NOTES to Readers:
1. Most of the public incidents regarding governments in this book are TRUE,
2. The four primary characters are composites of people I know or have had the privilege to serve with and I have embellished them for fictional purposes,
3. The characterizations of the governments and corporations are accurate during this period and can be supported by documents in the public domain through Wikileaks or several other authenticated sources (including the US Library of Congress, George Washington University, etc.), and
4. Before you judge who is a terrorist, please read this:
Professor William Odom, formerly President Reagan's National Security Agency Director, wrote:
As many critics have pointed out, terrorism is not an enemy. It is a tactic. Because the United States itself has a long record of supporting terrorists and using terrorist tactics, the slogans of today's war on terrorism merely makes the United States look hypocritical to the rest of the world.
This applies to every government on the planet - not just America.
5. My simple definition of who is a terrorist:
Any individual or entity who kills, wounds or maims an unarmed man, woman or child.
It has nothing to do with race, cause, ethnicity, religion or creed.
There is no such thing as collateral damage.
6. This book is entertainment and education simultaneously. It shows you BOTH sides in combat and why they are fighting. Which side is right? That's for you to decide.
I'm just the scribe.
HER MAJESTY'S CENTRAL CRIMINAL COURTS
OLD BAILEY
LONDON
ENGLAND
EC4M 7EH
JANUARY 12, 2012
1014 HOURS
The rabble rousers whipped the chanting crowd into frenzy as the cordon of armed police advanced to disperse the crowd.
"He's an innocent Muslim!"
"...a man of Honour!"
"This is prejudice!"
Members of the legal profession, identifiable by their robes and collars, scuttled towards the famous edifice where they immediately submitted their IDs for admittance from the biting cold and threatening environment.
**
Inside the Old Bailey's main courtroom, the trial that was the target of the protestors' rage was in its opening phase.
"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, we intend to prove that the defendant is guilty of the vilest of crimes - the savage and brutal dismemberment of an innocent young woman. As we will prove to you - this was not a random act. This was a case of premeditated murder that aborted a promising life." Pryun Jones-Smythe, the prosecutor, adjusted his black robes as he paused to study the impact of his statement on the jurors. "We will prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant, Hamed al-Abbadi, used his martial arts skills to butcher..." He paused and peered at the seven men and five women of the jury as he marched over to the evidence table. "No...butcher is too gentle a word. To slaughter this young woman with thirty-two surgical gashes from this most savage of weapons-a saif!"
**
Pryun, resplendent in his black robes and horsehair wig, brandished the Arab sword in its protective plastic evidence bag.
Without warning, he whirled and lunged at the jurors with the weapon, commonly referred to as a scimitar in modern novels.
Several jurors shouted in alarm and recoiled or ducked.
**
Despite his seventy-plus years, Sir William McTavish launched himself from the defending counsel's polished bench with an alacrity that startled the solicitor seated immediately behind him. "My Lord, I must object to my learned friend's use of hyperbole and high drama to inflame ..."
The High Court Judge raised his hand to stop Sir William.
"Mr. Jones-Smythe, I must remind you that this is your opening address to the jury and not your summation. This is no way to welcome our learned friend, Sir William, on his return to the High Courts after his long hiatus at the Ministry of Defence." The judge, Lord Edmund Bryce, inclined his head in Sir William's direction causing his shoulder-length, horsehair wig to tip precariously on his balding pate. "Let the facts speak to the case and let us not have any of those hysterical courtroom antics that are invading our airwaves from our former colonies." His backhanded reference to American TV dramas caused several spectators in the public galleries to snicker. "This is an English Court of Justice and not a stage, sir."
"My apologies, my Lord." Pryun bowed. "The evidence will show that the accused entered Miriam Hussein's flat at approximately nine o'clock on that damp, rainy fall evening of November 29, 2011." He replaced the weapon on the evidence table as he returned to the prosecutor's bench.
**
High above in the court's oak-paneled galleries, the spectators focused on the legal gladiatorial circus below them.
The panorama of the lawyers, judge and other court officials clad in their centuries-old traditional robes and wigs customarily imbued an observer with a sense of awe in the oak-paneled courtroom. Unfortunately, this did not extend to the ten or twelve spectators who attended every trial for entertainment. These 'lifers' earned admonishing glares from Lord Bryce whenever their whispered conversations threatened to rise above an acceptable level.
**
A pinstripe-suited Commander Ronan Hawthorne of the Metropolitan Police studied his fellow spectators from the third row of the public benches and hid his smile behind his folded newspaper.
From his years of anti-terrorist policing, he recognized that the gallery was separated by a hidden boundary.
On the left, a large contingent from London's Middle Eastern community occupied the section behind the defense attorney with the members of a conservative, anti-immigration society seated on the opposite side.
The 'lifers' occupied the premium seats in the front row.
**
The sudden clicking of Tasbih prayer beads immediately drew derisory glares and comments from the anti-immigration group.
"Stop that!"
"This is England - do as we do or go back home!"
"What is the matter with these people? I am British. I don't understand why they are here. This is a travesty of justice. They are lynching an honorable man," the elderly matron in front of Ronan whispered to her daughter as she adjusted her hijab. "This woman was disgracing all devout Muslims with her loose behavior. He killed her because she was his cousin. This is an honour killing."
Ronan restrained from smiling as several of the reporters swiveled and extended their business cards with whispered requests for an interview to the matron.
**
Unaware of the activities in the gallery, the prosecutor continued his opening statement. "We will review CCTV camera footage displaying that the defendant entered the victim's building carrying a large bag which could easily have accommodated this fearsome weapon." He paused and examined the faces of the seven female jurors. "We will further provide you with his military records from the Royal Jordanian Armed Forces that demonstrate that he was proficient in the use of the saif and other edged weapons."
Pryun paused to sip from his water glass. "At approximately 9:06 p.m. on that fateful evening, neighbors summoned the police after several screams rendered the silence of their peaceful cul-de-sac. Six minutes after he entered that building! You will hear testimony that the police found the accused sitting in a pool of blood with the saif clenched in his right hand. On his face were the marks of several defensive blows."
**
Sir William scrambled to his feet, "My Lord, I must object! My learned friend has moved from hyperbole to supposition. My client may have had marks on his face, but we cannot prove whether they were offensive or defensive without further evidence or expert interpretation. To state this in an opening address would be poisoning the chalice ..."
**
Blam, blam!
Lord Bryce employed his gavel to stop Sir William as he turned to address the jury. "Ladies and gentlemen, I am required by the Laws of Evidence to instruct you to disregard the last comment from the prosecuting barrister. You should note that the accused had wounds and abrasions to his face and body, but we do not know the intent of his assailant when delivering those blows. We do not know if his assailant was attempting to defend herself..." He paused and held his hand up to silence Sir William. "...or himself. I am sure that Sir William will offer an alternative theory for these wounds and, therefore I counsel you to only take under advisement that the accused had several wounds from unknown sources."
Uncapping his pen, Lord Bryce shook his head as he returned to scribbling in his journal. "I see that you have not lost your edge as our young colleague had hoped, Sir William."
"Very kind of you to say so, my Lord." Sir William bowed as he resumed his seat.
The High Court Judge reassumed the posture of a school headmaster as he addressed the prosecutor. "I hope you have finished testing your opponent's ability, Mr. Jones-Smythe, and I trust that you will not give me further cause to address the jury. You may proceed."
11:30 GMT
"As the lunch hour is close, we will adjourn until one. Mr. Jones-Smythe, you may begin the examination of your first witness after Sir William has addressed the jury." Lord Bryce stood up and bowed to the portrait of Queen Elizabeth II before gathering his files and journal.
"All rise!"
In the Counsel's Locker rooms one level below the courtroom, a uniformed police officer advanced towards Sir William as he removed his robes. "Sir William, Commander Hawthorne wishes you to speak to you urgently, sir. He's waiting outside in the laneway."
LINEBURNER LANE
LONDON
Bundled into his topcoat, scarf and Homburg hat, Sir William emerged from the locker room and searched the huddled throng of pedestrians for Ronan.
The chants and cries of the protestors at the front of the courts echoed down the laneway despite the falling temperatures.
"Over here, William."
"Damn, it's cold. What's so urgent?"
"Don't remind me. I could be enjoying the sun in Barbados, if you hadn't demanded that I help you." Ronan crossed the lane and headed west as his shorter companion rushed to follow him. "You asked me to make some discreet inquiries about the victim, Miriam Hussein."
Sir William seized his friend's arm. "You've found something. What is it?"
"We can't talk here, but let me just tell you that there is a high possibility that your victim was well known to us and other international security forces. In fact, she was on our terrorist watch list. That woman was no innocent, gullible refugee, she was a terrorist. You've got a problem, William!"