Blowback

“ Carmichael fought it tooth and nail. Just like we expected her to do and-”

“The DNC chairman promised he’d get to the bottom of it and clean it all up, right?”

“Right,” replied the chief of staff, “but-”

“Russ Mercer doesn’t take orders from our side of the aisle.”

“No, sir, he doesn’t.”

“What about Carmichael ’s source within the CIA? Are we any closer to figuring out who the hell it is?”

“A federal judge approved a warrant and we have the man we believe to be the leak under surveillance. Gary Lawlor is coordinating the investigation with the FBI and hopes to have something for us very soon.”

“He’d better,” said Rutledge. “From what I hear, Carmichael is ready to go public with Harvath’s name and service photo any day now. What about the subpoenas she served us?”

“Nothing to worry about. I’ve met with the White House counsel, and we’re going to ignore them.”

“We are?” said Rutledge. “What kind of liability does that open us up to?”

“It’s just an opening salvo. She knows she can’t compel us to appear. But word is Carmichael has had the Capitol police warm up a couple of the jail cells they have up on the Hill.”

The president didn’t look pleased.

“Don’t worry,” said Anderson. “It’s a media stunt. It makes for good television, but that’s all.”

“I beg to differ with you,” said the president. “It makes for terrible television.”

“As far as this administration is concerned, you’re right, but she’s grandstanding. She knows that no sitting president would respond to her subpoena. It’s all smoke. The only way she’ll be able to move this forward is to get enough consensus to appoint a special prosecutor.”

Rutledge pushed his chair away from his desk and looked back out the window. “Do you want to remind me again why I agreed to run for a second term?”

“Because the people want you,” said Anderson, “and because Carmichael couldn’t stick anything to you even if she had a roll of duct tape.”

“I wish I could be as confident about this as you are.”

“Trust me. We’re going to come out on top of this.”

“Any word from USAMRIID?” asked Rutledge, changing the subject back to the one that he had been obsessing over ever since it broke.

“No. Nothing new. The civilians who were exposed to the illness are still in quarantine and the CDC is working with the people at Fort Detrick, trying to come up with some answers.”

“What’s your gut tell you, Chuck? Are we going to come out on top of this one as well?”

“I don’t know, Mr. President.”

“I don’t know either,” replied Rutledge, “and it scares the hell out of me. We don’t have much time left.”

SEVENTY-SEVEN

SWITZERLAND

Harvath struggled to piece together everything he was hearing-not only from the Aga Khan, but also from outside the curtained windows where he could make out the sound of an approaching helicopter. Claudia and the rest of the team would not have had enough time to return to Sion and exchange their gliders for something better suited to land on the inhospitable property. All he could think of was that it must have been the Aga Khan’s helicopter coming to ferry him to a meeting in Geneva.

The man studied the look on Harvath’s face and said, “I urge you to take what I’m telling you very seriously. The Ottoman Empire was the only power to ever fully unite the Muslim countries of the Mediterranean and the Middle East, and keep them united for over six centuries.”

“But it eventually fell,” replied Harvath.

“Only eighty-plus years ago, which in terms of history, especially Muslim history, isn’t even the blink of an eye. With the rapid advancement of science and Western technology, they were no longer strong enough to keep up a conventional fight. So, instead, they decided on a different course. They stepped back, allowed their dynasty to transform into what is present-day Turkey, and waited for the moment when they could return to reestablish their empire. Millions of Turkish people still greatly identify with their Ottoman heritage. The question ‘Kimsiniz Bey Efendi’ is still asked today as it was over seven hundred years ago during the caliphate. Who are you and what have you contributed toward the greater glory of our people?

“A core Ottoman leadership still exists, though they don’t publicly use the term Ottoman to describe themselves. That being said, there aren’t many Turks who wouldn’t leap at the opportunity for their country to again be seen as one of the most dynamic social, cultural, and religious forces in the world.”

Harvath had trouble believing what he was hearing.

“The Ottoman sultans ruled through succession, through one family,” said the Aga Khan. “That family didn’t just disappear when the empire came to an end. A direct heir to the sultanate still exists. Someone who can trace his lineage back to the very first caliph and a history of Muslim strength and unity that will appeal to all Muslims throughout the Islamic world.”

“And Hannibal ’s weapon? The illness?” asked Harvath, less concerned with the history lesson than with getting the answers he had come for.