by Paul Carr
“That’s right.”
“What are you going to do with the recording?”
Sam smiled. “I’m going to give it to you.”
Chapter 27
THEY RODE to the bank and cleaned out the safe deposit box. Back in the car, Sam counted the money, gave J.T. half, and said, “You can have all the gold pieces we found, too.”
J.T. glanced at him, one eyebrow raised. “You sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure.” Sam started the car. “What are you going to do now?”
“I’ll probably hang around and soak up some rays. I can find a buyer for these things better in Miami than up north.”
Sam drove to the car rental agency and picked up his own car. J.T. took the Chevy and said he would turn it in before he left town. They agreed to meet back at Sam’s boat in a couple of hours and have a celebration drink.
****
SAM PARKED his car next to the Custom Parts building and went inside. Lenny Berne heard the bell on the door and came into the office.
“I hoped you would forget about coming back.”
“Yeah, I bet,” Sam said.
Lenny opened his safe and took out the package wrapped in newspaper.
Sam peeled away the paper and looked at the statue. It looked exactly as it had when he’d left it there. “Are we square on the bill?”
“Sure, the rest of that gold is going to get me out of debt. I wasn’t so sure when you called back and asked for two copies, but there was plenty left. What are you going to do now that you’re a rich man?”
Sam glanced at Lenny. “What makes you say that?”
Lenny leaned back in his chair and grinned. “I checked it out on the Internet. That thing has to be worth at least seventy or eighty million dollars.”
Sam smiled. Yes, at least.
“Thanks, for holding it for me,” Sam said, ignoring Lenny’s question.
He rewrapped the statue and put it inside a bag Lenny gave him.
“Let me know if anything else like this comes along,” Lenny said.
“I’ll do that.” They shook hands and Sam left.
****
J.T. SHOWED up at two o’clock with a bottle of champagne. He also had a girl with him, and Prince Alfred followed them down the dock. The dog saw Sam standing on the boat and trotted across the gangway. Sam reached down and scratched his ears. Whatever injuries Grimes had inflicted on him seemed to be gone.
“I thought you’d want to see him,” J.T. said, nodding toward Prince Alfred. “This is Amy. She patched him up after Grimes hit him with the crutch. He had a small gash on his jaw and she took a couple of stitches.”
Prince Alfred turned and saw a pelican squatted on a dock timber. He licked his lips and laid down on his stomach on the deck, his eyes glued to the bird.
Amy had long dark hair, blue eyes, and a blushing smile. Very attractive. She leaned against J.T. and caressed the back of his neck. J.T.’s face turned red and he pulled her toward a chair under the awning.
“Amy worked for a vet, but Grimes shot him and now she’s out of a job. I’m going to help her set up a pet grooming business. She’s really good with animals.”
Sam wondered why Grimes would shoot a veterinarian, and decided he didn’t want to ask. He didn’t want to be reminded of Grimes any more than he had to.
J.T. popped the cork on the champagne and filled glasses from the galley. He passed them out and clinked his with Sam’s and Amy’s.
Prince Alfred got tired of watching the bird, saw some fish jump, and dived into the water. He looked like an otter swimming toward the school of skipjack.
“Amy and I are going down to Grand Cayman for awhile. Why don’t you and Candi tag along?”
Sam nodded absently. He’d spoken with her right after visiting Lenny Berne. “Candi wants the recording. She gave me an e-mail address you can use.”
“Yeah, okay. What about Grand Cayman?”
“I’ll check with her.”
They drank the entire bottle, then went to the marina restaurant and had several more drinks and dinner while Prince Alfred guarded the boat. After that, they brought a piece of steak back for the dog and J.T. and Amy left with him for parts unknown. Sam went inside and tried to sleep, but his mind wouldn’t shut down. He still had questions, like what Gideon Barge might do if he found out about the fake statue, and how Jack would take him down. He also wondered about Grimes. They hadn’t seen him since they left him unconscious inside the seaplane in the Keys. And Sam contemplated what he would do with the real statue that now rested in the secret storage spot in his closet. If he sold it he’d never have to work again. Maybe buy an island of his own, get a bigger boat, sail around the world. He wondered if the statue could be sold without Gideon Barge getting wind of it. Finally, after a few minutes, he fell asleep, and a dream vision of Candi climbed into his bed.
****
TWO WEEKS later, J.T. sat in the shade of the hotel cabana on Grand Cayman, watching Amy sunbathe by the pool.
“She’s beautiful, don’t you think?”
“Yes, she is,” Sam said. He found himself marveling at J.T.’s good fortune, meeting someone like her at the airstrip while Grimes did his dirty work inside the hangar.
They had been at the hotel for two days.
“When will Candi get here?”
“Tomorrow,” Sam said. “She had to wrap up a few things.”
J.T. nodded, eyes behind the sunglasses still on Amy. “You know, I think we might find a few more gold pieces on that wrecked plane if we dive it.”
Sam took a sip of his beer and put it on the table next to his lounge chair.
“What about La Salle’s set-up? We might be killed by one of his missiles.”
J.T. shook his head. “I went out there last night and La Salle’s men had left. The computer was still running, so I disabled the program, shut down the system, and pulled the plug.”
“They’ve abandoned the place?”
“Looks that way, but if they come back, it’ll take them weeks to fix what I did, if they can do it at all.”
Sam nodded, not too sure he wanted to go back down to that plane. At night when he dozed off, he still could see the man belted in the seat, hair swirling above his dead face.
“Let me think about it.”
“I rented a fast boat and some diving gear. We pick it up tonight at ten.”
“How long will it take us to get there?”
J.T. shrugged. “Couple hours, maybe, no more.”
****
J.T. HAD rented a thirty foot boat.
“You sure this is big enough?” Sam said. “We have to go sixty or seventy miles. It could get rough out there.”
J.T. looked up at the night sky. “It’s clear as a bell. This should do it.”
They would be a long way from anything when they reached their destination, and thirty feet of boat seemed pretty small in all that water. Sam had the satellite phone he’d taken from the thug who worked for Barge, but he wasn’t sure who he would call if they had a problem.
They left the dock at 10:15 and ran the engine full throttle for almost three hours before reaching the coordinates. Sam had looked at his watch several times in the last half hour while glancing at the GPS unit. The water remained smooth, with almost no chop. They dropped anchor, suited up and checked out their gear and lights. Everything seemed to work, so they went into the water about 1:30 AM.
The plane and its surroundings looked the same as they had left it. They went straight to the broken wing and sifted through the sand around it, finding nothing for almost an hour. Then J.T. uncovered another bird of prey, larger than the last, and another small cup.
The air gauge indicated Sam had little left when J.T. pointed to the plane and swam into the hatch. Sam followed and they scanned the deck and seats again. The dead man still sat there, awaiting his final destination. They found nothing else. Sam motioned to J.T.’s air supply and pointed to the surface. They went back to the rope and swam to t
he top.
“That was worth the trip,” J.T. said, taking off his fins. He sounded disappointed.
“Yeah, that bird is probably worth a hundred thousand.”
J.T. nodded. “You never asked what I got for the other pieces. You want to know?”
“Sure, but let’s get started, we have a lot of hard riding ahead of us.”
“The mask brought the most,” J.T. said, as he started the engine. “I got two-fifty for it. But I got only a hundred out of the rest. Still, that’s a lot of money.”
“Sure is. Get this deathtrap going.”
“I’m still puzzled why you didn’t want any of the money.”
Sam knew what J.T. had on his mind. “Yeah, well, you earned it.”
J.T. paused, then said, “You sure there isn’t something you want to say about that statue?”
Sam shook his head. “Nothing I can think of.”
J.T. sighed and started the engine. The boat rumbled for several seconds before he put it into gear and rammed the throttle forward.
The sun lay on the horizon by the time they threw the lines to the man on the dock. He looked relieved that they had made it back with his boat and gear. J.T. tipped him a large bill and then remained quiet as they ambled to the rented car and rode back to the hotel.
“How about breakfast?” Sam asked when they entered the lobby.
“Nah. I’m going to catch the first plane out. I’ll settle up with you later on these things we found.” He had an edge in his voice.
The elevator door opened and J.T. stepped inside. Sam shrugged, went into the restaurant and ordered eggs and bacon. J.T. had obviously followed Sam when he got the real statue from Lenny, and thought he deserved part of it. Sam hadn’t asked him to come along on this project to begin with; J.T. had invited himself. He’d helped, no doubt about that, but Sam had compensated him well, including the extra gold pieces they’d just found. He had made no promises concerning the statue.
The waiter poured coffee and the satellite phone chirped. Sam took it out of his pocket and answered.
“That creep blindsided me,” J.T. said, his voice labored.
“What creep?”
“Grimes. He hit me with something and knocked me out when I opened the door to the room. I just came around and he’s taken Amy and those gold pieces we found.”
Sam got up, hurried from the restaurant to the lobby, and looked outside at the parking area. He caught a glimpse of Grimes driving a white Taurus out of the lot in the opposite direction from the airport. Amy sat in the passenger seat.
J.T. had the keys to the rental car, so Sam caught the elevator and headed for J.T.’s room.
“Are you okay?” Sam said into the phone.
“Yeah, I think so. I have a cut on the side of my head, but the bleeding is almost stopped.”
“Grimes just drove out of the parking lot. I’ll be at the door in a few seconds for the car keys.”
The elevator opened and J.T. stepped inside, his hair matted in a bloody spot on the side of his head. He pressed a damp washcloth to the spot and looked at the blood.
“I’m going with you,” J.T. said. His pupils had dilated, and Sam wondered if he had a concussion.
They reached the car and Sam drove. Grimes couldn’t be too far ahead, but he could have gone anywhere. Since he hadn’t turned toward the airport, that might mean he arrived by boat or seaplane.
“Don’t you have a brochure with a map of the island? We need to know where the marinas are located.”
J.T. opened the glove box and found a map.
“There’s a big marina a few miles up ahead.”
Sam drove as fast as he could without running them off the road, and they reached the place in about five minutes. A couple of white vehicles sat in the parking lot, neither one a Taurus. They parked at the marina office and went inside. A slim man with skin that looked like old leather sat behind a desk. Sam asked about Grimes and Amy. The man spoke with an English accent and said about a dozen cars had come through that morning, but neither fit Sam’s description. They started to walk out when Sam thought about something else and turned around.
“Have you seen an old seaplane in the last day or so?”
The man with leather skin said, “Yes, a seaplane did come here last night, but we had no space, so I just sold them some fuel.”
“Do you know where they went?”
The man shook his head. “I called the marina up the road, and they didn’t have a spot either, so the pilot taxied the plane down the coast.”
“What’s down there?” J.T. said.
The man shrugged. “Just vacation homes.”
“Any of them have docks?”
“Certainly, some of them do.”
They got back in the car and rode further down the road. J.T. mopped his temple with the cloth and tossed it on the floor mat.
“How’s your head?” Sam said.
“I think I’ll live.” J.T. turned in the seat and looked at Sam. “You think he’s going to hurt her?”
“No. You said he brought her to the airstrip with him that day, so I’d say he just wants her back.”
“Yeah, but I don’t think she would have gone with him willingly. She screamed something when I entered the door, I guess trying to warn me.”
They drove for several minutes before spotting the Taurus. It sat behind a coral-colored house with only the rear of the car sticking out. The lawn, going to seed, had a For Rent sign stuck in the ground close to the street. Sam kept driving past and turned into a driveway a few doors down.
They didn’t have any weapons because they’d flown to the island on a commercial airline. Besides, Sam hadn’t expected to run into any trouble on Grand Cayman. They got out of the car and Sam retrieved the lug wrench from the trunk. Walking back along the street, they entered the yard with the sign and eased around the house to the Taurus, which sat empty. Sam looked through the driver side window and saw the key in the ignition. He heard the rumble of the seaplane and they eased through a thicket of palmetto and pines toward the noise, staying behind the cover of the trees where possible. The landscape cleared when they got close to the water and the seaplane came into view, tied at a dock about thirty feet away, engines idling, ready for takeoff.
“It took you long enough.”
Sam and J.T. turned around. Grimes stood next to a tree with a crutch under one arm and holding an Uzi pointed at Sam, looking better than the last time Sam had seen him. He still had some scars, but the dog bites on his face had healed, and he looked as if he might have had a recent bath.
“I don’t think you’ll be using that lug wrench. Drop it.”
Sam tossed the wrench in the grass, cursing himself for thinking Grimes would just slink away.
“Where’s Amy?” J.T. said.
Grimes waved the gun. “Forget about Amy. She’s going with me. Get on the plane. We’re going for a ride.”
“Where to?” Sam said.
“You caused me a lot of trouble, Mackenzie. Not to mention this.” He glanced down at the missing leg. “You two thought you’d seen the last of me when you left me to die down there in the Keys.”
“This is about revenge?”
“That’s right, I always pay my debts. Now, get on the plane like I said or I’ll shoot you right here.”
Sam and J.T. took their time getting to the dock and boarded, Sam wondering what Grimes had done with Amy. Randy stepped out of the cockpit and nodded to Sam. Smelling of rum and looking as if he might still be drunk from the night before, he helped Grimes through the hatch.
“Where is Amy?” J.T. said.
Randy shrugged. “Who’s Amy?”
“Shut up, Randy,” Grimes said, “and check them for guns.”
Randy started to say something, but looked as if he changed his mind when Grimes narrowed his eyes. He asked Sam and J.T. to empty their pockets. Sam had only the GPS unit and the satellite phone, both of which Randy let him keep.
Grimes closed th
e hatch, and Randy taxied the plane out of the harbor and took off. They seemed to be heading west toward Jamaica and flew for about an hour before Grimes spoke.
“Okay, this is where you two get off.”
Sam looked out the porthole and saw nothing but water down below. His heart raced and a bead of perspiration rolled down his cheek. He knew Grimes would stand them in front of the hatch and shoot them. They would fall out of the plane to the water below, and if they didn’t die from the bullets, the impact with the surface would kill them. He had to do something! How could he disable Grimes?
Grimes stood up next to his seat with the crutch under one arm and waved the Uzi toward the hatch. “Open the door,” he said to Sam.
He had to shoot them in the doorway so he wouldn’t damage the plane with stray bullets. Sam thought he would take a chance, maybe upset Grimes and buy some extra time. “Shoot us right here,” he said, keeping his voice steady and defiant.
J.T. had a worried look on his face.
Grimes thumped the deck with the crutch and moved closer to Sam’s seat. He stuck the tip of the Uzi to the side of Sam’s head.
“You think I won’t do it?” His eyes narrowed and his face reddened, as if he might pop a gasket. Then he sighed and turned his head toward the cockpit.
“Randy, put it on auto, and get back here and open the door.”
Randy turned around and grimaced. He unbuckled his seat belt and stood up, grabbing a bottle of rum as he did. He opened it, took a long drink and staggered down the passageway.
Grimes moved back, so Randy could get to the hatch. Randy passed between Sam and Grimes, and Sam sprang out of his seat. He grabbed the open rum bottle from Randy’s fingers, threw the contents at Grimes face and at the same time pushed Randy into him. Grimes screamed when the rum hit his eyes and he and Randy, already unsteady on his feet, toppled to the deck.
Sam grabbed for the Uzi, but Grimes, his eyes streaming tears, raised up and fired a burst of rounds. One of the slugs hit Sam in the upper arm and his arm felt as if it might drop off. Sam wrested the weapon away and hit Grimes in the face with the stock. Grimes fell back to the deck, unconscious.
The bullet had gone straight through Sam’s arm. Blood ran down and dripped from his fingers. Randy staggered to his feet. Sam pointed the Uzi at him and told him to get in the cockpit and take them back to Grand Cayman.
