Terrorist: Three Book Boxed Set

by Phillip Strang

  ‘I will wait, and if what you say is not true, I will personally render the cargo worthless and push it out of the front door of the plane.’ Harry could only hope that Steve had kept Bob McDonald from boarding the plane.

  Both Harry and Abdullah were focussed as the aircraft came to rest. Yanny exited and, as planned, the plane taxied to the other end of the runway and took off.

  ‘It is a woman! Why would I want to talk to a mere female?’

  ‘She will speak in Arabic. She is more skilled than I am in such discussions.’

  ‘There are no discussions. Our position is resolute. We leave now.’

  In two minutes, Yanny had met up with Harry.

  ‘What’s the situation?’ she asked.

  ‘They are demanding to leave now for a neutral country, probably the Sudan, where they will let us have the cargo,’ replied Harry.

  ‘What is the cargo?’

  ‘That is how they refer to the women. They have not directly referred to either of them by name.’

  ‘I need to talk to the women first,’ she said.

  ‘Is that wise?’

  ‘Yes, I think so. It will defuse the situation if both parties are referring to the same commodity.’

  ***

  Quickly Yanny seated herself in the Chadian helicopter ready to make contact with the jet and its cargo. ‘My name is Yanny. I will need to talk to the women before I can accede to your demands.’ She spoke in fluent Arabic. With Yanny focussing on the discussions, Harry was free to put a rescue plan into action.

  ‘We only have cargo here, and I do not want to talk to a woman,’ said Abdullah.

  ‘You have no alternative. If you wish to leave, then I would suggest that you let me talk to at least one of the women.’

  ‘I will not agree to a request that I cannot possibly achieve. We only have cargo related to our business interests in Chad.’

  ‘We have seen you with the women. We have binoculars, and we have seen you at the Sheikh’s compound. We know what you have. Give them to us, and you are free to leave.’

  ‘Assuming that I agreed with what you say, how can I trust the Nigerian and local soldiers that are closing in on our position?’

  ‘Let me talk to the women, and I will ensure they pull back.’

  ‘What authority do you have to issue that command?’

  ‘I have the full authority of the President of Chad. He is anxious to avoid further escalation.'

  ‘I will let you speak to the local woman.’

  There was a pause and then a woman’s voice could be heard on the radio.

  ‘We are well,’ said Fatima. She was speaking in Arabic.

  ‘What is your condition?’ asked Yanny.

  ‘I am unharmed. Kate is still sedated.’

  ‘Her condition, is it fine?’

  ‘She is fine.’

  ‘Who else is there?’ asked Yanny. ‘I am told the Sheikh is there as well.’

  ‘He is, although he has been shot,’

  ‘He is not of any concern to us.’

  ‘No more!’ Abdullah said as he seized the headset and microphone from Fatima.

  ‘I have kept my word,’ he said to Yanny. ‘Now it is up to you to keep yours.’

  The Chadian military, on the other side of the airport, had been slowly mobilising and coming in closer to the besieged jet. Abdullah had made it a condition during the discussions with Yanny that they were to back off. She had to comply. She spoke to Harry. ‘We need to pull the military back.’

  ‘Have you agreed on that?’ he asked.

  ‘It was a condition of talking to Fatima.’

  ‘What about Kate? Did you talk to her?’

  ‘No, Fatima says she is sedated.’

  ‘Did she talk about her condition?’

  ‘She said she is fine.’

  ‘If you have made an agreement, then we must comply.’

  Major Moussa Abbas of the Chadian Army had joined Harry. A career soldier, he had received a phone communication by the President of his country to assist in any way possible.

  ‘Major, we need you to pull your troops back a suitable distance.’

  ‘I can’t see the wisdom,’ replied the Major.

  ‘Yanny made it part of an agreement to be able to talk to the women,’ explained Harry.

  ‘My men are prepared to attack the aircraft to free the women.’

  ‘You realise that will almost certainly get them killed?’

  ‘I have my orders.’

  ‘Do you also have the personal authority of your president to act as you see fit?’ asked Harry.

  ‘I will accede to your request.’ Major Abbas issued an order to all military personnel to pull back two hundred metres.

  Yanny again made contact with Abdullah.

  ‘The military have complied with your request,’ she said. ‘Are you satisfied?’

  ‘You are now to remove the obstructions to our movement and to let us move to the runway,’ said Abdullah.

  ‘I can only agree if you are willing to make a token gesture.’

  ‘Enough! You are playing us for fools.’

  ‘I am not playing you for fools. I have also received a request from the military to confirm that you are holding the two women.’

  ‘You have spoken to one of them. What more do they want?’

  ‘They want the Chadian woman that you took.’

  ‘She stays here,’ Saleh said to Abdullah, nudging him in the back.

  ‘I cannot agree,’ Abdullah responded.

  ‘The Chadians are adamant. They will not let you take one of their citizens against her will.’

  Abdullah turned to Saleh. ‘We have to play their game. If we give her to them, they will start to see us as trustworthy. Don’t you understand?’

  ‘I wanted her for myself,’ said Saleh.

  ‘Don’t you recognise the strife we are in?’ ‘We will be lucky if we get out of here alive. You’re still thinking with your dick,’ said Abdullah.

  ‘You are right, she gives us little security. As long as we have the fair-haired woman, they will not attack.’

  Abdullah spoke into the radio. ‘We agree. You can have the local woman.’

  ‘Please send her out,’ Yanny replied.

  ‘I will not leave Kate,’ Fatima screamed, overhearing the conversation.

  ‘You have no choice,’ said Abdullah. ‘Adeel, grab her and put her out on the tarmac.’

  Fatima fought and clung to Kate, but she was overpowered and they were wrenched apart. Separated from Kate, she could only look at her forlornly.

  Yanny, meanwhile, was seeking assurance from Harry and Major Abbas. ‘We need to make it clear that, once we have Fatima, the Chadian military will pull back out of sight. Is that clear?’

  ‘It is understood,’ Major Abbas said. ‘I assume that you are not ceding to their demands? You don’t intend to let them leave?’

  ‘No, it is just a tactic to weaken their resolve,’ replied Yanny. ‘They are not leaving this airport and we are going to get Kate back unharmed. If they are willing to agree to concessions, it means they are weakening.’

  ‘I will concede to your wisdom in such matters,’ replied the Major. ‘Our military will comply, but we will stay prepared.’

  Fatima’s reluctance was causing concern. ‘Throw her out of the aircraft!’ Abdullah commanded. Adeel immediately complied.

  With binoculars trained on the jet, Harry had seen the door open and Fatima flung out ‘She’s out on the apron. We need someone to go and pick her up.’

  ‘I have an airport ground support truck outside. I’ll go,’ Captain Déby said.

  ‘Not dressed like that,’ said Harry. ‘Take off your uniform. Put on some overalls.’

  In a matter of minutes, the Captain had transformed from military officer to airport worker and was driving the three hundred metres to where Fatima lay on the ground. Adeel had not bothered with lowering the steps; she had just been flung the one metre from the open door to t
he ground. Landing badly, she struggled to stand.

  ‘Get in quick,’ urged Captain Déby. ‘I am here to help.’

  ‘What about Kate?’ she asked.

  ‘We can do no more here,’ he said. ‘You must come immediately.’

  Once Fatima was safely in the vehicle, Yanny phoned Steve.

  ‘Steve, we’ve got Fatima.’

  ‘It’s being streamed live on the Internet,’ he said. ‘Well-done.’

  ‘How’s that possible?’ asked Yanny. ‘How can we be on the Internet?’

  ‘It seems that an American TV network was in the country monitoring the drought in the north of the country. They were at the airport preparing to leave when this unfolded. They appear to be up on the roof of the main terminal building zooming in on you.’

  ‘Not exactly what we want,’ ‘but there’s not much we can do about it.’

  ‘What’s the plan now?’ asked Steve.

  ‘Pull the Chadian military out of sight,’ Yanny reiterated.

  ***

  As agreed the Chadian military made another strategic move back. ‘We have complied with our side of the agreement,’ said Yanny. ‘The Chadian Army have moved back from their previous position.’

  ‘It is not far enough. I can still see them on the other side of the airport,’ Abdullah complained.

  ‘It is the best that can be hoped for.’

  ‘I still have the most valuable cargo here with me.’

  ‘The Chadians are conscious that there is an American television crew streaming this around the world,’ said Yanny. ‘Their armed forces will not allow themselves to be seen as submissive and incompetent.’

  ‘Stop the Americans with their cameras!’

  ‘That is not possible and you realise that neither you nor I will have any influence on them.’

  ‘Instruct the Chadian police to shut them down.’

  ‘That will not happen. What you and the Sheikh have done has brought derision on the people of Chad. They are attempting to reclaim some credibility with a successful outcome here today.’

  ‘I do not accept your explanation,’ said Abdullah, ‘but for the moment, we will continue. Has a suitable place been chosen for the exchange of the cargo?’

  ‘We are in discussions with government in the Sudan.’

  ‘We wish to change it to the Southern Sudan. It is a different country to the one that you are suggesting.’ As far as Abdullah was concerned, a governmental agreement in the Sudan could only mean one thing: a trap was evolving.

  ‘The only airport suitable in Southern Sudan is under the control of the United Nations,’ said Yanny. ‘You would be arrested if you landed there.’ Yanny knew it was a lie, but it sounded plausible.

  ‘Remove the obstructions and allow us to leave.’

  ‘Once we have confirmation from the Sudan we will release the plane. We also need to move people to the nominated airport to receive the cargo.’

  Time was moving slowly, and those holding Kate were becoming more flexible in their demands. Yanny was working towards a resolution whereby Kate would be released at the airport and the plane would be allowed to leave.

  ‘Saleh, we cannot return to Saudi Arabia. You do realise this?’ Abdullah said.

  ‘Why? If we have the woman, I don’t see the issue.’

  ‘You are remarkably stupid. Don’t you understand that there is nothing to connect us with the Prince?’

  ‘Everybody knows it’s the Prince.’ Saleh expressed his consternation at Abdullah’s statement.

  ‘Everybody knows, but nothing is proven. Where is the connection to the Prince?’

  ‘What about this plane?’ asked Saleh.

  ‘The plane is chartered through Oman and separated from the Prince by a number of offshore companies and bank accounts. It is unlikely that it could ever be traced back to him.’

  ‘They know that we work almost exclusively for the Prince.’

  ‘Where’s the proof that we are here working for him?’ asked Abdullah.

  ‘I suppose there is none,’ agreed Saleh.

  ‘If we leave with the woman, the Prince will never risk claiming her. He will be covering his tracks as we speak.’

  ‘His country will protect him. They will not allow him to be implicated.’ Saleh stated the obvious.

  ‘Saleh, at last you are using your brain.’

  ‘Then what do we do?’

  ‘We must protect ourselves, and then disappear somewhere the Prince can never find us.’ Abdullah paused for a moment. ‘A remote desert community in Oman or Muscat may be possible. In time, the Prince may forgive us. It is all we can hope for.’

  ‘We still have two and a half million dollars each,’ said Saleh.

  ‘If we can keep it, we will be fine,’ Abdullah sensed a solution. ‘I will talk to the woman again. She said her name was Yanny.’

  Fatima, meanwhile, severely bruised and exceedingly concerned about Kate, was responding to the medical treatment she was receiving from the medical attendant that the Chadian army had arranged. The Chadian military had moved away some distance and were giving the impression of passive observers. The live streaming continued, picked up by all the major news channels around the world.

  ‘We are willing to leave our cargo here, subject to guaranteed safe passage to a country of our choosing,’ Abdullah conceded.

  ‘I cannot guarantee safe passage. You have committed a crime which will subject you to immediate arrest internationally.’

  ‘That is for you to guarantee. We may as well die here alongside our cargo.’

  Yanny was elated with the latest compromise from the aircraft. It was what she wanted. If they could secure Kate’s release in Chad, the plane could leave.

  ‘I will speak to the Chadian authorities and see if they can give you a guarantee,’ she replied.

  Yanny spoke to Major Abbas and Harry. ‘You have heard what they want. Safe passage and they will leave Kate here.’

  ‘If they leave Kate, then they can go where they want, even to Hell,’ said Harry.

  He realised that Yanny had achieved a possible conclusion to the situation. It was something he would not have been able to achieve; he did not have the language skills, the diplomacy, and the intellect she had brought to the situation.

  ‘I cannot see how the Chadian government will agree,’ said Major Abbas. ‘These people have committed a serious crime in our country. We can’t just let them go free.’

  ‘It is imperative that we agree,’ replied Harry. ‘Once we have Kate, then you can do what you like.’

  ‘You are saying that we agree only until we have safely retrieved the woman?’

  ‘That’s what I am saying.’

  ‘Then it may be possible to comply with your requirement.’

  ‘Is that a yes?’ Yanny asked.

  ‘It is a yes,’ replied the Major. ‘I will consult with my superiors, but it is a formality. You are free to inform the plane. Do what you must to secure the American woman.’

  It was time for Harry to coordinate the activities to allow a smooth handover of Kate and to allow the free movement of the aircraft to leave.

  ‘What’s the plan?’ Yanny asked.

  ‘We let them taxi to the end of the runway,’ replied Harry.

  ‘But won’t they take off?’ Major Abbas saw a problem.

  ‘It will not be possible,’ said Harry. ‘Their plane is a Gulfstream G650; it needs at least one thousand six hundred metres to reach speed before it can take off. We just need to place a truck up the runway at a distance of one kilometre. Their pilot will realise that a lift off is impossible.’

  ‘Perfect,’ said Yanny. ‘It’s far enough to calm the kidnappers but close enough to deter the pilot.’

  She then made radio contact with the plane.

  ‘A40-AU4,’ she said, ‘we have an agreement.’

  ‘We will release the cargo once we have a clear exit confirmed?’ replied Abdullah.

  ‘That is agreed.’

&n
bsp; ‘We are ready to leave now.’

  ‘You are to taxi to the end of the runway for a take-off. Is that agreed?’

  ‘That is agreed.’

  ‘Two vehicles will accompany you at a distance of fifty metres to your rear until you are within two hundred metres of the runway. They will then withdraw.’

  ‘We agree.’

  ‘Once you are at the take-off point, a solitary ground support vehicle will approach the plane. Is that understood?’

  There was a slight pause before Abdullah responded. ‘It is understood.’

  ‘The Englishman you spoke to earlier will be the driver.’

  ‘That is understood.’

  ‘We will remove the current blockages to your movement in five minutes,’ said Yanny, ‘and then you will proceed to the agreed point. Prior to leaving that position, you will allow your cargo to leave the plane. You are then free to go.’

  Saleh, as usual, was quick to see a possible opportunity to satisfy his avarice. ‘Why don’t we just take off and keep the woman as well? That way, the Prince will get her and we will get the money.’

  ‘It is possible. I’m sure if we can conceal the woman in a remote part of Oman and Muscat, there will eventually be a way to get her to him.’ Abdullah could only agree with Saleh’s possible solution.

  Abdullah, relieved that they may get away with their lives, was also susceptible to avarice and acutely aware that avoiding the wrath of the Prince was certainly more conducive to a long and fruitful life.

  Five minutes had transpired and, as agreed, the vehicles blocking the plane were removed. The pilot quickly seized the moment and throttled up, released the brakes and the plane slowly moved forward. Captain Déby and Major Abbas were each in a couple of Toyota trucks following at the agreed distance.

  ‘They’re letting them go with Kate!’ Bob McDonald shouted at the television screen they were all watching in Maiduguri.

  ‘Relax; Yanny and Harry know what they’re doing. They will not let them leave until she is free,’ Steve said.

  At the agreed point, the Captain and Major Abbas pulled back and let the plane move forward without any vehicles at its rear.

  ‘They’re not behind us,’ Saleh jumped up excited. ‘Let’s make a run for it. Let’s keep the woman.’

  ‘I agree, we have nothing to lose. We have tricked them,’ Abdullah also excited said.