The Mark of the Assassin

running at top efficiency right now."
    "True, but if the wind gusts, we're going to turn turtle and end up in
    the drink."
    "This boat is incapable of capsizing."
    "That's what they said about the Titanic."
    "But in this case it's true."
    "So how does that explain your little disaster at sea last year?"
    The Athena had capsized in a sudden squall off Montauk Light the
    previous October. Cannon was rescued by the Coast Guard, and it cost him
    ten thousand dollars to salvage the boat. After that Elizabeth begged
    him never to sail alone. "Defective marine forecast," Cannon said. "I
    called the head of the National Weather Service and gave him a piece of
    my mind."
    Michael blew into his frozen hands. "Christ, the wind chill must be
    close to zero."
    "Five degrees, actually. I checked."
    "You're insane. If the voters knew you had a death wish, they would have
    never sent you to the Senate."
    "Quit your bellyaching, Michael. There's a thermos of coffee below. Be
    useful and pour us both a mug."
    Michael struggled down the companionway. The senator had been on
    virtually every ship in the navy, and the galley contained a collection
    of heavy sea mugs emblazoned with the insignia of several different
    vessels. Michael selected two from the West Virginia, a nuclear
    submarine, and filled them with steaming coffee. When Michael came back
    up top, Cannon was smoking one of his cigarettes. "Don't tell
    Elizabeth," he said, accepting the coffee. "If she knew I sneaked a
    cigarette every now and again, she'd tell every shop on the island not
    to sell to me."
    Cannon took a long drink of coffee and adjusted his heading. "So what
    did you think about the election?"
    "Beckwith made quite a turnaround."
    "Bunch of bullshit, if you ask me. He played politics with Flight
    Double-oh-two all the way, and the American people were too bored and
    too distracted to notice. I supported him on the retaliation, but as for
    the missile defense system, I think that's payback to a lot of old
    friends who've backed him over the years."
    "You can't deny the threat exists."
    "Oh, I suppose there's some level of threat, but if you ask me, it's
    negligible. The supporters of missile defense say that political
    instability in Russia or China might lead to an accidental attack on the
    United States. But the Chinese went through the Cultural Revolution and
    the Soviets lost their empire, and no one fired anything at us by
    accident. And as for the so-called rogue states, I worry about them even
    less. The North Koreans can't even feed their own people, let alone
    build an ICBM capable of reaching the United States. The regional
    bullies like Iran and Iraq want to threaten their neighbors, not the
    United States, so they're investing in shorter-range weapons. And
    there's something else to keep in mind: We still have the largest
    nuclear arsenal on earth. Deterrence worked during the Cold War, and I
    think it will work now. Do we really think the leaders of these nations
    are willing to commit national suicide? I don't think so, Michael."
    "Why do you think it's payback?"
    "Because a company called Alatron Defense Systems stands to make
    billions if a system is built and deployed. Alatron Defense Systems is
    owned by--"
    "--Mitchell Elliott," Michael said. "That's right, and Mitchell Elliott
    has spread more money around Washington than any other man in America.
    He gives as much as he can legally, and if he wants to give more, he
    finds a way to do it under the table. The largest benefactor of
    Elliott's largess has been James Beckwith. Hell, he's practically
    bankrolled the man's political career."
    Michael thought of Susanna Dayton and the story she was working on for
    the Post. "And remember one other thing," Cannon continued. "The White
    House chief of staff, Paul Vandenberg, used to work for Elliott at
    Alatron. Elliott sent him to work for Beckwith when he was attorney
    general in California. He knew how to spot talent, and he knew Beckwith
    had the potential to go all the way. He wanted his own man on the
    inside, and he got it." Cannon drew on his cigarette. The wind tore the
    smoke from his mouth. "Vandenberg also worked for your crowd."
    Michael was stunned. "When?"
    "During Vietnam."
    "I thought he was in the army."
    Cannon shook his head. "Nope, Agency through and through. In fact, he
    worked on a wonderful program known as Operation Phoenix. You remember
    the Phoenix program, don't you, Michael? Not one of your company's