Mitla Pass - Leon Uris [54]
Gideon managed to listen without expression.
“France and Britain want the Suez Canal back, right?” Cromwell said.
“I suppose so.”
“Israel’s interest is getting Nasser’s troops out of the Sinai, opening the Red Sea to their shipping, and stopping the terrorist attacks from the Gaza Strip. Now, let’s make an educated guess what these people were discussing.”
“I don’t know that this meeting even took place, Rich. I know you’re implying some kind of joint military action.”
“Against Egypt,” Rich said.
“Hell, it could be. From the looks of it, Jordan seems to be the target.”
“A decoy,” Rich said. “We think Jordan is a decoy and we take umbrage that two of America’s closest allies are planning a military action without consulting us.”
“It’s all over my head, Rich.”
“Here it is, Gideon, straight and unvarnished. You’re an American. You can get us the answers to a couple of very frustrating questions. We think the British and French aren’t consulting us because they’re afraid we’d stop them.”
Gideon popped out of his chair, tipped the Scotch bottle into his glass, and considered Cromwell’s theory. “Why is it in America’s interest to stop two of her allies from taking back an international waterway vital to the West and why is it in our interest to keep the Suez Canal and Red Sea closed to Israeli shipping? Like, Rich, I don’t follow you.”
Cromwell had succeeded in the first step, getting Zadok to discuss the matter. “The instant England and France make a hostile move against Egypt, the Soviet Union is going to plunge headlong into the Middle East to play hero to the Arabs. We don’t want Russia in here any deeper. It’s Egypt’s canal. Nasser owns it. We don’t give a big rat’s ass if England and France don’t get it back. Are you starting to get the drift of America’s interest?”
Gideon gave a noncommittal gesture.
“What happens when the Kremlin advises the British and French that five hundred Russian missiles are trained on Paris and London and are going to be fired if they set foot in Egypt? Who’s going to get to clean this mess up? I’m talking about the probability of a Soviet-American confrontation. Eisenhower does not want to go to war over the Suez Canal, nor do we want the Russians arming every two-bit Arab dictator in the Middle East. Now, let me ask you one more time. Are Israel, France, and England planning an attack on Egypt? Yes, or no?”
“I don’t know,” Gideon rasped.
“I think you’re a liar.”
“I don’t know. How could I know?”
“I don’t want to be crude but you’ve got a lady friend in the Prime Minister’s office who translates all the top-secret documents into Hebrew. Everybody in Israel knows that Natasha Solomon is your mistress. In fact, you didn’t make much of an effort to cover it until your family arrived.”
Gideon sat again and fidgeted uncomfortably.
“You could find out if you wanted to,” Cromwell pressed.
“Natasha wouldn’t tell me. No way she would tell me.”
“All right, Gideon, sit on this one. Israel is going to mobilize. She’s calling up the reserves the day after tomorrow.”
The thunder of Cromwell’s announcement fell on him, hard. The book. Val. The girls. Ruined! Everything’s ruined!
“I personally like you,” Cromwell said. “You might need me to help you get your family out of here. Things could get very tight.”
“Mind if I have another drink?”
“Help yourself.” Cromwell jotted a number on a slip of paper and handed it to Gideon. “Private line. It’s scrambled so you can talk freely. However, you make your calls from a pay phone. Keep in touch every day and let me know if you have anything to tell me.”
Gideon scarcely heard him. He slipped the note into his pocket, his head reeling, trying