Page 35 of Two Chambered Heart

“Ali Reza is your point of contact, the Afghani man with the beard and grey turban.”

Jason found the Afghani representative that had made the journey with the shipment and went over to him.

“JanabHaeven,khudaai paaman.” He greeted Jason respectfully, bowing low. He identified himself as Ahmad Ali Reza. “Your shipment is in this container.”

Ali Reza motioned to a blue shipping container and made to walk towards it. Jason vetted his words against his thoughts before following him.

“Transport truck pulling up,” Archie said in his ear.

“There are four metal crates in here that are yours,” Ali Reza confirmed.

The transport truck backed in, and the transport security hopped out of the cab, opening the back of the truck. Ali Reza pulled the shipping container open, and four men unloaded the four metal crates. Jason carefully scanned through all the noise, ensuring everyone followed the correct procedures.

Ali Reza motioned to one of the crates. “For inspection,JanabHaeven.”

“Who packed the crates?” Jason asked.

“I did,JanabHaeven.”Truth.

“How many pounds?”

“205 pounds between the four, weighed and weighed again.”Truth.

“Do you know what’s in the crates?” Jason asked the man.

He shifted on his feet before responding, looking uncomfortable for the first time. “Yes,JanabHaeven.”

Jason searched through all the background noise, fixing on Ali Reza’s thoughts. He personally supervised the packing of the crates, ensuring everything was as ordered. Jason had increased his supply order, necessitating an additional shipment, and after some persuasion from Jason, the Afghanis had obliged.

Ali Reza seemed to know all of this. From everything running through the man’s mind, Jason was confident that the raw opium was in there.

“Load them up,” was all he said, and the transport security got to work, while the EP team stood at the ready.

Everyone was on edge.

“Please,JanabHaeven, you don’t want to look?”

“No need.” Jason said to the man, offering him a smile that was the opposite of comforting. Ali Reza swallowed thickly but did not protest further.

“I transferred the nine million,” Archie told Jason.

Jason repeated this to Ali Reza, who took out his own cell phone and made a call to confirm.

“Zama har kha, thank you,” Ali Reza saidto him.

“Shoma hazar beshid.” Jason used the man’s language.

Ali Reza bowed low, and Jason nodded his head.

Archie gave directions to the transport security, the Executive Protection team, and Tactical Operations. Jason ran through the transport security team’s thoughts, finding nothing to give him pause, and made his way to his bike. He put his helmet on and started up the bike.

Jason followed the transport truck out of the dockyards, driving close enough beside the driver’s side that he could monitor any nefarious intentions. No one knew what was in the crates, but they were guessing. The amount of security hired for the transaction indicated that it was high value.

The transport truck pulled into the empty parking lot of an obscure warehouse, Jason hot on their heels. The EP team pulled up behind them.

Jason got off his bike and went to the truck. He opened the back doors and got in, closing them slightly behind him so he was the only one in the trailer. He opened one of the metal crates. As expected, it was filled to the brim with the dark brown, gummy substance—pounds and pounds of raw opium.

Jason closed the lid of the crate and got out of the truck.

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