by Madlen Namro
“Allah.” David nodded.
“Yes, but there’s one more thing.”
“What’s that?” Alec enquired.
“There is a line in the Koran which states that whoever dies while spreading the word of Islam will be automatically admitted to heaven.” Levi paused for a moment to gather his thoughts. “These words have been illused by various leaders, twisted and falsely interpreted as an invitation to kill infidels and destroy their civilisation. You must remember the great pandemics, the mad cow disease, bird flu, the brain virus, HIV II, the fish contamination of 2060, the air contamination of 2087 and the poisoned ground water sources. They were all orchestrated by terrorist agencies and Kaminsky studied them closely. I believe he was inspired by the ingenuity of those attacks.”
“The infidels were the Americans at first, but the rest of the world followed shortly,” David recalled.
Levi sat once more overwhelmed by the images of terrorist attacks, burning cities and massive explosions.
“Indeed, religious fanaticism deprived those men of any sense of morality or self-criticism, even common sense for that matter.”
“Jo understands the psycho-social techniques used by Kaminsky better than any of us. She knows first hand how he can manipulate the crowds.” When Levi mentioned Jo, everyone grew silent for a moment and involuntarily turned to the window wondering when they’d have some news from Victor.
“Big deal.” Alec sat back on the sofa. “Kaminsky is not the first leader turning to crowd psychology. Politics is prone to that. Remember Hitler or Stalin? Kaminsky’s not doing anything new.”
“You’re right to a point,” the commodore admitted, “but after meeting him in person, Jo explained that he can do more than that. He’s able to stimulate his audience to produce endorphins on a cellular level. Some say his speeches are almost like a narcotic trance. He stirs people up into a state of ecstasy. There is no more common sense, no fear or doubt. He becomes their guru. People indoctrinated by terrorist leaders are always easy to manipulate. They are tools that can be used any time and in any way.”
“That’s odd though, isn’t it?” Alec frowned in a moment of reflection. “The leaders are always millionaires or prominent scientists and the like. These people are already wealthy beyond belief, sitting on a fortune of oil just waiting to be extracted, earning millions. Why would they even want to get involved in something as risky as terrorism?”
“Power and more power.” David sighed.
“That’s sadly true. The will to dominate combined with religious fanaticism. Kill the infidels.” Levi smiled bitterly. “Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, all these countries were once completely overwhelmed by religious fanatics. The poverty of the people was their greatest weapon and the leaders made use of it without a moment’s hesitation. Dejected, uneducated people have always been the easiest to control. They can be made to believe anything, they are easy to bribe and defenceless against the threat of violence. That’s the main reason why so many turned to fanatical religion and Muslim culture is to the West as water is to fire. Conflict was unavoidable.”
“And yet,” David scratched his chin, “it’s now 2144, the Muslim countries have long been ruled by the caliph, but there’s no trace of the promised democracy, no improvement in education, no women’s rights. Nothing’s really changed…”
“And people are still being told that killing an infidel is the best way of spreading Islam,” Levi concluded and invited the commandos to join him for dinner.
* * * *
Victor woke up before Jo. He put his arm around her warm body and kissed her on the neck before getting up quietly. He’d been so overcome by desire last night that he had not managed to tell her the reason he was there. He walked to the window and glanced at the landscape of the island. He knew it was mostly deserted. There’d been no water here for centuries. Most of it was sandy and barren, almost like a patch of land torn from the Sahara and tossed into the ocean. The air was dense with dust. He spotted a line of wind turbines in the distance. They used to pump water from underground and stimulate its flow. Nowadays, sea water was no longer used as it was too risky considering the level of pollution. Fresh water had to be carried by boat from the mainland.
Jo shivered gently and she started breathing faster. Victor sat on the bed and stroked her hair gently. She woke up in tears. Another bad dream and she’d thought she would not have to fear anything with Victor around. She’d hoped just seeing him again would wave the nightmares away. He held her closely, whispering words of comfort. He got up and went down to the kitchen to make tea. He would have to talk to her soon. A minute later, Jo walked down the stairs and sat at the table. With her hands rolled up under her chin, she smiled flirtatiously.
“I like it when you smile.” Victor joined her at the table and handed her a tea mug.
“I’m just happy,” she said, blowing at the hot tea in her cup.
“And why is that?” he asked enticingly.
“Because you’re here, with me.” She gave him a long, cheerful look. “You’ve no idea how happy I am you’ve come for me. And you’re going to stay for good, aren’t you?”
“Jo…”
“I know I’m going too fast but… you went through a lot of trouble to find me and that makes me believe you really do care for me. Besides…” She reached out to hold his hand. “…My stay here on the island made me realise how little time we have, how fast life goes by. I don’t want to waste a single moment from now on. I want to start living, today, right now. It’s time to get back on my feet.”
Victor lifted her hand to his mouth and touched it with his lips. He had no idea how to break the news to her, to explain why he was there. Jo went on, “I’ve been thinking a lot about Alec, about Kaminsky, all the things I’ve been through and it suddenly dawned on me that they’ve all made me a stronger person. Every day I struggle with my fears and it changes me. I’m becoming a new person and I want to use that to my benefit. I want to build a new life for myself and I hope you can become a part of it.”
“Jo, listen…”
“I’m sorry. I know I talk too much. Last time we saw each other things didn’t exactly go too well, did they?”
“I’ve forgotten that long ago. I can only remember the nice part,” he almost whispered. Suddenly, he felt an overwhelming sense of affection washing over him.
“That’s good.” She got up and started preparing toast.
Victor joined her and pulled her to him to give her a long, passionate kiss. He wanted to do it one more time before telling her the truth. After a moment he embraced her closely and began whispering in her ear.
“I’ve come here for you. That’s the truth, but I also had another important reason.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m here on the president’s order. I’ve been given a special mission.” He embraced her even closer, expecting her to try to free herself from him in a moment. “Apart from me, the mission concerns Levi, David, Alec and you, Jo.”
The woman’s face darkened, the mood shifting in an instant. Victor still held her close, now with all the strength he had.
“The mission is to assassinate Kaminsky.” Jo felt her knees go from under her. She now understood why he was holding her so tightly. When she’d swallowed the bitter news he let her go.
“That explains it. If not for the mission you’d never have come.” A fury was slowly rising in her.
“That’s not true. I’d have come much earlier but I had direct orders not to!” he tried to explain. “The president arranged for this period of idleness so that each of you could gather your strength, prepare for the mission. I was ordered not to interfere!”
“What a load of rubbish!” She angrily paced towards the door, Victor following close behind her. “How could your presence disturb me in any way? I was already disturbed enough!” She slammed the bedroom door behind her, but moments later opened it again and looked at Victor again. “We do well in bed, but apparently we can�
��t cope outside it.” She slammed the door shut again.
Victor combed his fingers through his hair, sighed and walked outside to use the transmitter installed in his motorcycle. He contacted Levi via a satellite uplink and informed him that he’d found Jo. They would be retuning to Tenerife today. Then he walked back to the house and saw Jo packing her bags in her room. He sat on the bed next to her.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I know how this looks from your perspective. I understand why you’re angry, but… I do care about you, Jo.”
“I understand we don’t have much time?”
“Yes, we must leave today.”
Jo quickly finished packing, punched in the security code at the door and took the dogs to the nearest neighbour’s house. Before they left, she took one more look at the house, suddenly realising that for a short time this place, this island, had been her true home.
“I’ll come back here one day,” she whispered to herself as she was settling herself on the bike behind Victor. They rode swiftly towards the port without a word. Before boarding the ferry, Victor decided to take one more quick trip to the beach to let Jo say goodbye to the island she’d grown so fond of. With the wind swishing in his ears as they rode on, he thought of how he had spent all his life searching for this one, perfect love, as if trying to reach up and grasp a star from the sky. He now knew he would not want to search anymore. He’d caught his star and he would never let go of it.
* * * *
In the Sun City base, Levi and the other commandos retreated from the scorching heat and sheltered in the shadow of the few trees growing there. In a moment they were going to meet up with Jo and Victor. The tracker had done his job, perfectly as always. He’d found her, just as he’d promised. Now they’d finally be able to begin their preparations. Alec paced around nervously. He was visibly anxious. After all the waiting he would finally see Jo again. He would get a chance to convince her to return to him and he would allow no one to stand in his way, especially some goddamned tracker.
Levi sat quietly, deeply saddened. Earlier that day he’d received an update from the president. Apparently the military base on the outskirts of Washington City had been destroyed. The United Nations urged them to hasten their progress. Of course, the president knew better than to force the commandos to act before they were ready, but the sense of urgency was pressing enough in itself. Their worst expectations had come true. Kaminsky had decided to break the status quo and launch another massive terrorist assault. The situation looked grim. Levi had to discuss his plan with Victor as soon as possible. He also needed Jo’s help in convincing the tracker it was the best way to proceed.
David leant against a tree with his hands in his pockets. He was curious about Jo and how she’d been all these months. He also worried about Victor’s reaction to Levi’s plan. They’d been waiting for forty minutes already and the heat was really beginning to get to them. They were all sweaty. The air was so sultry that even breathing required an effort and tiny red flies were sticking to their skin.
Finally they spotted Victor’s unmistakable figure walking towards them in the distance, Jo resiliently keeping pace with him. She was dressed in a white T-shirt and a pair of faded jeans – their captain. The men stood shoulder to shoulder and remained in the faint shade of the tree. Victor and Jo, eyes hidden behind sunglasses, walked up to them.
“Welcome,” Levi started. “It’s really good to see you,
Captain.” He held out his hand to her.
“Hello, Commodore.” Jo returned his handshake. David embraced her with friendly affection and then
shook hands with Victor. Without restraint, Jo stepped towards Alec and offered her hand in welcome. She noticed the long, assessing look he gave Victor whose eyes were still hidden behind dark sunglasses. The tracker did not wish to give anything away to Commando Ross’ astute glance.
“I’m so glad to see you.” Alec leant forwards to kiss her on the cheek but she stepped away.
“You all know why we’re here,” the commodore said. “There’s no time to lose. I’ve prepared a place where we can discuss everything undisturbed, but first I’d like to talk to you, Jo, and you, Victor, in private.” He nodded at Alec and David to leave as they’d agreed beforehand.
He needed to brief them and convince Victor that it was imperative that they reach Alexander. He did not wish to do it publicly. The two men went back to their tasks while Jo and Victor followed Levi. The tracker took off his glasses and looked tenderly at the woman, gently touching her hand with his. As if following some uncanny instinct, Alec turned around at that moment and noticed the gesture.
“Fuck.” He spat on the ground angrily.
“What?” David asked.
“He’s bloody coming on to her.”
“Oh, give it a rest will you? We’ve more important things to worry about right now.”
“He’ll never beat me.”
“Dream on.”
“I swear. I could kill that guy.”
David flinched.
“Stop with this nonsense. The only person we should be wishing dead is Kaminsky.”
* * * *
“That’s wonderful, gentlemen.” Kaminsky turned to his cooperators as he continued lighting up the candles spread around the room they had gathered in. The co-operators were used to the caliph’s mystical rituals and were far too enchanted by him to question them. Each of them was swelling with pride to be in his presence. “The destruction of the military base is but a taste of what I’ve prepared.” The lights were turned off and the candles remained the only illumination in the room. Kaminsky approached his son, Alexander, and placed his hand on the young man’s head. This proud gesture was the ultimate praise in his eyes. “As I’ve told you so many times, the Sphinx wields four powers.” The co-operators nodded in unison. “And they are.” He made a dramatic pause, waiting for the desired anxiety to rise in his listeners, ‘to know, to dare, to desire and to remain silent. You have all proved capable of these feats. I am indeed proud of your progress, yet you must not forget, this is only the beginning!” Kaminsky glanced at his son meaningfully.
“Yes, Father,” Alexander bowed graciously. “Now you must focus even further, gather your strength and learn even more. To acquire the knowledge we seek we must first learn the bitter taste of death. You will experience it on a higher level, a mystic level! Each infidel life you destroy shall deepen your own existence a step further.”
The gathered men seemed to be in some sort of trance. Kaminsky lighted the hallucinogenic incense he’d brought from India, especially for the occasion.
“I will teach you the next step of self-control, the next tier of mental power. With that knowledge you will gain a new perspective over any difficulties fate may place in your path. Tonight I had a dream, a prophecy. I saw four destroyers sneaking into my home. We must be extra cautious in the coming days and fuel up our inner fire.”
Kaminsky slowly began pacing behind the cooperators’ backs. Most of them had already closed their eyes. One might think they were hypnotised. What they experienced however was rather a highly emotional state, a sort of ecstasy the presence of their leader warranted. The caliph placed a lighted candle in front of each of the men and continued his speech.
“Fire is unpredictable, it is dangerous and it has the same qualities you possess.” His voice suddenly became much firmer. “Fire can create life which rises from the ashes. Today, I will retell the myth of the phoenix, a bird reborn from the ashes of its own funeral pyre. In the natural world, destructive as they are, forest fires also allow the soil to grow more fertile and provide for all forms of life in the years to come. Fire is the embodiment of creative power. By crushing, by destroying your enemy you also create a new life, a better world which could never come to be without you and your actions!” He almost shouted out the last words, stirring the men awake from their euphoric drowse. “And now, let us talk about the nearest attacks and I have a little something for dessert as well.”
He turned on the lights and clapped his hands. The room immediately swarmed with servants carrying beverages, a delicious concoction Kaminsky himself had devised and which secret recipe he jealously protected. The caliph raised his glass in a toast.
“Here’s to the future!”
“To the future!” the men shouted back.
They drank and smiled inwardly, anxiously awaiting the next mission their master would set for them.
* * * * Levi closed the door behind him and asked Victor and Jo to sit down.
“How are you doing, Jo?” he started, hoping to hear her problems were already past.
Jo glanced at Victor before answering and once more Levi felt a sudden suspicion something was going on between the two of them.
“I’m all right, Commodore. My memory has returned, all of it, but I’ve managed to come to terms with it.” She did not mention the nightmares and sudden fits of panic she still experienced. Maybe they’d all go away once Kaminsky was dead.
“I’m glad to hear it. We’re all really counting on you in this mission. You can provide a better psychological portrait of the caliph than any of us… Well maybe apart from Victor.” Surprised, Jo turned to look at Victor. “He did, after all, live under the same roof with Kaminsky for a while.”
“What?” The shock was so intense that Jo stopped breathing for a moment.
Levi summarised Victor’s past in a few concise sentences, knowing his friend would not mind. Meanwhile, Victor listened to his story, grimly staring at the floor.
“And that’s when I realised how close you once were with Alexander,” Levi concluded, turning his attention to the tracker. “And I had an idea. The commandos seem to believe it could work.”
Victor looked up frowning, his eyes questioning.
“We must get to Alexander first, kill him and disguise you as the caliph’s son.” Levi looked straight into his friend’s eyes. “You’ll pretend to be him and lead us straight to Kaminsky.”
None of them spoke for a moment. Jo was taken aback. She suddenly realised that compared to this, her own problems seemed almost negligible. In fact, comparing all her life with Victor’s, her happy childhood with his traumatic past, she realised how lucky she really had been. After a long pause, Victor got up and looked at Levi with reproach.
