“I’m here to talk about my wife.”
Silence. Saltzman and Remington shifted uncomfortably in their chairs. Tension hung in the air like an electric charge.
“I was getting to that, Crocker,” the ambassador said smoothly. “First of all, let’s not lose hope. The kidnappers have given us a deadline, but that doesn’t mean they’ll act on it.”
“They did in Brian’s case,” Crocker countered bluntly. He watched the two officials’ faces turn sour, as if he’d let out an awful stink.
“Regretfully, yes. But your wife is different.”
“Why, sir?”
“Because without her the kidnappers have no leverage.”
Crocker shook with frustration. “Who are they, and why do they want leverage?”
“I’ll let Remington answer that.”
Crocker waited. Another slow minute passed as Remington crossed his legs, cleared his throat, leaned forward in his chair.
“Remember the three men you arrested at the refugee camp near Busetta?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Well, one of them happens to be the half brother of a Tuareg leader named Anaruz Mohammed.”
Mention of Anaruz’s name put Crocker even more on edge. “I know who he is.”
“We believe Anaruz, or people working for him, are behind the kidnapping.”
“What led you to that conclusion?”
“Because in exchange for Brian and Holly the kidnappers have been demanding the release of the three men you detained.”
The irony hit Crocker hard. He said, “I heard it was gold.”
“The gold was just a rumor.”
“So Martyrs of the Revolution is just a cover?”
“That’s what we’ve believed all along, yes.”
It made sense. Awful sense. Americans had arrested Anaruz’s half brother, so he struck back by kidnapping two U.S. officials.
But wait…
“Do you think it’s a coincidence that he seized my wife, or does he know she’s married to the man who arrested his half brother?”
“I suspect they saw an opportunity to kidnap a couple of Americans, without knowing who they are.”
“Where are the three prisoners now?” Crocker asked.
“They’re in NTC custody,” Saltzman answered. “I made a point of turning the three men over to the NTC. Officials there didn’t want to take them at first, but I convinced the NTC that they would improve their human rights profile if they made public examples of them. I pushed hard. They locked the men away and pressed charges. Then Holly and Brian were kidnapped.”
“Shit.” It was worse than he thought, and it put the onus squarely on him.
“I’m sorry.”
“Do you know where the men are being held?”
“No, we don’t,” Remington answered.
“And you probably wouldn’t tell me if you did.”
“Crocker, there are big issues at stake,” the ambassador said. “Even if we could pressure the NTC to exchange the men for Holly—which we can’t, because it goes against U.S. policy—the release of these men would make the NTC look weak, and that’s something we don’t want to do.”
“I don’t give a shit about the NTC, I care about my wife.”
“I’m sure I’d feel the same if I were in your position.”
“Where does that leave me, Mr. Ambassador? What’s going to happen to Holly?”
“Nothing now. I think that eventually the kidnappers will get tired of holding her and set her free.”
“You really believe that?”
“Ask yourself this: What do the kidnappers gain by hurting her? Nothing, except to make themselves look like barbarians. We should presume the kidnappers are rational people.”
He hated the word “presume” and wished the ambassador hadn’t used it. He took a deep breath and asked, “What if they’re not reasonable? What if they think killing my wife helps them achieve their goals? What if they think sparing her will make them appear weak?”
No answer.
“Sir, why aren’t we out there turning this country upside down to find her?”
“Because it’s not an option. The deadline will pass and your wife will still be alive.”
Crocker wanted to pick up the coffee table in front of him and throw it out the window. Instead, he gritted his teeth and said, “You’re bargaining with my wife’s life!”
Remington: “We continue to do everything we can to locate the kidnappers. The more time passes, the more our odds of finding them increase. We’re talking about a relatively small country. We’ve got multiple sources out talking to people from different groups. We’re quietly offering money in exchange for information. I’m confident someone will say something that will be useful.”