The Angel

A story I wrote sometime ago... would like to share it with everyone here.

The crowd cheered and danced as Ahmad, Abdullah's youngest and only remaining son, walked down the street to board an old jeep. There were little children running with flowers in their hands, women walking around him, occasionally coming up to him and kissing his forehead. Old men in their best perfumed attire stuttered their last words of wisdom in his ear, making sure that no one else heard what they had said. He felt empowered, confident, brave, patriotic… he felt like a hero, already. Behind his smile there was a strong urge to scream an ecstatic Allah o Akbar that would resonate in the rocky hills surrounding the city, and enlighten every soul that the cries of their innocent children, women and men being brutally murdered would finally be heard. How badly he wanted to share his thoughts with others, with people who he loved and cared for. But his lips had been sealed by a small group of notorious people, who although were considered the wise elders of the town, had inane and quite terrifying intentions.

Ahmad felt bad that he had lied to his mother, he felt bad that he lied to his young wife who was going to be a mother herself soon. They thought, and everyone thought, that the beautiful young man who lived in the small house with his parents and wife was going abroad to make a better life. Khaled was the person in charge of sending Ahmad abroad had brainwashed him sufficiently to make him realize the importance and holiness of his objective. He told Ahmad that the lies he would tell today would be blessings for his afterlife, and that his parents would be proud of what their son has done. Ahmad believed him, his innocent mind ready to undertake any operation for the sake of his own people, and for the love of his Creator.

He got on the jeep with a couple of men, and headed for the airport with mixed feelings of sadness, and religious fervor.

…


"Be careful not to show the stuff to anyone", said Khaled in a low tone. "Once you are on the plane, assemble the bomb and hide it in your jacket, you understand?"

"Yes, Ustaaz", replied Ahmed confidently, "I will do as planned".

"Our agent has hidden the weapon in the cargo section. If you fail to detonate the bomb the secondary time bomb would start ticking, and would blow up just when it reaches the target. I hope the calculations are correct, but we can't rely on that, that's why we needed a warrior like yourself… now go my son… make us proud, make everyone else proud", said Khaled patting Ahmad's shoulder, who after kissing the Qur'an silently got in the line of passengers waiting to board the airplane.

It was a cool foggy morning. The windows showed a damp runway with the flying machine waiting to take off, the engines roaring. Ahmad wanted to see the sun, but the clouds had blocked it out totally. He scratched his short beard and looked around. He saw families saying goodbye to their loved ones, dressed in their best, sharing their last thoughts face to face. Ahmed turned around to have glimpse of the long line behind him. He was about to face forward again when the smiling countenance of a tiny old woman wearing a white hijab caught his attention. She was in the line, looking directly at him with a strange brightness in her eyes which made Ahmed pass a hesitant smile too.

"Yes sir, please step forward", said the security official, who quickly began running his hand's all over Ahmad's body. Ahmed had a momentary fright race through his heart as the hands of the official felt around his pockets.

"Ok, thank you sir", said the official. Ahmed picked up his handbag after getting it scanned and walked towards the airplane. The equipment had obviously been cleverly hidden in his bag to avoid detection of any sort.

…


Everyone finally got on board and occupied their seats. Ahmad was quite surprised to find the old lady he had seen before already present on the seat adjacent to his, and stared at her for a while before sitting down.

"What's the matter young man?" she inquired with a peaceful look on her fair wrinkled face, "Am I sitting on your seat by any chance?"

"Oh no Madame!" assured Ahmad, and smiled back… which he shouldn't have done but something made him do it. He sat down beside her and tucked the bag under his feet instead of the luggage compartment above. The plane took of after the short prayer, and they were soon hundreds of feet off the ground, far, far away from the world below.

…


"So tell me about yourself young lad, what do you do, and where are you headed?" suddenly asked the old woman after coming out of her silence just when Ahmed was about to get up and stealthily walk towards the cargo bay.

"I… I'm a student, going for higher education abroad, Madame", replied Ahmed, relaxing himself back on his seat. He felt stupid and helpless. How could he just fall for an old lady trying to be a hindrance in his mission? Were his spirits dampened? Had he lost the dream about the glory, the infinite blessings that would be conferred upon his soul after his martyrdom?

He had to do it, he knew he had to hijack the plane and blow it up when it would hit the target. He got up and darted towards the cargo bay, managed to get the weapon without being noticed, and came back to his seat… waiting for the right time to act.

"Oh look!" exclaimed the old lady, "That child sitting across looks so cute, doesn't he?" she pointed at a little boy sitting beside his mother playing with a fluffy toy.

"Yes… he does" said Ahmad, and glared at the old lady. She simply smiled back and pointed at a man who appeared to be reading the Bible. Then without saying a word she pointed at a young lady with headphones on her head, swaying lightly to the beat of the music. Ahmed got fed up of her silly games, the way she was trying to share her apparent dementia with him. He felt that she somehow knew what his intentions were, and that is what scared him the most.

"I know what you're thinking young lad", she said finally, putting her hand over Ahmed's. He was just about the pull the weapon from his pocket when she said, "I know that the life ahead of you is going to be tough, lot's of challenges, up's and down's, but you have to face it… you know. You're a big man now… have a mother and father to look after, probably a wife and kid too".

Ahmad stopped. He felt his head and chest swelling with blood at the thought of his mother. And in the old woman's eyes he saw her, that woman who cared for him all his life to see him as a brilliant successful man.

"She would be so happy to hear about your progress abroad… wouldn't she?"

"Yes… she is expecting to hear a lot from me".

The old man had stopped reading the Bible now, and so did the girl take off her headphones. The old man kept looking at the Bible for sometime, wept a little and then safely wrapped it up in a small cloth. Ahmad had never seen Khaled or any of the people of his group give that much attention to the Qur'an. He stared at him for a long time, he stared at everyone… and for the first time he felt a strange bonding with those strangers. He did not know them, but something kept telling him that they have a heart, a mind, a life and loving parents too. The old woman kept talking about everyone, whispering in Ahmad's ear how everyone looked and what she thought about them. He would give a slight chuckle sometimes, but the feel of the weapon in his jacket would dampen his smiles.

The old woman started reciting some Quranic verses. She said a verse, and then explained its meaning. Ahmed never knew that the Qur'an had such depth, and he wondered why he never bothered to read the Qur'an instead of kissing it. He listened with interest, and with every verse she would point towards someone. Ahmed understood now what she wanted to say, it suddenly dawned upon him that he was about to make a big mistake. That young woman with the headphones, the old man with the Bible, the little boy with his toy… they all seemed so innocent, so happy, and so alive!

A strange click emanated from his bag… the time bombs countdown had initiated.

The old woman could see the sweat on his forehead, but continued to smile, to recite the verses, and to point occasionally at other people. Ahmed could not take this anymore. Confused, furious and scared, he got up and pulled out his weapon. There were screams and shouts, which intensified when Ahmed pulled out the small cleverly designed time bomb from his bag.

"Ok! No body move! This is a time bomb, and it's ticking! If you try to get me, I swear I'll kill you all! So shut up and stay where you are! Don't move!" shouted Ahmed, panting and gasping for breath. The old woman wasn't looking at him now, she was still and silent. Ahmed ran towards the cockpit, pushing and threatening everyone… got inside, pointed the weapon directly at the pilots head and whispered something in his head. The pilot nodded his head nervously. Ahmed then ran back towards the cargo bay, and on his way he looked at the old lady, who still did not look at him, and was silent as if nothing had happened. He was crying, it was obvious… but he had to do what he wanted to do…

He wanted to defuse the bomb.

It ticked away merrily, mocking Ahmed's efforts to defuse it. His hands shook violently as he fumbled with the wires and electronic chip. The timer showed 10 seconds… and that made Ahmed slow down. He dropped the bomb and fell on his knees… the last thing that came out from his mouth not being an Allah-o-Akbar, or something in praise of the Prophet… but a verse from the Qur'an that he remembered the old lady say:

Iqra' bismi rabbikelledhiy khaleq

(Read with the name of your Lord Who created)


…


In the next few hours, the horrifying news of the plane crash spread across the globe like wild fire. Miraculously, all the passengers survived with moderate injuries, thanks to the pilot who had taken the plane closer to the sea and slowed it down, and thanks to the person who had given him the instructions to do so. The bomb fortunately did not blow with as much force as it was designed to because part of the circuitry had been destroyed.

Of all the passengers that were rescued, there was no sign of the old lady wearing a white hijab.



(Hijab is a garment worn by Muslim women to cover themselves)