The Solomon Scroll

CHAPTER 44

Nazar Al-Bayati was a man of many resources. One of those resources was embedded in the heart of Israeli intelligence, a man who seemed to all outward appearances a Jew. In reality he was a Shia Muslim. Jibril was circumcised, something no Muslim would have permitted, the result of a childhood mishap that had required the simple operation. It had been a source of shame in his childhood. Now it was proof of his falsely proclaimed religion. He'd been raised on the border with Lebanon and recruited by Hezbollah in his teens by a man who saw the potential in his unfortunate accident.

Jibril spoke fluent Hebrew and was a gifted actor, a survival skill he'd developed from an early age. He needed all his skills to conceal the hatred he felt for the Zionists.

His co-workers knew him as Gabriel. Not everyone who worked at Mossad was a spy. Like any large bureaucratic institution most of its employees were office workers. Jibril's job was to make sure that the endless stream of paperwork churned out every day reached the right desks. He was a familiar sight, wheeling his cart around Mossad headquarters with classified files destined for one of the many offices.

Even in a world of suspicious men, people like Jibril were invisible. He had become part of the daily environment, something taken for granted like electric lights or potted plants. Everyone was used to seeing him. If someone had been asked to describe him, they would've had to think about it.

In Mossad HQ, a simple inter-office memo could contain valuable information. Everything Jibril discovered went to Al-Bayati, the man who had saved him from a life of poverty or martyrdom. The martyrdom might still come, but Jibril was untroubled by that. Death was a release and paradise waited for the faithful.

He wheeled his cart into the office of the brigadier who served as liaison with the special ops units of the IDF. Coordinated operations with military units were funneled through him for authorization. Sooner or later, they all ended up in this room. Jibril thought about the man, a self-important cog in the vast Israeli intelligence network. The general was the sort of person who thought himself above the rules that applied to others, which was why he sometimes left files unattended on his desk. It was the kind of mistake that would have gotten a lesser employee in serious trouble. As it was, there were rumors he would soon be forced to retire.

Word had reached Jibril that Al-Bayati wanted information on any operation in Western Saudi Arabia or the immediate vicinity. As he placed the day's memos on the general's desk, Jibril saw a file with the winged sword of the Duvdevan on the outer cover. He looked around. No one was watching. Jibril opened the folder. As soon as he started reading he realized that this was what his patron was looking for.

Jibril took out his phone and began taking pictures of the file.