Zero Hour Read Free Page A

of Revelation, would be one of the sites of the final battle between good and evil. That seemed appropriate. The attack on al-Kibar was certainly going to be Biblical.
    Ten fast jets would take part in the initial attack, though only seven would be coming my way. For now all ten headed west, out into the Mediterranean. It was a decoy manoeuvre. Both the Turks and the Syrians would be tracking them. Everybody wants to know what the Israelis are up to 24/7 in this part of the world.
    The screen displayed an empty bar chart. The Tefalheads at GCHQ who’d put this together must have realized that I needed everything to be as simple as possible. I turned off the lights and picked up the umbrella so that the inside and the shaft pointed out of the window. I moved it up and down and side to side until the bar chart was about three-quarters full of green. It was the best I could do and all that was needed.
    I propped the umbrella on a chair and anchored it across the handle with my pillow.
    ‘This is Cody Zero One. Ra’am first wave ready to go active.’
    I adjusted the dish. ‘Roger that, Cody Zero One. I am seven-five, seventy-five per cent. Over.’
    ‘Roger that, James Zero Two. Seven-fiver. Good to go. Stand by.’
    Someone somewhere counted down Ra’am’s first wave on a radio. It was slow, guttural and very Israeli. ‘Five - four - three - two - one - go, go, go.’
    ‘This is Cody Zero One. Ra’am first wave active. Acknowledge.’
    ‘Roger that, Cody Zero One. I’m still seven-fiver.’
    Three of the ten F-15s had peeled off and headed east-north-east towards the Syrian border. They were going to attack the radar site at Tall al-Abuad with their Maverick missiles and 500-pounders. The moment that happened, the stakes would be raised. Every unit near the border would hear what was going on, and the Syrian military would start flapping big-time.
    All I could do now was listen as Cody gave the running commentary. I needed a picture in my head of what was happening. So did the other guy listening in. Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, was taking personal responsibility for the Ra’am part of this attack. I was sure his surroundings were a little more comfortable than mine.
    ‘This is Cody Zero One. Ten seconds to contact.’
    I counted them down on my second-hand.
    ‘First attack - ordnance deployed. Contact, contact, contact. Second attack …’
    There was a pause.
    Cody was waiting for the Mavericks from the second wave to deploy as he watched the target on his screens. He’d be looking for the splashes all over the night-vision thermal imagery as bombs and missiles hit the radar installation.
    ‘Ordnance deployed. Contact, contact, contact. Third attack …’
    Another pause, shorter this time.
    ‘Weapons deployed.’ For Cody, it would have been like watching a video game. ‘Contact, contact, contact.’
    That was the radar defences fucked up.
    ‘Ra’am second wave now active … James Zero Two, acknowledge.’
    ‘Roger that, Cody Zero One. I still have seven-fiver.’
    The seven remaining F-15s were now screaming towards the Syrian border to break through the secure corridor that had been opened by the attack. From the moment they hit Syrian air space, it was exactly eighteen minutes to target.
    Cody couldn’t help himself now. There was excitement in his voice. ‘Ra’am second wave - now in the combat box. James Zero Two, all yours - acknowledge.’
    ‘Roger that, Cody Zero One.’
    I hit my countdown timer. My eyes were glued to the screen. I wasn’t sure what to do if the bar percentage dropped. Fuck about with the umbrella, I supposed.
    The F-15s would be virtually hugging the ground to avoid being illuminated. Now the border had been attacked, ground-to-air missile systems would be searching the sky. They wouldn’t know what the fuck was going on, but they’d know there had been an attack on their air defences, and that meant there was going to be an air incursion. But what type?