Hi-Tech Hijack by Dov Nardimon Read Free Book Online Page B

touched the garage floor as the steward slowly went down the steps. He walked to a small office at the corner of the hangar and knocked on the door.
    A man inside verified the knocker’s identity through a peep hole before opening the door and motioning toward a desk where a broad shouldered and balding man with a brown complexion and well-groomed beard was seated. He instructed the steward to take a seat.
    “How did it go?” he asked in a calming, deep voice.
    “Alhamdulillah, everything went as planned,” he said, smiling lightly.
    “Are they still under?”
    “No, they woke up when we landed.”
    “Did they have anything to drink on the way?”
    “Yes, with their eyes blindfolded between the first and second injection.”
    “Very well. Let’s move on then. Tell the driver to start the car!” the man called out. Then he spoke to the guard at the door and said, “Bring the car to the airplane steps.”
    The guard nodded, exited the room, and walked swiftly to a gray Safari GMC that had the license plate of an embassy, guaranteeing a smooth drive avoiding any unwanted interruptions by police. When the car reached the plane stairs, the steward jumped out, opened the back door, and signaled to another man on the plane that the road was clear. The two kidnapped men were ushered carefully down the stairs, with the steward making sure they don’t slip and fall. It was clear the kidnappers were intent on delivering their cargo to the next destination in mint condition.
    Eddie was placed in the back seat with one of the guards next to him, and Reuben was placed in the middle seat with the other steward beside him. Not a word was spoken, and the driver drove the car out of the hangar and the terminal and headed north. Reuben and Eddie knew perfectly well there was no point trying to ask anything about where they were being taken. With their hands tied, their eyes covered, and the guards seating beside them, there was absolutely nothing they could do.
    The fear of the unknown rendered Reuben’s mind completely paralyzed, and he was dripping with sweat. Eddie on the other hand had practiced simulated situations of captivity in his military training and managed to maintain his composure. His mind was racing, but experience taught him it was best to stay passive and obedient at this stage and not to aggravate the situation.
    Eddie sensed they were driving at a high speed on a smooth road. He had no idea how many hours he had slept and could only surmise, given the quality of the car and the road that they were still in Europe driving down one of the continent’s superb highways.
    Two hours later the car slowed down and took a left turn toward a smaller road. They were now going much more slowly, and the road was bumpy. Eddie guessed that it was probably a dirt road they were on. Then the car stopped. The driver pulled down his window and spoke to someone, but Eddie could not make out what language they were speaking. The car moved slowly on and a muffled, metallic sound was heard.
    Probably gates opening and closing , thought Eddie, and the car was still again. They had entered a giant elevator that was taking them down below the ground. Despite the elevator’s speed the descent took a long minute. Eddie and Reuben could not understand why the car was standing still and what the muffled sounds they were hearing were. Even the slight jolt they felt when the elevator reached the bottom of the shaft did not signal out to them that they had been taken underground in what may very well be a one-way trip.
    The elevator doors opened, and the car started again, slowly maneuvering for a minute or two before coming to a halt.
    Eddie and Reuben were taken out of the car and through a winding corridor, along which were many closed doors and turns into other corridors. They still had their blindfolds on, but sensed they were advancing in a zigzag pattern along the corridor, with their shoulders brushing occasionally against the wall