Free No Fortunate Son by Brad Taylor Page B

outward, taking the eye orbit with it in a shower of gore. The secretary of defense’s son fell forward, his mouth open, his jaw the only thing remaining as a human face.

13
    S tartled gasps filled the room, followed by murmurs. President Warren held up his hand and everyone grew quiet, subdued by the intimacy of the death. Something they ordered often in their duties but now were forced to see in hyperreal detail. It left them dumbstruck.
    As if he were talking about the national orange crop, the staffer said, “DNA and fingerprint testing has proven that the body parts delivered in Brussels match Curtis Oglethorpe, Mark Oglethorpe’s son. We believe the video is genuine, as is the Reddit thread and White House comment. Furthermore, we believe that all of the missing have been taken as leverage against our policy of armed counterterrorist drone strikes.”
    He finished and looked to Alexander Palmer for guidance on what else to say.
    For his part, Palmer looked to the president of the United States.
    President Warren said, “Gentlemen, the entire fabric of our country is now under attack. The barbaric method is new and unique, but the outcome is the same. An attack against our ability to defend the nation. And it’s effective. I’ve already given orders for all strikes against terrorist targets to halt immediately. What I want to know is how we’re going to get them back. And barring that, what we’re going to do about it.”
    Kurt heard the words, and the enormity of the stakes came home. There would be no evenhanded discussion of how best to use the Taskforce. The administration was going to destroy anything tangentially associated with the video. And after seeing it, Kurt was more than willing to light the fuse.
    Ignoring the emotion, Kerry Bostwick, the director of the CIA, said, “So we’re still feeling that it’s an Islamic group?”
    Palmer snorted at the question.
    Billings said, “Well, what the hell else could it be? The name on the contact is Abu Mustafa, the target of the action is our drone strikes, and the men in the video are clearly Arabic. Yes, it is an Islamic group. We need to focus on transits to Yemen, Pakistan, or Somalia. Places where they feel secure. That’s where the hostages are going. That’s where Curtis was killed.”
    Ignoring the outburst, Kurt said, “What do you mean, Kerry?”
    “Well, it still doesn’t ring true to me. I just can’t see them able to conduct such a wide-ranging operation.”
    President Warren said, “And neither could your organization on September tenth. We’ve always discounted the threat. I don’t intend to do so again.”
    Kerry bristled, and Kurt backed him up, saying, “There’s more to it than Kerry’s gut feeling. I agree with the CIA on assessments of the operation. Besides just being able to coordinate it, they’d have to execute, and we’d have some indication of Arabic men doing the job. We don’t. Which means they might have help from a non-Arabic group, like what used to happen in the ’70s and ’80s. Maybe there’s an Islamic organization behind it, but we shouldn’t discount help from someone else. Someone who could penetrate, like the Japanese Red Army at the Lod Airport.”
    Billings said, “What the hell are you talking about?”
    Kurt rolled his eyes, disgusted at the lack of knowledge on basic terrorism. “The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine . . .” He paused and said, “You know who they are, right?”
    Billings grew red and nodded. Kurt continued. “The PFLP couldn’t penetrate Israeli airport security because of their nationality. They hired terrorists from the Japanese Red Army to attack for them. In 1972, the Japanese terrorists came into Israel as tourists, then began flinging hand grenades and shooting up the place. I’m saying it could be the same here.”
    Billings said, “But that was when the radical ideology was similar.When all the groups had a Marxist bent. This Islamic thing is