Free The Labyrinth Campaign by J. Michael Sweeney Page A

start, but I have to tell you: I promised Will I wouldn’t share his plan with anyone.”
    Bo exploded. “I’m not anyone, goddammit, I’m his father! Not to mention your friend and meal ticket over the past twenty-five years.”
    “I’m very clear on that, Bo. That’s why I’m here now.” Rollins proceeded to explain the entire environmental sabotage plan to Bo Hawkins. When he was finished, a deafening silence followed.
    Then, Bo leaned forward and said in a voice as quiet as a snake’s hiss, “What in the hell do you think you’re doing? You’re actually going to condone a front-running candidate for US president interacting with a known, big-time drug smuggler so they can win the sympathy of the American public? You must be out of your fucking mind.”
    Rollins took a deep breath and raised his hands in an appeasing motion. “Actually, Bo, I believe it’s a brilliant plan. No one in the press has ever figured out that Will and Carlos Pendrill were college roommates in London. The accidents themselves are not intended to injure or kill, but rather to catch the attention of the press and the American people. The David Ellis alliance is beyond reproach. In fact, Ellis’s popularity currently exceeds that of both Will and President Hughes. And finally, with all the risks that are associated with a plan of this type, I believe it is infinitely safer than the plan you and I discussed a few weeks ago.”
    Again, there was silence as Bo contemplated his adviser’s point of view. Finally, Bo agreed to keep quiet and let his son execute the plan that he was supposed to have no knowledge of. After John Rollins left his office, Bo sat quietly, considering what he had just heard. While the plan was dangerous, it had merit. But he decided he would also keep his own clandestine plan in play … for insurance.

eighteen
    F orty-eight hours later, Carlos Pendrill and Jorge Castilla reconvened at the Pendrill compound to review the accident plan. As usual, Carlos was quite impressed with Jorge’s resourcefulness and efficiency. In just two days, Jorge had assembled the team, identified the accident locations, and outlined the methods by which the accidents would be executed.
    Jorge explained, “The accidents will be geographically dispersed to minimize the chance of anyone making a connection from one to the other. The accident team will enter the US at a high-volume border crossing to avoid detection. The accident sites are identified.”
    “All right, give me the topline on the accident specifics and locations.”
    “Let me give you the rundown in the order they’ll be executed. First, Transcon is the transportation company that hauls the bulk of US toxic waste. I was surprised to find that more waste is moved via rail than truck, but we were still able to find a target. There’s a mining operation in Utah that requires a variety of toxic chemicals to excavate a rare mineral. Transcon has the contract to remove the toxic wastes created in this process. The nearest toxic-waste dump is in New Mexico, so the waste trucks must take Interstate 70 east to Denver and Interstate 25 south to New Mexico. There is a stretch of eastbound I-70 called Glenwood Canyon. This canyon was carved by the Colorado River. A strategicallyplaced smart bomb, detonated at the right moment, should send the truck off the highway, down a steep embankment, and right into the river. The damages will be minimal due to the high volume of water that flows through the canyon, but the press will eat it up.”
    Carlos smiled. “I like it. What’s next?”
    “A nuclear power facility in South Carolina. It’s a very rural area. As it turns out, there is a disgruntled assistant director of the operation who has been widely quoted in the local press criticizing management’s cost-cutting tactics that are jeopardizing safety and key employee retention. The plan is to compromise the assistant director and use money and a message to management as our