by I A Thompson
Zach nodded. “Makes sense. Did you report this to Hernandez and our team yet?”
Regina shook her head. “I wanted to run it by you first. I thought maybe you had gotten some tidbits that could corroborate my theories.”
“No. They kept feeding us the same lines of investigation in progress, can’t share anything so we won’t compromise the case, blah, blah. Frankly, I don’t think they’ve gotten very far.”
“Birmingham spilled what little beans he had to spill. The guy is pretty much toast at this point; it’s game over for him. I haven’t gotten through the recording of the other two yet, I’m sorry.”
“Nothing to apologize for, you have done more than enough.” Zach grinned. “If it’s alright with you, I’d suggest, we enjoy a night out with friends and enjoy our progress. We can report back to Washington tomorrow.”
23
‘Snappers’ had been a staple in the Pensacola Beach landscape as long as Regina could remember. In fact, the landmark was five years older than she was. Its weathered wooden siding basked in the warm glow of hundreds of multi-colored lights when Zach and Regina arrived.
A kaleidoscope of memories cascaded over Regina, as they walked in. Birthday parties, family gatherings, graduations, countless dates and her first official summer job.
Zach looked around, soaking in the atmosphere. “This place is huge,” he exclaimed. “Who would have thought it stretches so far back. It didn’t look this big from the front. Is that a volleyball court back there?”
“Yes, it is.” Regina grinned. “You should see this place during the summer or after a ‘winging’. The drunker the patrons are, the funnier the games become.”
“What is a ‘winging’?” Zach asked.
“Oh, that’s the ceremony where aviators who completed flight school at NAS Pensacola and NAS Whiting Field get their ‘wings of gold’. NAS as in Naval Air Station by the way. The parties afterwards are memorable.” Regina explained.
Zach spotted Nick in the crowd and pointed in his direction. “There they are.”
Serena, Shelby, Nick and Brad sat at a picnic table sharing a basket of fried calamari while they sipped on ‘Hydrogen’, the restaurant’s signature drink, served in mason jars. They warmly welcomed the newcomers as if they were old friends.
“Glad you guys could make it,” Shelby said and scooted to her left to make room for Regina. “It’s been one hell of a week. The most successful week in our team’s existence. And call me superstitious if you want, but I do think the two of you were our good luck charms.”
Brad rolled his eyes. “Seriously, Shelby? Good luck charms? Are you six, or what? There is no such thing as good luck. Just diligence, determination, collaboration between our agencies, attention to details and finally a break.”
“Yes, a lucky break,” Serena came to the defense of her friend and colleague. “Sure, we all know that our work eventually creates the breaks we get, but since I’m one eighth Irish, I don’t want to jinx my luck by ruling out the existence of good luck charms.”
“You guys crack me up,” Regina laughed. “And I fully understand that you can’t talk about an ongoing case, but just out of curiosity, is it true that Congressman Birmingham and Felix Rutherford IV are connected to this case? It’s been all over the news that they had been arrested.”
Nick nodded. “As you said, we can’t discuss the case, but it is safe to say there are enough indicators to warrant us to investigate them, along with a guy from Navarre.”
“Who would have thought,” Regina marveled. “Felix, of all people? Do you remember, back in high school? He was homecoming king our senior year, most-likely-to-succeed, captain of the debate team and star forward on the soccer team.”
“And dated Tammie Nelson, cheerleader and rodeo queen,” Nick added. “Everybody thought they would get hitched pretty quickly. I don’t know the details, all I heard was that it didn’t last once they got to college.”
“That’s what I heard as well,” Regina responded. “She went to Auburn; he went to Florida State. He told her he didn’t want a long-distance relationship, as if three hours apart counts as long distance. In the DC area, we call that a commute. He was just looking for an excuse to ditch her, so he could fully enjoy frat life.”
“Sounds like a real jerk,” Zach said.
Brad laughed. “You have no idea, man. That dude is one silver-tongued devil. The chicks loved him, most guys hated him. Although, he always had a sizeable entourage, courtesy of daddy’s money, good looks and athleticism. Always drove the latest model sports car, straight off the family car lot. Everybody in the greater Pensacola area knew him or of him. He literally held court at Casino Beach, south of the volleyball court. Unless you were invited, that stretch of beach was off-limits.”
Zach did his best to sound casual when he asked, “Was his family’s dealership ever in trouble with the law? I mean, if he’s being investigated, I can only imagine it has something to do with his business. I’ve seen that on TV once, where a dealership had laundered drug money.” He paused, pretending to think, then continued, “Or they could use the car transports to move the drugs.” He looked around, hoping for someone to react, but got nothing.
Regina wasn’t surprised, this wasn’t the HIDTA team’s first rodeo. The professionalism she had observed while watching interrogation videos was now evidenced by the complete lack of tells. Poker faces all around.
Serena smiled at Zach. “That’s good thinking, Zach. One never knows where an investigation will lead. For now, we’re still very much in the evidence gathering and analysis phase. There are a lot of pieces to this puzzle. It would be presumptuous of us to jump to any conclusions.”
Before Zach could ask another question related to the case, Nick got up and said, “I’m ready for another round. Y’all want some more of this dangerous concoction?” He pointed at his empty mason jar and everyone around the table gave him a thumbs up as he walked away towards the bar.
“Have you ever tried the key lime pie here?” Regina asked. “It’s a thing of beauty; three layers of yum. I’ll go get us a few, so we’ll have something in our stomachs to soak up the alcohol.”
Shelby raised her hand. “While you’re at it, get some more of those calamari as well. That stuff is good and I’m hungry.”
Regina laughed. “A girl after my heart. But seriously, I’m starving too, hence my hankering for pie. Instead of just having drinks and snacking, I’m beginning to think, we might as well order dinner and hang out for the rest of the night. Unless you have other plans, of course.”
“Oh gosh, dinner sounds great. I’m ravenous.” Serena held her stomach and bent over as if she was in pain while Zach and Brad nodded in agreement. Serena flagged down a server, asked for menus and they all began to explore their options.
Twenty minutes later, a veritable feast piled up in front of them; from sushi to stuffed flounder and on to ribeye steak; they managed to order just about every entrée available. It got very quiet around the table once they all started digging in.
“Oh my God, this is so good,” Zach managed to mumble between two bites of his crab stuffed flounder. “This is hands down the best dish I’ve had in a long time.”
Nick chuckled. “Yeah, and you’ll be five pounds heavier tomorrow. There is a lot of butter and heavy cream in this stuffing, at least that’s what my mom always told me.”
“Well, I guess it’s a good thing then that I have a supercharged metabolism,” Zach replied.
After dinner, they ordered another round of drinks and relocated to a table next to the volleyball court. They didn’t have to wait long before it was their turn to play; the girls took on the guys. Influenced by the amount of alcohol they had consumed, both teams severely overestimated their abilities. Lacking focus and coordination, they tripped over each other, landing more often in the sand than scoring points, laughing until tears rolled down their faces. A rare, carefree moment in their otherwise serious and regimented lives.
; “That was a lot of fun,” Zach exclaimed after he and Regina staggered back to their hotel, arm in arm.
Regina giggled. “You are so right, this evening made me feel like I was in my twenties again and not worried about a thing in life. Like a mini vacation from reality.”
Zach let go of her arm, reached around her shoulders and directed her to her room. “Alright, sweet cheeks, time to go to bed.”
“You’re right,” Regina sighed. “Tomorrow will be here before we know it. Thanks for a really nice evening.” She lifted her heels, rolled up on the balls of her feet and kissed him on the cheek before swaying into her room, shutting the door closed behind her.
Zach stared at the closed door for a moment, looking dazed and confused, before shaking his head and stumbling into his own room.
24
Morning came way too soon for Regina as she woke up with a massive headache and dragged herself to the bathroom with whatever semblance of energy she could muster. The memories of the previous evening were fuzzy and her bloodshot eyes looking back at her from the mirror confirmed her suspicions, she’d had way too much alcohol.
She studied her face in the mirror as if she was watching a movie, admiring her high cheekbones, sun-kissed face and fine lines around her mouth and forehead. Eyebrows needed tweezing. A pretty face, albeit tired looking. She sighed. There was something to that song “hangovers hurt more than they used to”.
Turning on the cold water, she cupped her hands into a bowl, waited a few seconds and then splashed her face with the cold liquid, and repeated the process three more times until she felt the headache starting to ease up. Oh, that felt good.
For a moment, she considered taking a cold shower, but then chickened out and opted for the opposite. She took her time washing her hair and lingered under the hot water until the bathroom was filled with steam. A good thing that the hotel had an endless supply of hot water, if she was at home, she would have drained the water heater by now.
She put on a pair of yoga pants, fuzzy socks and a long sleeve shirt before going to the small kitchen and starting a pot of the complimentary coffee provided by the hotel. It would keep her awake until Zach got up and she could suggest going out for breakfast so she could feed her craving of a strong cup of Italian espresso.
Zach came out of his room, just as Regina was stirring creamer into her first cup of coffee. He looked worse than she did, as if he was about to throw up. “Remind me to never drink that ‘Hydrogen’ stuff again,” he said meekly. “I can’t even remember the last time I felt this hung over.”
“Same here.” Regina wanted to nod, but her head and neck hurt too much. “Any chance I can talk you into breakfast in town? I need stronger coffee than the stuff they serve on the island.”
“You’ll have to drive. I don’t think my stomach can handle any sudden movements; as long as I sit still, I should be fine.”
Regina had no interest in dealing with Zach’s weak stomach and drove the five miles to ‘Antonio’s’ extra carefully. When they walked into the small restaurant, she took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment, savoring the smell of coffee and baked goods.
A server in her late thirties whose name tag said ‘Belinda’ led them to a table, smiled, and after a quick look at their faces, said, “You two look like you need a hearty breakfast and strong coffee. I’d recommend ‘Nonna’s Special’ and double espresso.”
“What’s ‘Nonna’s Special’?” Zach asked.
“Breakfast potatoes, crisp bacon and scrambled eggs. It’ll have you back on your feet in no time,” Belinda replied.
Regina and Zach nodded in agreement and a few minutes later gratefully wrapped their hands around piping hot coffee cups.
Zach leaned forward and whispered, “How did she know?”
“First of all, we look like death warmed over; second, we still smell like a distillery and third, she’s got lots of experience with the likes of us.” Regina took another sip of her super strong coffee. “This is exactly what I needed. Give me another one of these and I’ll be as good as new.”
Two double espressos and a plate full of protein and carbs later, Regina did indeed feel better. Not running-a-marathon great, but good enough to start thinking about work again. She glanced at Zach who was still shoveling food in his mouth. His skin color had improved from pasty greyish white to his normal complexion; he was clearly coming around well.
“So, what next?” Regina asked. “I assume we should probably send a report to Hernandez?”
Zach nodded. “Yeah, and we might as well ask for new orders. Not much more we can do around here, the HIDTA team’s got it covered from here on out.”
“Good point,” Regina agreed. “In that case, I should probably call my parents and let them know we’ll likely be leaving town soon. Be prepared to be invited to Sunday lunch or dinner.”
Zach rolled his eyes and a split second later reached up and covered his eyes with both hands. “Ouch, I shouldn’t have done that. That literally sent fiery daggers through my eye sockets.”
“Yep, God punishes immediately,” Regina grinned. “Look, it’ll only be for a few hours, and our house is usually full of guests on Sundays anyway, so you’ll blend right in. No biggie.”
“If you say so.” Zach was not convinced.
They returned to the hotel and spent the next few hours assembling a meticulous list of everything they had observed during their assignment and then aggregated it into a concise report. After they encrypted their report, they sent it off to director Hernandez and the task force team.
It didn’t take long until Hernandez sent a reply. It simply stated: “VTC at 1600ET.”
With some time to kill until their meeting, Zach decided to take a nap while Regina called her mother. Just as she expected, her mother invited them to lunch the next day and did not want to hear any of the excuses Regina half-heartedly brought forth to appease Zach’s opposition to meeting her family.
When they logged into Ghost Coms video conferencing screen to join the meeting, the screen split into six feeds. It was the first time since they left Washington that all members of the task force were together in one room, albeit a virtual one.
Hernandez didn’t waste any time. “Good afternoon and good evening for those of you in Europe. Sorry for calling this meeting on such short notice but given the progress Mr. Jones and Miss Livingston have made over the last few days, I wanted us all to synch up and adjust our tactical plans as needed. I assume everyone has read the U.S. team’s report?” The heads in four of the small camera shots nodded and Hernandez continued, “Good. Are we looking at a few local players here or have any of you been able to gather any intel that could tie into what we know so far?”
Lena Mertens raised her hand. “We also came across Royal Dutch Freight Lines, both in Holland and Belgium. Nothing concrete, just suspicions that workers at the ports in Antwerp and Rotterdam were whispering about. The word on the street was that there was something fishy about one of RDFL’s executives, a guy named Silas Redmond. Apparently, he has…”
“Silas Redmond?” Hardy Van Baak interrupted Lena. “Are you sure that was the name? The guy is a big deal here in Paramaribo. Nothing ships into or out of Suriname without him being involved or at least knowing about it.”
Lena nodded. “Sounds like him. He’s perceived as powerful and extremely demanding. Has the highest crew turn-over rate in RDFL’s fleet. People spoke of inexplicable deviations from what would be considered normal shipping routes and then having to work double and triple shifts to make up time and still get to their destination ports on time.”
“You mean like traveling too far north for a normal trip from Suriname to New Orleans?” Hardy asked. “Now that we’re talking about it, I’m pretty sure, the ‘Juliana’ is one of Redmond’s ships as well.”
“Well, then,” Hernandez interjected. “Looks like our next steps are clear. Lena and Finn, keep digging into RDFL. Jonathan and Martin, turn over the financials of RDFL, Silas Re
dmond and Dominic Amante. Zach and Regina, go to Suriname, join Hardy and find out everything you can about their operation on the ground. Good work everyone, enjoy the rest of your weekend.”
The screen went dark and Regina and Zach looked at each other, silently processing their new directives.
25
When Regina and Zach turned into her family’s driveway the following day, Zach drew in a deep breath. Regina’s family home sat nestled half-way down the hill, overlooking the Escambia River basin. Pastures, a few farm buildings and woods stretched as far as the eye could see, all the way to the distant rolling hills of Alabama; a million-dollar view, soothing and peaceful. The house itself was a sprawling one-story structure, muted brick in beige-brown tones and six white columns that supported a spacious covered front porch.
Off to the side was a large pool, surrounded by a deck and flanked by a pool house that looked like it was the family’s party hub. Smoke rose from a supersized covered grill. Roughly a dozen adults of various ages lounged around the pool, a few kids were braving what undoubtedly had to be very cold water and were playing in the pool.
“How many dogs does your family have?” he asked as he heard several dogs barking.
Regina shrugged her shoulders as she brought the car to a stop in front of a garage sitting a few yards away from the main house. “Last time I was home there were six. I haven’t heard of any recent deaths or new arrivals, so I’d guess, it’s still six, but with my mother, you just never know. She can’t resist an animal in need.”
Zach swallowed. He didn’t mind dogs, but that many sounded intimidating. “What kind of dogs are they?”
“Mostly pit bulls,” Regina answered. “About seventy pounds on average per dog. My dad always jokes that our house is protected by roughly a hundred-fifty sharp teeth and a bunch of guns. If you’re a bad guy, you may make it in, but you won’t make it out alive. Thankfully, we’ve never had to put that theory to the test. Over the years, the pack has killed a few squirrels, birds, rabbits and a five-foot snake. That one could have easily gone bad, had it been a rattlesnake. Thankfully, it was not poisonous.” She could see he was a little unnerved by her tales of country life and added, “Don’t worry, the dogs are in the backyard. You won’t cross paths with them.”
