| I understand it?s a technique favored by field officers
?I haven?t a damn thing to explain,? said the analyst as he headed for the chair next to Casset
?But in light of our former colleague?s somewhat gross remarks, I?d like to study himAre you
well, Alex??
?He?s well,? answered the deputy director named Valentino?He?s snarling at the wrong
shadows but he?s well
?That information couldn?t have surfaced without the consent and cooperation of the people in
this room!?
?What information?? asked DeSole, looking at the DCI, suddenly widening his large eyes
behind his glasses?Oh, the max-classified thing you asked me about this morning??
The director nodded, then looked at Conklin?Let?s go back to this morningSeven hours
ago, shortly after nine o?clock, I received a call from Edward McAllister, formerly of the State
Department and currently chairman of the National chanel large cambon tote bag Security AgencyMcAllister was
with you in Hong Kong, MrConklin, is that correct??
?MrMcAllister was with us,? agreed Alex flatly?He flew undercover with Jason Bourne to
Macao, where he was shot up so badly he damn near diedHe?s an intellectual oddball and one of
the bravest men I?ve ever met
?He said nothing about the circumstances, only that he was there, and I was to shred my
calendar, if need be, but to consider our meeting with you as Priority RedThere are heavy reasons for the cannonsMcAllister gave me the precise maximum-classified codes that would
clarify the status of the file you?re talking about?the record of the Hong Kong operationI, in turn,
gave the information to MrDeSole, so I?ll let him tell you what he learned
?It hasn?t been touched, Alex,? said DeSole quietly, his eyes leveled on Conklin?As of ninethirty
this morning, it?s been in a black hole for four fake rolex years, five months, twenty-one days, eleven
hours and forty-three minutes without penetrationAnd there?s a very good reason why that status
is pure, but I have no idea whether you?re aware of it or not
?Where that file is concerned I?m aware of everything!?
Robert Ludlum ?? THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
17
?Perhaps, perhaps not,? said DeSole gently?You were known to have a problem, and DrPanov
is not that experienced where security matters are concerned
?What the hell are you driving at??
?A third name was added to the clearance procedures for that official record on Hong Kong
Edward Newington McAllister, by his own insistence and with both presidential and congressional
authority
?Oh, my God,? said Conklin softly, hesitantly?When I called him last night from Baltimore he
said it was impossibleThen he said I had to understand for myself, so he?d set up the conferenceJesus, what prada replica fairy bag happened??
?I?d say we?d have to look elsewhere,? said the DCI?But before we do that, MrConklin, you
have to make a decisionYou see, none of us at this table knows what?s in that maximum classified
fileWe?ve talked, of course, and as MrCasset said, we understood that you did a hell of a job
in Hong Kong, but we don?t know what that job wasWe heard the rumors out of our Far East
stations which, frankly, most of us believed were exaggerated in the spreading, and paramount
among them was your name and that of the assassin Jason BourneThe scuttlebutt then was that
you were responsible for the capture and execution of the killer we knew as Bourne, yet a few
moments ago in your anger you used the phrase ?the unknown man who assumed the name of Jason
Bourne,? stating that he was alive and in hidingIn terms of specifics, we?re at a loss?at least I am,
God knows
?You didn?t chanel jumbo bag pull the record out??
?No,? answered DeSole?That was my decisionAs you may or may not know, every invasion
of a maximum-classified file is automatically marked with the date and hour of penetration
Since the director informed me that there was a large Security Agency flap over an illegal entry, I
decided to leave well enough aloneNot penetrated in nearly five years, therefore not read or even
known about and consequently not given to the evil people, whoever they are
?You were covering your ass right down to the last square inch of flesh
?Most assuredly, AlexThat data has a White House flag on itThings are relatively stable
around here now and it serves no one to ruffle feathers in the Oval OfficeThere?s a new man at
that desk, but the former president is still very much alive and opinionatedHe?d be consulted, so
why risk trouble??
Conklin studied each face and spoke rolex replica swiss quiet |