The Last Infidel Read online

  “I have never seen that boy in my life!” Zafar protested, stirring uneasily in his chair.

  “Your body language, X-rated, I’m sure, tells me a different story,” Cody said. He pulled the folded up papers out his pocket, opened them up, and handed them to Tracy. “Jose, I need you to keep an eye on Zafar – that is, if you can part with that gold for a few minutes.”

  “I got this,” Jose said, and he put the box down and removed a knife from his belt.

  “I hope you know what you’re doing, Cody,” Tracy said, as she pored over the papers he’d just handed her.

  “Seems like the Army of Tennessee is marching right into a trap,” Cody said to Tracy. “Your recon teams are leaving entire areas untouched.”

  “Two thousand men,” Tracy said, looking at one of the papers. “Coming up through North Georgia as we speak. How did we miss that?”

  “It’s been a huge set up all along,” Cody said. “But those explosives? They’re the real deal. And it’s a good thing Mr. Zafar here hasn’t made up his mind about what he wants to do with it. He alone of Bashar’s men knows about the C-4, only he didn’t count on . . . well, let’s just say he didn’t know that I’d stumbled into his little hiding place and moved his stash.”

  “How do we know these papers are legitimate?” Tracy asked.

  “You’re being played,” Cody said boldly. “You’ve been feeding bad info back to General Williams. And that covert of yours? He left town yesterday. And if I’m guessing correctly, General Williams is moving his men up from Chattanooga as we speak.”

  Lisa Maddox, with Jose on her tail, hurried back into the room, carrying her rifle, the one Cody had traded to her. She put the muzzle against Zafar’s back. “Up, Mr. Katila – right now.”

  Jose looked at Cody, raised his brows, and drew his finger across his throat.

  Cody slowly shook his head, and Jose backed away from Lisa.

  “Marcus . . . he tells me you have a tattoo,” Lisa said. “Get up and drop your pants.”

  “Don’t do this, Lisa,” Tracy said, drawing a silenced pistol and pointing it at her.

  “You’ve done unspeakable things to my child,” Lisa screamed. “You Muslims are all the same – you’re all liars and predators. Marcus says you have a tattoo right next to your---”

  “I assure you I have no tattoo,” Zafar explained breathlessly. “Allah would not---”

  Cody and Tracy looked at each other.

  “Allah?” Tracy asked. “Since when do you---”

  “He’s lying,” Cody said to Tracy. “He has been all along. He’s playing whichever side he can when he can. He’s a profiteer, like Jose here – nothing more, nothing less.”

  “Hey!” Jose shouted. “That’s not fair!”

  “He . . . Marcus tells me he has a rose tattooed right there,” Lisa said, pointing to her left hip just below her belt. “Prove Marcus wrong, Zafar, and I’ll let you go.”

  Cody nodded to Jose.

  Jose put his knife against Zafar’s throat, and Cody walked over to Zafar.

  “I’ve never undressed a man before,” Cody said. “And I can’t help thinking I’m about to violate myself by doing it.” He jerked Zafar up and out of his seat. Then he looked down and unfastened Zafar’s belt and undid the button holding up his trousers. “Here’s where I’m a little out of my league,” Cody said, glancing at Tracy.

  “I . . . I can explain,” Zafar said, his voice trembling.

  Cody shook his head. “Thanks for saying that. You’ve just saved us a lot of trouble.” Cody looked at Lisa and nodded.

  “No, Lisa,” Tracy said. “Don’t do it.”

  Zafar died with a bullet between his shoulder blades. His body fell forward across the old wooden table and laid there like a cheap suit at a day-old garage sale.

  “Jose, get this lump of crap out of here,” Cody said. “Take him back to our place and stuff him into the drain. They’ll never find him in there.”

  Jose turned the body of Zafar over, and Lisa lifted the waistband of the man she’d just killed. Cody aimed his flashlight at Zafar’s waist: everyone saw a tattoo of a rose, sitting right next to his shaven---

  A few minutes later, Cody and Tracy were standing all alone. Jose and Lisa had taken Zafar’s body away; Marcus and Katrina had gone to the hiding place.

  Cody produced a small bottle, held it up to the light, and shook it gently. It sparkled golden in the flicker of the lamp. “The last cognac you’ll probably ever see,” he said. And he sat down in Zafar’s chair.

  Tracy turned to walk away.

  “Tell me why you really walked away from us,” Cody said.

  Tracy stopped and turned around. She looked into Cody’s eyes. “I would prefer to not talk about it – not after what I’ve seen here tonight.”

  “And what have you seen?” Cody asked. “Justice? A rescued boy and his mother, a young girl, and a dead Muslim? Hell, even Jose wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for me.”

  “I’ve just seen someone I once loved act as cold as a stone on ice,” Tracy said.

  “So that’s it,” Cody said. “You walked away because you---”

  “Because I have seen my nightmares come true,” Tracy snapped. “I wanted to remember you as that happy, easy-going boy I grew up with – not the cold, calculated, detached killer I’ve seen here tonight. I . . . I don’t want a warrior. That won’t work for me and it never will.”

  “And because I’ve got blood on my hands, it means I have no blood in my heart,” Cody said. “Is that it? And you can run a bunch of recon teams from a distance and not be a killer?”

  Lisa managed a brief quivering smile, and then she pressed her lips together. “I don’t want to think about where you’re going to end up – I don’t want to know.”

  “Just in case you haven’t noticed, I’m the one who’s still here,” Cody said. “I’ve always been here. You, Tracy darling, aren’t running away from anybody but yourself. You and Bashar are very much alike as far as that goes.”

  “Then I’ll run, and I’ll keep running, if it’s all the same to you,” Tracy said.

  “So, you ran off because you didn’t want to see me dead, physically or emotionally. But I will tell you something, little Miss whoever-the-hell-you-are. You may think you’re alive. But you died two years ago. Only difference is that you shot your own danged self to save anyone else the trouble. You’re a killer alright – only I know you don’t have a heart.”

  Tracy turned and walked away. Before she entered the passage, she turned around and said, “We’ll need to get word sent south of what’s happening. Lisa’s the girl for the job. Can you be here in a few hours – about four?”

  Cody’s body posture loosened and he scratched his cheek, totally flummoxed by the turn of the discussion. Who the hell was she talking to? He looked around the room once, then at Tracy, and said, “Four?”

  { 17 }

  “I was just telling Lisa that there is no way we can allow her to take Marcus and Katrina with her,” Tracy said, as Cody and Jose entered the basement area.

  “Hmm,” Cody said, and he came over to Lisa and put his hand on her shoulder. With his other, he playfully tugged on her braid. “I love your hair, Lisa.”

  “Cody? Why is it that Marcus and I, who have done so well on our own, are now being told we can’t leave together?” Lisa asked. “If I want to take my son, I should be able to take my son. I think I can get him and Katrina through the lines without a problem.”

  “Because what I say goes,” Lisa replied. “This is my jurisdiction now. I know what’s going on out there better than anyone. And no, I don’t mean that you can’t handle yourself. We need someone who can move fast without stopping. Two other people are just going to drag you down.”

  “Bashar is tightening up the perimeter,” Cody said. “He’s even mining some of the trails as we speak – that’s what Jose is saying. Some new little plastic bastards that go poof.”

  “41A is being watched,” Jose said.
“And the Old Salem Highway – same thing. Plus, Bashar’s got teams set up for ambush. He’s being told what to do from higher up – that’s what my guy says. And that cost me a whole freaking gold bar, too.”

  “Cody will back me up on this,” Tracy said.

  Cody pulled up a chair beside Lisa and put his hand on hers. “I hate to say it, but Tracy’s right. Marcus and Katrina – I’ll keep them safe.”

  “Since they live with me here in the dungeons, I’ll watch them,” Tracy said with assurance in her voice. “Besides that, we’re half way through reading Huckleberry Finn.”

  “You know your way to Tullahoma,” Cody said, looking at Lisa.

  “Head for Manchester,” Tracy ordered. “What’s left of a mobile combat team is working out of Arnold Air Force Base, and they’ll be watching the trails and roads there. They’re still there unless they aren’t. All you’ll have to do is hand them a piece of paper.”

  “Unless they aren’t?” Lisa asked. “What kind of intel is that?”

  “The best I can give you,” Tracy said. “Frankly, I think it’ll be a miracle if you make it out of the county – but we have to try.”

  “Then why the hell don’t you go?” Lisa asked. “I thought you just said I’d could do this?”

  “Well, since you so gloriously shot Zafar Katila, someone’s going to have to keep up the illusion he’s still alive and well.”

  Cody nodded. “Whenever Bashar finds out one of his men is missing, he starts torturing people. He starts with the infidels – us.”

  “Cody, you know the old Beech Grove roads better than anyone,” Tracy said. “Tell her how to get out. She’ll be taking my silenced pistol, a pack with two day’s rations, and two canteens. Jose is going to get her set up.” She got up, took one of the oil lamps, and headed out through the second entrance to the basement, the one leading back towards the courthouse.

  “Remember, we gotta be at breakfast shortly,” Jose said, half to Tracy, half to Cody. Then he hurried out behind Tracy.

  “Cody,” Lisa said, watching Jose leave the basement. “I don’t want to leave Marcus and Katrina – or you – here. Why can’t we just all go?”

  “For the same reason why I wouldn’t take you along,” Cody said. “I’d be afraid what might happen out there. And I’m already scared to death about you going alone – but you’re faster than I am. You’ll make it.”

  Lisa smiled faintly and squeezed Cody’s hands. “You’ve been good to us – Marcus and I. We’d never have gotten so far if it hadn’t been for you.”

  “That was all your doing, Lisa.”

  “When I was sick a year ago – you remember, with bronchitis – you came every morning for a week, even though you didn’t have to,” Lisa said. “Antibiotics, water, food, and you took care of Marcus. Why?”

  “You would’ve done the same for me.”

  Lisa smiled. “Yes, I would have. But you could’ve just left us, just like---”

  “You don’t trust men much, and neither do I – we both have our reasons.”

  “But I’m finding myself remarkably unreasonable these last few days,” Lisa said with a smile.

  “And you can trust me to respect that,” Cody said. He became aware he’d been leaning closer and closer to Lisa, that he’d been mimicking her every expression – even syncing his breathing rhythm with hers. And he knew that she knew.

  “Could a man ever love an unreasonable woman?” Lisa asked.

  “Could an unreasonable woman respect a man who loved her, even if he told her she was making a huge mistake?”

  “She’d tell him he was wrong about the mistake part, and she’d know he was right for his loving her. So, what he thought wouldn’t make any difference. She’d love him all the same.”

  “And he’d know he had the most wonderful woman in the world,” Cody said, as he locked his fingers into Lisa’s. “And he and she, they’d---”

  “Live happily ever after?”

  Cody and Lisa had a minute together. They shared a few memories, shared a few laughs, and Cody kissed her and hugged her tightly. Then he whispered to her, “Just run the way I know you can run – and don’t stop for anything. You get to Manchester, do what you have to do, and you wait for me there. I’ll meet you at the post office Wednesday night. I promise I will protect Marcus and Katrina, and I will come for you. I promise.”

  Cody pulled away. He unbuttoned the top buttons of his shirt and pulled out the thirteenth crescent shield which hung around his neck. He put it over Lisa’s head, letting his hands gently brush the side of her face as he lowered it to the base of her neck. Her hands met his and she pulled his back up to her face.

  “If you get caught, show them this shield,” Cody said. “This means you are Bashar’s emissary. It will allow you access anywhere in the county, except it can be refused at the final checkpoints if the guard feels he has sufficient reason to refuse it. But use it only as a last resort.”

  Cody, when he looked up, saw Tracy standing in the passage.

  “If you two are finished, we need to get her out of here and on the road,” Tracy said. She stepped into the basement and flung a suit of body armor at Lisa, and she set a camouflage pack down on the floor. Then she stood behind Lisa and made her sit down with her face forward.

  “What do you want me to do with this stuff?” Jose asked, holding up a small can filled with dark, oily liquid.

  “Just hold it while I---” Tracy produced a large pair of shears and, with a loud snip, removed Lisa’s long, brown ponytail just below a rubber band. She threw it on the table in front of her. “There. Now you look like a man.” She grinned evilly at Cody.

  Lisa gasped. “You didn’t just---?”

  “Time for you to join the club,” Tracy said calmly, looking at what remained of Lisa’s hair. “Cody, bring up the flashlight, will you?”

  Cody managed an apologetic smile when Lisa looked up at him, and he could see the heartbreak in her eyes.

  “We need to cut back the rest of this, if you don’t mind,” Tracy said. “Then we need to blacken it up. She needs to look like a man.”

  Cody leaned over and put his lips close against Lisa’s ear. “She’s just getting some release.”

  “Keep it so we can all hear it, if it’s all the same to you, Cody,” Tracy said.

  Cody handed Jose his flashlight and snatched the shears away from Tracy. “If it’s all the same to you, I’ll finish this.”

  Ten minutes later, Lisa stood up and ran her fingers through what remained of her hair. Maybe she knew she needed to lose it, or maybe she didn’t want Tracy having the satisfaction of knowing that she regretted losing ten years’ worth of glorious ponytail. Lisa turned to Cody and smiled. “Thanks, Cody. I’d rather you do it than Tracy.”

  Cody smiled and put this hand on her cheek. “Jose will take you through Lytle Creek towards the south end of town. He’ll show you the old road when he gets you there. And do just as I told you to do. Run. But be careful and keep as low as you can. This isn’t anything different than what you have done for the last two years.”

  Lisa geared up. Tracy gave her a full face, camouflaged mask, the kind soldier’s on both sides wore. Then she handed her a silenced pistol, six clips, and then helped her with the canteens.

  “Remember everything I told you,” Cody said.

  “I got it,” Lisa replied softly. “See me to the door, will you?”

  Cody put his hand on Lisa’s waist and started for the passage back towards the hardware store. Jose brought up the rear.

  Lisa stopped and looked back towards the basement. “You guys have only until Tuesday – I want to know what you’re going to do. And I want to know now, before I leave. I need to know what’s going to happen to Marcus and Katrina.”

  Cody looked at her and smiled. “Just trust me, Miss unreasonable.”

  { 18 }

  Cody felt a strong bout of hatred seething like hot oil in his veins. He looked up from his breakfast of scrambled eggs and
cheese.

  “And so we begin our Saturday morning with questions for every infidel – well, almost every infidel – living in Murfreesboro,” Jadhari said.

  Cody dropped his fork on his plate. The last thing he wanted to do before being water boarded was eat a full, satisfying breakfast. He hadn’t even touched his stale vanilla wafers, probably not a bad thing given that a couple of tiny winged creatures flew out of the box when he’d opened it.

  “By now, everyone knows that my house has burned to the ground,” Jadhari said.

  “So I’ve heard,” Cody said, smiling with reckless abandon when he looked up. “By now, everyone also knows that the mosque still needs some careful attention before the last day of Ramadan. And I can’t think of a better way to piss off what’s left of my work crew when we have so much left to do. I was out late last night – and so was Jose – so why don’t you give us our forty lashes and let’s call it a morning?”

  “Speak for yourself!” Jose said, as he shoveled the last bit of his eggs into his mouth.

  “I confess, we burned it to the ground!” Cody said. Then he stood up and yelled, “Now, will you leave us all the hell alone? Can’t we have at least one day of peace before you line us up and use us for sword practice?”

  Every single man sitting at the long, common table, and there were twenty of them, stopped eating and looked up.

  “You think you can talk to me like that in front of these men and not be punished?” Jadhari demanded.

  “What are you, deaf and stupid?” Cody shot back. “I told you – if it’ll help, you can either beat the hell out of me or drown me. Right now, I couldn’t give a flip. Now, if it’s all the same to you, I would like to finish my breakfast and finish that mosque so I can tell St. Peter I accomplished at least one thing here on this earth.”

  “You’re a funny man, Cody Marshall!” Jadhari retorted with just as much fury. “Enjoy your meal. Today you will miss lunch and dinner! Let’s see how your men like that!” Jadhari left, stomping away, taking his two thugs with him.