn’t currently a requirement for crowd control. The only way to buy some time is to take up McKinley’s suggestion.’ Leo and Edelstein looked at him blankly.
‘McKinley always has a plan B, and C. He’s got about 100 plain clothes agents hidden in the crowd, ready to cause a disturbance that might require some crowd control. That should occupy the news stations for a while. And those in the crowd that don’t need controlling, well, at least they might not worry about the troops as much if they’re dealing with other things… ’
‘That’s perfect. Should buy us at least another half hour. We’ll get back to trying to contact North. Edelstein’s agents should catch up with her at any moment.’ Freeman tried to keep the confidence in his voice, to represent everything as under control. He wished Edelstein could find an expression to show the same. But his face was still grey, and beads of sweat were appearing on his forehead. Spelman hesitated for a moment, as if about to say something, but, not finding any words, instead hurried out of the room. As soon as he was out of earshot, Leo tried to rouse Edelstein into action.
‘How close are your agents? Why don’t you call them again to check?’
Edelstein nodded and dragged his phone out of his pocket. The secure connection took a moment to click through, and then Leo could hear only Edelstein’s side of the conversation, which didn’t sound like good news.
‘You said half an hour fifteen minutes ago… ’
‘You’ve got to move faster!’
‘You know how urgent this is!’
‘Call me when you get there!’ Edelstein’s expression told Leo everything he needed to know. The agents in Pakistan weren’t at Daniel’s last location yet. They seemed to be chasing their tails. Rather than wallow, Edelstein seemed spurred on again to act.
‘I’ve got an agent watching North’s editor. A Gerome Laurent. Daniel tried speaking to him yesterday and got nowhere. Interestingly, he visited Bernie’s house this morning. Possibly to pay his respects to Bernie’s wife, but the way he rushed back home, my agent felt sure he was working on something. I think it’s time to stop watching. I’m going to get my agent to pay him a visit.’
‘It’s worth a try. But if North really is a double agent, it’s unlikely her editor knew.’
‘It’s the ignorant who are the easiest to get information from. They don’t know what’s important and what’s not. So they tell you everything.’
‘You’re the expert,’ Leo said. Edelstein took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly, visibly forcing himself to remain calm.
‘Yes. I’m the expert. And if we don’t find this weapon soon, I’ll be an expert without a job.’