Fool Me Once Read Online Free PDF Page B

the
searing anger that changed his life when the senseless destruction of
terrorists touched him personally. He took a chair next to A.J. and settled in
for the briefing.
    Colin
strode to the head of the table, tapping a gold pen in the palm of his left
hand. “All right gentlemen. I don’t have to tell you that the market in illegal
small arms has grown by leaps and bounds in the past ten years.” His eyes
rested on Josh and Dirk. “Even those of you who are no longer on active duty
will know that after the breakup of the former Soviet Union, arms dealers–and
I’m speaking mainly of the middlemen–became billionaires practically overnight.
We simply can’t police it all.” His eyes met Josh’s. “Good men are killed every
day. That’s why this organization was formed. We have the silent backing of our
various governments for the key aspects of our operations; financial,
technical, and intelligence. However we operate without the political
constraints that hobble too many other efforts.” He paused, making eye contact
with each person in the room. “Do I make myself clear?” They nodded as one.
“Right, then,” he continued. “Since this is the first time we’ve met as a team,
I’ll review the mission. Some of you may have heard this before but bear with
me.” A smile flirted with his eyes. “We all need to be on the same page, as you
Americans are so fond of saying.”
    “With
the threat of terrorism sweeping across our borders like a plague one thing has
become startlingly clear. Small arms are responsible for many more deaths than
larger weaponry. Forget what you’ve heard about ‘loose nukes’. Our young men
and women are being killed at an alarming rate at the hands of terrorists armed
with RPGs, AK-47 assault rifles, explosives and more recently shoulder-fired
heat seeking missiles.” He glanced down at a thin stack of files on the table
in front of him.
    “Since
the end of the Cold War, the profile of the arms broker has changed. More often
than not, he’s a businessman. His motives are anything but political. He’s in
it for the money, and he profits by taking advantage of the loopholes in the
compromised regulations of many countries. He is familiar with international
banking, he is able to arrange covert transportation, and he relies heavily on
personal contacts.”
    Sliding
the files down either side of the table he continued talking. “Rather than cast
a broad net, this mission will focus on one man. Thanks to the unparalleled
intelligence gathering efforts of Mossad, David has worked up a rather decent
profile of the man we believe is responsible for selling massive amounts of
arms to the re-emerging Taliban, as well as to Al-Qaeda. This man deals mainly
in RPGs and Semtex, but he’ll broker anything. Our sources inform us that his
success is due in large part to his impeccable paperwork. His organization
provides the all-important ‘end user certificate’ that enables the shipment of
arms.” Opening the file, his eyes hardened as he glanced at the picture clipped
inside. “Gentleman, meet Jiri Blazek. We need to stop this man. He has defied
our best efforts to prove that his activities are illegal. So we’re going to
put him out of business by using his strengths against him.” He stabbed a
finger at the photograph. “We intend to expose him, discredit him. His entire
network is built on personal contacts and his ability to operate discreetly.
Potential buyers seek him out at the gaming tables in Monte Carlo, or at
private clubs in Marbella. By the time we’ve finished with Mr. Blazek, his
buyers will disappear faster than a drop of rain in the Sahara.”
    He
closed the file and raised his eyes. “While conducting his research, David came
across a critical piece of information. He discovered that Blazek’s daughter
Eliska attended an exclusive girl’s school in Switzerland in her teens. While
there, she roomed with Olivia MacMillan, daughter of Martin MacMillan,