Page 66 of Clive Cussler Ghost Soldier
Piccinini shook his head. “No. What can you tell me about him?”
“Not much. We don’t know his identity, or his location, or really much of anything. That’s what we’ve come to find out. We want to go to the ambush site and look around. We’re hoping we can find a clue from the weapons cache stored up there. Any chance you can show us the way?”
Piccinini shook his head. “I would gladly take you there myself, but the brass is embarrassed and wants to pretend the ambush didn’t really happen. We don’t have the manpower to punish the offenders, let alone drive them off that mountain. So instead, the authorities have designated that area a no-go zone for all KFOR personnel.”
“Can you at least show us where it is on a map?”
“Only approximately.”
The colonel stepped over to the topographical map and traced a path on it with his finger as he spoke.
“The logging road ends here. From there you’ll have to proceed by foot up steep terrain with heavy trees. It’s located up high on the mountain, somewhere in this two-kilometer radius.”
“And where did the ambush take place?” MacD asked.
“Exactly here, farther down.” The colonel touched the map, then stepped away so the rugged Cajun could examine it more closely.
“They were scheduled to meet with your informant, right?” Raven asked.
“The team stopped at the meeting point, but found themselves in the middle of a firefight.”
“What happened to the informant?”
“I’ve tried to reach him. He’s not answering my texts.”
“I don’t mean to be obvious, but…isn’t it possible he betrayed your squad?”
Piccinini shrugged in the most Italian of ways. “Of course, anything is possible. But I doubt it. He turned his back on the radicals and now is mostly a hermit.”
“What do you mean, ‘turned his back’?” MacD asked.
“He fought with ISIS for several years overseas, but had a change of heart after he saw what animals they were. He returned home to live in peace. But when he saw the radicals coming back to the area, he reached out to me.”
“Is there really such a thing as a ‘former’ ISIS member?” Raven asked.
“If you met him, you’d understand. He’s quite cautious. He trusts almost no one except me and the people I recommend to him. His name is Nedim Ramadani.”
“If you think he hasn’t turned, and he’s not answering your texts…?” Raven didn’t want to finish the thought.
“I know. He’s likely dead.”
“Can you tell us where he lives up there?” MacD asked.
Piccinini pointed at another location. “The last time I met him, he was living here. But that was a year ago. If you can find him, he will be your best chance of finding the Salafists and their weapons cache.”
“And if we can’t?”
“Then you are on your own. And God help you up on that mountain. My hands are tied. I can’t back you up.”
Raven nodded. “We understand.”
“If you trust this Ramadani fella, that’s good enough for us,” MacD said. “We’ll go take a look-see.” He pulled out his cell phone and snapped close-up photos of the topo map.
“We could use a few supplies,” Raven said. “Any chance you could point us in the right direction?”
“As a KFOR officer I can’t officially help you.”
Piccinini reached into his pocket and handed Raven a set of keys. “But my personal vehicle is parked out back. I believe you’ll find everything you need in it.”
