Page 42 of Grave Danger
“Yes. We are in sync,” said Comstock.
“And you’re not denying that those negotiations are being led by the National Security Council, not the State Department—because the NSC is negotiating for the release of her husband.”
“We are neither confirming nor denying.”
“What if I told you that, if you do confirm, I might be willing to help you.”
“Speaking to you in your capacity as a federal agent, I find that statement troubling,” said Comstock.
“I agree,” said Davis.
“Troubling? How?”
“As a federal agent, it’s your duty and responsibility to convince your husband to back away from the Ava Bazzi controversy,” said Comstock.
“I’m also a wife. The State Department is asking me to ignore the fact that I’m married to Jack Swyteck. You’re essentially asking me to do undercover work inside my own marriage.”
Chief Comstock paused, then said, “That’s a fair characterization of our request. What’s your answer, Agent Henning?”
Andie hadn’t expected such a straight answer. “My answer is that I would need to lay out some ground rules.”
“Such as?”
“Before I would even consider such an assignment, I would need to know that someone’s life is at stake. In other words, I certainly would not provide any assistance to the State Department vis-à-vis Jack if the only thing at stake is some nebulous and ultimately meaningless matter of international diplomacy that the president and his administration would tout in the short term as a political feather in their cap.”
“The State Department does not negotiate for reasons of political expedience,” said Comstock.
“My point is that I won’t help you for anything less than a matter of life and death. I want to see with my own eyes and hear with my own ears, firsthand, that the hostage negotiations this woman described to me are real.”
“We can’t do that,” said Comstock. “We can’t make you privy to the negotiations.”
“Then we don’t have a deal,” said Andie.
Davis, whose division included Iran, spoke up. “Let’s try a slightly different approach. What if we showed you proof—actual evidence—that Jack’s argument in court is completely wrongheaded?”
“Are you saying that the State Department has proof that the Iranian morality police didnotmurder Ava Bazzi?”
“Yes,” said Davis. “And we will show you that proof in your capacity as a federal agent. All we are asking you to do is tell your husband the truth. Tell him that you have seen a classified dossier confirming that Ava Bazzi was not murdered by the morality police.”
Andie was naturally skeptical. “Why don’t you just tell Jack yourself?”
“That should be obvious, Agent Henning.”
“Indulge me,” said Andie.
“If we share the contents of a confidential dossier with your husband, he would be free to share that information with the court, the press, or anyone he desired. It’s not a crime for your husband to disclose confidential information that the State Department voluntarily shares with him.”
“But the same thing applies ifItell him there’s a confidential State Department dossier showing that Ava Bazzi is still alive.”
“It’s a little different,” said Davis.
“How is it different?”
“If Jack Swyteck publicly reveals that his wife told him about a confidential dossier about Ava Bazzi,youwould go to prison.”
Andie understood the implicit threat: if Jack were to go public with anything Andie told him about the dossier, the State Department wouldflatly deny ever having authorized her, much less directed her, to disclose the contents of the classified dossier to her husband. But that was not her chief concern.
“Let me make sure I understand,” says Andie. “You’re asking me to share classified information with my husband to get him to completely reverse his position on Ava Bazzi. Is that right?”