Should Be

157.

The operational blueprint for Phase One calls for three independent, yet very connected, birds to be launched simultaneously. Each one aggressive, risky and sublime. I felt it important to capsulize the trio of opening salvos into a format that could be read like an instruction manual; follow these steps with accuracy, precision and efficiency and the end result should produce the desired result. As much as I appreciate this approach, having used it many times in the past with success, there is one word in it that always gives me the chills: SHOULD - the end result should produce the desired result. 

The deciding factor in turning a disaster into a chance to fight another day when one of these nefarious shoulds doesn’t play as expected is the experience of the agent, soldier, negotiator, intelligence officer or asset. There is nothing in training, practice or live drills that prepares one for the moment of truth when the game plan heads suddenly south. It happens, and happens a lot. And when it does, you improvise based on a thousand variables, using your internal data base of best chance and available choice. 

1) TOM puts in a call to Senator Hartaugh requesting a meeting to discuss both the current situation and an intreguing new development that is as interesting as it is urgent. TOM suggests that they meet at the Senators favorite restaurant the next day at noon. 

2) Davis, Saunders and Drysdale head to Vegas and check into a hotel suite owned by longtime Hartaugh supporter and financial (silent) partner Sheldon Adelson. They will be establishing a shell operation to provide the appearance of an existing organized consortium looking to make a big score using new computer hacking technologies specifically in the gaming arena.

3) The Queen and I have authored a memo that will be sent to the ADX warden announcing a demonstration by the DoD contractor currently supplying overall facility security about revolutionary new unmanned security drone techniques and technologies. 

The 'shoulds' are simple: Hartaugh SHOULD accept TOM’s offer and agree to meet and hear him out. 

The Alpha Team of Davis, Saunders and Drysdale SHOULD generate enough buzz to interest Adleson.

The memo, an outstanding piece of forgery, SHOULD seduce the warden into calling up-chain for verification. 

Hartaugh will call Adleson after he hears the news from TOM. Adleson will already be receiving teases and a faux demonstration from Alpha Team and with our memo hitting the computer of the warden through the encryption used exclusively between himself and the contractor, in less than a day we should be ready to launch Phase Two.

Should be.