Tess Awakening (36 page)

At dusk, the team parked the vans two blocks
from the address that they had extracted from Amir and started to
scope the place. The villa was big, surrounded by a tall iron
fence. Using light sensing binoculars, Jake and George detected at
least three guards and two large dogs. Jake as usual came prepared.
He tossed several juicy steaks over the fence to attract the dogs.
The animals rushed to the meat and started to rip into it. In an
operation like this, they would have injected the meat with poison,
but Tess insisted on the use of a tranquilizer which worked
beautifully. Within ten minutes, all activity from the dogs
ceased.

Ken Ross, the sniper, found a spot on the
corner of the property, loaded his long range guns with silencers
and got ready to shoot the guards if necessary.

John Powers used his silenced rifle to direct
fire at two visible surveillance cameras on the perimeter of the
property and then poured acid on the lock of the main gate. They
heard a fizzle and the lock assembly fell off on a rubber mat that
he had placed below it to prevent any noise.

The team stealthily moved into the garden.
Ken and John got behind two of the guards and put them out with
well-placed blows to the head. The probably weren’t dead, but they
would remain unconscious for a while. Jake, Tess, and John got into
the house and surprised the occupants, an elderly woman, and a man
that appeared to be a butler. They tied them up and Jake asked them
where they could find the kids. The terrified pair insisted that
there were no children in the house. Tess didn’t buy it and she
rushed up the stairs followed by Jake. They started to open doors
but found each room devoid of people. Finally, they charged into a
large bedroom suite, where a woman was sitting on a chair
reading.

Muna, Amir’s temporary wife, stood up,
alarmed. “What is the meaning of this?” she asked.

Tess walked toward her. “Are you Amir’s
wife?”

“Yes, I am Muna, General Amir al-Saadi’s wife
and the mistress of this house. Who are you? What do you want?”

Tess looked at the beautiful, proud woman
wearing a gorgeous robe and nightgown. ‘I guess I should not be
surprised,’ she thought. ‘Amir likes beautiful women.’

“We want the children; if you comply, we will
not harm you.”

Muna sat down, adjusting the folds of her
long gown. She looked at Tess defiantly. “The children are no
longer here. My husband took them somewhere else.”

Tess felt like someone had punched her in the
stomach. She raised her Uzi and pointed it at the woman. “You are
lying. Tell me where the children are.”

“I am not lying. Look for yourself. They are
no longer here.”

Jake put his hand on Tess’s shoulder. It was
obvious that she was getting ready to slug the woman.

Courteously, he asked Muna to tell them what
she knew. She refused.

Suddenly there was a commotion. The third
guard became aware of the house invasion and was rushing toward the
house. Ken dropped him with a single shot to the leg.

Jake resumed his tactful interrogation.
“Madam, you must know that your husband kidnapped our son. We know
that he was taken to Canada and that you and Amir took the baby out
of the country. You used forged passports. You were complicit in
this crime. You both committed a serious offense and unless you
cooperate, there will be consequences.

“Tell me what you can do about this. We are
no longer in Canada.”

“We seized your house. We put down your
guards and your dogs. Do you think we are joking?”

Muna finally realized that she was
defenseless against some nasty people.

Tess now approached her with gentleness.
“Muna, we know that you don’t have a real marriage. Amir admitted
that it is mainly a business arrangement for the sole purpose of
illegally taking my son out of Canada. We know that you a victim
too. Help us and we will help you.”

Muna broke in tears. “I fell in love with
Amir, but he doesn’t want me. He wants you. He is obsessed with
you. He hasn’t given up. He vowed he will get you back.”

“Then why do you feel that you have to be
loyal to a man that doesn’t want you? He hurt both of us. He does
not deserve any loyalty. He is a horrible person. Please come to
your senses Muna.”

The woman wiped her tears with a silk
handkerchief and put her head down, defeated. “You are right, Tess.
He does not deserve my loyalty. I would like to help you, but I
don’t know much.”

“Tell us what you know, Muna. Anything will
help.”

“All I know is that Amir took the children
away on his plane along with the nannies. I wanted to help with the
children, but he refused to let me go with them. I think that he
took them to Italy where his sister lives part time.”

“Do you know where she lives?”

“Last time I heard it was somewhere around
Amalfi.”

Tess now hoped that they still had a chance
of finding the kids.

“Muna, I thank you. You have done the right
thing.”

“I may have done the right thing, but I
betrayed my husband.”

“Muna, he is not your real husband. He used
you like he uses everybody else. You have no obligation to
him.”

Muna did not seem to be convinced. “You got
some of what you came for. Now leave, please. Good luck.”

“Thank you, Muna. Your people are fine,
except for one guard who was shot in the leg. We have bandaged him,
but he needs medical attention. Please wait ten minutes then call
the ambulance. We are all grateful to you. Goodbye.”

The team rushed out to their vans, changed
clothes and returned to the hotel, now looking like tourists on the
town.

Muna sat for a while, deep in thought. Then
she opened a drawer and retrieved a pistol. She put the gun to her
head and pulled the trigger.

Chapter 59

Carmen and Nicola were stuck in a remote CIA
black site facility in Jordan. There wasn’t much to do, other than
keep an eye on Amir, who was being held in relative comfort. He had
a cell with television and was provided with any reading material
that he asked for.

After the attack on the World Trade Center in
9/11, the CIA had established “black site” secret prisons in
several countries. The facilities were known for the controversial
extreme psychological interrogation measures used on detainees.
These included sensory deprivation, sleep deprivation, keeping
prisoners naked indefinitely and photographing them naked to
degrade and humiliate them, and forcibly administering drugs by
suppositories to further break down their dignity.

The CIA agents that ran the facility were
getting uncomfortable. They were holding a top Iraqi general
prisoner with no official approval from Langley. They started to
pressure Nicola and Carmen for a resolution, but the best they
could do is to ask them to be patient until the team returned from
Istanbul.

Carmen was also under pressure to go back to
her flying duties in Iraq.

She picked up the phone and saw that it was
Tess calling.

Tess went straight to the point. “Carmen, the
baby was not there. Amir lied to us to get us off the scent. Now we
think that he sent the kids somewhere in Italy.”

“That narrows down the search area, like a
whole country,” Carmen noted, trying not to sound sarcastic.

“We think that the kids may be somewhere on
the Amalfi coast. That’s still not much to go on, and we need to
get Amir to finally tell us the truth. The team is flying to
Naples, but Jake and I are coming down to have another chat with
Amir. We are at the airport and we will arrive in Amman in two
hours.”

“That’s fine, Tess. I will have Nicola pick
you up.” Carmen told Nicola what happened and sent him off to the
airport.

She now was as angry as hornet’s nest and
proceeded to see Amir against the advice of the other two team
members. She ignored them and walked to the holding cell.

Carmen appeared outside the cell’s iron bars.
Amir was reading a book.

“Good morning, Carmen; such a pleasure to see
you!” he smiled, “I could use some eye candy. Would you like to
come in and entertain me? It’s kind of boring here.”

“Stop your sarcasm, Amir. You are in trouble.
They did not find the children. You lied to us.”

“That’s not correct, Miss Carmen. When Tess
was playing with my private parts with her knife, I told her the
absolute truth. The children were in Istanbul at that time. She
just neglected to politely inquire if they were still going to be
there when she arrived to steal them. Mine is only a sin of
omission. I was not obliged to tell her more than she asked
for.”

“Well, Tess is coming back to see you. She is
furious and I don’t want to be around when she gets her hands on
you.”

“I know that she missed me. I would be
wonderful to make love to her again; it’s has been a while. Perhaps
we could spice up the activity with a threesome. I would enjoy
mixing her white skin with some light chocolate; it may be good for
you as well. I always deliver pure bliss to my women.”

“I don’t think you get it, Amir. This time
Tess will literally cut your balls off.”

“I doubt it. I am sure she remembers that
when I made love to her, I transported her to a paradise of earthly
delights. In any case, perhaps you might want take advantage of the
current situation, and let me show you what it means to be
possessed by a man that truly appreciates beautiful women. You are
beautiful, Carmen — somewhat small but delectable, I am sure.”

Carmen was starting to build up steam. “Amir,
would you please get your mind off you dick and realize that you
are in real trouble? Tess will be here in a few hours, and this
time, she will not be gentle.”

“I am looking forward to seeing her again. I
just hope that this time she will wear a suitable custom, perhaps a
black rubber suit.”

“Have it your way Amir. You are going to be
in a world of hurt when she gets here. You forgot that she is
capable of killing you.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to enjoy a
threesome or perhaps a quickie between us?”

“Go to hell, Amir. I hate you. You are
insane.”

“Sometimes I have that effect on women,” Amir
noted, picking up his book and turning his back to her.”

***

Nicola picked up Tess and Jake at the
airport and proceeded to the black site. “I am sorry that this
turned out to be a waste time for you. I didn’t think that Amir
would have the guts to give you bad information, even after
duress.”

Tess was fuming. “This time, duress does not
even remotely describe what I am going to do to him.”

“You should also know that we have problems
here,” Nicola added. The Iraqi Army is raising holy hell looking
for their missing general. They are scouring the country and they
are putting pressure on the surrounding nations to help them find
him. The CIA guys at the site are getting nervous. They want us to
leave as soon as possible.”

Upon arrival, Tess and Jake went straight to
Amir’s cell.

Amir flashed a big smile. “Tess, beloved; you
are back! I missed you.”

Tess closed her hands into a fist. “Ok, Amir,
you lied to me again.”

“I did no such thing,” he responded,
affecting an insulted look. “You did not ask the next logical
question.”

“All right; I am asking it now. Where do you
keep the kids now?”

“Tess, you are all business, I am hurt. Don’t
you want to tell me about your trip first? How was Istanbul? I am
anxious to know if you enjoyed it.”

“Here is how this is going to play out, Amir.
You tell me where the kids are and after we get them back, I will
let you go. If you don’t, I will break you to pieces.”

“Horror! I didn’t know that you employed the
euphemistically called ‘Enhanced Interrogation Techniques.’ Are you
going to take your clothes off when you do it? It would be more
enjoyable for me.”

Tess resolved to tear him apart, except Amir
was still locked in the cell. Jake grabbed her hand and insisted
they do to a different room.

“Tess, let me try to reason with him. It will
only take a minute.”

“That’s all you are getting Jake, then I am
going to kill him.”

“You stay here, I will be right back.”

Jake went back to Amir’s cell and sat on a
chair outside the bars.

“Amir, you know that this is the end of the
line. If you don’t tell us what we want to know, Tess will tear you
apart.”

“To you, I am General al-Saadi. I did not
bestow on you the privilege of familiarity.”

“Okay, General. Tell me what we need to
know.”

“I will only talk to my beloved. She has a
tendency to give me bad headaches, but it’s a little price to pay
to be in her company.”

“Amir, in this place, eventually we make
people sing like a canary. Why go through that? It does not make
any sense.”

“Please call me General, Mr. Jakes. Let me
elucidate my position. You accuse me of kidnapping my son and
bringing him to where he belongs. Now you want to take him back,
and in addition you plan to steal my daughter. What’s wrong with
this picture?”

“This is a situation that you created.”

“Yes, Tess and I conceived my son during a
night of supreme bliss. You should have seen her, Mr. Jakes. She
opened herself to me so I could give her endless delights. She
screamed in pleasure, and we did it again and again. It was
marvelous. When I spilled myself into her, it was indeed an act of
creation; she made my son. You will never experience her like I
did.”

“You have an inflated opinion of yourself,
Amir. You had to deceive Tess to come to you; she would have never
done it if you hadn’t promised to let her have the girl. In the
end, you just set her up.”

Amir smiled. “All is fair in love and war. In
any case, aren’t you a little jealous? When you are on top of her,
don’t you suspect that she might prefer me to possess her? Perhaps
you occasionally feel that there is an elephant in the room. Now
that’s a pleasant thought, a threesome.”