“We will make it,” Malinov said with firm confidence gripping her hand tight to reassure her.
“I hope so. Too late to get off now,” Bastien joked.
Malinov narrowed his eyes at the agent warning him to shut up and not wind Antonia up. She gave a small gasp and her free hand gripped the other arm of the chair so hard he noticed her knuckles were turning white with the effort.
The jet was still climbing when it swerved violently to the right. The cockpit door swung open revealing the two pilots inside. Alarms were sounding loudly. Antonia started to pant with fear.
Gabriel looked out of the window but he could see nothing. The jet continued to climb. One of the pilots addressed them without looking around after becoming aware the cockpit door was open.
“We are dodging some rockets here, folks. Nothing to worry about.” There was a trace of odd humour in his calm English tone. “Nothing we haven’t done before. It is just going to be a bit of a bumpy ride for a while. Hold on tight.”
Bastien growled as the jet levelled off at a lower height than normal just above the clouds.
“Damn ex-SAS Air Support crew, always enjoying the thrill.”
Gabriel smiled to himself. He knew the thrill of facing an insurmountable challenge and winning while cheating death in the process well. He had every confidence in the pilots but Antonia looked unconvinced. He opened his mouth to talk to her when the jet suddenly dropped into a dive. Now Bastien was gripping his chair arms with white knuckles and no longer finding amusement in watching Antonia.
If he hadn’t had his seatbelt on, Gabriel was sure he would be falling out of his chair and careering towards the wall down the cabin to splat against it like a character in a cartoon. He intensified his grip on Antonia’s hand knowing she was terrified and too afraid to even breathe.
Glancing out of the window he saw the second rocket they were dodging fall away into the clouds and down into the water he could see looming too close for comfort. The jet immediately levelled and then began to steeply climb. It was worse than being on a rollercoaster. He guessed a third one was chasing them. It whooshed past them just over the wing at the side as the jet levelled off again and shifted violently to the right once more to avoid it. It fell away into the clouds.
“Breathe,” he told Antonia. She had been holding her breath for an age. “We will be out of range now. There won’t be any more.”
The pilots were whooping and congratulating themselves. They confirmed what Gabriel had just told Antonia.
“All over folks. We are out of range of the airport. It should be smooth flying from now on.”
Malinov leaned over and patted Antonia’s shoulder and smiled gently.
“Relax, it’s over.”
The jet climbed again and eventually reached its normal cruising altitude. Gabriel let go of Antonia’s hand and undid her seatbelt to relieve some of the tension on her body. She let out another breath she had been holding.
Bastien stood up and asked the nervous stewardess to get some drinks. He retrieved a black leather folder and laptop from the opposite chair next to him.
“Aalam El Hashem posted a video on social media after the two explosions in St Mark’s Square. The intel on the attacks is sketchy but Branzillo Island has been contained. The terrorist has warned about more attacks with a specific threat to the UK and a special warning for you, Ms King.”
Bastien opened his laptop and turned it around so the screen was facing Antonia and Gabriel on the table between them. Antonia slowly sat up. She looked exhausted and Gabriel wanted her to lie down on the long sofa on the other side of the jet. He leaned forward knocking some more dust from his shoulders.
Aalam’s angelic looking face stared back at them frozen in time. Berger pressed a key and the video began to play. A translation of the Arabic came up along the bottom. Malinov spoke many languages but Arabic was one he was still learning and what he knew at present was insufficient to achieve a full translation without assistance.
Aalam was sitting in an ordinary room in Western clothes. It could have been anywhere in the world. How he always managed to evade capture bemused Gabriel. They had everything and everyone across the world working on finding him and yet he was still free and able to attack.
“By now you will be reeling at the death of your people in Venice but there is much more death to come. This is just the start. We will bring Europe to its knees. Nowhere is safe. We will attack at random and without mercy. My brothers and sisters will not rest until we have won this battle. And I have a special message for you English Journalist, Antonia King…”
He moved closer to the camera.
“I have your sisters. They will stay safe with me long enough to see you die.”
Antonia whimpered and put her hand to her mouth to stifle any further outburst. Gabriel rested his hand on her shoulder and rubbed it. Anger darkened the green in her eyes as she stared back at the hate filling the man’s deceptive angelic face.
“I am coming for you.”
Antonia surprised Gabriel by abruptly standing and shouting at the screen.
“I will be waiting and I will make sure I kill you first.”
Restless with her fury, Antonia moved away from the table and paced the floor of the aircraft cabin. Bastien bent his head and lowered his voice to a whisper and spoke to Gabriel.
“Feisty lady. I like her. This man is a monster. It isn’t the first time he has killed a journalist. Western journalists and women are his pet hates. He believes western journalists are responsible for encouraging animosity towards Muslims and the
