by Dixie Lyle
Navarro stopped. Looked around the table and seemed satisfied at what he saw. He reached into his breast pocket, pulled out a cream-colored envelope, and placed it flat on the table. Gave it a hard shove that sent it past everyone and all the way to the end of the table where ZZ sat.
“There’s a piece of paper in there with a number written on it, and a whole lot of zeros after that. Above that number is the masthead of a reputable bank, and underneath it is my boss’s signature. Cash it, burn it, sign it over to any charity you like; my employer doesn’t care. But he wants Augustus—and what he wants, he gets.”
He looked around the table again. “Oh, and the rest of you? Go home. Negotiations are over.”
And then he turned around and walked out of the room.
CHAPTER FIVE
The first person to speak after Navarro left was Oscar.
“That chap,” he said, “doesn’t play well with others. I do believe I need another drink.”
And then everyone was talking.
“Outrageous!” Rajiv exclaimed.
“Inexcusable!” Zhen blurted.
“What a load of blather!” said Karst. “You can’t seriously believe any of that!”
Abazu said nothing, but the look on his face was grim. He clearly believed every word.
ZZ looked troubled, but not afraid. “Foxtrot?” she said. “Get Shondra on the phone, will you? I think we need to have a conversation.”
“On it,” I said. I got up from the table, pulled out my phone, and left the dining room. Whiskey came with me.
What do you think? I thought at him.
[I can’t tell for sure when someone’s lying, but my professional opinion? He was telling the truth.]
What makes you say that?
[Instinct. I’ve got the genes of a predator, and so does he. And I could smell a slight jump in his adrenal secretions when he got to the part of the story about the murder.]
You mean it excited him?
[Perhaps. Or perhaps he was actually present at the event, and the memory excited him.]
Terrific.
Shondra was on speed dial; I hit the number and she picked up on the first ring. “What’s up?” she asked. She sounded like she’d been expecting trouble—but then, she usually sounded like that.
I told her what had happened and repeated the anecdote Navarro had told as best I could. She asked me for exact phrasing a few times, no doubt to figure out if what Navarro had said could legally be construed as a threat. When I was done she said, “I’ll be right there. How long ago did he leave?”
“I’m not sure he did, actually. I think he just went upstairs and went to bed.”
“Did he? Well, he’s not going to be there for long.”
“Hold on, Rambo. ZZ wants to talk to you first. And remember, so far this is just talk. People say all sorts of things in a contest; Karst made fun of the competition, while Navarro tried to intimidate them. I don’t think anything he said was an out-and-out threat.”
“No, it sounds like he was very careful about that. But that doesn’t mean you have to tolerate him staying under the same roof.”
“We sort of do, unless ZZ says otherwise. She’s trying to calm everyone down right now.”
I could tell from the voices in the other room she was having limited success. A moment later the other four guests filed past me, presumably on their way to their own rooms; Zhen marched angrily with her head high, Rajiv strode with a stony look on his face, Karst’s pace was deliberately casual and unhurried, and Abazu had his hands clasped behind his back and a frown on his face.
I told Shondra I’d see her soon and ended the call. I returned to the dining room to find only Oscar and ZZ left.
“Well,” said Oscar, getting to his feet, “this has been fun. I do believe I’ll turn in early, myself; if I’m going to be murdered while I sleep, I’d like to be well rested. Terribly difficult to hide bags under your eyes when you’re dead.”
“Nobody’s getting murdered,” said ZZ. “Foxtrot, tell my son that was all hyperbole, will you?”
“That was all hyperbole, Oscar.”
“Thank you, Foxtrot. I feel ever so reassured. I believe I’ll sleep with my door unlocked, and a large rug beside my bed.”
He put down his glass and tottered off. Oscar does a masterful totter.
ZZ sighed. “Shondra’s on her way?”
“Like I could stop her. I managed to convince her not to shoot Navarro on sight. I think.”
ZZ had the envelope in one hand, and the flap was open; she’d looked at Navarro’s offer. “Mind if see for myself?” I asked.
She handed it over without a word. I pulled the check out, glanced at the number, and successfully resisted the urge to whistle. “Yeah, that’s a lot of zeros. What do you think?”
“I think,” said ZZ, “that I don’t want to wake up with a horse’s head next to me in the morning. Or find myself wrapped in a rug.”
I studied the check. “You know Shondra won’t let that happen. And besides … now we have some valuable information.” I returned the check to the envelope and handed it back. “The name of Luis Navarro’s boss.”
“True. I’m hoping Shondra can do something with that.”
“With her contacts? We’ll have the guy’s arrest record by morning.” I pulled out my phone and called her back. “Shondra? Got the name of Navarro’s boss. It’s Alvero Peralta.”
She thanked me, told me she’d get right to work on it, and hung up.
I decided to get a little fresh air with Whiskey while we waited for Shondra, and went up to the deck on the roof of the east wing; it had a lovely view, including the menagerie. The light was fading to dusk, and the air was warm. Tango joined us, leaping from the branch of a nearby tree to the top of the wooden railing that fenced off the deck.
I stared in the direction of the liger enclosure, and relayed what Eli had told Whiskey and me. “So apparently Augustus may be in danger. And now we have a professional thug who’s probably armed sleeping under our roof.”
“Please don’t. The mess will upset the maids.”
[Eli wants us to observe him, not stalk him.]
“It’s a fine line to walk, Tango. We need to be observant without being intrusive. For instance, spending all your time gazing soulfully at Augustus from the other side of his enclosure might be a bit much. He’s new here; he deserves some privacy.”
“Anyway, I’m not convinced any of the guests would try to kill Augustus—they all want him, sure, but they want him alive.”
Just then I saw a cab come up the driveway and park in front of the house. The cabdriver got out and rang the bell.
[Someone’s decided to leave? It seems Mr. Navarro’s tactics may be working.]
Someone answered the door, and Rajiv Gunturu stormed outside a second later. He followed the driver out to the car and got in the back.
“I don’t think so,” I said. “He doesn’t have his bags with him. Must be going into town for something.” The cab drove off.
“So, Tango, here’s what I want you to do. Drop by Augustus’s enclosure now and then—no more than once an hour—and see how he’s doing. If he wants to be alone, respect that. By which I mean still check on him every hour, but stay out of sight and don’t talk to him. All right?”
I heard the door open behind me, and turned to see Jaro Karst walk through it. “Oh,” he said. “I was just looking for a quiet spot to have a smoke. Is up here all right?”
“Sure,” I said. “There’s an ashtray in the corner.”
“Quite the dustup,” Karst said, lightin
g up a cigarillo. “All smoke and mirrors, though, don’t you think?”
“Probably. But we’re having it checked out.”
He shook his head. “I can smell a con man a mile away, and that fella reeks of it. Just trying to stampede the competition, that’s all he’s doing.”
“You could be right.”
“There any way to get a ride into town tonight? Running a little low on the old cancer sticks.”
“I can get ZZ’s driver Victor to run you in.”
“Terrific. Just give me a ring on my mobile when he’s ready, yeah?”
“Sure.”
I pulled out my phone and called Victor. He lived in an apartment over the garage, and he was used to being on call at odd hours. He said he’d pull the car around in ten minutes, and I relayed the information to Karst.
I didn’t much care for the smell of tobacco, so Whiskey and I excused ourselves and went downstairs. We made our way to the gardens, where we ran into a strolling Abazu Chukwukadibia, his hands still clasped behind his back, apparently deep in thought. When I greeted him, he looked startled, then smiled at me. “Ah! Ms. Foxtrot. Good evening. Thank you for a wonderful meal.”
“Don’t thank me, thank the chef. Ben does know how to whip up a feast, doesn’t he?”
“I will make sure to do so. It has been quite the night, eh?”
I nodded ruefully. “That it has. I apologize for Mr. Navarro’s behavior; I had no idea he would threaten anyone, and I can assure you you’re perfectly safe. Our head of security is on her way here, and she’s very good at her job.”
Abazu shook his head and waved away my assurances. “I am not worried. I grew up in a violent place; threats are commonplace and rarely carried out. It is the man who does not threaten that is truly dangerous, for he gives no warning before he strikes. There is a saying in my country: It is better to meet a lion that roars, because the silent one is hungry.”
“That sounds like good advice.”
“Yes. In my experience, however, it is better not to meet a lion at all.”
“But a liger is different?”
He chuckled. “Augustus certainly is. A magnificent creature, truly. It breaks my heart to see him confined.”
“Well, you made a pretty strong case. ZZ’s a big proponent of freedom herself.”
“That is good. I also sense she is not a woman who responds well to threats.”
“Not so much, no.”
He nodded. “Then what will happen, will happen.”
I heard a car coming up the driveway, just a little too fast, and said, “If you’ll excuse me? I think that’s our security chief now.”
“Certainly. It is a lovely night to take a walk; I believe I shall do so.”
Whiskey and I got back to the main entrance just in time to intercept Shondra. She walked right up to me and said, “Okay. He’s still in his room?”
“As far as I know.”
“Then let’s go talk to ZZ. I’ve got some information on Alvero Peralta, and it’s not good.”
We went inside and found ZZ in the sitting room, sipping a cup of tea. She looked up when we entered, saw the expression on Shondra’s face, and said, “Oh, dear. How bad is it?”
“Bad,” Shondra said. “Alvero Flores Peralta is a drug kingpin based out of Atlanta. He controls the meth trade there and in at least three neighboring cities. He’s known to have residences in Mexico, including one in the jungle that’s rumored to have a private zoo. It’s said he likes to feed snitches to its inhabitants.”
“That’s pretty bad,” ZZ admitted.
“It gets worse. Peralta’s biggest competitor was Augustus’s former owner, Branco Gamboa. So this isn’t just about a criminal’s arrogance; it’s a status thing. He wants the liger as a symbol of his power.”
[And a convenient way to turn informants into snack food.]
“Drug kingpins are big on symbols,” Shondra continued. “Not only would owning Augustus feed Peralta’s ego, but he could also use the animal as a weapon. Not a lot of people want to be eaten by half a ton of jungle cat.”
“Most people would prefer not to be eaten at all,” I said. “We can’t let Peralta have Augustus.”
“I’m not so sure,” said ZZ.
Shondra and I both stared at her in shock. “What?” I said.
“You’re not serious,” said Shondra. “If you’re worried about your safety—”
“I’m not worried about my safety,” said ZZ. “You do an impeccable job. Besides, you know I don’t give in to bullies. No, I was thinking along different lines entirely. Do you think we could convince Augustus to eat him?”
I blinked. Shondra grinned.
ZZ smiled. “Sorry. My attempt to lighten the mood. No, of course we can’t let an amoral gangster get his hands on Augustus. But I want to be smart about this; the longer Mr. Navarro thinks I’m giving his offer serious consideration, the more time we have to come up with a way to get Augustus to safety without interference. I propose we think long and hard about it tonight, then meet in the morning to make some decisions. I’ll talk to Mr. Navarro privately beforehand, and give him the impression I’m going to acquiesce but that I can’t do so immediately without losing face. He’ll understand that sort of thinking.”
“Misleading a killer?” said Shondra. “That’s a dangerous game to play.”
“Yes, it is, dear—but I’m going to mislead a killer’s errand boy, not a killer. Ambassadors declare war, they don’t wage it. I’m perfectly safe with Mr. Navarro; it’s not as if he can simply murder me and steal Augustus. Whatever I tell him, he’ll have to consult with his employer before doing anything.”
“True enough,” Shondra admitted. “Anyway, at this point, I’d rather have him here where I can keep an eye on him.”
“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer?” I said.
Shondra gave me a cold smile. “If by ‘closer’ you mean ‘close enough to snap his neck,’ then yes.”
Right. I needed to put up a big yellow Post-it in my office: DO NOT TICK OFF SHONDRA. Right next to the one that said, DON’T FORGET TO BREATHE AIR.
I heard footsteps and looked up to see Zhen Yao in the doorway. “Hello,” she said. “I wish to speak to Zee-zee Deer, please.”
ZZ sighed. “It’s just ZZ, dea—it’s just ZZ. This is my head of security, Shondra Destry. Shondra, Zhen Yao.”
Zhen gave a formal nod. “Hello. I would like to address the situation with Mr. Luis Navarro. I do not feel it has been resolved to anyone’s satisfaction.”
“No, it hasn’t,” said ZZ. “I’m very sorry for how things turned out, but you should know that I don’t scare easily. All Mr. Navarro has done is disqualify himself from the competition.”
“Then why is he still present? I saw him in the hallway not five minutes ago!”
Which was when ZZ gave me the look. The one that said, You’re on, kid. Time to earn your paycheck. Because while ZZ is awfully good at starting fires, I’m awfully good at putting them out. It’s kinda what I do—me and every other underpaid office assistant, gofer, secretary, and full-time mom. Okay, I’m not underpaid, but I’m still expected to be able to handle crises, balance the books, organize the household, and keep everyone amused at the same time. Much like everybody else I just mentioned.
Rant over. Time to work.
I stepped smoothly between Zee-zee Deer and her outraged guest. “We’re taking steps right now, Ms. Yao. Your safety—and the safety of all our guests—is uppermost in our minds. If you feel threatened in any way, we would be happy to move you to a hotel, at our expense.”
“That is not appropriate. Why should I go and he stay?”
“He won’t be staying long, I assure you. Ms. Destry has already been in contact with the authorities, and we know who Mr. Navarro is working for. We could certainly ask him to leave, but that’s exactly what he wants. It makes us look afraid, while giving him an excuse to retaliate.”
I gave her a second to think about that. S
he wasn’t dumb, just angry; my own calmness let her calm down, too.
“Yes, I see. We cannot let him dictate the rules.”
“We’re not,” I said. “He’s on our ground, under our control. Ms. Destry is ex-military and very skilled. But if you still feel unsafe—”
“I am fine.” She hesitated, then said, “But I do have some … personal business to attend to. Could you provide transportation to a business hub nearby?”
“Of course,” I said. “ZZ’s driver is already occupied, but I can call you a taxi. At our expense, of course.”
She nodded. “That would be very much appreciated.”
I didn’t ask what she was going into town for. Maybe she just wanted to get away from the house for a while but didn’t want to admit it; maybe she needed a new outfit to replace the one she’d spilled her drink on. In any case, when I called the cab company I told them that the driver should take her wherever she wanted to go, to wait for her if that’s what she wanted, and to bring her back here when she was done.
When she was gone, Shondra and I discussed security with ZZ. We agreed that Navarro needed to be watched, and discussed the best way to do that. There were security cameras around the perimeter of the estate, but none at the house itself; ZZ didn’t like the feeling of constant surveillance, and I couldn’t blame her. Shondra could, but ZZ was used to that.
“I think we need security cams on the liger enclosure,” Shondra said. “It might seem unlikely, but what if they just decide to steal him? Drug barons have been known to do some crazy things.”
“How long would that take to set up?” ZZ asked.
“Not long at all. I’ve got spares on hand and I can just plug them into our existing network. I can do it in an hour.”
“Then go ahead,” ZZ said. “I think Augustus will forgive this intrusion on his privacy if it keeps him safe.”
In the end, we decided that our best defense was to stay alert but not overreact. Navarro wanted to create fear, and ZZ was determined not to give in. The man was to be treated civilly, much like an envoy from another country that was doing some aggressive saber-rattling but hadn’t actually declared war. Shondra would install her cameras and keep her law enforcement pals apprised of the situation, and ZZ would make sure Navarro was aware that the authorities were now involved.
