Scorpion Betrayal Read online

  The Black House, NSA headquarters. The National Security Agency/Central Security Service (NSA/CSS) is headquartered in the “Black House,” aka the Black Building, aka the Building, so-called because of the color of the rectangular building’s window glass. The building is located on the grounds of the Fort Meade army base in Maryland. There are also facilities in Texas, Georgia, Utah, and elsewhere. The NSA is the U.S. intelligence agency primarily responsible for COMINT (see above), cryptanalysis, computer intelligence, and security. The NSA’s partner agency, the Central Security Service (CSS) is responsible for coordinating cryptanalysis and related activities between the NSA and the Department of Defense agencies also engaged in such work. For many years the U.S. government refused to acknowledge NSA’s existence, leading Washington insiders to quip that the letters NSA stood for “No Such Agency.”

  SAIC. Special Agent in Charge; the FBI designation for the agent in charge of a local FBI office. FBI Supervisory Special Agents typically head FBI HRTs (Hostage Rescue Teams).

  The Point. Also known as Harvey Point, aka Harvey Point Defense Testing Activity Facility; this is a CIA training facility near Hertford, North Carolina. As previously noted, only part of CIA training is conducted at the Farm (see above). The CIA’s Directorate of Operations uses the Point for training in specialized covert operations and paramilitary skills (the so-called Black Arts), such as breaking into buildings, “snatch and grab” (recovery of friendly or hostile persons), CQB (Close Quarter Battle—fighting with weapons in close quarters), EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) and AET (Applied Explosive Techniques), etc. Other organizations, such as the DIA, the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives), the FBI, the U.S. Navy SEALs, and the U.S. Army’s Delta Force sometimes do specialized covert training at the Point.

  Sabra and Shatila massacre. The massacre of Palestinian and Lebanese civilians at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps in West Beirut in September 1982 was carried out by the Lebanese Forces Christian Phalangist militia following the assassination of the Christian Phalangist leader and president-elect of Lebanon, Bashir Gemayel. The number of persons killed, as with much about this event, has been disputed, with estimates ranging from 328 to 3,500 dead. Although the actual killing was carried out by Lebanese Christians, many in the international community placed much of the blame for the massacre on Israel. It was claimed that the Israeli leadership and the Israeli Defense Force, whose soldiers surrounded the camps after the expulsion of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) from Lebanon, should have foreseen what the Phalangists would do when the Israelis allowed them into the camps after Gemayel’s assassination, and that once the massacre started, the Israelis were slow to act to stop the killing. Within Israel, massive street demonstrations demanding an inquiry led to the creation of the Kahan Commission, whose report concluded that while no Israelis participated in the massacre, Israel bore an indirect responsibility for not acting sooner to end the massacre. The report placed “personal responsibility” on Ariel Sharon, who was forced to resign as Minister of Defense.

  In August 1983, Israeli Prime Minister Menahem Begin retired from political life. The story of the brother and sister and the account of the massacre from a child’s point of view was part of the author’s conception of this novel from the very beginning.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  No work exists in a vacuum. This book would not have seen the light of day were it not for the exceptional efforts of my agent, Dominick Abel, the best I’ve ever known, and my editor, David Highfill, who went the extra mile. Thank you both for your belief in this book and in me. I must also acknowledge my wife, Anne, and son, Justin, without whose help, support, and honest criticism the outcome would not have been nearly as positive. Thank you all.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  ANDREW KAPLAN is a former journalist and war correspondent who has covered events around the world. He served in both the U.S. Army and in the Israeli Army during the Six Day War and later provided military intelligence analysis for the Israel Defense Force. He has consulted with groups that advise a number of government agencies, and as president of a technical communications company, performed contract work for major U.S. corporations and government agencies. He is the author of four internationally bestselling novels: Hour of the Assassins, Scorpion, Dragonfire, and War of the Raven. He was also in the running to complete Robert Ludlum’s Bourne franchise and was one of the writers of the James Bond film GoldenEye. He lives with his family in Southern California and is currently working on Scorpion Winter, the next Scorpion novel.

  www.andrewkaplan.com

  Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins authors.

  PRAISE

  ANDREW KAPLAN

  SCORPION

  BETRAYAL

  “Do this: Read the first two pages of Scorpion Betrayal right now. See what I mean? It just gets better from there. Kaplan has written one of the smartest, swiftest and most compelling spy novels I’ve read in years.”

  Harlan Coben, author of Live Wire

  “Wow! Scorpion Betrayal, with two brilliantly unique protagonists, delivers more heart-thumping twists and turns, beliefs and betrayals, than The Day of the Jackal and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold rolled into one. Scorpion Betrayal breaks the mold. As a penetrating and fascinating look into the dark underbelly of those tightly-interwoven worlds—global terrorism and international espionage—it is almost a textbook example of how to write a great thriller that today’s readers will love.”

  Katherine Neville, author of The Eight and The Fire

  “Andrew Kaplan is back with a vengeance in this lightning-swift tale of espionage that opens with a shocking assassination in a Cairo café and then races through the capitals of Europe as Scorpion—a legendary ex-CIA now freelance spy—runs his quarry to ground before it’s too late. The authenticity is palpable. I love this novel. Andrew Kaplan represents a gold standard in thriller writing.”

  David Morrell, author of The Brotherhood of the Rose

  “Andrew Kaplan has a masterful grasp of the inner workings of intelligence agencies and their fight against terror that he weaves through this suspenseful tale of espionage.”

  Reza Kahlili, author of A Time to Betray: The Astonishing Double Life of a CIA Agent Inside the Revolutionary Guards of Iran

  “The ending is both logical and refreshingly unexpected. It’s a great read, filled with fabulous facts and frequent flashes that are surprising, but completely believable. I hate to use the cliché, but it’s true: I couldn’t put it down!”

  Brian Garfield, author of Death Wish and Hopscotch

  And resounding praise for Andrew Kaplan’s previous novels

  “Superb and original.”

  Nelson DeMille

  “Pure dynamite…. Espionage laced with high-voltage Middle East adventure.”

  Washington Times

  “Kaplan takes the thriller genre at its word, moving as fast as Ludlum but with ten times the eye for settings and crisp characterization.”

  Kirkus Reviews

  “Kaplan, with the surehandedness of a pro, knows well the underbelly business of spycraft.”

  Gerald Browne, author of Stone 588

  “In a word, terrific… . The pace is blistering, the atmosphere menacing and decadent, and author Andrew Kaplan is in marvelously smashing form.”

  New York Daily News

  “Excellent… . Pulsates with intrigue and dramatic suspense.”

  Clive Cussler

  “Brimming with action.”

  Washington Post

  “[Kaplan] kept me up well into the late show hours…. Hollywood please copy.”

  Los Angeles Times

  “Kaplan has a fine knack for telling a story… . Only the most hardened cynic will fail to keep turning to the next adventure.”

  Louisville Times

  “[Kaplan] successfully blends sex, suspense, sustained action, an exotic location, and historic plausibility … [for]
a superior thriller that is a memorable and entertaining reading experience.”

  Library Journal

  “Unrelenting suspense.”

  Booklist

  “[Kaplan’s] characters and locales are brilliantly etched … [his] plot riveting.”

  London Times

  “Explosive non-stop action… . [Kaplan] proves as nimble in delineating character and evoking exotic locales as he is in sustaining razor-edged excitement.”

  Mystery News

  “Steamy, erotic, spellbinding fiction with more twists and turns than Hitchcock and Graham Greene combined.”

  Roderick Thorp, author of Die Hard

  “Smashing, sexy, and unforgettable.”

  Publishers Weekly

  “Andrew Kaplan surpasses the genre.”

  Warren Adler, author of War of the Roses

  BY ANDREW KAPLAN

  SCORPION BETRAYAL

  WAR OF THE RAVEN

  DRAGONFIRE

  SCORPION

  HOUR OF THE ASSASSINS

  COPYRIGHT

  This book is a work of fiction. References to real people, events, establishments, organizations, or locales are intended only to provide a sense of authenticity, and are used fictitiously. All other characters, and all incidents and dialogue, are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real.

  SCORPION BETRAYAL. Copyright © 2012 by Andrew Kaplan. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

  EPub Edition APRIL 2012 ISBN 9780062063779

  Print Edition ISBN 9780062064585

  FIRST EDITION

  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  ABOUT THE PUBLISHER

  Australia

  HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pvt. Ltd.

  25 Ryde Road (P.O. Box 321)

  Pymble, NSW 2073, Australia

  http://www.harpercollins.com.au

  Canada

  HarperCollins Canada

  2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor

  Toronto, ON, M4W, 1A8, Canada

  http://www.harpercollins.ca

  New Zealand

  HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand) Limited

  P.O. Box 1

  Auckland, New Zealand

  http://www.harpercollins.co.nz

  United Kingdom

  HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

  77–85 Fulham Palace Road

  London, W6 8JB, UK

  http://www.harpercollins.co.uk

  United States

  HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

  10 East 53rd Street

  New York, NY 10022

  http://www.harpercollins.com