Exit Plan by Larry Bond Read Free Book Online Page A

message.”
     
    “So when will the enemy react?”
     
    “You really mean, will they believe and act on it?” Rahim asked. “I understand your eagerness, but we could paint a sign on the roof that said ‘nuclear weapon being built here!’ and they still might not respond.”
     
    Moradi nodded. “They won’t believe it’s worthwhile unless they steal it from us.”
     
    “Exactly!” Rahim almost exploded. “And they won’t move quickly. Even the Israelis will argue for a while, and we both know how long it takes the Americans to make up their minds.”
     
    “It will be the Israelis,” Moradi insisted. “They are our true enemy. They want to strike us.”
     
    “It is as God wills,” Rahim replied. “But imagine it: Their intelligence agencies collecting, analyzing bits of information, just as we do. Some will become convinced that we are in the final stages. Others will not. We must supply the enemy with enough evidence, from different sources, to convert even the most cautious doubters. We will give them more than one ‘smoking gun.’ “
     
    “Like the IAEA inspectors,” Moradi said.
     
    Rahim nodded. “A week from tomorrow, on their regular monthly inspection, they will find traces of uranium enriched to much higher levels than is needed for any reactor. The amounts will be minute, but within their analytical capabilities.
     
    “They are looking very hard for evidence of our progress, so we will give them exactly what they are looking for. And they will decide they have to stop us. As if they have the right to decide our actions.” There was anger and defiance in Rahim’s words.
     
    “And they will strike Natanz, brutally and thoroughly,” Moradi continued. “The pilot plant, the buried centrifuge halls, anything connected with the nuclear program will be completely destroyed.” Both of them had seen the accuracy and destructive power of modern ordnance delivered by a first-line air force. And they had no illusions about the effectiveness of Natanz’s air defenses—or the national air defense organization. The raid might suffer casualties, but it could not be stopped.
     
    “The world, and especially our enemies, will believe they have stopped our nuclear program, but they will start a war,” Rahim declared with finality. But after a pause, he asked, “Is this really the only way?” His question had a reluctant tone.
     
    Moradi reassured him. “Our leaders want a war. They always planned to strike Israel, to deal it a mortal blow. I am convinced that under the current conditions, we will never be able to produce a nuclear device. And if we can’t, then we have to find some other way. A cold-blooded attack by Israel or America will rally all the nations in the region to our side. Even the Saudis would have to acknowledge that we were the aggrieved party. We will lose Natanz—which will finally justify its existence—and some lives, which is regrettable but necessary.
     
    “And what if Israel attacks unilaterally, without informing America? They’ve done it before.” Moradi smiled at the idea. “The damage to their relations would be catastrophic—for them. Dissention among our enemies.”
     
    “At the very least, Israel would be crippled, too weak to ever recover,” Rahim agreed. Then he asked, wondering, “But what if it isn’t enough? What if the Twelfth Imam is waiting for the actual destruction of Israel before he returns?”
     
    “ Insh’Allah ,” Moradi replied. “As God wills. And nobody knows. You know the hadiths better than I do. They say ‘a time of chaos and civil war.’ Some people say we live in a time like that right now. But if we are, why hasn’t Muhammud Al-Mahdi returned?”
     
    Moradi raised his hands. “I do not question Allah or his will, but we all await the Imam’s return, and are commanded to do all we can to hasten it. The Israelis or Americans could attack tonight, and I would be a happy man.”
     
    “They won’t,” Rahim