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By Root 364 0

all very necessary. Hood knew, but only in terms of posturing-like the United Nations itself. The real work was going to be done over the next few hours as they tried to figure out whether Amadori was behind the unrest. And, if so, how far he had gone in undermining the government. If he hadn't gone too far, U.S. intelligence and the military would have to work with Spanish leaders to figure out how to stop him. That would be difficult to do quietly, but it could be done. There were templates for that kind of containment in Haiti, Panama, and other nations.

But it was the alternative that concerned Hood. The possibility that, like a cancer, Amadori's influence had spread far into the workings of the nation. If that were the case, then it might not be possible to remove the general without killing the patient. The only model for that was the collapse of Yugoslavia, a struggle in which thousands of people died and the sociopolitical and economic ramifications were still being felt.

Spain had nearly four times the population of Yugoslavia. It also had friends and enemies in neighboring nations. If Spain came apart the unrest could easily spread throughout Europe. The breakup could also set an example for other melting-pot nations such as France, the United Kingdom, and Canada.

Perhaps even the United States.

The call ended with an agreement that the Secretary-General's staff would provide hourly updates to the White House, and that Burkow would inform Manni of any changes in administration policy.

Hood hung up the phone feeling more helpless than he had since he'd first joined Op-Center. He'd had missions go right and missions go wrong. His team had thwarted terrorists and coups. But he'd never faced a situation that threatened to set the tone for a new century: the idea that fragmentation was the norm rather than the exception and that nations as the world knew them could very well be on the brink of extinction.

* * *

TWENTY

Tuesday, 4:45 a.m.

Madrid, Spain

Word of Adolfo Alcazar's brutal death traveled quickly from María Corneja to Luis García de la Vega to Darrell McCaskey. As he was required to do by law, Luis conveyed news of the homicide to the Ministry of Justice in Madrid. There, a high-ranking officer on the night staff quietly passed the information to General Amadori's longtime personal aide, Antonio Aguirre. Aguirre-a former staff officer to Francisco Franco-personally went to the General's office, knocked once on the door, and waited until he was invited in. Then he gave the news to the General himself.

Amadori did not seem surprised to learn of Adolfo's death. He also did not mourn Adolfo. How could he: the General had not known the man. It had been imperative that the two men be together and communicate with one another as little as possible. That way, if Adolfo had been arrested and forced to talk, there was nothing but his own testimony to link him to the General. There were no telephone records, notes, or photographs. To Amadori, Adolfo Alcazar was a loyal soldier of the cause, one of the many revolutionaries whom the General did not and could not know.

But what the brave and devoted Adolfo Alcazar had done was a flashpoint that had helped to make this revolution possible. The General vowed aloud to Antonio Aguirre that his murder would be avenged and his killers eliminated. He knew exactly who to go after: the Ramirez familia. No one else would have a reason or the means to eliminate Adolfo. Their deaths would be an example to others that he intended to treat resistance with terminal force.

And, of course, as the General told Antonio, the roundup and execution of the Ramirez familia would serve one other purpose. It would frighten and scatter other familias that might be inclined to oppose him. Which was why the strike had to be very public and very dramatic.

The General gave Antonio the order to make that happen. Antonio saluted smartly, turned, and left without saying a word. He went directly to his desk and phoned General Americo Hoss at the Tagus Army Air Base outside of Toledo.