The Genesis Plague (2010)

the arm over, and traced his gloved finger along the protruding, dark veins in the wrist and forearm. ‘Seems he’s got a nasty infection. I’ll give him some antibiotics … some ibuprofen for the fever.’
    ‘Why don’t you boil some tea for him while you’re at it?’ Crawford barked.
    The medic’s face twisted in a knot.
    Jason spoke for the medic: ‘If Washington wants to interrogate him, he won’t be very useful if he’s dead.’
    ‘You mean he might not be worth ten million?’ Crawford jabbed.
    Jason was fast losing patience. ‘The Department of Defense’s bounty specifies “dead or alive”,’ he replied tartly. ‘I don’t have a preference. But for the sake of all parties, I’m sure we’d agree that “alive” would be preferred.’
    ‘You and your boys get to keep that money, isn’t that right, Yaeger?’
    ‘That’s right. It’s part of our incentive plan. Keeps us all motivated. So yeah, the money will be ours to keep.’
    ‘Must be a nice bonus,’ Crawford huffed. ‘You and your rag-head buddies can retire to Thailand and have hookers suck your balls dry till the day you die. How about the Kurd?’ he said, thumbing at Hazo, who stood close to the door. ‘You gonna cut him in on this?’
    ‘Absolutely. He’s part of our team.’
    ‘Two million apiece.’ Crawford looked over to Hazo and whistled.
    ‘Tax-free,’ Jason said, to rub it in. The veins on Crawford’s forehead instantly bulged, looked ready to pop.
    ‘You’re a disgrace, Yaeger.’ The colonel’s words seethed with loathing. ‘Nothing but a sellout. And just remember that it was the US marines who pulled that cocksucker out from the cave. That’s the story everyone here knows. So I wouldn’t suggest spending your money just yet.’
    ‘I’ve already sent plenty of video and pictures back to my office … make a nice documentary about the six-month manhunt that led us all here. Not to mention all the thrilling images of my unit’s ambush, which feature this guy’s ugly mug all over them,’ he said, pointing to Al-Zahrani. ‘Funny thing is, there aren’t any marines in those shots. So don’t you worry about us,’ Jason said, grinning smugly.
    And GSC’s home office was equally keen to cash in on the bounty since its contract with the Department of Defense included a sliding scale of bonus payments for terrorism’s most wanted targets. At the top of that list, Al-Zahrani fetched a 50-million-dollar kicker. There was even a chance that a few million more could still be had from the four militants yet to be extracted from the cave. After Lillian saw the pictures Jason had transmitted to her e-mail, she’d been fully behind Jason’s requests - even commissioned a private jet to take Flaherty to Vegas. The almighty dollar was still a potent motivator. Though financial enticements didn’t factor well into the military’s strict moral code, they worked wonders in the enterprising private sector.
    Levin pulled a blood-filled syringe out from a thick vein snaking up Al-Zahrani’s forearm. ‘We’ll need to lay him down.’
    Crawford took a few seconds to decompress before saying, ‘Fine. Set up a cot for him. But you be sure to hang an American flag next to him. Remind him that he’s ours now. When you’re done, I want you to set up a video camera in here too.’ He turned his attention back to Jason, who still wore a smug grin. ‘All right, Yaeger. Time for you and your boys to earn your money. This cocksucker may not be able to hear us, but his hands are working just fine. So we’ll do this with writing.’ He pointed to Hazo and said, ‘He stays with me, just in case Al-Zahrani decides to scribble some Arabic. You speak Arabic, isn’t that right, Haji?’
    Hazo nodded. ‘I do, Colonel.’
    ‘Of course you do. You’re no millionaire yet, so go fetch a pen and paper. We’ve got work to do.’
    Hazo paced to the other side of the tent and began rummaging.
    ‘In the meantime, Yaeger, we’ve got another goddamn tunnel to unclog. Four more gophers to pull out … and God knows what else. And we still need to figure out what in hell blew up in that cave. Wrangle up your boys and get working on that. I’ll have Staff Sergeant Richards help you.’
    ‘I’d prefer to assist you in questioning the prisoner, sir.’
    ‘Don’t wet your panties, Yaeger. We both know he’s not going to give us anything useful. If he does, your Kurd can fill you in later.’
    Jason knew that Crawford was right