The Rescue(90)

“Maybe not,” said Harlow. “We’ve been studying the bigger picture, trying to make connections between everyone we know or suspect is involved, and I think we found a plausible motive for kidnapping Meghan Steele.”

Someone in the background on Harlow’s end of the call spoke, but Decker couldn’t understand what was said.

“For murdering Meghan Steele. The Russians were told to dispose of her,” said Harlow. “If we’re to believe Viktor Penkin’s dying confession.”

“I think we have to believe him,” said Decker.

“That’s the general consensus here, too. Which leads us to the motive.”

“Go ahead.”

“We think Meghan Steele was taken as a distraction, and possibly—”

“A distraction? From what?” interrupted Decker. “You don’t kidnap and murder someone to create a distraction.”

“You do if billions of dollars are at stake. And an influential US senator stands in the way of those billions.”

“I just can’t—” said Decker, barely able to continue. “I can’t see why they would kill her.”

“To create a long-term distraction for Senator Steele, and to earn her trust.”

“What?” whispered Pierce, shaking his head.

“Earn her trust?” said Decker. “The whole thing literally blew up in our face, killing her daughter.”

“Do you recall Senator Gerald Frist being involved when you were hired to recover Senator Steele’s daughter?”

Pierce shook his head, which corresponded with Decker’s recollection of events.

“No. I heard Senator Steele mention him a few times, but I wasn’t aware that he played any role in hiring us,” said Decker. “Jacob Harcourt approached us directly, on behalf of Senator Steele. She wanted to keep our involvement a secret for as long as possible, for legal reasons.”

“I think Senator Frist may have played a bigger role in all of this,” said Harlow. “Frist owns a substantial stake in Aegis Global.”

“How substantial?”

“Substantial enough for him to have a vested interest in removing any obstacles to Aegis Global’s continued domination of the private military industry,” said Harlow. “Senator Steele and Senator Frist have been friends for years, but they never saw eye to eye on the use of contract military forces. She had a consistent record of voting against expanding their use—right up until her daughter was taken.”

“You think they flipped her?”

“Flipped isn’t the right term. She understandably missed a key vote five days after the kidnapping. I say key in that it laid the groundwork to expand the authority and discretion of private military units hired directly by the top US commander in Afghanistan. Mostly support and logistics missions, with some security functions included. Guess who sponsored that authorization?”

“Frist,” said Decker.

“Correct. She was absent from another vote a month later that authorized the US commander in Afghanistan to use private military units to support and augment combat operations. The number of Aegis Global employees assigned to Afghanistan quadrupled overnight. The running joke in Kabul was that the US commander had finally replaced the NATO-led security mission.”

“Why did she miss the second vote?” said Decker. “I thought she had made it a point to continue her work.”

“She did,” said Harlow. “But it fell on the same day as the only ransom threat deemed credible by the FBI.”

“Quite the coincidence.”

“Given Senator Steele’s waning support for the Afghanistan war, these votes would have very likely gone the other way,” said Harlow. “And that’s not all. Frist snuck another authorization through the day after the Hemet disaster—this one allowing the US commander in Afghanistan to give tactical control of private military forces to a provisional combat commander, under circumstances where no coordination or conflict between regular military forces and private forces exists. The definition of provisional combat commander in the authorization is nebulous. This represents the first instance of a private military force conducting independent and direct combat missions for a US military-theater commander.”

“It’s like the start of a Praetorian Guard,” said Decker. “Aleman’s theory centers around a concept Jacob Harcourt wrote about a few years ago. Privatizing the war in Afghanistan.”

“We read the same article, and the pattern fits. Frist has been slowly removing the roadblocks, mostly while Senator Steele has been distracted—but now it appears she’s giving Frist her full support. She’s even cosponsored a few bills and authorizations indirectly supporting his agenda.”

“Harcourt’s agenda,” said Decker. “I have no doubt he fashions himself as the future viceroy of Afghanistan.”

“There’ll be no shortage of well-compensated, high-ranking positions under Viceroy Harcourt. I’m sure Frist will come out of this an extremely wealthy man, given his stake in the company.”

“How did you determine his stake? Aegis Global is privately held,” said Decker.

“You really don’t want to know.”

“Ah. How I miss being able to say that.”

“So what’s next, Decker?” said Harlow. “As you can imagine, we’re getting a little antsy here. Everyone is itching to do more than come up with theories.”