National Exile: A 21st Century Novel about Nobility, Poverty, and Cruelty

by Rusul A. Altaay

  Chapter 13

  Gone with the Fire

  “Listen up… We need a plan to make sure that guy Aser does not get away. There are only ten of us. So I decided to get it done quietly. I will take care of Aser myself. Mai, Rayan, and Rafil will come with me for back up. Samir, you stay outside to make sure no one leaves the place. The rest of you will be staying outside to be called when needed. We leave six hours from now.” Sidra told her team about the plan.

  “Mai, Rayan, and Rafil please stay after everyone leaves. We need to talk about further details.”

  After everyone left, Mai could not hold it any longer. She said,

  “You are doing this for real? What if that man Aser was innocent?”

  “He is… Which is why we are going to fake his death. I need your help. I trust you guys.”

  “Thanks, but how did you know that he is a good man? What if he was indeed a bad man?” Rafil asked a good question.

  “I received a word from a good source that we need to save him.” Sidra replied.

  “A good source? Sorry, that is not good enough, not for me anyway.” Rafil said.

  “I trust the person how gave me the information. Besides, since when do you take commander Basam’s side?” Sidra asked.

  “Since never... I’m just not sure who to believe and who to stay away from. I just want us to not end up saving a man who could be a real terrorist.”

  “We are saving that man. But first, we need to know his real story.” Sidra said as she thought, “This man better be worth saving, Rain. Otherwise, I don’t wanna risk my people’s lives for him. This is really funny. My plan was to warn them, and let them go before we even get there. Now, I need to serve as his body guard. Rain must really not care about what might happen to us. He just wants his man saved.”

  “Why are you zoomed out?” Mai asked.

  “Ha, no… It’s nothing... Get ready… We have a long night a head of us… Ah… wait… Mai? Why do you think that the commander asked me to lead the team and not someone else?”

  “Maybe he knows about you. He must have read your file, or maybe he is testing you. Besides, who’s bossier than you are around here” Mai laughed.

  “Yeah, that might be it.” Sidra said, smiling.

  -----------------------------------

  Somewhere on the other side of the world, Rain was worried about whether his email was read or not.

  “I really hope that she got my message. They better get to Aser before Lion does. Otherwise, we will lose one of the greatest minds in this operation.” These were Rain’s thoughts as he was walking in Time Square in New York.

  Aser happened to be a computer scientist as well as a brilliant politician.

  “Rain?” A voice from behind asked.

  “Sidra?” He replied as he was turning around.

  “No, I’m Jenna. We were supposed to meet in that restaurant over there.” The lady said.

  “Of course, my apologies... Your voice sounded familiar to someone I know. Shall we?” Rain said as he pointed with his hands.

  “After you…”

  They walked to the restaurant as they have planned. Rain thought,

  “I must be going crazy. Now, I feel that she even looks like Sidra, only older.”

  In the restaurant, sitting at the dining table, Rain and Jenna had an interesting conversation.

  “Did you bring it?” Rain asked.

  “Did you take care of our little problem?” Jenna asked.

  “I sent her the message.”

  “Good…” She said.

  “How did you know that her neckless has any intelligence in it?” Rain asked.

  “Your uncle made it very clear to insure that man’s safety.” Jenna replied.

  “Do you really think that I would send someone I care about if it weren’t my uncle’s orders?”

  “It sounds to me like you are getting unnecessarily close to one of our employees.”

  “Oh, please… Save the talk.”

  “Very well, but just out of curiosity, how did you leave Estil?”

  “I walked the deserts and swam the oceans.” Rain answered with an annoyed tone.

  “I can see that you are being sarcastic about it. I meant… How did you get to leave the Peacekeepers without any problems?”

  “Why do they always send me agents that ask a lot of questions?”

  “I’ll take it that your father arranged a private Jet for you. Anyhow, here is what you asked for.” Jenna said as she handed him something.

  “That chip holds one Terabyte worth of info?” Rain asked.

  “Yes, it does. Everything you need to know about Siwaar and the names of the people who are currently working on it. If succeeded, this project can indeed save Estil and its people. Please note that this chip holds no code at all. You only have access to readable files.”

  If you’re wondering what Siwaar is, it’s what almost killed us all. They just did not know it at the time.

  “I got that.” Rain said.

  “Well, I’m sure you know that was not the only reason your uncle sent me to you. Your job is not finished. I suggest you meet your uncle as soon as possible. Then, go back to Estil to make sure that our subject is doing her work. And please do not forget your real job. You are a doctor, and we need people like you back in Estil.” Jenna said, “Are you still volunteering at the hospital?”

  “Yes, I do. Do you know how many people are dying because we lack basic supplies?”

  “People are dying with and without our supplies. You of all people should know that. Stopping the aid to Estil’s hospitals was a decision that we all agreed on. If we want to save Estil, we are going all the way. It’s a war, Rain.”

  “When can I see my uncle?” Rain asked.

  “Go back to your hotel now. We’ll send for you in the morning.”

  “Very well then, and just so you know, I did not leave Estil on my father’s private jet. I went to the airport and took a commercial seat like normal people do. Have a good night…” He said and left.

  “You do the same.” Jenna said with a smile as she left the restaurant.

  ------------------------------------

  Back at the Burj, the plans for Aser’s ‘assassination’ were beginning.

  “It’s almost time... Does anyone have any final questions?” Sidra asked her team.

  “Yes, I do. All we know, as of this moment, is that they are about seven people. What happens if they were more than that?” Rafil asked.

  “This is why I’m going first. We were told that we can request backup from the capital if needed. They seemed sure, that we would not need any back up.” Sidra said. “Let’s go now. Samir, you drive the first hummer, and Mai will drive the second one. Stay connected at all times via the intercom. I’ll be disconnected for a while. I will be the one to contact you.”

  After all the preparations were over, Mai drove one of the hummers. On the way there, the team had a long conversation.

  “Mai, I need to make sure that Aser, whoever he is, gets out of there a live. So, please be ready at all time. We never know what could go wrong.” Sidra said.

  “I still don’t know why this guy is so important.” Mai commented.

  “Trust me… Neither do I. I know that we have to risk our lives to save him. But Rain wouldn’t go into all that trouble to deliver a message… if he was not 100% sure about him. My original plan was to investigate more about Aser before making any decisions. And probably I would have warned him. But it turned out that there was no way of contacting him at all.” Sidra said.

  “I still think your master plan is not perfect, you know.” Yazan said.

  “I still think you shouldn’t have tagged along, you know. What would commander Basam say when he finds out that you left the Burj in the middle of the night? He made you the director of the researchers at the Burj.” Sidra said.

  “Like I care about what he has to say. Besides, if everything goes smoothly, we
can be back before sunrise.” Yazan said.

  “I don’t know why, but I have a feeling that we are about to have a very long night. I don’t think ‘smoothly’ is what is going to happen.” Sidra replied.

  “Have some faith. And Rain better be right about that Aser guy, otherwise, I will kill him myself.” Rafil said.

  “Or I will do the killing for you.” Mai said.

  “Stop it… you two. You make it sound like we would have killed Aser if Rain hadn’t asked us to save him. We would have saved him anyway.” Sidra said.

  “No, not if we were sure that he was a terrorist.” Rafil said.

  “It’s our administration we’re talking about. Since when they’re after terrorists? They’re only after anyone who is open about opposing them. Either way, we will get the truth out of this Aser, and we will go from there. I just want you guys to make sure that the other team in the second hummer does not suspect anything. I’m not sure who to trust yet.” Sidra said.

  A sound of an explosion was heard from a nearby place. However, they kept talking like they heard nothing.

  “Ignore that… we got used to those sounds. So, why are you going inside alone first? And what are you wearing?” Yazan said.

  “I’m going as a civilian. I need to see the truth in my own eyes. I am starting to suspect Rain as well.” Sidra said.

  “It sounds like you are being paranoid. Didn’t you say that you trusted your source?” Rafil commented.

  “That was before I discovered where the email was sent from. I tracked the IP address of Rain’s email. It was sent from somewhere outside of Estil. He didn’t do a great job hiding his tracks.” Sidra said.

  “What are you saying? Is he not with the Peacekeepers as we thought?” Yazan asked.

  “I have no idea. Anyway, as you can see, I am wearing normal cloths. Meaning, I’m not wearing a bullet proof vest. Just make sure I don’t get shot.” Sidra requested.

  “This is getting crazier and crazier. Both… you and Rain are crazy. Good luck and do not get yourself killed.” Rayan, who did not say anything all way, commented.

  “Do you have anyway of contacting Rain?” Yazan asked.

  “No. I tried replying back to his email, but it was sent back to me with an error. That is when I thought of tracking his IP address. Even his phone number has been disconnected.” Sidra explained.

  “As much as I trust Rain, now, I’m getting suspicious as well.” Yazan said.

  “We’re almost there. Do not do anything stupid. Just wait for me.” Sidra said as she got ready to leave the hummer.

  “Same goes to you.” Yazan said.

  They stopped few blocks away from Aser’s place where Sidra got out of the hummer looking like a civilian. She started walking towards Aser’s house. It was around 3:00 in the morning. The streets were very quiet except from the barking wild dogs. She got there and found it to be a very nice place. It was way larger than a normal house. She was able to see through the main gate. It looked like they had a very nice garden. Some kids’ toys were thrown at the grass. She rang the bell and waited for few minutes. Then, she rang the bell again.

  “Who’s there?” A voice from the inside asked.

  “May I talk to Mr. Aser. It is important.” She replied.

  After few minutes of silence, a man walked outside. He did not look like he was a sleep at all. Nothing about him or his place seemed suspicious either. He just did not look like a bad man. He seemed in his early forties. Yet, his hair was all white.

  “How can I help you young lady?”

  “Are you Mr. Aser?” Sidra asked.

  “Yes, I am. Why are you here in the middle of the night? Don’t you know how dangerous it is to be in such a place in a time like this?” He replied.

  “Do you know someone named Rain?” She asked.

  “No, I’m afraid I do not. What is this about?”

  “Well, someone is after you. I was told that someone is trying to kill you.”

  “Don’t you think that I can take care of myself? If you haven’t noticed, I am a very capable man. “ Aser said. “I wonder what Rain had told her.” He thought.

  “I’m sorry to ask, but who exactly are you?”

  “If we’re done here, I would like to get back to work.” Aser said as he tried closing the gate. She pushed the gate hard with her hands as said,

  “No, we are not done here. When I said that there are people who are trying to kill you, I meant the administration. I was sent with a team to assassinate you and some of your people. The government has information that you are organizing an attack on Lion’s administration.”

  “Why are you telling me this?”

  “Because I do NOT care about what they have to say. Is it true what you are trying to do?”

  “I think you should go home young lady….” Aser said as he tried closing the gate once again.

  Back at the hummers, the team started to get worried.

  “Guys… We have a call from commander Basam.” Samir said.

  “Answer it, now…” Yazan said.

  “When I said kill Aser and his people, I meant kill them… Why haven’t I received any news yet?” Commander Basam yelled on the phone.

  “Sir, Sidra has a plan. We are just waiting for her orders.” Samir said.

  “And now you are receiving my orders. I want Aser’s place burned to the ground. I never said negotiate with him or pretend to be his friends. I’m certain that I said nothing about going under cover and pretending to be civilians.” The commander said.

  “But Sir…” Samir tried explaining.

  “No buts… Be sure to know that all of you will be punished if you wouldn’t follow my orders. You have an hour before I send a SWAT team from the capital. Goodbye…” He immediately hung up the phone.

  “Would someone please explain to me how he knew about Sidra going to ‘negotiate’ with them? She did not tell us about the undercover thing before now.” Rafil had a good point.

  “Are you saying that we have a spy?” Yazan asked.

  “Like I said... This is getting crazier by the minute.” Rayan commented.

  “Can we please focus on the main problem now? He gave us an hour to burn the place to the ground.” Samir said.

  “We have to warn Sidra before something happens. I will go to Aser’s house and see what is taking so long anyway. It has been over an hour since she left.” Mai said.

  “I think it is a good idea. Just wait 15 to 20 more minutes, then go. We need to give her the time before we blow her cover up. And I just want to put this out there… This is the dumbest operation I have seen in my life. He asked her to lead the team. Then, he calls saying ‘screw her plan’. ‘You are listening to me now’. What a mess… Doesn’t he know that he can’t just do that? I’m 100% sure that there is a spy among us. I will kill him or her myself… Once I know who they are.” Rafil said.

  Nearly ninety minutes after Sidra left, the team thought it was time for action. Few moments later, the teams left their positions and started running towards Aser’s place. They were just a block away when they saw a big sphere of light. The light was immediately followed by a very loud explosion. The bright light made the sky look like it was the middle of the day. They knew that the explosion happened at Aser’s house, but for few minutes, they were temporarily blinded. They slowly put it together and ran towards Aser’s house.

  “Oh… My God…How did this happen?” Yazan said.

  The entire place was burning. That large house looked like a giant ball of fire. Rafil could not but noticed that,

  “If anyone was inside, there is no way they could’ve gotten out.”

  “Don’t say that. Maybe it’s not burned from the inside. Estil’s houses are built with concrete, and they don’t burn that easily.” Mai said and started screaming, “Sidra? Sidra? Can you hear us?”

  “First of all, this is not a normal fire. This was an explosion. Second, this house was not built of concrete. Thi
s place was built of wood unlike almost every house in Estil.” Yazan said and continued after few seconds of silence, “You can smell the wood burning… Just look around you, there are all these pieces of burned wood.” Yazan said.

  On the side, Samir was making a phone call that he should not have.

  “Tell Jenna that there’re gone. There is no sign of her or anyone else.” He said.

  “Good… We’ll take it from here.” The person of the phone replied.

  As they all stood there watching the fire, they could not help but notice homeless people gathering. They were not there to help, but they rather stood there for the warmth.

  “Where on earth is Sidra?” Mai asked.

  “I’m afraid to say it, but she might be… Gone with the fire.” Rayan said.