Day 14

Allah favored Amina.

Fatima was a vivacious and pretty young woman from a poor family. Her job as a servant to Amina brought her close, much closer to a better life. A formal education would not be an option for her. However, she did her best to educate herself like her mistress.  Outside of work, on her off hours, she was easily distracted by friends of any kind. This trip to Milan with Amina was like a dream come true. If you can’t be a princess, travel with one, is the way she looked at it.  She was told to accompany her, keep an eye on her but not to guard her.  So when Amina left to find a bathroom and left her with the luggage she did not think of the possibilities.  And there was a very handsome gate attendant that seemed to like to smile at her. She looked out the window and at the nearby distractions. Like many large airports there were shops near the gates.  She felt as if it was perfectly safe and her bubbly personality did not allow her to anticipate danger or loss. She wandered close to the shops and looked at some of the dresses and scarves and accessories.  While she was distracted someone stole Amina’s expensive white travel bag.

The boarding call shook her to attention. She looked around for Amina.  Not to be found. She went to the seats where Amina had left her bag. Nothing. She felt hurt. She did not see Amina in line to board.  Then she remembered that they had first class seats. First class boards first. She felt hurt that Amina did not call her to board. She thought they were forming more than a mistress servant relationship.  Since first class had already boarded, Fatimah was trapped behind several old couples that waddled onto the plane like oompa loompas. Finally she got to her seat but Amina was not there. Maybe she’s in the restroom she thought. Why do they call it a restroom on a plane. You definitely can’t sleep in it. She took her seat and waited.  Had it occurred to her that Amina had run away she would have called Hasan or Katya.   She dutifully obeyed the order to turn off cell phones and electronics. Her anxiety rose to panic level when she realized they were heading down the runway and that Amina had not returned.

Katya knew the departure time and showed up at the gate just in time to see Fatimah boarding the plane.  She assumed that Fatimah was behind Amina.   All right!  The package is in the air. She texted Hasan and gave him the news.  “Did you see them get on the plane?”, “Yes”  He had just arrived at an airport in another city.  By the time Fatimah was allowed to use her phone his equipment was going through security. He did not notice the text come in.  Fatimah called Katya, who was in the car, music at full volume racing down the highway back to the palatial estate.  Once inside she poured herself a drink, wolfed down a handful of nuts and figs and relaxed on one of the shady porches.  She leaned back and breathed a sigh of relief. A few days of peace without drama.   She surveyed the blue sky, the palms, the lovely landscaping. It’s not mine, but I get to live here, she mused to herself. Then she checked her phone. She sat upright when she saw 5 missed calls and 10 texts. She felt sick to her stomach. As she went through her texts she felt worse and worse until she vomited the snacks and booze.  Amina was missing and she had given Hasan completely wrong information Hasan would be beyond furious.

Later Brian would ask Amina who the man who went over the railing was.

One of my husband’s men. The one I despise the most. I hate the way he looks at me.

Well you are attractive.

That’s not the way he looked at me. He looked at me like he was better than me and that I was just gutter trash. Why do men think it’s always about looks?

And she was exactly right. Masood hated Amina.  He hated her because she had seduced his master and tricked him into an unequal marriage.  While he slaved to provide a good home for her and the children that would surely come, she played the whore with any foreign devil that came through the doors. She never fulfilled her wifely duties in her husband’s bed. He slept in a virtual closet while she slept in a mini palace larger than his families whole house.  Of course none of this was true. It was as simple as a man envious of someone with privilege and slighted by her lack of interest in him.  His two daughters were every bit as pretty as she, even prettier but they were still single with no grooms in sight.  In reality, his daughters were just as bitter, cynical and suspicious as their father. Many men had been attracted to their looks but quickly revolted at the bitterness and envy.  Ironically, his name means chance and it was by chance that he saw her in Tangier. He had gone there to see his mother who was ill.  He grabbed her out of spite and control rather than by directive.  Unbeknownst to him, he had kidney stones. He had been feeling some of the symptoms but had not gone to the doctor yet. Brian’s well placed punch sent such pain through him that he saw white.  Only his training as a fighter and stubbornness drove him to pursue Amina.  Since he was essentially on leave he was not wearing his uniform, only his blue turban.  Dead, bleeding profusely from the head, there was nothing and no one to make the connection to Hasan. By the time news reached Hasan, Amina had been gone for almost 24 hours.  Masood was the only person who had seen both Brian and Amina at the bookstore. He did not know what Amina had put or taken from the book store but he knew that she was there and Brian was there.

Katya, was a capable woman with a pleasant personality. She had a plane face that took well to makeup.  She had plenty of street smarts and always knew, instinctively who to hang with and who to avoid.  She dreaded what she had to do next. She tried to reach Hasan. He returned her call on the in flight phone. She told him the news. Silence. A silence that sent a shiver down her spine.  Then he spoke to her calmly and softly. This scared her even more. She wanted to run or pee; she couldn’t decide.  He told her to check with the guards and to tell Nasseer to track her down.  He told her to stay calm and focused. It would be ok. Amina was just being rebellious.  He hung up. She ran to bathroom peed and had dry heaves. Her street smarts told her exactly what was going on. He was furiuous with her. He talked calmly because he needed her on the ground to coordinate things.  She could contact the people would track down Amina and she could be more efficient then he would be trying to make phone calls from an airplane.

By the time the two guards had traced her phone and beaten up the nerd Brian and Amina had finished dinner and were cleaning up in the hotel.  Hasan’s ground forces only knew about Amina being missing. Masood told the two guards about the “books” but no one else.  So no one knew about Brian.  It was not until later the next day that Nasseer heard that Masood was dead.  The autopsy showed severe kidney damage and determined the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head.  With no witnesses there was no one to point to either Brian or Amina. But Nasseer did not believe in these kinds of random events. He didn’t know how she got there but he assumed that Amina was in Tangier.  He watched the woman’s study habits and knew she was smart but also knew she lacked the kind of street smarts that Katya had. Therefore he assumed she had luck or help. Furthermore, she would try to be clever and cover her tracks.  He guessed that Amina, in disguise walked right past Katya and out the front doors of the airport and made her way to Tangier.  Amina was fluent in French, of course.  Most Casablancans are.  And everyone knew how much she loved Paris. So the obvious path was to take the ferry from Tangier to Barcelona or Sete or even Genoa.  He sent 2 other men to Sete and Genoa. He chose Barcelona because a 6 hour train ride would put her in Paris.  He thought Paris would call to her vanity the way a flame attracts a moth.  He wanted the catch.

Contrary to his warning to Amina, he never rolled over and put his arm around her. He slept almost without movement. His hand was numb from the strap he wrapped around his hand to keep his bag safe.  On the other hand, she was in a fetal position wedged tight against his back as if desperate for warmth. His eyes popped alert because of a loud noise outside. It took two seconds to remind himself about his surroundings and situation. He rolled out of bed and drew back the heavy curtains.  The sky was a beautiful blue and a blue sliver of ocean could be seen in the distance. But the morning was almost over, lunch was being served. They had grossly over slept. Amina sat bolt upright, eyes wide open, in a state of surprise and disorientation.  She saw Brian standing by the window and joined him.

Merde, it’s late!

Yeah, about that. I don’t think we should go to Cueta. I think we should go directly to Spain from here. If you were followed here. They would think you would either go directly to Spain or go to Cueta but they wouldn’t know that you stayed the night here.  Let’s go down to the docks and see if we can find someone sailing to Spain, I hear it’s only 9 miles from here.  If we don’t find someone we trust, we’ll get the earliest ferry out of here in the morning.

Ok. But I’m starving and I need to buy some things.

Let’s go.

They got dressed and left the room. Never to return. She exited the building by way of the servants entrance.  He walked out the front door like every other tourist.  When you’re desperate. When you can taste the fear of death in your mouth. You’ll do things calmly that would normally cause you to retch. The night before, she washed Masood’s turban and hung it to dry. It was now dry. She used it to cover head in the fashion of moderate Muslim woman.  They met at a different restaurant, a little off the beaten path used by local office workers.

What do you do for a living? she asked Brian.

I’m an athletic coach at a school in a small town.  How about you?

I got my degree in business and information management from the Sorbonne in Paris and worked in a bank in Casablanca.  She didn’t dare tell him that was years ago.

Do you like the work?

Honestly, I think I would like to put my training in computers to work. I did well in school. Doing deposits and withdrawals is rather monotonous.

How long have you been a coach?

About 5 years.

What brings you to Morocco?

Restlessness.

Why so restless? She noticed his face went kind of pinched and he looked aside like he bit into something too spicy and wanted to spit it out. She thought she had pressed too hard.

Someone I was very close to died. The demands of teaching and the energy of teenagers is a thrill. But summer vacation is empty.

Oh. A woman.

Yes. He said with a tightened jaw.

She looked at her food and said “I’m sorry.”

We should go! He stood up, casually tossed his napkin on the plate.

They were fortunate to board a tourist boat heading to Cadiz. Not the ideal destination but definitely not the most obvious either.  As the sun set they arrived in Cadiz.