If there wasn’t a good way to get Baha at the concert venue, we would follow him to a better location. We compared notes on surveillance of a moving subject. Between the five of us we had three vehicles, the Tahoe, my truck and another, older SUV that David drove. For communication, we only had handheld radios and our cell phones.
I jumped in with David and he drove me over to the public access parking lot where my truck was parked. I jumped in my truck and followed him back to the gate of the secure parking area. Benjamin was there waiting to let us in. Somehow, the parking guard had been replaced or his shift was over.
I left my truck parked just inside the gate. The plan was, if we were forced to follow Baha, then Hafsah and I would leave ahead of him in my truck, with the others following from behind. Baha would be boxed in and we could stop him quickly if an opportunity presented itself. We would rotate positions as the situation dictated.
I called Tony and told him Hafsah and I were still at the concert venue and wouldn’t be able to meet them at the restaurant after all. Tony was disappointed and I could tell he was curious about why we were still at the auditorium. I didn’t volunteer any information, but I did promise to tell him all about it after church the next morning.
Back at the Tahoe, Hafsah had pulled out the black duffle bag. She now wore the black shoulder holster, under a dark blue windbreaker type jacket. The others had already seen to their armament from other stores they had brought with them. Hafsah sent me to put the black duffle bag in the cab of my truck. While I was doing that, the concert ended.
When I got back to the Tahoe, the decision had been made that three of us would go to the back of the building to see what might be done, as people came out the back door. Hafsah, David and I were to watch for any opportunity to grab or kill Baha. The other two would each have vehicles running and ready to go if we came back in a hurry.
We loitered in the general area, pretending to smoke cigarettes. Hafsah sent David up on the loading dock. She would signal him when Baha came out.
It was only a moment later when the steel door went up. By then, most of the crowd was swarming around the main public parking area. Men with hand-trucks and dollies began bringing equipment out onto the loading dock. Several people, who worked in the venue came out of the building individually and in small clusters. Some went straight out to the secure parking area, got in their vehicles and drove away, while others hung out and socialized.
Shortly, there were half a dozen men working on the dock, putting things into the back of the trucks, as another half dozen moved back and forth, freighting the equipment from inside. There was no sign of anyone associated with the Honky Tonk Broncs. The rental truck stayed closed up. People who weren’t working left the dock for the parking area.
David drifted away from the loading dock as soon as it started getting crowded.
I resisted the temptation to go back inside the building. I figured there was probably a great deal of activity going on in there as the venue was being cleaned, the stage and props were cleared, and some socializing and partying would be going on. Nat Baha would have no patience for any of that. Still, there would be some necessity for him and the band to participate in photo taking and being friendly. I decided I shouldn’t risk it. Once inside, my record company persona would be blown in about one minute.
The larger trucks were mostly loaded by the time Kyle Coltrane and some of the members of his band came out. Right behind them, all four of the Honky Tonk Broncs came out onto the loading dock. Kyle Coltrane took a minute to talk to the roadies and shake hands all around, then he and his crowd headed for the buses. The Broncs stayed on the loading dock. Two more men came out with some equipment on dollies, and all of them started loading things into the back of their rental truck. They waved off any assistance from the other men who’d loaded Kyle Coltrane’s trucks.
The area on and around the loading dock was well lit, but it was not well lit where we were loitering out of sight to the men on the dock.
The men who loaded Coltrane’s trucks went back inside.
“I could probably shoot Muktallah from here.” David hissed at Hafsah, appearing suddenly beside us.
Just then, several of the roadies, stage hands and some of the crew came out on the dock, laughing loudly. They were drinking beer in cans and bottles and smoking. They exchanged some jovial words with the men at the back of the truck.
Abdul Suliman and Jahander Khalid, appeared at the front of the truck, looking around. They both got in the cab, Khalid in the driver’s seat. The truck started up and pulled away from the loading dock. Some of the men who had just come outside were still on the loading dock, but there was no sign of the four musicians! Where was the band? Had they gone back inside the auditorium?
Someone had to follow the truck. Someone had to go inside.
“David, you know what he looks like. Go inside and search quickly. We will follow the truck. Benjamin will be here if you need him. Call us as soon as you know if Muktallah is in the building” Hafsah made the decision quickly.
We sprinted over to the Tahoe where Anke was waiting with the engine running.
“Follow that truck,” Hafsah instructed her. “We will be right behind you.”
As Anke pulled out behind the truck, we ran over to Benjamin where he was seated in the other SUV.
“We lost Muktallah and the others. They may be inside the building, or they may be in the truck that just left. David has gone inside the building. You stay here and wait for him. Call us if there is trouble.” She told him.
He nodded and held up his radio.
We ran to my truck, dived in and started it up. I’d seen the taillights of the Tahoe as they disappeared toward the highway somewhere off to our right.
As we left the lot, I was thinking about how fast things can change. We’d been forced to divide our team and we’d no firm idea where Muktallah might be.
“So much for planning,” I mumbled.
38
Anke radioed that she had the truck in sight and they were headed west on highway 64, towards the city. We stayed in communication for about five minutes until I turned north on loop 323 and spotted the Tahoe and the truck several car lengths ahead of us. We followed it to the cutoff for highway 271.
Hafsah’s phone rang.
“Hello, David?” She listened to him talk for a moment. “There is nothing we can do. He has given us the slip. You and Benjamin should go on to the hotel. We are still following the truck.” She paused to listen again. “No. There is no blame to assign. We will find him again, sooner or later. Goodbye.”
Hafsah sighed and looked up through the moon roof of my truck.
“What is it?” I asked.
“We missed him at the auditorium. He and Aaron Parviz went back into the building. The other two members of the band are presumably in the back of the rental truck. David had not been inside the building and he became somewhat disoriented, with all of the hallways, searching room by room. He eventually asked someone if they had seen Nat Baha and Aaron Parviz. He was told they had gone out the front of the building to meet an Uber driver. By the time he got to the front of the building the car was gone. David called Benjamin to come pick him up at the front of the building. I have sent them back to the hotel. Should we even continue to follow the rental truck?” She asked, clearly frustrated.
“Yes. It could be going to the same place the Uber driver is headed.” I affirmed. “Tell Anke to drop back and we’ll move up closer to the truck.”
Two minutes later, the truck turned off of highway 271, into a public storage area with a high security fence around it.
We drove past it and did a u-turn at the next gap in the median. Anke stopped at the side of the road on the far side of the storage lot. We pulled into a parking lot directly across the highway.
Hafsah radioed Anke, who informed us she couldn’t see the truck from where she was. I grabbed my binoculars and was watching the truck as Abdul Suliman and Jahander Khalid g
ot out and went to the back. Suliman unlocked the door and slid it up. The bass player and the rhythm guitar player hopped down. They all stood and talked for a moment. Suliman pulled the door closed and locked it, as the two musicians walked over to where several vehicles were parked. They unlocked their individual vehicles and waved goodbye to Suliman and Khalid, who were also headed for their vehicles. Shortly, all four men drove out of the storage facility, the gate automatically shutting behind them. All four vehicles were headed back into town.
I was wondering why they hadn’t unloaded the rental truck. Were they planning on hauling the equipment somewhere again soon?
This wasn’t going well. Instead of three vehicles to run mobile surveillance on a single subject, we only had two vehicles to follow four subjects. There was little chance of success.
Moments later, even the little chance disappeared. The four vehicles split up; two continuing on into the city, the other two going in opposite directions on the loop. Hafsah radioed Anke and told her to head back to the hotel.
My phone rang.
“Hello, is this Mr. Hightower?” A familiar voice asked.
“You bet. Say, is that you, Mr. Baha?”
Hafsah and I looked at each other.
“It is, yes. Is this a bad time? I know you are dining with friends.”
“Sure, we can talk.”
“Are you still interested in doing a recording of our band?”
“I sure am. I have to say I’m particularly interested in you, though. You pretty much make the band what it is.”
“You are too kind.”
“So, Monday morning, I’ll be at the recording studio. We need to sit down and talk details. We can do a demo whenever you and the band can get together. Before we get too far along, there are certain legal contract negotiations to be considered. I’m not asking for a contract right now, but we need to talk about these things.”
“That discussion can be arranged. Mr. Parviz is our manager. He is here with me, as we speak.”
“Excellent. I’ll tell you what I’ll do for you. On Monday, I’ll provide the studio space and time. We’ll do some sound checks and get something recorded at no expense to you. We’ll just do a single which you can shop around if you want to. Naturally, I’d sure like you boys to sign with me, but I’ll arrange this studio session. Call it a show of good faith.”
“That is very generous, Mr. Hightower. It is what we would like to do?”
“How about we meet first thing Monday morning, Mr. Baha?”
“…After morning prayer, Mr. Hightower.”
“What? Oh, do you go to church on Monday?”
“It is our custom to pray in observance of salah, five times each day.”
“Did you say salad? What does salad have to do with anything?”
“Really, Mr. Hightower, you have much to learn if you want to have any business with us. As Muslims, we observe the five pillars of Islam. One of these is daily prayer.”
“OK, sure, I got no problem with that.”
“An open mind is a virtue and the beginning of wisdom, Mr. Hightower. Perhaps you will begin to see the light. The candle is not there to illuminate itself.”
“Huh?”
There was a moment of silence as Nat Baha regained his patience. I could almost feel his irritation vibrating through the truck’s speakers.
“Monday will be fine, Mr. Hightower. Would nine o’clock be acceptable?”
“OK, that’s fine. Do you know where the Superior Sound Systems studio is?”
“I am confident we can find it.”
“Super! Nine AM, I’ll look forward to seeing you then.” I said.
He broke the connection.
“John, why do you play at being ignorant with my cousin?” Hafsah asked.
“Because he believes a typical American is ignorant, especially about Islam.” I replied.
“Are most Americans ignorant about Islam?” she asked.
“Some are. Many believe Islam is just a religion, a matter of personal belief. There are not enough people who understand Islam is much more than a person’s personal religion. In America we are a post Christian culture. In much of the country people have little exposure to any religion at all. There are too many people who think all religions are basically the same, useless and stupid. Few understand that for a person who is a fundamentalist Muslim, an Islamist, advancing the cause of Islam must be the most important aspect of their life. Many Americans can’t understand the concepts of jihad or martyrdom. There are more than two billion Muslims in the world. If ninety percent of them are peaceful, only about twenty million want to kill us. If a small fraction of those are committed to jihad… Most Americans can’t imagine there are tens of thousands of people all over the world, many here in our country, who believe America is evil and worthy of destruction. They can’t understand why those people would gladly give their lives in the process of taking ours. In this country we try to be respectful of other people’s beliefs. We find it hard to believe other people don’t hold the same view.”
“How is this possible? Have they forgotten what happened on 9/11 in 2001?”
“No, Hafsah, they remember, but they think there are only a few crazy people who want to kill Americans. Until recently they thought those people were all in the Middle East and belonged to Al Qaeda or ISIS or another radical group. They don’t understand how an otherwise intelligent and rational person living in America could decide to bomb a marathon or shoot up a group of people. They are ignorant about Islam in that way.”
“Is Christianity really any different from Islam?” She asked.
“Oh yes, Hafsah, fundamentally different. Christians believe God sent His only son into the world, not to condemn the world, but so that the world might be saved. Christians believe God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten son, so that whoever believes in Him will be saved. Christians believe all people should have the chance to hear this message and make their own choices. Christians believe all people have free will and are responsible for the consequences of the choices they make. Christians don’t judge or punish people who reject the gospel. Christians believe God alone is the final judge.
This differs from Islam, in that Islam believes all people must worship Allah, even if they must be forced to do so. Islam teaches, any infidel who will not renounce their religion in favor of Islam is worthy of death. Islamists believe the entire world must be brought into subjugation to Islam, by any means necessary. Correct me if I’m wrong.”
“You are not wrong John, but you are overlooking much of the teaching of the Prophet.”
“Anyone truly committed to Islam would say a person who claims to be a Muslim but does not believe all of those things I just mentioned, has themselves overlooked much of the teaching and the example of the Prophet. Am I right?”
Hafsah nodded her head. In the glow of the truck’s instruments, she looked very sad. “This is why there are so many radicals. But you Christians have done the same cruel things. What about the Crusades and the Inquisitions?”
“The Crusades were a reaction to the spread of Islam throughout the Middle East and spreading into Europe. It’s true there were horrible atrocities committed, especially against the Jews. Those events occurred centuries ago when much of the world was under the thumb of the Roman Catholic Church. The crusades and inquisitions were the work of the Roman Catholic Church, not of all Christians. The Roman Catholic Church claimed to be the only true church. This is what happens when any group of people band together and decide only they have the truth, and then they decide whatever they say, that is the whole and only truth. The Roman Catholic Church attained political power. Power and corruption are intimate lovers. That’s what the Inquisitions were all about. To maintain control, the Roman Catholic Church had to punish anyone who wouldn’t toe the line. In this way, Islam and some churches are very much alike. The traditions and dogma become more important than the Word of God. That’s not what Christianity is about.
“I do not understand what you are saying.” Hafsah said.
“I’m trying to describe the difference between adherence to a group and its traditions, and having a personal, living relationship with God.”
“I would like that, John. I see how you trust and believe in God. I see how you love people. I hear how you pray, how you talk to God as though he were your father, and how you try to listen and obey. I want that in my life, John.”
“Are you ready to meet Jesus?”
“Yes, I am.”
I pulled the truck over to the side of the road.
We make our plans, but God has plans of His own.
Tonight, Hafsah had been forced to give up the chase in her attempt to capture her cousin. Instead, the hound of heaven had brought her to bay.
39
As she climbed into bed, images and events of the day bounced and rolled in her mind like an old film shown from the wobbly reel of an unreliable projector.
Hafsah was exhausted, physically, mentally and emotionally.
She remembered how delightful it was walking hand in hand with John at the zoo. They strolled and enjoyed each other’s company as if they didn’t have a care in the world. There was no denying it—she was falling in love with him. Still, the man was infuriating. The concert had been fun, for a moment, until she realized who the lead guitar player was. She’d been ready to kill Nat Baha in that moment, but was denied the satisfaction by the very circumstances that had put them together in the same time and place. Later, she found herself standing no more than eight feet from her hated cousin. She could have done it. The opportunity to be in the same room with him again might never come, but John had stopped her. Of course, there were witnesses and civilians in the room, but oh how she’d wanted to pull the Glock from her purse and shoot the man, then and there.
The Ticking Clock Page 15