It wasn’t possible to involve myself in this matter unilaterally without Arica’s consent.
Strictly speaking, it was possible—but if I did, I would lose far more than I gained.
— Charlie, are you serious?
Given that I had shown interest in the matter, it was only natural that Jessica reacted in shock.
“Yes. Our governnt is in a position where it’s difficult to step forward directly, so I’m thinking of stepping in myself and trying to conduct negotiations.”
— No... Why on earth do you need to be the one to do this, Charlie? There’s absolutely no benefit in it for you.
“My grandmother asked .”
— ...What?
As if she’d misheard, Jessica asked back in a dazed voice.
— You’re getting involved in this just because your grandmother asked? Not anyone else—you, Charlie?
Everyone thinks I’m a man without blood or tears.
I let out a small chuckle and emphasized my words once more.
“That’s right. She called personally and asked. If my grandmother asks, I want to grant her request without weighing any gains or losses.”
— I can’t believe it. Are you sure you’re Charlie?
“Don’t pretend you don’t know. You people already know, don’t you? There’s no way the United States doesn’t know that my grandmother cos first for .”
There was no way Arica hadn’t searched for my weaknesses.
They would have dug through everything—from my past to my present, every trivial detail.
Yet here she was, pretending ignorance. Jessica finally stopped hiding it and answered honestly.
— Of course we know you treasure your grandmother. And the things you’ve done because of her. Even so, we never imagined you’d step into sothing like this just because she asked.
“If the U.S. governnt opposes it, I won’t force the issue. But even the U.S. breaks its principle of never negotiating with terrorists sotis, doesn’t it? Through unofficial channels.”
Arica didn’t rely solely on hardline asures.
If sothing could be resolved through dialogue, they tended to try dialogue first.
Especially during special periods like a presidential election season—they preferred to handle matters quietly.
“So, may I proceed?”
— I can’t give you a definitive answer. I’ll report it upstairs and get back to you. ...Are you also considering the use of force?
“I won’t concern myself with the ans or the thods. Of course, I’d prefer carrots over sticks if they work.”
— Understood. Wait for now. I’ll contact you.
Jessica ended the call after telling to wait.
I stared at the phone in my hand, now disconnected, and sank into thought.
‘As much as possible, I want to grant every request my grandmother makes... but this ti, I absolutely cannot get involved without Arica’s approval.’
Even if Arica was an ally, it was a country that could turn at any mont.
The Iraq War was a perfect example.
They launched a war under absurd pretexts to topple a dictator they didn’t like.
They abandoned the plan to put him on trial in an Arican court, but it was still a fact that the Hussein regi—one that had lasted decades—collapsed at Arica’s will.
I had no desire to wade into that quagmire.
I wanted to take what profits I could—and leave the rest for Arica to shoulder.
* * *
The main conference room of the Departnt of Holand Security.
Every head of every institution that held Arica’s security and intelligence in its grasp was gathered there.
John Negroponte, designated as the first Director of National Intelligence for the soon-to-be-established Office of the DNI, was present—along with the Director of the CIA, the Counterintelligence Field Activity, the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, the Terrorist Financing Tracking Program, the DIA, and even the NSA.
It was the first ti that the heads of all intelligence-related agencies had gathered in one place.
For tasks that most countries would assign to a few military or executive-branch agencies, Arica had divided the work among an excessive number of intelligence organizations.
In so ways, it was inefficient. In other ways, it was a dispersion of intelligence power.
Jessica stood at the center of that cutthroat political arena.
She swallowed dryly as she prepared to present the information she had obtained from Kim Muhyuk.
‘This is an opportunity.’
Jessica wanted to use this chance to climb higher.
To resolve the chronic conflicts between intelligence agencies, Washington had created a new position directly under the President: Director of National Intelligence—a control tower of sorts.
The bill establishing the Office of the DNI had already passed the Senate and was on the verge of implentation.
The reason all the intelligence chiefs had gathered today was, in effect, a kind of initiation ceremony.
Since the new office didn’t even have its own building yet, the eting was being held at the DHS facility.
At Jessica’s suggestion, that ceremonial gathering had been replaced with a working-level eting.
In short, it was the perfect place to leave a strong impression.
“Good afternoon. I’m Jessica, from the Departnt of Holand Security.”
Jessica introduced herself to everyone present.
“Wasn’t this supposed to be just a discussion session?”
The newly appointed CIA Director, Porter J. Goss, spoke irritably.
His predecessor had lost his job for opposing the creation of the DNI.
Most of the responsibilities the DNI would take over were duties traditionally handled by the CIA Director.
Daily intelligence briefings to the President, oversight of intelligence agencies—functions the CIA had perford for decades were about to be stripped away. There was no way he could be in a good mood.
“Director Goss. Let’s hear what this is about first.”
Condoleezza Rice, the National Security Advisor, stepped in to calm him.
With Bush’s victory in the upcoming election all but assured, Rice—widely expected to beco the next Secretary of State—wielded considerable influence.
“Ahem...”
Aware of that, Goss responded with nothing more than a forced cough.
“Jessica. Go ahead and explain. What could possibly be so important that you’d call for a briefing on a day like this?”
Even Rice didn’t understand Jessica’s move today.
Jessica nodded to Rice and began.
“This concerns four Arican citizens and one South Korean currently kidnapped in Iraq.”
As she stated sothing everyone in the room already knew, Goss replied curtly.
“And why is DHS concerned with that? We’re already handling it.”
Jessica answered calmly.
“We received an inquiry from the Korean side, asking whether negotiations with the kidnappers could be pursued.”
“What? Why would they ask you? Is this the official stance of the Korean governnt?”
“No. It’s at the civilian level...”
“What? Civilian? You dragged all these busy people here for a civilian negotiation proposal? What do you think you’re doing!”
Before Jessica could even finish, Goss raised his voice.
Ignoring him, Rice asked,
“Jessica, if it’s civilian-level, are you referring to the company employing the Korean national who was kidnapped alongside our citizens?”
Jessica shook her head.
“No. The proposal ca from Black Tiger.”
Black Tiger.
The codena assigned to Kim Muhyuk.
“Black Tiger...”
Rice trailed off.
Most of the people present knew exactly who that codena referred to.
Whether directly or indirectly, they’d been entangled with him far too often.
Still, there were agencies unfamiliar with Kim Muhyuk.
“Black Tiger?”
The Director of Naval Intelligence repeated the codena, then asked,
“Who exactly is that?”
The reactions of those who knew and those who didn’t were sharply divided.
For the uninford, Jessica explained who Kim Muhyuk was.
“A South Korean businessman, lobbyist, and a major power player on Wall Street. He’s also the de facto owner of the private military company Black Bear.”
As Jessica was about to elaborate further, Rice cut her off.
“You said it ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) was Black Tiger’s proposal. Did he say he would negotiate with the kidnappers himself?”
“Yes. He asked for Arica’s opinion.”
“Hah. That’s ridiculous. When has he ever waited for our permission before acting?”
Rice scoffed.
That proud man, asking for permission.
She could clearly picture the young businessman who spoke his mind even in front of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney—and always pushed his views through in the end.
“It seems to be because of Arica’s stance on not negotiating with terrorists. He said he wouldn’t proceed without our approval.”
After that, those who knew him asked Jessica question after question, and she answered each sincerely.
Naturally, she had the sense not to ntion that the entire matter had begun at Kim Muhyuk’s grandmother’s request.
“Hm...”
As the intelligence chiefs sank into their own thoughts, John—designated as the future Director of National Intelligence—asked,
“If negotiations proceed, what’s the probability of success?”
All eyes turned to Jessica.
“Fifty percent.”
“That’s higher than I expected.”
“Black Tiger possesses not only imnse wealth, but significant force. And his intelligence-gathering capabilities are estimated to be on par with—or superior to—the agencies gathered here.”
“What did you just say?”
Everyone except the Secretary of Holand Security bristled.
“What kind of nonsense is that? You’re saying an individual has better intelligence than Arica’s agencies?”
Unfazed by the backlash, Jessica looked calmly at John and replied,
“He was the one who provided the identities and locations of the terrorists involved in the recent incident in Spain. Every piece of intelligence Black Tiger has given us so far was information neither the CIA nor other agencies had uncovered. Thanks to that, we were able to prevent attacks in advance and capture the terrorist leaders.”
John nodded.
He, too, had learned of Black Tiger’s existence upon taking this position—at President Bush’s request.
Had anyone else told him this, he would never have believed it.
“I’ve heard bits and pieces myself. So, Jessica... your na is Jessica, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Is Black Tiger close enough to you to contact you directly like this?”
“He and I regard each other as business counterparts. I can’t disclose the details here.”
Exposing even a source was already a trendous risk.
John nodded in understanding and continued.
“Jessica, do you believe we should entrust the negotiations to him?”
Jessica swallowed involuntarily.
This was the critical mont. Being recomnded for a senior role in the DNI was one thing—leaving a lasting impression was another.
And she had no intention of letting this opportunity slip away.
“Yes. I believe he can rescue the hostages. Whether through negotiations backed by wealth, or through force.”
At her firm answer, John slowly nodded.
“You’re confident. Advisor Rice, what do you think?”
John turned to Rice beside him.
“Um...”
Rice hesitated, carefully avoiding a statent that would require taking responsibility.
“Arica does not negotiate with terrorists or hostage-takers. That’s our principle. You know that as well as anyone, don’t you?”
Goss seized the mont to press sharply.
Jessica replied without batting an eye.
“Which is why we wouldn’t do it ourselves—we’d leave it to him. In the end, all responsibility would fall on him.”
“But wouldn’t the fact that we authorized it matter?”
“An innocent civilian was executed in Iraq not long ago. The video was stread online in real ti. Public sentint at ho is unstable. And if we abandon our citizens again...”
As Jessica continued laying out her justification, the door suddenly burst open.
She frowned and glared at the man who had rushed in—but the words out of his mouth forced her to quickly compose herself.
“Al Jazeera is currently broadcasting footage of the people kidnapped in Iraq.”
It was like a bomb had gone off in an already heavy room.
* * *
“Boss. Al Jazeera has released footage showing Kim Mugil. Here...”
One day had passed since I received my grandmother’s call.
I took the laptop Ma Seokdae handed and played the video.
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