dmutton
Synopsis
A high tech thriller based 12 years since the horrific events of 9-11. An ultra militant group formed from the more extreme members of the remnants of Al Qaeda spark a campaign of global terror as their plan unfolds across the world.
Excerpt
The United airlines flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu was almost full of excited tourists looking forward to their week in the sun. Sprinkled amongst them were the occasional businessman hunched over a laptop or staring at their Blackberry. After almost five hours flying, the crew were starting to make their preparations for landing; clearing up the rubbish and asking passengers to return to their seats.
The passenger in seat 32C was a middle aged man, travelling with his wife and two children. He was well built, but muscular, short hair and a tattoo just showing on his upper arm below the sleeve of his t-shirt. The two boys sitting next to their father had their heads down playing games on portable consoles. Their mother in 32 F, a slim attractive blonde, had her eyes closed, seat reclined, and an open magazine lying across her stomach. The man listened to his kids for a moment, talking to each other and smiled at what seemed sometimes to be a foreign language. He then returned his attention back to his novel, a British author, ex SAS who had turned his hand to writing gritty realistic thrillers. Realistic because you knew the man who had written them had been there at the sharp end, in the mud, and knew what he was talking about.
Three rows behind the family, a young man in seat 35B watched the family, and occasionally scanned around the cabin watching the cabin crew. He was in his late twenties, with short black hair, wearing dark glasses that hid his eyes. He was dressed in a smart grey lightweight business suit and there was a small blue laptop on the table in front of him. He checked his watch again and looked around for the cabin crew. Two stewardesses were moving up the aisle towards him, carrying plastic bags for passengers to throw all their trash. He relaxed and laid his head back on the seat rest, his hands resting lightly on his netbook.
The cabin intercom came to life and all the tv screens froze as the first officer announced that they were just starting their decent into Honolulu. The seat belt signs flashed on and the crew activity level increased as the last few preparations were made for the landing.
The family in Row 32 started to gather all their possessions together, the two boys arguing over who had won their game. Mum and dad shared a look and then distracted one son each, getting them to pack their rucksacks with their consoles and books. They all then settled back down, the seats upright, tables folded away. One of the boys leaned over his father craning for a look out the window.
After a couple of more minutes the plane banked slowly to the left and the engine note changed as the descent deepened. The first officer came back on the intercom and told the cabin crew to take their seats for landing. The young man in row 35 had packed his netbook away in his computer bag and pushed it under the seat in front. He reached his left hand into his coat pocket and withdrew something small; his eyes were fixed on the large man three rows in front of him. In the seat next to him an older black lady jumped suddenly as the noise of the flaps moving on the wings outside startled her. She grabbed for the armrest to reassure herself, not realising his hand was also resting there. The young man started in surprise and shock, pulling his hand away quickly. Then realising what had happened he smiled quickly and spoke to the woman quietly in a reassuring tone. She relaxed and leant back in her seat, peering out of the window. The young man put his hand back in his pocket, withdrew it and then interlaced his fingers in his lap. He seemed to breathing quickly as if nervous.
For the next few minutes, the plane continued its descent and around the cabin passengers waited for landing dealing with the moment in different ways. Some people continued to read, sleep or chat to their fellow travellers. Others looked nervous, peering out the window or holding hands with a loved one. Through the windows the ocean could now be seen as the plane banked again, then land came into view, the buildings below looking like models.
Finally after another minute or two, the plane rocked with a thump as first the main landing gear, then the nose gear touched down on the runway. It was a short taxi to the terminal as the cabin crew left their seats and moved to the doors to prepare them for arrival.
The plane stopped, the engine noise ceased and the seatbelt sign went out almost simultaneously. As usual, everybody tried to stand at the same time opening the overhead lockers, gathering bags and reaching for their cell phones. The young man in row 35 stood and swung his rucksack onto his shoulder. His right hand was holding a Blackberry cell phone and his left hand slipped back inside his coat pocket. His gaze alternated between the phone and glancing forward watching the family as they gathered their possessions.
When the cabin doors were opened and people started moving out onto the jetway, he moved forward and stayed close behind the larger man with the tattoo. He followed the man and his family as they moved with the crowd following the signs for baggage claim. The passageway became busier as other passengers emerged from another gate.
The throng of people moved into the baggage claim area and divided into the different areas surrounding the baggage carousels. The family moved to belt 6 and one of the sons retrieved a luggage cart. The young man stayed close watching carefully as the older man staked out a position near the carousel. As he did, it started moving and a variety of different bags disgorged onto the carousel. The young man looked around for the exit and made his way to a row of seats between the family by the carousel and exit into the arrivals hall. He sat and peered intently at his Blackberry again, waiting.
Several minutes passed, then the family he was observing started to move towards the exit, the two sons jostling over who got to push the luggage cart, the mum and dad walking together behind. The young man stood and walked behind them towards the exit. As they drew near he moved closer and his left hand came out of his pocket again, cupped as if to conceal something. He was now right behind the family and then pretended to stumble falling into the larger man and his wife.
The man stopped in surprise and then bent to help the younger man to his feet. The younger man apologised and as he stood his left hand briefly rested on the larger mans shoulder. He apologised again and then strode forward in front of them, not looking back. As he exited the baggage hall, he spotted another young man waiting for the arriving passengers. This man was wearing a green baseball cap and Miami Dolphins NFL shirt. He spotted the young man from the plane but didn’t make any sign of recognition. Briefly the young man in the smart suit rested his hand on his left arm with four fingers and then he was past the waiting line of people and was gone.
Behind him the family of four exited the baggage area and turned towards the hire car booths. The man in the baseball cap watched carefully and spotted the small piece of red electrical tape attached to the man’s shoulder. He turned to follow them and raised a cellphone to his ear…
