Hidden Depths

Chapter 23 - The Peace Centre

Aarzam strutted into the local Muslim community building like he was a rock star. He had chosen to wear a leather jacket with a red t-shirt and blue jeans. Rich had decided to wear his beloved joggers and hoodie that he had not yet been able to put on at his posh new school. It was very sunny outside, so both of them were wearing shades but, unlike Aarzam, Rich removed his as they walked through the automatic glass doors. It was a multi-purpose building with a café, prayer room and gym. So at least Rich didn't look out of place as they moved amongst the crowd.

The modern-looking building, called The Peace Centre, was carefully constructed from glass, steel and concrete and was designed to have the light and calm atmosphere that its name implied. It obviously wasn't Aarzam's first visit to the place, as he cruised past the prayer room and into the high-ceilinged café area without hesitation. After picking up a couple of drinks, the boys made their way to a corner table to wait.

Looking up at the mosaic ceiling, Rich noticed that some of the irregular-shaped tiles were windows that allowed shards of light to beam into the building dramatically. He cast his eye around the room, deciding that most people seemed to be just going about their business. However, a group of six, strong-looking gym-goers were hanging awkwardly around one of the entrances.

'How do we know who we're meeting?' Rich asked quietly.

'We don't,' replied Aarzam. 'They know that I'll be wearing shades and drinking mint tea.'

Aarzam proceeded to pour himself some tea from an ostentatious height above his cup, and Rich wondered if he was supremely confident or simply oblivious to the risks they faced.

Just as Rich was considering a cup of mint tea for himself, the closest doors to them opened and two motorcyclists walked in holding their helmets.

Sticking out as much as Aarzam, the colourful, leather-clad pair walked straight towards the waiting schoolboys. Four of the six meatheads lurking by the door followed closely behind, but stopped short by the stairs, which were just a few metres from Rich's table. Both in their mid-twenties, the bikers eyed Aarzam and Rich suspiciously, before the closest one of them spoke.

'Are you Shadowdancer05?'

Rich cringed as he heard Aarzam's forum name for the first time.

'You must be Combel95, I see you brought some friends.'

Aarzam kept his shades on as the bikers took the seats opposite. 'Were you worried I'd be dull company?'

Ignoring his question, the bikers looked around, before visibly relaxing when they realised that Aarzam and Rich had come by themselves.

Combel95 allowed his true disdain for Aarzam to surface. 'I see you're as arrogant in person as you are on my forum.'

'Well, Combel, I have to admit that it disappoints me to hear you say that.'

Rich thought it was good to see Aarzam winding someone else up for a change.

'I really had hoped your newfound humanity was genuine, but as soon as I saw your friends,' Aarzam continued, gesturing dismissively at the muscle by the stairs, 'I realised what a faithless liar you really are.'

'Well, if you hadn't sought to twist and undermine my message for the past three years, you wouldn't have found yourself in my clutches.'

Rich was amused that this guy seemed to hate Aarzers more than he did. Yet he couldn't help but think how pompous both of them were coming across. Their supreme confidence made them sound like a couple of primary school kids pretending to be secret agents. He wondered if either of them really knew how serious things would get if the encounter turned violent.