Book 4, Chapter 10 Summary

Past eighty years old and slowing down, Barak asks to retire. In Naples, he briefs Mossad agents, and they tell him about a massive cache of arms the Syrians have bought and loaded aboard an Italian motor ship, the Vesuvius. Israeli frogmen have disabled her with mines, and she is dry-docked under heavy guard. Syrian Colonel Fawdzi, in charge of the cargo, has secretly agreed to turn the cargo over to the Israelis, if they promise not to damage her again. On the open seas, Vesuvius can evade the meager Israeli navy. Intrigued by such knotty problems, Barak devises a plot. Outside the harbor, an Italian customs cutter hails Vesuvius, and a giant, red-and-white-bearded captain comes aboard to warn of an Israeli bomb threat. The Arab crewmen are taken below, and Fawdzi is placed under cabin arrest as Mossad agents speed...