by Oliver Tidy
The dog continued to bark as they all got out. The man with the guns spoke sternly to it and it quietened down but stayed on its legs, paying attention. Out of the vehicles with the engines off and the dog silenced, it was suddenly strangely and stunningly quiet. The utter silence was so remarkable that it almost constituted a noise.
Carswell said, ‘This is Tanner. He runs the place.’
Up close, Tanner looked to be in his late thirties. His handsome face was heavily lined from too much time squinting in sunshine. His eyes were deep set and suggested intelligence, diligence and competence. He had a nice easy smile and good teeth. He looked lean and muscular, competent and keen.
As they were shaking hands, three more men came out of the door Tanner had emerged from. All wore holstered weapons on their hips. Each wore similar civilian clothes to Tanner, and each looked like he could do with a haircut, close shave, and hot bath.
Tanner said, ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you, Acer. Carswell here told us all about you. We’re happy to have the opportunity to repay some of the debt. This here is the rest of the team: Reyna, Donovan, Dempsey.’ The men stepped forward and shook hands first with Acer then with the women. They looked like a capable group: fit and tough, similar to SAS troops he’d encountered when he’d been in the army – elite soldiers in civvies, more wolves in sheep’s clothing.
Carswell said, ‘We going to discuss things in the yard, Tanner, or are you inviting us into your palace? Incidentally, I really like what you’ve done with the place while I’ve been away.’
They filed in. The inside of the property held no surprises regarding the decor for anyone who’d seen the outside. But it was neat and tidy. It seemed that the men ate, slept and relaxed in the one big room. There were sleeping bags and roll mats and tinned and packaged food and more weapons and lots of military equipment and a large surface spread with maps.
There weren’t enough chairs for everyone to sit. Those without a seat perched or leaned or just stood to listen.
Carswell invited Acer to repeat what he’d told him in the coffee shop regarding the motivations for their wanting to go to Aleppo. The team listened.
When Acer was finished, Tanner said, ‘Whereabouts in Aleppo exactly?’
Zeynep produced the envelope the old woman had given her. She said, ‘University of Aleppo.’
Tanner inhaled audibly. It was not a noise of encouragement. Acer caught him exchanging looks with other members of his team. Acer said, ‘What’s the problem?’
Tanner said, ‘Come and look at the map.’
He led them over to the table where several maps of the local region were lying on top of one another. He picked through the pile until he found what he was looking for. He said, ‘OK. This here is the city of Aleppo. It’s been partitioned into zones of government and insurgent control since 2012. The boundaries ebb and flow depending on who is pushing where at what particular time and with what resources. But for some months now, the regions under the control of the various factions have been fairly static.’ He touched the map. ‘Here is the east of the city. Everything shaded green is generally under the control of rebel forces. You got an area here, to the north in yellow that’s under Kurdish control. The area shaded red is the west of the city. That’s under regime control.’
‘What are these grey areas?’ said Acer.
‘Just that: grey areas. No man’s land. Not under anyone’s control. They act like a buffer zone. Empty of civilians, highly contested and extremely hazardous. Those places belong to the snipers of both sides.’ Tanner placed his forefinger on the map in the middle of regime-controlled red. ‘The University of Aleppo is here.’
Acer said, ‘Shit.’
Tanner said, ‘Yep. Believe me, it’s dangerous enough just getting to Aleppo. Trying to navigate the city, to cross over no man’s land and into regime-controlled areas. . . I’ll be honest with you. We’ve not done it. It’s a suicide mission.’
Tanner stood up, his point made.
Acer was still staring at the map. Thinking.
Tanner said, ‘Why the university?’
Zeynep said, ‘The family home of the woman we need to find is there. Her father had a position at the university.’
‘You’ve considered that they might not still be there? Fled or dead.’
Acer said, ‘Yes. We know. But we have to find out. It’s too close for me not to try.’ He looked up at Tanner. ‘Get me to Aleppo. That’s all I want from you. I’m not asking anyone to come across with me. Provide me with maps, some equipment and I’ll go over alone.’
Tanner started to say something, but Acer cut him off. ‘This is not your business. It’s not official business. It’s my private business. It’s not something worth risking the lives of any of you more than you’re going to be doing by getting me into the city.’ Before Tanner could protest further, Acer said, ‘Let’s talk about getting to Aleppo.’
Tanner said, ‘We’ll go tonight. We cross the border near a village called Oncupinar. Syrian territory the other side is under the control of the rebels. They control a corridor all the way from the border to Aleppo.’ Tanner smiled and said, ‘We’re in with them.’
Acer said, ‘So no problems about getting there?’
‘In theory. Land to the east is controlled by ISIL. We’ve known them to make opportunistic incursions into the rebel-held territory.’
‘To what end?’
‘Acting on intelligence to intercept and attack whatever they can. They’re not real fussy about who they hit. But they do like to hit fast and hard, if you get my meaning.’
Acer said, ‘How far is it to Aleppo?
‘About sixty kilometres.’
‘And how long would you expect that to take given the conditions and circumstances?’
‘Anything up to three, four hours. We have to go across country most of the way. The highways have been bombed to shit.’
‘How often have you made the journey?’
‘Couple of times a month.’
‘What do you go there for?’
‘Reasons vary.’ Tanner smiled, as if to say, let’s move on.
Acer was studying the map again. He said, ‘How wide is this Queiq River?’
Tanner said, ‘Depends on the season and the weather. Can be anything from a trickle to a torrent. But there are many crossing points. Where the ground on either side is controlled by the same group, there aren’t checks.’
Acer touched the map. He said, ‘Can you get me here?’ He indicated the Bustan al-Qasr district to the south-west of the city’s main congestion of buildings.
Tanner looked to his team for input. Acer also sensed that Tanner was taking the opportunity to see how his men felt about the proposed incursion. They each affirmed that in theory it was possible.
Acer said, ‘Get me there, and I’ll find my own way to the university.’
‘We’ll need to wait for you. To bring you out.’
‘How long can you wait?’
Tanner made a show of considering the timings. He looked at his men again. Then back at the map. He said, ‘We don’t know how long it will take you to get to the university.’
Acer looked at the map and said, ‘The university’s between two and four kilometres from the river. There’ll likely be no clear path through.’
Tanner said, ‘That whole district either side of the grey zone has seen heavy bombardment: artillery, barrel bombs, missile attacks, tanks, mortar, homemade IEDs and small-arms weaponry. If the area under regime control is the same as the area under rebel control, I’d be surprised if there’s a building that’s still habitable. Two to four kilometres in that terrain could seem like five or six. Maybe more. And then you’ve got to factor in that the place could be swarming with loyalist troops. If you’re caught there with no ID and no language skills to talk your way out of a situation, you’re screwed. They’ll shoot you on the spot.’
Acer said, ‘OK. Do we know anything about the state of the university?’
&n
bsp; ‘Not offhand. But I’d be surprised if it was still in one piece. Not much is.’
Acer said, ‘I’ll need to find someone who can direct me to the humanities faculty. Then I’ll need to find the woman and convince her to part with what she has that I need. Then work my way back.’ Saying it out loud made it sound more impossible than it looked on paper when one considered all the possibilities. To Acer’s ears, it sounded like a fool’s errand. Tanner had called it a suicide mission. Acer was beginning to understand why.
In the lull that followed, Zeynep said to Acer, ‘Can I talk to you for a moment?’
They excused themselves and moved to the far side of the room.
Zeynep said, ‘You keep saying ‘I’ and not ‘we’. Is there a reason for that?’
Acer met her stare and said, ‘I don’t think you should come any further, Zeynep. Stay here with Mo. I can do this on my own. You don’t need to risk your life, too.’
‘No,’ she said. ‘You can’t. And it’s my fight just as much as it’s yours. What is it? You think that I’ll be a liability? Slow you down? Because I’m a woman?’
Acer shook his head, but he was guilty of those thoughts. He said, ‘You heard what Tanner said – it’s a suicide mission.’
‘For a white Westerner on his own with no common language it is. Listen to me: I can look after myself. I take responsibility for myself. This is my business, too. I have language skills that can help us, and it would look less suspicious to anyone who cares about such things to have a man and a woman travelling together rather than just a man. If you can’t see that or won’t, then I’ve misjudged you.’
‘Misjudged me?’
‘Yes. I thought you were a smart man. Someone who might be able to achieve what we’ve set out to do.’
Acer smiled at her. ‘Flattery will get you everywhere.’
Zeynep did not smile back. She frowned at him and said, ‘I’m not flattering you just to get my own way for the sake of it. I’m telling you the truth. You need me probably more than I need you. Perhaps a single woman with the language and the look of a local would stand a better chance of getting through than you, especially when it comes to talking to the fiancée. Your reasons for being here, for being involved in this, are no stronger than mine. I have no wish to put myself in physical danger, but I see that I must if I want to live the rest of my life without fear.’
Acer held up his hands. ‘You win, Zeynep. You’ve convinced me.’
‘Good. Now let us join the others and make our plans.’
They returned to the map table where the rest of the group were discussing routes and timings.
Tanner turned to address Zeynep. He said, ‘Don’t take this the wrong way, ma’am. But you might like to think again about coming along.’
Acer actually laughed. Zeynep fixed Tanner with the same look she’d given Acer and took a deep breath.
*
It was decided that the American team would wait until midnight of the following day for them. If Acer and Zeynep were not back by then, they would leave. With their proposed timetable of crossing the border to enter Syrian territory at midnight that day, and allowing three to four hours to travel the sixty kilometres to Aleppo, by the time they reached the Bustan al-Qasr district it would not be far off sunrise. That would give Acer and Zeynep approximately an eighteen-hour window to walk to the university campus, find the humanities department, find someone who might be able to help them locate the family they were looking for (assuming they had not left the area to add to refugee statistics somewhere or been bombed out of existence), persuade the daughter to part with anything she had on deep state (assuming she had, in fact, taken it with her and still had it) and make their way back to the Bustan al-Qasr district where Tanner and his team would be waiting for them.
When it had been summarised in those terms, Acer felt the need to say, ‘Probably you’re all thinking the same thing I am: why the hell aren’t we looking for another way to solve our problems? Well, we have. And we can’t find one more appealing, which says something about how we would rate our chances with any plan B. I’d also like to say that, whatever the outcome, we appreciate the lengths you guys are going to and the dangers you’re facing to help us.’
Tanner smiled his lopsided Louisiana grin back at Acer. He said, ‘None of us joined up to sit behind desks, Acer. We’re doing what we do because life just ain’t exciting enough. Ain’t that right, boys?’
They decided to prepare and eat a proper meal. There were no jokes about a last supper. It just made good sense to have a good feed with the likelihood of not eating again the following day for two of them.
Carswell excused himself, citing business back in Gaziantep. He wished them luck and said he’d see them when they got back.
While the meal was being prepared, Tanner, Acer and Zeynep went through the available clothes and equipment, sorting out items that would be useful to them. Much as Acer would have liked to have taken a weapon, it was decided that it would be best for them and their story, in case they were stopped and searched on the other side – the regime controlled area of the city – to seem as much like who they were pretending to be as they could. Apparently, the forces of the regular army, who were loyal to President Assad’s regime, were fond of executing on the spot and without much enquiry anyone who they suspected of not being sympathetic to their cause.
Acer and Zeynep exchanged their smart Western clothes for dirty and worn outfits more in keeping with the people and surroundings they would encounter. They swapped their footwear for boots. (There were none to fit Zeynep, so Mo had to donate her hiking boots.)
Then they ate. Then they slept.
***
33
Donovan stayed behind to mind the store because someone always had to. Mo said she was glad – she hadn’t relished being the only one stuck there in the middle of nowhere, just waiting and waiting. That meant that five of them would be travelling.
The team had two battered and dusty four-by-four vehicles that had been shut away from prying eyes in one of the outbuildings when Acer and the women had arrived. They could have all squeezed in one vehicle, but Tanner said they always went with the pair in case they experienced mechanical problems with one of them – or became stuck in terrain they ran into off-road in the dark. Also, two vehicles, as well as making two targets, suggested larger numbers of occupants to anyone watching and thinking about intervention. The idea of larger numbers might make a smaller opportunistic force reconsider an attack. Tanner said they were also going to be picking someone up.
Tanner told them that part of his job down there was to make sure that CIA personnel were recognised as valued friends, sympathisers, and active supporters of the rebels – on an unofficial, local level at least. Accordingly, their local contacts were strong. The CIA could give the rebels something that they couldn’t get anywhere else: precious and up-to-date intelligence regarding the movements of opposing forces in the region. The CIA had access to information being constantly gathered by satellites and high-altitude surveillance planes.
Tanner said that one of his team’s main functions in the area was to pass on this information freely to rebel leaders to aid them in their fight against Assad’s unpopular regime on one front and ISIL on the other. The rebel leaders, in turn, were happy to accommodate and guide Tanner and his men on the occasions that they felt the need to get closer to the conflict zones, whatever their reasons.
With their gear and weapons stowed and their farewells said, they drove away from the CIA’s little outpost in rural Turkey. Reyna and Dempsey took the lead vehicle. Tanner, Acer, and Zeynep occupied the second.
They regained the main highway and headed for the border. In the dark – an inky blackness pierced only by the headlights of their vehicles – they motored along quietly for a few kilometres before the lead vehicle turned off the main road and began to bump its way more slowly over the compacted earth of another country track. Tanner followed.
They trav
elled this way, fifty metres between them, for several minutes more before Tanner brought the vehicle to an abrupt halt beside the now-stationary lead Jeep.
Acer said, ‘Why have we stopped?’
Tanner said, ‘Picking up our safe-passage permit. Wait here. And I mean wait in the vehicle. It’s not a place to go wandering around at night.’
Tanner got out and moved into the headlights and then out of sight.
Acer turned to look at Zeynep. ‘How do you feel?’
‘I ate too much pasta. It’s weighing heavily on my stomach.’
‘Apart from that?’
‘Fine.’
‘Look, I’m sorry about trying to shut you out of this back at the farm. My reasons. . .’
‘You’ve told me your reasons, Acer. It doesn’t matter. For what it’s worth to you, I know your intentions were good. Just stereotypically misguided. I forgive you.’
Acer laughed a little. ‘And I know your argument for being here is sound and logical. In fact, I think you might have been right when you said you would have stood a better chance of succeeding in this on your own than I would.’
‘Is this your way of saying that you don’t want to come now?’
Acer could tell from her voice that she was having fun with him. ‘No. You might be better qualified, but what if there’s something heavy to carry?’
‘Of course. I was forgetting. Every traveller needs her mule.’
They laughed together.
Tanner came back into the headlight beams and to the vehicle. He got in and started the engine.
‘Did you get it?’ said Acer, for something to say.
‘Yep. He’s in with Dempsey and Reyna.’
‘He? I thought you said we were picking up a safe-passage permit.’
‘We just did. Our safe-passage permit is an insurgent. A fixer between the different rebel units operating out here. We shouldn’t have any problems getting to Aleppo now.’
‘Shouldn’t?’ said Acer.
Tanner turned to smile at him in the dull glow of the instrument panel. ‘In this business, hope for the best, prepare for the worst.’
