Strategic Moves (Stone Barrington 19)

“Thank you for your trust, Mr. Cabot,” Willa said.

“Are you all settled in, Mike?” Lance asked.

“Happening now,” Mike replied. “Within the hour my people will have surveyed the environment and taken appropriate actions to deal with any anomalies.”

“I’m pleased to hear that,” Lance said. “I’m sure Barton’s people will make you all comfortable.”

“Pablo has brought some of his own people to help out,” Mike replied.

“Lance,” Stone said, “have you any news of what’s happened at Tora Bora?”

“Mostly what you’ve seen on the news,” Lance said. “But I can tell you that the cave system is pretty much pulverized. Anyone still alive there won’t be for long and is beyond rescue.”

“Is there any news of the principal target?” Mike asked.

“Our intelligence is conflicting,” Lance replied. “Maybe there, maybe not. At the very least we’ve destroyed his formidable refuge.”

“That’s a start,” Mike said.

“You might tell Pablo that.”

“He and his wife are resting, I think.”

“Any children?”

“They are apparently elsewhere.”

“Do you have enough people there, or too many?”

“I’ll know later today, and I’ll report back to you.”

“Your cell has captured this number, I’m sure. Call me back here.” Lance hung up.

“Who is Lance?” Willa asked.

“Lance Cabot is the deputy director for operations of the CIA,” Mike replied. “Apart from the director, probably the most powerful figure there.”

“Oh,” Willa replied, looking impressed.

A young man entered the room. “Excuse me, Mike.”

“Yes?”

“I’ve done a walk-around, and we’re in good shape. There is a boat dock that will need covering, as will the whole of our shoreline. We’re on a peninsula that juts out into the lake. We’re starting our by-the-square-foot inspection now.”

“Good,” Mike replied, and the young man left.

“Mike,” Stone said, “I don’t think there’s any more we can do here.” He handed Mike a key. “Here’s the key to the house.” He gave him the security code. “We’ll head on back to the city now.”

Mike’s cell rang again. “Yes, Lance?” He pressed the speaker button.

“Mike, I wanted you to know that the NSA has detected a great deal of chatter in the air around the Middle East since the bombing at Tora Bora, and Pablo’s name has been mentioned several times, and not in a complimentary way.”

“Well,” Mike said, “it looks as though we’ve made the right moves to secure Pablo’s safety. That was a good call on your part.”

“You may thank Stone for his insistence on that point,” Lance replied. “I’ll let you know if we pick up anything more specific.”