The Other Half of My Soul (19 page)

* * *

On the flight to Manaus, Rami and Kamil made sure to sit together. “What do you know of Carlos el Negro?”

“Not much, Kamil.”

“The estranged brother of our Syrian president runs a drug smuggling ring and employs a notorious South American to oversee the operation. Remember those facts when dealing with Carlos el Negro or you may find yourself in quicksand.”

Rami’s stomach flipped.

* * *

Inside the Manaus airport, while waiting for their flight to Putu-mayo, Kamil placed a call to Simon. Not able to hear above the airport clamor, Kamil cupped his hand over one ear and pivoted so that his back was facing Rami. When Simon expressed concern over the GPS coins, Kamil checked his pocket. “Yes, I have it right here. Why?”

“Something’s not right, Kamil. I see only one of you at the Manaus airport. The other coin is tracing back to Ciudad del Este. Ask Rami to show you his coin. Then put him on the phone. Rayna wants to talk with him.”

Kamil turned. Rami was gone. Slowly, Kamil’s eyes scoured the area. Rami was nowhere in sight. Kamil’s heart pounded.
Take it easy
.
Rami probably went to the restroom
. “Simon, I’ll call you right back.” Kamil searched the restrooms. He searched the entire airport. No sign of Rami. He inquired at the ticket counters. Still no Rami. An icy chill crawled up his spine and Kamil’s flesh slithered.
What do I tell Simon? What do I tell Rayna? That I lost Rami? That I may never find him?
Perspiration bled through his pores as he made the dreaded call. “Simon . . . Rami has disappeared. He was right here with me. I turned around for one minute and when I looked back, he was gone. I’ve searched everywhere.”

“How could you lose him, Kamil? Do you know what the repercussions of this will be for us . . . for the magazine? Find him! My computer shows his coin in Ciudad del Este and we both know he isn’t there. I don’t care what it takes, find Rami!”

What Kamil found most insufferable was the shrill background cry coming from Rayna.

* * *

With a loaded pistol at his back, his hands secured behind him, and a handkerchief stuffed in his mouth, Rami was whisked onto a small private plane. He sat facing his two abductors. Rami wanted to feel for the coin in his pocket, but his hands were bound.

After what seemed like hours, the aircraft set down at the primitive airport in Puerto Asis in the state of Putumayo in southern Colombia. From there, Rami was forced into a jeep, the gun now at his head. The risk of fleeing or attempting anything foolish would surely cost Rami his life. The coin he believed to be safely in his pocket provided a false sense of security.
Simon will know where I am. He will inform Kamil and send help.

* * *

Traveling over dense terrain, Rami felt nauseated from the long, bumpy ride. In time, the jeep stopped in front of a large, austere log house that sat high off the ground and was supported by beams made from tree trunks. One of the abductors rechecked Rami for weapons, then untied his hands and freed his mouth. Subtly, Rami put his hand in his pocket. The coin was not there.

Accompanied by several bodyguards, an intimidating and grandiose black man with a bald head and a powerful build came out to greet them. Carlos el Negro stood well over six feet tall. When he smiled, a gold tooth glistened through his perfect set of white teeth. His authoritarian demeanor told of a man one would not want to displease.

Rami was cautious not to bring attention to himself. Still, he wanted to check his other pockets. Carlos el Negro invited Rami inside and motioned for him to have a seat at the table. Cold Colombiana soft drinks were served along with platanos, fried yucca, and a cold maize soup. The strange foods added to Rami’s queasy stomach, but he did not dare refuse the omnipotent man. Inwardly, he prayed to Allah.
Please keep me from being sick all over this man’s table
. Gradually, he swallowed down the foreign tastes. Allah answered his prayer.

“I know Yousef is eager to get his hands on more of my opiates.” Carlos el Negro spoke in perfect English, a language the others present did not understand. “The sale of illegal drugs adds a great deal of money to al-Shahid’s treasury. But what Yousef chooses to offer me in return is insulting. Twice he cheated me on the weapons. Twice he broke his word.” Carlos el Negro paused, waiting for Rami to respond.

“I will not make excuses or defend Yousef. He wants to renew his business with you and knows not to deceive you again.” Rami rationalized that if he succeeded with Carlos el Negro, then Yousef would see his worth and Rayna’s safety would be secured.

“You tell Yousef that next time he strays from an agreement with me, I will take his life in exchange.” Carlos el Negro motioned to one of his men, instructing the worker in Spanish. A short dialogue ensued. Rami took advantage of those brief moments to recheck his pocket. The copper coin was definitely missing. In a panic, he reached into the other pocket. Not there, either. He sunk his hands into the two openings in the back of his jeans. His fingers fumbled nervously.
It must be here.
He scanned the floor, hoping it might have fallen.
Nothing
. Rami’s blood curdled and he tried to mask his alarm.

“Is something wrong?” el Negro asked.

“No.” Rami smiled.
What could be wrong
?
Kamil is nowhere in sight. The coin is gone. I am in the middle of a jungle with a gang of murderers. Simon does not know where I am.
Collecting his composure and weighing his options, Rami proceeded as if all were well. “You each have something the other wants, so let us not waste time playing games. Look at what is really at stake. Examine the trade-offs that you and Yousef can live with.”

“I can see that you and I will do well,” el Negro acknowledged approvingly. The two men talked late into the evening until a deal was struck. The burly black man who could put the fear of the devil into any individual offered Rami a place to spend the night.

* * *

After breakfast, Rami and his two companions thanked Carlos el Negro for his hospitality. The three climbed into the jeep and advanced deep into the treacherous labyrinth of the national forest. The dense trees obliterated the sun, wiping out all sense of direction and time for Rami, especially so since the two men had taken his watch when he was on the plane. Instinct dictated that he must stay with the vehicle. Rami hoped Yousef would be pleased with the deal he had secured with Carlos el Negro, and he eagerly anticipated his return to Rayna. Rami had no clue about the arrangements Yousef had made with his henchmen.

* * *

“You are to lose him somewhere in the jungle. Leave him to the mercy of the animals. They will devour him and our hands will be clean of Rami’s death,” Yousef had ordered. Aware that the Syrian government and the supreme leader of al-Shahid had high hopes for Rami, Yousef could not risk the fallout if it were discovered that he had tampered with those expectations. Rami’s death must never be traced to him.

* * *

The abductor who was driving picked up speed. Rami sat beside him. Without warning, the other man sitting in the rear whacked Rami across the back of the head with the butt of his pistol, inflicting a severe wound. Stunned and slightly dazed, Rami struggled with the man until he was shoved out onto the rough ground. Quickly, Rami pulled himself up, making a desperate attempt to go after the moving vehicle. From the open window, the assassin pointed his gun and took several shots. Rami moved back and forth, trying to dodge the bullets. The jeep swerved and then vanished.

For a while, Rami followed the tire tracks. Then, without warning, a heavy downpour washed away the little hope he had. “Kamil,” he cried out,
“where are you?”
Has Simon lost all trace of me
?
Does anyone know where I am?
Rami yearned for the shelter of Rayna’s love.
Help me, Allah. I do not want to die out here alone
. The rain stopped as abruptly as it had begun.

In sweltering heat and oppressive humidity, Rami trudged through the mud in his wet clothes with no sense of where he was. He swatted sandflies and dodged armadillos. Unknowingly, he waded through crocodile-infested swamps while yapoks nipped at his feet until they bled. Soon, the pain in the back of his head spiked and the vision in his left eye blurred. Rami hoped for Kamil to miraculously appear. Desolate, he worried that night would fall and he would still be in this deadly environment with ferocious animals devouring every part of him.

Plodding through a field of mango trees, Rami picked one of the fruits and ate it. A wrenching pain seared through his head. Sighting a monkey several yards in the distance, he watched the creature dart away. Boom! A landmine exploded, blowing the primate to pieces. “Please, Allah, help me find a way out of here before dark.” Thoughts of Rayna tugged at his brain. Crawling vines and plants clogged the red dirt trail, parts of which were submerged in ankle-deep water. Pushing ahead, Rami stumbled onto the banks of a languid brown river. In the distance, children frolicked and mothers bathed their infants. He thought he was hallucinating. A tarantula climbed up his shirt and struck, sending its poison through Rami’s body. Immobilized, he fell to the ground, unconscious.

* * *

Rayna was frantic. Today, on their nineteenth birthday, when Rami had promised to call twice, no one knew where he was. Her stomach wrenched. She could not eat or sleep. She pleaded with God to watch over her husband and keep him safe. Sitting in Simon’s office, Rayna monitored the computer screen and the telephone, desperate for a signal, a sign that Rami was alive. “He promised,” she sobbed. “Kamil promised to look after Rami and bring him back safely. He gave me his word.”

“Take it easy, Rayna. We’ll find Rami. I’m getting a search party together . . .”

“If anything happens to Rami, I swear I’ll kill Kamil.”

“Rayna, we’ll find Rami. I have every confidence in Kamil. I’ve known him for nine years. He’s a good, decent man and will put Rami’s life above all else, including his own.”

“Can you guarantee me that?”

Just then, Simon’s private line rang. He activated the speaker for Rayna to hear. “Simon, I can’t talk long. Just listen before we get cut off. I’m in Putumayo . . . Puerto Asis. Was inside the forest.” Kamil spoke quickly, sometimes in fractured sentences. “I begged and bribed to rent a jeep. A compass and guide also. Maps are useless. Terrain is the worst I’ve ever encountered. Without the guide, could not have found my way out. It’s treacherous. Dangerous. Have no idea where to begin looking.”

“Kamil, give me the reality.”

“Doesn’t look good.”

Listening to Kamil on the speaker, Rayna broke down, “You promised to bring Rami home safely. You promised, Kamil. Why did you take your eyes off of him? Why did you make me a promise you weren’t going to keep? Why? Why?”

“I’m doing everything I can. Do you have a better suggestion?” Kamil was frustrated.

Impulsively, Rayna made a decision. “I’m coming down there. Meanwhile, you find Omar. Omar will know where Rami is. Omar can lead you to him. Find Omar! Go back to Ciudad del Este and get Omar! Take him with you to that God-forsaken place and find my husband! And Kamil . . . may your Allah protect you from me if anything happens to Rami.”

“Kamil, I’m trying to round up some men who know the forest,” Simon broke in. “I’ll get them there as soon as possible. In the meantime, you heard the lady. Find Omar, whoever he is. Rayna seems to think he can lead you to Rami. Move on it. Now!”

“I’m coming down there to find Rami,” Rayna screeched into the speaker. “I’m leaving on the next plane.”

“Simon, whatever you do, don’t let Rayna leave New York. She won’t survive this environment,” Kamil warned.

After hanging up, Simon placed his hands on Rayna’s shoulders. “Under no circumstances will I allow you to go. I will not expose you to the enormous dangers . . .”

“But the place is not too dangerous for my husband, is it? Is it, Simon?”

“I don’t want to worry about you, also. It’s too dangerous. Didn’t you hear Kamil? For Christ sake Rayna, we’re trying to find Rami and bring him home alive. Don’t add to the burden. One of you is enough.” Simon’s stress was beginning to show.

“What if this were your wife?”

Rayna’s question provided Simon with a greater comprehension of her turbulence. He picked up the phone and made a call. Rayna waited until he hung up.

“Four of my people in South America are on their way. The continent is big and they have to fly in from distant places, so give them time.”

“Time!” she wailed. “Time is something my husband doesn’t have. I’m leaving. I’m going to find Rami. I want him back.” She started for the door.

With his body, Simon blocked her way. “You’re not going anywhere. You have no understanding of what you’re doing. What if you die out there, devoured by a crocodile or a jaguar? There are pythons as big as tree trunks. That’s what’s in the jungle. And if we bring Rami back alive but we never find you . . . is that what you want? No, Rayna. Use your head. You’re not thinking clearly. We’ll find him.”

An hour later, Kamil phoned again. “I’ve arranged for a private plane to take me back to Ciudad del Este. I’ll get Omar. Tell Rayna that I will find Rami. I swear . . .” A click in the line ended the call.

* * *

In the office, Eli spent hours consoling Rayna. He took her to lunch, then watched as she picked at her food before leaving it on the plate. In the evening, Eli sat with her as she cried. He agreed with Simon that it was not wise for Rayna to travel down to that perilous part of the world. “Don’t give up hope,” Eli encouraged. “With all your might, pray to Hashem. Have faith in God. Have confidence in Kamil. I do. Promise to introduce me to Kamil when he and Rami return. And you, my beautiful sister, are to keep busy with your investigation into the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. You must not fall apart. Be strong for Rami when he returns. Think positive thoughts, they are contagious. Rami will feel them.”

* * *

Back in Ciudad del Este, Omar witnessed the escalating rancor between Yousef and Abdallah. In Arabic, Yousef castigated his assistant. No matter whom Abdallah had sent to replace Rami, Nolan could not be broken.