general's desperate gambit to deflect. Rather than heed Kennedy's advice, Durrani continued to protest his department's innocence and went so far as to say he was offended that Kennedy would dare make such accusations.
That was when they heard Rapp speak for the first and last time. "General, I don't attend these meetings because I can't deal with the bullshit. I'm not equipped to sit and listen to someone lie to my face. Especially someone who's supposed to be an ally. We're all professionals, and we all know what's at stake. To a certain degree we will keep things from each other, but as allies there are some lines that we should never cross. That man up on the screen," Rapp pointed at the photo of the dead Pakistani agent, Mawaan Rana. "We know he worked for your department and we know he helped fund and train the Islamic nut jobs that killed 164 people." At that point Durrani tried to speak, but Rapp stopped him. "General, I'm not asking for you to confirm or deny what I just said. I don't need you to, because I know it to be a fact. Not only do we have phone records and financial transactions, but your man Rana confessed to me that he worked for the External Wing and that he was following official orders."
Durrani scoffed at the accusation. "When did you speak to him?"
Rapp stared down the general and said, "Right before I put that bullet in his head."
Rapp's words were chilling. He didn't speak for the rest of the meeting but he kept his predatory gaze locked on Durrani as he was going over in his mind a list of possible ways to kill the man. Ashan had never seen his friend so upset. Upon returning to Pakistan they pieced enough information together to confirm that Rapp's claim was not false bravado. The message from the Americans was clear: if you continue to support terrorists in the mass killing of innocent civilians you, too, might end up with a bullet in your head.
Ashan half expected Rapp to be here this morning and was secretly relieved that the assassin was elsewhere. "Irene, I can assure you that we are using all of our resources to find out who was behind this brazen attack."
"I appreciate that, Nadeem. You know, of course, that the Taliban is at the top of our list." She didn't bother to share Rapp's insight that the abduction was too precise to have been pulled off by the Taliban.
"As you know, I have had no dealings with them, but I have been promised that the right people are looking into the matter."
The headache was starting a slow retreat, which came as a great relief. Kennedy considered Ashan's remarks and then said, "Nadeem, you have been a fair partner, but there are others in the ISI who, despite our alliance, continue to work against us. This has never been acceptable, but with the abduction of Joe Rickman we have now moved into a dangerous new arena. If at any point I discover that the ISI had any hand in this, or that you are protecting the Taliban, I will be forced to react in a very serious way."
Ashan digested her words and wondered if this was just another threat to cut off the billions of dollars in aid the Americans provided every year. "What type of reprisals are we talking about?"
"An eye for an eye, Nadeem. Joe Rickman was an extremely valuable asset. Someone has launched a well-coordinated attack aimed at crippling my Clandestine Service. When I find out who was behind it, I will make them pay dearly. It might not happen immediately, but eventually, people will disappear. They will pay for this little gambit with their lives, and I will make it my goal in life to penetrate that organization and steal everything that is valuable to them, and then when I'm done, I will leave behind so much disinformation that it will sow seeds of dissent for decades to come. This organization will cease to be effective. It will be an organization afraid of its own shadows, and don't doubt me for a second, Nadeem. I have the budget, the fortitude, and the talent to make this happen. So you can tell your cohorts like General Durrani that this is their last chance. I want Joe Rickman back, and I want him back in the next twenty-four hours or this is going to get extremely uncomfortable for