Hi-Tech Hijack (2 page)

Where am I? Why can’t I move my hands?
Questions swarmed around Eddie’s fuzzy brain. His head felt heavy and dense, as if he were wearing an opaque diving helmet. He was dreaming and could see his hands in shackles made of colorful paper streamers. As he looked at the streamers, they turned into living creatures like some sort of strange worms intertwining with one another, binding his hands, scorching his skin, and threatening to bite into his flesh. He knew what they were, but couldn’t put his finger on it. They reminded him of something from his research work. Then the realization hit: the shackles were in fact DNA chains. He would know that color sequence anywhere. It was the DNA of the Ebola virus, that same deadly virus that was the foundation of his start-up company; it was the very same virus with which he had infected himself only one month earlier. He was startled out of his sleep and immediately felt wide awake.

He tried to get up, but found his hands were cuffed by painfully real plastic zip ties that were chaffing his skin, not virtual DNA chains.

He heard a muffled sound near him and realized that even though his eyes were open he couldn’t see a thing since a black sack was covering his head. He couldn’t remove it as his hands were tied to the handles of the padded yet comfortable chair he was sitting in. A safety belt pinned him down and stopped him from getting up.

Several long minutes passed before Eddie managed to focus his thoughts and recollect what had happened to him. He wasn’t on the train to Rigi anymore, that he could be sure of.

“Reuben?” he called out through the sack. “Reuben, are you here?”

“Eddie, untie me.” Reuben’s voice sounded muffled as well.

“I’m in no better shape than you are,” said Eddie.

“Silence,” an angry voice called out in English. Eddie felt a terrible blow across the left side of his head. There was a long, loud ringing in his left ear. To his left he heard another thump and Reuben letting out a cry of pain. Then they were both silent, trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

From the soft, comfortable chair and the familiar, monotonous rumble in the background, Eddie could gather they were probably on a plane. How they got there or where they were going, he could not fathom with his ear ringing and the anesthesia still weighing him down. A few minutes passed before some air turbulence asserted  they were indeed on a plane, but it was clear to him it wasn’t their flight to Japan they were aboard.

At some point the air turbulence subsided and the flight became smoother. Someone took the sack off Eddie’s head and put a bottle of water to his lips.

“Drink up,” the man said in English. “We have a few more hours to go.”

Eddie did as he was told. While drinking he quickly glanced around. The shades were drawn down so he could not tell if it was day or night, and he certainly had no indication as to where they were headed. He saw Reuben to his left across the aisle with a sack over his head. The chair on Eddie’s right was vacant. The man holding the water bottle for him looked more like a club bouncer than a pleasant flight attendant. He finished drinking, and the man pulled the sack back over his head. Before he had a chance to readjust, he felt the sharp stabbing pain of a syringe in his thigh again. A moment later he heard the guard ordering Reuben to drink.

“I don’t want to drink. Who the fuck are you?” Reuben yelled.

A loud thump and another yelp from Reuben followed.

“Shut up and drink,” said the so-called steward.

“Reuben, just do what they say. Best not to get into any unnecessary confrontations at this point,” Eddie shouted out quickly in Hebrew, bracing himself for the backhand slap that soon followed.

Reuben is not exactly the best partner to have with you in this type of situation
, Eddie thought to himself, his cheek still burning.
If Amit were here with me, I’d feel a lot better even though there isn’t anything anyone could do right now
.

Even in this time of complete helplessness, Eddie knew he’d be much safer with Amit, his army buddy who traveled with him all over South America and Africa. He knew that together, they would have been able to make the most of any opportunity that might present itself and find a way out of this predicament.

The shot he’d been given began taking its toll on him. The pain in his cheek faded, and he could feel himself dozing off. The thought of Amit and their joint trip to Africa brought back happy memories of magical days they spent at the Horowitz farm in Rhodesia, and Eddie fell asleep with a tranquil smile smeared across his face.

Rose was absolutely enchanted by the two Israeli travelers. She had managed to break through their natural barrier of shyness and introversion with her spontaneous and outgoing behavior. Rose Horowitz was Jewish, yet born in Rhodesia, otherwise known as Zimbabwe. However her family had no connection to Israel, and she had never been there. She found the two Israelis to be like a breath of fresh air, open and free. They seemed to emanate a kind of warmth that appealed to Rose, who was accustomed to the freezing stuffiness of uptight London most of the year. Only at her family’s farm among the native African workers and alongside Benjamin, did Rose allow herself to be her true, free self.

Eddie and Amit had originally planned on stopping for a day or two on their way up north, but a malfunction in the gearbox of their old Land Rover that they had bought just a week earlier in Cape Town at the beginning of their trip took longer than they thought to repair. What was meant to be a two-day stay turned into a week. It was Benjamin who invited them to stay a few more days and tend to their vehicle at the farm’s garage.

Eddie and Amit had spent their entire military service together, as well as their post-army trip to South America. They were enlisted on the same day to the same reconnaissance unit, and together they faced its challenges, trials, and tribulations and grew strong. On stormy nights they huddled together in their leaky tent, trying to keep warm by the light of a candle. And together they returned to their unit after the officers’ training course to become commanders of two young teams. The service was their whole lives, and they even spent their vacations together. Eddie’s parents embraced Amit with love and warmth, and it was almost like he replaced Eddie’s twin brother, who had passed when they were thirteen.

When they were honorably discharged, it was only natural that they would take their big trip to South America together. Seven years passed since that trip. They both completed their studies—Amit two years before Eddie. But Eddie knew that the next trip—this time to Africa—they would also go on together. Now on the road again for two long months, they jumped right back to their old army humor and lingo. They would finish each other’s sentences, and the three-way conversation between them and Rose was really a dialogue between two Israeli boys and a girl from the wilderness. The main difference between the two boys was their height: Eddie was six-foot-two and looked even taller, being slim and lean, while Amit was a head shorter and quite stocky with wide shoulders, making him seem smaller than he really was. Standing side by side, they looked like a muted down version of Laurel and Hardy, though not quite as fat or quite as thin.

“Did Amit eat all the food on the way here and leave nothing for you, Eddie?” asked Rose, teasing Eddie.

“As if,” said Amit. “If you ask me, this skinny guy is of a different specifies. He’s like a predator. He can eat whatever he wants and not gain any weight. Whereas I am doomed to never part with a single calorie. I’m always carrying a few extra pounds, and he’s always missing a few, so between the two of us we’re even.”

“He’s just jealous,” said Eddie, grinning. “And I keep him calm by letting him watch when I eat.”

Willowy Rose thought Amit was more friendly and open, but was actually intrigued by Eddie’s relatively aloof behavior. Being a tall girl she would always focus automatically on guys who were taller than her five foot nine, so she tried to get close to Eddie, sometimes directly, but more often than not, via Amit. It was a real surprise for the two guys to find a girl as bubbly and vivacious as Rose on a farm in Zimbabwe, and after several weeks of all-male companionship, Rose looked like the most attractive girl on the face of the planet. Amit recused himself for being too vertically challenged, as he put it, from making a go at her, which allowed him to speak to her much more freely. Eddie was more hesitant when it came to conversing with members of the fairer sex, and his chatty wingman pushed him closer to Rose.

When she was ten, Rose’s family moved to London. The British colony, named after Sir Cecil Rhodes back when the sun never set on the British Empire, gained its independence in 1979 and was renamed Zimbabwe. The future of the white residents, once lords of the land, was at once uncertain and daunting. Rose’s parents left behind a thriving farm to be run by Benjamin, a local boy who was the son of one of the farm workers. Benjamin’s father had been killed in an accident while working on the farm, and Aubrey, Rose’s father, felt a moral obligation to the widow and two-year-old orphan and took the child under his wing.

Benjamin became part of the family, a brother to Rose, who was five years younger. They grew up on the farm together just like siblings until her family’s move to London. For the first ten years after the move, Aubrey would spend half his time on the farm and would be away from his home in London for long periods, leading his beautiful and sought-after wife into the arms of a glamorous, young English actor. Rose never forgave her mother for leaving her father. She chose to live with Aubrey and saw very little of her mother. She would flee the cold, depressing London winter months and join her father in Zimbabwe where she spent every school vacation.

As Benjamin grew into a responsible and reliable young man, Aubrey delegated more and more of the farm’s duties to him and began visiting less frequently. Rose, however, did nothing of the sort. Every winter like a migrating bird returning to its wintering grounds, she would fly to Zimbabwe to the farm just outside Harare, the capital. She would spend Christmas there with Benjamin, whom she regarded as her older brother and true soul mate.

Rose, a girl of nature and open spaces, never felt at home in the urban confinement of London. Her big, brown gazelle’s eyes would light up as soon as she passed through the farm gates. She would hop down from the Land Rover, stretching her back and straightening it to the full extent of her five-foot-nine frame that seemed to shrink during the London winter. The farm dogs would immediately gather round her licking her face lovingly, and she would return their love by cuddling and stroking each one in turn. She would have dog drool all over her blouse and couldn’t care less. She was happy. Within days her entire appearance would change. Her pale skin would turn a honey tan, and her legs in short trousers would be covered in bruises and scratches. Her increased appetite would make her put on some weight and gain some curves. Every year before the trip, she would cut her hair, which had grown almost down to her shoulders, into a shorter in a boyish style. Her tall forehead, round cheeks, and shapely nose would all be covered in freckles. It was Rose’s season to bloom, and her delicate, smiling lips conveyed a clear message to any observer as to just how happy she was.

For Benjamin too, Rose’s arrival marked the beginning of a season of adventures and endless talks in the African nights with the sounds of crickets and cicadas serving as the perfect background to her energetic story telling.

“This wine is making me kind of sleepy,” said Amit. Sitting with the other three on the farmhouse veranda, Amit pretended to be tired on their third night. The conversation slowly died down, and they sat there quietly enjoying the sounds of the night after a spicy barbecue dinner orchestrated by Benjamin with the help of one of the farm workers.

“I think I’ll call it a night as well. I have a busy day tomorrow,” Benjamin said a few minutes after Amit’s departure, and he left Rose and Eddie to themselves.

An awkward silence hung between them, and Rose was the first to break it.

“Strange how the Southern Crux isn’t visible tonight.”

“Isn’t it too early still?”

“Maybe, or perhaps it’s blocked from view by the awning. Let’s go out into the yard and see.” Rose got up and held her hand out to him. Eddie took it and they stepped out together, hand in hand.

They spent a long hour wandering the grounds going all around the farm. Rose taught Eddie to identify the night’s different sounds—how to tell a cricket and a cicada apart, or how to spot the cry of a bird disturbed from its nest by a nocturnal predator. The dogs followed them, yearning for a pat on the head from their mistress. Love, a beautiful brown Shar-Pei, even growled at Eddie at one point and bared her teeth as he put his arm around Rose’s bare shoulders to shelter her from the night’s chilly air.

“It’s all right, Love,” said Rose, calming the dog down. “Eddie’s not going to harm me, is he?” she asked and smiled at Eddie.

“We both want to please one another,” Eddie responded, smiling back at Rose and stroking her cheek tenderly. He tried to remember when he last felt the soft touch of a woman’s cheek. It had been more than a year since he’d been in a relationship, and one-night stands weren’t his thing. He was a quiet kind of guy who found it difficult to interact with girls. It usually took him a long while to get close, and he found it to be mentally draining. Rose cut his musings short, took his hands in hers, and kissed each palm, bringing her body closer to his. Eddie pulled her in gently but firmly. Their mouths searched for a flicker before clinging to each other in a long and passionate kiss.

They spent the rest of the night together in one of the workers’ vacant cabins. Eddie’s emotions were high, and he drew Rose closer to him. She curled up and pressed her back against his chest, and they cuddled together and stayed awake for a long hour. Rose was surprised this had happened so quickly. Never before had anyone managed to break through to her with such speed. The most experienced masters of courtship back in London tried their very best moves to charm her, but she found that sort of behavior fake and obnoxious. But Eddie of all people with his rough-around-the-edges demeanor won her over in the most natural way. She felt his breath on the back of her neck and smiled to herself, calm and content until finally she fell asleep to the beating of his heart.

Amit greeted them and sent Eddie a meaningful wink when the two showed up late for breakfast the next day. This was a first for Benjamin, and he was clearly embarrassed by the whole situation. He wasn’t sure how to react exactly and tried to cover his sense of discomfort by fussing around the breakfast table. He ate hurriedly and excused himself from the table, explaining he had lots of things to attend to.

“I think Benjamin’s a little upset with you, Rose,” said Amit.

“He’ll get over it. He forgets I’m twenty-three now, and he’s been used to taking care of me ever since we were kids. Plus, I’m sure you’ve already gathered we don’t have guests like you here very often.”

“I sure hope this isn’t your regular kind of hospitality,” Eddie blurted out and immediately wished he hadn’t.

“You must not think very highly of yourself.” Rose stroked the back of his neck in a clear demonstration of affection.

“Am I witnessing the young couple’s first jealousy scene?” asked Amit, chuckling.

“Not to worry, Amit. I’ll give him back when it’s time for you to hit the road again. He’ll just be in better shape for the rest of your adventure, that’s all.” She gave them both a pat on the back and her heart skipped a beat at the thought of parting in just a couple of days from the man who had won her over so quickly.

The rest of the week flew by. They spent the days together, all three of them. Eddie made sure Amit didn’t feel left out even for a second. The nights were his and Rose’s alone. He secretly hoped it would take longer to fix the car. But it was done by the end of the week, and they were ready to resume their trip. All the time Rose was racking her brains trying to think of ways to make Eddie stay longer, and as the week was almost over, she suggested they postponed their departure ’til after the weekend.

“I’ve invited some friends from the neighboring farms to stay the weekend,” she said, “and it’ll be great fun if you joined us. They’ve never met any Israeli guys before, and you could do with meeting a few more local girls. After all, if I’m all you have to go by, you might get the wrong impression, and we wouldn’t want that, now, would we?” Eddie and Amit happily obliged. Eddie was awarded two more nights of pleasure, and Amit got the chance to meet some of Rose’s married and single friends.

However, Cupid must have been tired after the quick match between Rose and Eddie and decided not to visit the farm again, so Amit remained on his own that weekend. Two of Rose’s friends left the farm disappointed, having failed to reel him in.

On Monday morning the two men left the farm. Rose tried her best to put on a smile and a happy front. She gave Amit a peck on the cheek and clung on to Eddie for a long kiss. They got into the car and headed north as Rose waved at them good-bye, blinking away a wayward tear. It took her a long while after the dust had settled before she could bring herself back to reality. She stood there staring at the road, refusing to let go of the week’s sweet memory. She suddenly felt engulfed in an awful sense of loneliness like she used to feel back in London on the first nights of autumn. That was always the time when the decision to return to Africa would resurface, to go back to the warm, protective embrace of the farm, its people, and its animals. Now she knew that with Eddie leaving the tranquility and peace the farm had always been able to bestow upon her were gone for good.