by S A Monk
When the waitress arrived, they both ordered tea and a plate of the restaurants’ special Chinese almond cookies. Hanna had scooted her chair close to Nick, and while they waited for their order, he slipped one arm around her shoulder and casually rested his free hand on the table, between his camera and his mike.
They were nibbling on their cookies and sipping their tea when a group of Chinese men entered from a back door on the other side of the room. There were four of them. Three separated from the fourth to sit at two tables on either side of Yancy.
Nick discreetly pointed out Li Chen to Hanna. Once he sat down, he had his back to them. Hanna caught only the briefest glimpse of the man. He appeared to be Nick’s age and was fashionably dressed in a dark expensive three-piece suit. His hair was black and straight, long enough to hang to his shoulders.
The three men on either side of him were another matter, though. They were all heavily built and menacing-looking. The way they kept an eye on the room indicated they must be bodyguards. One of them swiveled sideways, just enough for Hanna to see the handle of the gun he carried in a shoulder holster. She soon discovered they were all carrying weapons.
She shivered, realizing just how dangerous things could get.
Nick tightened his arm around her. “You okay?”
“All of them are armed.”
“Yeah. I’ve seen.”
His mouth was close to her ear as he spoke to her, then it descended to nuzzle her neck. She knew he wanted them to appear to be a couple snuggling in a dimly lit restaurant, but the warmth of his breath against her skin was also very calming and reassuring.
He had turned his camera and mike on as soon as the four men had joined Yancy. Neither of them looked in the direction of the targeted table after their initial assessment, though Hanna supposed that Nick was watching the five men without appearing to do so. She resisted the urge, knowing she was not the trained spy Nick was. When she finished her little cup of tea, he lifted the delicate porcelain pot in his large hand and poured more for her. Hanna offered him another cookie from the beautifully painted plate. Her hand was trembling.
Nick reached over and steadied it with his own. “Relax. They haven’t spotted us.”
“Sorry,” she murmured. “I’m not very good at this, I’m afraid.”
He stroked the inside of her wrist with a long forefinger. “You’re doing fine.”
There was no way to tell for the moment what Yancy and his table companion were talking about. Nick hadn’t wanted to risk ear buds stuck in their ears so they could listen simultaneously to the conversation taking place across the room. They’d have to wait until later to replay the conversation on a computer. But while they waited, they sipped their tea, and because Nick kept rubbing her wrist, Hanna eventually felt the tension ease from her body.
Yancy and Chen talked for about five more minutes, then Yancy suddenly slammed his fist down on the table. His voice rose in volume, although Hanna still couldn’t hear what he said. The three bodyguards shifted in their seats, coming to a higher degree of attention.
Yancy rose to his feet angrily. He reached into the inner vest pocket of his jacket, and immediately the three bodyguards went for their weapons. Li Chen snapped a few hushed orders at his men and they sat back down, all except Yancy, who threw something on the table. It didn’t make a sound, so Hanna guessed it was paper money.
Yancy spoke a few more angry words to Li Chen, who was still seated, then stalked out of the restaurant, by way of the back door the four men had come through earlier. Hanna started to rise, but Nick pressed her back down.
“I’m not interested in following Yancy anymore. I know where he’s going. We’re going to follow Chen and his men.”
It wasn’t long before the four men across the room decided to leave also. Chen waved to the hostess. When she came over, he handed her some money, rose to slip an arm around her silk clad shoulders and say something personal to her, then turned and walked out through the back door.
Nick dropped some money on the table, more than enough to cover their food and drinks, then guided Hanna out through the front entrance.
Since the restaurant was on the corner, they turned left around the building and headed down the small street behind it. There was a sleek black Mercedes parked halfway down the block, across the street. One of Li Chen’s three bodyguards got in behind the steering wheel, while another got in on the front passenger side. The third got into a sedan parked behind the Mercedes.
Li Chen stopped to talk to an old Chinese gentleman that came out of one of the stores. Up and across the street, Hanna and Nick watched covertly from an alcove in front of a store one door down from the restaurant.
“I’ll go get the motorcycle. Wait for me there and keep an eye on them,” Nick told Hanna, nodding to the Oriental trading store two doors down. “If they notice you, go inside and look around. I’ll hurry.”
Hanna was frightened of being left alone, but she took a deep breath and pretended she was just a tourist window-shopping. She was not the only one on the street looking in windows. When she got to the trading store, she stepped into the rectangular recess created by the big glass windows on either side of her. She had her back turned on Chen and the older gentleman, but she could see them clearly through the glass. They were now almost directly across from her, on the other side of the street. Neither of them knew who she was, so she probably wasn’t in any danger. Pretending interest in the items displayed behind the glass, she stared at Li Chen’s reflection.
Even with his back to her, he looked dangerous and arrogant. His jet black hair hung to his slender shoulders, and he used his long fingered hands expressively as he spoke. As a result, Hanna noticed he wore a huge ruby ring on one hand and a heavy gold one on the other. When he gestured with his right hand, she saw that he had a tattoo drawn on the back of his hand. It looked like the head of a serpent or a dragon.
At one point, he turned his head to look back over his shoulder, and for just a moment, Hanna thought he might have noticed her. Her heart sped up, but he quickly returned his attention to the old man, talked a few more minutes, then bowed slightly, and opened the rear door of the Mercedes.
As soon as the door was open, exposing the interior behind the darkly tinted windows, Hanna saw that there was another man waiting for him in the back seat. She recognized him immediately, even though his identity was a reflection. She stepped deeper into the shadows of the shop’s elongated entrance, praying the man hadn’t noticed her.
The Mercedes pulled out from the curb, followed immediately by the second car behind it. Both vehicles drove slowly to the end of the block, then signaled to turn right. Just as they turned onto the busy major boulevard and headed east, Nick showed up on his Harley. Hanna hopped on the back, strapped on her helmet and hung on as he accelerated away from the curb and turned to follow Li Chen’s black Mercedes.
A few blocks west of Chinatown, the Mercedes and its shadow car, jumped onto Highway 17, which led out of Victoria. Nick told Hanna over the speaker in their helmets that he thought they might be heading to the ferry terminals at the northeastern end of the Saanich peninsula.
Since Li Chen’s vehicles were speeding, they had to speed up also. Hanna was more interested in getting wherever alive, than responding to Nick’s comments. She had another death grip around his waist.
Instead of heading east to the ferry terminals, though, the two cars turned west— to the Victoria International Airport. Trying to keep track of Li Chen once they got into the immediate area of the airport was a challenge for Nick.
Li Chen and his three bodyguards veered away from the public terminals, to an area private airplanes used. Nick dropped farther back, once he saw where the party was heading.
The Mercedes finally stopped in front of a big hangar. A sleek Gulfstream taxied out and came to a halt. The second car quickly pulled up alongside the Mercedes. Nick pulled to a stop alongside another hangar farther back; one that gave him some cover and allo
wed him to see the men they’d followed.
He swore when he saw Li Chen, then Sheriff Thomas exit the rear of the Mercedes and head to the private jet. Hanna had mentioned earlier that she had seen Thomas waiting in the Mercedes for Li Chen outside the restaurant in Chinatown.
“It looks like Thomas may be trying to move up in the organization,” Nick said, seated on his bike still.
“Thomas and Li Chen look pretty cozy,” Hanna commented from behind him.
After parking the vehicles inside the private hangar, the three bodyguards followed Li Chen and Sheriff Thomas up the stairs, into the waiting jet. Within moments, the plane was taxiing to the end of the runway to take off. Nick left his Harley, grabbed Hanna’s hand, and headed for the control tower.
At the entrance, he showed his military identification to the guard posted outside. He explained what he needed from someone in the control tower, but before they were allowed in, Hanna had to retrieve her driver’s license from her backpack and show it to the cautious guard.
Upstairs, Nick spoke to the head air controller. Within minutes, he had the Gulfstream’s vague flight plan. West, then north was all the pilot of the jet had been willing to give the air controller in the tower, who hadn’t been at all happy about the generality of the information. Upon further inquiry, the pilot had told the controller he’d be landing at a private airstrip at the northern end of the island, but that’s all he’d said before signing off. Disgusted with the limited data, Nick got the Gulfstream’s license and registration number, then departed.
He was still grumbling about not knowing where Li Chen had gone when he got outside. “I was really hoping we might have a definitive location on the bastard by the end of the day!”
“What do we do now? How do we find out where he’s going?”
Nick shook his head. “I guess I gather more information on him. Maybe see if those two DEA agents have managed to find out where Chen is holding up. I might be able to get some satellite photos of the northern end of the island.” At his Harley, he grabbed his keys from his front jean pocket. “I’ve been thinking about talking directly to Yancy, maybe making a deal with him.”
“What kind of deal?”
“His heroin for information on where Lance is being held.”
“You think he would tell you?”
“He might. He’s pretty hot about paying for the stuff and not getting it. I don’t think Yancy got any satisfying answers from Chen. He left that meeting royally pissed off.”
Hanna looked at her wrist watch. “It’s getting late. We better hurry if we’re going to catch the last ferry home.” The suggestion was not one she relished because she hated going fast on his bike.
“I don’t think we’re going to make it with the traffic at this time of day.” There was a twinkle in his gray eyes as he turned to look at her. “Would you mind if we spent the night in Victoria, then left first thing in the morning?”
The idea appealed to her. Isn’t that why she’d packed her sexy new lingerie? “You’ll have to take me out to dinner. All this spy work has made me hungry.”
Nick grinned broadly. “I’d love to. You’ve earned it. You did great back-up work today.”
CHAPTER 19
THEY HAD DINNER at an English style pub in downtown Victoria. Because the city had such a strong British tradition, there were many to choose from. Both Nick and Hanna had been to Victoria before, so they were familiar with many of the pubs and restaurants. The one they chose had an outdoor dining area on the roof. It came with patio heaters and a spectacular view of the city lights.
“Where would you like to spend the night?” Nick asked Hanna over their fish and chips.
She took a drink of the beer she had ordered and thought for a moment. “Well, there’s this bed and breakfast a few blocks from here that I’ve heard a lot about. It’s supposed to be one of the most stylish inns in the Northwest. It has seventeen rooms, some with fireplaces and private patios. All of them have private baths with double soaker tubs.”
Nick’s scarred eyebrow rose and his mouth eased into a long slow grin. “Double soaker tubs? For two?”
Hanna laughed. “That’s what I’ve read on the hotel’s Web site. The problem is, it’s summer. We probably won’t be able to get a room since we don’t have a reservation.”
“We could try. We might get lucky.”
“It’s not cheap, although it certainly isn’t as pricey as some bed and breakfasts in the region. If we do get a room, I’ll put it on my credit card since it was my idea.”
“Do you remember the name of the place?”
“The Dutch House,” Hanna supplied. “I’ll go find a phone and call.”
Nick forestalled her. “Relax and finish your beer. I’ve got my SATCOM phone. I’ll call.”
After getting the phone number of the hotel from information, he dialed and talked to the reservation clerk at the Dutch House. The story he gave the clerk made Hanna’s eyes widen. He told her they were newlyweds, and that his new wife had promised to love him forever if he could get a room for them at their highly recommended establishment. His easy charm got him positive results. Within moments, he was pulling out his credit card. Hanna snatched hers out of her wallet and handed it to him, but he waved it away.
When he hung up, she gave him an admonishing scowl, though she was inwardly elated they’d gotten a room on such short notice.
He lifted his broad shoulders in an innocent shrug. “Hey, she only had one room left, and she was saving it for a couple who was very iffy about coming. My story convinced her that she should give us the room. She wanted us to have a long happy marriage, and for you to love me forever.”
His words were too close to Hanna’s most heartfelt wish. Afraid to reveal the secrets of her heart, she dipped her head and circled the rim of her beer mug with her fingertip. “Was the room very expensive?” she asked. “You should have let me pay for it since I suggested it.”
Nick reached across the table and captured her fingertip, which lifted her eyes to his. “My treat. If it’s as good as it sounds, it will be fun. Besides, you ought to do something halfway pleasant on your vacation.” Enfolding her entire hand in his, he turned it over, drew it to him, and kissed the center of her palm, the tip of his tongue tracing a tiny erotic pattern on it. The look in his eyes went from teasing to intense, and Hanna felt ribbons of desire sizzle along every nerve ending. “Let’s go find this hotel. We’ll pick up a bottle of wine along the way.”
THE DUTCH HOUSE was a very large two story Victorian home, three blocks from downtown. The yard around the house was completely enclosed in a lovely white picket fence. Old world style lampposts lit the walkway to the big front porch, then followed it around the side, to the back of the house.
Beautifully etched beveled glass doors decorated the entrance. The fractured light shining through them was a magical invitation inside. Nick and Hanna entered the foyer and walked up to the registration desk. Their backpacks were their only luggage. A young woman with a heavy British accent greeted them. Nick told her he had just called, and that they had reserved the last of the seventeen rooms under the name of Mr. and Mrs. Nick Kelly.
Mr. and Mrs. Nick Kelly. Hanna reveled in the sound of it as she looked around while Nick registered. The interior the home was decorated in antiques and a profusion of leafy green potted plants that gave the reception area a bygone elegance. Once the paperwork was done, the woman led them through the conservatory, a beautiful, plant-filled atrium where a continental, help-yourself breakfast was served each morning, between seven and ten. The vaulted ceiling above the tables was glass-paned, allowing a spectacular view of the night sky overhead.
At the back of the house, they followed the woman up a stairway to a long plushly carpeted hallway. Their room was at the end.
Painted a soft ivory, it was decorated in blue and burgundy jewel tones. A king-sized canopy bed sat against the far wall. Mountains of fluffy pillows topped a mattress that looked heavenly soft
and inviting and outrageously thick. At the foot of the bed, there was an antique Victorian sofa in satin embossed burgundy. It faced a sitting area that held two low back floral print chairs, which graced either side of the gold-veined black marble fireplace.
The receptionist showed Nick how to start the gas fueled fire, and Hanna wandered out onto the small balcony, where there were two wicker chairs and a matching patio table. On her way back inside, she closed the French doors behind her.
Awed by the beauty and charm of the whole room, she wandered into the bathroom. It was exotically furnished with a huge marble bathtub that took up most of one mirrored wall. A glass enclosed shower was tucked into a corner next to it. Bath crystals, scented liquid soap, body oil, and other personal amenities were all provided, along with dozens of unlit candles in various shapes and sizes.
Standing in the middle of the sumptuous room, Hanna was instantly assaulted by images of her and Nick, naked in the big tub, surrounded by a couple dozen lit candles and a full wall mirror. She couldn’t wait to try it! Or have Nick see it!
When she came out of the bathroom, the receptionist was gone, and Nick was setting up his laptop on the marble-topped coffee table in front of the sofa. She walked over to him. “You should see that bathroom!”
“I plan to,” he said, giving her one of his wicked grins. “With you.” He chuckled at her blush. “It is one of the reasons I thought I might like this place.” He patted a spot on the sofa, beside him. “Come sit. I’ve hooked the camera up to my computer. We’ll replay the meeting in Chinatown and listen to what Chen and Yancy have to say to one another.”
A chilled bottle of wine and two-long stemmed cut-crystal glasses sat on the coffee table, next to the computer. Nick poured the wine he’d bought on the way over into the glasses and handed Hanna one. “To success.”
In agreement, she touched her glass to his.
