40

Tariq turned from the television news report and said, “Excellent. Exactly what we wanted. Ring of Fire is working.”

Not nearly as sanguine as his son, Yousef said, “Yes, it was spectacular, but they’ve tied the tanker strike to the drone attack. They’ve identified Anwar. It is only a matter of time before he is caught. We should have never allowed him to do that first strike.”

“Father, I told you that was the price I had to pay. Anwar is intelligent. Inquisitive. He wasn’t like the usual recruit, simply running from something. I had to negotiate.”

“I know, I know, but it doesn’t alter what has happened. We didn’t need a bright, inquisitive person. We only needed someone to recognize a ship and dial a phone. Even your ‘intelligent, inquisitive’ man was almost arrested. Where is he now?”

“He’s in Los Angeles, waiting on the ship Al Salam II. He should be able to remain undetected until it arrives, and then we are through with him.”

“Can he remain hidden for an additional week?”

“Why? The ship arrives in three days.”

“I’ve been informed that it’s delayed because of the Panama Canal. The ship is too big to use the original locks, but planned on going through the new one that recently opened. Apparently, there have been multiple accidents with the new lock, with vessels getting damaged trying to navigate it. They haven’t refined their operational tugboats, and the ship’s captain has determined the management of the canal is unsafe. He’s stopping and offloading the cargo on the Atlantic side, and it will be rail loaded to the Pacific side, then reloaded to a different vessel.”

Tariq said, “Rail loaded? Can’t you order him to use the canal?”

“That would be a little unusual. The owner of the shipping firm overriding the decision of an individual ship’s captain for cargo he shouldn’t care about? No, that’s not going to happen. Why does it matter? Can your man remain undetected or not?”

“Yes, he should be fine. I’ve loaded a different bank account with money, completely severing any ties with Houston, and he has a safe house to live in, but every day is a risk. More importantly, he’s looking for the name of a ship. If the cargo is transloaded, how will we know which vessel it’s on?”

Yousef pursed his lips, then tapped his fingers on the table, thinking. He said, “I hadn’t considered that.”

“Can you track the containers? Through the freight forwarder?”

Yousef toyed with a pen, then said, “It would be strange, but I can get the feeds for the containers. It’ll probably be two separate ships, but I can tell you when they arrive.”

Tariq nodded, not wanting to antagonize his father, but needing to impress on him how critical the information was. “If the boats don’t arrive at the same time, he could dial the phone and do nothing more than cause an explosion in the middle of the ocean. I need to know exactly when the boat holding that container arrives.”

His father stood up, his corpulent waist bumping the table, aggravated at the news. He stabbed a finger into the air and said, “Then I need to know what container holds the explosives. I need to know which shipment holds the method of destruction. I tell you over and over that planning is the heart of our success, and now I hear that you don’t even have a plan for a simple shift in shipping. After I’ve run a shipping company for your entire life.”

Tariq said, “I don’t know that information. I didn’t think I had to. I left that up to Jalal, but I can contact him.”

His father glared, and then Tariq saw his face soften. He said, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t speak such a thing to my son. I understand the risks you take. I just want to make sure that this time, we do what we set out to do. As the prophet—peace be upon him—said, ‘If thou comest on them in war, deal with them so as to strike fear in those who are left behind, that they may remember.’ That is what we are doing. Our actions are just, and our will needs to be strong.”

“Father, we have to be careful. The Americans are still researching the redacted pages about Saudi involvement of our attacks on 9/11. The ones released last year. Nobody has made the connections yet, but they might. The kingdom professes innocence, but make no mistake, the trail is there. We must be circumspect here.”

Yousef clenched his fists and said, “We were right then, and we are right now. The king is selling out our entire country. Our culture. Maybe we should let it be known that we helped the attack back then. Let it be known that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is against the West. I’m sick of hiding it.”

Aghast, Tariq said, “Father, please. You can’t do that. We can’t do that. The king is the king. He supports what we’re doing by his actions around the world.”

Yousef sat back down and muttered, “The king is a traitor. The entire house of al-Saud is traitorous, and has been for decades. Osama bin Laden was right, and so are we. You will execute our mission. I don’t want to hear excuses like I heard fifteen years ago.”

Tariq said nothing, not having the courage to agree out loud to what his father had said. Yousef turned away, regaining his composure. He picked up a glass of water and took a sip, as if the words had never been spoken. He said, “What of your Berber friends? Are they still on track?”

Glad for the change of conversation, Tariq said, “Yes, sir, they are. Jalal is now in Fez, preparing the men for their trip to America. He is strong.”

Yousef smiled and said, “Good, because I’ve been thinking of our attacks. Thinking of another one.”

Confused, Tariq said, “What does that mean? Everything is in place.”

“Yes, it is, but we’re missing the final piece. The same one we missed in 2001. We hit them financially and we hit them militarily, but we missed the greatest blow.”

Hesitant, Tariq said, “What are you talking about? We’re doing the Ring of Fire. We’re attacking ports around the entire country.”

Yousef said, “Yes, we are, but I want the one where we hit them at their heart. The one that crashed in Pennsylvania.”

“Father, there are no ports near Washington, DC. What do you want to strike, the one in Baltimore?”

“No, that’s not what I mean. You saw the attention that mini drone attack garnered.”

“Yes, but you said that was just symbolic. You disparaged it.”

Yousef said, “Make sure your drone man in Los Angeles can get out clean. I have something else in mind for him.”