Chapter 4

Mohammed slammed the door to the basement of the market and walked over to the Toshiba laptop on the gunmetal gray desk.  He pulled up his email and opened an encrypted message he found there.  The message looked like a random assortment of characters until Mohammed performed a key combination and entered an encryption password into the window which appeared.

The message was from the Base's money man in Dubai.  It read as follows:

The funds requested have been wired to the agreed upon account.  Remember to use this money wisely and only in furtherance of the operation.  The Most Holy Director sends his blessings and wishes you success in your endeavors. 

God is Great,

Oskar

Oskar was the code name for a man Mohammed had never met.  Mohammed did not know his real name, only that he was a prominent businessman in Dubai, involved in the export of dates.  The director himself had sent regards!  Mohammed prayed he would be able to live up to the expectations the organization had for this operation.  There would be great glory in this life if he succeeded, and later, great glory in death.

                It was time for the test.  Before the operation could truly begin, a test of the power of fire must be conducted.  It seemed the little German hadn't lied to them yet, although his motives for helping them remained unclear.  An encrypted message had already been sent directing that he be killed, in a humane way if possible, after the ceremony of the Summer Solstice.   Regardless of his assistance in the jihad, the man was an infidel.  By summer the warriors would become immortal mujahadeen with unlimited strength and the full power of heat and fire.  They would lead the way in the destruction of the morally bankrupt United States and the establishment of a worldwide Islamic empire.

                He walked out to the front of the market and asked Syed to get the car ready.   From his pocket he unwrapped a piece of paper containing the key to the test.  It was a fully legitimate airline security access badge for Miami International Airport.  It had been procured from a caterer whose Aunt lived in Pakistan and was sympathetic to the organization. 

                Syed called to his assistant and began to make arrangements for the Mercedes to be brought around to the back of the store. 

Lloyd surveyed the outside of the International Grocery Cash Market,  The building was bunker like in its construction with whitewashed stucco walls stained light brown by years of car exhaust.  A sign in the window advertised Halal Meat.

                He entered the store.  It was lit by harsh fluorescent lights, which illuminated several rows of metal shelves.  The shelves were stocked with exotic spices in plastic bags and boxes of foodstuffs with foreign labeling.

                At the front counter an older Pakistani man spoke sharply to a younger man in Pashtun.  Lloyd couldn't understand what the two men were saying but he recognized one English word that was repeated several times. 

"Salamander."

The younger man bowed and walked past Lloyd through the front door of the market.

"Can I help you with something sir?" the older man approached Lloyd and looked at him suspiciously.

Lloyd put on his best Midwestern accent and pointed at a can on a shelf in front of him.

"I was going to surprise my wife by making her some Chana Masala.  She just loves it at the Indian restaurant we go to.  Is this the type of beans I need?"

"No,” the man responded, picking up a can of Chick Peas from the next shelf over.

"You need these, and curry and rice.  Do you want me to show you those things as well?" the man smiled, seemingly disarmed by Lloyd's helpless husband act.

Lloyd heard a car screech to a halt behind the market and heard a door open and several voices speaking rapidly in Pashtun.

"No, I should probably go get the recipe.  Thanks very much for your help," Lloyd said and scratching his head walked out of the grocery store as casually as possible.  Two women in headscarves walked in as he exited and immediately began to pepper Syed with questions.  Lloyd could feel Syed's eyes on his back as he walked through the door.

Outside, Lloyd jumped into his Lincoln and turned the key.  A black Mercedes shot out from behind the grocery store and sped onto the street.   Lloyd waited a moment and followed.  The windows of the Mercedes were tinted and Lloyd couldn't see who was inside.

                The Mercedes dodged traffic and turned abruptly onto an exit for Interstate 95.  Lloyd followed the car and didn't notice the small green sign that hung crookedly on a metal post beside the on-ramp.  It had a picture of a plane and an arrow. Below the picture was a single word: Airport.