It is good to see you.
She responded warmly, her English faultless. So good to have you here safely. Things haven t gone well, from what I heard. Can I serve you coffee? It s all ready.
That would be wonderful.
A section of paneling opened into a thoroughly modern kitchen, the coffee smell heavy on the air. He sat at a small table, and she served coffee for both of them, sitting opposite. The coffee was Yemeni and excellent.
I needed that. He pushed his cup over and she refilled it.
It was bad, then?
She was totally dedicated to Al Qaeda and completely trustworthy, so he told her everything, and she listened intently, taking it all in.
He was rather somber when he finished. So death for death was my aim with Ferguson and his people, and we ve failed miserably.
You must not talk so. It s not you who has failed, but those who were supposed to serve you.
How is the Sultan?
Dr. Hassan does his best. He has an excellent setup at the palace, top staff and equipment. She shrugged. But what do you do with strokes, heart attacks, and age?
Aptly put. Do you think the Council of Elders would favor Owen for Sultan?
I wouldn t bank on that. A majority of them are traditionalists who don t care for him at all. They also don t like that he s not even married, and a known womanizer. She poured him more coffee. What do you think?
I ve only met him once, Ali Selim told her. The first time I visited the Monsoon when the sheikh brought it down to Rubat and gave a party. You hadn t joined then. Owen was a guest, and so was I.
So you ve never met again.
Well, to be honest, I ve haunted his life in a way.
What do you mean?
I ve been a ghost in his machine. He took off his glasses and polished them with his handkerchief. A ghost called Abu.
What an amazing story, Fatima said when he was finished.
Ali Selim said, Owen Rashid is not the only one who made the mistake of responding to Al Qaeda advances for corrupt reasons. He believed it would give him an advantage in the oil business, some extra muscle when wheeler-dealing in the marketplace. But like others, he discovered there was a price to pay. He had to obey orders. Osama bin Laden made that clear. There can be no difference between rich and poor in this matter.
And so it should be, she said. But where does that leave Rashid? I suppose if the Elders do choose him as Sultan, that would at least be good from Al Qaeda s point of view.
But Al Qaeda is already powerful in Rubat, Ali Selim told her. Powerful in its effect on ordinary people, most of whom work in the oil industry. You know this is true, I ve seen the reports you ve collated. However, as you say, such people are not the majority of the Council of Elders. They may well say no to Owen.
There was silence for a moment between them, and she frowned uncertainly. Are you suggesting something else? If so, what is it?
So he told her.
She was unable to speak for a few moments when he had finished, staring at him in awe. Oh, my God, she whispered.
Ali Selim said, In a newsroom, this is what a reporter would describe as a hell of a story.
In any newsroom, Fatima said. It could run for weeks.
Thanks for the input, Ali Selim told her.
Now go and find Ibrahim for me and bring him here. I know he looks frightening, but he has a highly developed sense of low cunning and that s just what we need.
Owen Rashid was running in Hyde Park when his mobile sounded. Ali Selim said, Good morning, Owen. Starting the day as usual with a run?
God help me, what do you want now? Owen demanded.
It s breakfast time, Abu, though since I ve no idea where you are, I don t know what you re up to.
Looking out the stern window of the Monsoon in Rubat Harbor.
What bloody nonsense are you giving me now?
No nonsense, Owen, I m calling you from the Monsoon. I m here on Al Qaeda business. By the way, it isn t Abu. You must excuse my little subterfuge.
Owen said, So who the hell are you?
Mullah Ali Selim.
Owen laughed wildly. I ve never heard such rubbish in my life.
What a shame. I never pegged you for a stupid man. I m just calling you to tell you I m going to phone Henri Legrande in twenty minutes. He s utterly failed me, and I thought I d let him know his shop could burn down one night this week unless he does what I say. I ve got a job for you all. If you leave now, you should be able to get there in time for me to talk to the three of you.
He switched off his mobile and turned as Fatima and Ibrahim entered. We ll have to wait for approximately twenty minutes or so. He smiled at Fatima. I ve stirred things up. If I m right, Owen s running across Park Lane through heavy morning traffic to get to his Foreign Legion friend. In the meantime, I d love another cup of that Yemeni mocha coffee.
Owen, behaving exactly as Ali Selim had predicted, had crossed Park Lane and was running so fast down Curzon Street that he missed Jean Talbot emerge on the other side of the road, bound for the park. Intrigued, she crossed the road and ran after Owen, noting him turn into Shepherd Market. A final burst of speed brought her there in time to see him hammering at the door of Mary s Bower. She stepped into a doorway, waited, saw Henri Legrande open the door, Kelly at his shoulder. The alley was quiet at that time in the morning, and she heard what they said.
Henri Legrande: What the hell is it?
Owen: I ve just had a call from Abu. Only it appears he s really Ali Selim.
Kelly: Come off it, Owen.
Owen pushed past them, went inside, and the door closed. Mystery piled on mystery here. Jean conquered an insane impulse to go knock on the door herself, turned, and jogged away.
In the sitting room, Kelly said, It can t be for real.
Oh yes it is, and he wants to speak to us. His mobile sounded. I think this is him now, and he put it on speaker. So what do you want? he demanded.
Listen to me carefully, said Selim. After the riot in Hyde Park, friends spirited me away, but Ferguson s gang tried to assassinate me and nearly succeeded. So now they are going to pay, and you re going to help me. Or else you re all going to see the inside of a British prison.
Henri laughed out loud. Why should we? You can t get us into trouble. We haven t done anything.
Is that so? Ali Selim said. Within a three-day period, Daniel Holley s Alfa was sabotaged and almost went into the Thames. And hired thugs waited outside the Gideon girl s home, followed her down the street, attacked her, and would have raped her if not for Holley and her willingness to use a weapon without hesitation.
There was a stunned silence, and Owen said lamely, Now, look here.
You told me none of these things. And we have still one more pearl in the oyster: the attempted car bombing in the driveway of the Gideon girl s house. And the reason you did not tell me about any of this was because they were all failures.
Henri said calmly, Okay, fair enough. How did you find out?
You and Kelly certainly talked about them enough.
Kelly s head shot up, and he looked around the room.
We ve been bugged, he said. In the shop.
But of course, all three of you were. Four, as we had to include Jean Talbot, you being in the habit of visiting her so frequently, Owen.
Damn you, Owen said bitterly.
The technicians must have been good, whoever it was, Henri said.
Oh, they are. A Muslim organization we call the Brotherhood. They cover all trades and professions. For
