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“Thanks.” Rapp grabbed a handkerchief, twisted the knob, and entered the ten-by-ten-foot interrogation room. Without turning around, Rapp flipped the handkerchief up onto the security camera directly above him. The chief seemed like a nice guy, but there was no reason not to be thorough. He then snapped on a pair of latex gloves.
Mukhtar looked up with tired bloodshot eyes and asked in Arabic, “Are you my lawyer?”
Rapp laughed, and as he pulled the curtain across the viewing window and said, “No, I’m your proctologist, you idiot.”
Hearing the visitor speak Americanized English caused Mukhtar to grow deeply concerned. “Who are you?”
“Who I am doesn’t matter, Mr. Mukhtar.” Rapp circled around him.
“I do not know who you are talking about.”
If all they had to go on were the photos taken in Mosul, there might have been a sliver of doubt, but Ashani had provided them with sixteen different quality shots. Those, combined with the voice analysis, guaranteed that the man he was looking at was Imad Mukhtar.
Rapp grabbed the belt off the table and stood directly behind the prisoner. Mukhtar sensed he was in some serious trouble and began yanking violently against the handcuffs. It was a waste of his energy. The metal table was bolted to the floor. Rapp slid the belt around Mukhtar’s neck and threaded it through the buckle. Mukhtar started screaming and thrashing even harder. Rapp put his left hand on Mukhtar’s shoulder and gave the belt a good yank with his right hand. Mukhtar began gasping for air and making choking noises.
Rapp leaned in close, his mouth hovering mere inches away from Mukhtar’s left ear and said, “This is for Irene Kennedy, you piece of shit.”
Rapp put his left foot in the center of Mukhtar’s upper back and grabbed the belt with both hands. He leaned back and yanked with everything he had. Mukhtar’s windpipe collapsed like an aluminum can. His eyes nearly popped out of his head, and his limbs went rigid. Rapp held the belt tight for another ten seconds to make sure, and then let go. Mukhtar slumped forward, his head thudding to a rest on the table. Rapp undid the handcuffs and leg restraints and tossed them on the floor. He then took the tail end of the belt, tied it around the metal bar that Mukhtar’s right handcuff had been attached to, and pulled the chair away. Mukhtar’s knees hit the ground and his head slid off the table. The belt caught and stopped his face a foot short of the floor.
Rapp took one last look around and then opened the door. On the way out he reached up and collected his handkerchief from the security camera and then took off the latex gloves.
The chief was waiting. “How did it go?”
“Exactly as planned.” Rapp thanked the police chief, turned, and walked straight out the front door.
