Cirmea | onethreethirteen

Cirmea on the Black Sea

Some of you may have already guessed that I started writing ‘onethreethirthirteen’ a while back. I stopped writing the book and put it away because it was just to close to the facts.

And so, it was last week that I delayed posting Chapters 28 and 29. If I didn’t know better, I’d have sworn that Putin was looking over my shoulder as I revised Chapter 29 and realized, that he had better beat me to the punch.

The protagonist in ‘onethreethirteen’, Youssef Bin Caneer and his seer wife Ruyah make their escape through Russia and the Ukraine. This by no means is an accident.

There is something in the Ukraine that few Americans know about. But considering the harshness of this not so past Winter, I think it’s about time we understand exactly what’s going on.

What’s in the Ukraine, besides a few ethnic Russians. All of the gas and oil pipelines that supply Europe with oil and gas are in the Ukraine. The Northern Star Pipeline and the Central Asia Pipeline are just two of them. Putin, if you haven’t realized it yet, has Europe by the balls.

If Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Middle East side with Russians, America, namely you and me, will be screwed!

In fact, we’re already beginning to feel the squeeze with gas prices over $4.00 a gallon. And things can only get worse.

I can only shudder at what demands the Middle East and Russia will ask for in return to keep supplying us with oil.

So her then is

Chapter 29

RUYAH GENTLY GUIDED HER HUSBAND into the waiting yacht.

With all eyes trained on the skies, watching for another attack, Youssef’s thirty foot yacht would easily slip past the Coast Guard and make its way back to International waters without drawing any undue attention.

All day long they would sail. Their first destination being St. John’s Bay, Newfoundland where they’d stop long enough to take on supplies for the next phase of their journey, which depending on how quickly Youssef was linked to the attacks, might take anywhere from one to three weeks. Loading that much supplies onto the yacht while at Martha’s vineyard might have tipped off the locals that they were not out for a simple pleasure cruise around the Bay.

From St. John’s Bay, they’d sail to the town of Sydproven on the island of Greenland.

Sydproven

From Sydproven, they’d travel by dog-sled to a part of Greenland that according to Youssef, was so isolated that he felt completely comfortable using it as a safe place to shelter them before undertaking the most dangerous part of their journey.

In fact, when Youssef had told her the name of the place, Djupivogur, she’d laughed, assuming he was making a crude joke. But it was no joke. Djupivogur was a little town on the eastern side of Iceland. And no one, but no one would think of looking for him there.

Djupivogur

In Djupivogur she and Youssef would make the miraculous transformation from Middle Eastern Sunni Muslims to ambiguous world travelers. She was to temporarily cast aside the garments of her faith, the hijab, niqab, and burka to assume the garments of those lacking in it. Youssef, although a devote Sunni, had no trouble shedding the glorious white thawb of the Saudi elite. They would be as ordinary and common place as any American tourist.

So it would be at Djupivogur that she and Youssef would happily spend the last few precious hours – alone — as husband and wife, before departing for Murmansik.

Ruyah’s love for Youssef had been cleverly disguised as duty. Traditional Sunni Muslim men and women did not marry for love, but for a host of other reasons, namely family, honor, duty, power, money, or property — but rarely for love.

Her marriage to Youssef was no exception. She had known all along that her Uncle Hussein had planned the whole thing when he’d heard news of Youssef’s accident. He had invited Youssef to recover at one of his palaces in Bagdad and had personally summoned her to be his nurse, insisting that she not veil in Youssef’s presence. Being a dutiful niece and citizen of Iraq, she had complied.

After all, it was Uncle Hussein who had paid for her education as a nurse. So, she had nursed Youssef while he recovered from the injuries he’d suffered in the car crash of 1993.

Youssef, being the man that he is, he had insisted that they wed after their intimate experience of nursing him back to full health.

Uncle Hussein, who’d had several readings and knew what awaited him at the hands of the Great Infidel had confided in her that he had offered Youssef help because of the mortal wound Youssef would inflict on the Great Infidel.

But somehow along the way and over the years, Ruyah’s feelings for Youssef had changed.

But no one must suspect how much they truly loved each other. That denial of love was done for her safety. For if Youssef’s enemies – and he had many – found out about their great love, they would surely capture her and use her as a pawn against him.

Djupivogur Airport

From Djupivogur’s dirt road airport a private jet would swish them to Murmansik. Youssef would, of course, from Murmansik on, travel with his generals and advisors, all of whom were men.

. In Murmansik, Nasser the traitor would be waiting with a caravan of ATVs. She cautioned herself with regards to Nasser, for Youssef must never know what part Nasser, and the woman, were to play in the great war.

It was good, she thought, that the ATV provided for her, would have a privacy screen so that she could uphold Purdah. In it, she would be shield from visions of the traitor and his American whore.

The two month long journey would take them from Murmansik to Volkhov near St. Petersburg, where the future Russian president grew up, to Gryazovets to Moscow where once again they’d restock supplies while Youssef spent the day in meetings talking over plans and strategizing.

Once they’d departed Moscow, they’d continue following the Northern Lights Pipeline into the Ukraine then cross over to the Central Asia pipeline into Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan would house them before their final push towards home, hers, of course, Iraq. With the Americans looking for Youssef neither Saudi Arabia or Afghanistan would welcome him.