The Sum of All Fears.pdf - Delta Force

he could observe the arrival of the rest of his aircraft. This was how a
deployment started, with the CAG and squadron commanders watching their troops
land. Each trap would be recorded on videotape for critiques. The cruise had not
gotten off to a very good start, Jackson noted as he sipped his first mug of
shipboard coffee. He'd missed his customary 'OK' grade, as the Air Boss had
informed him with a twinkling eye.
'Hey, Skipper, how my kids doing?' Sanchez asked, taking his seat behind Robby.
'Not bad, I see you kept your record going, Bud.'
'It's not hard, Captain. You just keep an eye on the wind as you turn in. I saw
that gust you took. Guess I should have warned you.'
'Pride goeth before the fall, Commander,' Robby observed. Sanchez had seventeen
consecutive OKs. Maybe he could see the wind, Jackson thought. Seventy
uneventful minutes later, TR turned back east, taking the great-circle route for
the Straits of Gibraltar.
***
The trucker made sure the container box was firmly secured to the bed of his
truck, then climbed into the cab of his Kenworth diesel tractor. He started his
engine and waved to Russell, who waved back.
'I still think we should follow him,' Ghosn said.
'He'd notice and wonder why,' Marvin replied. 'And if something goes wrong, what
would you do, fill in the hole it makes in the highway? You didn't follow the
ship, did you?'
'True.' Ghosn looked at Qati and shrugged. Then they walked off to their car for
the drive to Charlotte, from which they would fly directly to Denver.
***
Jack was ready early, as he usually was, but Cathy took her time. It was so
unusual for her to look in a mirror and see hair that looked like it belonged to
a real woman, as opposed to a surgeon who didn't give a damn. That had entailed
the waste of two hours, but there were prices that one had to pay. Before she
went downstairs, Cathy took two suitcases out from her closet and set them in
the middle of the bedroom.
'Here, can you do this?' she asked her husband.
'Sure, babe.' Ryan took the gold necklace and clasped it around her neck. It was
one he'd given her on the Christmas before Little Jack was born. Some good
memories went along with this necklace, Jack remembered. Then he stood back.
'Turn around.'
Cathy did as she was told. Her evening dress was royal-blue silk that caught and
reflected light like glass. Jack Ryan was not a man who understood women's
fashions – figuring the Russians out came more easily to him – but he approved
whatever the new rules were. The rich blue of the dress and the gold jewelry she
wore with it set off the blush of her fair skin and the buttery yellow of her
hair. 'Nice,' Jack said. 'All ready, babe?'
'Sure am, Jack.' She smiled back at him. 'Go warm the car up.'
Cathy watched him head off into the garage, then said a few words to the sitter.
She put on her fur – surgeons typically have little use for animal-rights
activists – and followed Jack a minute later. Jack backed out of the garage, and
headed off.