by Jim Wilson
“What do you do for a living?”
Bill had to think to come up with answer. He knew the authorities were now on their trail. He wondered how long this conversation would take before he got to the hard part, and told them about their trip to America. Then he remembered the answer, “I’m a Lt. Commander in the American Navy and have a very special job with the government.”
“How much money are you paid?”
He had never seen a paycheck and had no idea of how much he was being paid. Make something up. It needs to be a lot. “I make $200,000 dollars a year, live in Tampa, Florida and both of my parents are doctors. I have great influence with my government and will take good care of her. She can be a doctor in Tampa.”
The father was silent for several minutes, but Bill kept his mouth shut and waited for an answer. He was not certain that he would qualify. He felt the time pass as he noticed beads of sweat forming on Ivan’s forehead. Her father was locally a respected man and he dramatically stood and walked to Ike who was sitting on the large couch between Bill and Sarah. He took Ike’s hand. Ike stood and they were no longer separated. She smiled and moved closer to him. Bill thought. I guess this means it is okay.
“You have my blessing to marry Sarah.” He thanked him and the new couple sealed the paperwork with a small kiss.
“Thank you, but sir I have one more thing to discuss with you.”
The Supreme Leader realized that the murder of Ayatollah Meslem Ali would make his transition to paradise less stressful. This would mean that his successor was now decided. He instructed him to be outraged by the murder of his dear friend and to inform the government police to find and punish the murderers. It was now a crime, and time for action. The authorities were starting to get a clearer picture of the killing of the ayatollah. The police knew that two heavily armed Hezbollah Fighters overpowered the guards. With weapons pointed at them, the guards were forced into the office. The two intruders then bound the guards and the staff. Their eyes were taped and they were then injected with a powerful sleep-inducing drug. Evidence points to the ayatollah being suffocated by one of the Hezbollah. After discussion with the military, it was likely that Helva Yaul and Ivan Subuap were the masked men. Both were from Lebanon and it was first thought that they would try to return to Lebanon.
It is possible that Dr. Sarah Realey was either kidnapped or was in some way a part of the plot. She presently was on vacation and her travel plans indicated that she was going to Ilam, Iran to stay with her family. Some thought that it seemed like a plot that involved Israel and America. The Iranian UN ambassador requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. He prepared a paper to present to the council that demanded America and Israel pay for this invasion. Upon the news that Helva Yaul and Ivan Subuap were involved, several of the senior military that worked at the hospital were arrested. Their replacements ordered attack helicopters sent to Ilam. It was possible that the doctor or her family would reveal details about this serious crime. Local Ilam police were not well trusted by the government in Tehran. Including preparation, it would take about three hours for the helicopters to reach the doctor’s home.
It had not been an easy sale for Bill to convince the entire Realey family to abandon everything they had for a life in America. By all standards they were people of means, but the final word came from Ike, “We can try to go to America or we will die here. If we decide to leave, then every minute will count. I believe the government in Tehran will send helicopters to our house to kill us all.” His position in the Iranian army gave credence to his argument and, reluctantly, they all agreed. Sarah’s father had a brand new Land Rover that he used to make house calls to remote sites. There were six people and a host of weapons, and Bill assigned arms to all the men. Ike would drive the Land Rover. He knew the area west of Kalak fairly well. Before the Iran-Iraq war, occasionally the entire family would follow a secret path across the border to visit their relatives in Iraq. It had been many years, but her father and Ike thought they remembered the way. No one had tried to make the passage since an earthquake five years ago.
Ike entered the GPS coordinates into the navigation system of the Land Rover. It was a twenty mile trip to Kalak. Sarah and Bill sat together in the front seat. Ivan never wore a seat belt in Lebanon, but he put it on when he saw Ike pull his tight. The easy part of the drive was on a busy one lane dirt road. Bill kept watch for the predicted helicopter attack. He tried to understand the rules of the road, but they seemed to change with every car they passed. The Land Rover was fully loaded with passengers. Sarah never stopped talking to Bill, but the road noise made complicated conversation difficult to understand. He would nod his head and watch for the coming attack. Ivan was impressed with Ike’s driving and the quality of the doctor’s car. Ike never slowed his speed and would simply leave the road to overtake slower vehicles. He would pick the best side for travel and hold his speed steady. While passing a small truck near Kalak he left the road and was blocked from returning by a stone wall for a half a mile. A wooden fence then replaced the stone wall and with a little extra speed he smashed through it to once again return to a slightly wider, more urban road.
Bill watched Ike’s foot press the accelerator towards the floor. They went through Kalak and Ike was now blowing his horn. There were cars, trucks, people and animals everywhere, but Ike accelerated to over eighty. “This is going to be the last of the easy road. I need to make up some time.” It will be best if the helicopter uses their machine guns. Maybe the missiles are too expensive to be fired at such small target. With the gun they will slow and come in close. That will give me five more minutes. If I make it, maybe they’ll let me join the American army. I’m the same rank as Bill and it would be very good to be paid $200,000 a year.
Three helicopters were traveling at 200 knots, but unlike the drive that Bill, Ivan and Sarah made, it was a straight shot. The Land Rover passed through Kalak, Iran and the road was now barely a foot path. Ahead of them was a 5,000 foot mountain range and Ike drove on like he was going to the market. It would look impassable and then a small opening would appear. Every foot they covered in the car would save them valuable time. They came to what looked like a cliff. “This hill is new and the earthquake has changed the shape of this gorge. It has much steeper walls, but I think we can make it. Everyone needs to hang on.”
Before anyone could object he drove over the edge. Bill recalled the plight of Sarah’s Volvo. Ivan knew that he was going to die, but he was trapped between the doctor and his wife in the back seat. If he had been near the door he would have jumped from the car. The bottom of the Land Rover scraped the edge of the hill as it turned and pointed almost straight down. The car seemed to free fall for about fifty feet and Ike was hitting the accelerator not the brakes. As the slope became less drastic the car would bound into the air and then hit the ground again. “Hang on this is going to be the hard part.”
Ivan thought. We must be going 75 miles per hour. I have no chance of survival.
The three helicopters were now at the Realey home and they saw the police car. One landed and four armed soldiers jumped out. Within a few minutes they radioed the pilots of the hovering helicopters that the house was empty. Their plan was to separate and the helicopters would fly in three directions to cover as much of the border between Iran and Iraq as was possible. Each helicopter had a gunman positioned on an outside seat that was able to pivot. The gunner could fire forward or to the rear of the helicopter. He was using a 50 caliber very rapid fire machine gun that would overpower anything that they had. The Land Rover was using a path that was south of Ilam. One of the helicopters was now headed directly toward them. They were flying at 1000 feet and visibility was good except for a few low clouds.
The Land Rover was now mostly on the ground, but Ike was still holding the accelerator to the floor. They had survived the original drop. Sarah was looking at the speedometer and it was showing 100 miles per hour. They were approaching what Ike had warned them was the hard
part. Ike was still not hitting the brakes and their speed was still increasing. The slope was gradually becoming almost level, but ahead of them was a gigantic grass hill. “If we can get over this hill, it’ll then be an easier ride.”
Ivan could not see the top of the hill from the back seat, “This is a very large hill. Part of it looks almost straight up.”
His foot still held the gas pedal to the floor and as the Land Rover made the transition between level and steep they were all pressed hard into their seats. Ivan closed his eyes and tried to remember a Jewish prayer. Within seconds the fast part of the ride was over. The SUV slowed as it struggled to reach the top of the hill. The last few yards, Ike shifted into low gear. He was still at full throttle, and the car was now almost under control as they topped the hill.
Ike stopped the car and looked ahead. There was now a well-defined path that led to Iraq. They had less than a mile to the border. There was no line and no fence, but it was a different country. It was frontier Iraq. The southern helicopter was still flying at 1,000 feet. The pilot was looking for a target on foot. Then he saw a SUV a few miles west of them. The gunner cocked his machine gun and the pilot headed directly for them. They were only two minutes apart. The pilot no longer cared that the border with Iraq was close.
The helicopter circled them to the left. The pilot could clearly see the Iran Iraq border on the helicopter’s GPS, but he was going to pierce this SUV with lead from his machine gun. No one in the Land Rover was yet aware of the threat. The helicopter was rounding in front of the land Rover and flying backwards. Bill was comparing their location to the meeting coordinates on the car’s navigations system. It was just over the small hill ahead and Ike had reduced their speed to twenty miles per hour. It was a rough ride for the Land Rover, but after the earlier adventure it seemed tame.
Then Bill saw dust fly to the right of the car. There was no sound, but he knew what it was. It was large caliber gun fire and it was near them, “Keep going! We are under fire.” Bill hoped that there were people waiting for them at his meeting site. It should be just over this hill. Then he saw two Black Hawk helicopters appear from the hill in front of them. The American Black Hawk Helicopters passed low on each side of the Land Rover.
According to the GPS, the Land Rover was now in Iraq. Up until the American helicopters appeared, the Iranian pilot cared little about the border, but he was west of his target and clearly in Iraq. The Iranian gunner was watching his target and continued to fire. A single AIM-9 X Sidewinder missile left one of the Black Hawk helicopters. Within seconds the Iranian craft was a ball of fire.
The American pilot keyed his mike, “Air control, an unidentified craft clearly in Iraqi territory is for some unknown reason firing their weapons at us. I’m requesting approval to take aggressive action.”
“To be used only as needed, but approved.”
The pilot waited a few seconds and then keyed back, “The target’s destroyed, thank you air control.”
The Land Rover topped the hill and they saw the American soldiers and a small bus waiting for them. The Black Hawk helicopters photographed and documented the Iranian helicopter’s penetration of Iraqi air space. The data showed the remains of the crashed Iranian craft was one half mile into Iraq and had been using a machine gun against an unarmed vehicle. The record showed that the vehicle was a private passenger car. The passengers were an American officer, his fiancée and her family. They were on vacation and had no idea why the Iranian craft attacked them.
The soldiers stood around the Land Rover as Bill and his new family got out. Two of the soldiers were medics and asked if anyone was wounded or injured, but none were. The Iranian gunner had fired over 4,000 rounds of his 50 caliber machine gun, but remarkably, only three rounds had hit the Land Rover. Everyone started looking at the SUV. One round entered the rear window and exited through the right rear tire. Two rounds hit the engine area. Both penetrated the radiator and one was deflected through the lower engine block. Their downhill run had bent the frame and had broken all of the side windows. Therefore, all of the windows were missing except the front windshield. The front and rear bumpers were both missing and the center frame of the car was bent almost six inches upward. The back right tire was flat and smoke was now pouring from the engine.
Ivan again joked, “Uncle Sam owes you a new Land Rover.” The father looked at his new car and shook his head.
Two soldiers helped unload the SUV. One carried six UZI machine guns from the area behind the back seat. “For a vacation trip in Iraq you can never have too much protection. There are two small suit cases in the back.”
“They’re mine.”
They all got on the bus. The father looked back at his still smoking Land Rover and said to one of the soldiers. “Are we just going to leave it here?”
The soldier shook his head, “I hear you all are going to America. There are plenty of nice cars there.”
The bus took them to a military base in Kharbut, Iraq. It was the location of a small Air Force base with two long runways. It was designed to take emergency traffic from the Bagdad airport. The ladies were given private quarters to rest and recover from their ordeal. Each of them received a suitcase that contained fresh clothing and grooming supplies. Bill, Ivan, her father and Ike were given dormitory space in the bachelor officer quarters and also received suitcases.
Bill opened his and lying on top of the clothing was a holstered Glock 23 with three extra clips of ammunition. For the next two days Bill and his new family relaxed and got to know each other. Their next ride would be to Mac Dill in Tampa, Florida, America, and the Group was waiting for Bill to return.
Taking stock in peace and light
New life begins again
How easily dons the dark of night
And danger lurks within
Chapter 20
Henry was again beside himself. He knew that the Americans had long arms, but he was surprised that they were able to reach Ali in Tehran. The Northern Tehran Residential Building was heavily guarded. I am surely their next target, but with Ali’s death I get his wealth. Hundreds of African banks held the ayatollah’s money. There were billions of dollars held in secret European bank accounts. Henry had memorized every secret account number. The African accounts were all denominated in local currencies. Normally with Ali’s permission he would use these accounts to finance his projects and businesses. Henry new the African system and how important it was to add or remove funds at least three times a year. The African bankers were a little greedy, and if an account was unused for too long the manager might decide to use the money himself.
Henry was a tough business man, but he was very honest. He had never used any of the funds for his own gain. The ayatollah had given Henry millions for his own personal use and he had everything he wanted. He liked the power and respect that he received in both Chad and Libya. He would not deny that he enjoyed the things that came with success. What he really reveled in were honest business transactions. If he purchased an oil well the people who did the work trusted his every word. He had the ability to shake hands with a cut throat murdering thief over some transaction and neither he nor the man would break the agreement. That same man would stab his best friend in the back over five dollars, but between certain men their word counted. In Africa it was very important that business dealings include a man like Henry.
After taking the Prince’s money, Ali was richer than most Arab kings. Henry always wondered why Ali had never married. He died without heirs to transfer the wealth to upon his death. Henry had three wives in various African locations and each of his wives had one son. The three boys were all in an English boarding school and he had set up generous trusts for them. He spent little time with his families, but he felt reassured that if something happened to him there was a place for his money to go.
Henry was the ayatollah’s only real friend, although perhaps friends would not be quite the term to explain their relationship. He and the Prince had enjoyed each ot
her’s company. Meslem Ali rarely talked about anything other than business actions. He and the Prince addressed each other by first names, but he always used the title ayatollah in conversations with Ali. The ayatollah always addressed him as Henry. Meslem Ali had chosen a life style that offered no public pleasantries and he had no interests or hobbies. Henry reviewed the life of Meslem Ali and felt sad. He said out loud, “The worst part is that no God would allow him into paradise. He will be in hell with the Prince.”
The East West Fund held the money for the secret American jihad. Originally, before his death, Ali owned the EWF totally through a complex series of trusts. Ali had funds in accounts that paid taxes. He also had hidden accounts that sheltered and avoided taxes. Upon his the death twenty percent of his unhidden wealth was to be automatically transferred to the East West Fund. The fund and all of the dollars in the fund were totally controlled by an American named Malcolm Akiff. Just before Ali’s death, and to distance himself, he changed his trusts and made Henry the owner of all the Fund’s assets.
The remaining unhidden money was to go directly to Henry. Not counting the East West Fund, Meslem Ali’s estate was about twenty billion dollars. Half of his wealth was hidden in secret African and European accounts, but the other half was visible and available for immediate distribution and taxes. The visible half was made up of two parts: The five billion dollar value of his businesses and five billion dollars in various money market accounts.
These holdings were vast and Henry had spent his adult life acquiring them. He knew every investment and had hired and knew the name of all of his managers. He knew all of the local government officials that made these businesses easier to run. Henry and this wealth were one, and he also knew that the legal transfer of this wealth from the ayatollah to him would mean his destruction by the Americans. It would be impossible to make these transfers without American knowledge. Henry was beside himself.