The man, cloaked in a black coat and hat and wearing dark sunglasses, was hidden in the shadows of the bushes in the park. He was wearing sunglasses even though the sun had gone down six hours ago. He remembered that he had used to love playing in this park when he was little. He had never thought that he would be hiding undercover in the same old park. A few days ago, he had finished a mission and come back to Washington, D.C.
He looked at his watch. It was ten past midnight. His head shot up as he heard a rustling sound in the bushes. He watched as a man wearing sunglasses and a hat sat down on a bench. He approached the man slowly. “You Ethan?” he asked.
“Yep. They didn’t tell me your name,” Ethan said. They both knew what ‘they’ meant.
“For now, I would like to remain anonymous, for security reasons,” the man in black said. “Here is the file. Read over it and you will know what to do.”
“Got it,” said Ethan. They both departed.
***
A man watched Ethan start walking back to his apartment. “Trent, are you there? Over,” he spoke into his walkie-talkie. He was an American with black hair and black eyes.
“I’m still behind the building. The gun is loaded and ready, Mitch,” said Trent into his walkie-talkie. He was also an American with dark hair and eyes.
“O.K. On my count, we attack. 3, 2, 1… Get him,” whispered Mitch into his walkie-talkie. Mitch jumped out. Ethan whirled around. “It will go well with you if you cooperate with me and give me the file.”
“No. I will not give you the file,” Ethan said as he backed away from Mitch.
“Trent!” Mitch called. Trent stepped out of the shadows with his gun loaded. “Last chance,” Mitch said. In response, Ethan ran down the street. “After him!” Mitch called to Trent. They chased him down the street. Trent fired the gun. BANG! Ethan fell to the ground. They ran to him. He was shot in the side. Blood spilled all over the briefcase.
“You watch for the police,” Mitch called to Trent as he searched Ethan’s briefcase. “I can’t find it.”
“The police are here,” Trent said, running to Mitch as the sound of a siren came closer.
“Jamal will be very angry we didn’t get the file,” Mitch said as they hopped in a car parked down the road. A candy wrapper fell out of Mitch’s pocket.
“Let’s hope he’s in a good mood when we tell him the bad news,” Trent said as they drove away.
***
“What?!” shouted Jamal with an accent as Mitch and Trent reported what had happened earlier. He was from Afghanistan and had a black mustache. He cursed under his breath. “We need to know what the FBI is planning to do. If we are planning to blow up the Eiffel Tower, we must know if the FBI knows our plans.”
“What?! When you hired us, you never said you were planning to blow up the Eiffel Tower!” Trent exclaimed.
“The time wasn’t right,” Jamal said. He started pacing around the room. It was a small room in an abandoned school in the middle of nowhere. No one lived near the school anymore.
“I’m out. I’m not going to help you terrorists blow up the Eiffel Tower,” Trent said, standing up. He and Mitch walked to the door. “The deal’s off,” Trent said, opening the door. There stood a surprised man.
“I, uh, was, uh, just passing by,” the man stammered and backed away.
“You were spying on us! You’re the one working for the FBI who’s been leaking them information!” Jamal shouted as the man ran away. “Stop Peter! He’s a traitor!”
Five minutes later, two of Jamal’s men brought Peter into Jamal’s office. They stepped in front of the door so Peter wouldn’t escape. “Good job, Kadar and Kadir,” Jamal said to the two men. “He must be exterminated. Get it ready,” Jamal said to Kadar and Kadir. They left with Peter.
“So, Trent and Mitch, do you still want to back out? You know too much information to be able to leave. You’ll see what happens if you leave,” Jamal told the two men.
They walked out of the office and passed some men typing on computers. They walked outside and into a field. Trent saw five men with guns facing Peter. Peter’s back was against a brick wall. “You’re going to kill him!” Trent said. Jamal didn’t respond. The men loaded their guns.
“Fire!” Jamal barked. BANG, BANG, BANG. The guns sounded. Peter’s body fell to the ground. Blood pooled around Peter’s body. Mitch shivered at the sight. “Zev, take some men and bury Peter’s body,” Jamal said.
“O.K. Come on men. You heard the boss. Move it!” Zev told the three men. They dragged Peter’s body away and threw it into a bonfire that was already burning to get rid of the evidence. Jamal, Mitch, and Trent went back in the office.
“So, do you still want to leave?” Jamal asked.
“The deal’s on,” Trent replied.
***
The hospital had a big entryway. As he walked through the front door, Jake saw lots of nurses bustling around. A big elevator stood to one side, next to the front desk. A Doritos vending machine stood on the other side. The windows were made of strong glass and a flat screen TV hung on one wall.
Jake Johnson walked into Ethan’s room. A doctor was treating him and applying a bandage on his side.
“How is he, doctor?” Jake asked as the doctor stood up.
“The wound will heal in time. For now, he needs to stay in the hospital until his wound heals,” the doctor replied.
“Will I be able to talk to him?” Jake asked.
“Not while he is still unconscious. You will have to wait,” the doctor said.
“Thanks, doctor. I’ll be going,” Jake replied. He left the hospital and climbed into his car. He drove away, not noticing the car that pulled into the hospital’s parking lot.
***
Jonathan hugged his kids good bye and looked his wife in the eye. She was tall, with long blonde hair hanging down her shoulders. Her blue eyes filled with tears.
“I’ll miss you, Lily. Take care of the children for me,” he said, and he hugged her one more time.
“I’ll miss you too, Jonathan. Stay safe,” Lily called to Jonathan as he walked into the plane. He waved to his family as the plane took off. He put his black suitcase under his seat and sat down. He didn’t know much except that Ethan had gotten shot and could not do the mission, so they had told him to do it.
He looked out the window and watched the state of Virginia grow smaller as the plane rose into the air. He decided it was best for him to rest until the plane arrived at Washington, D.C. He drifted off into a deep sleep.
***
A dark figure sneaked passed the nurse at the front desk and headed up the stairs. He passed a few nurses and a doctor, but they paid no attention to him. He quickly darted into the room and looked around. No one was watching when the dark figure opened the door to room number 316. He walked over to the bed and looked at Ethan’s small body lying there. Footsteps approached the room. The dark figure quickly hid behind a curtain. A nurse came in and placed a glass of water on the table and then left.
The dark figure came out of hiding and walked back to the bed. He pulled out a knife that gleamed from the moonlight coming through the window. The light shone into Ethan’s eyes and woke him put.
“Who’s there?” Ethan called. The figure stepped out of the darkness.
“What do you want?” Ethan asked as the knife flashed in the light. The figure stabbed Ethan in the heart. Ethan’s eyes filled with horror as he realized he was dying. The figure ran out of the room and bumped into a nurse. Before she could scream, the knife sang its deadly song and she crumpled to the ground.
Ethan gasped, “God, save the nurse. She needs you.” Then he went to live with God forever.
***
Jonathan woke to the familiar ring of his phone. He pulled it out of his pocket.
“Hello?” he said.
“Jonathan, it’s Jake. Ethan was found dead in his bed. A nurse was found dead outside his room, too. They are searching for the person who did it. We need you to meet us at the Lincoln Memorial when you arrive.”
“Got that. I’ll pray for Ethan’s family on the way,” Jonathan said and hung up. He felt sad because Ethan had been his friend. “God, please help Ethan’s family in this time of trouble for them, and help us to catch the terrorist,” Jonathan prayed in his mind.
A small beeping noise came from behind him. He turned around. An old lady with white hair sat behind him. He stood up and walked over to her.
“Excuse me, ma’am. May I look under your chair? I heard a beeping noise,” he asked the old lady.
“Yes, you may. I have been wondering what that noise was, too,” the lady replied in a frail, old voice. Jonathan looked under the chair and saw a light blinking. It was a time bomb! He quickly ran back to his own seat and opened his suitcase. He pulled out a pocket knife and ran back to the time bomb.
It read 0:30, 0:29, 0:28. He looked at the old lady.
“I need you to move to a different seat right now!” he said, showing her his badge. She got up and moved out of the way.
“Is there any way I can help?” the old lady asked.
“Tell the pilot there is a bomb on the plane!” Jonathan told the lady. She quickly hobbled away toward the cockpit.
Jonathan started cutting the wires on the bomb. It read 0:10, 0:9, 0:8. Jonathan cut through the wires. The bomb stopped ticking just as the co-pilot came with the old lady.
“Did you stop it?” the co-pilot asked with concern.
“Yes. I stopped it in time,” said Jonathan as he walked back to his seat.
“I’ll take it from here. Thanks for the help,” said the co-pilot. Jonathan sat back in his seat and watched as they approached the airport.
***
A knock came on Jamal’s office door.
“Come in,” said Jamal as the door opened. A man stepped into the office. He quickly shut the door.
“Zev killed Ethan but is stuck in the hospital. The alarm has been raised and he cannot get out with out anyone seeing him.”
“Blast him! Can’t anyone do anything perfectly these days? Tell Kadar, Kadir, Trent, and Mitch to get him out!” he yelled at the man.
“Yes, sir! I will tell them right away, sir,” the man said and walked away.
***
Two men watched the man in dark sunglasses walk over to a bench and sit down. They approached him cautiously.
“Jonathan, I’m Jake Johnson, and this is Mark Thomas. Come with us,” Jake said as they hopped into a black limousine. The limousine drove away and Jake showed Jonathan some plans.
“A warning was found in our hideout. It said to stop looking for the terrorists or we’d be sorry. We think we know where the terrorists are hiding. We found a candy wrapper at the scene of the crime where Ethan was shot. It led us to an abandoned school just outside town. You will sneak in and find their plans,” said Jake as they sped toward the school.
“Sounds fine with me. I’ll do it,” replied Jonathan. They arrived outside the town. Jonathan hopped out of the car.
“The school is about one mile down this road. Make sure they don’t spot you. Get the info and get out of there,” Jake said as the limousine drove away. Jonathan started walking.
***
Zev cursed softly. After the alarm went off, security men were everywhere. He looked out from behind the desk. Two men were sneaking down the hall towards him. One of the men spotted Zev and ran toward him. The two men ran and hid beside the desk next to Zev.
“It’s me and Kadar. We’re here to get you out,” said Kadir. “Mitch and Trent are waiting for us in the car.”
They sneaked out and ran down the hall and toward the exit. Two policemen stopped them. More policemen came as back up.
“Put your hands on your head,” the policeman ordered. Zev grabbed a nurse that was near by and put a gun to her head.
“If you don’t want her to get hurt, drop your guns!” Zev ordered.
“He got us, men. Drop the guns!” the officer ordered. The guns clattered to the floor.
“We will leave the hospital and get into our car. We will let her go once we are out of here. Don’t follow us!” Zev ordered. They backed up, opened the door, and raced to the car. Kadir and Kadar hopped in. Zev threw the nurse to the ground and hopped in. The car sped away, leaving a cloud of dust behind it.
***
Jonathan was almost at the school when he heard a car approaching. He quickly hid in the bushes. As the car whizzed past, Jonathan saw Zev and four other men he didn’t recognize. He knew Zev was one of the most wanted criminals by the police.
He approached the school carefully. There were no guards. “That’s probably because they are so far out they think no one would come this far. Lord, protect me from them and help me to complete my mission. In Your name I pray, Amen.” He slowly approached the school. He looked inside a window and saw a filing cabinet. No one was in the room. The room was small with a desk and a chair. Jonathan climbed into the room through the window and cautiously approached the filing cabinet.
He opened the cabinet and looked inside. A file was labeled Eiffel Tower. He pulled it out and opened it. Just then the door opened.
***
As the car sped away, Jake and Mark watched Jonathan’s figure get smaller and smaller.
“Do you think he can do it?” Mark’s voice broke the silence. Jake turned toward Mark.
“I know he can complete the mission. I trust him. He is our only hope,” Jake answered. They climbed out of the car and walked down the street toward Ellie’s Diner.
***
Jonathan hid behind the filing cabinet just as the door opened. A man with a beard and long hair entered the room. Before he could do anything, Jonathan jumped on top of him. They fell to the ground in a heap. Jonathan sat on top of him and pulled out a gun hidden in his coat.
“Be quiet if you don’t want me to shoot,” said Jonathan. The man smiled evilly.
“The gun sound will sound the alarm and you will be trapped and caught,” the man said with a sneer on his face.
“Well, then say hello to my dart gun. It is much quieter than the gun,” Jonathan said, pulling it out. “Stand up slowly,” he told the man.
The man stood up and looked at Jonathan. “Take off your belt,” Jonathan commanded. The man complied and pulled off his belt. Jonathan took the belt and tied the man’s hands to the desk. He tore off a piece of the man’s shirt and gagged his mouth. Jonathan grabbed the file and raced out of the room and ran right into another man. They stared at each other for a split second. Then the man ran back the way he came. Jonathan chased him. The man ran into a room and shut the door. Jonathan opened the door and ran inside. A dozen startled eyes swept toward Jonathan. Everyone froze. Then a man yelled in a foreign language and he charged Jonathan.
***
Jonathan ran out of the room with a dozen men on his heels. He ran into a room and locked the door. He heard the men trying to get the door open. He looked around the room and spotted another door. He opened it and slipped through the opening. It led to a small room with two closets. He went in one and closed the door.
Jonathan quickly pulled out his cell phone and dialed Jake’s number. When Jake answered, Jonathan said, “I have some important files that I need to get to you. What should I do?”
“Get to the barn. We will send someone to pick you up. Don’t get caught,” said Jake.
“Got it,” Jonathan said and hung up. He cautiously left the closet and opened the other door. To his surprise it was not another closet. It led down a hallway, so Jonathan started down it.
***
“Where could he be?” thought Henry, an FBI agent. Just then, he saw Jonathan coming toward him. Jonathan entered the barn and hid behind a hay stack.
“Here are the files,” Jonathan told Henry. Henry tucked them in his coat.
“The car’s waiting for us. Let’s go,” said Henry. They raced toward the car and climbed in. Five men appeared and pulled out their guns. They started firing at the car. Bullets whizzed passed the car as it drove away.
***
Jamal shook his head in disgust. “No one does anything right these days,” he thought to himself.
Aloud he said, “We will bomb the Eiffel Tower tonight.”
“But we planned to bomb it tomorrow night,” argued Zev.
“The plans have changed. Since they have the files, they think we are going to bomb tomorrow. We will enter the communication room,” said Jamal.
“I get it. O.K. Let’s do it,” Zev answered.
***
Jonathan and Jake heard every word the terrorists said.
“I’m glad you planted the bug in the meeting room. Now we can hear their every word,” said Jake with a big smile on his face. “We’ll send men to the Eiffel Tower to stop the terrorists.”
As Jake made the call, Jonathan looked through the files. They showed a big bomb and the map of the Eiffel Tower. “I’m glad that we were able to get their plans. I hope we can stop them in time. Help us to catch them, God,” Jonathan thought in his head. Jake came back into the room.
“We will leave right now and try to get to the Eiffel Tower before the terrorists. Henry, Tomas, Ben, and Silas will come with us. Let’s go to the plane,” said Jake as they ran out of the room and outdoors.
***
Lots of people looked up to see the plane approaching the Eiffel Tower. Many people were shocked to see the plane fly straight toward the Tower. A rope was thrown from the plane to a window in the Eiffel Tower. A man slid down the rope and broke the glass window with his feet. Five men followed him and climbed into the Tower after him.
“Call the police,” someone in the crowd yelled as the airplane flew away.
***
Jonathan watched as the terrorists climbed into the room. Henry and Tomas were hiding in the closet with him. Jake, Silas and Ben were in the other room next to the communication room. There were six terrorists. Two of them held a big bomb.
“You two distract them and I’ll get the bomb away from them,” ordered Jonathan quietly.
“Got it,” Henry and Tomas whispered. They sneaked out of the closet when the terrorists were looking outside the window. They hid behind a desk. They stood up and pulled out their guns.
“Put your hands up and back away from that bomb,” ordered Henry. The terrorists whirled around. They pulled out some guns and started shooting. Jake, Silas, and Ben burst through the door with their guns loaded. Shots echoed in the room. Four terrorists moved toward the FBI slowly while the terrorists with the bomb sneaked away.
Jonathan followed them. He recognized both of them. One was Zev and the other was Jamal. Jamal was the leader and Zev was his second in command. They were headed down the hall when Jonathan came up and kicked Zev on the head. Jamal spun around and punched Jonathan. Jonathan fell to the ground.
Jamal grabbed the bomb and activated it. It was set for one minute. Jonathan stood up and the two men grappled with each other. Jonathan kicked Jamal in the ribs and ran toward the bomb as Jamal fell to the floor. Jonathan pressed the button DEACTIVATE.
The bomb shut off. Jamal stood up. Jonathan turned around and said, “You’re under arrest.”
“I don’t think so,” Jamal said. He ran to Zev and picked him up.
“Stop! I order you to stop!” Jonathan called. He cornered Jamal behind a window. “You’re trapped. Surrender now!”
The FBI agents circled around Jamal. “Good work, Jonathan,” said Jake as he stepped forward with two pairs of handcuffs. “The other terrorists are caught and now we have the leader.”
“Not yet you don’t,” Jamal said. He kicked the window and leaped out onto the ledge as the glass shattered. There, a helicopter that was waiting for him. He grabbed a line that hung from the helicopter and climbed into the helicopter with Zev on his back. “I’ll get you back!” Jamal said as the helicopter flew away.
“Don’t worry, men. We’ll get him another time,” said Jake. They left the building and climbed into the car that was waiting for them.
***
Jonathan watched as the airport came into view. He smiled as he saw his family waiting for him in the airport. It had been very hard to track Jamal down. They had lost his trail several times and Jonathan was finally sent home. Other men would be the ones to finally bring Jamal to justice. Jonathan was going home at last.
Jonathan stepped out of the airplane. He grabbed his suitcase and ran toward his family. He picked up his kids in a big hug.
“Hello, Jessie. Hello, Peter,” Jonathan said to his children.
“We have a lot to tell you!” said Jessie as they ran to the car.
“I missed you, Jonathan,” said Lily, joy shining in her eyes.
“I missed you too, Lily. I will tell you everything when we get home,” said Jonathan as they climbed into the car. He started the engine towards home. “Thank you Lord for protecting me,” Jonathan said as they headed home. “I love my family so much.”
He joined in the conversation as they sped home.
THE END