by K. T. Tomb
“But it will likely cause an international incident and completely destabilize the entire area.”
Mayer shrugged. He obviously wasn’t planning on giving away his hand at that point.
Travis’ mind sprinted to keep up. What had seemed to be nothing more than the theft of diamonds at the outset of the assignment, had turned to something that was well beyond the scope of the investigation that he and Savannah had started. The full implications and where Mayer’s loyalties lay were still out of reach for the moment, but Alpha was well in over their heads in the current situation.
“Well,” Mayer broke in again. He rose from the seat, smiling. “I can see that you are trying to sort things out. You’ll be free to join us for breakfast and to wander about a bit, if you like. There isn’t much point in keeping you tied up for the moment. It’s a long swim in any direction that you take and, well, I’ll just send out a crew in a small boat to shoot you before you swim very far anyway.” He turned toward the door, turned the handle and pulled it open, and then stopped and turned to face Travis. “There is a chance, however slim, that the Tigers will treat you well and you’ll be traded for someone or something that is highly valuable to them. So, for the sake of your own survival, you’re probably better off simply biding your time and hoping for the best, am I right?”
Travis really didn’t have an answer and Mayer wasn’t really expecting one. Mayer left the question dangling in the air as he stepped through the door and closed it behind him.
Though he wasn’t particularly thrilled about socializing with his captor or perhaps captors, he decided that attending breakfast would not only give his stomach something to digest instead of the remnants of whatever drug had been used to knock him out, but would provide an opportunity for him to get a better look at the yacht as well. No doubt he would be confined or tied when they came into whatever port they hoped to meet up with the Tigers. It would be humiliating to present himself to the others, but logic overruled emotions in that case. If he were to escape with his life, he would have to have a better understanding of the yacht as well as the composition of his captors. How many of the “card players” were actually a part of either Mayer’s crew… or at least in on his deal? Probably all of them. But what roles did they play? Studying them would offer him some insight into what they were up to and if fate offered him an opportunity, he would take advantage of it with knowledge rather than relying on pure chance. Besides, he was a believer in the old adage that you created your own luck.
The clean, salty breeze that met him as he stepped out onto the deck helped to ease the throbbing in his skull and the nausea in his stomach. Though he’d never considered himself to be much of a sailor, it had always been relaxing for him to feel the soft rocking of the boat, barely perceptible on a yacht the size of the Easter Ecliptic. He paused to take in several deep breaths as he looked out over the water. Would those last few breaths that he took aboard the yacht be his last? Would the Tiger Terrorists simply kill him and use him as a trophy or would they bargain for something valuable? He hoped the latter, but the possibility of the former still hung around in his mind.
He observed everything on the boat as he took his time, making his way to the galley. He observed crew members and attempted to assess what sort of men they were by the looks that they gave him and the way that they went about their work. When he finally arrived in the galley, the group of “card players” were all in attendance.
“Mr. Monahan,” Mayer called out. “So glad you could join us.”
Chapter Eleven
It was completely against everything that lived and breathed inside of her to make the phone call and ask for Chen to meet her. Thyri was, of course, correct in her assessment of the problem and the options that were available to them. It was the type of situation where one had to swallow one’s pride and do what was best. Travis was depending on her to get him out of whatever tight spot he was already in. That Chen happened to be her best option simply couldn’t be helped for the moment, besides, if Chen were in on what was going on, it was better to keep an eye on her anyway. Savannah just hoped that she wouldn’t be shot for her trouble.
“I’m going to guess that you didn’t get to Travis in time to stop him from getting on Mayer’s yacht.”
There was no reason that Savannah should have been surprised that Chen would walk up and greet her before launching into an “I told you so,” but it still got on her nerves. She fought down the urge to give her a piece of her mind and then storm out, but she had to think of Travis and the fact that he would be counting on her. It was just an ironic twist of fate that Chen was her only option. “It’s a pleasure to see you too, bless your heart.” She doubted that Chen would have any idea how the use of that particular Southern euphemism was not nearly as friendly as it sounded, but it made her feel a little bit better.
“You called this meeting,” Chen said, taking her seat. “So, start.”
The attitude didn’t sit well with Savannah. Throughout their last meeting, Chen had taken on a tone of superiority and had belittled her the entire time; if that wasn’t humiliating enough, having to come to her for help certainly was. She sighed heavily and dove right in. “I did not get to Travis in time and we need your help.”
The smirk on Chen’s face was like that of a powerful tyrant who was overjoyed by watching an enemy bow before him. “I see,” she replied. She started scrolling through her smart phone, seemingly uninterested in whatever Savannah had to say, but completely delighted to find herself in a dominant position. Stupid Americans couldn’t handle anything in an arena where the big boys played.
Chen had had her opportunities to eliminate Travis, but had chosen to wound him, humble him and put him in a position where he might be useful to her at some point in time. She was delighted by the surprise gift that she had received in the bargain. She had them in the humiliating position of having to beg her. It was almost better than watching Travis bleed.
Watching the smug attitude that was on Chen’s face made her want to slap the woman, but, again, that was no way to start off a conversation with someone when you needed their help. She decided to level with Chen. “Look. I’m not enjoying having to work with you any more than you want to work with me, but at the moment, we have mutual stakes in this and I would appreciate it if we could make a civil arrangement for working together.”
“Ah, Savannah.” She clicked her tongue and smiled broadly. “Who says that I’m not going to enjoy working with you? You’re delightful, bless your heart.”
Maybe she understood the euphemism after all. There was no point in continuing the banter, though she decided to lead with a passive aggressive statement all the same. “So, if your information is valid, I’m assuming that Travis is being taken north to be traded to the Tigers along with the ‘rejected’ diamonds. What assets do you have at your disposal to get Travis out of the mess that he’s in and straighten this diamond smuggling ring out?”
“I have an assault team and two helicopters to take them in. We were already planning on doing something when we came to Sri Lanka and were therefore, prepared. Our information, which I can assure you is quite valid, tells us that Mayer will be meeting the Tigers at Pedro Point. We have already laid out an assault plan that is to be carried out at a predetermined time which will have both the Tigers and Mayer’s crew off balance and taken completely off guard. We will carry out our plan and bring your precious Travis back to you.”
“Not a chance, Chen,” she said through clenched teeth. “I don’t trust you that much. I’m going with you.”
“I would hate to see you get hurt.” The evil glint in her eyes didn’t match the words and neither did the smug expression.
“And I don’t want another of your bullets put into Travis.” She leaned in and leveled her stare, glaring at Chen. As pretty as she was, her blue eyes held a certain amount of ice in them that could communicate the deeper resolve and credibility of a threat. “I don’t trust you.”
Che
n leaned in to match her stare, but with a look of amusement on her face. “Suit yourself.” She sat back and pondered for a moment. “Actually, I can use you. It would be better if I and my team were not distracted, but you’ll be on your own for rescuing Travis.”
“What is your plan?” Savannah wasn’t sure that she trusted Chen’s plan to isolate her with Travis and focus on recovering the diamonds for herself, but she had to remind herself that Travis was her first priority. If Chen got away with the diamonds, then at least they would know where they went and for all practical purposes, they had already achieved what they needed to achieve, they’d figured out what was going on and who was involved, someone else could straighten it out.
“I will brief you when we’re in flight to the target,” Chen replied. “I assume that you have a smart phone with local service?”
Savannah reached into her bag and pulled out her phone. “International service.”
“Very good. Your number?”
Savannah wasn’t sure that she wanted Chen to have her number, but under the circumstances, what else could she do? She gave it to her. She could always have it changed once things were settled. The more that she thought about it, however, the more it made sense to have Chen’s number as well.
Chen tapped on the screen of her phone as she put in the number and then slid files into the message and pressed send. “That is where and when you will meet my team to go on the mission. If you’re even one second late, we’ll leave without you.” She stood, emphasizing the last statement by leaning over slightly. She raised her eyebrows, fixed a fake smile on her lips and winked. “So, go pack your ditty bag.”
“Go pack your ditty bag,” Savannah whispered under her breath as she watched Monica Chen walk away. Sometimes she wondered if it was all worth it. Not only did she have to put up with Travis and his wild goose chases, but she had to put up with the likes of Monica Chen too. Maybe I should consider another line of work. The investigations, putting together the puzzles, taking on the challenges and solving problems were rewarding, but the people; not so much.
As difficult as Travis could sometimes be, Thyri was correct, they did complement each other well. It had been pointed out to her on several occasions and she had known that it was right each time, but it wasn’t until those moments when she was about to lose him or that she might have already lost him that she began to realize just how well they did fit together. Had the shoe been on the other foot and she was the one in trouble, she had no doubt in her mind that Travis would be move heaven and earth to get to her. She could not expect less from herself.
She could feel her nerves tighten and her stomach begin to flutter as she made her way back to the hotel room. The idea of being involved in an assault on a scale of what she envisioned was about to take place at Pedro’s Point when Chen’s team dropped in was a little more than what she was used to. The fact that she would be accompanying a woman that she did not trust one iota and who had already put bullets in Travis on two occasions didn’t help make her any less uptight. You’ve got to get control of yourself, Savannah. Just another day at the office. She wished that she could believe herself.
Back at the hotel, she signed onto Skype once more and was soon connected to Thyri.
“Savannah,” Thyri said, once their cameras had begun to reveal them to each other. “You don’t look so good. Are you okay?”
“Other than having the feeling that I’ve made a deal with the devil, yeah, I’m fine.” She wasn’t fine. She was pretty sure that she was going to throw up, but there wasn’t any point in announcing that to her boss.
“I understand. Probably not the most rewarding conversation you’ve ever been involved in. So what’s the plan?” Thyri asked.
Savannah was glad that Thyri didn’t focus on the huge dose of humility that she’d had to swallow in order to ask Chen for help, but went straight to the point. “I’m to meet her later this evening and she said that she will brief me on the flight to the target.”
“That’s nice and vague. Do you at least know the target?” Thyri wrinkled her brow as she asked the question.
“The target is on Pedro Point. Other than the departure point and time, I don’t know anything else.”
“That is by design, for sure.” Thyri made a tent with her hands and held them to her lips, bouncing them back and forth rapidly as she sorted through her thoughts. “I’m not any more thrilled about this than you are. I’ll do all that I can to get some of our own assets there as quickly as possible, but you’re going to be alone on this. Block out everything else and keep your focus on Travis. Diamonds can be replaced, he can’t.”
“How else do you think I was able to make it through my meeting with Chen?”
“Point taken. Look, Savannah, once you get Travis out of whatever bind he’s in, you trust his instincts. You are an excellent analyst and have analytical skills in spades, but in a tight spot, you’ve got to follow Travis’ instincts, understand?”
“Understood.” As often as she had railed about his wild goose chasing, he did have an innate ability to get out of tight spots that defied logic.
“Contact me as soon as and in whatever manner you are able at the first opportunity you have so that I can send our team in to support you.”
“I will.”
“Good luck.”
“Thanks.” Once they had disconnected, Savannah had never felt more alone.
Chapter Twelve
Helicopters weren’t exactly Savannah’s thing. Being in one with Monica Chen didn’t help. There was nothing comfortable about riding in one in the first place, but it was even worse when something unknown was at the other end of the flight. If there had been anything left in Savannah’s stomach when she boarded the flight, she would have deposited the contents in an air sickness bag. If there were one available in a Chinese assault helicopter.
Trying to keep her mind focused on the task at hand, she rolled her neck several times, stretched her arms and tried to put on her game face. Being a part of an assault team, however, wasn’t exactly in her bailiwick. Chen glanced at her and smirked, making her even more uncomfortable and unsure of herself. She began to wonder if she, herself, hadn’t been led into a trap. Perhaps that had been Chen’s plan all along; to get her killed and then grin and wave them off as the Tigers finished off Travis. That sudden realization strengthened her resolve and made her even more determined to not only make certain that Travis made it out safe, but to somehow implicate and nail Chen in the process.
“So, Savannah.” Chen’s mocking voice came over the headset that she had been given when she took her seat. “Are you ready to be briefed?”
“Sure,” she replied, trying to push steel into her voice.
“Your headset is equipped with a secondary frequency where we can speak to each other privately.”
Savannah looked across at her. She had no idea how to change frequencies. She shrugged, looking across at Monica.
“It’s that little button on the receiver unit.” Chen rolled her eyes as she explained.
Savannah switched over to the private frequency. “I’m here.”
“Very good.” Her tone was like that of a teacher encouraging a particularly slow student. “If I tell you to go private, this is what I mean.”
“Got it.” There wasn’t any point in saying more. She didn’t particularly care for Chen’s tone, but she had already prepared herself to be mocked during the entire operation and decided that she had to keep herself focused on her mission and block out every other thought. Travis was depending upon her.
“As soon as our assets that are keeping an eye on the situation inform us of the location of Travis, we’ll move you to the best position to make it to that target. Open your phone.”
Savannah did as she was told.
“That is a map of the assault area. You’ll note that the Easter Ecliptic is anchored in the harbor. You’ll also note that there is an assault craft marked on the beach one of our local assets is standing
by if it is necessary to use it. If there is a god, we will hope that you do not have to enter the assault craft and board the yacht. We are hoping that Travis will be held somewhere on the beach. If that is not the case, you will have a very limited amount of time and limited amount of help once you’re aboard that yacht. Our plan is to slip you in quietly from the rear while the other part of our team draws attention from to the beach. Our part of the team will then slip in on the flank. You should be free to get to Travis and get back out again without being noticed.”
“I understand.”
“Now, you’ll need to be on your toes and ready to move the second that I give you the go signal. The skids of the craft will barely touch the ground and your feet need to be touching the ground pretty quickly thereafter or I will push you out. I will not put the rest of the team at risk because you moved too slowly, understood?”
“Understood.”
“My team will assault the forces of the Tigers and Mayer’s on the beach. We’re hoping to touch off a battle between them and sweep in to take over what’s left. As you can imagine, both sides will have itching fingers in this trade and with a little provocation in the right moment, all hell will break loose.” A wicked grin formed on her face and then it turned serious again. “The extraction point is clearly marked with a red X on your assault map. From the moment that your feet touch solid ground until you are to rendezvous at the extraction point, you will have 30 minutes. If you don’t make it in time, you and Travis—or failing your rescue of Travis, you—will be on your own. Got it?”
“Got it.”
Chen’s eyes narrowed and had a steely glare to them. “You are not to interfere with my assault team, you are not to get in our way or to try something stupid. If you do any of those things or compromise our mission in any way, I will put a bullet in you. You can count on that.”
