Nori's Delta (Delta Team Three #1) - Lori Ryan Page 0,24

Kazarus. He’d grown up with wealth and privilege. But somewhere along the way, he’d developed the notion that the people of Kazarus should be able to live a free life under democratic rule.

Beth summarized what they knew. “His family is wealthy and was once powerful, though they’ve lost some of that power in recent decades. His grandfather was a general in the country’s military before the current regime took over. He died during the coup and Demir’s father barely escaped with his life. He and his younger brother, Farid, both fight in the Kazarus Freedom Army. Onur as its founder and head, and Farid as his right-hand man.”

Marcus picked up the narrative. “Onur was educated in Turkey and the US before coming home to Kazarus to establish the KFA. It started out as a small group of protesters but it quickly grew and estimates suggest he has an army of over ten thousand men. There are up to fifty thousand civilians forming a network of support across the nation.”

With a population of only 1.5 million people in the small nation, those were not insignificant numbers.

“So far, they’ve kept their attacks to military installations and government offices,” Geoff added.

“So far?” Eleanor asked. “Do we think that’s going to change?”

Her team looked distinctly uncomfortable.

Geoff offered an answer first. “It’s hard to say. When the group first formed, they funded their efforts by kidnapping people from wealthy Kazarus families, but they were careful not to extend those efforts to visitors from other nations. It’s said Demir believed the fight should be kept within Kazarus, not only its borders, but among only its people.”

Marcus took up the explanation. “On the whole, they no longer do that. They’re well-funded now and they’re striving for greater legitimacy. But they’ve broken with this new stance recently when they kidnapped several nurses and doctors that were here delivering free surgical care as part of a charity from the US, UK, and France. We don’t know what that means.”

“Or what his intentions are with them,” Geoff said. “He’s made no demands so far.”

“He’s had them for two months now?” Eleanor asked, although she knew she was right. She’d already been through the file. She was mostly trying to talk through all they knew so that her thoughts could begin to gel where Onur Demir is concerned.

Her team all nodded in response.

“That’s the unknown in all of this,” she said. “I don’t like it. Did Cheryl send any other intel on where they’re being held?”

“Not much,” Beth said, pulling out a sheet of paper and handing it to Eleanor. “It’s an underground bunker left over from the tail end of World War I when the country was part of the Ottoman Empire just before its fall. When Kazarus reestablished its independence during the Arab Revolt, the ruling party of the time—the now defunct Kazarus Arab Military—took over the bunker. Kazarus lost its freedom again briefly just before World War II when it was occupied by Iraq.”

“We think at some point after the second world war,” Marcus said, “when Kazarus took back its independence and the current monarchy was established, the bunker was abandoned. It’s not clear whether anyone was using it between then and whenever Demir chose to use it. Our guys haven’t gotten eyes in there yet to see what the underground portion is like or what condition it’s in now.”

Eleanor looked at her watch. It wasn’t very late, but she was worn out from the last few days. As much as she’d like to keep poring over what they had, she knew it was just as important to go in there tomorrow rested and sharp. If she was off her game at all, she could very well mess this up.

Tomorrow, she would need to assess whether Onur Demir was an ally the US wanted to foster or one they should cut loose before they formed the kind of potentially messy entanglement they were considering. She could look at the intel they had for days, but when it came right down to it, meeting this guy and getting a hands-on feel for what he was capable of was what would get the job done for her boss.

She stood. “Okay guys, let’s get some rest. We need to check in with Cheryl in the morning before we head out to see if she has any further information for us. Let’s meet back here at oh-five-hundred.”

To their credit, none of them groaned at the hour she quoted. They stood and filed