on the concrete.
“He doubled our fee,” he said. “Hell, we were already getting paid like damn CEOs, now we’re getting paid like two damn CEOs.” He looked around at Remberto and then back at Graver.” Just goes to show you, don’t it You pay a guy enough money, and he’ll risk hell and high water to do the job. The bigger the money gets, the more he tells himself he can beat the odds… even if the odds get bigger too. All he can think about is coming out on the other end-smelling like brimstone and steam-with all that tax-free cash.”
Chapter 75
7:50 P.M
The five of them sat on the veranda facing the bay. Pizza boxes and hamburger carry-out sacks were scattered around on the small rattan tables along with cans of soft drinks. Graver leaned back in his chair and looked through the kitchen into the main room of the oversized bungalow where Redden and Ledet were sitting in the middle of the floor, their ankles and wrists cuffed together, looking like hostages in the fading light Alice was handcuffed too, but she was in the bedroom watching television. She had been told she was a material witness, and it was necessary to hold her for a while longer. Not being too bright, Alice accepted this without demanding to see a lawyer or screaming about her rights. And it helped that she had the television. It turned out she liked television a lot.
When they first arrived at the beach house and secured the three people inside, everyone had gone to the veranda and handed out the pizza and hamburgers. Graver had explained to Victor Last, who had remained with Alice, what had happened, and Last had listened without asking too many questions. Graver could tell that Last had sensed that questions were not the proper thing at this point in the proceedings, though it was not clear to Last just exactly what the proceedings were. Which was fine.
Then they had eaten their food, which was quickly growing cold, and talked about how Redden and Ledet’s stories had jibed and what they thought about Kalatis’s security, what they thought about his elaborate planning, what size plane the others might fly, and what the airspeed of the planes might be. In short, they talked about everything except the most important thing on their minds-what they were going to do-a matter that was totally absorbing Graver’s thoughts as he ate in silence, staring out to the dying light in the bay, while the others talked.
After finishing his hamburger, Graver sat back in his chair and opened his notebook. He started jotting down an outline of the schedule of flights, when each pilot left Bayfield, landed at Las Copas, off-loaded and on-loaded cash and clients to the pontoon plane, departed Las Co-pas and arrived at Kalatis’s pier, off-loaded cash and clients, and returned to Las Copas. At each juncture he noted the timing as related by Redden, keeping in mind that it was a schedule to which Redden doubted they could adhere. The plan was tight and efficient But something about it was terribly wrong.
“Okay,” he said finally, leaning forward in his chair and holding his notes in his hands in front of him, his forearms resting on his knees. Everyone stopped talking, wadded last bits of paper, put away boxes and sacks from in front of them.
Graver began reading the flight plans, stopping once in a while to listen to someone’s different recollection of what Redden had said was going to happen at a particular point In this way everyone reviewed a plan that was confirmed by consensus, no points remaining so unclear that anyone thought it was necessary to go back to Redden for clarification. When Graver was through he sat back in his chair again.
“Any observations?”
There was a momentary pause, and then Murray spoke up.
“Yeah, one.” He was careful to keep his voice down. He wiped his mouth one last time with a paper napkin, wadded the napkin, and tossed it into a paper sack between his feet “I personally think that seventy-five percent of this plan is total bullshit.”
Graver almost smiled with relief. “So do I,” he said. “Let’s hear it.”
“First of all,” Murray said, passing a thick hand over his short haircut, “Kalatis has got this thing on a schedule that looks too tight. We know how Redden feels about this.” He pulled his chair a couple of feet closer to Graver so he wouldn’t have to worry so much about being overheard by the two men inside the bungalow.
“Second, Kalatis has decided to give up his gimmick about living somewhere in Mexico. Now this is a game he’s gone to a lot of trouble to keep up for months, maybe a year or more. And now, at the last minute before bringing in the last of the big money, he’s going to let all these people know where he really lives?” Murray shook his head. “No way. I don’t buy that. Even if he is skipping out, I don’t buy that.
“Third, he’s changing- at the last minute — a schedule that has worked like clockwork for all this time. Why, right before his biggest haul, would he risk running an all-new schedule which is so complex that it is almost guaranteed to break down somewhere?
“Fourth, if I were in Kalatis’s shoes, I’d be simplifying my last deal, just to make sure I didn’t screw it up, instead of making it more complex. Or, I’d just leave it alone.
“Fifth, judging from Redden’s account, Las Copas is as remote as hell.” Murray was leaning forward toward Graver, and he turned and looked at Remberto. “What I think,” he said, “is that the first stop at Las Copas is the last stop… for everybody.”
Graver looked at Remberto who gave a very small nod of agreement, and then at Neuman who was stunned, and then at Last who was looking like he wanted to break out in a sweat.
“That’s what I think too,” Graver said.
“They’re going to kill all of them at Las Copas?” Neuman was incredulous. “The clients… and the pilots… and the copilots?”
Graver nodded. “Yeah. I think the reason Kalatis wasn’t concerned about how the tight schedule was going to work was because it didn’t matter. The clients, the pilots, and the moneys-all stop for the last time at Las Co- pas.”
“Goddamn…” Neuman was shaken.
“Yeah, and I think that was dawning on Redden too,” Murray said. “That guy’s no dimwit.”
“What about the planes? They’d have four planes there,” Neuman said.
“Probably only three,” Graver said. “The pontoon plane might not even be needed. And they’ll just have other pilots to take them away. But Redden, Maricio, Wade and their copilots know too much about this particular operation. The new pilots, they’ll just be hired to pick up some planes at an old dirt strip. That’s all they’ll know. And they’re not going to ask a lot of questions. The money’s too good, like Redden said.”
“And when it is all over,” Remberto added, looking at Neuman, “there will be only three witnesses: the security guards who will do all the shooting. You can bet they will be paying those boys a percentage of the money brought in on the three planes. You have to pay people like that very well. You never let your tigers get too hungry.”
“The question is, what’s the best way to break this up,” Graver said. “There’re only five of us.” He hesitated. “I see two chances. One: We leave now, immediately, for Las Copas. Ambush the guards when they come in early to string the lights, and then intercept each of the planes as it comes in. We’ll have to get the ‘all clear’ signaling arrangements from one of the guards.
“But there are some immediate risks and problems with this idea. There can be only four of us at Las Copas. One of us would have to stay with Redden who would have to fly the other four in, drop them off, and get back to Bayfield. Also, we’d have to leave immediately to get to Las Copas as early as possible if we hope to beat Kalatis’s guards there. Actually, it may be too late for that already. I’d guess Kalatis’s three men would want to be at Las Copas plenty early to set up.” He looked at his watch. “It’ll be getting dark in less than an hour.
“Or two: to intercept them at each of the airports, right after the client’s guards have left after unloading the client and the money. There would be only one guard to deal with in this scenario.” He looked down at his notes. “The problem with this second course of action is that we’d get to intercept only one load of money and one client, because when that first plane-Wade’s-doesn’t reach Las Copas on schedule, Kalatis will be notified, and he’ll send someone to see what went wrong. We’d have to forget about being able to intercept the other two loads of cash.
