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Kennedy looked up with her doelike eyes and said, "It is my job to advise the President." "Thank you, Dr. Kennedy," said Jetland in a patronizing tone. "I appreciate the remedial civics lesson. Now let's get to the heart of the matter. What was your reason for advising President Hayes to treat Congressman Rudin like he was a criminal?"
Kennedy took quite a long time to answer the question. So long that it was obvious that she did not want to. Finally, she said, "I'm sorry but I can't answer your question, Senator Jetland."
Jetlands brows furrowed for the cameras, and he scowled at Kennedy's defrance. "You can't or you won't?"
"I won't." Kennedy held her ground.
"Are you claiming executive privilege, Dr. Kennedy?"
"No, I'm not, Senator. For reasons involving national security I cannot and will not answer your question."
Kennedy's reply tripped the senator up a bit and it took him a moment to form his next question. Recovering loudly, Jetland asked, "Congressman Rudin appeared on Meet the Press yesterday, and he leveled some pretty serious accusations at you. Would you care to comment on those accusations?"
"No."
"And why not?"
"For reasons involving national security."
"How convenient," sniped the senator.
Kennedy calmly replied, "I don't think there is anything convenient about national security."
"Yes," bellowed the senator from New Mexico, "I'm sure you're willing to go to great lengths to protect what you consider to be this nation's national security. Even break a few laws along the way, perhaps?"
In her no-nonsense manner Kennedy asked, "Again, is that a statement or a question, Senator?"
"I have a question for you," spat the senator. "Do you think this committee will confirm your nomination if you refuse to answer our questions?"
"No." Kennedy shook her head.
"Am I to assume then, that you no longer want the job as director of the Central Intelligence Agency?"
"No, you would be wrong to assume that."
"Then you still want the job?"
"Yes"
Jetland threw up his arms in a theatrical gesture of frustration. "Well, Dr. Kennedy, I hate to be the one to tell you this, but you can't have it both ways. If you want to be the next director of the CIA you'll have to answer some pretty tough questions, so let's get back to the task at hand." Jetland flipped open a file and said, "Congressman Rudin claims to have information that was provided by one of your coworkers. I know Congressman Rudin, and have no reason to doubt the authenticity of his information, so for now I'm going to believe him." Jetland repositioned his chair and settled in. "I find that when we get into these types of discussions its easy to get lost or confused, so I'm going to make this real simple and clear for everyone." Jetland held up a photograph and showed it to Kennedy. "Here's a face. It's always nice to put a face on a problem. This particular problem has a name and it's Mitch Rapp." Now according to Congressman Rudin and his source, this man has worked for the CIA for the last ten years, and he's no clerk," the senator added with an arched brow. "He's allegedly responsible for the deaths of over twenty people. Twenty people!" Jetland paused to give everyone a chance to think of the bodies. "Could you confirm or deny for us whether or not this man is, or has ever been, employed by the CIA?"
Kennedy looked at the photograph, and thought it was very fortunate that Mitch was far away from a TV in the middle of a desert right now. With g
reat concern on her face she replied, "Senator, for reasons of national security I cannot answer your question."
Jetland shook his head in frustration. "That is entirely unacceptable!"
Kennedy nodded as if to say she understood. After glancing at her watch she shocked the entire room by standing. She looked up at Senator Clark and said, "Mr. Chairman, I have something I must attend to. I apologize that I couldn't respond to the committees questions today, but there are some extenuating circumstances at play. My reluctance in no way should be seen as an affront to the committee or the Senate. The President will contact you within the next day in regard to my status as a nominee. Thank you for your time and consideration." With that Kennedy turned and left the room to wide eyes and a chorus of whispers.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO.
Saudi Arabia, Monday night
Oasis One was a flurry of anxious activity as helicopters were prepped and equipment was checked. The briefings were all completed and the team was ready to go. Rapp emerged from the command trailer wearing his Special Republican Guard uniform and took in the scene before him. The air was stifling inside from all the cigarette smoke. Colonel Gray and his staff were listening intently to the status reports from the mission's advance element. An MH-53J Pave Low helicopter from the air force's 20th Special Operation Squadron was already across the border and on its way to Scorpion I. The big helicopter was carrying a twelve member air force STS team made up of combat controllers and para rescue personnel. The team specialized in securing landing sites and evacuating wounded and downed aviators. They were a crucial part of the mission, especially if things went wrong. To bolster their effectiveness, Colonel Gray had sent along four of his best Delta snipers.
The desert sky was bright with stars. Rapp looked up in search of the moon only to find a sliver of white. For his part of the mission he would have preferred cloud cover, but he knew the fly-boys dropping their paveway guided bombs from above 10,000 feet would appreciate the clear skies. Rapp scratched the thick stubble on his face. He'd trimmed it up along the neckline and cheeks, just like Uday Hussein did. The red and gold epaulets on his green uniform bore the rank of general. Rapp found it comical that Uday, who was only thirty-seven, had already reached such a high rank. Welcome to the crazy world of dictators. He had a black leather belt strapped to his waist with two holsters. Uday fashioned himself a bit of a cowboy and was known to carry two Colt.45 caliber nickel-plated pistols. To complete the outfit he was wearing a black beret with the insignia of the SRG on the front and a bright red cravat that conveniently concealed his throat mike. For two reasons Rapp had opted not to wear an American uniform under the Iraqi one. The first was that Rapp was a good twenty pounds heavier than Uday, and putting an extra layer of clothes on under the SRG uniform would have only made the disparity more obvious. The second reason was more fatalistic. If they were caught, they would be tortured and killed no matter what uniform they were wearing. He was also wearing a Kevlar vest and an encrypted radio with a throat mike and an earpiece. Each member of the team was wearing the same radio. This would allow them to stay in communication throughout the operation.
Rapp looked out at the scene before him. Oasis One was a comforting site. It showed a lot of initiative by the military, something they weren't always known for. The rock formation rose out of the desert floor approximately 100 feet and was bowl shaped, with a slight opening at the southwestern end. The bowl was over 500 feet across at its center. The interior of the bowl was covered by desert camouflage netting. More than 100 yards of it was stretched tightly from one side to the other. Underneath the netting sat four highly advanced MH-47E Chinook helicopters with ground crews climbing over the airframes checking every inch of the complicated birds to make sure they were in perfect condition. The twin rotor behemoth was the new workhorse for the army's 160th SOAR.
