by Mark Donovan
“Yes, the United States and other western countries have had long term interests in Iran because of its rich oil supplies and other natural resources. And yes, those interests have caused many unintentional deaths over the years. However, the United States has never made an attempt, or even considered, wiping off the face of the Earth people of the Islamic faith, or any other religious or ethnic group for that matter, for getting in the way of its interests.”
She hesitated to catch her breath before continuing while Aref just stared at her silently with contempt.
“But the same cannot be said of you and your Al Qaeda brothers as you so call them. As you just stated, you have plans to murder those that are not true followers of the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad. How sick and twisted of a mind can one possess to think so evil of a plot on his fellow man? No true believer in God, or Allah, could actually believe that He would want such an action by man to be carried out on his brother. I would submit to you to go back and re-read the Quran to find another meaning in it, another message in Muhammad’s words, one that could only truly be meant to be the will of a loving Allah.”
Aref scoffed at Dana’s rant. “The Quran, as we have interpreted it, is the will of Muhammad, and the will of Allah. The way, the moral code as you say, of the western world, of Christians and Jews, and non-believers of Muhammad the Prophet, is corrupt. Look today at the United States Dana. You cannot deny that it is already suffering from a deadly disease. Your country’s culture, its soul, has become perverse and twisted. The United States has become a society that has flipped and munged the natural roles of man and woman into a single entity, one that is incapable of producing new life as Allah meant it to be. And you talk about valuing life. Your government, acting at the behest of the majority of your countrymen, snuff out the lives of over a million unborn children every year. Life that is the most innocent and free of any wrong. And why?” Aref hesitated before continuing, a sneer growing on his face. “Because it would be inconvenient for your people, your women. It would interrupt their lives. Their fun. Their playtime.”
“Who are the sick and twisted people you ask? Look no closer than the reflection in your mirror.”
Dana sat silently before responding, privately not denying the fact that much of what Aref just said was true.
“Yes, the United States people and its government are not perfect at times, and I don’t deny the course we are headed on may be ill-conceived and the wrong path,” responded Dana. “But exacting your wrath on a country with this WaterKill weapon and killing millions of people is not the solution. Education is. You will only embolden its survivors and ensure the reciprocation of their wrath on your people. Don’t give yourself so much credit that others won’t be able to either re-create your biological weapon or develop a defense against it.”
“I am not that naïve,” retorted Aref. “However, a display of our might in your heartland will be an educational experience for your countrymen. It will show them what we are capable of and willing to do if necessary. Maybe then your government will show more respect for our people, and treat us as something better than dogs.”
“But again, your religious Al Qaeda leaders are not about just teaching non-believers a lesson. Are they?” questioned Dana. “They, and you, are about absolute submission, or death, to your chosen way of life, to your strict Islamic Sharia laws. Your Waterkill, Mr. Zarin, is your half-baked attempt to kill all non-believers. You won’t succeed.”
Aref laughed at Dana with disdain.
“Oh yes we will,” replied Aref, “and you’re going to help.”
“Not in this lifetime,” responded Dana, reciprocating his laugh.
“Dana, if you do not want to ensure the murder of millions of people in your country then you will help me. I want you to be the one that offers your fellow countrymen the opportunity to submit and become true followers of the Islamic faith. If you are unconvincing, then you will directly be responsible for their deaths.”
“No thank you Mr. Zarin,” responded Dana coldly. “You are not going to convince me to join forces with you under any circumstances, in your ruse to convince my fellow Americans to convert to Islam so that their lives can be spared. I have no doubt what your intentions are, and it is not to make converts or save lives. I will take no part in your plan.”
“How about if I told you, that you and Mr. Henson may have your lives spared if you help me?” asked Aref.
“Dave is already dead,” blurted Dana. “Spencer killed him on our way here.”
“I beg to differ,” said Aref coyly, a smile growing on his face.
Dana’s heart skipped a beat as she absorbed Aref’s meaning. “What do you mean? Is he alive?” she whispered.
“My sources report that he is indeed very much alive. As a matter of fact, he is on his way here as we speak, in an attempt to rescue you.”
He’s alive. I knew it, Dana thought to herself, a feeling of warmth growing inside her body. She reflected how she had felt when she observed the flicker of the candle in the bathroom. She sensed he was alive at that moment, and Aref just confirmed it.
“Dana…Ms. Cogswell…Are you paying attention?”
Dana shook from her brief trance.
“Dana, as I just offered, I will allow you and Mr. Henson to live if you assist me. All I want you to do is read a script in front of a video camera. It is that simple.”
Dana’s mind was racing. She was calculating when Dave may get to her. She needed to buy time until then. To do so, she would need to feign a level of willingness and cooperation with this monster.
“How can I trust you? How do I know you will let Dave and me go? That you will honor your word?” she questioned.
“You don’t” said Aref smugly. “However, if you continue to deny my request I will get up right now, walk around this table, and cut your head off with this.”
Aref stood up from the table and raised his left hand that had been hidden underneath it. In it was a large hunting knife with a serrated edge. He slammed the knife down vertically onto the table and let go of the handle, the knife’s tip sticking two centimeters into the red oak wood.
Fear instantly gripped her. Aref could see it in her eyes.
“Do I have your cooperation?” asked Aref slowly.
Dana hesitated several seconds before continuing. She was thinking to herself, running through justifications and scenarios. It would take time to film the video. Maybe Dave would get there before she filmed the video. There was also the outside chance that she could indeed possibly save lives if Aref truly released the film to the media.
“Yes, yes you have my cooperation. I will read your script,” she gasped.
“Excellent. I am glad you had a change of heart,” said Aref as he continued to look at her threateningly and sat back down in his chair.
“But before we move forward you should eat Dana.” Aref picked up another piece of lamb from his plate with his fingers and popped it into his mouth. He chewed on it slowly before stopping. With his mouth still full he said, “Please, I know you just made a gut wrenching decision that has probably turned your stomach, but try to eat something while you still can. It would be a waste of good food otherwise.”
Dana looked down at her plate and made a conscious decision that she should indeed eat. She would need her strength later on if she hoped to escape when Dave came for her.
She picked up her fork and stabbed a lamb kebab on her plate. She then looked across at Aref and said, “I think I am hungry enough that I can stomach your face a little longer while I enjoy some of this food.” She then bit the piece of meat off of her fork and chewed while staring back at Aref silently.
Chapter 36 (April 17, Sunday 6:00pm, Tehran, Iran)
The Blackhawk lifted up from the dry desert landscape and headed west, en route to the Mediterranean Sea. Standing alongside a straight and dusty road, approximately fifty kilometers west of Tabriz, were Dave and Aaron Davis. They were in the middle of a vast and barren wasteland. T
owards the south, approximately ten kilometers away, Dave could see mountains. Beyond that, the view in every other direction was flat sand and rock. Nothing else.
“Our ride should be here shortly,” said Davis as he checked his watch.
“I hope so,” responded Dave, “because we are in the middle of nowhere with no other means of transportation.”
“Don’t get your panties all in a bunch Henson. They’ll be here.”
Dave scanned the horizon to the southeast, towards Tabriz. After several minutes he thought he saw a faint line of dust rising up from the road in the distance.
“Do you see that?” asked Dave as he pointed in the direction of the rising dust line.
“Yes I do. It is most likely our guys,” said Davis as he looked through a pair of binoculars. “However, I would suggest we get off the road a ways and try to take cover behind some of the larger rocks just to be safe, at least until I can make a clear identification on the vehicle. We don’t need to have unnecessary eyes seeing us.”
The two men made their way approximately thirty meters off the road and squatted down behind a couple of large boulders. Davis continued to glass the horizon, his binoculars fixed on the approaching vehicle. After another minute, he said while still keeping his binoculars and eyes focused on the approaching vehicle, “It’s our ride. It’s a white Cadillac Escalade.”
Davis stood up and walked back towards the road with Dave trailing right behind him. The Escalade was nearly upon them by the time they made it back to the road. It pulled over and stopped. Two men stepped out of the vehicle, one from the front passenger seat, the other from the back driver’s side. Both were dressed in casual civilian clothing, khaki pants and short sleeved button down shirts. However, both had physiques that suggested they were presently, or in their former lives, SEALs or Delta Force commandos.
“Doctor Dave Henson I presume,” said the taller of the two as he confidently strode up to Davis and him, a swagger noticeable in both his walk and voice.
“Yes, but you can call me Dave.”
“Excellent, Dave it is. My name is Russ Jones, and this here is Kevin Ames.” He pointed to the second man who approached them. Though shorter in height compared to Jones, Ames made up for it in girth. He was built like a brick shithouse thought Dave as he reached out and shook Ames’s hand.
Jones glanced over at Davis and gave him a slight nod of the head. “Nice seeing you again Davis. Glad we are getting the chance to work together once more.” In typical fashion Davis shrugged, gave him a shit grin and said, “Likewise.” Davis also acknowledged Ames but made the additional effort of shaking his hand.
“Well, I know we would all like to enjoy more of the early evening desert air, but we need to get going if we plan to make it to Tehran before sunrise tomorrow,” said Jones. He immediately turned and began to walk back to the Escalade. Ames, Davis, and Dave followed in pursuit.
“The two of you will hop in the back with Ames,” said Jones as he opened up the back passenger side door and took Dave’s knapsack and radio case from him. “It will be a little tight for the three of you, but I think you’ll be able to manage.”
Ames walked around to the other side of the vehicle and jumped in, while Davis entered the customized Escalade first and slid across the bench seat to make room for Dave. In the meantime, Jones went around to the back of the Escalade, opened its rear hatch, and tossed in Dave’s knapsack and radio case before closing it again. He then climbed into the front passenger seat of the vehicle.
There was a third man with the CIA Special Ops Group who was sitting behind the steering wheel of the Escalade. “This is Steve Graves,” said Jones as he turned his head to face Davis and Dave and pointed at the driver.
Again, Dave noted that Graves looked like he just came out of the Marines or Special Forces of some branch. Like the others, his hair was close cropped, his jawline large and square, and his right bicep that protruded out from underneath his shirt sleeve as he held the steering wheel looked more like a Southeast Asia Python.
“Nice to meet you Doctor Henson,” said Graves with a Texan twang.
“Thank you,” responded Dave. Then, saying to none of the men in particular, “So what is our plan?”
Jones swiveled his massive body around in the front passenger seat to look back at Dave and the other two men, his neck taut and strained, large veins protruding from his neck like ropes. As he did, Graves put the Escalade into drive and pulled back out onto the empty road, heading southeast, back towards Tabriz. As the Escalade accelerated forward Dave could immediately tell it was going to be one heck of a ride. Though the vehicle was large and customized, and no doubt had an enhanced suspension system, Dave could already feel the rough and uneven road surface transmitting up into his lower back and kidneys.
“We have about a five hundred kilometer drive ahead of us this evening,” said Jones, his face now stone cold serious. “We estimate it will take six hours to get to Zarin’s residence in Tehran. Once there we will meet up with another five man Counter Terrorist Special Ops team that will participate in the raid. We will commence the raid on the residence at two o’clock in the morning. Though Zarin has the property well protected around the clock, it is at that time of the day when his guard forces are at their lightest.”
“We will also have the cover of darkness as an advantage,” interjected Ames.
“Has there been any word on Dana?” asked Dave anxiously.
“Yes, we have a report from the other team, who is already in the vicinity of the residence, that she arrived a little over two hours ago. She appeared healthy as she entered the residence on her own two feet.”
Dave shook his head side to side while grimacing, which did not go unnoticed by Jones in the fading sunlight.
“Dave, our video and acoustical surveillance sensors positioned around Zarin’s residence are all indicating that she is presently safe.”
“Presently safe,” repeated Dave as he looked back at Jones. “But what about an hour from now, or five hours from now? We will still be sitting in this vehicle.”
“Dave, the other team is already in place around Zarin’s residence. If they feel that her life is imminently in the balance, and that there is a need to extract her before we can get there, then they will initiate the raid without us. However, her best odds of survival is with a raid that includes both teams.”
Dave nodded his head in resigned agreement, but then immediately followed up with additional questions. “How do you plan to actually conduct the raid?”
“We will go in quietly, entering from both the roof and ground level entrances. After extracting Dana, and having her safely in this vehicle heading away from the residence, the other team will stay behind to take out Zarin and his team. They will also gather up as much intelligence and technology that they can find. Information that can hopefully assist in understanding better the nature of their bioterrorism weapon and where they plan to use it next.”
“And what about weapons?” asked Dave. “None of you seem loaded for bear, if you will.”
Jones smiled at Dave. “Dave, an Escalade is a big vehicle, and we can pack a lot of punch in relatively small places. Everything we will need for firepower is behind you.”
Dave twisted his head around and looked behind him. In the back of the vehicle were several large military type shipping crates.
“So sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride,” said Jones with a big smile. “Also, I brought you some local cuisine from Tabriz.” He handed across the seat a large pizza box and a six pack of Coca-Cola.
Dave managed a brief smile when he saw the box of pizza, but did not hesitate to take it and the six-pack of Coca-Cola from Jones. A minute later both Dave and Davis were devouring their way through the thin crust pizza pie. Though it was cold, it was the best thing that Dave had eaten and tasted in the last several days.
Chapter 37 (April 17, Sunday 9:00pm, Tehran, Iran)
Ahmad sat across from Aref. The two were in Aref’s
expansive third story den that had large windows overlooking the night skyline of Tehran city. Ahmad was sitting in a high back Victorian style chair while Aref sat in a leather reading chair behind a large mahogany desk.
“Ahmad, you did very well,” said Aref praisingly. “Eberswalde was a complete success. News reports coming out of Germany indicate that over half the population has died from our attack.”
“Thank you,” responded Ahmad quietly, with no emotion in his voice or expression on his face.
“And stumbling upon and capturing Ms. Cogswell was most fortuitous for us.”
“It was the will of Allah,” interjected Ahmad.
“Yes, indeed it was,” said Aref as he gazed out the den windows and at the evening Tehran skyline, the lights of the city twinkling into infinity.
“Her husband, Doctor Henson, has been the only real impediment to our plans. However, I will soon eliminate that obstacle, with the help of his lovely wife.” Aref stared silently out the den windows for a few seconds before continuing.
“Ms. Cogswell also provides us with an opportunity to communicate our message to the west on a large scale. Her respected media status will help to ensure that all networks, not just our Al Jazeera friends, will transmit her message, our message, to the entire western world.”
“Has she agreed to cooperate?” asked Ahmad.
“Yes. Again, your fortuitous failure to kill Doctor Henson today has provided her with hope,” responded Aref. “Hope that is a tool of leverage for us.” Aref smirked at Ahmad.
“I have sent her back to her room to rest for the evening. Tomorrow morning I will put her in front of a video camera and she will read a statement that I have prepared for her.”
“How do you know she will actually go through with it?” pressed Ahmad.
“Because I have promised her and her husband freedom if she does.”
“And she accepted your word?”
“Let’s just say I made it clear to her in no uncertain terms that she must,” said Aref, his smirk morphing into a big smile.
