Arctic Storm Rising by Dale Brown (readera ebook reader .TXT) 📗

bitch somewhere leaked,” the civilian behind the table growled. “So now we’ve got members of Congress and the media screamingtheir heads off—demanding to know why a U.S. aircraft crashed in Libya and exactly how so many Air Force personnel and otherAmericans ended up dead or badly injured in a firefight with the locals.”

“So what are you going to tell them?” Flynn asked bluntly, realizing as soon as the words were out of his mouth that he shouldhave kept his mouth shut. His earlier resolution to be cautious had been the smart play. This was like walking blindfoldedthrough a minefield.

“As little as possible,” the CIA executive snapped back. His jowly face had reddened. “This was a highly sensitive, need-to-knowoperation, and those clowns on Capitol Hill, except for the people we can trust on the intelligence committees, do not need to know one goddamned thing. That goes double for the press.” He glowered at Flynn. “Which brings us right back to you. Because from our perspective, you’re the one who landed us all neck-deep in the shit.”

Flynn gritted his teeth. Keep your temper in check, he warned himself. Don’t rise to the bait. “Whoever told you that got it wrong,” he said, far more calmly than he felt.

“Your own testimony is that you fired the first shot,” the CIA officer reminded him. “Killing that first tribesman is whattriggered everything else. The ensuing battle. The horrendous casualties our team and yours took. And all of the politicaland national security fallout we’re facing now.”

“I killed that Teda clansman because the bastard was about to detonate a suicide bomb,” Flynn snapped.

The other man shrugged. “So you claim. But there’s no real evidence to prove that any bomb ever existed.”

“Except that second suicide bomber who did succeed in detonating his vest,” Flynn said tightly. “The one who blew your Mi-17helicopter to hell and gone. Remember him?”

“Again, there’s no hard evidence for your assertion.” The CIA officer’s expression was contemptuous. “For all we know, oncethe shit hit the fan and our security contractors started exchanging fire with the locals, stray rounds might have set offthe helicopter’s fuel tank. Or maybe they detonated some of the explosives our team brought with them to sanitize the site.”

“You see our problem, Captain Flynn,” the Air Force general said. “Without forensic evidence from the battlefield, assessingwhat really happened boils down to deciding which of the two conflicting narratives we accept—yours or that of the Agencycase officer who was also present.”

“Mr. White,” Flynn bit out.

“Correct,” the CIA executive agreed. “And our Mr. White is an extremely experienced operative, with years of field experience.”He steepled his hands and looked over them at Flynn. “Tell me, Captain, before this unfortunate incident, how many times haveyou been in combat?”

“None,” Flynn admitted, struggling to keep his voice even. He saw now where this was going. He’d walked into a Red Queen’s court right out of Alice in Wonderland, where the order of the day was “sentence first, verdict afterward.” With the press and Congress on the warpath, the Pentagonbrass and the CIA were both looking for a scapegoat, someone they could blame if their continuing efforts to cover up thefull extent of the disaster failed. And given the choice between a junior Air Force captain without any political influenceand a ranking intelligence officer who could probably blow the whistle on a lot of questionable covert operations if he feltthreatened, there wasn’t much doubt about whose head would roll.

Confirming his suspicions, the CIA representative turned his head toward the Air Force two-star presiding over this irregularkangaroo court. “Ideally, we’d prefer that Flynn here be held incommunicado in some stockade. The last thing any of us wantis him being available to testify in front of any congressional hearings . . . or blabbing to journalists.”

Jesus Christ, Flynn thought, scarcely able to believe his ears. Just how far did these guys think they could go? Did they seriously imaginethey could imprison any U.S. citizen, let alone a serving officer in the U.S. military, without trial or review? Forget Alice in Wonderland, this was starting to sound a lot more like the opening of The Man in the Iron Mask.

The Air Force general glanced at his Pentagon colleagues and then cleared his throat. “In our judgment, that would be . . .inadvisable. We don’t think it’s necessary in this case to go so far outside the regulations.” He looked briefly at Flynnand then turned back to the CIA’s representative. “Nevertheless, we agree it would be in the best interests of the Departmentof Defense and our national security to make sure what happened at the Wath Oasis fades quickly from the public consciousness.”

“What are you offering?”

“This episode is already highly classified. Which means that any unauthorized disclosure to the media or Congress is a serious felony, punishable by years in federal prison. Should Captain Flynn decide to do so anyway, in some fit of whistleblower zeal, we are also prepared to convene an immediate court-martial to try him for various crimes, including the unprovoked use of deadly force resulting in the killing of numerous civilians, fellow U.S. Air Force personnel, and other American citizens.” Here at least, the general had the grace to offer Flynn an apologetic look.

After a moment, the CIA man shook his head. “My agency needs something more concrete.”

“Which is why we’re also going to transfer the captain to a new duty post,” the general continued. “One that’s about as farfrom the District of Columbia as it’s possible to get. He won’t be talking out of school to anyone from there, at least noteasily . . . or undetectably.”

“Flynn could resign his commission,” the CIA executive pointed out. “I’ve seen his records. He’s completed his active-dutyservice obligation. And once he’s out of the Air Force, all you’ve got as a hold on him is that top secret classificationrating.”

Flynn sat rigid, half in shock and half in fury at the way these . . . pompous assholes . . . were so cavalierly debating the best way to wreck his life and his military career.

The Air Force general shrugged. “Any request Captain Flynn makes