Nexus - 0219 - New Times Magazine-pages

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The question of how or where Otto might best be used by hire him as project engineer for a drilling operation near the CIA was none of Earl's concern however, so after sending Calcutta. It’s an interesting job: the Russians are helping the a long, detailed assessment of Otto's potential to Langley Indians to drill a deep oil and gas well in the Ganges delta, Headquarters in Virginia, he returned to his favourite golf and our man is going in there to help them drill it with an course and forgot all about the Englishman. advanced American fluid system. Or at least he thinks he's CIA headquarters in Langley showed immediate interest. going to help them. The whole thing is basically a cover for It was not every day that an Englishman with Otto's qualifica- _ the special mission he'll go on later, but he doesn't know that. tions was brought to the attention of its intelligence ana- We think it's a hell of a deal. We can really screw those lysts—one of whom noted Otto had spent much time in Russian and Indian Commie bastards at the same time!" Middle Eastern countries, before Care- passes Julia Long listened nervously to the fully circling the single word LIBYA’ - cold soft voice hissing on the scram- = — — 7 ap 7 = Julia turned on the projector 2 a capa tary espe tto's background pointed to his obvi- . started when she realised Nobel ha ous use on covert missions under the at the foot of the operating stopped speaking: "Fine, Gordon, aegis of Special Operations. Within a table, the beam of which was fine. What do you want from my week, Otto Jewell's file was hand-car- . A end?" ried by special courier to a small low- split and relayed directly to “Take your time, Julia. Have-cou- meee rleans, Louisiana, where it w . . , IT: placed in the ‘in' tray of one Gordon the accurate high-resolution diplomatic cover for you and attach peper Ales would be kept en Otc: | iMmEt em MESURE | Ine yoo con goin and our of Cava computers were far too vulnerable to ————————— was 2S a diplomatic commuter. Your con- researchers leaning on the CIA under the Freedom of tact will be Louis McCaul at our local Calcutta consulate. Information Act. He's in deep cover and there are no known documented links Julia Long moved uneasily on her chair in the officers' between him and the CIA or Special Operations. Louis will mess as she thought about Nobel, the man legend said co- _ arrange for your special equipment to be carried in the diplo- ordinated the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in matic mail bag. The name of your new client is Otto Jewell, Dallas. Nobel was an animal: a known CIA heavy who took and he'll be staying at the Oberoi Grand Hotel. We've bought considerable pleasure in breaking limbs and, where neces- _a couple of the hotel executives, so access to Otto's room will sary, shooting people through the back of the head with a not bea problem. Louis will arrange all that. Okay so far?" heavy-calibre pistol. Most people in Special Operations were Julia thought for a few seconds. "Okay, Gordon. What do afraid of him and literally jumped to obey his every com- you want me to do with this Otto Jewell? In other words, mand. Julia was no exception and had all but sat rigidly to what mission are we preparing him for exactly? I want to get attention when he called her during 1983. the procedures right." "Julia, hi!" The voice was deceptively soft when Gordon "On this mission we operate ‘need to know’, Julia. All you Nobel spoke on the secure international landline from New __ need to know at this stage is that you spend the first month or Orleans to Morocco. “Listen, I have anew client for you: an _so observing Otto from a distance. Watch his behaviour pat- oilman with a good, solid military background. Initially we terns carefully. We'll be doing our bit by screwing the intend to use him on a tripartite drilling operation in West Commies out at his rig site, so Otto will be under plenty of ayy then we'll get around to his special mission a litle stress pas 7 figure out ne ~ hell is going = bene ater." you get word from me via Louis, I want you to start building "Fine, Gordon, where is he now?" a shallow ‘decoy’ hypnotic level—not too easy to break, but "We just had one of Howard Hughes’ subsidiary companies __ not too hard either. Have your Marine technicians rough him up under hypnosis and threaten his children—you know, the usual things. Make it as nasty as you can Julia, because if he’s taken alive on the real mission early next year, that is all, I repeat, ad that any inter- rogator is going to sweat out of him: the decoy level you develop in Calcutta. You'll get more orders later." Coming back to her senses, Julia Long finished her cup of coffee in the officers’ mess, then strolled through the searing noonday Moroccan heat towards her room. Though the conversation had taken place nearly nine months before, the memory of Nobel's voice still had the capacity to make her feel afraid. Lying down on her bed, Julia fell into a deep sleep. And as she slept, she dreamed a dream. Suddenly Julia Long was back amid the chaos and noise of Calcutta, setting up her equipment in Otto's palatial room at the five-star Oberoi Grand Hotel. eo APRIL - MAY 1994 14*NEXUS LL To be continued in the next issue of NEXUS...