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“Well, you’d better. I had two of my best men there, and I lost one of them. Your assassin marched right across the street and presented himself to Rapp. Your man failed, so I had to use my backup. General Qayem sent in his men and it was a bloodbath.”
“Bloodbath?”
“Twenty-one men were killed.”
Rickman was shell-shocked. “How many people did Rapp have with him?”
“Four.” Durrani held up his nicotine-stained fingers, practically yelling. “And then your assassin joined his ranks. I’m told he personally killed a good number of Qayem’s men.”
Rickman was suddenly feeling every ache and pain. What was it about Rapp? Why wouldn’t the man just die? A sense of foreboding weighed on Rickman’s chest, and he began to worry that he wouldn’t be able to breathe. At that same moment he feared for Hubbard. The plan had been for him to send Rapp to the veterinary clinic. Rickman had thought this through for more than a year. He knew Kennedy would send Rapp to head the search for him, and he knew how Rapp thought better than Rickman himself did. Rickman had carefully left those clues for Rapp, knowing his damn instincts would tell him that certain things didn’t add up. If Rapp had survived the trap he had laid for him, that would mean Hubbard was either dead or running for his life. Rickman suddenly wished he could open his eyes so he could read Durrani’s face.
“What about Hubbard? Where is he?”
Durrani knew this was inevitable, but the truth was not an option for him. Not if he wanted Rickman to work with him. His friend was already clearly agitated, which was a shame as there was so much to celebrate. The truth was that Durrani had never planned on getting Hubbard out of Afghanistan. Where was he supposed to hide a six-foot-five-inch, bald, pasty American in a country filled with dark-skinned men where the average height was five-seven? He’d gone along with Rickman’s desire to bring Hubbard to Pakistan because it was the only way to get him to agree to the plan, but in truth he knew he would kill Hubbard from the onset.
“It pains me to tell you that your friend is dead.”
Rickman swallowed hard. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“How did it happen?”
“We think it was Rapp, but we’re not sure.”
Rickman’s battered body tensed and he yelled, “Did you do anything right?”
“That is not fair, Joe. We knew from the very beginning that this was going to be a very complicated operation. Your friend knew that as well.”
“I can’t believe Rapp is still alive and Hubbard is dead. You need to get men to Zurich. Rapp cannot get his hands on Obrecht.”
“I have already taken care of it,” Durrani lied. He had completely forgotten about the deception involving the Swiss banker. With Rapp dead, he was going to be a crucial witness to Rapp’s corruption. It was Rickman’s way of muddying the water. “You are still alive,” Durrani said. “That is what’s important. You are free, and you are rich beyond your dreams.”
With each passing revelation Rickman was feeling less than stellar about his situation. “And Mitch Rapp is still alive and he’s going to hunt my ass down and kill me.”
“He will never find you. My plans are intact. Once you undergo the surgery, no one will ever know.”
Rickman’s thoughts returned to Hubbard. “How did Hubbard die?”
“We’re not sure . . . other than the fact that Mr. Hubbard did not make it to his rendezvous point.” Hubbard had in fact made it to the warehouse in Jalalabad, and that was where he was killed, but that information would only serve to upset Rickman. Durrani knew what was best for him. Things would be much smoother this way.
“So he might be alive?”
“We don’t think so. There was a shootout . . . things are a little sketchy, but it sounds like Rapp killed him.”
“Sounds like . . . so you’re not sure.” Rickman was becoming extremely agitated. “If Hubbard is still alive, you and I are as good as dead.”
“Well,” Durrani said, trying to think of a way to calm Rickman down, “he is most certainly dead. I’m just being cautious.”
“Cautious! You should have been more cautious about making sure Rapp was killed. Fuck.” The word was filled with despondency. “I told you killing Rapp was crucial. I’ve run all the calculations. Mitch Rapp is the last man I want looking for me. You don’t know him like I do. He won’t stop until he finds me, and that means you, too.”
“They all think you’re dead,” Durrani said dismissively.
“Most of them will, because that’s what they want to believe. But Rapp doesn’t operate that way. It’s not a matter of what he wants to believe or doesn’t want to believe. He’s a human bullshit detector. He’s going to sniff out the cracks in our plan and he’s going to start hammering away until the entire thing collapses and then he is going to hunt our asses down.” Rickman moaned and then added, “I went through all of that pain for nothing.”
“You exaggerate the abilities of your former colleague.”
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