ABU STRIKES

Abu Bin Zayyid could not see her face in the dark. But from the sound of her breathing, the motions of her chest rising up and down with each breath she took, as well as the warmth radiating from her skin which he could not miss. Abu Bin Zayyid felt close to her, and he knew the best ways she could suffer and spill her secrets.

His work was just getting started.

Abu Bin Zayyid never doubted the poisons from the Assassin Order, without checking on this female slave, he knew she was out until he gave her the antidote. 

She was good as dead, and out of some mercy for her soul, Abu Bin Zayyid said a prayer for her.

"Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un."

  He put back his poisoned cloth before he made a mistake. While being trained in Masyaf. He heard stories of some members who while on a mission had accidentally poisoned themselves to death by mishandling the poisons in their sash pockets. He vowed he was never to be that stupid. Once a poison has done its job, put it away.

Like a butcher anxious to dissect his long-awaited animal, Abu Bin Zayyid pulled out the most threatening and very sharp dagger, He placed it on the throat of the sleeping female maid, and put one hand on her mouth and nostrils while holding her in place on the bed with his knees straddling her sleeping body.

The suffocation of her nostrils and mouth woke her up, she tried to struggle to push him off however it was in vain. His weight of about 176 pounds was too much for her to budge. Abu Bin Zayyid despite the darkness could see the glint of panic, fear, and tears forming in her white eyeballs. She tried to scream but his hand muffled her scream.

"Ssshh!"

"Shut up bitch or I will slit your throat!" Abu Bin Zayyid threatened her while pushing the sharp end of the dagger a little deeper into her throat skin, drawing some blood. She felt the pain and the slight dribble of blood on her neck. The fear of being killed by this threatening stranger and his dagger made her stay still, and hold in her crying.

"I am going to remove my hand now, don't make any noise and no harm will come to you as long as you answer faithfully my questions. Nod if you understand me." Abu communicated his demands. Meekly, she nodded her head while not taking her fearful gaze from his face shrouded behind the Assassin Order hood. She only saw his mouth and nose.

"What is your name slave? Don't even dream of lying because when I suspect that you are lying to me, that will be the end of you." He emphasized his threat after asking her.

"I a…I am Amina Maimouna, please don't kill me, I will tell you what you want to know." She pleaded.

"That's very good Amina Maimouna, you have my word that I won't kill you if you tell me everything I need to know," Abu emphasized while nodding his unseen face. He was happy to see that he had made her fearful of him and willing to cooperate.

"There was a Templar knight in this manor, is that true?" He asked to test her.

"Yes… yes… yes Mister, there was a Templar Knight, a guest in this house for two days." Amina Maimouna struggled to say the words. The dagger at her throat was not gone, she was still feeling the pain from the earlier cut.

"What was he doing here and where has he gone?" Abu Bin Zayyid finally asked his most important question.

'Hope she tells me the truth which will simplify my work,' he told himself.

"The butler Philipe said he was here to rest after a long voyage from Cyprus. I heard them talking about finding the best route to Jerusalem from Joppa this morning when I took grapefruit juice to the mature man the Knight addressed as Commander Gallo." She recounted what she had seen and heard.

"What did you say, Commander Gallo?". This name spooked Abu Bin Zayyid and he was not sure he heard her properly.

"Yes mister, I heard Knight Yosef address the man as Commander Gallo," she affirmed her earlier statement. Fearful that he could not believe her and kill her as he threatened. 

"The knight said he wanted to go to Jerusalem while pointing at the wall map, but am sorry because I can not read so I could not make sense of it. Am sorry mister." She apologized for letting him down by not being able to read.

"Foolish bitch, even a dog is better than you it can read, what else do you have to tell me so that I don't kill you?" Abu Bin Zayyid roared at her while pressing the dagger a little deeper into her throat and drawing more blood. Deep fear, panic, and anguish washed over her when she felt the dagger cutting deeper into her skin, she wanted to cry but the fear of the worst made her restrain herself at a great cost. 

He could feel her fear and also smelt the intoxicating smell of her blood. She was just like a terrified animal looking at the butcher, praying he does not kill it. 

His heart began pumping with excitement! This was a sweet thrill to Abu Bin Zayyid and he could never have enough of it. Soon she was going to beg him with everything she got spurring his excitement a notch higher. The feeling of having power over someone's life, and making them beg excited him so much.

"Please, please pleeeaaassse! Don't kill me, I may not be able to read but I heard more words that could be of use to you." She told him in a painfully pleading and distraught tone.

'Yes, yes, that is what I was missing out.' He told himself while holding himself back from showing her that he was happy with how she was pleading. Now she could spill the milk for him.

Torture and a little coercing in the right direction, while promising hope to his victims had never failed him.

"Ok, ok, I won't kill you, if you tell me everything." He told her. He had to give her some hope to carry on. He had not got all the information he needed.

"It's … like this mister, heard that Knight Yosef had been brought by the big man Balian himself from Cyprus for a special mission in Jerusalem. Rumour has it that, that this knight is not a simple person despite his simple look based on how the butler Philipe struggled to please him with everything we did. Also based on a large number of Knights Commander Gallo brought over, they are acting as an escort for Knight Yosef. My mother said when you see Templars escorting someone, there's gold and precious stones involved." That's all I know mister. Amina Maimouna told him.

"How many knights did you say Commander Gallo brought to escort this knight Yosef?" Abu Bin Zayyid asked. From her communication, at least he had got some clues on what was going on.

"I did not see them since they did not enter the study room with him. It's my colleague here Zainabu who served them. What have you done to Zainabu?" She cried while realizing that her colleague Zainabu was not on the mattress with her.

"She is ok, just tell me everything and no harm will come to her." Abu Bin Zayyid lied.

"From the number of cups, I saw being washed in the kitchen after they had finished drinking grapefruit juice. They must have been more than ten." Amina told him about her observation.

"Are you sure?" Abu doubtfully asked.

"Yes sir, am sure. Allah is my witness." She swore to him.

"What do you know about Allah you misguided bitch, working for these Christian infidels. You don't deserve to live, you are a stain to Muslims everywhere." Abu hissed at her.

"Please… please… please mister, don't kill me. Am a good Muslim and pray five times a day to Allah. I also have four children am taking care of at home in the next village, I wanted to feed them that's why am working for these Christians. You have heard of the drought going around, there's no food, only by working for these Christians can I get some food and money to take home." Amina Maimouna continued her pleas.

"I hear you." Abu Bin Zayyid said before going ahead to exert pressure on the dagger thereby slitting her throat mercilessly.

He stayed atop her body as he heard more than saw, blood gushing out of her slit throat and her body rocking in death throes.

"Die bitch! You thought you could fool me," he added to her as she slowly died.

When he proved that she had completely died, Abu Bin Zayyid stood up from her still-warm body and made his way out of the manor. The name Gallo rang a bitter tone in his head, this was another enemy he had yearned to meet ever since his team killed his young nephew Salman in an ambush gone wrong in Acre.

He remembered how the young boy had boasted to him that he and his companions had found tender and juicy prey of 12 knights escorting timid cardinals from the Vatican. The route they were to take heard been identified and they were to be ambushed from all sides in a ravine. There was no way the infidel knights could walk out alive. Unfortunately, his nephew and most of his companions never came back alive.

Abu Bin Zayyid was going to have his revenge no matter what. And he now had the perfect plan for achieving it.

He smiled to himself as he raised the dagger that had killed the female slave Amina Maimouna to his lips and licked away the blood on it.