“That may be true, sir,” Alec conceded. “But coercion of any kind...”
“Not coercion,” the senior policeman said now. He smiled coldly. “It was a stroke of luck. Unbelievable luck. A lower-level criminal was arrested on an unrelated drug charge. We were not even looking at him for the human-trafficking conspiracy, but he offered up what he knew in exchange for leniency on the drug charge.”
Alec began to get the picture. Drugs were a very serious crime in Zakhar, even for a first offense. Zakharian judges and juries had no sympathy—the conviction rate was high and the sentences harsh. It was a huge break for them.
“This led us to five other men,” the policeman continued, “all with criminal records, all of whom are now in custody. Two of those men agreed to plead to lesser charges in exchange for their testimony against the other Zakharians in the conspiracy, including certain Zakharian officials who they claim were on the take. None of the officials have been arrested, but they are being closely watched. Their complicity in the conspiracy has not been established with certainty, and we do not want to move until you are ready to do so, as well—we do not want to tip our hand.”
Alec nodded his understanding, and the policeman continued in a dispassionate voice. “Both of the men have independently named seven Americans who either are, or were, stationed at the US embassy over the past nine years—men who supplied the fraudulent US visas for a price.” He pulled a notepad from his pocket and referred to it. “Four of the men were Foreign Service officers at the embassy who are now gone. One is still here.”
He named a name Alec recognized, instantly putting a face to the name. “Who are the others?” he asked.
The policeman read off the list of names. “Two were previous regional security officers, one of whom was your predecessor at the embassy.”
A sick feeling settled in Alec’s gut. Seven men. Seven corrupt officials serving at the US embassy over the past nine years. He’d known in his heart the king was right, that visa fraud had to be involved in this trafficking case—it was the only thing that made sense. But he’d hoped it wouldn’t be this bad. That it would turn out one, maybe two, people at the embassy were involved. Not seven men over nine years.
Slippery slope, he reminded himself. How many of these men had been lured into the conspiracy by their predecessors or others they worked with, believing “everyone does it,” and they’d never get caught? He would never know.
Alec pulled his own notebook from an inner jacket pocket and mechanically jotted down all seven names. His predecessor as RSO was the one that hit closest to home—he’d known the man for a long time. Not a friend, just an acquaintance. But still someone he knew personally. How many other men he knew in the DSS—men he’d worked with over the years—were also corrupt? He couldn’t believe Zakhar was unique in that aspect. Another thing I’ll probably never know, he admitted to himself.
He glanced up at the policeman. “Nothing on the ambassador?” he asked, holding his breath. He and McKinnon had pretty much cleared the ambassador in their minds based on the information McKinnon had been able to collect through his agency, but they could have missed something. And if the corruption went that high...
The policeman shook his head. “No, nothing. And we firmly believe the names we have in our possession are an all-inclusive list.”
Well, that’s something anyway, Alec didn’t voice that thought as he tucked his notebook away. Seven corrupt officials working at one embassy would be a scandal when the press finally broke the story—when the indictments come down and not a moment sooner, he vowed silently—but not nearly the scandal it would be if the current and/or former ambassador to Zakhar were involved.
“No one you questioned mentioned Vishenko?” When the policeman shook his head regretfully, Alec said, “It would be too much to hope for, but I had to ask.”
Silence filled the room for a minute. Then the king glanced around the table once more and asked again, “Is there anything else, gentlemen?” When no one spoke, he said, “Thank you all for coming on such short notice. You are dismissed.” He stood, obviously expecting them to file out, which they did. Alec hung back because he wanted a word with the king alone, but the king said, “One moment, Lieutenant, if you please. And you, too, Special Agent Jones, if you would be so kind.”
Alec exchanged glances with McKinnon. Wait for me, he mouthed, and McKinnon nodded before leaving the conference room.
The king turned to his bodyguards and said, “Privacy, please.” The two majors also left the room, following McKinnon out.