Purely by Accident

by Jim Beegle

  Before Mark could ask for help, the person on the other end of the line offered it without prompting. Quickly Mark laid out his plan and the part his cohort needed to play. Arrangements were quickly discussed and agreed upon. With a much lighter heart he made his second call and recounted most of the information over again. Just as with his first contact, an offer of help was extended long before the point at which Mark could ask for it.

  It was almost five o’clock Tuesday morning before Mark finally called Jonus Roddy’s home.

  Mr. Roddy was definitely asleep when Mark called. He apologized profusely several times, primarily because he was indeed very sorry for waking him, but also to allow him time to come fully awake. They talked for thirty minutes, during which time Mark gave him a brief recap of where the money on deposit in his bank under Mark’s name had come from. Jonus promptly accepted Mark’s invitation to meet him later that morning for breakfast. Before he hung up the phone, Jonus also promised to bring Mark a locally purchased disposable cellular phone and ten thousand American dollars drawn against his account at the Commonwealth International Bank.

  When he finished talking to Mr. Roddy, Mark’s body began to react to the pace and abuse it had been put through over the last forty-eight hours. Mark undressed and climbed quickly into bed. He was able to keep his eyes open only long enough to place a wake-up call with the hotel operator. As soon as his head hit the pillow, Mark was asleep.

  * * *

  Mark was already in the process of coming awake when the phone rang with his wake-up call. It wasn’t because he was anywhere near caught up on sleep – a few hours really did little to make up for all that he had lost recently - but it was better than nothing. He was awake not because of the phone call from the front desk but, because of a throbbing in his head. Now awake his stomach was also demanding his attention. The pizza he had eaten in Ft. Lauderdale was long gone, used by his body to replace already-spent fuel and it was demanding a refill, now.

  He sat up and rolled his feet onto the floor in the same motion. The movement caused his head to ache even more. Moving slowly and trying not to pick his feet up too far off the floor, he shuffled into the bathroom. When he had checked in earlier that morning he had told the same lost luggage story. Not only did the desk clerk understand about his wayward luggage but also produced a complimentary toiletry kit. It was this kit that Mark now sought out in the bathroom.

  He tore it open, hoping and praying that what he looking for was in there. Sure enough, a small, one-dose packet of aspirin was among the other personal hygiene items in the little package. He tore into the packet, removed the two pills and washed them down with a glass of water from the tap. Temporary relief for his pounding head taken care of, Mark now turned his attention to a longer-term solution and started the coffee pot that was also sitting on the vanity in the bathroom. He stood there watching it until he was sure that it was working properly before making his way back out into the bedroom.

  He walked across the room and opened the folding closet door. He searched among the hangers until he discovered a plastic bag provided for guest laundry. He took it out and picked up his pants, socks, and shirt—the clothes he had left Dallas in the day before—and stuffed them into the bag. He then called the bellman’s desk and told them that he had some laundry that needed to be cleaned. He asked the courteous attendant if he could possibly get it back in a couple of hours. Yes, he understood that there would be an extra charge for the rush, but he was willing to pay.

  At some point during the day he planned to buy some more clothes, but he would need something wear before he ventured outside. He hung the bag on the outside doorknob so the clothes could be picked up without having to physically do the handoff. He went back into the bathroom and poured himself a cup of coffee. He had intentionally filled the pot with only half the water required to ensure that the resulting brew would be strong. His nose assured him that he had achieved his goal.

  He took a couple of sips from the cup before starting the shower. With the water running and heating up, Mark stepped once more to the phone. He dialed a room service number, printed on the front of his phone, and gave the lady who answered a breakfast order for two for delivery in an hour and a half. She repeated the order and added a delivery time back to him before he hung up. With the basic needs of the morning either accomplished or in the process of becoming so, Mark climbed into the shower.

  He adjusted the hot water, adding a little cold to the mix, before finally moving his body completely under the stream from the showerhead. He stood under the water for a good three minutes, letting it finish the job of waking him up. He adjusted the water once again, making it hotter, before turning and letting it pound off of his back for another five minutes. It felt good just to let the water run off him. The heat of the water worked its way into the tired knotted muscles in his shoulders and neck, aided by the aspirin and coffee that was coursing through in his bloodstream, to take the throbbing out of his head.

  It took him the better part of 20 minutes to finish the shower. Eventually, he turned the water off, toweling off with one of the two thick bath sheets hanging in the bathroom. He used the same towel he had dried with and wiped the steam off the mirror providing him a better view of his face so he could shave with the disposable razor in the complementary toiletry kit. When he finished shaving, he dawned the oversized bathrobe that came with the room, refilled his cup, and went back into the bedroom.

  He looked at the clock and calculated the time remaining before Jonus was due to arrive. Realizing that he had little time to spare, he grabbed his briefcase and extracted his laptop. He connected to the hotel’s Wi-Fi with little trouble and subsequently to his Dropbox account. Selecting the encrypted file that contained all the account information for the money Cecil had stashed, he downloaded it onto the computer’s hard drive. When the file was finished transferring, he logged off the Internet. He was aware that his computer could have been compromised but he needed the files and was counting on his encryption program to keep them safe.

  He selected one of the newly arrived files from within the Finder and launched the encryption key. When it came up he navigated through the software and set it to decode the file that contained all the banking information.

  While the computer worked to unscramble the bits of data encoded in the file, Mark went for more coffee. When he returned he opened the curtains, blinking in the bright sunlight that came streaming through the clear glass windows.

  The beach was laid out below him for his personal inspection. In addition to the hotel staff preparing the Atlantis Hotel’s stretch of sand on the water for the guest who would enjoy it later in the day, the only other people moving around on it were a few joggers.

  When the file was decoded, the computer produced a tone to let him know the operation was complete. Mark sat down at the table, took out his yellow legal pad, and flipped it open to a clean page. He immediately began copying bank names, international routing numbers, individual account numbers, and account balances from the small color screen of the laptop onto the yellow legal pad.

  He wrote slowly and deliberately for thirty minutes before completing the list. When he was finished he powered down the computer and returned it, along with the pad, into his briefcase. He had just finished storing everything when there was a knock on the door.

  He looked through the peephole to ensure it was breakfast and nothing more sinister in the hallway and checked that his robe was securely in place before opening the door. As he ushered the waiter into the room, he checked to see that his clothes had been picked up. The doorknob held nothing but his fingerprints now.

  The waiter entered the room and placed a wooden doorstop under the door to keep it open while he wheeled in the breakfast cart. Mark was signing the check when Mr. Roddy half stepped into the room and knocked on the door. Mark finished with his signature and walked with the waiter to the door. He took Jonus’ proffered hand and shook it warmly as the wait
er departed.

  “Jon, it is so very good to see you; you have no idea how good! Thank you so much for coming.” Mark released Jon’s hand and took a step back. “Please forgive me for not being properly dressed,” he apologized, opening his arms to indicate his robe with the motion. “I quite literally arrived this morning with only the clothes on my back.”

  “Do you need me to make some arrangements with the hotel for some clothing?” the banker asked.

  “Not necessary, but thank you for the offer,” he said. “I hustled off what I had on to the hotel laundry when I got up. I will go out when they get back and pick up a few things. Please have a seat and let me get you something to drink. Tea or coffee?”

  “Coffee, if you please. I much prefer it in the morning to tea.” Mark poured a cup from the carafe sitting on the breakfast cart. Once he had the cup in hand, Mark motioned for Jon to sit while he uncovered and moved the food off the cart onto the table in the sitting room.

  While Mark busied himself arranging breakfast on the table, Jonus reached into one inside pocket of his coat and extracted a sleek cell phone from and a thick envelope. He placed both items in the middle of the table.

  “Here are the things you asked me for this morning. The number for the phone is written here,” he extracted a business card from the pocket of his starched white shirt. “Are you sure this is all you need?”

  Mark picked up all three items from the table and placed them into his open briefcase. “No, but it’s all I need at the moment. And in case I forget to mention it later, thank you for getting all this for me on such short notice. I do have something else to ask of you, but it’s more in keeping with your regular job than these other things,” He said nodding toward the briefcase.

  “Indeed?” Jonus asked in a very proper and British manner.

  In response, Mark interjected “I hate to do this, but I am starved. Would you mind if we eat while we talk?” In reply, Jonus spread a napkin across his lap, picked up his plate, and handed it to Mark.

  During the process of making two eggs Benedict disappear, Mark explained that the current deposit in the Commonwealth International Bank was just one of several Cecil had scattered around the world. While he chewed the last bite of his English muffin, he handed Jon the list of bank accounts he had written on the yellow legal pad. While the banker reviewed the list, Mark explained that he wanted all the money transferred to the Commonwealth International Bank and how he wanted it.

  “Any problem getting all of that done today?” Mark asked, wiping his mouth with the linen napkin.

  Jonus studied the list for a moment longer and then looked at his watch. “I don’t think we can do the Asian accounts until this evening. It’s not much of a problem though. Some of these amounts are quite large, but not out of the ordinary. If you mean by today sometime before midnight, then, yes we can have it all here.”

  Mark smiled. “That will do just fine.”

  Jonus folded the list and put it into one of the inside coat pockets he had emptied earlier. Meanwhile, Mark refilled both cups with fresh coffee and sat back in his chair.

  “I think before you begin any of this you need to be aware of a few other things that have transpired and will continue to develop …” Mark looked at display on the new phone that was lying on the table, “twenty-four hours, as well as the role your bank will need to play.” While Jonus sipped his second cup of coffee, Mark told him, in outline form, everything that had happened to him since he left Dallas. Jonus was a good listener and did not say a word while Mark talked for the next twenty minutes.

  “My God man,” he said once Mark had stopped talking, “surely you have contacted the police?”

  Mark shook his head. “There was no time for that. Jon, it would take me two days just to explain everything to the police, let them check in out, and then be in a position to do something about it. And that is all founded on the ill-placed assumption that first, they believe me, and second, that they decide not to throw me in jail.” Jonus considered all this for several minutes before answering.

  “Yes, yes, I can see you’re probably right. What will you do then?” It did not take as long to chronicle this second part of the story as it had the first. In ten minutes the majority of Mark’s plan and strategy for planning way laid out to his friend and banker. Once again Jonus considered what Mark had told him.

  “If you’re wrong …” Jonus admonished Mark’s looking into his eyes.

  “If I’m wrong, then I only lose the money. But if I’m right,” Mark left the thought for Jonus to complete.

  “Yes, if you’re right, well, that would change everything,” he said.

  “Exactly,” Mark replied, pleased that Jonus was as quick as he had assumed he was.

  The banker then took a gold pen from his shirt pocket and rolled it around on his fingers.

  “You mentioned earlier that the bank would have a part to play in this. I think I understand now what that could be and it might work. But,” Jonus looked up from the pen into Mark’s eyes, “is there anything else I can do to help?”

  Mark smiled, “Remember you asked!” With that, he retrieved the legal pad from of his briefcase and tore off several pages that he had written on the trip from the United States. The two men spent another thirty minutes reviewing the plan Mark had written out.

  After Jonus had asked a few questions for clarification, he told Mark that he thought he could do everything he needed within the time frame Mark had laid out for him. They were still deep in conversation when a knock on the door caused both men to jump.

  Mark rose from the table and slowly went to the door and looked through the peephole. He breathed out a sigh of relief and laughed, while at the same time opening the door to admit the bellman with his freshly pressed clothes, into the room. Mark put the plastic wrapped clothes on the bed and tipped the bellman who then made his own way out of the room.

  When Mark turned back around he found his breakfast guest, and now-welcomed accomplice, on his feet looking at his watch.

  “I must be going now if I am too get all this taken care of for you on time.”

  Mark approached the bank president and extended a hand that Jonus immediately took.

  “I cannot tell you what a relief it is to have your help with this. Thank you. I appreciate it more than I put into words.”

  “Well,” Jonus said, returning the handshake and smiling, “It certainly gives new meaning to, as you American’s would say, full-service banking.” Mark enjoyed the levity in a way that a thirsty man enjoys a drink of cool water.

  “I will see you tomorrow morning then.” The banker pulled up short of the door and turned back to his host. “Be careful Mark, please.”

  After his guest-banker departed, Mark picked up and looked at his new cell phone. It was now eleven-thirty. The first order of business was to dress and call Amy’s cell phone again. But before he called Amy, he would ask the bell captain to arrange for a rental car to be available to him in thirty minutes. He had a good deal of ground to cover that afternoon and wanted to be able to come and go as saw fit.

  Mark removed his clothes from the thin plastic dry cleaning bag and dressed quickly. He then sat on the edge of the bed and used his room phone to call the bell captain. The rental car taken care of he paused, took several deep breaths and from the same room phone called Amy’s cell phone.

  The phone by the bed rang at twelve-thirty. Mark answered it on the first ring. He wanted them to know he was waiting. “Hello.”

  “Mark?” It was Amy making the call for them this time.

  “Amy, are you all right? Are they treating you OK?”

  “Yes, Mark,” she told him in a quiet, timid voice. “I’m fine. They haven’t hurt me. Mark when will I see you?”

  “Tomorrow, Amy. I promise tomorrow.” There was a pause and a noise as soon as he had made his promise to his wife. The pause was broken by the now familiar electronic voice.

  �
�You’ve talked to her. You know we haven’t done anything to harm her,” the voice told him.

  “Yes, I appreciate you letting me talk to her.”

  “Mr. Vogel, we are not without concern for your situation. We want this to be over with as much as you do. Speaking of which,” the voice paused as he shifted the topic of conversation. “Is the money being handled?”

  “They will start doing the transfers this evening.” Mark lied, knowing full well that the first transaction was probably be happening as they spoke. “What do you want me to do now?”

  “Good, very good. We are glad to see that you too are anxious to get this matter consummated.” There was a pause and a sound on the other end of the line that Mark interpreted as paper being unfolded.

  “First where are you staying?” Mark told the man. “ Tomorrow morning at eleven forty-five exactly you are to go to the front desk of your hotel. You are to have the name of the bank and the account number written down and with you. There will be an envelope for you. In the envelope, you will find a note telling you were to meet us. The envelope may be there sooner than that, but you are not to pick it up until eleven forty-five. Do you have that?”

  “Front desk, no sooner than eleven forty-five, bring the bank and account information.” Mark repeated the instructions in an even voice.

  “That’s right. So far, Mr. Vogel, flawlessly obey flaw.” the altered male voice told him. “So let’s not do anything stupid now. We’ll be watching the front desk. If you pick up the note before eleven forty-five or if someone other than you picks it up, you will never see your wife again. Are we clear on that?” the voice asked.

  “We’re clear. What do I do after I get the note?” Mark asked.

  “Your instructions will be in the note,” the voice responded.

  “Wait a minute, I need to know more about what is supposed to happen.” But his protest fell on deaf ears as the line went dead.