Sabotage by C. G. Cooper Read Free Book Online

the dam had been breached anyway. “Okay, I guess I should start at the beginning. It's been a few months. I was down in North Carolina and the boys at Bragg wanted to give me a debrief on a recent operation. It doesn't really matter what that was about because it has no bearing on this story. At one point, I got a couple of minutes alone with Vince, and we started chatting about China. Turns out that Colonel Sweeney is quite the subject matter expert on US-China relations. When you get a second ask him what he thinks about the South China Sea. Anyway, I asked him about Africa and the billions that are flowing from Beijing into the dark continent. He had his concerns, of course, like we all do.
     
    "It wasn't until I asked him about Djibouti and the Horn of Africa that his ears really perked up. Now I'm not sure how much you guys know about what China's been doing, but they are putting a lot of effort into this new Silk Road, hearkening back to the days when they did steady business with Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. They want to revive that. A big part of that plan means increased shipping port access in intercontinental travel. Well, Djibouti is a small country, but it's a big part of the silk road because of its strategic location. They’ve got direct access to the Red Sea, a straight shot to the Mediterranean, and all those lovely ports there and beyond. The country's doing more and more business with other nations wanting access to their ports. Recently China invested billions into a few megaprojects, refineries, ports, factories, and now we've got word that they want to establish a naval base. Their diplomats aren't copping to anything about the naval base, of course, but we know it’s in the works. That's what started Vincent's wheels spinning. I asked him bluntly what he thought I should do about it. He said the first thing any good commander would do is to get eyes on to determine what's happening.”
     
    "That's where we left it that day. It got me thinking, and after more troubling reports from my military and economic advisors, I had Vince flown up to D.C. for another chat. Apparently, he'd been thinking about it too, because he already had a plan."
     
    "Let me guess," Cal said, "He wanted to see it for himself and maybe take a friend along for the ride."
     
    The president nodded, "They went in with a good cover as oil investors looking for strategic partners in the region. As far as I knew, they had all their bases covered. The last I heard, they were on their way home, but then there was nothing. No word. No call. Then you called asking me point blank about an operation."
     
    "Is that it? That's the whole story?" Cal asked.
     
    "That's it." They were all quiet, digesting the news.
     
    Gaucho finally asked, "That doesn't explain Bragg, Mr. President. I couldn't get any word out of them. Some of those guys I've known for twenty-odd years."
     
    Cal answered for him, "That's their job. OPSEC is king. Brandon told them to keep their lips tight, so they did.”
     
    Zimmer nodded.
     
    "So what now?" Gaucho asked.
     
    "We're working on that," the president said, "The best we can hope for is that Vince and Karl can make it out on their own."
     
    “No offense sir, but that sure as hell sounds like they're getting the raw end of the deal. Leaving them out there like that. I know they're big boys but — “
     
    He held up a hand to cut off the rest of Gaucho’s coming remarks. “I know. I'm not saying we're doing nothing, but you've got to understand the position I'm in; there's a lot at stake here. The president of Djibouti is in a tenuous situation as well, despite the influx of foreign investment. They've been very obliging up to this point, but if they found out that we’re sending in soldiers to snoop on one of their biggest investors—that might not sit well.”
     
    Cal could see that Gaucho wanted to press. Hell, he wanted to press the president. No one would, though. That was one of the