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"No." The man casually looked around the restaurant. "Dr. Kennedy." Extending his hand he said, "My name is Tino Nanne. I work at the consulate here in Milan."
"The U. S. consulate."
"That's correct."
Rielly lowered her voice. "Is everything all right with Mitch?"
"I wouldn't know, Ms. Rielly. I've only been told to give you a message"
Eagerly, Anna asked, "And what is that?"
"Dr. Kennedy thinks you should return to the U. S."
Anna was instantly taken aback. "What do you mean?"
"I know next to nothing. I've simply been told to give you a message. Dr. Kennedy, for reasons unknown to me, thinks you should return to the U. S. immediately."
"You work for the CIA?"
The man winced at the acronym and looked around. "I work for the State Department, and please be careful about what you say."
Rielly, always the reporter, was used to asking what she wanted whenever she wanted. "I think you know more than you're telling me."
"I know a lot of things, young lady." The man stood. "But as far as you are concerned, and why you're supposed to return to the States, I know nothing." He reached inside the breast pocket of his suit coat and grabbed a business card. "If you need anything, call me." He placed the card on the table and left the restaurant.
Tel Aviv, Friday evening
Ben Freidman was busy pecking away at his computer. The younger people at Mossad called it surfing the Web; he called it doing research. Freidman did not look natural in front of a keyboard. His bald head, broad shoulders and thick forearms were more suited for heavy labor. His stubby index fingers pounded away at the keys. It was slow going but it worked. A cigarette dangled from his lips, a curved hunk of gray ash ready to break free at any second. At the last second Freidman snatched the cigarette from his mouth and deposited the spent vice in an ashtray. He grabbed his small four-ounce coffee cup in his meaty hands and gulped down the remaining few ounces of thick black coffee.
"Adriana!" He yelled his assistant's name without taking his eyes off the screen. "More coffee, please." Freidman was worried. It had been a full day since the hit was to have taken place. Rosenthal was to have e-mailed him the results of the operation, and as of yet there was nothing. He was now checking the online version of Milan 's newspaper, looking for what would undoubtedly be a big story. So far he'd come up with nothing.
It was possible that Rosenthal had killed her and disposed of her body without anyone knowing. That was what Freidman had asked him to do. Maybe Rosenthal had run into a few problems and it was taking longer to get out of Italy and back to Israel. Anything was still possible, but with each passing hour of silence, the chances that things had gone according to plan diminished. At this stage Freidman had no choice but to try to stay calm, despite the fact that his gut told him Donatella had not gone down without a fight.
He'd trained her. He should have known better. It was the damn money Senator Clark waved in his face. He should have firmly told him not to worry. That he knew Donatella, and she would keep her mouth shut. Freidman had to be honest with himself, though. It was more than just the money. Donatella was a bit of a loose cannon and sooner or later, he figured he'd have to deal with her. She knew too many of his secrets, and with her temper there was no telling when she would explode and take him down with her.
No, Freidman decided. It hadn't been a mistake to go after her. It had been a mistake to not send more people. Freidman needed to start working on a cover story. Rosenthal couldn't go missing for too many more days without some people starting to ask where he was. Why had he sent Rosenthal to Italy? That would be the first hurdle to overcome. He felt confident that he could come up with a pretty good lie to handle that problem, but if Donatella was still alive, and she started making waves, he could be in big trouble. Freidman grabbed his phone and punched in an extension. A moment later a woman answered and he said, "I need you in my office right now." He hung up and wondered how much he'd have to tell this one. Not much, he decided. She could go to Milan and start digging around. Hopefully, Rosenthal would contact him and report that the mission was a success, before she even got there. Freidman knew the chances of that happening were between slim and none."
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO.
Capitol Hill, Friday afternoon
The motorcade of two government sedans and a limousine pulled up to the loading dock of the Hart Senate Office Building. Normally they would have used the front of the building, but today it was swarming with media. Dr. Irene Kennedy emerged from the limo. Her detail quickly escorted her into the building and brought her to the second floor. One of the staffers from the Senate Intelligence Committee was waiting for them. The man showed Kennedy into one of the private witness rooms at the rear of room 216 and then left her alone. Her detail also stayed outside. Kennedy wanted a few minutes of solitude before the confirmation circus started.
She used the room's private bathroom to wash her hands and check her makeup. She'd applied an unusually heavy amount today knowing that she'd be on TV. She touched up her lips a bit and put some more powder on her nose and forehead. Looking into the mirror she told herself, No matter what happens stay calm, and don't be afraid to say, I don't know.
Kennedy left the bathroom and took a seat at the small conference table. She knew all of the men on the committee. She'd sat in front of them countless times before and answered their questions. The only thing that was different about today was the media. Kennedy had just gotten settled in when there was a knock on the door. Senator Clark entered with a warm grin on his face. "Irene, how are you?" Clark closed the door.
Kennedy stood. "Just fine, Mr. Chairman."
"Irene, how many times do I have to tell you, it's Hank when we're alone like this." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "I could never get your boss. God rest his soul, to call me by my first name, but he was twenty years my senior so I cut him a little slack." Clark winked at Kennedy. "You don't have that excuse, so from now on it's Hank when we're alone. All right?" Kennedy nodded. "All right, Hank."
"Good. Now, are you nervous at all? Is there anything I can get you before we go out there?"
"No, I'm fine, thank you."
Clark looked down at the diminutive Kennedy and felt a pang of sorrow for her. He really did like her. It was too bad that she was going to have to go through this. "I don't expect things to get rough. Most of the men out there like you, and with the President and myself backing you, the votes are already there. You might get a few tough questions from Schuman, but don't sweat it. That's just him grandstanding in front of the cameras."
"I know. I've seen him do it plenty of times."
