Kiley couldn’t fathom what made someone turn to such brutal actions. “He sounds disgusting.”
“I’m not sure ‘disgusting’ is a vile enough word for him,” Deb said. “But you must know, if there’s a way to innovate a terrorist attack or pull off the impossible, he’ll be behind it.”
“Sounds like he could be our guy all right.” Evan’s expression said he didn’t like the idea very much.
As much as Kiley didn’t want to agree with his assessment, she did, and they needed additional information to stop him. “What’s behind all this rage?”
“A sad story,” Deb said. “Almost makes you feel bad for him. Until you see what he’s done.”
“Tell us about it,” Kiley encouraged.
“He lost his whole family in the war. Everyone. Parents. Siblings. Grandparents. Cousins. Aunts and uncles. They were at his sister’s wedding.” Deb sighed, giving Kiley time to picture the event. “Shah stopped at the market to pick up the wedding present and was running late when the bomb hit. He arrived to find only rubble. I think he lost his mind that day and is mentally unstable. He blames our country and gets revenge wherever and whenever he can.”
“He’s suffered a great loss, but it still doesn’t excuse his behavior.” Kiley detested wars and hated that innocent people died in them. “What about Nabi?”
“Let me look.”
As Kiley paced the room, she heard the sound of Deb’s fingers typing coming over the speaker, urging Kiley’s feet to move faster. She neared the end of the table, and Evan snagged her wrist.
“You’ll burn yourself out,” he whispered.
He was right, but she just couldn’t sit down. Not with what they were learning about these very dangerous men who were planning an unthinkable tragedy. Still, she appreciated Evan’s concern, so as she extricated her wrist, she offered him the brightest smile she could manage at a time like this, then moved back to her phone.
“Yeah, here he is,” Deb said, stilling Kiley’s feet. “He’s a long way down the totem pole from Shah, but he’s climbing the ranks. Hmm ... yeah, he was involved in the schoolgirl kidnapping with Shah. Together they could do some serious damage.”
“Anything else on his background?” Evan asked.
“A little. He was a street kid when ISIS recruited him. Says his loyalty to them for feeding him when he was starving knows no bounds.”
Evan frowned. “I’ve seen kids like that recruited during my Navy days. Breaks your heart. But seeing them starving and homeless is equally hard.”
Kiley looked at him and found anguish in his eyes. She’d never really thought about the tragedies he’d seen in his military career. Starving kids was likely just the tip of the iceberg.
He sat up straighter. “Where was the last known sighting of these men?”
“I can’t say for Nabi,” Deb replied, “but Shah hasn’t been seen in public for more than a year.”
“Do you find it odd that we don’t have prints on these two and had to go to Interpol to get a match?” Cam asked.
“No,” Deb said. “They’ve never committed a crime in the U.S. They stick closer to home, targeting Americans abroad.” She paused for a long moment. “But I guess if you’re looking for their prints, they must have arrived here.”
“That’s for your ears only,” Kiley quickly said, knowing Deb would heed the warning. “Can you send me their files right away?”
“I’ll email them as soon as we hang up.” Deb let out a slow,noisy breath. “I know you all are like this super team, but be careful, Kiley. These guys are bad news. Real bad news.”
Stomach churning, Kiley swallowed. “I have a few more names I’d like you to check before you go. Starting with Ehsan Rostami and Kahram Darzi.” Kiley spelled the names to be sure Deb got them right.
Deb’s typing resumed, and so did Kiley’s feet. She made a wide path past Evan so he couldn’t stop her this time, and the urge to act was burning in her gut now.
“You sure on their names?” Deb asked. “I have nothing on them. No listing at all.”
Kiley swallowed down her disappointment and moved on. “What about a Haval Barzani?”
“Let me check,” Deb said, typing. “Sorry. Nothing on him either.”
Kiley nodded. “Okay then, I have two sets of brothers. Nasim and Ibrahim Waleed, and Gadi and Bilal Amari.”
Deb hummed as her fingers clicked over her keyboard. “We have the Waleeds tied to The Righteous. You familiar with that group?”
