Part 16 (2/2)

He nodded. ”If anyone knows about loss, it's you,” he said. ”Did any of my records say how it happened?”

”No. Just that he died in action.”

”Which is a misrepresentation,” said Desh dourly. ”He was in Pakistan at a weeklong meeting with regional military leaders. He died buying fruit at a market near his hotel. Just another terrorist bombing. Ironic: he had seen a lot of action in his career, but he died off-duty and out of uniform.” His lip curled up in disgust. ”They probably wouldn't have bombed the place if they knew he was a general. They actually prefer killing civilians,” he said bitterly. ”Generates more terror that way.”

Kira sighed supportively. After a few seconds of silence she said, ”How's your brother doing?”

”He's doing well. I didn't get to visit with him very often before I left the service. But since I became a civilian I've been seeing more of him.”

”Do you regret leaving the military?”

”Honestly, no. I feel a little selfish and maybe a little cowardly; but no. I was ready to leave even before the disaster in Iran. When you're in the Delta Force you don't form strong attachments to anyone outside your teama”you can't. Not really. And I didn't want to go through life that way. I wanted to be a husband and father someday.”

They drove on in silence for several minutes. ”You mentioned Iran,” began Kira hesitantly. ”What happened there exactly?”

”You must have read the after action report.”

”I skimmed through it,” she acknowledged. ”But it was lengthy and I didn't read it carefully. Besides,” she continued, ”If we're going to be allies, David, the more insight we have into each other, the better. I'd be interested in hearing these events in your own words.”

Desh shrugged. ”There's nothing to tell,” he lied. He had planned to stop there when it occurred to him that Kira had bared her soul at the restaurant. Maybe it was his turn. He sighed heavily. ”Okay, I'll give you an abbreviated version.”

Desh paused and gathered himself. ”Intel had finally located the leader of a terror group, Khalid Abdul-Malik. He was responsible for a series of bombings of churches and synagogues around the world, all timed during religious services to maximize casualties. He was headquartered just outside of Sanandaj, on Iran's western border. We were sent in to capture him if possible, kill him if not. Our insertion was flawless.”

Desh tilted his head, remembering. ”Satellites had picked up Abdul-Malik and some of his key lieutenants on the move, headed toward the nearby town of Mahabad, and we planned an ambush.” He shook his head, a tormented expression on his face. ”But we were ambushed instead,” he said sullenly. He fell silent for several long seconds and then added, ”They had been expecting us.”

”You were set up?”

”No question about it. I have no idea how.” Desh turned away from Kira and kept his gaze focused steadily on the road ahead, bracing himself to continue. ”We were all taken prisoners, me and the three other members of my team. Since I was team commander, the terrorists decided to punish me by torturing my men to death in front of mea”men who I loved as brothers.” He looked as if he might vomit. ”My head was tied in position and my eyes were pried open. I couldn't turn my head and I couldn't look away.” He shuddered. ”There are tortures beyond the imaginings of the most gifted horror writer,” he whispered.

There was a long silence as Kira waited for him to continue.

”I won't describe what happened next,” he said finally. ”I wouldn't do that to anybody. Suffice it to say they were tortured and then butchered.” Hatred welled up in his eyes. ”And these sick b.a.s.t.a.r.ds enjoyed every minute of it, too.”

”How did you escape?” asked Kira softly.

”They had finished with my men,” said Desh, his voice now dead and emotionless. ”I was next. There were three guards with me at the time. While one of them was peeing out back, one of them slipped on a pool of blood and fell. A man has only six quarts of blood in his body. Six quarts doesn't seem like a lot until you're covered in it, and you see the rest spilled on the ground. Eighteen quarts is hard to imagine.”

Kira shuddered from the mental picture he had painted.

”I was tied to a chair,” continued Desh. ”But after the guard fell I gave him a face-full of chair-leg. I dove on the other guard, chair and all, to prevent him from using his gun, but he managed to stab me several times with his knife before I was able to head-b.u.t.t him into unconsciousness. I escaped and eventually made it across the border to Iraq.”

”I do remember this part,” said Kira. ”I read the soldiers who found you in Iraq couldn't believe you had made it so far in the condition you were in. They were astonished by your stamina and force of will.”

Desh grimaced. ”I should have died with my men,” he whispered. ”In the Special Forces, we take the code of leaving no man behind very seriously.” His eyes moistened and he shook his head sadly. ”The truth is that my men had been so badly butchered there wasn't enough left of their bodies to bring back, even if I could have.”

31.

David Desh accelerated onto the Interstate 95 onramp and merged with highway traffic.

”I don't know what to say,” said Kira helplessly.

”There's nothing to say. Seems that we've both had our share of bad luck and battle scars. When the stakes are high, the penalties can be high,” he said.

They drove on for several minutes until Kira finally broke the silence, deciding a change in subject was in order. ”Look, David,” she said hesitantly, ”at the risk of sounding like a drug pusher, I'd like you to take one of my gellcaps.”

Desh eyed her with interest. ”Why?” he said simply.

”I appreciate you agreeing to become my ally, but we both know you still don't trust me a hundred percent. How can you? There's been so much going on and so many complexities to this story that only a fool would fail to harbor at least a little doubt. And you're anything but a fool. In the recesses of your mind, you still can't help but wonder if I'm just a great actress and this is all some kind of diabolical plan of mine.”

”You're right,” he said. ”I won't deny it. But the doubt has shrunk from a hundred percent to about five percent, if that makes you feel any better.”

”It does. But taking a gellcap will eliminate any remaining reservations. Sure, you might believe intellectually that I've succeeded in radically transforming the human brain, but for you to really trust that all of this is real, you have to experience it for yourself. I could tell you more about what it's like, but until you've experienced it yourself no description I could offer could do it justice. Once you've been enhanced you'll know that everything I've told you is true. Down to the last detail.”

Desh pursed his lips. ”I don't know, Kira,” he said reluctantly. ”I'm not sure I like the idea of altering the architecture of my brain.”

”After everything I told you, I don't blame you. But I promise the effect will only last about an hour. After that, you'll be the exact same David Desh as always.”

”Yeah? How can you be so sure?”

She opened her mouth to answer, but then closed it again. ”I guess I can't be. Not absolutely. I know that you won't feel any different. And the people I interacted with afterwards never noticed any changes in mea”at least none I'm aware of.”

”What about the sociopathy?”

”As I mentioned, that effect builds. The first time you're enhanced it's like you're Alice in Wonderland, too awestruck to have many ruthless thoughts. Repeated exposure further numbs the emotions and increases your feelings of omnipotence.”

”And thena”what?a”you graduate from Alice to Frodo to Darth?” he said wryly.

She frowned. ”I use too many silly literary metaphors, don't I?”

Desh couldn't help but smile. ”Not at all,” he said rea.s.suringly. ”And I'm the one who came up with Moriarty. So maybe we're two peas in a pod.”

Kira caught his eye and sighed deeply. ”It would really mean a lot to me, David. You have to experience it to truly understand it.”

Desh returned her gaze briefly and then s.h.i.+fted his eyes back to the road as he considered her request. ”Okay,” he said finally, still with some reluctance. ”I'll do it.”

”Thanks David,” she said in relief. ”This will erase any lingering doubts. I promise. And it will also surpa.s.s your wildest expectations.” Her right hand went to her neck and located a silver chain that had been hidden by her clothing. She lifted, pulling the chain up until a silver locket emerged from under her sweats.h.i.+rt. The locket was heart-shaped and about the circ.u.mference of a quarter. She repositioning the necklace so it and the locket were now on the outside of her jacket.

”I just happen to have a dose on hand,” she announced.

”There's a gellcap inside that locket?” he said in disbelief.

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