Free Body of Lies by David Ignatius Page A

knew how much time you had with Hani. The king had a habit of showing up at odd times, causing the intelligence chief to disappear for hours on end.
    "The case is complicated," answered Hani. "It's a good case, but complicated."
    "Why? You had that guy cold. 'Talk to your mother.' Best pitch I've ever seen. And you're going in a direction that interests us." Ferris left the thread out there for Hani to pick up, but he did no more than register Ferris's praise.
    "We do have him 'cold,' as you say. The second meeting went well, and so did a third one I had just before leaving. He is our boy now. We own him, most certainly. But it's still complicated."
    Ferris waited for Hani to explain, and when he didn't, he asked again, "Why is it complicated?"
    "Because Al Qaeda is complicated. There are layers and layers and layers. Anyone who tries to move from one layer to another is suspect. You don't do anything on your own, you wait to be asked."
    "But we can't wait. You know that. Especially after Milan. We hope you'll put Mustafa in play quickly."
    "We can't wait, I agree. Waiting could get more people killed. But then, on the other hand, we must wait. I am a patient man, even when I am in a hurry. I took too much time setting up this operation to be rushed now. Even if Ed Hoffman wants me to move quickly."
    Ferris paused before responding. Hani was being so careful. This was the right time to offer the gift he had brought along.
    "Mr. Hoffman wanted me to give you something. You've been asking for these, I think. They're transcripts of phone calls in Europe and America from some of the members of the royal family who have been...worrying the king. You will be interested especially in the ones with the Lebanese banker in Paris who is handling some of the royal accounts." Ferris opened his briefcase and handed Hani the stack of transcripts.
    "Ah yes." Hani glanced at a few pages and then closed the folder. He narrowed his gaze. "Well, that is very nice. His Majesty will be interested, I am sure. How nice of Ed to be so generous." Hani seemed slightly miffed at the gift, although Ferris wasn't sure why. The king himself had muttered to the director about his wayward siblings the last time he came to Washington.
    "He wants to see you. He's coming to Amman."
    "Yes, I know. He needs something, and I am wondering what it is." Hani smiled and lit another cigarette. Ferris didn't ask how he knew. Maybe Hoffman had told him; maybe he was only pretending he knew. It didn't matter.
    "He's going to want to talk about the case," said Ferris.
    "He is welcome. Ahlan wa sahlan. Just so long as he doesn't try to run the operation. He will make mistakes. That is why we like you, Ferris. You know what you don't know. You are young, you are smart, you speak Arabic, you respect your elders. You are a secret Arab." Hani gave him a wink.
    "Can we get your debriefing of Karami?" asked Ferris. "That would help me with Hoffman."
    "No. I am very sorry. That would not be appropriate. But I will summarize for you what he told us. Karami has contact with a man who was in the training camp in Afghanistan. This man is based in Madrid. They meet in Budapest. A man in Dubai who sends him money gets it from someone in Karachi, but we don't know his name yet. Karami was a courier in the USS Cole operation in 2000. He traveled once to Yemen, but they haven't used him on any operations since then. He's a sleeper. They're keeping him in place for something. Or maybe they've forgotten about him. I am sorry to say, habibi, this man by himself is not going to take us inside the tent. If he tries to go see the big men, they will say no. But I have another idea for him."
    "What's that?" Ferris suppressed a frown.
    "I can't tell you," said Hani. His face was so smooth, his black hair so full, his gray moustache so well trimmed. "That's not true. Of course I could tell you if I wanted to, but I don't."
    "Why not? We are chasing the same target here. I'm sure of it. Why not