Bluewater Vengeance: Mystery and Adventure in the Caribbean (Bluewater Thrillers Book 2) Page 13

  "Yes," she said.

  "Good. We don't want to hurt you. Soon as your old man makes the payoff, you're a free woman, so don't be stupid. I'm gonna cut the tape on your ankles, now, and then your hands. You stay still, okay?"

  "Yes," she said.

  "Once the tape's cut, you'll walk through a door. We'll help you. When you hear the door close, you can take the hood off. Got it?"

  "I understand," Liz said.

  She felt quick tugs at her ankles and wrists, and she was pushed forward with some force. She stumbled, barely able to stay on her feet as the circulation returned. The door slammed behind her, and she heard the sound of a heavy bolt being thrown. She leaned unsteadily against the door at her back, fumbling with the cord that bound the damp woolen cloth around her neck. As she removed the hood, she remembered that it was a positive sign when kidnappers didn't let the victim see her captors.

  She dropped the cloth and started exploring her quarters. She was in a luxuriously appointed stateroom, aboard what she figured must be a very large motor yacht. There was little sense of motion, but the speedboat had bounced like a toy against the platform when they arrived, so she knew they were at sea. There was barely perceptible vibration and a soft rumble, consistent with large engines idling slowly in a well soundproofed space.

  She glanced down and realized that she was splattered with someone's blood. She shuddered and went into the en suite bath to clean herself up, wishing she had fresh clothes. When she had done her best, she went back into the stateroom and started opening drawers and lockers. Most were empty, although she found some souvenir T-shirts. They were far too large for her, but better than her own ruined shirt. She donned one that said, "Sail fast, Live slow" on the back and "Bequia" on the front. She would have to make do with her own blue jeans, still soaked from her attempt to launder them in the head sink.

  ****

  Phillip and Dani landed their dinghy at the dock on Mustique. They checked in with the harbormaster, who collected a fee for the mooring they had chosen. The charges were steep, designed to keep all but the most determined sightseers at bay. They weren't thrilled at the prospect that their arrival was documented, but it couldn't be helped. In any case, they were one of 16 yachts visiting, so if anyone checked later, Vengeance wouldn't stand out. They had left Sharktooth aboard, and he was busily cleaning up the bloodstains, looking, from a distance at least, like a typical deck crewman on a rich man's yacht.

  They stepped off the dock and began ambling along the paths, acting their role as a couple of tourists. Phillip was casually dressed in shorts and a polo shirt, wearing boat shoes with no socks, and he had a complicated camera on a strap around his neck. Dani, mindful that she could be recognized, had stuffed her short curls up into a big straw hat. She wore dark glasses, and a flowing batik bathing suit cover-up. They appeared to be typical tourists, stopping frequently so that Dani could pose for Phillip to make her picture.

  While their movements looked random, they knew exactly which mansion they were casing. The Chief Superintendent had given Phillip GPS coordinates for Rodriguez's place, and the camera had a GPS receiver built in. After an hour, they had what they needed. They went back to Vengeance to sit down with Sharktooth and develop a plan for their evening activities.

  "The deck looks good, Sharktooth. Thanks." Dani ran her hand over the varnished teak molding around the companionway, frowning.

  "Got some bullet holes there, Dani," Sharktooth said. "Need to cut some piece of teak, fit it in fine, then varnish."

  "Yeah, sure," she said. "When I catch whoever did this, I'll take it out of his hide."

  Phillip and Sharktooth exchanged glances. "First, let's find Liz," Phillip said.

  "Oh, we'll find her. I can feel it, and she's going to be as angry as I am. Good thing they didn't break any of that china. She would really make them suffer for that." Dani offered a rueful smile to the two men.

  "Let's go below where we can look at the pictures on the laptop," Phillip said.

  After scrolling through the pictures and answering Sharktooth's questions, Phillip began to develop a plan. There was nothing complicated about what they needed to do. They saw no guards at Rodriguez's place. There was one middle-aged man puttering around the flowerbeds and a woman in a maid's uniform who brought him a drink and stayed to talk with him. They were obviously the live-in servants that the Chief Super had mentioned to Phillip. There was no sign of Rodriguez; he might not be there.

  If he was there this evening, they would question him. Phillip and Dani had no doubt that once Sharktooth pulled out his filet knife, the man would tell what he knew, probably without anyone even touching him. The big Rasta man with a gleaming blade was a fearsome sight. If Rodriquez wasn't there, they would question the servants and search the house.

  Although Phillip had a penchant for doing this sort of work in the early morning hours when most people slept soundly, they decided to strike in the late evening. This would leave them time to make a quick raid on Baliceaux if necessary. Phillip didn't think it likely that Rodriguez would have Liz there, especially after the recent raid, but the harbor in Mustique was the ideal staging area for an excursion to the neighboring island. He and Sharktooth had left Kayak Spirit here when they rescued Dani from Baliceaux a few weeks earlier.

  After taking stock of what was available aboard Vengeance, Phillip worked out his plan. He wanted to leave Dani on the boat. He and Sharktooth had done this sort of thing together many times, and he worried that her presence would be a distraction to them. He knew that he would never be able to convince her to stay behind, but he was compelled to try.

  "I'll want you on Vengeance, Dani, with one of our AK-47s. You can provide covering fire for me and Sharktooth if we have to make it back in a hurry."

  "Bullshit, Phillip. I know you're just worried that I'll get in the way. I understand that. You two are a team; I won't get between you, but I'm coming. This is my party, remember?"

  Sharktooth laughed.

  "Okay," Phillip gave in. "I knew you'd say that; I won't argue about it. Sharktooth and I will go in first with knives, in case there are any guards we didn't see this afternoon. You stay a few paces behind us with a silenced pistol, just in case things go wrong. I don't think we'll have any trouble unless Rodriguez is there. If you have to shoot, don’t kill Rodriguez, but do kill anybody else who offers resistance. We don't have time for a fight.

  "You and I will put shoe polish on our faces -- not for camouflage -- just to change our appearance, in case there are surveillance cameras. Sharktooth, you use the zinc oxide, and put your dreads up in a hat. No point in being easy to recognize. We'll put on the wetsuits and swim ashore. We'll work our way through the garden by the pool, and I'll force the lock on the sliding door to the patio. Since we don't know the interior layout, I'll have a flash/bang in my hand with the pin out, and I'll go first. If I yell, 'Down,' you'll have about a second before it pops, so be ready. Once we're in, Dani, you stay well back and keep the escape route open while you cover our backs. If we're lucky and everybody's asleep, Sharktooth and I will use the duct tape and cable ties before they wake up, and nobody will have to get hurt. Once we get everybody under control, we'll let Sharktooth do his thing. Any questions?"

  "What about Rodriguez?" Dani asked.

  "What about him?" Phillip looked at Dani and arched his eyebrows.

  "After we're done asking questions, what happens to him?" she asked.

  "Dani, your father and I taught you better than that, didn't we?"

  "Just making sure, Phillip. When we're done, he's mine. I have a score to settle with him, remember."

  Phillip nodded.

  ****

  Dani was crouched beside a lounge chair on the pool deck, and Sharktooth was in the shadow of the wet bar on the other side of the pool. They watched Phillip press his ear to the dark pane of glass that was the patio door. After listening for a full minute, he took a long, flexible piece of spring steel, roughly the size of a table kni
fe, and slipped it into the juncture of the two sliding panels. Seconds later, they saw him slide the door imperceptibly to the side; he had it unlocked. He put his tool away and took the flash/bang grenade from his belt. Dani saw him straighten the pin carefully before pulling it, so that he could replace it readily if he didn't need the grenade. She couldn't see, but she knew from long practice that the pin's ring would be worn on the index finger of the hand holding the grenade. He stood and opened the door, and she saw Sharktooth materialize beside him. She scrambled to the door, crab-like, as the two men slipped inside. She waited just inside the door, counting the seconds in her head. Before she reached a hundred, Phillip came toward her, a carefully shaded penlight in one hand. She saw that the grenade was hanging on his belt again.

  "All clear," he said, in a soft voice, as she stood up. "Nobody here but the maid and the butler. They're all taped up, still in their bed. Let's see if they know anything."

  Phillip led the way down the hall from the kitchen into the servants' attached apartment. The light was on in their bedroom, and Sharktooth stood, grinning. He was cleaning his fingernails with a gleaming 12 inch-long filet knife as the terrified middle-aged couple watched. When Phillip and Dani entered the room, Sharktooth extended the knife toward the woman's sheet-covered legs. As she cringed, he wiped the blade on the sheet over her thigh, and held the knife up in front of his face, turning it about, inspecting it as the light from the ceiling fixture glinted from its blade.

  Apparently satisfied, he licked the knife blade slowly, almost obscenely, running his tongue from the hilt to the tip. Looking around at his audience, he split the heavy silence with a deranged cackle that sent a chill down Dani's spine. Phillip had seen this show before, but every time he witnessed it, he wondered if his friend had finally snapped.

  Phillip said, "Cover the man. If he speaks too loudly, shoot him in the right kneecap, please."

  Dani nodded, shifting her aim to comply as Phillip roughly tore the duct tape from the man's mouth.

  "If you answer me truthfully, maybe my friend will leave your wife alone," Phillip said.

  "Yes, please," the man whimpered, his eyes fixed on the grinning Sharktooth.

  "Where is Santiago Rodriguez?"

  "He is gone, with suitcase. Please, we don' know where he go."

  "Big suitcase, or small?"

  "Small, mebbe for two day, t'ree day, not more."

  "Does he have an office here, or a computer?"

  "No. No office. He computer, it is ver' small. He has it with he always, always, please." The man was watching Sharktooth drool as he tested the knife.

  "Does he have a safe, or a filing cabinet here in the house, where he keeps papers?"

  "No, I t'ink he keep in the box at the bank, in Bequia, mebbe. Not here."

  Phillip looked at Dani, eyebrows raised. She shook her head. He re-taped the man's mouth and turned off the lights. They quickly made a cursory search of the house before leaving, but they found nothing to warrant a more thorough effort.

  ****

  They were back on Vengeance. It was just after midnight, and Phillip wanted to hit Baliceaux at about 3:30 in the morning, so they had some time for sandwiches and discussion.

  "I feel badly that we scared that couple so," Dani said. "I know we didn't really have much choice, but it's not their fault that they work for Rodriguez." She shook her head.

  "Can't be helped. They'll get over it." Phillip said.

  "They from Haiti," Sharktooth observed. "They prob'ly see worse t'ings."

  Phillip and Sharktooth told Dani what they had found on their last visit to Baliceaux.

  "We'll take the dinghy over there. About a mile out, we'll kill the outboard and paddle in. We'll land the same place we did when we picked you up, and wade around the point to Landing Bay. I'm betting there will be three guards, just like last time. They'll probably all be in the shack there at the anchorage; I doubt they're expecting any trouble. Sharktooth and I will go into the shack. You cover us from the door, Dani. We want one guard alive and able to talk, at least for a few minutes. I'll grab the one I want. Once the others are under control, shoot them to show the one I'm holding that we're serious."

  Chapter 23

  Jean-Pierre Berger was sitting in his office, feet on his desk, looking out the window at the beginnings of another rainy afternoon in Paris. There was heavy mist falling, and the pedestrians were unfurling their umbrellas.

  His thoughts were on Dani; he wondered how she and her companions were doing with their ambush. If all went in accordance with their plan, they should be calling later this evening. He was curious about Liz and her reaction to all of this excitement, too. No one would ever suspect Dani's capacity for violence and intrigue based on a short acquaintance. He hoped their partnership would survive this adventure. Liz would certainly see a different side of Dani's personality if Rodriguez took the bait and attacked Vengeance today.

  His secretary walked in with his afternoon coffee just as the phone on his desk rang.

  "I'll get it," he said, as she hurriedly set the tray on his desk and started to answer. He glanced at the caller i.d. as he reached to pick up the handset. The number was not familiar, but the 784 area code told him that the call originated in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

  "Dani?" he asked, as he brought the phone to his ear.

  "Not just yet, Mr. Berger, but don't worry. We're taking good care of her." The man's voice was not familiar.

  "Phillip?" J.-P. was confused, now, and worried.

  "Shut up and listen to me, Mr. Berger. We have your daughter. She will be safe as long as you do as you are told. You will not call the authorities; if you do, we will know, and you won't see her again. We have many buyers for pretty, young, blond women. You will begin immediately to accumulate $10 million U.S., and have it ready to transfer by wire when we give you the instructions; you must hurry. Do you understand?"

  "Yes. Let me speak to my daughter first. Otherwise, there will be no further discussion."

  "You don't understand. We make the rules. You will speak with her before you make the transfer, but we will decide when. Give me a number which will always reach you."

  J.-P. recited his cell phone number and was rewarded with a click as the call was terminated. Knowing it was pointless, he recorded the number that had registered in caller i.d. anyway. He had no doubt that the call had been made from a prepaid cell phone, probably already below a thousand feet of water.

  ****

  Vengeance had just cleared Bequia Head on her way north to Martinique. Dani had been waiting at customs in Bequia when they opened the door this morning. After their raid on Baliceaux, Phillip had suggested that they go back to Martinique. They needed the assistance of J.-P. and his Miami contacts to assess their next move, and Phillip had access to a fast, heavily armed vessel in Martinique. Based on what they had learned from the guard at Baliceaux last night, they were going to need more mobility and firepower than Vengeance would provide.

  Dani was at the helm and Phillip was in the cockpit with her, sipping black coffee from a steaming mug. Sharktooth was in the galley cooking breakfast, and they were both salivating at the aroma of bacon frying. As Vengeance reached the open water of the Bequia channel, the choppy seas gave way to a long, smooth swell, and they had a steady 20-knot easterly breeze.

  "Perfect sailing," Dani remarked, watching the instruments as their speed hovered around 9 knots. "Wish Liz could be here. I hope she'll be all right until we find her. What do you think, Phillip?"

  The ringing of his satellite phone cut off Phillip's reply.

  "Good morning, J.-P.," he answered, and then listened for a moment. "No, no, J.-P. She's right here." He passed the phone to Dani, a puzzled frown on his face. As she reached for the phone, he took the helm, his thoughts racing as he finally made sense of what J.-P. had said.

  "Hello, Papa. We were going to call after breakfast." Pause. "Yes, I'm fine. The other side got a step ahead of us. They were waiting in
Bequia, apparently. I suppose it could have been good luck on their part; maybe they were there for another reason and saw Vengeance. They took Liz, but we have some news to share, and we need your help. Let me put this on speakerphone."

  "It's a relief to hear you, Dani. I just got a ransom call from someone who claimed to be holding you."

  "Okay, Papa, that means Phillip was right. They mistook Liz for me."

  "I did not realize that you looked alike, Dani."

  "The resemblance is striking," Phillip said. "Why don't I start with our arrival in Bequia, and tell you what we know?"

  "Yes, please," J.-P. said.

  Sharktooth reached out of the companionway with two heaping plates of bacon and eggs with grits and toast as Phillip was reciting their recent experiences. He clambered up in a moment with a plate for himself, and sat down to listen while he ate.

  Phillip paused for a mouthful of grits and eggs. "So, after we came up empty at Mustique, we paid a visit to Baliceaux, since we were so close, and we did better there. We found two of the three replacement guards asleep. One woke up dead, but the other one was happy to tell us everything he knew after he saw what happened to his roommate. We were right about Rodriguez. These guys both worked for that nephew of Camacho that Paul told us about, the psycho, remember?"

  "Yes," J.-P. said, "Please continue."

  "The psycho, that's José Valdez, is following Rodriguez. The guy we questioned had no idea where Rodriguez went. José had a go-fast boat on call so that he could follow when Rodriguez left Mustique -- one of those Cigarette boats, the guard said. The dockmaster there was on José's payroll, so he would call when Rodriguez left the island. Rodriguez usually takes the fast ferry to Bequia and he keeps a private plane there. Camacho sent these three down here to figure out what Rodriguez has been up to, and they were planning to kill him once they were given the word. We also learned that Rodriguez has a big motor yacht, 'muy grande,' but our friend had no more information about it. No location, no name, nothing. Just that it was big."