Chapter Two.
The next day breaking News Headlines was announced on the TV News Channels and in Newspapers across the world that the military had carried out a daring capture of the wanted I.S. terrorist Siddiqui Amyl, working from the UK, after he had visited the Middle East and was illegally returning on a cargo ship. Siddiqui Amyl’s picture was shown and a list of known crimes was listed below his picture and a full two page article was written in how the Navy Seals had actually boarded a moving cargo ship during the night and taken him from under the noses of the crew, As for the crew, it was reported that they were later arrested and detained for knowingly aiding a terrorist organisation and human trafficking.
It went on to tell how intelligence gained from Mr Siddiqui went to play a major part in the recent raids and capture of so many terrorists, and that further arrests were imminent. This caused a vast outrage among the Muslim community; they had genuinely thought he was dead and for a time they refused to believe he was alive, and that the military were just using this story as a cover. It was not until the following Wednesday morning that a News crew filmed Siddiqui been led off a war ship as he was been transferred into United States custody for further questioning.
The film was taken via long range lenses and although it was at the extreme of its ability it still showed reasonably clearly Siddiqui and any doubt that he was in custody and still alive was now quashed. There was still a very few who refused to believe it was him, but the majority now accepted they had been betrayed and agreed I had no involvement and that the games consoles were not to blame. What topped it was when the Americans released a pre-recorded interview in court, and Siddiqui pleading not guilty to the charges read out to him.
There was now no doubt he was alive and seeing him there cut deeply into my soul. Yes I knew he was guilty, yet he had at one time been my friend and this caused mixed feeling within me, I was awaiting contact from Mr Siddiqui senior, and it was not until one day while having a rest in my favoured coffee shop that I overhead a group of Muslims who I vaguely knew arguing over if it was true and that he was a traitor.
I used the opportunity and flared into a temper and before they knew what was happening the person who called him a traitor was laying out cold with his nose busted and unconscious. “Do not ever call him a traitor I shouted, he was my friend and a better man than any of you will ever be.” I told them and then left the shop. I knew it was a risk and I just prayed it would not back fire against me. The police were involved, but under direct orders from the I.S. and respect for Siddiqui senior orders forced the individual to drop charges and say he attacked me first and I had only been defending myself.
It was dropped and Siddiqui senior thanked me for defending his son’s honour, but I could tell he was a broken man, and I knew he was soon to be targeted as the military were still wanting him and had only given him breathing time as he was needed to keep my cover under control. What scared me was when I returned to working in the office, my team had received orders to start selling the games console on the open market, and this had been done while I was in hospital, and therefore I had no direct input or say into the matter.
As a cover I was told I had sold the rights for the console and software to an American company and they were marketing it vigorously, and it was now out of my control. I was called back from undercover work the mission was over, and I had no control or say, I was simply picked up one night and not seen in Bradford again. The morning news changed from terrorist raids to the buyout of the software and it was rumoured I sold it for some estimated One hundred and twenty million, they went on to say it was the future in educational software and reality in games playing. The Bradford office was given an estimate five thousand Consoles to sell as pre-release samples, and from there, it was to be officially launched in four months’ time.
The Bradford outlet was inundated with requests and the consoles selling on the black market for five times the market value just so some could get their hands on an early example. Another ten thousand consoles were freely given to youth groups and schools and libraries across the UK, and twice that in the United States. I cringed at the thought of what was happening, as I had seen for myself how it could be abused, and I realised now that there was far more behind this than I had first realised.
The morning News a few days later saw the PM and the cabinet members all receiving games consoles for their families, and vast publicity was generated when BBC and independent testers tried the equipment. The BBC prided themselves on been the first to pre-test this equipment when it was in its early stages of development, now they were even more impressed and one presenter stated he had learnt to speak fluent Italian in just eight days, and held an open conversation with an Italian Professor to prove it.
This in itself caused colleges and Universities to place huge orders and it just grew and grew, even more so when they gave actual live demonstrations on line of interactive realistic games play, but at all times concentrated on nonviolent demonstrations and leaving it to the imagination of others as to how it would perform if they played their favourite war games.
I had not even had time to say goodbye to my new friends and as for Tessa she was left stunned not knowing if I was alive or dead. Fortunately, Mr Goldberg allowed me to get a message to her via my office colleagues who were themselves about to vacate the now unneeded office. It was Alex who delivered Tessa a hand written note for me, as she opened it and read, tears formed in her eyes. ‘Dear Tessa my love, my heart is broken and for your own safety, I have been forced to leave, the News about the sale of the console is untrue, I only designed in part some of the software, but I had a major partner who brought me out for a fraction of what he sold it for, I was just a front. However, it is you that caused me to leave as the Islamic State think I was involved in betraying them, and it was some of their operatives who beat me near to death placing me into hospital. Now I have learnt they might target you next as you are a known friend, so I have left rather than place your life at risk. Love James Clifford.’
I learnt from Alex that she took the news badly and that the Life church were supporting her. My home was sold and as Goldberg’s team had provided the finance, I never saw a penny of the proceeds, however I was compensated for the loss of personal belongings. I do not even know how they did it, but a body was later found inside a waist tip badly burned and difficult to identify, it was later reported on the news channels that the inventor of the recent games console and Software was found murdered, and that the police stated I had recently been badly beaten by I.S. supporters and it is believed they played a major part in my death.
This truly shocked me as I had not been informed, and I felt sick to think Tessa and others would now think I was dead and never get to see me again. I had to undergo extensive rest and debriefing, and even underwent facial reconstruction, as it was not wanted any future identification of me by some fortuities I.S operative and blow any future undercover operation.
