Beyond Control

by Lawrence Verigin

  “Why? Do you have a confession to make?” Sue growled.

  “My dear girl, we had no part in Jack’s death,” Lovemark said.

  “He was our friend,” Da Silva said. “Even though he was causing us … trouble, as you all have been.”

  “But Bail worked for you and Schmidt,” I said.

  “Had worked for me, and before that, Dr. Schmidt,” Lovemark said. “He had not been in either of our employs for some time. I think he acted alone. Unless, of course you managed to annoy others?”

  I wasn’t going to bite on the last comment. “You know Bail wouldn’t act unless somebody paid him to do it.”

  Lovemark looked at Da Silva.

  “Jack did have old enemies in the oil industry,” Da Silva said. “His anti-hydraulic fracturing company wasn’t helping.”

  “Then why were we attacked at practically the same time Jack was shot?” Sue asked.

  Da Silva and Lovemark looked at each other again.

  “It had to be connected to us trying to stop your population extermination plan,” I said.

  “Extermination is not the right word,” Lovemark said. “It sounds awful.”

  “But that is what you’re doing,” Sue said.

  It was interesting that with all of us standing there and no one else close by, they didn’t deny it.

  “It’s time you stop meddling in something that’s not your business,” Lovemark said. “Now with Jack gone, you have no choice.”

  I didn’t want to reveal anything about what we were going to do next. No one in our group answered.

  Lovemark addressed me. “I can get you and Ms. Clark a job at any of my newspapers.”

  “Not a chance.” Sue balled her fists and looked like she was restraining herself from decking him.

  Lovemark ignored Sue’s rejection. “Dr. Popov and Mrs. Dean can finally retire.” Then he gave Jorge a look of distain. “And you could go be an assassin for any criminal organization.”

  Jorge didn’t show any emotion, say a word, or move. I wondered if they had a history with each other.

  “Thank you for your concern,” Ivan said. “But we will all manage just fine.”

  “So, then … what will you all do now?” Da Silva asked.

  “Let’s keep that as a surprise.” Did they actually think we’d confess our next move? Did they honestly think we’d give up? “I’m sure the second we do something, someone will tell you … literally.”

  They looked at me for a moment without speaking. All I could see were two arrogant, overconfident, too-rich pricks, and I wanted to bring them down, now more than ever.

  “Well, it was nice chatting with you,” Lovemark said. “Let’s hope it’s for the last time.”

  Da Silva gave a nod. “Literally.”

  Lovemark and Da Silva turned as the women who’d accompanied them to the funeral walked up to them.

  Lovemark’s wife’s heels were not cooperating with her on the grass, and she was dangerously close to turning an ankle. Da Silva’s wife glided along as if on a catwalk.

  “Davis, let’s go,” She had a grating voice, with the same nasal pitch I heard at the church. “This heat is killing me. How can anyone stand it out here?”

  “Yes, dear,” Lovemark said.

  “Could you imagine listening to that voice all day?” Sue said loud enough for everyone to hear.

  Lovemark glanced back at us, the politeness of his expression replaced with contempt. With a dismissive flick of his hand he went to his wife. “Let’s go back to the hotel, Gwen, where you can rest.”

  CHAPTER 18

  As we were leaving, we overheard a snobby-sounding woman say to another that the reason Jack was killed was because he had gotten brainwashed by some radical ecoterrorists who had convinced him the world was ending.

  The second woman replied, “Poor Jack, maybe he was getting the All-zimers.”

  Sue opened her mouth about to speak. I poked her and shook my head. She actually did what I asked and didn’t say anything. It was sad to hear how out of touch with reality those ladies were, but the fact was that they were in the majority.

  We didn’t go to the reception; instead we drove to the hospital.

  The air conditioning couldn’t overpower the smell of antiseptic in the hallways.

  Lee was sitting up in his bed when we arrived. Lorraine was in a chair, talking on her cell phone.

  “How are you feeling today?” Sue asked.

  “Tired of just lying here,” Lee replied. “How was the funeral?”

  Lorraine stood and walked out of the room, still talking on her phone.

  “Very sad,” Ivan said. “We lost such a good man.”

  A sniffle came from Rose, who went to sit in the chair Lorraine had vacated. I observed that Rose had really started to look frail the last few days.

  “I wish I’d been there.” Lee’s head hung low. “I really miss him.”

  “Best man I ever knew.” Jorge cleared his throat.

  That was a lot of emotion for Lee and Jorge as well.

  There was a knock on the door. Special Agent Furyk and Regular Agent Stenson didn’t bother for an invitation to enter.

  Furyk was holding a paper pad and ballpoint pen. “Now that the funeral is over, it’s time to know where you’ll all be going.”

  We’d known the question would be asked, so we decided on the answers we’d give when we were driving from the cemetery.

  “I’ll be right here for you to visit anytime,” Lee said.

  “Yes, I understand you’ll be laid up for a while yet.” Furyk flipped to a blank page on his pad and started writing names on it.

  Lorraine came back into the room. “I’ll be staying to look after Lee until he’s recovered.”

  We hadn’t had a chance to agree on our responses from Lee and Lorraine, but their honest answers worked.

  “Are you two a couple?” Stenson asked.

  Lorraine gave him an annoyed look that seemed to be a satisfying answer to him.

  Furyk looked to me next.

  “I’m going home to Seattle,” I said. “Sue too.”

  “Can you give me your addresses?” Furyk poised the pen on the pad.

  “I’ll stay with Sue until I find an apartment.”

  Sue gave her address.

  “I will be going back to Oslo,” Ivan said.

  “Why would you need to go back there now?” Furyk watched Ivan. “It’s all over.”

  “I have other research to conduct. Then I will retire back to British Columbia.”

  “I’m going to stay with my family in Savannah.” Rose gave him her address.

  “I’m already home,” Jorge said and then recited his address.

  I wondered if Furyk would be suspicious of us giving him the information so freely, but he didn’t seem to catch on.

  “Now, I’ll need all your cell phone numbers,” Furyk said.

  I assumed he wanted them for tracking purposes but hadn’t figured that all but Lee’s had British numbers. We had to get new SIM cards or new phones with US accounts. Therefore, we had no problem giving them to him.

  In quick succession Sue, then Rose and I recited our digits.

  “You don’t have US of A numbers?” He looked up from writing.

  “Nope,” I said.

  Everyone but Lee shook their heads.

  Furyk reached in his pocket, produced business cards, and passed them around. “Everyone call or e-mail me your new numbers when you get them.”

  I took the card to add to my collection. “Of course.” Like that was ever going to happen—I liked saying that to myself every time someone in law enforcement made a demand. We were going to get disposable, prepaid phones as soon as we could.

  “All right, then.” Furyk flipped the pad closed. “I’m glad you’re all being smart, going your separate ways and hopefully staying out of trouble.”

  Did he actually believe that? “Good luck in your investigation. I hope you get to the bottom of who all w
ere involved in Jack’s killing. Will you let us know when you find out?”

  Furyk looked right at me. “No. You’ll know when the general public knows.”

  Asshole. I tried to say that with my eyes as I stared back at him.

  Furyk turned and walked out of the room with Stenson following.

  Lorraine stayed by the door to watch them leave, with her hand raised.

  “Come with me,” Jorge said. “You too, Lorraine. Lee, we’ll be back in a bit.”

  Lee nodded his understanding.

  Lorraine lowered her hand. “Okay, they’re gone.”

  Jorge led us to the elevator that took us to the ground floor. There we found a door that would take us outside. We crossed a street to a park that was on the hospital property.

  It was getting close to sunset, and the day was cooling. The grounds smelled of freshly cut grass and a nearby white flower I didn’t know the name of. We found a spot under a dogwood tree where there were two wooden benches.

  Jorge looked around. “It’s safer for us to talk here.”

  There was no one else around, other than a linen truck driving up the street that we’d just crossed.

  “Does anyone have any bright ideas of how we can get away without being seen?” Sue asked, as she sat down next to Rose.

  “As planned, let us get Rose on a plane tomorrow,” Ivan said.

  Lorraine was standing. “I was speaking to my FBI contact, and he doesn’t know a Lieutenant Furyk and Agent Stenson, but he’s looking into them. Also, by tomorrow morning he’ll find out about what’s happening with Jack’s case.”

  “My main local police contact said the same.” Jorge stood between Lorraine and me. “So in the morning we should have a better idea of what’s happening.”

  “Okay, so after that we need to become invisible and escape.” Part of an idea came to me. “Could we go on a boat to a Caribbean Island and then fly to Colombia from there?”

  Sue tapped her index finger against her chin. “I like that idea.”

  “We are expected to fly,” Ivan said. “So, they will be watching the airport.”

  “I’ve already started the process of getting new IDs and passports, which will be ready in three days,” Jorge said.

  “We will need head shots,” Ivan said.

  “I’m using the ones we took last year,” Jorge said.

  “We need to find a boat,” Sue said.

  I knew someone who owned a boat down south, but I couldn’t remember who. The answer would come to me.

  INTERLOGUE 6

  Davis surveyed the private dining room, with only one table in the middle—the one they sat at. “This place is too tacky.” “It’s okay and gives us privacy.” Carlo reached for butter. “However, I could only find one wine that is worthy of us.”

  On cue the waiter, dressed in a tuxedo with tails, brought the bottle of wine, opening it in front of them.

  “You know this place used to be the private home of a cotton baron,” Davis said, still looking around. “The family name doesn’t ring a bell, though.”

  “Hmm.” Carlo tasted the wine after swirling and smelling it. “It will do.”

  A second waiter brought two plates of small appetizers.

  “I want a salad.” Davis shifted in his seat, in obvious discomfort. “The food in Texas is too heavy.”

  The waiter nodded and departed.

  “Are you all right?” Carlo asked. “You seem uneasy.”

  “I’ve had these aching pains lately.” Davis shifted again. “They come and go. I’m having my doctor see me as soon as I get home. I’m sure it’s nothing.”

  “You’d better take care of yourself. We have much work to do.”

  Davis nodded and reached for the wine. “Malcolm is going to join us after he finishes playing the grieving brother.”

  “Good,” Carlo said. “Why wouldn’t you let Tom join us?”

  “Crane’s such a suck-up, and I wasn’t in the mood for ass-licking tonight.” Davis rolled his eyes. “Besides, we have business to discuss with Malcolm that’s not for Tom’s ears.”

  The waiter came with Davis’s green salad.

  “Was this premade?” Davis looked up at the slim, middle-aged attendant. “It came out very fast.”

  “The chef works quickly.”

  “I want fine, not fast, food. It looks boring.”

  The waiter nodded and took the plate away.

  Carlo chose a canapé. “You’re in a state tonight.”

  “I’m still annoyed by our encounter with Barnes and his group. You know they’re going to continue somehow. Maybe Jack left them some money.”

  “I wouldn’t doubt it.”

  Malcolm Carter entered the private dining room. He had changed from his black suit to a brown sport jacket. “Gentlemen.” He looked at the server standing in the corner. “What’s the best whiskey you have?”

  The man had to raise his voice. “Michter’s, sir.”

  “That’ll do. Get me four fingers with two ice cubes.”

  When Malcolm took the third seat, Carlo said, “It was a very nice service.”

  “As funerals go.”

  A large man in a black suit and shirt came into the room and stood in the doorway.

  “Is there a need for protection so close?” Davis motioned to the man.

  “Jack’s murder has made me nervous,” Malcolm said.

  “It was Baby Hendrick who contracted Bail,” Davis said. “Surely you don’t think he would send someone after you?”

  “Are you positive?” Malcolm asked.

  “Pretty sure,” Carlo said.

  “Well, until we know a hundred percent for certain, I’m taking extra precautions,” Malcolm said. “And you should too.”

  Malcolm’s drink was brought to him, as was Davis’s spruced-up salad.

  “Not that my brother didn’t have it coming, but if it was Hendrick, we need to rein him in.” Malcolm held the glass and sniffed the contents. “Who’s next? I don’t want anything coming back at us. Mind you if he’d succeeded in taking Barnes and his group out of their misery, that wouldn’t have been such a bad thing.”

  “Agreed,” Davis said. “On all points.”

  Carlo reached for another canapé. “I think it’s time we stop talking about controlling Hendrick and actually do it.”

  “You two will have to be in charge of it.” Malcolm took a generous drink of his whiskey, draining half of it. “I have to stay far away from the population control plan.”

  “We’ll figure it out,” Carlo said.

  “Have you been able to see Jack’s will yet?” Davis asked. “And do you know how much operating money there is in different accounts?”

  “Jack’s estate lawyer is loyal to him, so I won’t know everything until the reading. Yet I have my suspicions he left Barnes and the group money.” Malcolm swallowed the rest of the drink, leaving only the partially melted ice cubes. He raised the glass to the waiter in the corner, who nodded and left the room. “His several operating accounts have substantial amounts in dollars, euros, krone, and pesos.”

  Carlo reached for his glass of wine. “Which country’s pesos?”

  “Colombian.”

  Carlo’s eyes narrowed. “And krone?”

  “Norway.”

  “That’s what I was afraid of.” Davis plunged his fork into the salad. “Their destinations being the seed bank and the lab.”

  “To do what?” Malcolm said. “No one could get close to either.”

  “Remember, Lee Donald had infiltrated the Bolivian lab,” Davis said.

  “And Barnes is getting craftier as he goes,” Carlo said.

  Malcolm thought for a moment. “It would be very possible that they have access to the accounts … Donald especially.”

  “Can the accounts be frozen?” Carlo said. “Something to do with the will or estate?”

  Malcolm swirled the ice around in the liquid-less tumbler. “If they’re straight business operating accounts, then n
o.”

  The waiter brought Malcolm’s second drink and asked, “Would you like anything to eat? Perhaps a look at the menu?”

  Malcolm took the glass and gulped some whiskey back. “No, I’m not hungry.”

  “And how’s the acquisition of Moile by Tom coming along?” Carlo asked.

  “He’ll be able to take it over,” Malcolm said.

  CHAPTER 19

  May 11, 2003

  I’d stayed at the hospital until two in the morning. During that time, I’d written down a draft of our still-developing plan and given it to Lee. He, in return, gave me some good suggestions.

  Jorge had come to relieve me. Lee and Jorge needed to discuss the operating bank accounts. At the moment only the two of them had access, and a portion of the money had to be transferred into accounts harder to trace.

  In the morning, Lorraine took her turn with Lee, and the rest of us drove Rose to the airport. The Chevy tailed not far behind, which was welcome to provide proof that we were doing what we said we were going to do.

  “Sure am going to miss your cooking,” I said as we escorted Rose to domestic-departure security.

  “And your looking out for us,” Sue added. “My mother’s probably still going to call you all the time. Do you mind giving her your number in Savannah?”

  “My mom too,” I said.

  “Of course.” Rose had tears in her eyes. “I’m going to miss y’all so much.”

  I tried to smile. “It’s not the last you’ll see of us. And Ivan will keep you posted.”

  “I will be in touch whenever I can.” Ivan held Rose’s hand.

  I was happy Rose was going to stay with her family. She deserved a quieter life. Plus since Jack had died, the will to fight had left her.

  Ivan wrapped his arms around Rose and gave her a long kiss.

  “They’re so cute.” Sue’s eyes were all misty.

  We all gave Rose a hug and waved as we watched her proceed to security.

  “Do you see anyone watching us?” I asked Jorge as we began to walk back to the van.

  “No, but they’re out there,” Jorge said. “There are cameras everywhere.”

  I looked up and saw a security camera on the wall to our left.