Katari sighed and shook his head. “I already told you that you don’t need to fill out an incident report. I’ll handle it.”
“No, you said we don’t need to fill one out at all,” Virk said. “So, I thought I’d take care of it for you.”
“And again, I insist that you give it a rest.”
“Give it a rest? Give it a rest? Captain, those men stormed aboard our vessel and stole some of our cargo. It’s unacceptable. We must report this.”
“It might be unacceptable and, yes, we’re obligated to report it—but not right now. I’ll take care of it. That’s part of my duties as captain of this ship.”
Virk furrowed his brow. “Perhaps, but it’s also my duty to assist you when you’re too busy. And you appear to be indisposed right now, so I’m simply offering my services.”
“And I’m declining them.”
Virk cast a suspicious eye toward Katari. “Very well. But before I go, will you please explain to me why container No. 8942 was left off the manifest?”
“It’s not important.”
“Not important? That’s against the law, not to mention our own shipping company’s protocol.”
“Drop it,” said Katari as he narrowed his eyes.
Virk sighed and sat down, insistent upon filling out the incident report.
“I’m warning you,” Katari said.
Virk held up his index finger. “Noted. Now, leave me alone so I can finish this report.”
“You can’t finish the report,” Katari said, brandishing his knife. “It’s time to put down the report and your pen and exit the bridge.”
“Says who?”
“Says me.”
Katari snatched the form from Virk’s hands and ripped it up.
“How dare you,” Virk snapped.
“I’m not going to ask you again to leave the bridge.”
Virk stared at Katari’s knife. “You have no idea what you’ve done. I’m going to report you. You’ll lose your captain’s position. Maybe they’ll even give it to me.”
Katari didn’t hesitate, lunging at Virk. Virk dodged to the left and then to the right several times before Katari plunged his knife into Virk’s midsection.
Virk doubled over and slunk to the floor. He looked up at Katari with a face pleading for answers.
“Why? Why did you do this?”
“I warned you to drop it, but you wouldn’t listen.”
Katari grabbed the microphone and made an announcement that was broadcast throughout the ship, requesting that all crew members meet in the galley for an emergency meeting.
Virk held his stomach, which was bleeding profusely. His hands were now soaked in blood as he tried to stop the flow. Unfortunately for Virk, his efforts were to no avail.
“It’s time for you to go,” Katari said.
With a face pleading for answers, Virk looked up at Katari. “How could you?”
“I could ask you the same question,” Katari said.
Katari opened the door to the bridge and led Virk down the steps before giving him a forceful nudge over the side and into the water. As he watched Virk splash into the sea, Katari struggled to believe what he’d just done. He watched as Virk flailed, crying out for help. In a matter of seconds, Virk was little more than a meek cry for help.
Katari leaned on the railing of the deck as he stared out across the water. He despised what he’d become, but he had no choice. Virk had forced Katari’s hand.
Katari took a deep breath and exhaled before turning and heading toward the galley. He needed to address the crew about the pirate incident.
He also needed to tell them about Virk’s suicide.
CHAPTER 2
Monday
Current day
Tangier, Morocco
HAWK PULLED BACK A CHAIR from the table and waited for Alex to have a seat. The dinner patio at The Riad la Tangerina was worthy of a postcard, something Hawk had little doubt was already available in the hotel’s gift shop. Yet he had his eye on the woman sitting across the table from him for two reasons: her beauty and her mystery.
While they waited for J.D. Blunt to arrive, Hawk ordered a bottle of wine and admired the view.
“Hard to believe that’s all that separates Africa from Europe,” he said, gesturing to the water.
“The Strait of Gibraltar isn’t much of a barrier these days,” Alex said. “I think you and I both know that firsthand.”
Hawk nodded. “Yes, but do you realize that my firsthand knowledge about you is very minimal. I mean, you know all about me after digging through my past, but I hardly know your past.”
“What’s there to know? I blew the whistle on some CIA project and got kicked to the curb. And here I am.”
Hawk shrugged. “So you say.”
Alex eyed Hawk and looked pensive for a moment before responding. “Are you being coy right now? I hope so, because the way you’re acting is starting to make me feel like you’re being combative.”
“All I’m saying is that I’d like to know a little bit more about who you are and your past, that’s all. I don’t play games. You should know that about me by now.”
The waiter slipped up to the table and uncorked a bottle of wine before filling both their glasses and scurrying away.
Alex relaxed her shoulders and took a gulp of her wine. When she finished, she turned her gaze toward the water.
“It’s because there are some things that aren’t so easy to talk about, the kind of memories you wish you could bury and never unearth again.”
“I think I have a lifetime of those already, but I don’t let it stop me from sharing it with others. Shouldering the burden of such pain alone is never healthy.”
Alex sighed. “I’m not sure I agree with that idea. Reliving a painful past seems to trigger depression for me.”
“Maybe you’ve never talked about it with someone who understands you.”
“You think you understand me?”
Hawk nodded. “I’m getting there. Why don’t you try me?”
“Fine. What do you want to know?”
“You know the crazy story about my parents or at least who I thought was my parents. But I never hear you talk about yours. What are
