The ISIS Pill

By Michael Don Fess

“The ISIS Pill” is a mystery thriller plucked from today’s news. The FBI tries to prevent a high level ISIS operative from setting up a drug smuggling ring and in the process, they discover a covert drug packaging plant.
Drugs have been used and abused for centuries, but especially during modern times. The ISIS Pill, or its generic name Captagon. is a highly addictive mixture of an amphetamine derivative together with caffeine and other substances.
This formula quickly produces a euphoric intensity when given to ISIS fighters. These pills allow them to go without sleep for days, eat very little, have almost no fear of death and kill with numb, reckless abandon.
Imagine the American death toll that could result by illegally importing large quantities of ‘The ISIS Pill’ into the U.S.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Michael Don Fess
• Release date: Apr 1, 2016
• ISBN: 9781310837197

Michael Don Fess

Michael Don Fess, an author since the early 1990s, has over twenty published books to his credit. His favorite genre is mystery novels, but has published some non-fiction books. He is a informative speaker at civic clubs and is an accomplished artist.His popular Caribbean Mystery series consist of four books and the historical fiction series about the wild Louisiana politics in 1964 is a three book series. The latest series about "The Secret DNA Code" has a sequel, "The DNA Conspiracy."

Book preview

Preface

ISIS fighters are using an illegal, addictive drug known as Captagon, also known by its generic name fenethylline, according to several news reports.

The drug, in tablet form, is manufactured secretly in Lebanon and Syria. These pills are a highly addictive mixture of caffeine and amphetamine, together with other ingredients. Intelligence reports indicate that ISIS fighters consume large quantities of these pills.

This formula of Captagon quickly produces a euphoric intensity in users, allowing ISIS fighters to stay up for days, eating very little, and killing with a numb, reckless abandon. Users find it almost impossible to sleep or even close their eyes. Feeling invincible, they can fight with almost no fear of dying.

Black market sale of these small ‘ISIS pills’ all across the Middle East funnels money back into those war torn countries, allowing the terrorist organization, ISIS, to purchase arms and ammunition.

Most countries, including the United States, banned the drug as being too dangerous and addictive, making the sale and use of it illegal.

Chapter 1

Halifax, Nova Scotia

October 13, 2015

He counted on Omar to find the secret package hidden among the large pallet of food sacks destined for the cruise ship. He had no choice but to wait and watch.

Rahn Aziz stood looking over the cruise ship railing watching forklifts hoist those large pallets of food and quickly truck them into the ships hold. Other forklift drivers operated controls to hoist pallets of passenger suitcases and move them into the ship through another portal.

Rahn Aziz stood looking over the cruise ship railing watching forklifts hoist large pallets of food and quickly truck them into the ships hold. Other forklift drivers operated controls to hoist pallets of passenger suitcases and move them into the ship through another portal.

Standing up on deck eleven, he was too far away to pick out the food pallet containing his special package, a large sack of ISIS pills hidden in a pallet of identical sacks that were labeled as dried beans.

Per his instructions, an accomplice had emptied the beans from one of the bags and replaced the contents with his shipment of Captagon, the highly addictive drug produced in Syria.

Unable to retrieve it himself, he would have to depend on Omar to find it and stow it in his crew cabin until the cruise ship carried him to his destination.

The only way you can identify it, he told Omar, is with a red line drawn through the label on the sack. It will look like a mark made by people doing an inventory.

Rahn had shipped the sack of the tablets from Paris by FedEx, hidden inside a large box of Egyptian cotton seeds. It was addressed to his contact in Halifax, knowing the security wouldn’t be as tight there as it was in the U.S.

They chose a bag of dried beans as a cover for the cruise ship segment of the trip. It was an easy choice, since his contact was employed in a food warehouse.

From his perch on deck eleven, Rahn looked out over the city of Halifax, amazed at the metropolitan sight that met his eyes. He had always assumed that it was not much more than a glorified fishing village.

After his direct flight from Paris, he felt it necessary to go through the motions of being a tourist to avoid suspicion in case he was followed, as he waited to board the cruise ship.

While taking a four hour bus tour, his biggest surprise was learning about the wartime munitions ship, the SS Mont-Blanc. It exploded in the harbor on the morning of December 6, 1917, leveling half the town.

It was the largest explosion in history until the atom bomb was dropped on Japan, said his tour guide. The munitions ship collided with a freighter and some type of highly flammable oil caught fire. When the tons of TNT exploded, it flattening half the city. Over a thousand people were killed and many more injured.

From his elevated position, he could also see one of the most interesting stops on the tour, Citadel Hill, an old fort established in 1749. He mused at the star shaped fortification perched on a hill overlooking the harbor. Well designed for protection in other times, it had no practical use in today’s modern warfare.

As he stood on deck eleven, he observed that the swimming pool area was almost deserted, due to the cold temperature. A few hardy souls were lounging on recliners, but were wrapped in towels. It seemed that most of the early passengers were in the buffet having lunch.

He knew he wouldn’t be able to meet with Omar until after breakfast tomorrow morning when Omar finished his steward duties. They had arranged to meet in the men’s room on deck three by the theater entrance, thinking there would be very little passenger traffic there at that time of day.

Stroking his beard in deep thought, he began to feel the pangs of hunger. Rahn turned toward the buffet to see what it had to offer.

Washington DC

FBI Headquarters

Special Agent Herbert Hanks reporting for duty, he quipped, as he greeted the Director’s receptionist.

Yes sir, she said, right this way, as she led him down a corridor to a small conference room.

Pleased that she was so efficient, he followed her quick pace. Things had been a little slow in Chicago, so he was glad to get the call from Washington.

Good morning, said the Director, as Hanks entered, this is Deputy Director Lee Keenen, pointing to the man at his side.

I’m glad to finally meet you, said Lee, standing and offering a handshake. You proved your worth in Italy, doing a good job of guarding those grad students. I was impressed with your creative solutions to the threats you encountered.

Yes, said the Director, and we wouldn’t have known about those incidents from reading your report. You are much too modest. The CIA Director was so impressed with your ingenuity that he shared his operative’s report with us.

Thanks, said Hanks, as he joined them at the table.

We have a special assignment for you, said Lee, getting right to the point. The French alerted us to a dangerous ISIS agent who is headed this way. He boarded a plane in Paris bound for Halifax two days ago. We think he did this as a diversion, since it is easier to enter this country from Canada.

His name is Rahnama Muhammad Aziz, said the Director, opening a file. An Iranian national, he is also known by his associates as Rahn Aziz. We know that he’s been in Syria for the last five years and has risen to a position of leadership in ISIS.

Lee continued.

We also know they have been trying to import the drug Captagon into this country for several months. It’s being manufactured in Syria and produces millions of dollars for their military operations. We think that this man is trying to open up some smuggling routes into the U.S.

Sorry sir, said Hanks, but I’m not familiar with that drug.

It’s a highly addictive amphetamine tablet that we call the ISIS pill, said Lee. It allows fighters to stay up for days and kill with numb, reckless abandon. The drug quickly produces a euphoric intensity in users so that they can’t sleep or even close their eyes.

So, said Hanks, those videos we see of the wildly enthusiastic ISIS troops shooting rifles in the air are the result of being high on drugs?

Absolutely, said Lee, and that’s how they can behead prisoners and slaughter children while showing no remorse.

So why do they want to import it into this country?

Money, said Lee, emphatically. Those tablets retail for about $20 a pop and it’s a bigger threat to our security than heroin. You can imagine what would happen if a lot more of these illegal immigrants or radicalized Muslims were hopped up on ISIS pills. They’d be killing people in cafes and school rooms all over the country.

Hmmm . . . so what do you want me to do? asked Hanks.

Our intel shows that Rahn Aziz’s name is listed on a cruise ship passenger list headed for Bayonne, New Jersey. The ship’s itinerary is a short cruise with stops at Bar Harbor, Portland, and Boston. That ship left Halifax at five o’clock yesterday afternoon.

Hanks face reflected surprise.

Couldn’t the Canadians have arrested him?

We didn’t tell them, said Lee. We need to know the names of his contacts and his mission.

If you were trying to enter the U.S. using that scenario, interrupted the Director, how would you proceed from there?

Hanks leaned back in his chair and thought for a minute.

Well . . . he must know that we have access to the passenger lists, Hanks finally said, and is using that to divert us from trailing him. I think I would go ashore at each stop while acting as a tourist and arrange to ‘get left’ at one of them. I believe I would pick Boston, since it’s the largest city and should be the easiest place to get lost.

My thinking exactly, said Lee, and we wouldn’t know he was missing for sure until the ship docked in Bayonne and unloaded all of its passengers. By then, the trail would be pretty cold.

We want you to catch the next plane to Boston, said the Director. You can get settled in our office there and make plans for when the ship arrives. Those agents will be at your disposal.

We need to stop this man before he gets started, added Lee.

Chapter 2

On The Ship

Rahn Aziz awoke with a start when he realized it was daylight and the ship wasn’t moving. He rushed to the balcony door, threw back the curtain, and gazed out at the quaint little city of Bar Harbor, Maine.

His watch indicated 8:15, but then he realized that it was only 7:15 by local time. He quickly showered and dressed, looking forward to some bagels and coffee. He chided himself for picking up soft routines from these decadent infidel countries.

A list of the day’s activities, slipped under his door last night, informed him of some on-shore excursions. He had no interest in signing up for any of them because of his planned meeting with Omar in a couple of hours.

The buffet area was buzzing with people, many with backpacks were getting ready to go ashore. He remembered from the activities list, the tenders would begin to load at 8:00 AM.

He chuckled at this crazy English language that called an excursion launch boat, a tender. When he studied English, that word was an adjective describing meat.

As he munched on a bagel and watched the people, he formed an idea. A large backpack would be the perfect container for his sack of tablets when he went ashore in Boston. He knew they didn’t inspect packages leaving the ship, only the ones coming aboard.

Boston

Special Agent Herbert Hanks awoke and looked around the darkened hotel room, trying to remember where he was. As he walked to the window to pull back the drapes, he recalled his flight from Washington and checking into a Boston hotel near Feneuil Hall.

After a quick shower and shave, he dressed for his appearance at the FBI office just off State Street. He picked up a cup of coffee in the lobby and caught a cab.

The agents were expecting him, having been notified of his coming, so he was ushered right into the conference room where more coffee was available.

Brian Mattieson, the agent-in-charge, quickly introduced him and concluded by saying, This briefing is about the ISIS pill.

Hanks began to brief them of his mission and the facts he had learned while studying the file on the plane. He found that none of these agents were familiar with the drug either.

It’s a powerful amphetamine tablet based on the original synthetic drug known as fenethylline, he said, reading from the file. It quickly produces a euphoric intensity in users and keeps them going for days.

Why isn’t this a problem for our narcotics bureau? asked Brian.

Mainly because it’s used to fund terrorism overseas, said Hanks. This file quotes one user saying he felt like he had a power like no one else. That’s why they can execute innocent people without remorse. They feel that they are invincible and have no fear of death.

Wow, said Brian, we have enough problems without some home grown convert believing he is invincible enough to personally rid the world of non-believers.

Hanks nodded.

The ISIS pill is tailor-made for the battlefield, he continued. It has the ability to give soldiers energy and courage, while going without sleep and food. Since it’s highly addictive, you can’t take just one.

No wonder those fanatics are giving the world so much trouble, added one of the agents. They’re hopped up outta their minds.

There is no other way to describe ISIS, said Hanks, but to say it’s an evil, barbaric, criminal element based in Syria. ISIS stands for Islamic States of Iraq and Syria.

I’ve heard that only about twenty-five percent of Muslims are extremists, said Brian.

That silent majority, however, doesn’t count, said Hanks, because the extremists are in control.

Isn’t it amazing that such turmoil can be generated by a perverted religion, said one of the agents.

It’s no wonder that ancient rulers quickly learned that religion was an easy way to control the populace, said another one of the agents. Religion could promise them everything and there was no way to disprove it.

Hmmm . . . I never thought of it like that, said Brian.

Well . . . let’s get back to how we’re gonna catch this guy, said Hanks.

He began to outline his plan and as he finished, he saw nods around the table.

Okay men . . . if he shows up here, said Brian, we need to make sure that he’s gonna be sent off to Gitmo before he can bat an eye.

On The Ship

Rahn Aziz found Omar in the men’s room on deck three promptly on schedule.

Our package is safely under my bed, said Omar, in a hushed voice barely audible over the sound of running water. I hope I wasn’t observed taking it from the food storage area.

I’m glad you were able to locate it, said Rahn, as he washed his hands, also.

It was pretty easy and the disguise was perfect, said Omar. It looked just like the other bags.

I’m going ashore to purchase a large backpack on shore today. It should allow me to carry the pills off the ship without attracting suspicion.

Omar nodded.

You’re right . . . they only examine packages being brought on board, not the one’s being carried off the ship.

Are you being treated well in your new job? asked Rahn, changing the subject.

Oh yeah . . . with my fake passport, they think I’m from Jamaica. I’ve had no problems.

That’s good . . . keep us informed about your cruise trip assignments. We’ll probably need your services again in the near future.

Praise Allah, said Omar, as he opened the door and left.

Rahn waited a full minute before following Omar from the restroom as a precaution. He then walked over and down a flight of stairs to catch the tender going ashore. After standing in line awaiting his turn to go through the card scan, he climbed aboard the little boat. The ride to shore was chilly, but uneventful.

Arriving at the pier, he walked up Main Street where most of the tourist shops were located. He found an outfitters store in the first block and saw that they stocked the backpack he needed for his mission.

Not wanting to carry it around for a couple of hours, he decided to wait on a purchase until he got ready to return to the ship. After walking the few blocks playing tourist, he felt mild hunger pangs as the morning bagel began to wear thin.

Seeing an interesting sign, he decided to stop in to order something that sounded good, but that he’d never eaten before. He ordered a Lobster Roll and a beer.

Chapter 3

I’ve been thinking about your plan during lunch, said Brian, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

Hanks nodded.

The only flaw I can see, he continued, is the possibility that the man might fool us and get off the ship before it docks in Boston.

I’m concerned about that, too, replied Hanks. "Logic, however, indicates that Bar Harbor is too small for him. Everybody knows everybody in small towns and a tourist would stand out like a red flag. Portland, on the other hand, is big enough to get lost in, but is too remote to be