Avengers and Rogues

by Charles Dougherty

  "Oh, yeah. Quite a few, even in this crowded part of the world."

  "Then let's explore some of them."

  "They're mostly tiny, and they don't have fresh water. That's why they're uninhabited."

  "I don't want to live there forever. I just want the experience of not having to watch my back. We could carry enough food and water on the boat to last us for a while, right?"

  "Right. Speaking of the boat, maybe we should check out some of the charter operations here on St. Thomas — see what they have for sale."

  "You think they'll have something different from what I saw in Tortola?"

  I shrugged. "I doubt it. Just an idea. It's something to do to kill time."

  "We could, I guess, but I've lost my sense of urgency for a boat, with Kelley out of the game. I'd like to enjoy Cane Garden Bay for a few days. Just kick back and relax, get to know you."

  "We've known one another for a good while now," I said.

  "Oh, you know what I mean. All those silly courtship rituals are behind us now. Let's take a little time and really get to know one another, now that the pressure's off."

  "You think it's going to be that easy?"

  "We won't know if we don't give it a try, Finn. I don't need to go back to work. I'm pretty well set for life, and I'm betting you are, too. If not, well, how would you feel about being a kept man?"

  "Best offer I've ever had. But I think we better take a look at the menu."

  "Hungry?" Mary asked.

  "Yes, but besides that, this place is filling up, and the waitress keeps eyeing us, wondering when we're going to order."

  "Oh, all right, then. Let's look at the menu." She gave me a look that made my blood pressure skyrocket. Then she smiled and ran her tongue over her lips. "Now that you mention it, I'm in a hurry to get back to our room. Maybe we should skip lunch."

  "Your call," I said, trying to keep my voice even.

  "On second thought, we should eat. You need to keep your strength up."

  "Yes, ma'am," I said, waving the waitress over to our table.

  "Ready to order?" she asked.

  "Yes," I said. "What's the quickest meal on the menu."

  "The quickest… Nobody's ever asked me that before. Are you in a hurry?"

  "He's just being silly," Mary said. "Anticipation sharpens the appetite, I'm told."

  "Maybe I should tell you about our specials," the waitress said.

  "Good. Let's hear them," I said, ignoring that smoldering, liquid look in Mary's eyes.

  27

  Hovering in that odd zone between sleep and wakefulness, I was recovering from playing my part in Mary's fantasy. We were stretched out on the bed in our room in Cane Garden Bay. It was late afternoon; we'd been back long enough to… well, you know.

  She was asleep, her head resting on my shoulder, when I had one of those breakthrough thoughts that come when they're least expected. At the same moment, Mary woke up.

  "Finn?"

  "Mm. I thought you were zonked. Are you awake?"

  "You jumped; it startled me. I guess I was asleep. Is something wrong?"

  "No, but as long as you're awake, I wondered about that pistol — the one you took from Kelley's guy."

  "How did you get there?"

  "I don't know; I was worried about it, I guess. It just popped into my mind. I didn't know I jumped. Sorry if it woke you up."

  "That's okay. What about the pistol?"

  "You still have it in your bag?"

  "No. I ditched it when we were on the ferry. Why?"

  "Good. I didn't see you do that." I turned my head a little, so I could see her face.

  She smiled. "No, I don't imagine you did."

  "When did you do it?"

  "Remember when we were all alone, smooching on the aft deck?"

  "How could I forget? But I didn't see you toss it."

  She giggled. I've only heard her giggle once or twice; it's out of character.

  "You were busy."

  "You managed to ditch the pistol then?"

  Another giggle. "Yes. I figured that if anybody was watching, they wouldn't notice me dropping it over the side. You were providing a great diversion."

  "And I thought all that squirming was because you were in the throes of passion."

  "That too. Why were you worried about the pistol?"

  "I didn't want us to forget to lose it. A found pistol's a dangerous thing to hang onto. No telling what kind of history it might have."

  "Yes, you're right about that. Rest easy, though; I took care of it."

  "You think somebody was watching us when we were… "

  "No, but it never hurts to be cautious," she said. "What time is it, anyway?"

  "Don't know. You thinking about dinner?"

  "Maybe. I lost track."

  Reaching over to the bedside table with my free hand, I picked up my cellphone and pressed the home button. The screen lit up, and I saw that I had a text message.

  "Five o'clock," I said, unlocking the phone with my thumb.

  "What are you doing?"

  "I got a text since we've been back."

  "I didn't hear the alert," she said, propping herself up on her elbow.

  "Because the phone was still silenced from this morning. I forgot to turn the ringer back on."

  "Who's it from?"

  "I'm getting there. It's not from a number in my contacts. Hang on."

  I held the phone where we could both see the screen and opened the text. The photograph at the beginning sent my heart rate into the stratosphere.

  "Who is she, Finn? Her picture's on the bulkhead in the saloon. I didn't want to ask, but I've wondered…"

  I was too stunned to respond as I read the text below the photograph.

  She's a pretty girl. Don't worry. We won't do anything to spoil her looks. Wouldn't want to reduce her market value. In case our friend in St. Thomas forgot to tell you before he died, we want the girl who was calling herself Mary Elizabeth O'Brien. And we want to know who has copies of the files she stole from the Daileys. You have 48 hours to deliver. After that, we'll send you videos every six hours to keep you up to date on what's happening to this sweet child until you give us what we want. Keep your phone close by.

  "Who is she, Finn?" Mary asked, putting a hand on my chest giving me a little nudge.

  My mouth was so dry it was hard for me to speak. "My daughter."

  "Shit! I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I've brought this on you."

  "Not your fault."

  "I didn't know you had a daughter."

  "I've never even met her. And now, this. They're going to pay; they have no idea."

  "I'll go, Finn."

  "Go?"

  "In her place. Send them a text."

  "No. That's not going to solve anything. They won't let her go, anyway."

  "Finn?"

  "Yeah?"

  "Tell me about her."

  "I was married when I first went on active duty. She was born while I was on a covert assignment in Afghanistan, before all the shit started over there. I found out about her birth the same time I got the divorce papers. That's about all there is to tell."

  "You never met her?"

  "That's right. I thought it was best, given my line of work. Because… " I stopped, my voice cracking.

  "Because you thought something like this might happen?"

  "Yeah."

  "Where'd you get the picture?"

  "I tracked her down. I wanted to know… "

  "Where?"

  "Where what?"

  "Where did you find her?"

  "Oh. I kept track of her all along. I shot that picture that's on the boat not long after she started college. She's at the University of Florida."

  "Now?"

  "Yeah. Well, now I… "

  "You have an address for her? A current address?"

  "Yeah."

  "Give it to me."

  "What? Why?"

  "We're going to get her out of this."

/>   "How?"

  "Trust me. If she was snatched in Florida, I know someone who can find her. Give me her address. And her name. Hurry, damn it. Time's precious."

  I rolled out of bed and dug my laptop out of my duffle bag. My daughter's details were in an encrypted file on the hard drive. In a few seconds, I pulled them up on the screen and turned it where Mary could see it.

  She picked up her big shoulder bag and took out a cheap cellphone.

  "Burner," she said, seeing me looking at it.

  She keyed in a number, and I heard the phone ringing.

  "Yeah?" a man's voice asked.

  "Medusa," Mary said.

  "Wait one."

  "Phorcys. To what do I owe the pleasure?" This was another man's voice.

  "About that favor you owe me."

  "Anything. How may I help?"

  "A girl was kidnapped in Gainesville in the last few hours. She's an innocent civilian. Her name's Abigail Edith Carroll." Mary spelled the last name. "Her address is 1701 Southwest 16th Street, Apartment 201."

  "Okay, I have that. You want her freed, I take it."

  "Yes, please."

  "That shouldn't be a problem. Anything else?"

  "Yes. Make an example of her captors. But before you finish with them, find out who ordered this."

  "Certainly. And then?"

  "Put out the word that she's under your protection, in case anyone misses the implication. Let me know who's behind it, and I'll take it from there."

  "Excellent. I'll be in touch as soon as Ms. Carroll is safe at home. Is this a good number for you?"

  "For now. And this time, I owe you, for a change."

  "No. This one's still on me. Gainesville's my turf, as the less savory elements would say. I didn't authorize this. And it's a pleasure to hear from you."

  "Likewise. And thanks."

  "My pleasure."

  She disconnected the call and turned to me. "You heard?"

  "Yes. But who is Phorcys?"

  "Phorcys and his sister Ceto were Medusa's parents."

  "I didn't mean in mythology. Was that your father?"

  She frowned. "You mean because I said I was Medusa?"

  I nodded.

  "It's just a challenge and response we use."

  I noticed she evaded my question. "And how do you know this person?"

  "I've done some work for him; he feels indebted to me."

  "How can he find Abby?"

  "I can't answer that, because I don't know. But he will. Nothing happens in Florida's underworld that he doesn't know about. Like you said about Nora, he has a track record with me."

  "Okay. I don't know if I can just sit here; I feel so helpless."

  "You're not helpless, Finn. I wouldn't want to be the people holding your daughter."

  "When you get the name of the person behind this, I'll handle it, just so we're clear on that."

  Mary locked eyes with me. "No, partner. We'll handle it. You and I. I got us into this; I'm going to do my share to get us out. That's the way this is going to work between us. Got it?"

  I nodded, but I'm sure I didn't look happy. I could tell from the expression on her face.

  "Finn?"

  "What?"

  "Does she know you even exist?"

  "Abby?"

  Mary nodded.

  "She… I don't know. I've not heard from her mother since the divorce. There was a court order that prohibited me from having any contact with either of them, in exchange for my having no obligation for child support or alimony."

  "You agreed to that?"

  "By default. It all happened while I was crawling on my belly in the dust, like some kind of reptile. I was out of touch for almost a year. And then I wasn't coherent for a good while after I rejoined the living. By the time I got my wits about me, it was too late to do anything about it."

  "I would think it's never too late, in a situation like that."

  "It may not have been, technically. But my ex-wife was remarried, and her new husband adopted Abby. I figured the best thing for everybody was to let it go. That all happened while I was kind of missing in action."

  "Kind of?"

  "Well, since there was no official U.S. presence where I was and the government was actively denying our involvement at the time… "

  "I see. That's so sad, though."

  "Well, I decided it was probably best for Abby if I let her have a normal life."

  "I understand, but that must've been hard for you."

  I shrugged. "I managed."

  "Who knows about this? About your having a daughter, I mean."

  "I've never mentioned it to a soul, except you. But there are court records, back there somewhere, I guess. And maybe something in my military record." I frowned. "So how in the hell … "

  "My question, exactly. How did these people find out about your daughter to begin with? This is getting scary, Finn. It's surreal."

  "Before you came through the sliding door this morning, I was trying to negotiate with Kelley. I argued that once I gave him you and the files, he should let Nora go; he wouldn't need her for leverage. That's when he told the guy to kill her. Then he laughed at me and said, 'I've got leverage you can't even imagine, son.' I was wondering what he meant, but now it's clear. He knew about Abby, knew they had her. Too bad we didn't have time to question him."

  "Well, we'll soon know what he could have told us."

  "Yeah. But it would have been nice to hear him screaming for a while."

  "Let it go, Finn. Abby's going to be fine."

  "Part of the 48 hours is already up."

  "I'll be surprised if she's not home by morning, wondering what happened," Mary said.

  "What will your friend's people tell her?" I asked. "How are they going to explain why somebody snatched her? And who will she think rescued her?"

  "Those are valid concerns, but you've skipped some worrisome questions."

  "What do you mean?"

  "They knew about Nora, and they know Abby's your daughter. How?"

  "Damn. You're right. I thought of that and moved right past it. I'm losing it. What's wrong with me?"

  "You're not losing it. You would have come back to those points. But there's another thing bothering me, here."

  "What's that?"

  "All this started because I took those files, Finn."

  I frowned.

  "Your connection with me is the only reason they're after you — and that led them to Nora and your daughter."

  "Maybe so, but that doesn't matter at this point. We're in this together. No point in digging through what-might-have-been-if-only stuff."

  "Yes, there is. I'm not doing it to shoulder the blame. There's something wrong here. They got to you way too fast. Think about it. They got to Nora, and she was practically invisible. And your relationship to Abby's buried even deeper."

  "Are you saying there's another connection? Besides the one between you and me?"

  "You started me down that path when you were talking about who knew about Nora, besides you and her boss. And I guess her boss's boss, maybe. And then you said there might be something in your military records."

  "I see where you're going. Whoever gave away Nora and my daughter is probably in my chain of command. With Nora dead, that leaves three people, and the one at the top is unlikely."

  "That would be the president?"

  "No comment."

  "He's just a scum-sucking politician, Finn. Why do you say he's an unlikely candidate?"

  "Oh, it's nothing to do with his ethics. He's morally bankrupt; no question about that. It's just that he wouldn't know my name, or even Nora's. He would only know that he could authorize something and that there were people like us who made it happen."

  "I see. So you think it's one of the other two?"

  "Almost certain to be."

  "I don't want to know who they are," Mary said.

  "I don't blame you. One of them's a public figure, but even I don't know the other one's
name. Nora's boss, that is. And I suspect Nora's operation is only part of his — or her — portfolio."

  "Where do you want to go with all this, Finn?"

  "I don't know yet. I want Abby safe. When your friend tells us who gave the order, maybe we'll see a little deeper into the swamp. What are you planning to do once we have the name?"

  "I was planning to talk that over with you, partner. But if it were up to me, I'd kill the bastard without blinking an eye. I'd question him first, though."

  "Yeah. I think we're missing something."

  "What's that?" Mary asked.

  "About those files. I took a look, but they didn't make sense. Now that we've got a better idea of who we're looking for, maybe the two of us should revisit them."

  "Okay by me. But can we get dressed and go get something to eat first?"

  "Yes. Let's go."

  28

  "It must have been hard for you, knowing about Abby and keeping your distance," Mary said.

  We were strolling along the waterfront in Cane Garden Bay, walking off our dinner. The restaurant was crowded enough to deprive us of privacy, but now we were alone.

  I looked at Mary, wondering what was on her mind. Before I could ask, her next comment told me she knew what I was thinking.

  "I mean, I know you care about her; you wouldn't have had her picture on the boat, otherwise. Weren't you ever tempted to meet her anonymously, somehow?"

  "Yes. But Abby's life is normal. I didn't want to risk taking that away from her. I only came close to crossing the line once. She was the valedictorian of her high school class. She got all kinds of scholastic recognition and was written up in their local paper. The story mentioned how tough it was going to be for her to afford college. Her adopted dad developed serious health problems; the family finances were in the pits."

  "So you're paying for college?"

  "Yes. Through a blind trust."

  "How well insulated are you?"

  "Bulletproof. I went through an offshore bank, and even there I used an identity that our government didn't know about."

  "You certain about that?"

  I shrugged. "Yes, but I was certain about my connection to Nora being hidden, too. I was wrong about one or the other, I guess."

  "Or both," Mary said.

  "Or both." I held the door for her as we walked into the lobby of our hotel. "Nightcap?"