Chapter 50: The Plan
October 11, 2036
Adab City
The night before the World Cup 90 qualifiers match against the 14 Stars
Shania Enmerkar and Tansu Altun shifted uneasily on the edge of the bed as Taymour Frangieh strolled back and forth across the room. At the far corner of the room, next to the window, stood Rebekah Yissakar, handling an unlit cigarette as she watched Taymour crisscross the room unendingly, appearing solemn and worried simultaneously. And leaning on the wall near the door was the center of the plot: Inimabakesh Thulus, co-assistant manager of the national team, carefully avoiding eye contact with everyone else, keeping to himself and contemplating what was about to happen.
“One, the AFA will fund and support the development of youth talent,” Taymour once again began to recite the plotters’ demands, breathing in and out at a quick, nervous pace. “Two, there will be no room for intervention by political institutions in the AFA’s operations. There will be no mixing of politics and sports. Three, the AFA will pay for renovations of Adab City Stadium, our national stadium, as well as other Premier League stadiums in need of upgrades. Four, Araqasdah will resign and the Board will choose a new chairman. Five, the AFA will fully back our national team and all Adabian football players and there will no discrimination in any form whatsoever-“
“Alright, alright, Taymour, we’ve heard enough,” Ini cut him off, raising his head off the wall and turning towards the frenzied defender. “Look, before we do this, are you sure you all are gonna go ahead with this now? You will lose your place in the team overnight. Araqasdah will just replace you with the young players-“
“Oh, he won’t dare,” Rebekah butted in in a low, almost darkly sensual tone, lifting the still-unlit cigarette off her mouth. “We are almost half the starting lineup.” She pointed at Shania over on the bed. “We have Shania, Tansu here with us, some of the most respected players in this team. I mean, look, we lost to Tumbra last week and that’s with our strongest squad. We still have these 14 Stars ahead of us, and then Starblaydia-“
“And if he sent in the younger guys,” Shania continued, looking straight at the wall ahead of her, “Starblaydia will destroy us.”
“He’s got no choice,” said Taymour, who had finally stopped near the corner of the room right across from Rebekah. “He fights us, we’d be the victims. Well, I mean we are the victims. People will go down to the streets for us. Years of absence from international competitions, broken-down stadiums, and now trying to intervene with Emma and Alu. Politics, politics, how about you fix our football first?”
Ini nodded silently, gritting his teeth. “Has it come to this?” he muttered, his face contorting into a dark frown as he ran one hand over his white hair. “Well, I know the risks, and I think you all know the risks. It’s just… nobody has done something like this before.”
“Then we’ll be the first ones, Mr. Thulus. For Emma and Alu,” Taymour declared, turning towards his assistant manager and laying a hand on his shoulder. “For our football. Every Adabian footballer must be assured that there is a place for them in this country, in Adabian football. Your family life, your private life doesn’t matter. In fact it already doesn’t matter to the people.”
“I can’t believe I’m doing this,” Tansu chuckled, putting her arm around Shania and pulling her close, tapping her. “Why are we even doing this?”
“Because we have to,” Taymour answered simply. “You want football to move forward? We must do away with this bureaucracy. Destroy this goddamn structure.”
Then there was a knock on the door. Or so they thought. There was a soft tok-tok sound that seemed to come from the door. Being the one nearest to the door, Ini sauntered over to make sure, but he didn’t have to. Just as he took his first step forward, the door creaked open, sending him stumbling backwards as the man behind the door began to reveal himself. Rebekah moved off the wall; Shania and Tansu instinctively leapt to their feet.
The door finally fully opened. The man stepped inside, wordlessly closing the door behind him as all eyes fell on him. For a few seconds that seemed to extend a lifetime he took in the sight of the people congregated in this bedroom, shaking his head. No one dared to speak before him. “Well,” the man began, turning to Taymour, “I came. I’m here.”
Taymour nodded, a slight smile forming on his lips. “I know you’d come, boss.”
“You’ve all lost your fucking minds,” Saad Kaykali said almost flatly, shaking his head again, scanning the room from left to right. “This is bigger than I thought.”
“Now you know,” Taymour said.
“If this plan actually works, you might have chaos your our hands,” Saad stretched his arm, touching the wall. “Protests. Riots. And you’d all be responsible for this. So much for not mixing politics and football.”
“Will you stop us?”
“Do you know what you’re getting into?”
“We do,” Shania declared.
“You’d be doing this anyway even without my support,” Saad said, approaching Ini and tapping him on the back. “I am, well… powerless in this. You’ve overtaken me. The events have overtaken me. I don’t take any offense. You’re not rebelling against me, but the AFA. I understand.”
“But you won’t stop us,” Taymour continued.
“How can I stop you? I am only one man,” Saad replied. He released his hand from Ini, then walked over to Shania and Tansu by the bed, “and you’re a mass movement.” He nodded at the two women, turned his head for a moment to acknowledge Rebekah, then sat on the bed. “Half my team are rebelling,” he smiled, casting a reflective look at the furniture and the ceiling in front of him, “and I was kept in the dark. But I wouldn’t have made any difference anyway.”
“Boss, join us. We need you,” urged Tansu, looking down beside her at the manager.
“No you don’t,” Saad answered, glancing up at her. “You’d be better off without me. Everything seems to be going according to your plan. I don’t really have any contributions to make. And you have Taymour and Ini leading you. So go do what you want to do.”
“We’re removing Araqasdah,” Ini finally spoke. “I have my own fears, but this is our best chance.”
“Even if it results in riots?” Saad countered. “You’re utilizing the public anger over Emma and Alu’s situation to further your cause. Our nation is already badly divided. I don’t know what will come next. Riots, clashes, that sort of stuff. But you’ve made your plan and you know the risk, and there’s nothing I can do to stop you. Do Emma and Alu even know about this?”
“Yeah, I’ve been talking to them,” Taymour said.
“Me too,” Rebekah added. “They’re not opposed to this. They have their worries-“
“But they don’t approve?”
“They need time to think, boss. They’ve been through a lot.”
“But this isn’t just about Emma and Alu,” Taymour insisted. “This is about all of us, and even if Emma and Alu don’t want any part of this we must move forward. The wheels of history are turning. Future generations will thank us for what we did for this godforsaken country.”
“Well you better hope they agree to this. You know if this happens the media will be coming after them,” Saad said. “You put them in this situation, you better protect them, ‘cause God knows I can’t do that. Look, all I can do is just… do what I’ve been doing, manage the team. I can’t stop you, but I probably won’t be on the streets supporting you, I don’t know. Besides I’d probably get fired with the rest of you when the time comes. But for now I can only carry on. You’ve spoken to Rashid?”
“Yeah,” Ini answered. “He won’t intervene. That’s all he said.”
“He’s got to take care of his father,” Saad nodded. “Or maybe he’s setting himself up for manager once we’re all fired. I don’t know, I won’t hold it against him, though.”
He raised himself off the bed, staring rather emptily at the wall. “Well, when the time comes, I’d either be fired or I’d just tender my resignation. We’ll see what comes next. For now, though, we still have a fixture to fulfill. The 14 Stars tomorrow, Starblaydia next, but I don’t know if we’d even still be here by that point. But you do what you must do.”
“Boss,” Taymour urged, “I know in your heart that you understand us. Come with us. You don’t have to let yourself get carried away by the waves. You can, well, sail with us, lead this-“
“Taymour? Are you there?” came a call from the other side of the door, accompanied by a series of rapid knocks. Saad jerked his head towards the door, his mind scrambling to recall whose voice it was. It didn’t take long for him to remember. “Oh look,” he commented, “you've got another guest, I believe.”
Taymour rushed to open the door. The man came in pinching his nose and frowning.
“Oh, you came, finally,” Taymour greeted his less-than-enthusiastic guest, as if not expecting him to come at all. “I thought you’re stuck in a traffic jam or-“
“By God, Taymour, when was the last time anyone used the guest toilet? It’s fucking clogged and smelly and I had to flush it like seven times.”
“What do you mean it’s clogged?” Taymour said, clearly taken aback as he closed the door. “It’s still working when the neighbor used it this morning.”
“Well it’s clogged, or, well, it was before I flushed it with great difficulty, so you better look into it. I don’t know, call the plumber.” The man moved forward, but then stopped in his tracks as he noticed all the people in the room. “Shania? Bek?” As he scanned the room, he quickly noticed one particular person. He squinted his eyes, mouth falling open. “Boss? Is that you?”
“Eni,” Saad acknowledged the figure of Enlilbani Yargab, who obviously had not expected anyone else to be in the room.
The latter glanced back over his shoulder at Taymour. “Why didn’t you tell me there’s the boss and Mr. Thulus and-“
“Well you just suddenly called me and told me you wanted to come. I forgot to tell you,” Taymour shrugged, shaking his head rapidly. “What brings you here anyway?”
“I feel like you know the answer,” Enlilbani Yargab said. “I’m in.”