Sacrifice, a Novel by George Brown: Summary

This 470-page book published by Arrow UK in 1995 and the first published in 1994. The spy thriller book began from Dublin, London, and Australia. There is no much information about Mr. George Brown but he has three novels. Global issue on terrorism, illegal weaponry and drug smuggling, patriotism, betrayal, sadism, action, are wrapped in strong thriller at Melbourne and Dublin scene.

The bad guy and good one have the same part in this book, the author seems want to tell the reader that there is no white and black thing on international diplomatic decision relates to crime.  “There are times when we must sacrifice some our chips to make a bigger gain on the table later.” (page 467)

British wants to destroy M16 Greville’s memoir before it is published. The dangerous manuscript names some English high rank intelligences who negotiate to Libyan and ex Uni-Soviet smuggler and terrorist; drug, illegal weapon, huge cash have flooded Europe. The order comes from General Sanderson to Agent Clive Reason. Numerous character grows agent Barlow from London and agent Greville Sixsmith M16 and Australian Secret Organization (ASIO); agent Dubrovnik, Toby Grant, Sophie Ward, and IRA and PIRA Executives from Dublin.

Sacrifice, a Novel by George Brown: Summary

The two Arabs were shot down at St Anne’s Park, Dublin. The Irishman his back torn by half magazine of bullet covered in blood on his hands and knees. Killing the Arabs was good move. Major David Murray did a proper job of work but tried to think who did that. They couldn’t make up their minds whether it’s drug people moving into the game. General Sir Richard Anderson had had a full war in field. For the last ten years, had been head of the special intelligence group formed by Mrs. Thatcher in early eighties. Sanderson answered only one executive and the incumbent prime minister. Clive Reason was still in his thirties, black, graduate of Parachute Regiment School he was Sanderson’s number two.

British agent Harry Barlow was not a tall man but his straight shoulders and a springiness about him that indicated a man who despite his forty-four years. A fighting soldier, Barlow had tired of regimental soldiering as quickly as regiment had of his relentless and his election into intelligence had been a formality. He was essentially a loner and preferring to work things out for himself. With nobody’s back to watch but his own, undercover work in the no-man’s land of the Irish Republic’s border areas brought him most satisfaction. It was there that he had met up with the man and formed the only real friendship with Clive Reason in his life. Still suffering from a marriage that had fallen apart, he was drinking too much.

The middle to senior professional executive on M16, Greville Sixmith, was just about run out time. Joined M16 in 1957 when he came down from Cambridge. The British sixty-year-old in great financial difficulties would find hard to resist the chance to earn tax-free, for money, was writing his memoirs that could be his life-saver. His retirement date was almost two months. He was a senior civil servant with Department of Intelligence credentials. Thirty-six-years Greville had never known to take even a dried-out biro from the building but General Sanderson chose him in a spy mission in Australia. He has done business with Iraq terrorists, and well-documented information proved he was on the list as having supplied them with information. The divorced man with a daughter aged about thirty-two that he hadn’t seen years.

The director of ASIO, Australian Intelligence Organization, Heros Dubrovnik, had been in Australia since 1947. His father changed his Yugoslav named Izetzelbegovic into Dubrovnik as being shorter, easier for Australian tongue to wrap around. Toby Grant was completely opposite of the Yugoslav. Young, tall, short-cut blond hair, very fit, a typical Australian. In field, the exec officer who steered Aussie on Singapore run was Sixsmith. Toby Grant was one of Dubrovnik’s senior operatives, a troubleshooter for the department. Toby had met Clive Reason, the black pompy spy with in KL operation.

Toby and his boss Dubrovnik studied Sixsmith, he rented a house in Melbourne.  Grant said the instruction came from the Director General Arthur Gunne himself to have a look at Sixsmith. ASIO had Sophie Ward, an attractive woman and her job was to run Dubrovnik’s Melbourne’s station and she did better than anyone.

Sanderson concluded that there was strong evidence linking the Irish Republican Army, (IRA: armed movement that sought remove Northern Ireland from United Kingdom) with some major drug people. Provisional the Irish Republican Army (PIRA: a split of IRA), had all the help they could use from America and Australia and a few dozen highly trained ex-PIRA gangsters in highly liberal society when they run out of opportunity in Northern Ireland. The Irish claimed to have one in the position in London.

Clive Reason ordered his friend Gary Barlow flew to Australia to meet Greville. Gary Barlow collaborated with two ASIO’s agents, Toby Grant and Sophie Ward to extract Sixsmiths. Sixsmiths was found death and his memoir was taken. But nobody was named as the man who put him down. Dubrovnik wasn’t interested in Europe problems; professionally, the IRA and their activities held no interested on him. But as far as England was concerned, if he had been asked to take sides, his savage Slavic soul would opt for IRA.

Barbara O’Donnell was a senior executive running the Irish desk in Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS). An attractive brunette in her mid-forties, Barbara, studied that the death of Peadar in Dublin was linked with an illegal organization in the North Ireland. According to Sixsmth’s manuscript, the British had bugged on O’Dwyer meeting with the Libyan intelligence officer. It appeared that Peadar O’Dwyer had been ch0sen by the Dublin executive. On that day, there were a total of five killings involving the Republic North Ireland; the Libyan intelligence, British agent, Provisional IRA (PIRA). The British killed two of their own men. There was O’Dwyer, two Libyan, and two Irishmen. O’Dwyer was a senior official of the PIRA, at the time of his killing he was deeply involved in a totally new organization in the South. He had been involved in any large-scale arms negotiation and his Libyan connection was well documented.

Barbara and Thomas Collin was friendship, intelligence, like most of his countrymen, he was dedicated to a united Ireland but he wasn’t a PIRA boot boy. Tom Collins worked for Embassy in Canberra. He flew to Melbourne and wanted to authenticate its content Sixsmith’s manuscript. He chose Fergal Flynn, the Northern Irishman to chase Sixsmith. Flynn’s reputation as wet-work expert had been built over twenty years killing security Northern Ireland and cold-bloodedly executing those his own side who had dared to stray.

Fergal Flynn, Vinnie Doyle, and Irish-Australian Jack Sullivan were on the same page to seize Sixsmith and they received order from Tom Collins. Police started moving so quickly to find Sixmith’s body, and there must been a Sixsmith’s minder. But nobody was named as the man who put him down. Before Vinnie Doyle died he named Jack Sullivan to agent Sophie Ward. Flynn and Jack Sullivan now was fugitive, they run away to the desert. Driving slowly under the poor metal overhang, Sullivan stopped by the first pump. Flynn was no stranger to highway robbery. No money, a doubtful weapon, dodgy ammunition, a talkative Australian as partner.

He was only interested in rid of information that burning like an ulcer in his gut. The man who called himself Galloglass was the only man who could relieve Flynn of what was, to him, the awesome responsibility of preventing a major blood-letting within the New Executive. He had be the first to acknowledge his limited horizon where politics within Movement was concerned, could see what happen Sixmisth’s planted memoirs wrapped inside a hard cover thumped on to the kitchen table in Dublin. Neither the stealing of the car nor an old woman’s murder in petrol station murder hadn’t been broadcast yet. The two patrol policeman had shot in highway by Flynn and his partner Jack Sullivan also got shot by the policeman sent him to death.

An old woman has been killed at petrol station south-east of Melbourne was in news, agent Barlow and Sophie assumed the killer was Flynn and Sullivan. It was Fergal Flynn, the hard man, the man had descended from the safety of the Republic side of hill and gone to the roadside carnage just to grin happily into the faces of dying and mutilated young British soldiers he had blown up. He took the plastic-wrapped packet from his inside pocket and inspected its content: a cassette- Grenville Sixsmith’s last testaments and one floppy disk. Flynn completely disappeared from the road and he studied a yacht. There was a family in the yacht.

Dubrovnik insisted to know who put Flynn on to Sixsmith and what his mandate was. Barlow and Sophie ceased Flynn to south-eastern Victoria. They found a clue, a man Roger (the yacht’s owner) gave his yacht’s name and his wife’s name. Reason had brought his frustration with him to Australia.

British were so anxious to get their hands on Sixsmith manuscript and burnt it before anybody read it. As a representative of British Government, Reason, claimed to Dubrovnik that any part of Sixsmith’s property belong to British Government. Sixsmith’s manuscipt and his other stuff have been claimed by Mrs. Fiona Campbell, the daughter of Sixsmith. Agent Barlow laid off speculative courses for a boat heading for Sydney- which seemed a reasonable place, a wild possibility Tasman Sea. The boat that Flynn hijacked was named the Lady Charlotte. Jayne Clarke and her twin girls were safe but not her husband. They were English couple sailing the world.

ASIO agent and British agent hired a professional boatman traced Lady Charlotte. Flynn took his hostages in Tasman Sea. Finally Flynn was caught and he mentioned Galloglass and his address. He also gave the description of Thomas Collins, Head of the Joint Official and Provisional Intelligence Network Far East. Flynn was tortured till death. In Dublin Thomas Collins was interrogated by two Executives. Jack Kearns was Head of Republic’s Official IRA Intelligence and Interrogation Unit and ex-British Army. Eioin McNella was Chief of PIRA chief of staff in seventies. The two interrogators ordered Collins worked back at the Embassy in Canberra. Kearns had lost interested in Collins. Collins was a dead man. McNella got his trusted man to kill Collins and he could have a word dropped in Canberra and let the Brits took the blame for it.

Reason stared at Sanderson in disbelief. The whole situation was only the game of Dublin Executive and it was more than reassessment of position. Sanderson knew the mastermind was Eoin McNella and Jack Kearns. Sanderson said  to Reason that there were times when we must sacrifice some of our chips to make bigger gain on the table later. The loss of those men would return a divinded, through Jack Kearns, that at this point was impossible to calculate. It was Sanderson who broke the contract. Harry Barlow went up the spout too. Although Harry Barlow was a good man and Clive’s friend but there was no time for sentiment. Jack Kearns as an asset was worth a great deal more than Harry Barlow.

Kearns was irreplaceable and he had proved himself several times over. Half the successes we’ve had against the people in the North started at his fingertips. If he said we’ve been set up had over Libyan, so that what’s happened. Apart from McNeela, Jack Kearns was reliable and the only one who knows about the ambush, the only one who knows the Libyan Army’s camped there waiting. Jack Kearns was IRA, not PIRA, so there was nothing to stop him building up head of steam of hatred and anger over the treatment.

Barbara O’Donnell persuaded Sixsmith’s daughter to publish his father’s memoir. She agreed against British High Commission, and deposited the manuscript with Australian lawyer, but another British humiliation threw to Australians and appointed a Supreme Court judge, well-known for his fawning, pro-British leanings, to conduct the trial.

Sekapur Sirih

Tidak banyak informasi tentang George Brown, namun yang penulis telah menelurkan tiga novel, Sacrifice adalah terbitan Arrow Inggris Raya pada tahun 1994, edisi yang saya pegang ini adalah terbitan tahun 1994. Setelah membaca karya ini, saya menduga penulis sangat akrab dengan negara-negara di kawasan Asia Tenggara. Buku thriller spy ini ditorehkan dalam 470 halaman dengan bahasa yang mudah dimengerti dalam narasi serta percakapan bebas.

Buku ini cocok bagi para peminat intelijen. Diawali pembunuhan di Dublin, perintah dari London, dan niat penerbitan sebuah memoar beresiko mengiringi sejumlah kematian di Australia. Agen mata-mata dari Inggris Clive Reason, Harry Barlow, Greville Sixsmith mantan agen rahasia M16 Inggris, sederetan nama agen pembrontak Irlandia IRA dan pecahannya PIRA, serta kelihaian agen rahasia Australia memenuhi plot cerita. Kelompok teroris domestik Irlandia semakin mengganas. Mereka telah mengadakan negosiasi dengan teroris Libya dan ex-Uni Soviet dalam penyeludupan senjata, bahan bom, nuklir mengakibatkan peredaran uang tunai di daratan Eropa signifikan, dan pada saat bersamaan ada sosok  eksekutif berambisi kursi lebih tinggi.

Terjemahan dalam Bahasa Indonesia: Sacrifice (Pengorbanan), karya George Brown

Dua lelaki berparas Arab terbunuh di sebuah taman di kota Dublin, Irlandia Utara (termasuk wilayah Inggris Raya). Terjadi tembak menembak, malam remang telah menelan lima nyawa. Kepolisian setempat tidak mampu mengungkap siapa pelakunya. Di kota London Jendral Richard Sanderson, pejabat tinggi militer yang hanya menerima perintah dari sang ratu dan perdana menteri, memberi sebuah perintah misi mata-mata pada tangan kanannya Clive Reason. Lelaki tiga puluhan dan berkulit hitam dengan aksen Amerika. Reason adalah lulusan terbaik sekolah parasut dan peraih penghargaan dalam kemiliteran. Saat ini dia menjadi agen rahasia yang dipercaya untuk mengikuti sebuah rumor akan adanya pergerakan dari eksekutif Dublin yang ingin masuk dalam jajaran tinggi London. Orang IRA dan PIRA dicurigai bekerjasama dengan para teroris penyeludup Timur Tengah dan mantan negara Uni Soviet.

Pembrontak IRA dicurigai telah bekerja sama dengan teroris Irak, Libya, dan negara bekas Uni Soviet dalam penyeludupan narkoba, senjata illegal, dan bahkan bahan nuklir. Untuk misi ini Sanderson memerintahkan Graville Sixsmith. Clive Reason cukup kaget melihat kredibilitas agen intel M16 Sixsmith yang kurang. Setelah dia setelah lulus dari Cambridge sekitar emput puluh tahun lalu, Sixsmith banyak di belakang meja. Sanderson punya alasan, menurut data terpercaya, Sixsmith telah terlibat dalam negosiasi dengan teroris Irak dan berhubungan dengan agen Libya pimpinan Moammar Qadaffi. Bertahun-tahun dia menjadi intel korup.

Walau Sixsmith tidak pernah mengakui perbuatannya, dengan barang bukti sitaan dan rekayasa padanya dia terpaksa menerima tawaran pekerjaan itu. Lelaki berusia enam puluh tahun itu, dua bulan lagi akan pensiun. Mungkin mengawasi dan memata-matai pembrontak IRA dan pecahannya PIRA adalah hal membosankan baginya, Reason menyarankan agar dia menulis buku di Australia untuk menambah pensiunnya yang tidak banyak.

Berita tentang akan terbitnya memoar Sixsmith menjadi gencar karena buku itu memuat pengalaman dia dalam lingkaran teroris Libya dan bahkan dia menyebut beberapa nama dari petinggi Inggris dan Irlandia Utara. Pihak pemerintah Inggris tidak tinggal diam, berusaha bagaimana buku itu jangan sampai terbit. Reason pun mengutus orang kepercayaan sekaligus sahabatnya Harry Barlow untuk mendapatkan skrip memoir Sixsmith. Sixsmith pun ditemukan terbunuh dan memoar serta kaset rekaman kesaksiannya diambil.

Badan Intelijen Australia (ASIO) berkepentingan mengusut siapa pembunuh Sixsmith. Agen Inggris Barlow dan agen Australia Sophie Ward bekerjasama mengejar pembunuh Sixsmith. Adalah tidak mudah mengejar Fergal Flynn lelaki Irlandia Utara dan kelompoknya yang merupakan suruhan dari Thomas Collins, lelaki Irlandia yang bekerja pada kedutaan di Canberra. Dua dari timnya meninggal dan kini Flynn sendiri mengendarai mobil curian dari wanita tua pemilik pompa bensin. Dia menghindari jalan raya dan membajak sebuah kapal yacht milik keluarga Inggris.

Barlow dan Sophie pun berhasil dengan tim bantuan ASOS menangkap Flynn, pemilik kapal mati dibunuh Flynn namun dua putri kembar dan istri selamat. Flynn pun disiksa mengaku siapa pemberi perintah padanya. Sebelum mati dia hanya memberi nama Galloglass berikut alamatnya dan mendeskripsikan Thomas Collins sebagai pemberi perintah di lapangan.

Agen Clive Reason pun tidak tinggal diam dan menyusul ke Melbourne untuk mendapatkan naskah memoir Sixsmith. Menurut kepala ASIO, Dubrovnik, seorang keturunan Yugoslavia; putri Sixsmith akan tetap menerbitkan memoar itu dan siap melawan pemerintah Inggris di persidangan. Tapi dengan kekuatannya, Inggris mempermalukan pihak Australia, pemerintah Inggris menempatkan seorang ketua Mahkamah Agung yang pro Inggris.

Tom Collin pun diinterogasi di Dublin oleh dua orang executif. Habis manis sepah dibuang, Collins disuruh pulang ke Canberra dan seseorang telah dibayar McNella untuk menghabisinya. Jendral Sanderson pun membeberkan  pada Clive Reason bahwa semua keadaan ini adalah permainan dari eksekutif Irlandia Utara. Sanderson telah mengetahui semuanya sedari mula dan otak permainannya adalah dua eksekutif Irlandia Utara; Eoin McNella dan Jack Kearns. 

Dengan ekspresi ringan di wajahnya, Sanderson mengatakan, ada saatnya mengorbankan remahan kecil untuk mendapatkan roti lebih besar di meja makan. Banyak nyawa telah jatuh, dengan imbalan  kedudukan bagi Jack Kearns. Walau Jack Kearns adalah orang yang licik dan sadis tapi bagi Jendral Sanderson, dia adalah aset dan kehandalan mantan militer Inggris itu tidak tergantikan, lagi pula dia tidak terlalu berbahaya bagi London. Bagaimana pun London sangat membutuhkannya untuk menjinakkan pemberontak dan penyeludupan.