Treason

by Don Brown

• ISBN13: 9780310259336
• ISBN10: 0310259339
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-04-01
• Publisher: Zondervan

Summary

The stakes are high . . . and the entire world is waiting for the verdict.The Navy has uncovered a group of radical Islamic clerics who have infiltrated the Navy Chaplain Corps, inciting sailors and marines to acts of terrorism. And Lieutenant Zack Brewer has been chosen to prosecute them for treason and murder.Only three years out of law school, Zack has already made a name for himself, winning the coveted Navy Commendation medal. Just coming off a high-profile win, this case will challenge the very core of Zack's skills and his Christian beliefs-beliefs that could cost him the case and his career.With Diane Colcernian, his staunchest rival, as assistant prosecutor, Zack takes on internationally acclaimed criminal defense lawyer Wells Levinson. And when Zack and Diane finally agree to put aside their animosity, it causes more problems than they realize.

Excerpts

Treason
Copyright © 2005 by Don Brown
Requests for information should be addressed to:
Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530
Cataloging-in-Publication Data available from the Library of Congress.
ISBN-10: 0-310-25933-9
ISBN-13: 978-0-310-25933-6
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible: New
International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.
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Interior design by Michelle Espinoza
Printed in the United States of America
05 06 07 08 09 10 /? DCI/ 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
PROLOGUE
Black Forest Café
Near the Limmat River
Zurich, Switzerland
Abdur Rahman Ibn Auf checked his watch as the meeting adjourned.
Quarter to twelve. Good.
Enough time for a little walk, maybe some sightseeing, and perhaps
even lunch and a couple of drinks before summoning his pilot for the
return flight to Riyadh.
He donned the jacket of his Armani business suit and stepped from
the front door of Barclays onto the sidewalk beside Zurich’s world famous,
charming Bahnhofstrasse. Squinting into the bright sunlight,
he slipped on a pair of designer sunglasses. Around him bustled serious looking
businessmen speaking into cellular phones, young mothers—or
perhaps au pairs; he could not tell the difference—pushing prams, laughing
young lovers, and groups of beautiful women carrying smart bags
from expensive clothing boutiques. On either side of the street, flower
vendors displayed profusions of colorful bouquets, and halfway to the
corner, a group of students crowded around a bakery window.
A cool breeze hit his face, and he closed his eyes, drawing the pristine
Swiss air into his lungs. He breathed in, almost smiling at the invigorating
result.
Why did Allah place the great cities of the faith in the middle of a
scorching, God-forsaken desert rather than in a place like Zurich? At
home, survival was impossible without air-conditioning. Here, nature
provided it. But the Great Faith had spawned where it had, and Allah had
his purposes. Perhaps to avoid distractions, which abounded here.
Abdur headed south down the Bahnhofstrasse by foot in the direction
of the Arboretum and Bürlki Plaza on Lake Zurich. A traffic light
stopped him just before he reached the Swiss National Bank Building,
and he turned left toward Stathausquai, on the east bank of the Limmat
River.
The deep blue waters of the river, fed by the melting snow from the
Alps, flowed into Lake Zurich a few blocks to his right. Abdur never grew
tired of this view. If paradise was like any city in the world, surely Zurich
would be at the top of the list. He watched two tour boats churning south
toward the lake.
The sounds of laughter—young and feminine—broke into his
thoughts. He turned toward a sidewalk café across the street, on the bank
of the river.
There were four in the quartet—or perhaps he might say the bouquet—
of exquisite Swiss fräuleins. They sat giggling under an umbrella at a white
wrought-iron table. He did not need to blink even twice to see they were
blond, well figured, and perhaps in their mid-twenties. They were all blue-eyed.
They were Swiss; how could they not have eyes the color of a summer
alpine sky?
One of the fräuleins, the prettiest, with shoulder-length hair and wearing
a navy business suit, seemed to sense his gaze. She shot him a coquettish
smile, tilting her head slightly toward an empty table next to hers.
The outdoor café on the riverbank would make a perfect spot for
lunch and a cocktail. And who knew? Perhaps this was his lucky day. A
successful business session in the morning. An unanticipated rendezvous
in the afternoon before leaving the country?
Blond European women seemed to be inordinately attracted to
clean-shaven Arab men in expensive business suits. This trend had been
established, luckily for him, by the late Princess Diana of Great Britain
and Dodi al-Fayed. Or so he had been told when he studied at Oxford.
Abdur sat at the table next to the foursome. They spoke German,
which was no impediment to his eavesdropping. He was fluent in the
three official languages of Switzerland—German, French, and Italian—
in addition to having mastered English and, of course, his native Arabic.
Such were the privileges of an educational pedigree for which money
had been no object.
He inched his chair closer to the pretty one, and now she was only
a stone’s throw from him. When the wind shifted, he caught a whiff of
exquisite perfume. Is it hers? He couldn’t tell.
As he listened, he heard her speak in a low, velvety tone as she
announced she had ended her relationship with her boyfriend. She sighed
deeply—for his sake, perhaps?—then went on to tell her friends she
would have to take holiday this year in Monaco without him. “He deserved
it. Such an unfaithful dog.”
An unfaithful dog.
Was that a calculated message, intended not only for her attractive
fräulein companions, but also for his ears? Or merely coincidence?
Nothing is coincidental. Everything is calculated.
Abdur ordered a cocktail and contemplated his next move. Perhaps
a round of complimentary cocktails for the fräuleins would attract their
attention. Or maybe he would trail her home when she left.
“Ahff wun, yah eff.” The sudden deep sound of a man’s voice over
his shoulder distracted Abdur. “Excuse me, mister,” the man repeated in
Arabic. “Her name is Marta.”
Abdur turned, frowning. The man was handsome, Middle Eastern,
and perhaps in his early thirties. He wore an expensive suit, tie, and
shoes, all of which were white.
“You contemplate luring her to your hotel.” The man’s Arabic was
flawless. “Except you did not reserve a room, because you had planned
on flying back in your Cessna Citation this afternoon to report to Riyadh.
But now, with the bat of her eyes, the scent of her perfume, the crossing
of her legs, you are contemplating, shall we say, a slight change of plan?”
Abdur rose to his feet and met the man’s black eyes. The penetrating
quality of the man’s gaze was instantly gripping, as if he had the
power to hypnotize. Abdur felt a chill shoot down his spine.
“Do not fear, my brother,” the man continued. “And I assure you,
my sudden intrusion has not compromised your opportunity with this
Swiss maiden. You will have your opportunity, if it is what you want. She
will cooperate. Trust me.”
“Do I know you?”
“

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Excerpted from Treason by Don Brown
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.