by Jon F. Merz
“Maybe someone grabbed it to check over?”
Vanessa eyed him. “You think?”
“No, I meant like the Customs people or something. Maybe they thought you had something inside there.”
But Vanessa scanned the area in her usual covert way. Her eyes never left the crowd as she bent and scooped the small bag off the carousel. “All right, let’s get out of here.”
They walked outside and the cooler air felt refreshing to Jimmy. He took a deep breath and blanched. “Ugh, what’s that smell?”
“That, my dear,” said Vanessa, “is the lovely aroma of Katmandu. Not to worry, you’ll get used to it in no time.”
“I will?”
She shrugged. “Well, perhaps not.”
Jimmy wrinkled his nose. “Smells like the bathroom.”
“Yes, indeed.”
“You don’t mind it?”
Vanessa waved a taxi over. “All your body is doing is letting you know there’s a nasty scent to the air. Simply acknowledge the message and you’ll stop being hit over the head with it.”
“You make it sound so easy.” Jimmy blanched again. The stench in the air hung like a dense fog.
“It is that easy.”
Jimmy frowned. “For you.”
Vanessa shoved him into the taxi. Then she told the driver to take them across the airport to the rental car facility. She glanced at Jimmy. “Better we have our own transportation.”
“Why?”
“You don’t want to be relying on a taxi when you’ve got people who are always looking for you.”
“Unless they happen to know what car you’re driving.”
Vanessa looked at him and then grinned. “Fair one, that. I like the way you’ve started thinking.”
“Huh?”
“A lot more tactically than you were before. That’s a good thing to see.”
“Uh, thanks.”
They reached the rental facility and Vanessa hustled Jimmy out before throwing a handful of money at the driver. “Best if we get moving quickly. Come on.” She started walking across the street.
Jimmy glanced after her. “Wait – isn’t this the rental car place?”
She nodded. “Yes, indeed.”
“Then why aren’t we going there?”
“Because we don’t need a rental car.”
Jimmy frowned. “You mean you told that taxi driver to take us there in case someone gets to him and asks about us?”
Vanessa beamed. “Smart boy.”
“And he’ll take them there and the people inside will have no clue what they’re asking about.”
“Brilliant Mr. Holmes. Now come on. We’re already pressing our luck being out in the open like this.”
Jimmy jogged after her as she made her way across several streets toward a long-term parking facility. They clambered up three levels until Vanessa nodded. “Right, there we are.”
Jimmy looked and saw a late-model Toyota parked nearby. It was a dull dark blue with several dents. It looked completely uninteresting. He smirked.
“You’ve got a real good eye for boring cars.”
“Thank you. That’s exactly what I want people to think of it. A boring car attracts very little attention – lets me get my work done with no one asking questions about me.”
Jimmy looked at the car again and shook his head. “Just saying, but a Lamborghini would be a really sweet ride for what we’re doing.”
Vanessa threw her bags into the trunk. “You don’t even know where we’re going yet.”
“Yeah, but I’m just saying…”
Vanessa smiled. “You’re thinking that a Lamborghini might help you land a date with that flight attendant.”
“I never said that.”
“Didn’t have to." Vanessa laughed and pointed at the door. "In you go, Casanova.”
Jimmy slid in the passenger side and frowned. “If it’s all the same to you, I’d be fine if we stopped talking about her. Or Merlin, okay?”
Vanessa gunned the engine. “Fine by me. We’ve got work to do.” And then she threw the car into drive and zipped down the garage ramp.
Outside, Jimmy found himself amazed by the relative modern appearance of Katmandu. While not a towering skyline, the city had its share of large buildings. He glanced at Vanessa. “Does this seem weird to you? The city I mean.”
“What about it?”
He shrugged. “Just thought that since we’re on the top of the world, that things would be a little more, I dunno…less city-like.”
“Like how it was back at that tiny village in Japan?”
“Maybe.”
“Katmandu is a relatively modern place. Once you get outside the city, however, it will get pretty rustic pretty fast. I’m sure you’ll find it more to your liking once we leave.”
“I didn’t say we had to leave so soon.”
“Well, we’ve got business in the city anyway. And the part we’re heading to is fairly old - it might just suit you more.”
“It is?”
Vanessa nodded. “They call it Thamel. It’s officially the old district. A lot of seedy bars, very old world adventure feel to it. Like Indiana Jones sort of. A lot of mountaineers plan their ascents at a bar there. You’ll see quite a colorful assortment of characters.”
“Cool.” Jimmy nodded. It sounded like what he'd envisioned.
“Just make sure you keep your wits about you. Zip up all your pockets and keep your hands to yourself. The place is thick with thieves who will snatch your wallet without you even knowing it’s gone.”
Thamel was sounding better all the time. Jimmy grinned in spite of the danger. It sounded like the kind of place he’d be happy visiting often.
“I know that look.”
He glanced over. Vanessa was eyeing him. She shook her head. “I know it sounds cool, but be aware. It can just as easily be more danger than you can handle.”
“I’ll keep my eyes open,” said Jimmy. “Promise.”
“All right then,” said Vanessa. “Now let’s see how we’re doing.”
“With what-time?” Jimmy checked his watch. “Seems fine to me.”
Vanessa shook her head. “We need to run an SDR.”
“Surveillance Detection Route?”
“Exactly. Glad you were paying attention when we talked about that back on the ship.”
“I was half-dead from training when you started that one up. I didn’t even know why you did it then.”
“To see if you could absorb the information despite being physically taxed. Glad to see it worked.”
Jimmy glanced ahead of them where the road went around a traffic circle. “How about here?”
Vanessa nodded. “This will work just fine.”
Jimmy prepared himself by turning in his seat until he could see behind them. When Vanessa went through the rotary, he’d need to see who stayed with them.
He hoped no one would.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Vanessa eased the battered Toyota through the roundabout, slow on the entry and then accelerating as she went around until she shot out in the direction they’d just come from. Jimmy didn’t say a word, but kept his eyes peeled on their rear. He watched a rumbling truck go through but take the first option right. Another two cars took the second option, followed by another truck to the third.
He was about to breathe a sigh of relief when he spotted another car he hadn’t seen before. It had come in behind them but was now accelerating as it went around the rotary, taking the same option Vanessa had.
Jimmy sighed.
“We’ve got one, don’t we?” asked Vanessa.
“Yeah. Looks like a red Honda, I think. Two up. Can’t make out their faces from this distance.”
Vanessa’s face grew serious. “Got that. Right, turn around and strap back in. I don’t know the area well enough to engage in a long term solution, so this is going to have to be quick and dirty.”
Jimmy frowned. He was getting tired of the car chases. As
he clicked his seatbelt, he started to mention this to Vanessa but she interrupted him with a shout.
“They’re ramming! Hang on!
The sudden impact threw Jimmy toward the windshield and he would have smashed his head if not for the seat belt. He slumped back as Vanessa jerked the wheel from side to side.
Headlights illuminated the interior of the car and sent shadows jumping everywhere. Being evening, Jimmy prayed they wouldn’t have many drivers in front of them.
“Here they come again!”
Jimmy braced himself up, pushing off the floor with his feet. The Honda rammed their back bumper again and Jimmy heard the crunch of metal as it did so.
“Hang on, Jimmy!”
Vanessa slammed on the brakes and the Honda made another unexpected impact, almost driving up their back bumper. Vanessa stomped the gas pedal again and they shot away. A smug grin flickered across her face. “Bastards didn’t expect that move. Their front end is pretty bunged up.”
Jimmy risked a glance back, but if Vanessa had done much damage, the car didn’t seem to be any worse for it. The Honda righted itself and came screaming at them again. But this time, they weren’t directly behind Vanessa, but rather off ot one side.
“I think he’s trying something-“
Vanessa glanced back and instantly adjusted the car so they were directly behind them again. “PIT maneuver, like what I used on you. He’ll try to sidle up alongside and then use his car’s momentum to send us into a spin-out.”
“How do we combat that?”
“What I just did. Get them back behind us so they can’t get the purchase to do that to us.”
Jimmy looked back out the front of the car. “Truck coming at us!”
Vanessa jerked the wheel and the truck brushed by them excruciatingly close. Jimmy watched the side rails go past and tensed for the shearing effect, but it never came. Vanessa swung out free of the truck and the Honda followed.
“Still behind us.”
“I know it,” she said through gritted teeth. “We’re going to run out of road soon, too.”
“We are?”
“Construction area ahead. This whole place is one big dead-end. If I’d had a chance to recon this area, I wouldn’t have driven us here.”
“You didn’t know-“
“Yeah, but it’s a trap. And worse, judging by what they’re doing now, they know it’s a trap.”
Jimmy looked back again and saw that the Honda had slowed down and pulled back from them. They seemed content to wait for Vanessa to run out of road.
“Damn,” said Vanessa. “Guess I’m going to have to make this a bit more dramatic than I thought.”
Jimmy watched her. “What’s that mean?”
“Handbrake one-eighty.”
Jimmy groaned. “A what?”
“You got a better idea, I’d love to hear it. Now hang on, I have no idea how this is going to go on this dirt and gravel we’ve been driving over.” But then before Jimmy could say anything, she was already pulling the maneuver.
Jimmy felt himself go one way and then the other as Vanessa executed a textbook perfect maneuver, bringing them face-to-face with the Honda about three hundred meters away.
“Now what?”
Vanessa grinned. “Watch.”
She jumped on the gas and the Toyota’s tires spun around furiously before they bit into the gravel, churning it up underneath and then accelerating them out of the stopped position. Vanessa threw her high beams and lit up the red Honda.
From the passenger side, one of the men in the car stepped out.
Jimmy saw it first. “Gun!”
Vanessa shook her head. “That’s no gun, Jimmy.”
“It’s not?”
“It’s a rocket propelled grenade – an RPG.”
Jimmy’s eyes went wide. “He’s got a missile?”
Vanessa leaned forward. “Technically, it’s not actually a missile, but yes, he’s trying to blow us up.”
Jimmy saw the ignition and then a bright object screamed at them through the night.
“Hang on!”
Vanessa turned the car slightly and the RPG exploded off to the left of them, blasting chunks of dirt, gravel and stone all over the car.
“Hang on, Jimmy. It’s time to end this.”
Jimmy tried to shrink down into his seat, but he could only go so far. Vanessa was obviously trying to make sure the men in the Honda didn’t have time to reload the RPG. The Toyota groaned as she floored the gas pedal.
“Brace-brace-brace!”
Jimmy braced himself and then the two cars hit. The sound of collapsing, screeching metal roared in his ears making him wince and he felt the Toyota buckle as well.
He held on as the car went into a spin and shot away from the Honda. They finally came to rest and Vanessa sucked some air into her and looked at Jimmy. “You all right?”
Jimmy nodded. He’d balled himself up right before the impact, but his head buzzed. "What happened to the airbags?"
"I had them removed."
"Remov-? Why?"
Vanessa shrugged. "We'd be pinned to our seats otherwise." She smiled and seemed none the worse for having just been in a head-on collision. “Right, stay here. I’ll be back.”
Jimmy grabbed her arm. “You can’t face them alone.”
“They’re both down from the impact. I’ll be a moment.” And then she ducked out of the car.
Jimmy righted himself and rubbed one hand over his face, trying to wipe away the sudden rush of sweat that was cascaded down his skin. He looked and saw Vanessa bent over one man then the other. The driver looked the worst of the two, pinned as he was behind the dashboard of the Honda that Vanessa had sent screaming into their car when she crashed into them.
The other man lay some distance away from the Honda. He rolled over and tried to bring a gun up, but Vanessa delivered a quick kick to his chin and his head snapped back leaving him unconscious.
Jimmy saw her reach down, take the gun away and then come walking back to the car. But instead of getting in, she walked around to the front and then frowned.
“Better get on out.”
Jimmy unbuckled and hopped out. When he came around to the front, he whistled. The front end of the Toyota was demolished.
“Guess we’re not going cruising in this anymore, huh?”
“Nope,” said Vanessa “But the good news is those two aren’t going anywhere except the hospital. And their car is completely wrecked.”
“I see you took their gun.”
Vanessa glanced down. “I’d rather not have this. Nothing like being in a foreign country carrying a firearm to get you into serious trouble with the local authorities. But I can’t have us going around unarmed when we’ve obviously acquired a reception party already.”
“So, what now?”
Vanessa walked to the trunk and popped the lid. “Now, we get our stuff and get out of here before someone calls the cops on us. I don’t need us being hauled up to answer a lot of questions when we’ve got places to be.”
“Like Thamel.”
“Exactly.” She handed Jimmy his bag and his hanbo and then slammed the trunk shut. “Car’s clean anyway. The papers are a perfect forgery and all that will come up is the owner is someone living in a poor section of town. Hopefully the police will chalk it up as a theft gone bad and then there was a drag race or something that got those guys injured.”
“They’ll buy that?”
“I have no idea, but most police the world over are looking to do as little paperwork as possible. Give them an easy excuse that they can believe and they’ll be more inclined to do just that.”
She led him back down the street, more jogging than walking. Jimmy didn’t have trouble keeping up with her now that he’d been running so much. Down near the entrance to the street, she pulled him over to the side and checked him out.
“Just a quick once over to make sure we look okay.”
“Can we get a taxi?”
&nbs
p; “This time of night in this area, that might be a tad difficult. This is not the part of town most tourists travel to, so the taxis stay where the business is.”
“So we hoof it.”
“We hoof it for a few blocks.”
Vanessa led them down the street. Jimmy tried to digest as much as possible. A lot of construction was going on with big machines parked up for the night. Large open ditches surrounded by cones and signs along with a large array of heavy steel pipes lined the roads.
“Looks like they’re improving the sewer system out here. About time,” said Vanessa as they walked.
Jimmy sniffed. “That’s a good thing.”
“Better than the alternative, that’s for sure.” Vanessa shrugged. “But this is still a third world country and much of it still being developed. A lot of multinational companies come in promising modernization but then fail to deliver. And the people who end up suffering are those who can least afford to.”
Jimmy shifted his backpack. “That’s not good.”
“Nature of the world sometimes.” Vanessa pointed ahead of them where Jimmy could see neon lights. “There we are.”
“That wasn’t too far.”
“Thamel’s about two miles away from where we are. We could walk it easily, but I’d rather not be out on the street in the open.”
“But you said we wouldn’t find a taxi.”
“Can’t use a taxi anyway.”
“Why not?”
Vanessa glanced around. The part of town we’re going to doesn’t exactly have wide streets. Trying to thread your way down there with a car is a nightmare. We need something other than a taxi.”
“Bicycles?”
“Not a bad idea if we had access to them.”
Jimmy thumbed over his shoulder. “I saw some back there would could, uh….borrow.”
“You mean steal?”
“We’d bring them back,” protested Jimmy.
Vanessa shook her head. “Not a chance. In this country, a lot of people make their living with bicycles. I’m not about to deprive someone of their means of income in the interest of making it convenient for us.”
“Well, what do you suggest then?”
