The compound was flooding with army personnel
after the assassins left, rather convenient. In Abottabad , the army
does its primary duties and simultaneously functions as the police. He
overheard a conversation,”-must be the Americans or the British.” The
bodies of the dead were put into body bags. He watched as a soldier
in-charge of disposing the bodies played with his sister’s corpse.
Abdullah felt disgusted and puked. He wanted to kill the soldier but
knew he couldn’t, he was helpless and touching a soldier in Pakistan
was like earning a lottery ticket to a life sentence. Abdullah knew he
had to bide his time. He felt nauseas, the vaccine he had received a
couple of days earlier seemed to make him drowsy every few minutes.
The pressure, sadness, depression and loneliness were too much for his
young mind to be able to bear. His legs gave away and he fell as the
light slowly faded. He saw two men rush towards him.
He woke up in a room which looked like it belonged
to a hermit, his guess was not far off the mark. A bearded man entered
the room with perhaps an assistant who followed him obediently. The
man who stood before him was yet to become a household name in
Pakistan.
“Inshallah, you are awake, I was going to call upon a doctor. You have
been unconscious for almost two days.” His raspy voice was soothing
and felt trustworthy. Abdullah decided to follow his instincts and
trust this man, a decision he would not regret.
“What is your name young man?”
“Abdullah-al-Kuwaiti.”
“Ah! The son of the Sheikh’s courier.”
“Who is the Sheikh?”
“Osama-bin-Laden.” Realization dawned upon Abdullah.
He had been living under the most feared man in the world. A man
who had declared jihad on America, in the name of Allah. Still a
question loomed, who had done this?
“Who killed my parents and the Sheikh?”
“America. They sent their finest to finish the job.”
“I want revenge-“he cut Abdullah mid-sentence.
“You shall have it, but not yet, you cannot kill the most powerful
nation in the world.USA might have executed the plan but without a
particular Pakistani and a couple of Indians, this mission would never
have been completed.”
“Who is the one who plots with the worshippers of the devil?” Qadri
was delighted but betrayed no emotion.
“Dr. Ali Malik. He has been jailed for 21 years.”
“I will kill-“Abdullah remembered about the vaccine he had received, a
certain Dr.Malik had given him the vaccine.
“Was he the one who gave me the vaccine?”Qadri nodded.
“It was no vaccine, just some saline and minerals. It should make no
difference to you.”
“He will die by my hands.” Abdullah said in a sinister voice.
“In good time, son.”
The word ‘son’ struck a deep chord within Abdullah. He had lost his
parents. His cousins were with their mother. “Are they even looking
for me?” he thought. He was alone and it seemed the bearded man who
stood before him was his only hope to salvation.
“What about the Indians?”
“They were reporters. They are hidden in a village near Dehradun
called Raipur. You can deal with them later. First, you have to
Pakistan.”
He turned and walked away, making it clear that the conversation was over.
The next day, Abdullah was woken up by
Qadri’s assistant. He went by the name Raheem. He had recently
finished his masters in Political Science from Cambridge. Abdullah ate
breakfast alone. As soon as he crossed the threshold of the humble
building in which he had resided, he realized that the city smelled
strange, looked more vibrant and even sounded strange. This could not
be Abottabad! He was whisked away in a Maruti Suzuki Omni. Qadri sat
beside him. He asked Qadri which city they were in. Qadri smiled and
replied, “Lahore.” A moment later Abdullah was blindfolded and his
hands were tied together. He did not feel fear just despair,
disappointment and despondency.
YOU ARE READING
Saga of the forgotten
Mystery / ThrillerHe had lost his parents, his uncle and Fatima on the same night. He had cried incessantly but he steeled his nerves and forced himself to stop doing so. Now he stood in front of the scorched helicopter.
