interior of Castilo’s glass with it before dinner, and from what Jonas had seen, they had pulled it off flawlessly. “I have to admire his resolve to keep it to himself. I think stronger measures will be necessary to get the details.”
“Understood. So the PMC wants to pick up the cargo tonight?”
Jonas nodded. “They’re sure in a hurry.”
“There’s something you should know about the bodyguard.” Kate filled him in on Theodore’s relationship with TEAR.
“That’s very interesting. Now we know who’s brokering this deal. I wonder if Rafael is aware of Theodore’s connection, or if his bodyguard just dropped the name of the PMC
to be
His second phone rang, and Jonas picked it up. “Hold on, Kate, I think this is them.”
“Take it, we’ll be monitoring on this end.”
He put the phone to his cheek, noting that there was no transmitted picture on his screen. “Hello?”
“We are the party that is interested in the equipment you have for sale. We were referred to you by a mutual friend.”
“If this is true, then you also know what that gentleman’s hobby is,” Jonas said.
A soft chuckle came over the line. “Very good. He enjoys watching the greyhound races. At the Palm Beach Kennel Club, if memory serves.”
“Excellent.” For a moment, Jonas wondered if he was talking to Theodore through a voice synthesizer. “You wish to set up a time for transfer and payment?”
“Correct, and I must insist that the transaction occur this evening.”
“That is very tight. However, it can be arranged. Let us say midnight? I can text you our GPS coordinates, if you wish.”
There was a muffled conference, then the voice came back on line. “That will be acceptable.” The voice rattled off a number. “Send your position whenever you are ready.”
“I look forward to making your acquaintance soon.”
The speaker didn’t reply, but simply broke the connection. Jonas switched back to Kate. “We’re going to have company at 2400 hours.”
“Satellite triangulation shows the call originated about fifty miles to the south-southwest, near the Keys. They aren’t too far away,” Kate said. “Karen, put the entire crew on overwatch. They might pull a double cross or strike early, attempt to get the cargo without paying.”
“Should we break out weapons?” Karen asked.
Jonas responded, “Let’s not arm the crew openly. We don’t want to spook our boys, the hostiles or both. Distribute the pistols and make sure everyone keeps them covered.
Also, everyone should know where the hidden weapons are and try to stay near them if possible.
“Kate, how do you want these people handled? If the deal was to go through without a hitch—which I doubt— then the cases are bugged, so they can be easily tracked. However, if they try to pull something—”
“You and your team are authorized to respond with whatever force is necessary to retain your cargo and capture or eliminate the hostile force,” Kate said.
“Understood. We’ll report in after the meeting.”
“Right, and, Jonas, Karen—be careful.”
“Always.” Jonas cut the connection and turned to Karen.
Her mouth was set in a grim line. “Let’s prepare a suitable welcome for our guests, shall we?”
“I didn’t know you were a nautical man, Major.”
“There is much you do not know about me, Sergeant.”
“That is true. I do know, however, or strongly suspect, that if we take this boat onto the open ocean, we may not return.”
Nodding, Damason had no choice but to agree. The craft they had been assigned might once have been a fisherman’s skiff. Perhaps twelve feet long, to call it white would have been a relative term, as the entire hull had been scraped clean by years of water and salt air, leaving only bare wood behind. The once smooth planks had been attacked by barna-cles, and boring worms had left pits and scores of tiny holes along the sides. The outboard motor had to be at least thirty years old, and the dented, rusty cowling appeared to have suffered through every single day. Damason shuddered to think what the engine itself looked like underneath.
“Sir, with respect, I still think this is a very dangerous idea.”
“Acknowledged, which is why you’re coming with me.”
Damason was just as wary about their upcoming meeting.
They were both dressed in civilian clothes for this night run, but were armed under their loose shirts.
Only a few hours earlier he had shared the news about the supreme commander’s tour of facilities outside of Havana. The person on the other end had been pleased, but then had informed him of the upcoming meeting, and stressed that he wanted Damason to attend. When he had protested, saying he needed to be available in the event of sudden changes to the leader’s schedule, the voice had stated that Damason needed to meet the people he would soon be working with over the next weeks. The tone had made it clear this was not a request, and Damason had been left with no choice but to agree.
As much as they were concerned about meeting with their illegal contacts, they were just as worried about the clearance they had received for the trip in the first place. Damason had bulled it through by saying he wanted to view the coastline from the sea to ensure that there would be no possibility of an assassin shooting at their supreme commander from the ocean. His colonel had approved and gave him papers stating he was to have carte blanche access to anything that the Cuban Border Guard had available. But even with the signed documentation, Damason had already thought of several ways the whole thing could go awry, starting with the possibility that the Border Guard wouldn’t have any suitable boats for an ocean trip. Even worse, that they would have a boat but no fuel was a more likely possibility. After a brief meeting with a guard on duty, which included the requisi-tion of enough gas for their trip, Damason and his sergeant now stood in front of the boat that was supposed to carry them. They were staring at it in disbelief.
“You’re sure we have a clear route to sea?” Damason asked.
Lopez looked pained. “Major, I am embarrassed that you would even ask such a question, but yes, I have the Border Guard’s planned patrols this evening. I don’t know whether God is looking over our shoulder, but apparently there is a large group of citizens that will be attempting to leave the homeland tonight. The majority of the guard in the area will be on hand to take them into custody.”
I know, I called in the tip to make sure they were caught this evening, Damason thought. Normally he tried not to get involved in people fleeing the country, but he knew tonight had to go smoothly, and the distraction would remove most of the patrols from the equation. He shook his head, knowing Lopez would assume he was sad about the impending capture—which he was, but it was also because of the guilt he carried, as well. “Soon that will no longer be necessary.”
“Amen, Major, amen. I thought the Coast Guard was seizing boats from refugees and drug runners,” Lopez said.
“What they haven’t sold outright, they’re using elsewhere.” Damason examined the waterline in the wan light, trying to see any bubbles or rotten wood. Finding nothing out of order, he took a deep breath as he stepped aboard. He was surprised to find that the deck was solid and dry under his feet. “Seems sound enough.”
“Then let’s get this potential death trip started,” Lopez said.
He untied the bowline and tossed it into the boat, then jumped in after it—making Damason wince as he landed on the deck with a thump. The vessel shuddered a bit, but held together.
“Always a positive attitude with you, Sergeant,”
Damason said.
“If you liked that one, you’ll love this—I hope the engine doesn’t explode when I try to start it.” He filled the external tank and wound the old-style pull cord around the starter.
“Here goes.” Tugging with all his might, Lopez almost fell over as the old engine clattered into relatively smooth life, with no smoke or sputtering. It was very loud, but if that was the only issue, Damason wasn’t about to complain.
