An hour and a half later Staunton, having stopped on the way for food supplies, was sat dining at the Orca Restaurant in Porto do Moniz staring out at the Atlantic swell crashing on the rocks, but Staunton’s stare did not register the beauty and power of nature as, behind the stare, his mind was planning the approach to Reshetnikov’s house. Satisfied with the approach plan he phoned the MV Verlorenvlei.
“Kallenberg.”
“Leonard here, how far away are you?”
“We should be off the north-west tip of Madeira shortly after midnight in three days’ time.”
“Be on station one half nautical mile off Paúl do Mar at 0300 hours.”
“Paúl do Mar at 0300 it is. See you then, Leonard.”
CHAPTER 13
Amelia had just let Vaughan in at the front door and gone to the kitchen to make coffee when the doorbell rang.
“Are you expecting visitors, Amelia?”
She shook her head, “No, can you please go and see who it is?”
Vaughan went to the door and, looking through the moulded glass panels to the side of the door, made out an army uniform. “Oh Jesus wept, what do they want?”
He opened the door without releasing the security chain and stole a quick look, “Colonel, hold on while I release this chain.” Opening the door fully he called. “Colonel Castelo-Lopez has come to pay you a visit, Amelia. Come in, Colonel, come on through to the lounge.”
The Colonel gave a friendly smile, “Ah, Senhor Vaughan, you are here, that saves me a visit to your hotel.”
Amelia appeared in the doorway her face full of rage. Vaughan quickly held up his hand and shook his head.
“What can I do for you, Colonel?”
“My colleague, the Chief of Police informed me of your return to Madeira, which he says was after you were attacked in Spain.”
“That is correct, Colonel, it was believed by police on the mainland that the attack was related to my small part in exposing the coup plot. I have been working with them and British police investigators; they showed me first an identikit picture of a man, then later a photograph. They also believed that he has returned here and that is why I came back to warn Amelia.”
“Quite rightly so, Senhor Vaughan.” The Colonel turned to Amelia, “I have learnt today that you also have been attacked, Senhora, I have requested the Chief of Police to organise protection for you? If you are not satisfied with that I will be more than happy to offer specialist military personnel for your protection.”
“Why are you now so concerned about my safety after so many accusations of my involvement in my wicked uncle’s plan?”
“Senhora De Lima, please believe me when I say that we are now convinced of your innocence with regard to your uncle’s plans. My only wish now is to ensure the safety of you and your son, and of course that of Senhor Vaughan here.”
The Colonel’s firmness of tone surprised Vaughan and appeared at first to put Amelia onto the back foot.
“I am pleased to hear that at last, Colonel.” She walked to the centre of the room and turned to face Castelo-Lopez, “The delay in your decision has made life for my son, Zeferino, and myself very difficult. We are ignored in the street, people turn their backs on us, my son is abused at school and the police do not appear to have done much to find the men who attacked me and caused these injuries. Thanks to the help of Senhor Vaughan we revealed enemies of Portugal and all you did was to accuse me as if I was a leader in the coup.” She went to walk away then turned back, “Why now, Colonel, what has changed your mind. Tell me, I would just love to know!”
Vaughan stood back and admired the display, she was balanced, almost calm, but one could see the anger that she held barely below the surface. “Colonel, you had this coming, you and your grey suited secret service people. Amelia de Lima deserved the gratitude of the nation not your protracted questioning.”
“That, Senhora, is something that I cannot disclose to you, as it is a matter of national security. I hear and understand the suffering that has been caused and I assure you that steps are already being taken to rectify matters.”
“What can you do now, Colonel, the hurt has been done, I will tell you now that there were many times during those endless sessions of questioning when I wished I had not divulged my suspicions concerning my uncle.”
There were a few moments of silence then she said, “I would like you to leave now, Colonel, please.”
“Of course, Senhora, I have no wish to cause you further distress but please remember my offer for greater protection if you have the slightest concern. Here is my card with my direct number on it. Anytime, day or night, feel free to call me and I promise that I will do all I can for you.”
Amelia hesitated before accepting the card then placed it on the coffee table.
As she had glanced at the card Vaughan had feared that she was about to tear it in two and was relieved when she put it down.
“Senhor Vaughan would you please come with me to my car, I would like a few words with you.”
“Yes, sure.”
Vaughan returned to the house half an hour later and immediately Amelia asked, “What did the Colonel want?”
“He wanted to know the full details of the attack on me and the loss of my yacht.”
“Oh, is that all.” Then realising how that sounded quickly added, “I did not mean that the attack on you was not important, just that it was the only subject.”
It wasn’t all that he and the Colonel had discussed but Vaughan was not going to tell her about what they had learnt from Reshetnikov and his mistress or the warning to not involve himself any further.
Amelia had turned away to stare out of the window and Vaughan was about to join her when she spun round her eyes blazing with anger, “Why did you invite him into this house when you know how much I hate the man!”
“I was hoping he was going to tell us that they had caught the men who attacked you and that you could get on with your lives, Amelia, instead of sitting here like bait in a trap.”
She glared at him angrily her right fist clenched tightly.
“It is over, Amelia, he was doing his job, let it go, it will harm you more than it will harm him if you keep that hatred in you alive.”
She stormed out of the room and Vaughan heard her climbing the stairs followed by the slam of her bedroom door. “Not the best result, but at least she now knows for certain that she is no longer suspected. Now all that needs to be known is what the Colonel meant about rectifying matters.”
When lunchtime came and she had not appeared Vaughan took coffee and some sandwiches up to her room. “Amelia, I’ve brought you up some lunch.” There was no reply but he could hear her moving around in the room. “I’ll leave the tray outside the door.”
When he returned he found the coffee and sandwiches untouched outside her bedroom. He knocked on the door and when there was no response turned the door handle.
“Go away,” he heard her say.
“Stop acting like a child, Amelia,” Vaughan replied, and retreated downstairs.
It was not until Alicia and Zeferino arrived that Amelia appeared downstairs again. She greeted the boy as normal then waved Alicia into the kitchen, closing the door behind them. Zeferino looked at Vaughan confused.
“It is all right, Zef, your Mama and I had small ‘argumento’.”
The boy frowned and shook his head, “Please, er, you and my Mama make, er, friends, please.”
“Okay, Zef, I will try. What is your schoolwork for today?”
Zeferino pulled a face and took his maths book from his school bag. Chuckling at the boy’s facial expression Vaughan picked up the book and was just about to ask which page to look at when his phone chirped; seeing it was Conway calling he got up and left the house by the front door.
“Brian, how’s it going?”
“It has been an interesting day, Ian. Kazakov’s minder has been arrested and they are holding him awaiting some guy from Lisbon who speaks Russian to come
out and question him.”
“He didn’t give up any information voluntarily then?”
“No, not a word. I reckon your hunch is correct and he will hold out until Staunton has moved the stuff on.”
“Anything on Staunton?”
“Yes, around lunchtime they found the hotel he was staying at. The reception told the local boys that he checked out this morning and was on his way to Italy.”
“Oh yes, and I’m walking to the moon.”
Conway chuckled, “Yes that was my reaction. They searched the room but there was nothing there of interest. He may also be onto the fact that we are here as he switched car number plates with a vehicle parked in Camacha. The lady whose car it was had a nasty shock when she got back and found the police there.”
“Oh right, he has probably done that at least once more for good measure.”
“Oh great.”
“No sightings then.”
“None.”
Returning to the house, Vaughan met Alicia in the hall. “Hi, how are you today?”
“I was fine until I return here to find Amelia in such bad mood.”
“I am sorry, Alicia, it is my fault for inviting Colonel Castelo-Lopez into the house. She is quite right, it was not my place to make such an invitation.”
“I do not think it was that.”
“Really?”
“I think she is trying hard to convince herself that she has no feelings for you, when all the time she has.”
“Ah.”
“Are you trying to tell me that you have no feelings for her?” Alicia took a step forward looking straight into Vaughan’s eyes. “If that is so why are you here?”
“Of course I am fond of Amelia, but my life is roaming the seas, Alicia, not sat behind some desk or waiting at table in a restaurant here in Madeira. As I explained to Amelia it was the main reason for my wife, Sarah, divorcing me.”
Alicia took a step back, frowning, then turned and walked away back into the kitchen, leaving Vaughan unsure where to go. “I should never have come back here as all I have succeeded in doing is precisely the opposite of what I intended.” He dithered for a moment longer then went out and sat in his car hoping to return to the house later and persuade Amelia to help with the shipping advice.
An hour later, Alicia left the house and walked down the side driveway. Getting into her car she looked across at Vaughan who was still in his car, “I have left you some food in the oven, it’s safe to go into the kitchen now; Amelia and Zef are watching television in the lounge.”
Laughing, Vaughan waved her goodbye and went into the house via the back door to sit in solitude eating the pasta and smoked salmon dish that Alicia had prepared. By the time he had finished his meal and washed up the plate it was dark, so he went and checked that the upstairs shutters were locked, but left the windows open to allow some air movement. Downstairs again he returned to the kitchen and was texting a report to Campbell when Zeferino came in.
“Boa noite, Senhor.”
“Boa noite, Zef, sleep well, happy dreams.”
A quiet command from the hall had the boy hurrying away, leaving Vaughan thinking yet again about the harm he had done re-igniting the friendship with Amelia. Finishing the report he sent it and then considered the most likely method for an arms shipment. To bolster his cover he had previously sailed round the island looking at the smaller fishing harbours and assessing them in terms of suitability for yachts. The exercise had been interesting to a point, but revealing insofar as apart from Funchal and Machico, no vessel with ocean capability could safely enter the other harbours except maybe Quinta de Lorde which would be all right for yachts’ entry only. His notes and marked up chart were in London and the more recent work at the bottom of a cove in Spain, but he had on hand an expert in shipping.
The lounge was in darkness so Vaughan climbed the stairs and gently knocked on Amelia’s bedroom door, “Amelia, can I come in, I need your expert shipping advice.”
“Can it wait for the morning?”
“I’m afraid it can’t, it shouldn’t take long.”
“Oh, all right, please wait a few moments.”
He heard her plaster scrape against the bedroom door and guessed that she was putting on a dressing gown. “Okay you can come in now.”
He found her sat on the side of her bed, a dressing gown held tightly around her was obviously not comfortable.
“Here, stand up a moment and let me sort the dressing gown out a bit, you look as if you are in a badly fitting strait-jacket.” She got up and allowed Vaughan to make the adjustments and tie the belt. “There, is that better?”
“Thank you, yes.”
“The police and security services in London believe that the man I’m searching for will be shipping the arms out from here very soon. How would he do it, bearing in mind that these are illegal weapons intended for a rebel group somewhere.”
“Do they know the size of the cargo?”
Vaughan took a guess, “Could be as much as one tonne if ammunition was included.”
“Is that a single case or many cases?”
“Oh, it would be several boxes.”
“So, say two men could lift each box.” She pointed towards the dressing table stool. “Please sit on the stool, I cannot keep looking up at you all the time.”
Vaughan pulled the stool near to her and sat down. “Yes, you are right, two men could do the loading.”
“Most of the shipping here is from mainland Portugal and that is handled in Machico with only small amount to go from Funchal to say, Porto Santo.” Amelia reached painfully across to the bedside table for her tablet and switched it on. “I have the ship arrivals list here and there does not appear to be any cargo vessel due to call for several days and only three cruise ships, so if it is to happen very soon it would not be through Machico or Funchal, and if unscheduled vessel arrive it would attract a lot of attention.”
“When we did our circumnavigation of the island I didn’t see any other harbour big enough to take anything larger than an inshore fishing boat.”
“There isn’t such a place, Ian, but if the cargo is so small as one tonne a small boat can take it out to a larger boat waiting offshore.”
Vaughan looked at her, impressed by her response.
“Yes, Amelia, a very good point. That then gives us Camara de Lobos, Quinta de Lorde, Porto do Moniz and Paúl do Mar.”
“You are forgetting Calheta and Seixal, Ian, surely you remember Seixal.”
“Calheta maybe, but Seixal is too exposed to the Atlantic swell for that type of operation. You can’t guarantee a flat calm there and that is what you would need. The same could be said for Porto do Moniz.”
Both sat quietly for a time considering each location. Vaughan broke the silence, “Camara de Lobos, Calheta and Porto do Moniz are busy places with many people overlooking the quaysides so would they risk being seen. If I were doing it I would choose Paúl do Mar. The type of cargo vessel that I suspect would be involved in this type of thing would draw about nine or ten metres at the most and would therefore be able to come in quite close to the island without fear of going aground, and there are no off lying rocks, islets or reefs to worry about.”
“I would say Camara de Lobos, Calheta and Paúl do Mar. Surely this would be done in the early hours of the morning when few people would be about.”
“Of course, you’re right, it would be then, not when there is a high risk of being seen loading heavy boxes into boats but Camara de Lobos is a busy fishing port and the harbour is overlooked from all sides.”
“You think, eh. It would be a better choice than Calheta so I will keep watch for you from the window there. I can see nearly all that goes on at the quayside.”
“If you want to, Amelia, but I can’t ask you to get involved in this. Look, call me on this number, but only if you see a cargo ship standing offshore,” said Vaughan writing his mobile number down for her. “I can’t risk missing this man and letting him get away.�
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She looked at him and nodded, “Is there anything else, concerning shipping?”
“No, thank you, Amelia, that idea of yours was marvellous.” He stood and put the stool back in its place. “I’ll leave you in peace now, thanks again, and please only call me if you are sure.”
“Please, don’t go, Ian, not just yet.” She shifted herself on the bed to get more comfortable. “Zeferino told me when I was seeing him into bed that I must again make a friend of you. He said that in English, so I take it that he wanted me to understand it was important to him.”
Vaughan smiled and was about to say something when she held up her hand. “Please let me finish, Ian, as this is for me difficult to say, but Alicia, she says, I must tell you, or I will regret for the rest of my life, my silence.” Vaughan sat on the stool and in the moments that passed made a decision. “Ian, when we first met I was not dazzled by you as I was with my husband Paulo, but that was because I was too concerned about Zeferino to realise anything else, but after that you did dazzle me, and when you were rushed back to England I felt as if my heart would break. Then I hear that you come and go, without even a phone call, so I start again my lonely life. Now you are back and we sit face to face, and I have to tell you that if you must leave, I would like to leave with you, wherever you go, and if you stay, I pray that it would be with me.”
Her clear declaration stunned him.
“After all I have told you about what I do for a living and you still want to be with me?” Vaughan felt a strange sense of joy to be quashed by the reality of his immediate situation. “You do understand that I have to finish the task I have been sent to do, don’t you.”
Amelia nodded, her eyes filling with tears.
“When I come back we can make some plans.”
“If you come back. This man you are chasing is, I think, a very dangerous one.”
In Treacherous Waters Page 33