Nelson Demille - The Panther

Kate suggested, “That describes half the world’s population.”

Chet nodded, but said, “The subject takes it to an extreme.” He also said, “But to be objective, we need to concede that the subject, being a Muslim, may have experienced some degree of prejudice.”

Right. But it’s how you handle it that determines if you’re going to move on and live the American dream or if you’re going to become the American nightmare.

Chet went on, “Bottom line on this is that the subject could never see himself as anything but an outsider in American society, and he had no attitudinal loyalty to the country of his birth. His alienation and anger were, of course, reinforced by the daily news, which gives extensive coverage to foreign and domestic acts of terrorism, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, our strained relations with Islamic countries, and so forth.”

Unless you listen to NPR.

Chet reminded us, “Young people are impressionable and sensitive and there is a whole generation of American-born Muslims who are growing up in what some of them perceive as a hostile environment, especially after 9/11.” He added, “Ironically, their foreign-born parents are better adjusted because they have voluntarily made the decision to become Americans. Most of them are happy with that decision, and if they’re not, they can move back to wherever they came from. Children don’t have that option, and the children of Muslim immigrants sometimes feel trapped and blame their parents for bringing them to America or for having been born in America. In contrast to earlier immigrants, these children sometimes romanticize their ancestral land and think they would have been happier if they’d never left there.” Chet concluded, “We think this is what happened to Bulus ibn al-Darwish, based on statements he’s made, letters and e-mails he’s written, and long, rambling audiotapes that he’s recorded and distributed.”

“So,” I said, “this is all Daddy and Mommy’s fault.”

“For starters.” Chet added, “He became completely alienated from his parents in college, which is very unusual in this family-oriented culture.”

Brenner commented, “But al-Darwish must know that his parents are trying to save his butt.”

Chet replied, “Doesn’t matter. He doesn’t thank them for the opportunity of a better life in America-he blames them for coming to Christendom and living among the infidels.” Chet also informed us, “The parents actually did screw him up, but not in the way he thinks.” He told us, “As their only son-a rarity in traditional Muslim homes-they spoiled and indulged the little bastard the way most Western parents do with their children. Possibly the parents felt guilty about their decision to live in America, and they overcompensated by not pushing the kid to go play baseball or something.”

Kate commented, “We see a lot of that in our work-young Muslims who are caught between two worlds.” She added, “American culture does not fit them as well as it fits other immigrants, and their response is alienation, which eventually leads to radical websites and then radical friends.”

Right. Plus, America is the superpower, and America makes war on Islam, so Muslim Americans think of themselves as the neighborhood face of the enemy. And sometimes they’re right.

The aircraft droned on as Chet flipped through the dossier and also droned on a bit about little Bulus’s boyhood and adolescence. Chet concluded, “The subject was treated like a prince at home, an outsider in school, and a target on the streets of Perth Amboy. He was headed for trouble, but not the kind of trouble we usually associate with an angry, alienated male.” He added, “You can take this analysis for what it’s worth. If the subject was ever brought to trial, you’d hear the same crap in the courtroom, and the media would dutifully report it. Therefore, no one will ever hear how and why the defendant got his head messed up by a cruel, uncaring, and prejudiced society.”

I agreed that it was probably better to terminate the subject rather than apprehend and prosecute him-for sure it was the easier thing to do. But I asked, for the record, “Doesn’t he have info we can use?”

Chet replied, “Lots. But his legal status as a U.S. citizen puts him and us in an awkward situation.” He explained, “We would probably have to inform him of his right to remain silent, and that’s exactly what he’d do. Plus, of course, his parents are all lawyered up. So…”

Right. Mr. al-Darwish as an American citizen with the right not to be taken to a secret location and waterboarded was a problem. Therefore, as I’d guessed from the beginning, Bulus ibn al-Darwish had to be terminated. End of problem.

Chet moved on to the subject’s college years and said, “Despite the bastard’s problems in public school, he did well academically and got accepted to Columbia University, which as you know is one of the best schools in the country.”

I asked Chet, “Where did you go to school?”

“Yale.”

I pointed out, “So you and the subject terrorist have something in common. You both went to Ivy League schools.”

Chet ignored that and informed us, “He actually has a genius I.Q.-top two percent of the population-and he could have joined Mensa, but he didn’t join anything in college except a campus Muslim group and a mosque.”

I wondered if the subject asshole was smarter than me. I don’t think I’ve ever met or killed anyone smarter than me. This could be interesting.

Chet continued, “Being a genius doesn’t make you smart, happy, or successful. In fact, sometimes the opposite. Studies have shown that people with genius-level I.Q.s are often unhappy, alienated from the society around them, impatient with people of lesser intelligence, angry at how stupid and ignorant the world is, and generally self-absorbed and untrusting. In fact, they only trust themselves and they rarely take the advice of others.”

Why is everyone looking at me?

Chet went on, “As this relates to what may or may not happen in the next few days, we believe that Bulus ibn al-Darwish will ignore any advice or warnings he gets from his aides or advisors about the meeting with Sheik Musa. He is driven first by hate and what he sees as revenge against America for our attacks on Islam, and by the American military presence on the sacred soil of his country and other Islamic countries. And somewhere deep in his subconscious he’s remembering all the shit he got from his schoolmates in Perth Amboy, and this is payback time.” Chet added, “The Cole was payback, too, but that was impersonal. He wasn’t even there to see the Americans die-and as you know, he didn’t even get to see a videotape.” Chet let us know, “But this time… Well, this is his chance to get his hands on five live Americans-his former compatriots-people who remind him of all those years of misery and loneliness.” He let us know, “If you-we-ever did fall into his hands, don’t expect a quick death.”

I already knew that. In fact, what we could expect was months or years of brutal captivity, until The Panther got tired of playing with his captured mice, then he’d saw our heads off. I glanced at Kate, Buck, Brenner, and Chet, and thought about spending years with them as a prisoner. I mean, The Panther wouldn’t even have to torture me; a few weeks with Chet and Buck would be torture enough.

Chet continued, “The subject’s college years were unremarkable, but this is the period when he seems to have become radicalized.” Chet informed us, “As you may know, Columbia has a large Jewish student body, and it’s generally understood that these Jewish students, and in fact most of the students at Columbia are, let’s say, overly tolerant and empathetic toward the relatively small Muslim student body.” He speculated, “You’d think that this would have opened al-Darwish’s eyes and mind to the idea that not everyone was against him or against Muslims. He could have fit in very well in college, and gotten happier and made non-Muslim friends. Instead, he ignored the generally open and liberal atmosphere on campus and withdrew into a narrow world of like-minded Muslim friends on and off campus.” Chet also informed us, “Interestingly, to appease his father, he majored in economics, but he minored in Middle Eastern studies.”