The Ghost appreciated her anger, but warned her, “Don’t let vengeance overtake your mission. What I tell you is important. Have you studied the route? You know where you’re going to leave the vehicle?”
Fatima nodded, saying, “Omar showed us exactly. I’ve practiced it several times using Google Street View. I know where to leave it.”
The Ghost said, “Good. That’s exactly the attention to detail I expect.” He passed across a slip of paper and said, “That is the number to the detonation device. I want you to test it first. To do that, you must unplug it from the explosives. Be sure you do that before you dial.”
Yassir said, “How? I don’t know anything about bombs.”
“You don’t need to. It’s very easy to do. There is a box glued to the back with some bonded wires attached. They are on a plug not unlike a headphone jack used in airplanes, with two prongs. Just pull the wires out, then remove the phone. Once it’s free, turn it on, let it connect to a tower, then dial it to make sure your phone will connect. After you do that, simply turn the phone back off and reconnect it.”
Yassir said, “When do we turn it on for the mission?”
“After you leave the garage. You won’t have to disconnect it again. Simply turn it on, drive, then walk away.”
Fatima said, “When is that? I mean what time exactly?”
The Ghost said, “Good question, because this is important. I don’t want to spook them away by having it explode before they arrive, but I do want it to go off during the ceremony to draw out security before I act.”
He held up a sheet with a timeline on it saying, “The parties are arriving at ten thirty for a tour of the facility. The ceremony starts at eleven. My target is the third person to speak, and I don’t know how long each will talk. So, I want the car parked at eleven and armed. I will then text you when to initiate. Any questions?”
“What time can we leave the garage? Does it matter?”
“Oh yes, good point. After we’re done here, you can go get breakfast, wander the city, do whatever you like, but don’t pull out the car until you’re ready to drive it to the target site. Don’t use it to drive around beforehand, but do plan a small surveillance detection route once you leave the garage.”
“What do you mean? Do you think someone will follow us when we take the car out of the garage?”
“No, I honestly don’t, but there’s nothing wrong with being safe. When you leave the garage, get on a road and make a few turns until you’ve completed a circle and are clean, then take it to the bombing location. So, myanswer to your question is you can leave the garage at eleven minus the drive time to the final spot. Text me when you leave the garage. Does that make sense?”
The Ghost didn’t warn them that both the vehicle and the garage were on the compromised credit card. Once the vehicle left, the garage would trigger a credit card purchase on the burned number. He didn’t think it was a serious risk, but if the card was being tracked, he wanted to give them at least a chance of survival. Truthfully, even if they were captured—without detonating the VBIED—the diversion would serve his purposes. If theywerebeing tracked, the police would think they had stopped the attack and relax, drawing any suspicion away from his primary mission. It was a callous thought, but a necessary one.
She said, “Understood. Should we test our phones with you? With the new SIM cards?”
“Yes. Another good point.”
He gave them his number and both called, ensuring the SIM cards functioned. When they were done, Fatima asked, “What if you don’t text us?”
“If I don’t text you, it’s because my mission has failed. If you haven’t heard from me by twelve noon, you can initiate at will, either in that location or wherever you’d like.”
Both seemed to understand his words of mission failure meant he was dead. It was a sobering thought.
The Ghost continued, saying, “Once you have initiated, you are on your own to escape. I’m assuming back north, to the border area?”
Yassir said, “Yes. That is where we’ll go. Forgive me if I don’t tell you any specifics. You understand.”
The Ghost smiled and said, “Of course I do. I wish you all good luck, but I understand operational security. Anything else? Ask now, because I won’t be able to answer later.”
Yassir said, “Should we take weapons?”
The Ghost chuckled and said, “Omar will have a pistol, but I won’t have the ability to carry a weapon. If you want one, take it.” He gestured to one of the pelican cases, saying, “They aren’t coming with us.”
Yassir nodded and said, “I would like one.”
The Ghost nodded his head and said, “Anything else?”
Fatima and Yassir both remained mute. The Ghost stuck out his hand, “God willing, you will hear from me on the phone, and I from you through your actions.”
First Yassir, then Fatima shook his hand. They stood, looking around as if they were at a loss for what to do next. The Ghost said, “I meant what I said. Go get breakfast or a coffee. No need to sit here for the next few hours.”
Yassir nodded and said, “I think we’ll go test the phone first, then get breakfast.”
