One Step Back: A Titus Ray Thriller

by Luana Ehrlich

  When I arrived at the university and began making my way over to the Ebadi Institute—a ten-story social science building where the professor had his office—I saw what appeared to be some sort of student rally.

  Tehran University had always been a bastion of political activity. In fact, the beginnings of the 1979 Iranian revolution had taken place at the entrance to the university.

  Nevertheless, as soon as I got closer to the gathering, I realized the crowd assembled outside Ebadi Institute didn’t have anything to do with a student protest. There were no speeches being made or chants going on, and, except for some low murmuring, it was eerily quiet for such a large group of people.

  Suddenly, that silence was broken by the sound of an ambulance arriving. When I pushed my way up to the edge of the crowd, I understood why.

  Splattered on the pavement in front of the Ebadi Institute was a dead body. From what I could tell, the person had either fallen or jumped from one of the floors in the building.

  As soon as I looked up and spotted the broken window on the seventh floor, my stomach lurched. Professor Rouhani’s office was on the seventh floor. It was located in the middle of a hallway containing five other offices.

  Within seconds, I realized the victim had come from the middle window on the seventh floor, and I immediately began making my way over to where the ambulance had parked.

  When I arrived, the ambulance attendants were moving the body onto a gurney. At first, I thought, the deceased couldn’t possibly be Professor Rouhani since the professor was a very large man, and the mangled body I saw on the stretcher didn’t look all that big.

  However, that hope dissipated the instant the stretcher passed in front of me, and I recognized the lifeless body of Professor Bahram Rouhani.

  I wasted no time leaving the area.

  I tried calling Aviz several times on my way over to the Vanak Recreational Center, but she never answered her phone. While I was tempted to call the facility itself and ask to speak to Aviz, I decided it wasn’t the best time to draw attention to Hammid Salimi.

  Calling the facility might not have made any difference, because by the time I pulled in the parking lot, there was an emergency vehicle in front of the building.

  Seconds later, a military staff car pulled to the curb and General Lajani Davar, the father of Aviz, jumped out of the vehicle and rushed inside.

  Shortly afterward, when several young women emerged from the building holding onto each other, I knew something terrible must have happened to Aviz.

  When I saw one of the women approaching the vehicle next to mine, I got out of the Renault. “What’s happening inside?” I asked. “Did someone get hurt?”

  Tears were streaming down her face as she answered me. “Yes, it’s one of my friends. She just … She’s dead.”

  “Did she drown or—”

  “No,” she said, shaking her head. “She took a couple of drinks of her orange juice, and then she just collapsed on the floor.”

  “Was she—”

  “I’m sorry,” she said, opening her car door. “I can’t talk about it.”

  After she pulled out of the parking lot, I got back inside the Renault and made an emergency call to Carlton.

  Chapter 12

  When Carlton ordered me back to the Avini apartment, he told me not to even think about driving by the bookstore where Fabel Reza worked.

  Then, he gave me the bad news.

  “The Ops Center just informed me Farid was taken to Evin Prison the moment he was arrested. For the past twenty-four hours, he’s been subjected to intense interrogation, and, a couple of hours ago, he was given a fifteen-minute closed-door trial.”

  When he paused, I exploded. “Don’t keep me in suspense, Douglas. Tell me what happened.”

  He cleared his throat. “They convicted him of espionage. He was sentenced to death by hanging.”

  “Farid’s father will intervene. I’m sure of that.”

  “They’ve already carried out the sentence.”

  I couldn’t speak.

  “I’m sorry, Titus. I know this must be difficult for you.”

  I managed to croak out a couple of words. “I’m fine.”

  “We’ll have to pull you out now.”

  “I get that.”

  “Stay at the safe house. Don’t go anywhere or make contact with anyone while I make the arrangements.”

  I felt numb when I returned to the safe house. Just like that, in less than twenty-four hours, four of my assets had been murdered.

  I imagined Reza had also been killed. That only left Omid Askari, who, as far as I knew, was still visiting relatives on the Caspian coast.

  Was there any way I could save Omid? Was he even alive?

  I knew it wouldn’t take long for VEVAK to find out where Omid was vacationing; perhaps even now they were arresting him, along with the rest of his family.

  I removed my computer from my carryall so I could look up the location of the town where Omid had taken his family. However, as soon as I opened up my laptop, I received a notification an email was waiting for me in my inbox.

  It was from Omid.

  “I got your text.” he said. “There’s no cell phone service here in Chalus right now, but I’ll be back in Tehran this evening, and I’ll call you then.”

  The message had been sent less than five hours ago.

  Did VEVAK know Omid was on his way back to Tehran? Had they already dispatched agents to his house?

  It didn’t matter.

  I left the Avini apartment and headed over there.

  Omid lived in a three-story residence on Karaneh Street in the Elahyieh district of northern Tehran, not far from Chaman’s apartment. By the time I arrived, the streetlights had come on.

  As I drove down the street, I was relieved to see Omid’s house was completely dark. Although I was glad he wasn’t home yet, my heart rate went up the moment I spotted a vehicle parked outside a residence at the end of the block.

  When I drove by and saw it wasn’t occupied, I immediately turned around, drove back down the street, and pulled to the curb opposite Omid’s house.

  Not surprisingly, my Agency sat phone began vibrating as soon as I turned off the car’s engine. I felt certain the Ops Center had notified my handler I’d disobeyed his orders and left the safe house.

  My pulsating blue dot on The Grid had given me away.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” Carlton asked.

  “I got an email from Omid. He’s on his way back to the city.”

  “When was it sent?”

  “About six hours ago.”

  “No sign of VEVAK in the area?”

  “None.”

  “Hold on. Let me pull up a map of the neighborhood.”

  While I was waiting for Carlton, I observed a vehicle making a right-hand turn onto Karaneh Street. I quickly slumped down in the front seat of the Renault until the headlights of the oncoming car had moved past me. Then, Carlton came back on the line again.

  “Are you aware there’s an alley in the back of Omid’s house?” he asked.

  “No, I haven’t had a chance to do any recon yet.”

  “Stay put while I see what kind of satellite surveillance is available in that area.”

  “I’d prefer a drone if you have it.”

  “Your actions hardly merit preferential treatment.”

  I didn’t get a drone, but Carlton was able to get access to the feed from a reconnaissance satellite. Those images didn’t show any activity in the alleyway behind Omid’s residence.

  After observing the house for a couple of hours, I decided it was time to go take a look inside. When I called Carlton, he didn’t disagree with me.

  “If Omid returns tonight, you must convince him to go with you to the safe house,” he said. “Just because VEVAK hasn’t shown up yet, doesn’t mean they won’t eventually. It may take them a few days to run down all the intel Farid has given them.”

  “What do you think trig
gered VEVAK’s interest in Farid in the first place?”

  “We’ll explore that when you get back to Langley.”

  “It had to be Amir Madani.”

  “Our analysts have initiated a full spectrum data probe on him. If they missed something, the data mining will find it.”

  “Maybe I missed something.”

  “Right now, you need to concentrate on getting back to the safe house. Give Omid two more hours, and then leave the area immediately.”

  Carlton hung up after I assured him I had no plans to stick around the neighborhood any longer than necessary.

  It wasn’t the first time I’d been in Omid’s house when no one was home. Before recruiting him—when I’d needed to make sure he was exactly who he said he was—I’d explored every nook and cranny of the place.

  Now, I entered Omid’s house the same way—by picking the lock on the back door.

  The house smelled musty, like it had been closed up for several days. While I considered the stuffy odor a promising sign a couple of VEVAK agents weren’t waiting for me around the next corner, I still cleared every room.

  Then, I sat down in the living area and waited for Omid to show up. As I sat there in the dark, I tried not to think about my dead assets.

  That proved impossible.

  Even though I’d had assets die before, this time it felt different.

  Was it because I’d been careless? Had I been careless?

  Was it because of the way my assets had died or was it simply death itself?

  Death had always bothered me. It just seemed so senseless. Why come into existence at all if that existence was only temporary?

  Was there life beyond death?

  I doubted it.

  However, if life beyond the grave did exist, then maybe death wouldn’t seem so senseless. Maybe my life would have more meaning.

  It was true. Beyond my duty to my country, my life didn’t have much meaning, but—

  Suddenly, I was startled out of my reverie when a set of headlights splashed across the front windows of the living room.

  Someone had pulled into Omid’s driveway.

  When I took a quick peek through the windows, I immediately recognized Omid’s car.

  He was alone.

  I decided to wait in the living room before making my presence known to Omid. After the events of the day, I wasn’t taking any chances.

  After Omid came in the back door and turned on the lights in the kitchen, he opened up the refrigerator and took out a bottle of fruit juice. As he twisted the cap off, he strolled into the living room.

  He appeared to be a man without a care in the world.

  All that was about to change.

  “Don’t turn on the lights, Omid.”

  “Ahh!” he shouted, spilling fruit juice all over his shirt.

  “It’s only me,” I said, coming out of the shadows.

  “Hammid,” he said with a deep sigh, “what are you doing here? How did you get in my house?”

  His eyes suddenly fixated on the gun in my hand.

  “I don’t have time to explain everything right now, but you have to trust me. You’re in danger, and you need to leave your house immediately. That’s why I’m here. I want to take you to a place where you’ll be safe.”

  “What? No, that’s not possible. My family—”

  “Where is your family?”

  “They stayed a few extra days in Chalus. My uncle is very ill.”

  When he began telling me about his uncle’s illness, he started talking very rapidly while pacing back and forth across the floor—signs he was experiencing an adrenaline rush.

  I grabbed his arm. “Listen to me, Omid. Yesterday, VEVAK arrested a friend of mine. Like you, he’s been feeding me information about the opposition. They immediately took him to Evin Prison.” I paused a moment. “I’m sure you know what that means.”

  He looked terrified. “He’s been tortured.”

  “That’s right,” I said calmly. “He’s given them the names of all his contacts. Even though he didn’t know about you, I was one of his contacts, so as soon as VEVAK starts putting together a list of all my acquaintances, you’ll be on their radar.”

  “You and I have always been very careful.”

  I shook my head. “It won’t matter. My cover story was excellent, but it wasn’t infallible. They know who I am now, and they’ve already murdered four of my sources. I’m sure you’re next on the list.”

  He flapped his hands nervously. “But you said VEVAK only arrested your friend yesterday.”

  “That’s why we need to hurry. They’re moving very quickly on this. Don’t worry, though. I can get you out of Iran tonight. All you need to do is to come with me now.”

  “No,” he said, shaking his head back and forth. “I can’t leave my family behind.”

  I lied and said, “VEVAK won’t hurt them, Omid. They never—”

  His eyes suddenly lit up. “I’ll go back to Chalus tonight. I can leave Iran from there. My family can go with me.”

  “There’s no way you can—”

  “No, Hammid, this will work. I promise you. Come with me; I’ll show you.”

  Before I could stop him, Omid ran toward the stairs.

  I took one last look out the window and followed him.

  Omid had a study on the third floor of his residence. It was filled with bookshelves, along with a comfortable chair and a large desk.

  The room also contained a safe, and that’s where Omid headed as soon as he entered the room. He was nervous, so it took him a couple of tries before he got the combination right and swung open the door.

  Once the safe was opened, he began talking very rapidly in disjointed sentences describing how he’d been preparing for this moment for years and telling me how he was planning to get his family out of Iran.

  After he showed me the false passports he’d obtained for each member of his family, I finally agreed he should leave Tehran immediately and return to Chalus.

  I helped him put the documents in a briefcase, along with a substantial amount of cash, and then we went down to the bedrooms on the second floor, where he selected one small item from each of the children’s rooms. After stuffing these in the briefcase, we headed downstairs.

  When we began descending the stairs to the first floor, Omid’s disjointed chatter suddenly evolved into a stream of consciousness thing, and he seemed to be saying whatever came to his mind.

  Mainly, he was talking about how he’d struggled as a young man to figure out what to do with his life, but then, once he had a family, everything fell into place.

  Just before reaching the bottom of the staircase, he looked back at me and said, “Hammid, what’s the most important thing in the world to you?”

  At that moment, three VEVAK agents burst through the front door of Omid’s house and shot him.

  As Omid tumbled down the stairs, I returned fire. I immediately knew I’d hit one of the agents dead center and wounded another one, but the third guy started up the stairs after me.

  I turned and raced up to the third floor, where I knew the windows in Omid’s study opened out onto the roof.

  As I raised the window and climbed out on the flat roof, I heard the VEVAK agent enter the study behind me. He immediately fired his pistol at me, but his aim was off, and the bullet shattered the glass instead.

  When I ran over to the other side of the roof—the side facing Omid’s backyard—I expected to see VEVAK agents parked in the alley behind the house.

  However, both the backyard and the alley were empty.

  I estimated it was at least a thirty-foot drop from the roof to the ground. Could I jump that distance and walk away?

  I felt pretty sure I could, as long as I landed correctly.

  I tried to remember the correct way to land in order to survive a jump from a three-story building.

  Nothing immediately came to mind.

  As the VEVAK agent came around the corner and aimed his pisto
l at me, I jumped anyway.

  When I landed, everything went black.

  PART FOUR

  Chapter 13

  Tehran, Iran

  January 7, 2015

  I heard voices, but I couldn’t figure out what they were saying. My mind felt fuzzy, like it was full of gauze, or cotton, or fluffy white clouds.

  I floated on the clouds, soaring high, then dipping down to skim over the surface of a snow-capped mountain. The mountain resembled a man’s face, and, seconds later, the man’s features came into sharp focus.

  “Mr. Qasim,” I heard the man say, “can you hear me? Are you awake now?”

  “I … What …”

  “You’re in a hospital, Mr. Qasim. I’m Dr. Turani, and I’m taking you up to surgery now. You’ve been given something for your pain, so you should be feeling better soon.”

  I wanted to argue with the man who called himself a doctor. I wanted to tell him my name wasn’t Qasim, and I didn’t need any surgery. I felt perfectly fine. In fact, I felt better than fine; I felt wonderful.

  As I struggled to explain my blissful state to the good doctor, another man’s face floated into view.

  It was Fabel Reza.

  He bent down and whispered in my ear. “Don’t worry, Hammid. Everything’s going to be okay.”

  I wasn’t worried.

  Reza was the one who should be worried; Reza was dead.

  Maybe I was dead too.

  The first person I saw when the fog finally lifted was Fabel Reza. He was seated in a chair beside my bed.

  “Welcome back, my friend.”

  I tried to speak, but nothing came out.

  Reza picked up a paper cup and offered me a sip of water. “Don’t drink too fast; you might choke.” After placing the plastic straw between my lips, he smiled and said, “Now, wouldn’t that be ironic?”

  Once I’d taken a few sips, I asked, “What happened? Where am I?”

  “You’re in Erfan Clinic. I’ll explain what happened to you in a few minutes.” He pulled a Syrian passport out of his shirt pocket and handed it to me. “You need to remember you’re Sayid Qasim. You’re a Syrian construction worker who fell off a building and shattered his leg. Dr. Turani and his team have just spent the last four hours putting it back together.”