The Dreadful Renegade: A Thrilling Espionage Novel (Techno thriller, Mystery & Suspense) Page 5

  June 5th, Los Alamos National Laboratory

  Dr. Eugene Powers was received with formal politeness by the Lab's Deputy Director and by the chief of security Col. Dick Groovey. He told them about his concerns that Dr. Nagib Jaber may have an urge to avenge his brother's death and the destruction of his parents' home by the Israelis, and what was even more disturbing that he may wish to take it out on the US as it is the greatest supporter of Israel. The Colonel repeated what the Deputy Director had told Eugene that there was no evidence that Nagib was not what he claimed to be – a loyal US citizen – and that he had successfully passed the polygraph test just three months earlier. Eugene acknowledged this but said that in the Middle East revenge is best served cold and that Nagib may still harbor his feelings of retribution and that he wished to personally assess Nagib's attitude by interviewing him.

  The Deputy Director left the room and Nagib was called in to the Colonel's office. After the formal introductions Eugene told Nagib that his family's history worried the chief of security at the NNSA and that he wanted to clarify a few points.

  "Dr. Jaber, are you still in contact with your family?"

  "I speak to my parents on the phone once or twice a year. They are now quite old and suffering from different ailments so I try to follow their health situation".

  "How do you feel about the death of Yassir, your only brother?"

  "I am sad that he died the way he did, but he believed that he was fighting for a good cause so he was probably glad to sacrifice his life."

  "What do you think about his cause?"

  "Obviously I don't condone it or believe in it. I don't think that killing an Israeli or firing rockets at residential areas are good things".

  "Have you visited your parents at all since you came to study in the US?"

  "No, at first when I was a doctoral student I couldn't afford it. After graduation, when I was employed by GCL and had applied for a Green Card I couldn't take the time off and was afraid that I would lose my temporary status".

  "Why didn't you visit them after your brother's death, when you were already a full-fledged citizen and had a good job here at the Lab?"

  "I didn't see a point in returning to Palestine – my brother was dead and there was nothing that could be done. I had also heard that Arabs were treated badly by Israeli authorities, even if they were US citizens and did not want to suffer humiliation".

  "I understand that you are now married and that your wife, Alia is also employed here".

  Here the Colonel intervened and said "Alia is one of the best workers in my office and she was born in the USA and raised here, not naturalized". Nagib added "She feels like an all-American girl and had done her utmost to forget her Arab heritage and she can barely speak Arabic although she understands quite a lot".

  "Why didn't you invite your parents to come to your wedding? Is this how you respect your parents?"

  "Dr. Powers, I already told you that they are old and frail and for them to apply for a visa and travel so far would be more of a punishment than joy".

  "How do you feel about the US government and its policy of almost unconditional support for Israel?"

  "I am grateful to the US for the opportunity it gave me to obtain a good education, work in a challenging job and get a chance for a better life than I could ever dream of in Palestine. I feel that I should repay the US government by working in this place and making a contribution, albeit a modest one, to this country's security".

  To this Eugene said "Nagib, I am impressed by your patriotism" but thought that Nagib had been a little too glib. He concluded by thanking Nagib and the Colonel for their time and said that he had a plane to catch back to Washington.

  Nagib went back to his laboratory and was very pleased with himself, believing that his piece in the interview was perfect, especially after hearing the last comment made by the man from the NNSA. When he returned home that evening and told Alia about the interview she responded with a huge smile and said that she had already heard Colonel Groovey muttering something about bureaucrats from Washington going around casting doubts about the patriotism of honest, hard working, loyal Americans and had figured out that he was referring to Nagib. They had a good laugh about the level of security in one of the most secret facilities in the US saying that here were the two of them, amateur spies that were operating freely inside the Lab without getting caught, simply because they were American citizens and therefore considered beyond suspicion. Nagib said that in Palestine the authorities would not bother to interview him politely in a nice, air conditioned office, but would simply throw him into a cold cellar and threaten to pull out a few fingernails until he proved his innocence or admitted his guilt.

  It was Friday night and Alia told Nagib that he deserved a special treat for his brilliant behavior during the interview. Nagib smiled and asked what she had in mind and she shyly said that she would try to match his performance by doing what women did to please their husbands in the "old country" and told him to relax on the sofa and close his eyes. She took a kefiya that they kept in a drawer in their bedroom and tied it around his eyes making sure that he could not see anything. Then poured him a tumbler full of the finest whiskey they had in the house, added a couple of ice cubes and placed it in his hand. She brought her laptop computer, and on YouTube she found belly dance music with a darbuka drum solo and switched on the speakers. Nagib started smiling as his expectations were building up. Next she went to the bedroom, put on her most delicate perfume, removed her clothes and wrapped all the scarves she could find around her naked body. By the time she returned to the living room Nagib had finished his drink so she gently kissed him on the lips and removed the tumbler from his hands and refilled it. She glanced at his crotch and was pleased to see the bulge that was forming there. As if by mistake, her elbow rubbed against it and she was rewarded by a sharp intake of breath and a sigh. She said that Nagib could now look but not touch and removed the kefiya from his eyes and used it to tie his right hand to the sofa. When he saw what she was wearing he knew that this would be a night to remember but did not know what else she had in stock for him. Alia slowly started gyrating her hips to the sound of the rhythmic music allowing her breasts to move unrestricted under the scarves. She moved towards Nagib and ordered him to remove one scarf without using his free hand, dancing closer and closer to him until he could catch the edge of the scarf with his teeth. She then moved sensuously away so the scarf fell off. She continued her ritual until the last scarf was removed. By that time Nagib was moaning with expectation and told her to free him, but Alia placed her finger on his lips and told him to be patient. She bent down and removed his shoes and socks while her forehead pressed upon his erection. Nagib wriggled on the sofa and tried to pull her towards him with his free hand but she smacked his hand away and told him to wait. She untied the kefiya from the sofa, replaced it on his eyes once again and instructed him to stand up. She then slowly continued to remove all his clothes and told him to sit back on the sofa. By now Nagib's erection had reached unprecedented proportions almost causing him physical pain and he could barely stop himself from pulling Alia to the sofa and respond to his body's primal instinct. She was pleased by his reaction and in a low husky voice instructed him to take her on the carpet without removing his blindfold. She pulled him on top of her and within seconds both exploded in the most intense orgasm that surpassed anything they had previously experienced. After they caught their breath, she removed his blindfold and hugged him tightly saying she would never let him go. He smiled and told her that whatever happened they would stay together forever. They got up from the carpet and walked hand in hand to the bedroom where they continued their lovemaking.

  When they woke up it was almost noon and after having coffee they had a serious discussion about the future. Alia repeated her idea that they settle down in Los Alamos like good Americans, start a family and lead a normal life and forget about the plan. Nagib said he was tempted to do that but the urge to inflict damage
on the Israelis would not fade away. Alia insisted that they had a great opportunity to live happily in the US and should let others avenge the injustice inflicted on the Palestinian people, but Nagib remained adamant that it was their duty. She promised him more pleasures like they had the previous night, but by now the fires of passion that had driven him senseless before had cooled. He repeated his speech about honor of his people, respect to family values of revenge and duty to their homeland and the Palestinian people. Alia said that she would follow his lead and felt that the immediate danger of being exposed had passed, but nevertheless they should act quickly.

  Chapter 4

  June 6th, Washington, DC

  Eugene called David from his office and related his impressions of the interview with Nagib. He said that Nagib had been very smooth with his answers as if they had been rehearsed. Eugene was mainly bothered by the fact that at no stage had he shown any emotions, even when describing his relations with his parents and deceased brother. However, the Colonel practically swallowed every word spoken by Nagib as if it was delivered by the Pope (Col. Dick Groovey was a devout Catholic) himself at the Ecumenical Council. Eugene told David that he thought they would have a problem convincing the Deputy Director and the Colonel that Nagib's access to classified information should be restricted, or even that a new thorough security investigation should be initiated.

  ***

  David's concern that Nagib was up to something increased after the conversation with Eugene. He asked Haim Shimony's secretary to arrange a meeting, saying that it was not urgent, but she knew that Shimony, who was now Chief of Mossad, respected David's intuition and scheduled the meeting for 8 pm that evening. When David arrived at the Chief's office a handful of people, some wearing IDF uniforms and some dressed in civilian clothes were just leaving. One of them was "The Fish", David's old friend from the ISA. David greeted him warmly and asked him if he could stay for a few minutes and participate in the meeting. "The Fish" asked David what it was about and when David told him it concerned Nagib Jaber he readily accepted the invitation. Once they were seated in the Chief's office, David related the news he had received from Eugene and expressed his gut feeling that something fishy could be going on. The Chief said that he had great respect for the American approach to security issues but felt that they were a bit gullible in their belief that anyone who received US citizenship and took the required oath would be loyal to his new country and take no notice of his past and forget where he came from. He mentioned a few well known cases of espionage by nationalized citizens who passed classified military, security and commercial information to parties in their original homeland. Some did this willingly and voluntarily and some did it for financial gain while others were coerced to do so. The Chief suggested that "The Fish" should carry out a thorough investigation and profile of Nagib's background, family and personal history, and also look into Alia's background. In addition he proposed to send David to the US to personally meet with Eugene and see if he could find more about Nagib. This latter detail was very sensitive since Israel vowed not to operate clandestinely on US soil after the embarrassment caused by the Jonathan Pollard affair who was the only American ever to receive a life sentence for passing classified information to an ally of the US.

  June 14th, early afternoon, Los Alamos National Laboratory

  Nagib sat in the office of his new friend, Dr. Max Level, for an informal meeting about ways and means to improve the performance of their groups by carrying out joint work. They drank some reheated coffee from the filter machine that tasted bitter and burnt, and joked that its acidity was the best way to exterminate microbes in the gastrointestinal tract. Nagib couldn't help recalling the freshly brewed, thick, dark and bitter coffee that he had consumed as a youth in Palestine and that Alia prepared for him and served with sweet pastries whenever she wanted to pamper him. Nagib, as usual carried a small memory stick with 16 GBytes of memory, in blatant disregard of the security regulations that did not allow the use of any such items. He felt quite secure that he would not be found out as the memory stick was part of a pen that he had received from one of the vendors of chemical equipment at a conference on analytical chemistry in which he presented his research as a graduate student. He explained to Alia that one never knew when an opportunity to copy classified information would present itself so he was always prepared to seize such a chance. Max was in a very good mood as he was looking forward to a long vacation in Paris with his wife Minnie that was due to begin the next day. The phone on Max's desk rang and he picked up the receiver. After a short conversation Max apologized to Nagib saying that some emergency in the deconstruction workshop needed his immediate attention. Nagib rose to leave the office but Max told him he would be back in a few minutes and they could continue their discussion.

  Nagib noted that Max neglected to log out on his computer and quickly moved into Max's chair, removed his pen from the lab-coat's pocket and inserted his memory stick into the vacant slot. He entered the directory in which the classified files with the latest designs and blueprints of nuclear weapons were stored and started to download them onto his memory stick. He didn't have time to see exactly what those files contained so he just copied them blindly. He knew that the breach of rules would be noted by the security system's software but hoped that it would take several minutes to block the computer and even longer to discover the physical location of the offending computer. As soon as the download was completed he removed the drive, assembled his pen with the hidden drive and returned to his seat. A moment later, when Max returned to the office Nagib said that he had to leave at once as one of his assistants called about a problem in the analytical laboratory. He wishes Max a pleasant vacation and told him that they should celebrate after he returned from Paris.

  Nagib went to the security office and stopped by Alia's desk. He was welcomed by all the girls in the office who still envied Alia for her handsome and successful husband. When Colonel Groovey heard the commotion he peeped out of his own office and greeted Nagib whom he regarded as a major asset of the research and development division. Nagib smiled at all of them and asked Alia if they could have a word in private and both of them stepped out of the office for a moment. Nagib told her that the opportunity they had waited for presented itself and explained what he had done in Max's office. She paled and said that he may find himself in deep trouble and probably will be caught. He said that the temptation was too large to ignore and surreptitiously placed the pen with the memory stick in her pocket. Both realized that their life in Los Alamos was over and that they would have to flee as quickly and as far away as possible. He said they should leave the Lab immediately, return to their home to pack a few things and draw as much cash as they could from the ATM machine and then try to disappear for a while until they could make plans to leave the country. She returned to her office said that she was not feeling well and had to leave early. Nagib was already waiting in the parking lot and they took off.

  Meanwhile a security guard, Albert Danillo, arrived at Max's office in response to the alarm triggered by the security system's software that an unauthorized media storage device had been connected to a computer on the classified network. He found nobody in the office and was told that Dr. Max Level had left for the day. The guard looked around and everything appeared to be in order so he reported to his superiors that everything looked to be in order and that he would further investigate the matter the following day. No one bothered to tell him that Max was going on vacation and would only return two or three weeks later because the people in Max's section were often harassed by the security guards and particularly disliked Albert who was always after them for one reason or another.

  Max drove to his house where Minnie was already waiting with the packed suitcases and they drove to Albuquerque international airport to catch their flight to Paris via Chicago. He knew nothing about the events that took place in his office and with a clean conscience was determined to enjoy Paris.

  Part 2. Getting
out

  Chapter 5

  June 14th, late afternoon, Los Alamos

  Nagib and Alia placed their laptop computer in its soft case, packed a few things in a couple of carry-on suitcases and as there was nothing of sentimental importance in the house they left everything undisturbed as if they planned on returning to it shortly. They decide to head to California assuming that they could blend in with the local large Arab and Muslim community and then plan their next step. They thought that the easiest way to get there would be by taking the I-40 that in that part of the world was also part of the historic Route 66, and drive through Arizona and Nevada until they reach the junction with I-15 in Barstow and then head to Los Angeles. They did not know how long it would take the Lab security office to discover what had really happened but reckoned that at most they had a couple of days before a nationwide manhunt began.

  By the time they left Los Alamos and got onto the I-40 the sun was setting in the west and they headed directly in that direction driving at a pace that kept them flowing with the interstate traffic. Although they were in a hurry they did not want to draw attention to themselves by driving too fast or too slow. According to the electronic map they had the distance to Los Angeles was 884 miles and the estimated driving time was just under 14 hours. They reckoned that if they took turns driving and stopped for gas and services every 3 or 4 hours they could get to Los Angeles just after the morning rush hour ended. The drive was very smooth and they made good time so they were quite relaxed when they reached Kingman, Arizona. As they were passing through this little town it was close to midnight and there were very few cars on the highway. In one section of the road the posted speed limit was 30 mph and they were doing about 35 mph when a police car that was hidden behind a large billboard on the side of the road pulled out and followed them quietly for a couple of minutes. It then switched on its flashing lights signaling them to pull over to the side of the road. It was Alia's turn to drive while Nagib took a nap and for a second she panicked and considered trying to outrun the police. Nagib woke up, quickly assessed the situation and told her to stop by the side of the highway. The patrol car pulled up behind her and she could see in the mirror that the grossly overweight policeman barely managed to get out of his car and saunter over to her car. He held a large flashlight in his left hand and his right hand rested on his pistol. Politely he asked her to hand him her driver's license and car registration. When he saw that her name was Alia Jaber he took a long look at Nagib and asked them both to slowly step out of the car without making any sudden movements. They gingerly complied being careful not to do anything rash. He then asked them what they were doing in Kingman in the middle of the night and Nagib said they were on their way from New Mexico to Los Angeles where his uncle was in hospital with life threatening injuries after being a victim of a hit-and-run accident and they were hoping to reach him before he expired. The policeman had heard that one many times before so said that he understood their urgency but as they broke the speed limit they presented a hazard to all other people on the highway and it would be in their better interest to spend the night in the local police station until brought before a judge in the morning. Nagib and Alia were flabbergasted and at a loss. Once the policeman was convinced that they were not driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs he told them that there was an alternative. When they asked him what he meant he said that they could pay a fine of $250 on the spot and he would take care of all the paperwork in the morning and mail them a receipt. Nagib and Alia exchanged a knowing look and said that they would pay but he need not bother with the receipt. This was accepted and a quick cash transaction was made and within ten minutes they were once again on their way to Los Angeles. Nagib said that this reminded him of the roadblocks in Palestine where the police of the Palestinian Authority regularly supplemented their meager income by shaking down innocent drivers. The rest of the trip was uneventful and they made sure to slow down every time the highway passed through one of the small villages along the way.