"Thank you, father. Goodbye for now."
Natasha and Matt adjourned to their rooms content in the feeling that they were really making progress. They just wondered if it was enough.
Matt had trouble sleeping. The stress of the impending nuclear disaster combined with the beautiful woman sleeping on the other side of his wall was a potent combination. He ventured into the kitchen for a glass of water when he accidently bumped into Natasha as she emerged from the bathroom, dressed only in a towel. She spun around, loosening the towel, and before she could recover herself he noticed a black birthmark on her back.
The intimacy of their hallway mishap combined with his desire to run his tongue over that birthmark, and the rest of her for that matter, made falling asleep even more challenging. When he finally did fall asleep, he dreamed of making love to her.
Chapter 81
Neither Matt nor Natasha had slept much on the flight. They were both reading their background biographies on the honeymoon couple that they were pretending to be. The dossier was extremely detailed and they needed to get their cover story just right. After they had tested each other, Natasha tore they papers up and dumped then in the bathroom.
Matt and Natasha concluded immigration formalities, and cleared customs. They pushed the trolley carrying their bags out of the secure area and the heat assaulted their senses.
They soon spotted a uniformed driver holding a sign. The greeting was for them. On the whiteboard sign in ornate script were the names Mr. and Mrs. Cook, their identities for this leg of their investigation. Since their cover story was that they were on their honeymoon, they walked hand in hand.
"I am Hamid from the Caliph Hotel, welcome to Riyadh" announced the driver.
"Thank you for meeting us Hamid" said Natasha.
"It is my pleasure, please follow me. I hope you enjoy your visit to Riyadh" said Hamid as he relieved Matt of his trolley.
Soon the limo was loaded and they were on their way.
"How long is the trip to the hotel?" asked Matt.
"It is not too far, only around thirty minutes I think. Please help yourself to cold drinks from the cooler in the console."
They grabbed a couple of ice cold bottles of water and downed them in unison.
The traffic was still very light at 8am. The limo was stopped at a red light when a black van with tinted windows pulled up beside them.
The van’s side sliding door opened and two men wearing balaclavas over their heads and carrying AK47s opened the doors of the limo and pulled Matt and Natasha out. They had no time at all to react, and besides they were unarmed anyway.
When the driver tried to intervene he was savagely clubbed over the head with the barrel of a gun, opening a horrible gash in his forehead and he fell to the ground.
Matt and Natasha were bound hands and feet with plastic ties, and had a black bag placed over their heads. They felt hands lifting them, and they were thrown beside each other in the back of the van.
Matt’s heart rate was off the dial, he was absolutely terrified. Natasha was equally scared, but sensed Matt starting to shake and she tried to calm him down "We will be ok darling" and received a kick in the stomach for her trouble.
Matt and Natasha both silently prayed that their cover stories would survive the interrogation they know was imminent.
"No talking" said a voice in heavily accented English.
Nothing in Matt’s cover story mentioned his ability to speak Arabic, so he decided to keep this to himself. He did pick up a few snippets. One guy was obviously the brains of the outfit. The others deferred to him in all matters.
They were driven around in circles for what seemed like forever.
Eventually, the van slowed down and turned left. Matt felt instantly cooler and guessed that they were now inside a building.
When the van finally stopped, the rear door was opened and the ties on their feet were cut. They were pulled roughly from the van.
"Do not try to resist, or you will be shot" calmly said another voice with authority.
They were still blindfolded when they each felt a strong hand grab them on the forearm and lead them through a series of doors. They were stripped naked and their belongings searched. Then they were separated and seated in chairs in rooms out of earshot of each other. Their feet were cuffed to the legs of the chair.
This was Arabian territory, so Matt was the most valuable detainee. He would be the first victim.
Matt heard steps on the floor and sensed a group of people gathering around him.
A bucket of cold water was thrown over Matt’s head making it difficult to breathe through the black sack over his head.
"Who are you?" asked the questioner.
"My name is Matt Cook" announced Matt.
Matt felt an unexpected backhanded slap across his face.
"Who are you really, and why are you here?"
Matt stuck with his cover story. He knew that he was as good as dead if his kidnappers even suspected he was CIA.
The cover story was good. The interrogator was good. He kept asking the same questions in different ways, hoping to trap Matt with a lie. Matt just stuck with the story. He did not make up anything that was not in the cover. Anything else, he just told the truth.
They wanted to know about where he was born, his schooling, and his job.
He even asked quite intimate questions about their sex life and Matt was grateful that he remembered the birthmark on Natasha’s back. When he mentioned this, there was a break in proceedings to go check his story with Natasha.
Matt was grateful when they left him alone, but sorry that Natasha was in for similar treatment.
A few moments later another voice asked all the same questions. It all started again and went on for hours.
"We are not barbarians, we will give you refreshments. Do not remove your blindfold until I am out of the room. If you see my face you will be shot" explained his captor in poor English.
"Yes" replied Matt with a dry throat.
Matt felt his hands being released and the door opening and closing.
"You can remove your blindfold now. When you are finished, put it back on. Do you understand?"
"Yes, thank you."
Matt removed the blindfold and placed it on the table in front of him. On the table was a bottle of water, an apple and a piece of cheese.
First he drank half the bottle in one gulp. Next he ate the apple. The cheese was next. Then he finished the rest of the water. When he was done, he pulled the blindfold back on and waited for his captors to return.
The whole thing happened multiple times.
Matt had no idea how long they had been there, but Riyadh was in the same time zone as Moscow, so he was supposed to check-in with Bill Simpson at midnight every night and Matt guessed they now knew he was in trouble.
While this was happening to Matt, Natasha was getting similar treatment.
Before they started with the questions they checked for the birthmark Matt had detailed.
She felt hands all over her body and the mark was rubbed with a cloth to see if it was real.
The questions started in the same way "Who are you?"
"Natasha Cook" was the answer and this too was greeted with a slap.
Natasha was a far more experienced agent than Matt and she had no trouble staying in role. She was hoping Matt was also able to cope.
Eventually she too was left alone. Then it all started again. Natasha was fed at the same times as Matt.