Art and Murder

by Don Easton

  Like hell you did.

  Minutes later Roche found his way back to the main route. Jack glanced in the side mirror and saw a set of headlights rapidly approach from behind, then slow down to follow them. Damn it! If that’s the police …

  Roche checked his rear-view mirror and it was obvious he’d seen the lights, as well. Jack pretended to clear his throat and reached across to tap Roche on the side of his leg. When Roche glanced at him, Jack gestured with his head at the side mirror and the headlights following them.

  Roche nodded, then used his phone and made a call. Seconds later the headlights behind them flicked to high beam and back to low beam. Roche smiled and looked at Jack. “It’s okay, my friend.”

  “Something wrong?” asked Carina.

  “No,” said Jack. “I’m simply not used to the traffic. In Canada it’s not so crowded.”

  “Trust me, I will get you to your hotel safely,” Roche assured them.

  Trust you? NFL.

  Moments later they arrived at the E’ Hotel and went to reception to check in. Jack noticed that his room, which was on the second floor, was only for one night. Carina’s room, on the fourth floor, was booked for four nights.

  Jack gave Roche a quizzical look. “Only one night for me?”

  “Yes,” Roche confirmed. “Tomorrow we will be taking you to meet some people for a two-day adventure. Then we will bring you back to this hotel on Saturday.”

  “An adventure?” Jack asked.

  “A colleague has a lodge about a three- or four-hour drive from here. It’s used for hunting wild boar. It will be a good place to get to know each other.”

  Jack recalled what Carina had told him about the Russian who had introduced her to Roche. He’s a sportsman and likes to hunt.

  “Do you like to hunt?” asked Roche.

  Jack nodded and said he did. Oh, yeah. Going out in the bush with a bunch of bad guys with guns should be fun. What could possibly go wrong?

  “Coming from Canada, I suppose you have shot grizzly bears and moose,” continued Roche.

  Jack cleared his throat. “I enjoy hunting, but have never killed a moose or a grizzly bear. I’ve only hunted smaller game.”

  “Good.” Roche smiled and patted Jack on the back.

  Two-legged animals mostly.

  “It will be fun,” said Roche.

  Carina looked at Jack. “You like killing animals?” she asked.

  “Sometimes.”

  Carina wrinkled her nose in distaste.

  “We’ll talk more about it over dinner,” said Roche. “I’ve never hunted before, but it sounds exciting. Check in, then meet me in the restaurant in half an hour. There will be some colleagues, the executives of our company, who will be joining us for dinner.”

  “Are they also going hunting?” Jack queried.

  Roche nodded. “Yes, except for one who has been delayed. He’ll arrive tomorrow night and join us at the lodge on Friday.”

  Yes, the man from Russia who wants me to have collateral.

  “Once he arrives, we’ll have a meeting to go over what everyone has accomplished within the last year, as well as to set new goals,” Roche went on.

  “And will I be a part of …?”

  “That’s the plan,” said Roche.

  Jack nodded and outwardly showed no emotion. Perfect!

  “Carina, may I have a word with you?” Roche gestured for her to move farther away from the reception desk so they could talk in private. She obliged, and Jack saw them whispering to each other as he dealt with reception. Roche then gave a curt nod and went to the restaurant.

  “Everything okay?” Jack said as he joined Carina on the way to the elevator.

  Carina’s face revealed her displeasure. “He told you to join him in half an hour. But I’m to meet him as soon as I drop off my bag in my room.”

  “That’s reasonable,” replied Jack. “He won’t want me there when he’s asking you questions about me.”

  “That I understand, but tonight is to be only for the men. They want to get to know you. I feel like I have to say goodbye now.”

  “I’ll be back on Saturday,” Jack said, pushing the button for the elevator. “Depending, of course, on what you tell them about me.”

  “I think I’ll tell them that they could save expenses tonight if you and I shared a room.” Carina cast him a quick glance.

  “You know I’m not ready for that yet. I need —”

  “I was only joking … well, sort of,” Carina admitted.

  Jack nodded and they stepped into the elevator.

  “Do you really like hunting?” she asked as the elevator started its ascent.

  “Not really,” Jack said. “I’ve never shot a pig before, wild or otherwise. What is it Winston Churchill once said? Dogs look up to men, cats look down on them, but pigs just treat us as equals.”

  Carina smiled.

  “I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for pigs,” Jack went on. “They’re intelligent animals.”

  “The little ones are cute. Maybe you won’t shoot anything. Simply go along for the fresh air.”

  “Then again, I hope we get something,” he said, grinning. “I love roast pork.”

  “You ass!” she said, giving him a playful punch on the arm.

  The elevator stopped on the second floor, but before Jack could get off, Carina held the button to keep the door open while wrapping her other hand around his neck and kissing him passionately. Seconds later a loud buzz in the elevator indicated the door had been held open long enough.

  “Promise me you’ll hurry back on Saturday,” she said. “I don’t want our new beginnings to be me sitting alone.”

  “I promise. I also have a favour to ask.”

  “Anything.”

  “It would sound better if you did not share the feelings we have for each other with Roche or any of the others. It could reflect upon the value they place on your assessment.”

  Carina smiled. “The feelings we have for each other. So you feel the same way. I was beginning to wonder.”

  The irritating buzz in the elevator continued and Jack wasn’t sure what to say, anyway, so he smiled apologetically and stepped into the hall. “See you downstairs in half an hour, Carina.”

  Once in his room, Jack immediately called Laura and gave her the name of his hotel, then listened as she passed on the name to Paolo.

  “We’re booked into a hotel called the Grand Excelsior,” Laura said. “I’ve been told it’s just a five-minute walk from your hotel.”

  Jack told her about the plan to go hunting, as well as the business meeting scheduled to review everyone’s accomplishments and goals for the year. Any expectations he had of Laura being excited about his attendance at the meeting were soon put in perspective — Laura’s perspective.

  “You’re going out to kill some little pig?” she cried. “Or worse yet, orphan a bunch of little pigs?”

  Jack knew that Laura’s love for animals sometimes surpassed what she felt for people. “I don’t expect I’ll shoot anything. I think it’s more a guys-bonding kind of thing.”

  “I’ve seen that picture before,” said Laura sternly. “A bunch of guys boozing it up and carrying guns.”

  “Yes, it sounds like the Drug Section Christmas party,” Jack joked. “Should be fun.”

  “It’s not funny, Jack.”

  Jack became serious. “I suspect the Ringmaster likes to hunt. I need to show an interest.”

  “How do you feel about attending this so-called executive meeting on Friday?”

  “I feel okay with it.”

  Laura was silent for a moment, then said, “They put counter-surveillance on you from the airport.”

  “I saw. I was worried it was our people.”

  “Don’t worry about our people,” Laura insisted. “All is good, except that Giuseppe has Mafia connections. Tread carefully.”

  “Always. Anything new over Roche’s phone?”

  “A couple of calls to Anton, W
olfgang, and Giuseppe. Nothing of interest. It was about picking you up at the airport and meeting downstairs for dinner.” She waited a beat, then asked, “So what do you want done?”

  “Have someone check in here tonight and see if we can identify the Russian when he arrives tomorrow. Don’t do it yourself. A second Canadian showing up after I checked in would be too coincidental. Not to mention, if Anton’s here, he’d recognize you.”

  “For sure.”

  “Tonight I’m meeting the bad guys downstairs for dinner. If our Russian friend does the same thing with Carina tomorrow night, I’d like you in there to see if you can hear something or read anything from his facial expressions.”

  “The phone tap indicated he wouldn’t arrive until ten-thirty at night,” noted Laura.

  “Schedules change. Maybe he’ll catch an earlier flight.”

  “Gotcha.”

  “I also want a loose surveillance put on Carina throughout the day. I doubt they’ll be doing any counter-surveillance on her, so it shouldn’t be difficult.”

  “Do you suspect her of —”

  “No.”

  “Then you’re thinking more for security reasons,” Laura said. “The Russian talking about having collateral bothered me, too.” She waited a beat, then said, “It’s not like they would need to drag Carina kicking and screaming off the street. We might not be in a position to know if she’s about to be harmed.”

  “If something goes sideways with me, scoop her up,” Jack said sombrely.

  “Right … and how will we know if something goes sideways with you?”

  “I’ll call you.”

  “Oh, I see,” Laura scoffed. “You would say, excuse me, bad guys, don’t shoot me yet. I need to make a phone call first. Yeah, I’m sure they would go along with that.”

  “Damn it, Laura!” Jack couldn’t contain his annoyance. “What am I supposed to do? The next two days are crucial. We need her to convince the Russian … but if something goes wrong I don’t want her being harmed because of it. Come Saturday I’ll break up with her one way or the other.”

  “Yes, but how will I know if things do go sideways?” Laura persisted.

  “Like I said, I’ll call you if the situation turns ugly,” Jack replied.

  “And if you can’t?”

  “Then I’m probably already dead and they won’t have any reason to go after Carina.”

  Chapter Fifty-One

  Jack entered the restaurant and had barely taken a couple of steps when a man shouted, “Hey, Canada!” He saw Wolfgang wave at him from the far side of a table where he was sitting with Roche and Anton.

  Jack approached and Wolfgang rose and gave him a warm handshake. On the near side of the table sat Carina and a man whom Wolfgang introduced as Giuseppe. Jack shook his hand and noticed that there was very little hair on it. Strike you off the list.

  Jack looked across the table. “Hello, Anton. Nice to see you again.”

  Anton nodded, but Jack saw by his eyes that he was not pleased to have Jack there. Perhaps something to do with me taping his eyes shut or putting a gun to his head and threatening to blow his brains out. Or was it the threat of cutting him up in a band saw that makes him dislike me?

  Jack took the free seat beside Carina and felt her briefly squeeze his leg. She gave him a reassuring smile.

  “Carina has been speaking highly of you,” Roche said.

  Jack smiled and nodded to indicate he heard, but wondered how cognizant Roche was of Carina’s feelings for him.

  “Perhaps she even thinks as highly of you as Wolfgang does,” Roche added, giving Wolfgang a jab with his elbow.

  Wolfgang grinned, then raised a glass of red wine in Jack’s direction and said, “You may have impressed me a little with the, uh, consulting work you did for us in Canada.”

  “A little?” Giuseppe said. “What about you, Anton? Were you impressed … a little?”

  “What does he know?” Wolfgang chuckled. “I think he had his eyes closed half the time Jack was around.”

  “This is not the place or the time to be discussing work,” Roche said. “We are here to have fun tonight. Everyone drink, and let’s order. I’m hungry.”

  A waiter was summoned, and Jack and Wolfgang each ordered pasta, while the others ordered swordfish. The wine continued to arrive at the table and Jack was pretty sure that they wanted to get him drunk. Of course, that meant they’d get drunk, too.

  Anton, in particular, as time went on, appeared to have difficulty locating his mouth. The front of his shirt had collected a growing number of food and wine stains.

  Giuseppe talked about the hunting lodge he owned and laughed about the times hunters were chased by the wild boar. “Happens especially if the boar is wounded,” he said. “They can be dangerous.”

  “I’m sure Jack could handle them,” Wolfgang slurred. “Couldn’t you, Jack? Probably smack ’em in the teeth with the butt of —”

  “I’d prefer to shoot them,” Jack interrupted him. He glared at Wolfgang.

  Wolfgang took the hint and quit talking. Jack watched as he chased the last morsel of pasta around his plate with a fork, then captured it and popped it into his mouth.

  Carina was quiet during the meal and stopped drinking after her second glass. Once the plates were cleared, Jack felt her squeeze his leg one more time, then she announced that she was tired, but would see them off in the morning. The men concurred that everyone would meet at nine o’clock for breakfast.

  “We will leave the hotel around ten tomorrow morning,” said Giuseppe as Carina walked away. “Also, it is cold in the mountains, might even snow. We will shop for some warm clothes along the way. I have some winter coats at the lodge, but you might like to buy your own warm shirts, pants, boots, and heavy socks.”

  Jack nodded. “Thank you. I’ll need to shop. Leaving at ten doesn’t give us much time once we have breakfast.”

  “We go through a town on the way called Bianco,” Giuseppe said. “My cousin has a store there. Don’t worry. It is already paid for. Whatever you want.”

  “Oh, that’s very nice of —”

  “I am looking forward to hunting boar with you,” Anton said in a voice that sounded menacing.

  “And I with you,” Jack replied cheerily. “I’ve never hunted pigs before, but I presume by your appearance that you’re to be the decoy?”

  There was a burst of laughter from Roche, Wolfgang, and Giuseppe, but Jack knew by the look of hatred on Anton’s face that he had made a blunder. Undercover work is about befriending people, not making enemies.

  Jack cleared his throat, then looked around the table. “So that you don’t get the wrong idea,” he said, “I should tell the rest of you that Anton is one of the bravest men I’ve ever met. I had a gun to his head and threatened to cut him up with a band saw, yet he refused to tell me where the stash was hidden. Even when I fired a gun beside his head, he didn’t flinch.” Actually, he was too terrified to move.

  Anton glanced at the sombre faces of his colleagues as they reflected on what Jack had said.

  Jack raised his wineglass toward Anton. “I salute you. You’ve got balls.”

  The hatred vanished from Anton’s eyes and he shrugged modestly. He met Jack’s gaze, giving a slight nod and smile to show his appreciation.

  Jack nodded in return. Good. Just reeled you in, dumb-ass.

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  It was midnight when Jack returned to his room and called Laura. After she told him that one of Paolo’s men had obtained a room on the second floor overlooking the front entrance to the hotel, Jack updated her. When he told her they would be stopping in Bianco to shop at Giuseppe’s cousin’s store, she relayed the information to Paolo.

  “Okay,” she said, when she came back on the phone. “Bianco is about an hour-and-fifteen-minute drive from here. Paolo says the only place he thinks there would be boar-hunting is in the Aspromonte mountains. Translated, it means ‘rough mountains.’ On days when the roads are good, you can
go from the sunshine of the coast and be skiing an hour later.”

  “Good,” replied Jack. “Sounds like you’ll have a rough idea where I’m headed. Maybe suggest to Paolo he send a couple of his guys to Bianco to see where I go from there.”

  “He’s already said he would, but now the bad news. From Bianco, once you get into the mountains, there are myriad back roads, rivers, and mountains with little traffic this time of year. It’s been a popular region for the Mafia to hide people they kidnapped or took prisoner. He’s not sure if they still use that area, but he knows there’s no way they could follow you without being seen. If the roads are bad, which they often are, you could be looking at a three- or four-hour drive once you leave Bianco, depending on where they take you.”

  “Lovely,” Jack said.

  “I hate these situations,” said Laura.

  “Well, my good news is I think I impressed everyone at the table tonight. I don’t feel any bad vibes at all. Not even from Anton, who started off with a bit of a grudge.”

  “Just a bit? After what you —”

  “I think I smoothed it out. Just had to stroke his ego.”

  Jack heard Paolo talking to Laura in the background, then Laura muttered, “Crap.”

  “What now?” Jack asked.

  “Once you’re in the mountains, you can’t use a cellphone in a lot of the areas — at least, not without driving for up to an hour to find a spot that works.”

  “Like I said, I feel pretty good about the situation. I’ll tell the bad guys that I have to take care of business in Canada and will need to make a few calls. Eight in the morning in Vancouver is five in the afternoon here. So I’ll try to touch base around five.”

  “And if we don’t hear from you, what then? We won’t have a clue where you are. Damn it, Jack, they could even shoot you and say it was a hunting accident. With Giuseppe’s connections he wouldn’t even be charged with —”

  “I know. I thought of that, too.”

  “Well?”

  “Well what? It’s not like I have any choice. Same as Kerin when he tried to save me. He had no choice, either.”

  * * *

  At eight-thirty the next morning, Jack went into the restaurant for breakfast, hoping to catch Carina alone and remind her not to disclose the feelings she had for him until after he was hired. She was in the restaurant, but so was Roche.