Ashes of the Red Heifer (9 page)

People around her started to run, screaming with frustration, anger, and pain. Annie ran with them, not knowing where to go. In the panicked stew, she heard orders shouted over a bullhorn, but not the exact words. A crush of uniformed men wielding guns rushed through the crowd, knocking people aside.

Someone grabbed her arm. Hassan wheezed beside her. “Hurry… tear… gas.”

Panic seized her at the sight of Hassan. He and his accomplices would drag her away. She’d never be seen again. She wrenched free. A fist-sized rock smashed into the back of the man in front of her and he went down to his knee. David fought the mob to get to her. And she was in his arms.

He pulled her close and bent over her. “Are you hurt?”

She pointed. “Hassan.”

Rocks hailed on the plaza; the noise of the mob deafening.

David squinted at Hassan. He pulled her tighter and together they struggled through the panicked mass.

Annie tried to see if Hassan followed. David tugged her along. She strained to look behind her. Hassan’s eyes focused on her, despite the interference of others.

Suddenly two men in Israeli police uniforms grabbed Hassan from behind. His eyes flew open in alarm. He fought to get free.

“Hassan!” Annie squirmed from David’s hold. She shoved someone out of her way to get back to him. She didn’t care about the Silim or that he’d wanted to kidnap her. He was in trouble. She had to help him.

The policemen seemed to swallow Hassan and drag him away.

David grabbed her. “Annie, no!” he yelled into her ear. He pulled her out the narrow opening and into the street.

She looked back once. Hassan was gone.

David held her hand in a death grip as he pulled her at a trot down a narrow, ancient street away from the riot.

Her face pounded with the heat and her T-shirt stuck to her sweaty body. She shoved straggles of damp blonde hair from her face. “We have to go back. They’ve got Hassan.”

David didn’t slow down. “It’s too dangerous.”

She pulled against him. “We’ve got to do something. What about going to the police?”

He let go of her hand and leaned over to catch his breath, hands on his knees. “It looked like the police that took him.”

“The embassy. Or an Israeli official.” She rubbed her arm, the feeling coming back slowly.

Sweat glistening on David’s face. “What did Hassan tell you up there?”

She waved her hand. “Nothing.” She couldn’t tell David that Hassan was part of the Silim. She hadn’t figured out what it meant and telling another person, even David, might put Hassan at more risk.

She pointed in the direction they’d come. “What was that about?”

David stood in front of her as if to shield her from people passing them. He sounded angry. “It was a group of Temple faithful Jews getting ready to lay the corner stone of the new Temple.”

She squinted up at him. “And I take it the Muslims aren’t thrilled about that.”

“Of course not. For the Temple to be rebuilt the Dome of the Rock needs to be destroyed.”

“Why can’t everyone compromise and the Jews could build a temple to the side of the Dome? There is plenty of space up there.”

David paced a bit in front of her, clearly angry. “You don’t understand the importance of the Temple. It must be built on the Holy of Holies. In the exact spot. There is no compromise.”

Annie began to walk down the narrow street. It seemed no matter how the conversation started, in Israel, it always ended up about religion. She didn’t even believe in God and still he managed to invade her life. Holy of Holies, right, Crazy of Crazies more likely. She couldn’t pinpoint exactly what the religious conflict had to do with Hassan, David, her, or their research but she was sure religion was at the base of it all. And what it meant to her was another failure.

He took her hand and walked beside her, increasing his pace, clearly annoyed.

“What?” she said.

He stopped in front of her. “They had no business bringing out the corner stone. It causes needless agitation and brings attention to things that should be left alone.”

“Such as?” She stepped around him and kept walking.

He shook his head and joined her. “Never mind. The thing is, even if the Dome were gone, we can’t lay the cornerstone now.”

We? Was he throwing himself in with the fanatics at the Wailing Wall? Had she really thought marrying was a conceivable option? She flexed her shoulder, working out the ache from the rock. “Because?”

“Because we’re ritually impure and don’t have the means to purify ourselves, yet. We can’t step foot on the sacred ground to lay the cornerstone until we can perform the required ritual.”

“You’re unclean and can’t pray on the mount so you all pray at the wall instead.”

Again, his pace accelerated. “The Kotel is no substitute for the Temple. It is sacred only because of the many prayers of our people. Jews have only prayed at that place for two thousand years.”

Annie raised her eyebrows. “Only two thousand?”

“It is an insult, really. Some Jews think it’s holy but praying at the wall only emphasizes our exile and failure to worship God as he commands us.”

They walked in silence for a few seconds and David turned to her. “Where are we going?”

“To the American Embassy.”

“Do you know where that is?” he asked.

She nearly yelled in exasperation. “No. There’s got to be a phone booth around here somewhere. We need to get someone there to find Hassan and take care of him.”

David abruptly stopped, pulling on her hand. “He’s a terrorist. Why do you want to help him?”

She stomped ahead. “Hassan is no terrorist.” She didn’t want to talk or argue or even think about religion. She wanted to find Hassan.

“What will it take to make you understand? He lied to you from the beginning.”

She whirled around and faced David. She hadn’t told him what Hassan said on Al Aksa. “How do you know so much?”

A roar of a car engine made her suddenly aware of their surroundings. When had they turned off into the alley? The car rushed toward them and Annie watched, thinking vaguely about teenage hoodlums. Distracted by David’s words, the car didn’t alarm her.

David’s hand tightened around hers and she looked up at him. Something about his tense face caused her heart to leap as if shot with a hundred volts of electricity.

The car tires screeched as they skidded next to Annie. Adrenaline surged through her and she flinched toward David.

The car doors flew open and four dark figures tumbled out. They rushed toward Annie. Confusion and disbelief froze her momentarily, then she took off.

Too late.

The first man caught her arm and wrenched her back. She screamed and fought as the second man crashed into her and scrambled for a hold around her waist. They wore dark clothes and black ski masks pulled down over their faces.

Pain ripped through her as she cracked her head and her knee against the car. They men stuffed her into the back. Within seconds, someone bound her hands with duct tape, slapped a piece over her mouth and jerked a ski mask over her head.

“Annie!” David called.

She heard grunts, fists striking flesh and then a body smashed into hers.

Car doors slammed. Someone yelled, “Go, go, go!”

NINE

       At the roar of the engine, the car lurched forward throwing Annie’s head against the back of the seat. Where were they going? What would these silent men do to her and David? In a panic, she tried to pull the mask from her face. Her hands were bound. A scream rose in her throat. With her mouth taped it had nowhere to go and choked her.

David stirred next to her and groaned. Annie heard a rip from the roll of duct tape and a startled grunt from David.

The ride was short. The car braked; the goons opened their doors. David jerked away from her. Rough hands clutched her arms and yanked her out. She heard traffic noise not far away and smelled car exhaust and hot grease from a nearby restaurant. But their footsteps echoed on closed-set walls. They must be in an alley off a main street.

The goons didn’t say anything as they manhandled Annie up a few stairs and into a building. Muffled grunts sounded as though David called her name. Once inside, the man holding Annie by her shoulders gave her a push and she stumbled, banging her knees. David fell against her on the cold tile floor. A door opened then banged shut.

Knowing it wouldn’t be intelligible Annie spoke against the tape at her mouth asking David if he was all right.

He garbled words back to her.

With her hands taped behind her back she struggled to her feet. She stood next to David, blind, bound, the pounding of her heart as loud as David’s heavy breathing. At least his breath was regular and he stood steady next to her. He couldn’t be hurt too bad.

Light footsteps approached. Annie wanted to run or attack but without her hands or eyes, all she could do was wait.

A man’s high-pitched voice pierced her ears. Alanberg. “Shalom. We are waiting.”

He approached her and lifted the mask until he could take hold of the tape over her mouth. He ripped at the tape and Annie yelped at the stinging. He lowered the mask again.

The smart reaction would be caution and restraint. But something about being kidnapped rankled Annie. If she were going down, she’d go down fighting. “You son of a bitch. What the hell is this all about?”

He moved to David. “We have our reasons.” Rip.

David drew in a sharp breath. “Annie, are you okay?”

She ought to be more frightened but her anger burned hotter. “Yeah. Fine. I’m blindfolded and my head hurts like hell. I have no idea where I am or why, and this little turd in front of me could shoot us any time. Best danged day of my life.”

Alanberg stepped back. “You are in no danger.”

“Dr. Alanberg? Why are we here?” David demanded.

Annie’s words spit from her mouth. “This is the Silim, David. Alanberg’s the slimy filth that killed Avrel.”

Alanberg sniffed as if he’d been insulted. “We are
not
the Silim. You may think of us as…The Corporation. Unfortunately, you, Mr. Kaufman, did not factor into our plans. We meant only to bring Dr. Grant.”

David’s voice sounded angry. “You’ve got me now. What are you going to do?”

Alanberg made a tsk noise but didn’t answer.

Annie fought the tape at her hands. “Take this blasted mask off my face. And untape my hands.”

She heard Alanberg move behind her. “The mask stays. Don’t ask again.”

What kind of group was this? What did they want? Annie felt him slice at the tape between her wrists. Once freed, she brought her hands in front of her and peeled the duct tape off her wrists, wincing as it tugged her hair and skin.

She thought she heard him cut David’s hands free.

Alanberg pushed the middle of her back. “This way.” He slid around in front of them.

David’s hand brushed against her and she grabbed it. With a sudden move he put his arms around her and pulled her close. She felt his heart beating under her face and she pressed into him.

“This way,” Alanberg urged.

David released her and took hold of her hand. They followed the footsteps to a narrow hallway. With her free hand, she groped along the wall.

Alanberg directed them through a door and she lost her grip on David’s hand. This new room was dark and theirs were not the only feet that shuffled on the floor. It smelled strongly of cigar smoke. Funny, she never realized her sense of smell could tell her so much. Leave it to the dramatic blindfold to open a whole new world for her.

“Shalom. Come in and shut the door.” The voice was low and powerful, the accent harsh with Hebrew inflection. It sounded impatient, even angry. If this were a corporation, he would be the CEO.

Alanberg brought her a few steps into the room. She heard him pull a chair across a bare floor. “Sit.”

Reaching out and feeling the ladder-back, she moved in front of it, eased herself to sit, feeling a table in front of her. David sat in another chair close by. His hand bumped her leg and she reached for it.

“Why are we here?” he asked.

She didn’t hear any fear in his voice; it gave her courage.

“You, Mr. Kaufman, are here as a mistake. But it can’t be helped. We are interested in making Dr. Grant an offer of employment.”

She spoke to the room. “Nice job interview.”

“We have an unusual situation,” the CEO said.

“Since it’s me you want why not let David go.”

A low growling voice erupted from her right. “Whether he chose it or not, he is part of this. Since he is your colleague, I assume he can help you with the research, no?”

She faced the voice. “And if I say he can’t help me?”

The room grew quiet. Their silence said all she needed to know. But she’d be hanged if she’d let them see her shaken.

David leaned forward. “If I’m going to be sacrificed, the least you can do is explain what’s going on.”

Someone cleared his throat and spoke with an east coast American accent. “It has come to our attention that Dr. Grant has made remarkable progress in the BA 23 research.”

“Your information comes from Dr. Alanberg, no doubt,” David said, but no one answered.

“And you brought me here to give me an award?” She couldn’t help the retort.

A chair creaked; someone coughed. The cigar smoke made her want to gag.

The American voice again, “We know you’re on the verge of perfecting the vaccine. So close, in fact, that with a few pregnant cows to work on, you could have the cure within a very short time.”

Who were these people, government, Mossad, pharmaceutical spies?

The CEO spoke again. “We have made arrangements for you to complete your research.”

She needed to stall to think of a way out of this. “The last experiment was encouraging but, unfortunately, a bomb destroyed my data. The vaccine needed some tweaking. Now I have to start from scratch.” She knew she should drop the sarcasm dripping from her voice but her anger burned too hot.

The growler said, “We have your latest data. Do not worry about that. We have a lab waiting for you and all the equipment and supplies necessary. We also have the blood and tissue you brought away from the kibbutz.”