Page 19 of Clive Cussler Ghost Soldier

“I saw that,” Juan said. “The details were sketchy. Why do you say ‘presumably’ ambushed by jihadis?”

“We just received further information on the attack a few hours ago. It turns out there was a lone survivor, a Nigerian Army sergeant who was sheltering in a nearby village while recovering from his wounds. He claims that his unit was attacked by Americans.”

Max and Juan exchanged a confused look.

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Max said. “I thought the Nigerians had already ordered us out of the country after the military coup.”

“They did, though technically, we’re still in negotiations to maintain our drone base there. But obviously no American units were ordered to attack the Nigerians who, until very recently, were among our best allies in the region in the war against Islamic extremism.”

“Did the sergeant offer any proof?”

“He reported the presence of several Humvees with heavy machine guns and anti-tank guided missiles, along with at least one Black Hawk helicopter.”

“Since when did we start selling our equipment to African jihadis?” Max asked.

“I assure you that we don’t. The latest report also states that when the Nigerians recovered the bodies of their fallen comrades, they also found an expended M72 LAW rocket launcher and a jammed M4 rifle. We ran the serial numbers on those weapons. Their last known location was in an Afghan Army arsenal near Bagram Air Force base.”

Juan ran a hand through his brush-cut hair, processing the information. This smelled like trouble, big time.

When American forces withdrew in haste from Afghanistan, massive numbers of American weapons had been left behind. Worse, the vaunted army of three hundred thousand Afghan soldiers thePentagon had supposedly trained and equipped had evaporated from the field of combat the instant the Taliban began its dash for Kabul. It was later learned that most of those three hundred thousand bought-and-paid-for Afghani soldiers never really existed. They were a “ghost” army of fake names, ranks, and serial numbers that corrupt Afghani politicians and warlords created to bilk the American taxpayer for billions of payroll dollars. Equally important, those nonexistent ghost soldiers had been armed to the teeth with expensive American military equipment.

All told, analysts estimated the Taliban was now in possession of at least eighty billion dollars’ worth of weapons and supplies including forty-five UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, twenty-five hundred armored Humvees, and sixteen thousand pairs of night vision goggles, along with tens of millions of rounds of ammunition for all those abandoned weapons systems.

“I’ve heard of some rifles and grenades getting over the border into Pakistan and into Kashmir,” Juan said. “That makes sense, given the geographical proximity. But Niger?”

“Unfortunately, the Nigerian ambush is just the latest incident. A Filipino special forces unit was slaughtered in a night assault by New People’s Army rebels using American night vision goggles two weeks ago.”

“Also with American serial numbers located in Afghanistan, I take it.”

“Correct. And there have been similar incidents in Colombia and Libya. These arms shipments are tilting the balance of power in these regional conflicts. The U.S. government is deeply concerned with the strategic implications that regime changes incur, not to mention the fact we’re embarrassed that it’s our arms supply that’s causing it.”

“Something isn’t adding up,” Juan said. “The Taliban might have all of our abandoned gear, but they don’t have the means for global transport.”

“We know it’s not the Pipeline,” Max said. With the help of a brave Turkish journalist, theOregoncrew had successfully dismantled the infamous criminal smuggling ring a few years back.

“Any clues as to who’s running the new U-Haul service for them?” Juan asked.

“As of this moment, none.”

“Not even the usual suspects? North Korea, Russia, or Quds Force?”

“We’ve eliminated the Chinese, Russian, and Iranian security forces, as well as the North Koreans.”

“Criminals, like Nature, abhor a vacuum,” Max said. “It’s gotta be one of the mafias.”

“Our Interpol friends assure us it’s all quiet on those fronts.”

“How do we figure into this?” Juan asked.

“I have two assignments for you while you’re in Afghanistan.”

“Does that mean I get to bill you twice?”

Overholt chuckled. “I’d be disappointed if you didn’t try.”

“I’m all ears.”

“First, I need you to determine how many American weapons are still remaining in the Afghani caches so we know what we’re dealing with.”