the terrorist who lived in the project

the terrorist who lived in the project

fiction
edward w pritchard

The terrorist who lived in the project was planted there by his superiors under deep cover to learn the lay of the land in an American City for future vagaries. It was the ideal place to hide, for other than the local police, no-one took notice of the inhabitants of the projects in America.

Tu the terrorist was required to lead a typical American life, for the station of the assignment, and so he took on the persona and habits of a dweller in a project. He was required to get a job, and enter the world of the working poor. He also had a slew of bills and problems for to keep the role authentic, his boss required him to have the normal American worries and trepidations, caused by poverty and anxiety over that poverty.

Tu's job was not a good one and although very intelligent and high functioning he had difficulty with it. He was an assistant manager at the Dollar Store and worked over 55 hours per week for minimum wage and no benefits. To protect his deep cover, Tu's boss required him to keep health insurance, car insurance, keep his old car repaired and running and furnish his apartment as typical for a project dweller. Tu found himself renting furniture from the rent a center, buying a car from the buy here pay here, and financing various minimum insurance coverages. Despite his hard work Tu was unable to balance his budget and was in constant trouble with his supervisor in the terrorist group, who was unable to understand from afar why his employee Tu, who earned over $442 per week in America was unable to make ends meet. The supervisor came to believe that Tu had succumbed to the decadence of America and was not a good terrorist.

One day after a long day at work, Tu was sitting on a very small porch behind his apartment when the four year old neighbor girl, who Tu had come to like and look out for came over to show him the shoes her Mother had just bought her. Tu had to watch his affiliations in America for secrecy involving his job, but, he had allowed himself one small friendship; with the child next door, but not her Mother, a poor single Mother in America. The shoes the girl showed him were imported of course and were a knock off of an open heeled sandal commonly worn in Tu's home country. Tu knew the knockoff shoe to be very popular in America, from his work as an assistant manager at the dollar store. Properly admiring the shoes for his little friend, the innocent little girl matter of factly told Tu she liked the shoes but had settled for the blue pair rather than the girl's pink she wanted, because the pink were more expensive.

After that day Tu requested a transfer to another County to do deep cover work. The real reason for the transfer request; the blue shoes the little girl had were $1.99 at the dollar store, nearby where he worked, and the pink shoes, for girls, were more-$2.49.

Tu told his supervisor only that he could no longer work in America. The supervisor assumed Tu was feeling guilty for succumbing to the American decadent lifestyle and the supervisor assumed that Tu was feeling chagrined for being unable to live on $442 dollars per week.
end