just another way to get yourself killed.”
“Noted.”
“And what’s the latest with Lap Pu?”
“Surveillance says it looks like he’s wrapping up his business here. So we can expect him to make a move at any time.”
“Then I’m going to need to get some supplies. I made a list.” She slipped a piece of paper across to him. He opened it, read quickly, then nodded.
“I’ll need to check on the MTAR. What’s your second choice?”
“FN P90. Although I prefer the MTAR with a laser sight and suppressor. In 9mm.”
“I’m thinking I can get one flown in. It may take a day.”
“Then I hope we have one,” she said.
“Worst case, I know we have some M4s with laser sights and suppressors.”
“Bulkier. In a pinch that would work, I suppose. But if you want to keep a girl happy, get the MTAR and a few hundred rounds of ammo.”
“Hmm. No problem on the night vision goggles. Infrared might be tricky. Let me see what I can do.”
“I didn’t make out that list as suggestions. If I’m going into the jungle, then I’ll need to be properly equipped. Unlike the last teams, I have no intention of being road kill.”
“Which brings me to the part you’re not going to like.”
Jet’s eyes narrowed.
“Headquarters feels it would be a good idea for you to work with Rob when you go after Lap Pu.”
She took a gulp of water and frowned. “Absolutely not. He’s not in the same league as I am. Don’t get me wrong. He’s not bad, but he’s not me. And that could get me killed. So forget about it. I don’t work with a partner. Arthur knows that.”
“He sensed there might be some problems. Asked you to call today.”
“Arthur can screw himself.”
“Yes, well, perhaps. But he still needs you to get in touch.”
The food arrived, and they dug in. Her chicken picata was indifferently prepared with some traces of odd spices. The Thai version, she supposed.
“What else?”
“We may not have a lot of warning when Pu takes off, so I’d stay alert.”
She gave him a glum look. “Really. Stay alert. I’ll try to do that. But until you have my list in hand, I can’t go anywhere, unless you’re thinking I should go into the jungle with only a KA-BAR and a smile.”
“Point taken. It will be my top priority. In fact…” He flipped out his phone and typed in the list, pausing occasionally to take a bite of lasagna. “…There. By the time I get back to my office, I’ll have a line on all of it.”
When she’d eaten half of her uninspiring meal, she pushed back from the table.
“I’m going. Thanks for lunch. I’ll contact Arthur.”
“How will I get in touch with you?”
“I’ll call you at five. Let’s hope that Pu stays put one more night.”
Chapter 19
“Forget it. I’m not going to do it. That wasn’t our deal.” Jet’s voice was quiet, and yet had an edge to it. She peered absently around the internet cafe from her position in the glass internet phone booth.
“I’m afraid that circumstances have changed. This isn’t negotiable. Rob will accompany you and assist in whatever way you need, but he is going with you,” Arthur said.
“What part of ‘no’ are you having trouble with?” She could hear his breath coming in harsh rasps on the other end of the line.
“What part of ‘you’ll do as you’re told or never see your daughter again’ are you unclear about?”
Jet seethed. She’d been expecting this, waiting for it, but it still took all of her willpower to keep from hanging up and jumping on the first plane to the United States to hunt him down and kill him.
“We have a problem, Arthur. You’re breaking your word. That makes me think you’ll also break your word when the time comes to give me Hannah. I guess we could call this a crisis of confidence. And you really don’t want a crisis of confidence.”
“Look. I heard all about your run-in with the gunmen. I also know that it was Rob’s quick thinking — his decision to split up when you wanted to stay together — that was largely responsible for both of you getting away.”
“Ha! Is that what he told you? Please. I suppose it escaped you that I single-handedly dealt with both of the remaining shooters and the driver without big strong Rob to keep me from breaking a nail.”
“Be that as it may, you are both going to go into the jungle and bring me the target’s head. Do that and you will get your daughter back. There’s an easy way and a hard way to do this. I would strongly suggest you do it the easy way.”
“No. I’m not going to play ball any more. This is over now. I’ll figure out how to get my daughter back without you. I hope you sleep with one eye open because you’re going to need to,” she said, prepared to hang up.
“Stupid mistake. I’ll have you on every Interpol terminal in the world within five minutes. You want to play with me? Get ready to spend the rest of your short life in some hellhole of a jail being serial raped by the guards. While your daughter grows up never knowing you — maybe develops a drug problem, runs away, winds up working the streets. Push me and I’ll make it happen. Think I won’t? Try me.”
Jet took a few beats to slow down her racing thoughts. There were other ways of handling the situation besides going to war with Arthur. She’d believed he would back down, but he hadn’t, and now she was at the brink. Not a place she wanted to be.
“If you want the diamonds back and the target terminated, you’ll do it my way,” she said.
Arthur’s tone softened perceptibly. “I am doing it your way. Only you’ll have Rob with you. Look, you can use him to carry the gear for all I care. But take him. He may even prove helpful with the locals once you’re in the brush. Last time I checked, your Thai wasn’t going to win any awards.”
She realized that she had no negotiating power if he was willing to throw her under the bus to win a power struggle. Her strategy had depended upon him wanting the diamonds back more than he wanted to get his way. She’d just gotten an important lesson in how his mind worked.
“Fine. But you’re to instruct him that he answers to me, and that means if I tell him to do something, it’s an order. I don’t need someone who disobeys me whenever he thinks his opinion is superior. He did that when he split up, and that’s a dangerous trait. I won’t tolerate it. I’ll shoot him myself if he does it again. Do you read me?” she fumed.
“I do, and I’ll convey the message. Remember that he’s an experienced field operative in his own right. A lot of experience.”
“So were the two teams you sent in before me, right? They’re dead. Forgive me if I’m not bowled over by that hit rate.”
“Touche.”
“You sucked me into this because you need my expertise. If you thought you could have used your own people successfully, you would have. So don’t hamstring me with dead weight. I’m playing this to win. And I mean what I say about shooting him myself.”
“I understand.” Arthur paused, and she heard what passed for his lips smacking. “Then we have an agreement?”
“We do. But I want to reiterate what I said earlier. If you try to screw me, I will hunt you down. Nothing in the world will save you. I hope you believe me.”
“Oh, I do. Believe me I do.”
“I’ll call Rob after I call Edgar,” Jet concluded, then punched the off button and exited the booth, returning to the front counter of the internet cafe to pay for her time. She didn’t want to chance using cell phones to call him. She knew how easily a cell could be triangulated over a period of more than a minute. A cell would be fine with a
