The Project 02 - The Lance

other emails that appear to be in the nature of Dysart's job, but some of those people might be involved also. Acting DCI Wendell Lodge is one of them."
    "CIA. Shit." Ronnie shook his head.
    "What do you think they're trying to do?" Lamont said.
    "I think they want to destroy Israel and get control of the oil fields." Harker tapped her pen. "The bombing of the mosque sets up war. The Middle East will explode and we'll be sucked right into it. If Rice were out of the picture, Earlston would take over. They could pretty much do what they please."
    Harker set the pen down. "If there's a war, people like Admiral Lang could create chaos. It would get covered up in the general madness of the fighting. There's a pattern of co-opting our intelligence resources. NSA, Naval Intelligence and perhaps CIA. And now I'm called to appear before Greenwood's committee."
    "They're playing hardball. Two can play that game."
    "What do you mean, Nick?"
    "Why don't we pay a visit to Greenwood's office? Maybe there's something that ties him to the conspiracy."
    "You want to raid the office of the Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Oversight Committee?"
    "Why not?"
    "If you're caught, it will make Watergate look like a little white lie. It will blow us out of the water."
    "If Greenwood succeeds in busting you it will blow us out of the water. Rice as well. We can't stop them by ourselves. Even if we get proof, it's going to take some fancy footwork by the President to break open this rat's nest. These people are powerful."
    "I'm open to ideas."
    "I don't think his office is a good bet," said Lamont. "Besides, he has two official offices. We'd have to hit both of them. If you were part of a conspiracy, would you keep incriminating stuff lying around where some intern might discover it?"
    "You have a point." Harker picked up her pen.
    Ronnie shifted in the chair. "If I wanted to keep something private, I'd keep it at home. Less chance of someone stumbling over something. Why don't we creep his house? He can't be there all the time."
    "Daylight penetration while he's at work?" Nick said.
    "Maybe the old exterminator trick, or gas and electric. Telephone repair. We go in the open and the neighbors see what they want to see. We could bug his home while we're at it."
    "If he's got anything to hide, he probably sweeps the place."
    "Yeah, but until he finds one we might get lucky. Hell, they bugged us, didn't they? Turn about is fair play, right?"
    "If he's involved."
    "Any bets he's clean? I'll give you ten to one he's dirty as Dysart."
    Nick tugged on his ear. "Can we get plans for his place?"
    "Plans are public record." Stephanie went over to the computer console. A few keystrokes and the plans for Greenwood's home appeared on screen. Records showed he had completed a major expansion and renovation of his basement, five years before.
    Greenwood lived on ten acres of privacy in an upscale suburban development in Montgomery County, just over the District line in Maryland. The house was five thousand square feet of pseudo English Manor, complete with tall windows and Mansard roof.
    Stephanie clicked again and a live satellite view of the area appeared. She zoomed in on Greenwood's address. Behind the house was a large, formal garden. A gardener trimmed a row of hedges as they watched. A high fence and mature landscaping concealed the house from neighbors.
    "Who goes in?" Nick asked.
    "I think Selena and Lamont." Harker paused. "We'll use the telephone repair ploy. Ronnie, you put together what they need—a van, uniforms, you know the drill."
    "Is this legal?" Selena asked. "We can go in and bug a US Senator because we think he's involved in something?"
    "We have to know if Greenwood is part of this. No, it's not legal. But we don't always play by the rules. Look what's at stake."
    She took out a tissue and coughed into it. "All right. We'll see if Greenwood is involved. In the meantime, we still need to think about our own security. Any ideas? Nick?"
    "I don't think we can keep out of sight. The safe house is blown. If we couldn't stay hidden there, how can we expect to pull another vanishing act and have it come off? If we duck and cover, we take ourselves right out of the game. I don't want to do that."
    Selena said, "Nick's right. Time's running out. A war's going to start any moment."
    "That's what I think." Ronnie brushed a fleck of something away from his shirt, where palm trees waved on a red and yellow background in the ocean breeze.