‘I’ll be damned,’ he mumbled to himself.
Thanks to her disguise - complete with ponytail, headphones, oversized sunglasses, and a local college backpack - Sarah Ellis looked like a demure, eighteen-year-old student, not the half-naked operative he had parted ways with in New York.
On the beach, she had been a fearless woman.
Here, she resembled a lost teenager.
The difference was truly remarkable.
Sarah nodded subtly toward the parking garage, then strolled in that direction. At no point did she turn around to see if Cobb was coming.
She knew he would be close behind.
After all, she was the one carrying the merchandise.
11
There was a saying among covert ops: Who watches the watchers?
The idea was to always assume that while you were observing an activity, your own tactics and techniques were under observation. Cobb had arrived several hours early in order to learn more about his new employer. Unfortunately, since he had spotted no one in the field, Cobb had to assume that he had been the one under the microscope.
In some ways, it made him feel foolish.
In other ways, it made him feel at ease.
It was safer to work with professionals.
Cobb’s suspicion grew when he reached the parking garage and ran squarely into a white stretch limo that was just pulling up to the curb. Sarah was standing ten feet away, pretending to wait for a taxi while bopping her head to an imaginary tune. He knew there was no way she was listening to music at a time like this. Her sense of hearing was far too important to sacrifice in an employer meet-and-greet.
Or whatever the hell this was.
A muscle-bound chauffeur hustled around the back of the limo, and then opened the rear door for his boss. A few seconds later, a man in an expensive, custom-tailored suit stepped out. Made of light gray silk, the suit was accompanied by a light-yellow, open-necked shirt and handsome loafers. An expensive watch glistened in the harsh fluorescent lights of the parking garage. So did his pinkie ring.
The man smiled while sauntering forward. He had exquisitely styled gray hair and a perfectly landscaped mustache. He smelled of expensive cologne. Not the kind that peasants buy in stores, but the kind the uber-wealthy have personally designed.
Cobb sensed the man was friendly, but he wasn’t about to let down his defenses. The last week had left him with a lot of questions and a city full of enemies. He also knew the mission in New York was only the beginning.
‘Mr Cobb,’ said the man with the mustache. His French-accented voice was almost as smooth as the suit. ‘I am Jean-Marc Papineau. It is a pleasure to finally meet you. I hope you had a pleasant early-morning flight from Las Vegas.’
Cobb nodded, but said nothing.
Papineau continued. ‘At this point of our relationship, I am quite confident that personal safety is still your number one concern. However, due to the private nature of our business and the smoldering temperatures in this garage, may I recommend the air-conditioned comfort of my limousine?’
Cobb shook his head. ‘Not until I frisk the guy inside.’
‘Go frisk yourself!’ said a gruff voice from the limo.
Cobb could only see the guy’s legs, but he recognized the voice at once. He crouched and peeked into the car, fully expecting to see the beach bum he had left in Brooklyn. He was shocked to see a clean-cut McNutt. Although his shoulder-length hair could still use a trim, McNutt was actually a good-looking guy - with stubble, high cheekbones, narrow blue eyes, a longer than usual nose, cleft chin, and a curving mouth.
Cobb nodded his approval. ‘Glad to see you took a shower.’
McNutt smiled. ‘Glad to see you’re wearing pants.’
Papineau nodded. ‘Yes, thank goodness for both.’
‘You guys are idiots,’ Sarah grumbled as she pushed past Papineau and climbed into the limo. ‘In case you didn’t know, the goal was to not be seen together in public. So quit chatting and get in the damn car before they charge us for an extra day of parking.’
Cobb and Papineau quickly joined her inside.
The limousine was sumptuously appointed, stocked with the best food and liquor Cobb had never consumed - from Dom Perignon to Iranian Karaburun Ossetra caviar. The ‘snack’ table separated the group into two pairs. Sarah and Papineau faced forward, while Cobb and McNutt sat with their backs to the chauffeur. The soundproof partition was currently raised, keeping the group’s conversation private.
That is, if they decided to talk.
The passengers were silent as the limo joined the afternoon traffic. The quiet lasted for several minutes as Sarah checked her e-mail, McNutt took a short nap, and Papineau regarded Cobb, who was staring out the smoky glass window at the tropical landscape.
Papineau had heard wonderful things about Cobb and his ability to pull off miracles in the field. To find out if this was true, he had given Cobb a next-to-impossible mission, a ridiculously short timeframe, and a ragtag group of specialists brought together specifically for their unique skills. Then he watched in amazement as Cobb figured out a way to make it work with people he had never dealt with before.
‘So,’ Papineau said to break the ice, ‘I’m sure you’re wondering why I invited you to Florida instead of paying for the item in New York.’
‘Not really,’ Cobb said. ‘I assume you brought us here to officially team us up and ship us out-of-country for something even bigger.’
The Frenchman smiled. ‘The team-up was obvious. Why do you assume the rest?’
‘Why? Because we’re in Fort Lauderdale, the Venice of America, a city known for its extensive system of canals. The location gives you quick access to international waters, but keeps you away from the drug cartels in Miami. Based on your car and clothes, I know you have money to burn, which means you probably took advantage of the real estate collapse and bought yourself a nice estate - or three - near the beach. Not because you like playing in the sand, but because you need water access for, um, business.’
Papineau stared at him. ‘And what business do you think that is?’
‘I’d hate to be presumptuous. That would be rude.’
‘Indeed.’
An uncomfortable silence filled the limo for the next several seconds as Sarah and McNutt waited to see Papineau’s reaction to Cobb’s analysis. Although they had spoken to him on the phone, this was the first time any of them had met Papineau, so they were anxious to see what kind of man had hired them. Was he a vicious tyrant like Vladimir Kozlov, or was he a tough-but-fair leader like Cobb himself?
Papineau continued to stare. ‘I see you’ve given this a lot of thought.’
‘More than a little, less than a lot.’
‘And what conclusions have you reached?’
‘No conclusions. Just observations.’
‘Don’t undervalue observations, Lieutenant. I learned quite a bit about you by observing you from afar. Not only did I tap into the FBI feed in New York, but I also watched you conduct countersurveillance in the airport. I didn’t want to miss a thing.’
Cobb smiled. He had been right all along.
Whoever watches the watchers was the key to everything.
He reached for the crackers, which looked like saltines but were probably baked in tandoor ovens in India somewhere. He hadn’t eaten all day. Hunger kept him alert, but he needed sustenance to keep up his strength. ‘Do me a favor. Don’t call me “Lieutenant”. It’s a bad habit to get into. You might slip up, do it around secret police in a foreign land, and earn us a set of eyes we don’t want.’
Papineau nodded. ‘Good to know.’
‘That is, if I decide to work for you.’
‘You’re already on the payroll.’
‘I am?’
‘You are,’ he assured him. ‘Unless, of course, you’re here to let me know that you don’t wish to be paid for services rendered. Is that why you’re here, Mr Cobb? To refuse my money?’
‘No,’ Co
bb admitted, ‘I’m here to learn more about your plans for us. Once I know the details, I’ll let you know whether I intend to work for you ever again.’
Papineau smiled. He loved Cobb’s experience, intelligence, and directness. He had everything he was looking for and more. ‘Trust me, Mr Cobb. Once you hear my offer, I am quite certain that you and your team will sign on for more. Offers like these are rare indeed.’
Cobb studied his face. ‘Then why wait? Why not tell us now?’
‘Why?’ the Frenchman teased with a devilish smile. ‘Because you still have to meet the rest of your team.’
12
The limo slowed and turned off the scenic highway, leaving the paved road for a dirt path that had been cut through the overgrown marshes. McNutt saw WARNING and NO TRESPASSING signs as they drove toward a twenty-foot-tall gate in the middle of the jungle. It reminded him of the entrance to Jurassic Park.
‘Hey, Papi!’ McNutt said as he put his nose against the window. ‘Please tell me you have dinosaurs. I want to play with some.’
In this part of the country, ‘Papi’ (which sounds like pa-pee) is a slang term that literally means ‘father’, but can also mean ‘boyfriend’, ‘big daddy’, or many other things. McNutt intended no disrespect by using it. He liked it simply because it was easier for him to say than his other options.
Papineau shook his head in frustration. ‘Joshua, in the future, please address me as Mr Papineau or Jean-Marc. Not Papi. Never Papi.’
‘Sorry,’ McNutt mumbled, ‘I prefer Papi.’
Cobb tried not to smile. He prayed that McNutt’s childishness was just an act. Otherwise, there was a decent chance that he was mentally challenged. Nevertheless, he did his best to protect McNutt by quickly changing the subject. ‘Despite the size of your fence, I’m assuming you have other security measures in place. Or do you actually use raptors?’
Papineau shook his head. ‘There is electrified mesh netting comprised of twenty-eight AWG, heavy poly nylon one-five-five magnet wire behind the fence, reaching to the base of the marsh. It encircles the entire six-acre property within the reeds.’
Then he added, ‘It cannot be cut.’
‘There is nothing that cannot be cut,’ Sarah said.
‘That may be true - if you’re willing to accept several fatalities en route to that goal.’
‘So, is the high voltage to keep people in or out?’ Sarah asked.
‘Objects in, people out,’ he answered vaguely.
The chauffeur touched the right-side frame of his sunglasses. Then he pressed an eight-button combination on another remote control. The gate swung in slowly.
‘The combination changes every hour,’ Papineau bragged. ‘It is beamed from security central to a heads-up display in his eyewear. Very high-tech.’
A cobblestone road greeted them on the other side of the fence. The car continued along an extended, stretched-out ‘S’ curve until the flat top of a single-story ranch house could be seen. It was surrounded, as far as they could see, by an artificial inlet.
‘Damn,’ McNutt said. ‘Not what I was expecting.’
Cobb saw his point. The unassuming structure was made of concrete block stucco with a tile roof. He guessed it to be about four thousand square feet. On the surface, it appeared no different from the other homes they’d passed on the highway - which was the point. There was a practical side, too. A low house would be better equipped to handle the ubiquitous Florida storms - and easier to armor, since impact-resistance diminished exponentially the higher from base a wall reached. If the grounds were electrified and the windows were bulletproof, he had a hunch the walls would be designed to withstand a rocket-propelled grenade, at the very least.
Cobb noticed a wellhead in a patch of land; that meant the place maintained its own water supply. He also saw an Echelon-class Signals Intelligence (or SIGINT) satellite dish. Except for a slight size differential - it was about twenty percent larger than a standard home dish - no one would know it was the same kind used by the military for highly secure SIGINT transmissions.
As they rounded the driveway in front of the house, Cobb saw that they not only had a moat but also their own canal and marina.
The chauffeur parked outside a four-car garage, then hustled around the limo and opened the door. Papineau, their host, took the lead in exiting the vehicle. He helped Sarah from the car, then turned his back on Cobb and McNutt. Cobb was impressed by his actions. The first was a show of chivalry; the second was a show of trust.
So was bringing them to his home.
‘Welcome to La Tresorerie, my friends,’ Papineau said as he opened the heavy, crystal-inlaid, carved wood door. The latch had popped open an instant before he grasped the handle thanks to facial recognition software in the surveillance camera.
It had happened so smoothly only Cobb had noticed.
‘How much French do you know?’ McNutt whispered to Sarah.
‘It means “Treasure-House”,’ she said.
‘Oh,’ McNutt grunted - as his eyes drifted obliviously past a Van Gogh hanging just inside the doorway while searching for dinosaurs lurking within.
The small foyer door opened onto a magnificent living room of columns, elaborate chandeliers in recessed sections of high ceilings, semi-spiral staircases, hardwood and marble floors partially covered by obviously exotic rugs, built-in bookcases, and heavy, inviting furniture. It was too much for any of them to take in with a single glance.
‘Feel free to explore,’ Papineau said.
Cobb glanced at Sarah. ‘But only to explore.’
‘I’m an acquisitions expert, not a thief,’ she protested.
‘Interesting distinction,’ McNutt said.
She wandered off, ignoring him.
The three newcomers each studied a different section of what Cobb now realized was actually three separate rooms: a living room, library, and parlor. That accounted for about three-quarters of the square footage. Except for a rectangular section housing a fireplace, the first floor of the home was mostly living space.
Sarah looked around the fireplace at an impressive dining area, but that’s as far as she got. Her attention was drawn to a huge picture window that doubled as one full wall of the dining area. She gasped involuntarily at the sight of a magnificent terrace interspersed with interlocking swimming pools, sculptures, and palm trees.
The men joined her there. Their eyes were immediately drawn to the luxurious lounge chairs facing the pool. Cobb zeroed in on the one with the young man. He quickly deduced who he was. Meanwhile, McNutt studied the one with the young woman. She was wearing a one-piece, blue, clip-back bathing suit with white piping.
‘Now this is a balcony to do Shakespeare from,’ Sarah remarked.
McNutt grinned. ‘I couldn’t agree more - if her name is Shakespeare.’
Papineau swept by them and slid open a large section of the glass wall. It led directly to the deck. ‘After you.’
The trio wandered out, dwarfed by the blue sky and the overpowering sight and sound of the ocean. Alerted by the whoosh of the door, the occupants of the terrace rose. The young man was the shorter of the two - probably five-six, with spiky, dark brown hair and medium brown skin. He wore sandals, cargo shorts, and a T-shirt that had a Wi-Fi symbol. Fifteen or twenty years ago Cobb might have labeled him a nerd, but he was the sleeker, more recent model, with a trim waist and well-exercised arms.
Still wet from a recent swim, the young woman was spectacular. By the sleek shade of her black hair and the deep brown of her almond-shaped eyes, Cobb knew she was Eastern. However, her height - she was at least five-foot-seven - and her generous curves made him think that part of her genetic make-up was Western.
‘My friends,’ Papineau announced as he turned to the loungers, ‘I’d like to formally introduce Hector Garcia - who helped you in New York - and Jasmine Park.’ He glanced back at the trio. ‘This is Sarah Ellis, Josh McNutt, and Jack Cobb.’
The six of them said hello for a few seconds.
Then they just stood there, looking from one to the next. Eventually, everyone was staring expectantly at Papineau.
He smiled warmly. ‘Would anyone care for refreshments?’
13
The group relocated to the home’s expansive gourmet kitchen, which sprawled beyond the dining area by way of a wide counter. Once the newcomers discovered that Papineau had no kitchen staff, each made his and her own exploration.
Garcia went right to the old-fashioned cast-iron stove, grabbed a skillet, and declared his intention to make his famous breakfast burritos. Jasmine, who had tied a blue wrap dress around her, was at the sink cutting up melons. McNutt had his head in the gigantic, silver fridge, pulling out luncheon meats - freshly sliced, not packaged - while Sarah squeezed oranges for juice.
Coffee had already been made, and Cobb poured some, black. Then, standing by a butcher’s block at the far end of the counter, he set out a variety of breads he cut from a selection of fresh-baked loaves. It was a perfect vantage point from which to watch the others, in particular the one he had never worked with.
For one reason or another, Jasmine puzzled him. She did not have the kind of muscle tone that suggested anything more than low-impact workouts: health and vanity workouts, he called them. Her knife skills, at least on a melon, seemed ordinary. She had been reading from an e-reader on the terrace, but she had turned it off before he could see what was on it. He knew he could just go over and ask her questions, but where was the fun in that?
He preferred to figure it out on his own.
Jasmine pulled some wicker trays from a cabinet beside the sink. She set them on the granite tabletop - not avoiding eye contact with anyone but not going out of her way to make it, either. She seemed oblivious to McNutt’s wide-eyed admiration.
No doubt she got that a lot.
Their host, who had disappeared for about five minutes, returned. He stood at the edge of the kitchen and stated, ‘If everyone will please take their refreshments into the dining room, I would like to make this a working lunch.’
The Hunters Page 6
