The voice of the man infuriated him. The news of his boy was worse but not unexpected. It saddened him to think that one of the boys he had adopted wouldn’t live up to his full potential. He'd taken over forty children from the slums of London and other places, adopted them, taught them, loved them. He’d pulled them from their humble lives and gave them something better. The adults he'd selected helped him run his business interests. The children he raised assisted them until they were ready for their own responsibilities. His biological children ran everything behind the scenes with his permission. They all owed him their loyalty and if need be, their lives.

The young ones were always the most fulfilling. They were full of youthful energy, full of the wonders of the world that he loved to show them. They were also the easiest to instruct on how he expected them to perform. Life could be so unfair that a child would never know what he had in store for him.

One thing was sure. He looked at the bodies of his men on the landing above him. The men above, their death wouldn't come soon enough.

He prepared to yell up to answer the Americans but stopped. What was there to say? He wanted the satphone. Anything, everything else he could abandon.

“I want that satphone now.”

“That’s tragic. We all want what we can’t have.”

Hotak’s face turned deep red. It was a struggle to control himself. He clamped his teeth together. He wanted to scream out, choke the man who’d uttered the words. This man’s death wouldn’t come soon enough. He wrapped a hand around his fist, shaking. He waited till he could speak reasonably.

“Why are you here? Why are you doing this to me?”

“Why am I here?” The man shouted in rage.

Hotak smiled. He had gotten under the man’s skin. Tit for tat.

Another man spoke. “You know why we’re here. You knew we were coming. You tried to kill us on the way here.”

Hotak waved his hand dismissively. “I have many sources near and far, some of course at the base you flew in from. I know you are somehow in the employ of the CIA. I tried to stop you before you even started. I tried to kill you on the way here. I missed you again at Captain Amadula’s compound. Thank you, by the way, for assisting in his demise. I know you started with two others who are dead now. I know you brought a woman here with unknown qualifications. What I don’t know is why you are here.”

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“We came to do a simple little recon. We had information that there was some strange stuff going on. None of this would have happened if you hadn’t tried to kill us. We would have never known about the smallpox virus you harvested and weaponized. We wouldn’t have found out you were putting weaponized smallpox in your drug containers. We know you're sending them all over the world to create some kind of pandemic.”

His lips fluttered in shocked surprise. He put his hand on the wall and bent over. He couldn’t help himself with everything that had happened. He'd suffered delays, his children held hostage, and now a standoff with these idiots. Hotak laughed out loud. They were long belly laughs. He straightened up only to bend over, taking long breaths between the laughter. His hand sought the support of the wall to prevent him from sinking to his knees. With his other hand, he rubbed the tears from his face.

“By all that is holy.” He choked back more laughter. “Oh. That’s good. Oh no. Oh.” He chuckled. “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. That’s insane. Why would I do something like that." He snorted. "It would ruin my business and all my plans.”

The only response he heard was silence.

“Then what are you doing?”

The humorous smile continued. “As for the opium, I control much of the world's opium. I’ve been consolidating my business and developing new drugs for a broader range of clients. I've instituted new logistical and control measures, among many other innovations. It’s all very mundane but very profitable. As far as the smallpox, well, I have something big planned for that. But I'm afraid this isn’t a spy movie where I reveal my evil plans so you can thwart them. I would tell you to wait and see, but you’ll be dead long before it happens.”

“Maybe we’ll find out when we access the hard drives we took from your office?”

“Maybe.” He shook his head. "You'll never leave here to find out." Enough. “Now. Give me the satphone and live or suffer the opposite.”

The men around him stirred uncertainty. This was no time for them to lose their edge. He held little regard for them, but he needed them. Once he got to his estate, he would hire the services of Western soldiers to continue his plans. Now, he needed someone to rally them.

“We’ll think about it. We’ll get back to you.”

One of his soldiers stepped forward, one of Badi’s favorites. Dressed as simply as his fellow soldiers, his attitude stood out. Behind his beard, Hotak saw something else. This man emanated a cunning born of survival in the harsh conditions of tribal warfare. Hotak knew his history. The man was a savage, but he had his uses.

“Baabaa Hotak, with your permission." He bowed. "With Badi’s help, I have trained for this day. I wish to prove my worth to you. Badi says you love excellence and loyalty. Let me lead these men against the Americans. I will solve this problem quickly and reliably.”

“What else has Badi told you?”

“He told me you reward men who are loyal, dependable, and capable. I am all those things.”

Hotak nodded his head and smiled.