Chapter 4: Release

Shafiq and her companions sat on a park bench for thirty minutes to give the members of the Glasgow cell time to arrive and pick them up. When they walked to the entrance to the park, a black cab moved down the road and pulled in beside them.

"Get in. Hurry, we can't hang around," said the driver of the cab.

"I'm sorry, we didn't order a cab," Shafiq responded.

"Shit! Okay, bird song. Now, get in, quickly," the driver urged.

Shafiq relaxed when she heard the code words and climbed into the back of the cab. Her companions quickly followed. The driver was scanning the scene around them, alert for anything that looked out of the ordinary. Satisfied that no one was watching them, he indicated and pulled back into traffic. Shafiq could see him looking at her in his rear view mirror. She knew he must be nervous. The fact that she knew the number to call to contact the cell made it clear she was an important person in the Al Qaeda organisation. Shafiq had been a little surprised to see that he was white and clearly European by birth, perhaps even a native Scot.

Organisation is perhaps something of a misnomer to describe Al Qaeda. It was in fact a very loose association of radicalised Islamic groups. All of these groups had been trained at one time or another however, and it was at that point that contact arrangements were made. Few expected the contacts to ever be used and Ali's call, quickly followed by Shafiq's, had stirred excitement in the members of the Glasgow cell.

"Just drive around while we talk," Shafiq said, "what should we call you?"

The driver nodded to show he understood and would comply.

"Just call me Assam for now," he replied.

"What do you have planned for us?" she asked next.

"I have a safe house arranged so you can meet the other members of my team. I planned on taking you directly there to get you off the streets and relatively safe for the time being," he replied.

"No. I don't want to meet any other people. We will communicate through you, no one else. Has the safe house been used before?" Shafiq questioned him.

"Only once, last year we allowed some teenagers use it before they flew to Pakistan for training," Assam responded.

"Then we can't use it, too risky. Do you have access to somewhere else that hasn't been used before?" she queried.

The driver remained quiet for a few moments while he thought about her question.

"There is a place, but we have been saving it for ourselves in case of emergencies," he replied at last.

"You won't need it after this mission has been completed I can assure you. I think you should take us to this emergency place of yours so we talk about what I want you and your team to do," she all but ordered him.

Once more Shafiq felt herself being scrutinised in the rear view mirror. Assam said nothing as he continued to glance at Shafiq, considering her demand. Finally, he nodded once again and then seemed to turn his complete concentration on the road and the traffic around them.

Assam navigated the taxi through the one way system of Glasgow's streets until he joined the M8 Motorway and crossed the River Clyde via the Kingston Bridge. The passengers in the rear were surprised when he took the very next exit off of the Motorway and into the Pollokshields area of the city.

Although virtually alongside the major arterial route, Pollokshields had more of the look of a leafy suburb. The streets Assam drove down were wide and the houses on either side, substantial, red sandstone affairs. The black cab swept into the driveway of one of these houses and they were immediately hidden from the street by the mature hedging and trees. The garden was huge and Shafiq nodded to herself in approval. They would have plenty of privacy and the approaches to the house through the garden would be easy to monitor.

Assam jumped out of the cab and quickly opened the door of the house, ushering them in while he scanned the neighbourhood.

"I'll have to leave you for now. The taxi parked outside will look suspicious so I need to get rid of it and return in something more in keeping with the surroundings," he said.

"We need weapons. Can you provide them?" Shafiq asked.

Her two companions eyed Assam hopefully, as it seemed Shafiq wasn't the only one feeling vulnerable while unarmed.

"I'll see what I can do. I should be back within a couple of hours and you can tell me about this mission that you have planned," said Assam, "keep the door locked when I leave and don't open it for anyone but me."

Assam was as good as his word and less than two hours later a Honda CRV jeep pulled up in the driveway of the house. Shafiq and her companions watched anxiously from behind the drawn blinds until they recognised him getting out from behind the wheel. He walked to the rear of the jeep and opened it up, pulling a large holdall and several plastic carrier bags out of the trunk before locking the vehicle.

"I've brought some things for you and some food to keep you going," he said to them when he entered the house.

All eyes were on the holdall for the moment, although the mention of food had reminded them that it had been some time since they had last eaten. Assam opened the bag and brought out three handguns. All three were Browning Hi-Power guns, a little scratched and worn, looking as if they had been well used. He handed the weapons to each of them and could see some of the tension visibly drain out of them as they weighed the guns in their hands.

"Good, we have all used this weapon before. What magazines do they have?" asked Shafiq.

"They've got standard magazines in them plus a round in the chamber. Here, a spare mag for each of you too," replied Assam as he handed over the spare clips. "I can promise they are all well maintained and in good working order."

"Twenty-seven rounds each, if we need more than that our situation will be pretty helpless anyway. You have done well my friend, I'm sure the prophet will reward you," said Shafiq, "what else do you have in your bag?"

The holdall proved to contain a complete change of clothing for each of them, non-descript, everyday stuff, that would certainly help them blend in. Assam also reached into one of the Tesco plastic bags and withdrew basic toiletries for them to use. He had bought these and the food, as he wasn't sure just how long his visitors planned to stay.

"I suggest you keep the weapons in your rucksacks rather than in your pocket or tucked into your waistband. The UK public is paranoid about terrorists after the London bombings and the recent attack on Glasgow Airport. When the police ask the good citizens to be on the alert, I'm afraid they take it seriously," Assam said, "there's enough food here to keep you going for two or three days."

"That won't be necessary my friend, we will leave tomorrow. There is a timetable in place and we need to stick to it. Come, let me explain what we need you to do," said Shafiq.

There was a dining room with a large table in it and they gathered round that so that Shafiq could explain what their mission was and the part she wanted the Glasgow cell to play.

"Have you heard of bird-flu?" she asked.

"Of course. The scientists are constantly going on about it and the risk of a pandemic if it ever makes the jump from birds to humans," Assam replied.

Shafiq put the package containing the vials full of the deadly virus on the table in front of her.

"We have given nature a little helping hand and now that jump has been made," she said, as she opened the package to display the vials. "There is enough of the human bird flu virus here to wipe out the entire population of the UK."

Assam immediately grasped what they intended and his face went white as the blood drained from it. His eyes flicked frantically from face to face and could see steely determination in their eyes. He gulped as he came to the realisation that he and the members of his team would in all likelihood succumb themselves to the virus if it were released.

"We are ready," he said firmly, "all of us accept the possibility that we could become martyrs in the name of Islam."

Shafiq smiled at him, pleased with his demonstration of both fortitude and belief.

"Fortunately that won't be necessary," she said, as she held up one of the vials containing the vaccine. "This is a vaccine that will protect you and the members of your cell from infection. You see, we don't just want to strike a blow by killing many westerners, we want you and the other cells here in the UK to take control in the aftermath and enforce an Islamic state on what's left. You need to bring enough syringes so that you can fill one for each of your team and ensure they are administered before you handle the virus. The vaccine will take three days to be effective so you must inject it as quickly as you can."

Assam was stunned at the magnitude of what the organisation was planning and the role he and his brothers might play in it all.

"How and when?" Assam asked.

"As to the 'how', that is a problem at the moment. You see, we only have one of these and we need ten," Shafiq said, as she held up the aerosol.

"Ha, that's not a problem. Women in this country buy dispensers for their favourite perfumes; they're called atomisers. I'm sure they would work adequately to dispense what you have there," Assam said excitedly.