Collision of Evil (32 page)

“That’s great, Allen,” Hirter said. “But we have to prevent an attack. What can you tell us that might assist our effort? The Kommissar believes the terrorists are in an urban area and that they could use the Sarin in, say, a city plaza or main street during rush hour.”

Chalmers steepled his fingers and gazed off at the mountains framing the valley. “That’s not the way Sarin works, not optimally. The problem with using a nerve agent as a weapon is that it dissipates fairly rapidly in wide-open spaces. I’m not saying that it wouldn’t do any damage in a city square, but the level of lethality would be difficult to judge in advance. Effective deployment would
depend on the strength and direction of the wind and other factors. Al-Assad and his mates did a professional job producing the Sarin so I assume that they’ve thought about how to use it effectively. I don’t think they would gamble on hitting a city square and leaving the results to chance.”

Hirter considered his colleague’s comment. “So what kind of target would they settle on if an open space is problematic? If you were al-Assad, what target would you look for?”

Chalmers hesitated before answering. “If I were them, knowing how Sarin works and its limitations, I’d target an indoor space. Someplace that would confine the spread of the Sarin and ensure it remained concentrated. You’d want a place with a lot of people inside to ensure a large number of casualties. You know, something like a church or, God forbid, a concert hall or movie theater. A subway train or a bus would make excellent targets, as far as providing the right environment for the Sarin to stay concentrated.”

“That’s helpful,” Waldbaer interjected. “Even knowing that much gives us a better grip on where al-Assad is likely to strike. It sounds like we can rule out a city plaza or an open-air sports stadium.”

“That’s right, in my view,” Chalmers replied clinically. “You know, this stuff has actually been used by terrorists before.”

Hirter raised his eyebrows and leaned forward over the tabletop. “In Japan. A cult was responsible. But you probably know the details better than I do, Allen. Fill us in.”

Chalmers nodded. “Yes A crazy sect called Aum Shinrikyo managed to produce a crude sort of Sarin in a home laboratory in 1995, and get it aboard Tokyo subway trains during rush hour. The quality of the Sarin was nothing like the stuff that al-Assad has his hands on, but it was still deadly. The cult had a primitive dispersion device, which turned out not to be very effective.”

“But there were casualties,” Hirter said.

“Yes. The concentration was fairly high, but the agent didn’t circulate well, and most of the particles stayed close to the floor. Still, twelve Japanese died. Hundreds of other passengers suffered ill
effects severe enough to require hospitalization. If the cult had been able to produce a more effective dispersion device, fatalities would have been much higher. I think that in the case of al-Assad and his comrades, we can be sure that the Sarin will be dispersed much more effectively than in Tokyo. I think you should look for a venue that will permit them to kill hundreds of people, maybe several hundred. Somewhere crowded and enclosed. That’s what they’re looking for, I guarantee it.”

Waldbaer blanched. “I guess I knew that, but it’s still a shock to hear it put so directly. Thanks for your analysis, Herr Chalmers.” The detective pushed his cappuccino aside and thought of cities.

Dawn broke smoky orange and dusty over Ankara, as it did on so many days. As the sun rose, traffic gathered on the thoroughfares like herds of metal beasts. Peters hated tubercular congestion and left for work early to avoid a painful commute. The trip today had been uneventful, and Peters felt content as he parked his BMW sedan in front of the commercial office building where he worked. He and other CIA operations officers occupied a suite that bore the plaque of Robertson and Associates International Security Consulting (RAISC). The company was not legitimate and did not have real customers, but was covertly a fully owned proprietary of the U.S. intelligence community designed to provide plausible cover for operations in Turkey. As a cover company, RAISC functioned well, and the other business tenants of the building took it at face value.

Peters was the first one in the office and would have about an hour before his colleagues arrived. Today his first order of business was to update headquarters on the Ibrahim Baran case. He pulled index cards from his jacket, consulted them briefly, and began to compose.

JOINT INTERROGATION OF IBRAHIM BARAN (HEREAFTER SUBJECT) CONTINUES IN PRISON. SUBJECT EVIDENCES NO DISCERNABLE SIGNS OF DECEPTION. THIS OFFICER AND TURKISH LIAISON PARTNER AHMET SAYGUN HAVE ESTABLISHED RAPPORT WITH SUBJECT.

SUBJECT HAS BEEN COOPERATIVE AND PROVIDES OPERATIONALLY USEFUL DETAILS. ACCORDING TO SUBJECT, HE WAS RADICALIZED
IN GERMANY WHERE HE WAS A GUEST WORKER FOR SEVERAL YEARS. RADICALIZATION WAS VIA A SAUDI-TRAINED WAHABBI CLERIC AT A MOSQUE HE ATTENDED FOR FRIDAY PRAYER. THE CLERIC PERSUADED SUBJECT OF HIS DUTY TO ENGAGE IN VIOLENT JIHAD AGAINST THE WEST. THE CLERIC INTRODUCED SUBJECT TO ALASSAD, AND AL-ASSAD TRAVELED WITH SUBJECT TO PAKISTAN TO MEET AL-QAEDA OPERATIVES. UPON RECRUITMENT, AL-ASSAD INSTRUCTED SUBJECT TO CEASE ATTENDING THE MOSQUE FOR SECURITY REASONS AND MAINTAIN A LOW PROFILE.

AL-ASSAD EMERGES AS THE DRIVING FORCE IN THE CELL FROM SUBJECT’S ACCOUNT. HE INTRODUCED SUBJECT TO OTHER CELL MEMBERS AND ADVISED THAT THEY WOULD LAUNCH A SPECIAL JIHADIST MISSION AT THE APPROPRIATE TIME. UNTIL THAT TIME, CELL MEMBERS WERE INSTRUCTED TO BLEND INTO THEIR ENVIROMENT AND INTEGRATE INTO GERMAN SOCIETY. AL-ASSAD CALLED THE CELL TOGETHER INFREQUENTLY FOR MEETINGS. HE USED PUBLIC TELEPHONES FOR COMMUNICATIONS AND EMPLOYED ORAL CODES.

SUBJECT CONTINUES TO INSIST THAT HE KNOWS LITTLE ABOUT THE “SPECIAL MISSION,” BUT BELIEVES IT INVOLVES MORE THAN CONVENTIONAL EXPLOSIVE SUICIDE BELTS AS EMPLOYED IN THE ATTACK ON THE LONDON SUBWAY IN 2005. THIS SENSE IS BASED ON THE APOCALYPTIC LANGUAGE AL-ASSAD USED WHEN REFERRING TO THE MISSION. FYI, SUBJECT BELIEVES THE OPERATION WILL EMPLOY WEAPONS PROVIDED BY PEOPLE OUTSIDE THE CELL. DURING ONE CONVERSATION, AL-ASSAD COMMENTED THAT A “BUSINESSMAN’S GIFT” PLAYED A ROLE IN THE PLANNED ATTACK (NO FURTHER INFORMATION). SUBJECT CLAIMS TO BE UNAWARE OF THE TARGET, A COMMENT THIS CASE OFFICER IS INCLINED TO BELIEVE, AND A SENTIMENT SHARED BY THE TURKS.

Peters paused and consulted his notes, not wanting to miss a detail that might prove important later. No, he decided, he had covered the salient points. He rose to fetch a cup of coffee and noted a billowing dust cloud blowing into the city from the parched ochre hills beyond. He wondered what the weather was like in Germany.

The twelve members of the
Sonderkrisengruppe
, Special Crisis Group, made their way into the spartan gray conference room of the old Reichstag building in the heart of Berlin. A view of the sky above the city was provided by the massive glass cupola over the main hall. The weather, a reflection of the temperament of the Crisis Group members, was somber, a thick cover of clouds spit a drizzle of rain at intervals.

Dr. Volker Rapp, fit and sleek at sixty-four, called the session to order by tapping his pen against the ebony conference table. Rapp, chairman of the group, was flanked by a male stenographer on one side and his corpulent deputy Maria Renate Schmeider on the other. Frau Schmeider did not take to Rapp, who she regarded as abrupt and abrasively dominating. Rapp returned the ill-willed sentiment, judging Schmeider politically untutored and sophomoric, but both had learned to deal with one another and assiduously maintained formal courtesy.

“Ladies and gentlemen, you have the executive summary of the Bavarian case in front of you. I presume you have familiarized yourself with the details.” Heads nodded in agreement.

“So then, I propose that we reach concurrence on a plan of action.” He smiled without warmth at his deputy, who returned the insincerity. “Permit me to outline the current state of affairs. We are dealing with a case of terrorism; the evidence seems incontrovertible. It appears that the terrorists involved have already killed at least two people, an American tourist and a German homeless man. We additionally know that one of the terrorists,” Rapp glanced at the
report on the table before him, “Ibrahim Baran is in custody in Turkey. He appears to be cooperating with the authorities there. It is suggested in the report that Baran is a go-between to an international jihadist terrorist and that his associates in Bavaria constitute a jihadist cell. The other cell members are on the loose somewhere in Germany; their location can only be guessed at. That’s why we are here.”

With a tug at the red-patterned silk scarf intended to conceal her multiplicity of chins, Maria Renate Schmeider intervened. “Doctor Rapp, considering Germany’s interest in human rights, might we perhaps have grounds to be concerned about how Herr Baran is being treated by his Turkish interrogators? Information from him could have been obtained under duress, in violation of international conventions. Perhaps we should make official inquiries through our embassy in Turkey.” A few others in the windowless room nodded in agreement.

Rapp kept his eyes directed at the table, hands folded in front of him. “Of course, Frau Schmeider, everyone here is concerned about human rights. To speak candidly however, the provenance of information obtained by the Turks is not the topic of our discussion. It seems to me that our task is difficult enough—trying to prevent a terrorist attack—without launching an inquiry into the police methods employed outside of German borders. As the Crisis Group has been called together to deal with a danger to German lives, I don’t see the utility of a disputation about prisoner detention policies in Turkey. Would you prefer that we decline to receive the information provided by the Turks? Is that what you’re suggesting?”

The heavy woman shifted in her chair, which groaned in rebuke at the strain. Her sausage fingers flittered about the scarf. “Doctor Rapp, I naturally want to get to the bottom of this conspiracy. Still, we aren’t the Americans, running around the world justifying every dubious action by yelling ‘war on terrorism.’ Germany is a nation of laws, and we must ensure that our standards are maintained.”

Rapp raised pale blue eyes and examined his deputy’s bulk clinically. His face, devoid of smile or frown, radiated malign tranquility.
“Very fine, Frau Schmeider. My question stands, however. Are you suggesting that we forego the information on this terrorist cell due to concerns about how the information is obtained? Yes or no, please.”

The woman’s digital nervousness increased, her hands inadvertently tightening the scarf into a more noose-like form around her substantial throat. “Doctor Rapp, I don’t think the matter is that simple, but for the moment you might have a point. We can perhaps look at the Turkish interrogation methods later, at some less pressing time.”

Without acknowledging her discommoded soliloquy, Rapp turned to the others. “Let’s consider what we’ll report to the chancellor. We’ve reviewed the facts. Now let’s examine courses of action open to us. This case is currently in the hands of the Bavarian police. Are we in agreement with that or do we recommend that the lead be transferred to the Federal Interior Ministry? Since we appear to be looking at a planned mass-casualty attack, what should we advise the public, and when? Do we need to keep this out of the press, so as not to alert the terrorists? We have sufficient questions to occupy our time today, I’m afraid.”

A ruddy-faced man in a brown tweed jacket raised his hand. “I understand that the Bavarian police are running this, but is there an individual responsible for the investigation?”

Rapp consulted the papers spread before him. “Yes. A Kommissar Franz Waldbaer has been leading the investigation since the beginning. Recall that this started out as a murder case. Waldbaer has presided over it moving from simple homicide to national threat. He apparently has been keeping his superiors well advised, from what I understand. Why do you ask?”

“Because I think continuity is important, provided things have been run professionally,” the man in tweed said. “It sounds as if Waldbaer is capable enough. If we insist that the case be run by a federal body, it could complicate things and cost time, something we don’t have. I say leave Waldbaer in charge and offer whatever assistance we can from a federal level.”

Frau Schmeider signaled agreement. “Not only that, I don’t think we have legal grounds to intrude at this point, and I agree that this kommissar seems to be doing a creditable job. I say leave well enough alone, for now at least.” She glanced covertly at Rapp to see if his features would communicate disapproval. They did not.

“I think you’re both right,” Rapp replied dryly. “The last thing we need is to inject complications. Does anyone object strenuously to our recommending that the Bavarians remain in charge?”

No one did.

“Just one more thing,” Schmeider ventured. “Although the Bavarian report is vague on this, it indicates that American intelligence is providing informal assistance. Are we comfortable with that? U.S. intelligence is hardly the most popular entity in Germany these days. If the Americans must play a role, shouldn’t it be in formal coordination with the BND, German Federal Intelligence?”