"Sir," interjected Kennedy. "There's something else we need to discuss with you."

Hayes could tell by the tone of her voice that it was serious. He leaned back in his chair and formed a steeple with his hands. "Let's hear it."

"We know who killed Peter Cameron."

The President bounced forward immediately. "Who?"

"Her name is Donatella Rahn. She used to work for Mossad, and now she's what we refer to as an independent contractor."

The President cocked his head to the side. "You said she used to work for Mossad."

"That's correct, sir."

"What in the hell is she doing killing former employees of the CIA and American citizens?"

Rapp spoke up. "She didn't know who he was, sir. She was simply hired, wired a sum of money and given the basic information on her target. Nowhere in the information did it say that Cameron used to work for the CIA."

"Who hired her to kill Cameron?"

Rapp didn't feel it was his place to answer the question so he turned to his boss. Kennedy scratched the tip of her nose with the back of her hand and said, "We don't know who took the contract out on Cameron, sir, but we know who Donatella's handler is." Kennedy looked down briefly, taking a moment to steel herself against the ensuing explosion.

"Who?"

"Donatella's handler is Ben Freidman."

"What?" the question spat from the President's mouth as if it had a bad taste to it.

"Somebody, we do not know who, contacted Ben Freidman and took out a hit on Peter Cameron. It was a rush job and it paid well. Freidman in turn gave the job to Donatella."

"And she succeeded! "The President stood and started pacing. "How in the hell did we get this information?"

"Mitch has worked with Donatella before."

The President stopped and spun around. Looking at Rapp he said, "You've worked with this woman. What in the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"When she was with Mossad, sir, we conducted several operations against Hezbollah." Rapp was not the type to be unnerved by a little emotion, even if it came from the President. "I have a lot of trust and respect for her, sir."

Rapp's words caused the President to back off a bit. Turning to Kennedy he asked, "What in the hell is Ben Freidman doing involved in something like this?"

"I'm not sure, sir."

Before she finished her answer Hayes had resumed his pacing. "Why is it that I get this horrible feeling that Israel has been meddling in the affairs of this country?"

"I'm not so sure, sir." Kennedy spoke carefully. "We have debriefed Donatella and she claims--"

"What do you mean, debriefed? We have her?"

"Yes. She's here in the U. S. Mitch brought her back from Italy. That's where she lives."

What? "The President was beet red with anger.

Rapp thought it was time to weigh in. "Sir, we had a suspicion that Donatella may have been involved in Cameron's death, so I went to Italy to talk to her. While I was visiting her there was an attempt on her life. It would appear that she had outgrown her usefulness to Colonel Freidman."

Hayes stopped pacing and stabbed his index fingers onto the surface of the table. "Irene, does the attempt on Mitch's life in Germany and the assassination of Peter Cameron have anything to do with this crap going on in Baghdad?"

After hesitating, Kennedy replied, "I don't think so, sir, but I'm looking into it."

Now Hayes's face was really red. "Well, what do you say I pick up the phone and call Prime Minister Goldberg?"

Kennedy shook her head. "I don't think that's a good idea, sir."

"Well, I do," snapped Hayes. "I don't like it when our allies are involved in the assassination of Americans." Hayes pointed and added, "Especially when it happens less than a mile from the White House."

Kennedy decided it was time to be more forceful. "Sir, you'll get no disagreement from me. Ben Freidman is going to have to answer some very tough questions, but as of right now I don't think the problem in Baghdad has anything to do with this. Our satellite images tell us that something unusual was built under that hospital. Most likely some type of a hardened bunker. Also, the information on the North Koreans checks out, and we know Saddam has been working toward this goal for some time. As far as the other issue is concerned, Donatella tells us Freidman set this deal up with her when she left Mossad. Freidman takes a third of the contract and everything is run through him. Donatella says the fee on Cameron was a half a million dollars. She claims Israel would never pay that kind of money."

"Then who in the hell did?"

"I don't know, sir." Hayes threw up his arms in frustration. "Great. Do you have any ideas on how to find out?"

"Yes, I do. When the time is right we're going to ask Ben Freidman."

"And you expect him to give us a straight answer?"

"Yes, I do, sir. And I expect quite a bit more from him as well." Hayes eyed her for a second. What she had just said reminded him of Thomas Stansfield. "Would you like to let me in on your plan?"

"No." Kennedy shook her head. "You have enough to worry about with the situation in Baghdad. When the time is right you're going to play a very active roll in getting the truth from Ben Freidman. Trust me."

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR.

Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Saturday morning

Early the next morning Rapp boarded a CIA Learjet for the relatively short hop from D. C. down to Fayetteville, North Carolina. In his possession were two large duffels and a garment bag. The duffels contained various weapons and ammunition that he might need for the mission, plus a few necessities. He did not plan on returning to D. C. until the mission was over. In the garment bag was a surprise. It involved something he'd been perfecting for years.

As the plane took off, Rapp looked out the small window and allowed himself to think of Anna one last time. He told himself this really would be it. He would need absolute focus and clarity in everything he did until the nukes were taken out. It was painful to think of her. He wondered where she was. If she was on her way back to America or sitting in the sun on the terrace of the breathtaking villa he'd rented on the Amalfi Coast. He imagined lying beside her, his arm under her head, his hand on her naked hip, their legs intertwined, her gorgeous green eyes staring dreamily at him, her perfect lips turned up in a blissful smile. She looked so happy in his dreams, the way he'd seen her on so many occasions before. Why couldn't it have stayed that way?

His hopes, his dreams for a normal life were in tatters. He'd been a fool for ever thinking he could have that life. He was a killer. Men like him didn't marry someone like Anna. They were oceans apart. She was worried about who he'd slept with before they met, and he was trying to find out who had hired Peter Cameron to kill him. It was almost comical when you took a step back. When he looked at it this way it caused him to think Anna was selfish or at least self-absorbed. She couldn't understand the commitment and sacrifices he'd made, and if she couldn't do that, they had serious problems. Sure, she'd been appreciative that he'd saved her from being raped and probably killed. His secret life with the CIA was fine, just so long as it involved saving her, but in any other light it was horrible and intolerable. And to end it all over something so sophomoric as jealousy was pathetic. Maybe she wasn't the woman for him.

That's how Rapp came to grips with his dashed dreams. Anna had always told him it was fate that he'd intervened that horrible night in the White House. Well, maybe it was fate, and maybe it was fate that things had fallen apart in Milan before he'd asked her to marry him. To a certain degree he really believed in fate, or at least that things happened in life for a reason. If they were truly meant to be together she would be there when he got back.