The Mark of the Assassin

was tall and
    thin, with undisciplined gray locks and a bow tie. He looked better
    suited to a well-endowed chair at Dartmouth than to the executive suite
    of Langley. "As crazy as this might sound, the Sword of Gaza would like
    to meet with us." Clark gently cleared his throat. "Let me be more
    specific. The Sword of Gaza doesn't want to meet with us, they want to
    meet with you."
    "How did they make the request?"
    "Through our embassy in Damascus, about an hour ago."
    "Why me?"
    "They apparently know exactly who you are and what your job is. They say
    they want to meet with the man who knows the most about their group, and
    they know that's you."
    "How's the meeting supposed to go down?"
    "Tomorrow morning on the first Dover-to-Calais car ferry. They want you
    to wait on the port deck, midship, and their man will make the approach.
    No watchers, no recording devices, no cameras. If they see anything they
    don't like, the meeting is blown."
    "Who's their man going to be?"
    "Muhammad Awad."
    "Awad is the second-highest ranking member of the organization. The fact
    that they want to put him on a ferry and meet face-to-face with an
    officer of the CIA is remarkable."
    "Therefore it's probably too good to be true," Carter said, the camera
    panning to capture his image. "I don't like it. It violates all our
    rules for meetings like this. We control the site. We set the terms. You
    of all people should know that."
    Michael said, "I take it you're against going forward with it."
    "One hundred and ten percent."
    Beckwith said, "I'm interested in hearing your reaction, Michael."
    "Adrian is right, Mr. President. Usually, we don't meet with known
    terrorists under situations like these. Agency doctrine says we control
    the meeting--the time, the place, the ground rules. Having said that, I
    think we should seriously consider tearing up the rule book in this
    case."
    Clark said, "What if their intention is to assassinate you?"
    "If the Sword of Gaza wants me dead, there are much easier ways than
    arranging an elaborate meeting aboard the Dover-to-Calais car ferry. I'm
    afraid all they would have to do is send a gunman to Washington and wait
    outside headquarters."
    "Point well taken," Clark said. "I think they want to talk," Michael
    said. "And I think we'd be fools not to listen to what they have to
    say."
    Carter said, "I disagree, Michael. This is one of the most vicious
    terrorist groups in the business. They speak with their actions every
    day. Frankly, I don't give a good goddamn what they might have to say."
    Carter looked at Beckwith and said, "My apologies for the rough
    languange, Mr. President."
    Michael said, "I told you he wasn't fit for polite company, Mr.
    President."
    National Security Adviser William Bristol waited for the laughter to die
    away and then said, "I think I'm going to side with Michael on this one,
    Mr. President. True, Muhammad Awad is a dangerous terrorist who should
    not be granted an audience simply because he asks for one. But quite
    frankly, I'd like to hear what he has to say. The meeting might pay
    dividends. Surely, it might provide the CIA with some valuable insight
    into the group's personnel and mind set. I agree with Michael on another
    point--if the Sword of Gaza wants him dead, there are easier ways to go
    about it."
    The President turned to Vandenberg. "What do you think, Paul?"
    "I hate to disagree with you, Bill, since foreign policy is your area of
    expertise and not mine, but I think we have nothing to gain by meeting
    with the leader of a bunch of bloodthirsty thugs like the Sword of Gaza.
    Adrian is right: The Sword of Gaza speaks with actions, not words.
    There's something else to consider. I wouldn't want to be the one to
    explain to the American people why we met with Muhammad Awad at a time
    like this. Your handling of this crisis has been exemplary, and the
    American people have rewarded you for it. I wouldn't want to see all
    that goodwill go to waste because a terrorist like Muhammad Awad wanted
    to have a little chat."
    Beckwith fell into a long speculative silence. Michael knew it was not a
    good sign. He had never been in the President's presence, but he had
    heard stories of Paul Vandenberg's power.
    If Vandenberg didn't want the meeting to go forward, the meeting
    probably wouldn't go forward. Finally, Beckwith looked up into the
    camera, addressing Michael in London rather than the men seated around
    him. "Michael, if you're willing to go through with this, I'm