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After he and his men had breakfast in the hotel restaurant, Abdula Nassir went back to the checkpoint building. When he found that Tafar Rasulon had not returned to Ismailly yet, he demanded that the guards take him up to the cave to see Tariq Amin.
After the short ride up the mountain, Abdula was soon back inside the cave ranting.
“Old man, I haven’t even been here a full day yet, and I’m already tired of this wretched country. I long to return to my homeland, please pay me and put me out of my misery.”
Tariq asked Max Landau his second officer in charge, “Has there been any signs whatsoever that we’re being watched?”
“Not yet, but we must still be careful.”
“For the sake of Allah, old man, we traveled a three hundred sixty miles from Tbilisi to here, the CIA could have attacked me a dozen times already. They didn’t catch me because they don’t know we’re here. That’s why we sent the packages in two different directions in the first place, so it would throw them off.
“How did the CIA find out about the Batumi shipment?” Amin asked.
“How the hell do I know? All I know is that I lost three men in Batumi, including my brother-in-law that I loved dearly, for a lousy half million dollars. Do you honestly think that I would risk my own life if I thought we were followed here? The CIA does not know that we are here, or we would have heard from them by now.”
“I understand what you are saying, Abdula, but you need to be patient and understand that I’ve waited a long time for this moment, and it’s not going to hurt me to wait two more days, or two more weeks to make sure that you’re right.” Amin said.
“No, it won’t hurt you, I’m the one that has bills to pay and a business run, I want to get paid,” Abdula said raising his voice.
“Everything we’re doing is for our righteous cause, this isn’t about you and you’re money, you’re just going to have to wait,” Amin said.
“I’ll remember this, old man, you picked me because you knew I could deliver and I did. After you pay me, you could consider our relationship dissolved, don’t bother calling me again.
“I picked you because I mistakenly thought that like me, you were a man of faith. You must regain your spirituality, Abdula, before it is too late for you.”
“I don’t need you or anyone to lecture me, old man, I need someone to pay me as he promised. I hope your faith is a lot stronger than your word that apparently doesn’t mean very much,” Abdula said as he started walking out of the cave.
Max Landau looked at Amin and gestured to the holstered pistol on his belt.
Amin shook his head and walked after Abdula.
“Very well, you impatient bastard.
Abdula turned and glared defiantly back at Amin but said nothing.
“I curse you and your money, and this afternoon I will be rid of you, be at the checkpoint building immediately after three o’clock prayer and you’ll get paid.
Let Allah be praised,” Abdula said mockingly as he fell to his knees in delight.
“Look at you,” Amin said in disgust, “My family made millions in honest industry, and I’m using my share for the greater good of Islam, what have you contributed?”
“Please old man, don’t talk down to me, your soldiers may want to hear how great you are, but I sure as hell don’t,” Abdula said as he stood up and made his way toward the door.
“How dare you talk to me like that, what the hell are you doing with your life? Fattening your kids, whoring downtown, fancy cars and homes, I sleep well at night knowing that I’m helping all my people, not just my greedy self.”
“You go and tell that to the martyrs who are burning in hell waiting for their seventy virgins,” Abdula said before he left the cave and went out and sat in the jeep waiting for his driver to take him down the mountain.
In the CIA’s RV they were waiting for Abdula emerge from the cave as they watched for the terrorist on the predator’s surveillance video.
“Abdula Nassir has a more confident and less belligerent way about him now,” Leslie said, “He seems to be lot happier.”
“Hey, you’re pretty good at that,” Brad said.
“Spying is a people business, you learn these things when you watch people all the time. You see the way they walk, the way they gesture with their hands, their facial expressions, they all tell you things you may need to know about the person you’re following. ”
“He doesn’t have a sack of money with him, so I don’t think they paid him yet,” Frank said.
“You’re right, maybe the buyers are looking for something else from him first,” Hoskins said right before his cell phone rang.
“Hello Henry, I presume that you made it to Baku okay?
“I’m going to be delayed a little, but my team is already out there getting set up, I just hung up with them, do you have anything for us yet?
“Not yet, but I have a suspicion that the cesium will be on its way to Baku in the next twenty-four hours. Did your people get the list of ships that are currently anchored in Baku?” Hoskins asked
“Yes they did, and they tell me that Baku is nothing like Batumi, it’s more like a yacht club on the Caspian Sea. There are only a small number of shippers that work on the sea trading with Russia, Iran, and Kazakhstan, and they all dock in one location, and all of the pleasure boats are docked in a separate marina. This should be fairly easy,” Henry said.
That certainly makes my day,” Hoskins said.
“I guess you already know that we’re on our own here in Azerbaijan,” Henry said, “According to the embassy, we don’t have any relationship with the local officials or police in this country yet, so we’re going to have to do a quick grab and go.”
“I understand, were you able to arrange for any tactical support?”
“Yes, we have a Seal team and two choppers at our disposal on the Carrier Constellation on the Black Sea,” Henry said.
“Is there any Azerbaijani military presence in Baku that your men have seen?”
“They said that there’s just enough to keep us on our toes.”
“Okay, Henry, you know what needs to be done, have your men continue to scope out the docks and I’ll call you when we’re in route.
“Okay, Jack, we’ll be waiting.”
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