Swiss government has removed those objects from the balloon, but unfortunately, it seems that there were some witnesses to the crash. It is of vital importance that none of them talk to anyone about what they saw. It could provide valuable information to certain other countries. Do you follow me?”
“I think so, sir. You want me to speak to the witnesses and warn them not to discuss what they saw.”
“Not exactly, Commander.”
“Then I don’t under—”
“What I want you to do is simply track down those witnesses. Others will talk to them about the necessity for silence.”
“I see. Are the witnesses all in Switzerland?”
General Hilliard stopped in front of Robert. “That’s our problem, Commander. You see, we have no idea where they are. Or who they are.”
Robert thought he had missed something. “I beg your pardon?”
“The only information we have is that the witnesses were on a tour bus. They happened to be passing the scene when the weather balloon crashed near a little village called …” He turned to Harrison Keller.
“Uetendorf.”
The general turned back to Robert. “The passengers got off the bus for a few minutes to look at the crash and then continued on. When the tour ended, the passengers dispersed.”
Robert said slowly, “General Hilliard, are you saying that there is no record of who these people are or where they went?”
“That is correct.”
“And you want me to go over and find them?”
“Exactly. You’ve been very highly recommended. I’m told that you speak half a dozen languages fluently, and you have an excellent field record. The director arranged to have you temporarily transferred to the NSA.”
Terrific. “I assume I’ll be working with the Swiss government on this?”
“No, you’ll be working alone.”
“Alone? But—”
“We must not involve anyone else in this mission. I can’t stress enough the importance of what was in that balloon, Commander. Time is of the essence. I want you to report your progress to me every day.”
The general wrote a number on a card and handed it to Robert. “I can be reached through this number day or night. There’s a plane waiting to fly you to Zurich. You’ll be escorted to your apartment, so you can pack what you need, and then you’ll be taken to the airport.”
So much for “Thank you for dropping by.” Robert was tempted to ask “Will someone feed my goldfish while I’m gone?” but he had a feeling the answer would be “You have no goldfish.”
“In your work with ONI, Commander, I assume you’ve acquired intelligence contacts abroad?”
“Yes, sir. I have quite a few friends who could be of use—”
“You’re not to get in touch with any of them. You are not authorized to make any contacts at all. The witnesses you’re looking for are undoubtedly nationals of various countries.” The general turned to Keller. “Harrison—”
Keller walked over to a filing cabinet in the corner and unlocked it. He removed a large manila envelope and passed it to Robert.
“There’s fifty thousand dollars in here in different European currencies and another twenty thousand in U.S. dollars. You will also find several sets of false identifications that may come in handy.”
General Hilliard held out a thick, shiny black plastic card with a white stripe on it. “Here’s a credit card that—”
“I doubt if I’ll need that, General. The cash will be enough, and I have an ONI credit card.”
“Take it.”
“Very well.” Robert examined the card. It was drawn on a bank he had never heard of. At the bottom of the card was a telephone number. “There’s no name on the card,” Robert said.
“It’s the equivalent of a blank check. It requires no identification. Just have them call the telephone number on the card when you make a purchase. It’s very important that you keep it with you at all times.”
“Right.”
“And Commander?”
“Sir?”
“You must find those witnesses. Every one of them. I’ll inform the director that you have started the assignment.”
The meeting was over.
Harrison Keller walked Robert to the outer office. A uniformed marine was seated there. He rose as the two men came in.
“This is Captain Dougherty. He’ll take you to the airport. Good luck.”
“Thanks.”
The two men shook hands. Keller turned and walked back into General Hilliard’s office.
“Are you ready, Commander?” Captain Dougherty asked.
“Yes.” But ready for what? He had handled difficult intelligence assignments in the past, but never anything as crazy as this. He was expected to track down an unknown number of unknown witnesses from unknown countries. What are the odds against that? Robert wondered. I feel like the White Queen in Through the Looking Glass. “Why sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.” Well, this was all six of them.
“I have orders to take you directly to your apartment and then to Andrews Air Force Base,” Captain Dougherty said. “There’s a plane waiting to—”
Robert shook his head. “I have to make a stop at my office first.”
Dougherty hesitated. “Very well. I’ll go there with you and wait for you.”
It was as if they didn’t trust him out of their sight. Because he knew that a weather balloon had crashed? It made no sense. He surrendered his badge at the reception desk and walked outside, into the chill, breaking dawn. His car was gone. In its place was a stretch limousine.
“Your car will be taken care of, Commander,” Captain Dougherty informed him. “We’ll ride in this.”
There was a high-handedness about all this that Robert found vaguely disturbing.
“Fine,” he said.
And they were on their way to Naval Intelligence. The pale morning sun was disappearing behind rain clouds. It was going to be a miserable day. In more ways than one, Robert thought.
