Free Sea of Terror by Stephen Coonts

Prophet, no. We intend to take that ship, yes. We will threaten to blow it up, yes .. . but I promise you that we will not. The people on board are innocents, women and children, and the holy Qur'an tells us not to shed innocent blood."
    Ghailiani looked down at Darrow's body. Blood continued to ooze from the chest, soaking the uniform, pooling on the concrete beneath. He'd been an innocent... .
    Khalid seemed to read Ghailiani's mind. "As a man, he was responsible for his actions, for ignoring the words of the Prophet. Understand? We are at war, we are engaged in holy jihad, and men will die in this war ... but we will not kill the innocents on board that ship, I promise you! Do you believe me?"
    "I... I don't know what to believe--"
    "Then listen to this, and believe it, Mohamed Ghailiani. You have already helped us in this operation. You will continue to help us."
    "I can't!--"
    "You willl You can't pull back now."
    "You're going to kill us all anyway!"
    "I give you my word, upon the holy Qur'an and if Allah wills, that I will not. If we succeed in this, the governments of Great Britain and the United States of America will pay us one-point-five-Z?////on euros. Think of that, Mohamed! Two billion American dollars! And we will arrange for a small percentage of that.. . say, one million euros? To be transferred to a private numbered account in your name. You will be a very wealthy man."
    "I don't... I don't want money--"
    "If we fail, you will be arrested as a co-conspirator. They will find a record of what you have done to help us .. . getting those security keys, and getting the truck past the security checkpoint."
    "Please--"
    "And I am certain that I don't need to remind you of your wife and daughter. If you fail us, I promise you that both Zahra and Nouzha will suffer terrible pain and terrible humiliation before they finally die. Their deaths will take a very long time. Your Zahra will be forced to watch everything we do to your daughter first. It may take a week, perhaps more. And then, when Nouzha is finally dead, we will start working on her. Do you understand me?"
    For just a moment, defiance stirred within Ghailiani. "I... I thought you said you didn't hurt women and children!"
    Khalid seemed to think about this for a moment. "This is war. Terrible things must be done in war. I am willing to die to see this thing through. .. and I am willing to shed the blood of innocents to accomplish this. We require your help, and this is how we have chosen to get it. But our goal, the goal of this mission, is to take from the governments of America and Great Britain the sum of two billion American dollars in order to finance our operations elsewhere. It will not further our goals to slaughter the people on board the ship. You must believe me on this. Help us and we accomplish our mission, you will become wealthy, and your wife and daughter will be released to you unharmed. This, God willing, I swear to you upon the word of the Prophet!
    "But if we fail, or if you betray us or refuse to help us, you will die, and your wife and child will die. If it is possible, you will be there to watch both of them die first. I swear this by Allah! I swear this by Allah!" Khalid leaned forward, speaking directly into Ghailiani's face as his voice dropped to a whisper. "/ swear this by Allah!"
    Mohamed Ghailiani did consider himself to be Muslim, though he was not an observant one, and he had little interest in the fine points of the Sharia, of Islamic law.
    Still, he knew that a man who swore by the name of God three times was in earnest; lesser oaths, by other things than Allah Himself, often were not considered binding, especially if the oath taker added the words "if God wills" to his promise.
    He knew that Khalid would carry out his threat if Ghailiani crossed him in any way. There was no way out... no way out for him, no way out for Nouzha or Zahra, save to do exactly what he was told.
    "I. . . yes. I understand."
    "We are absolutely