He didn’t say anything, just handed me two manila envelopes and a piece of paper.
I nodded, and he walked away down the hall.
I brought what he gave me to Sue’s bed and opened the first one. In it was a passport, driver’s license, credit card, and an inch-thick stack of cash for a Susan Saprovich. I passed it to her.
The second envelope had the same but for Nick Scott. And on the piece of paper was written: The IDs came early. We leave tonight. Meet at the back entrance of the hotel in ten minutes.
I passed the message to Sue and then went to pack.
It only took us five minutes to shove everything into our suitcases, so we left early, the whole time not saying a word.
The hotel was quiet that late at night. Once on the ground floor we went down two halls and found the back door. As soon as I opened it and took one step I stalled. Agent Stenson was about fifty yards away, walking right toward us.
I stepped backward and bumped into Sue. “Get back,” I whispered. “Stenson.”
She turned and started walking back up the hall. I followed, looking for a place to hide.
“Nick.” Sue motioned with her head.
I saw the door to the men’s washroom and followed her inside.
“Oh God.” She put her hand up to her nose.
It reeked of someone having a nasty bowel movement. I nearly gagged and tried to hold my last breath in.
“It smells like …”
“Sue, is that you?” A familiar voice came from one of three stalls.
“It smells like Mike Couple.” She shook her head.
“Wait a second,” said the voice from the stall. We heard toilet paper being unraveled, a faint butt wipe and the toilet flush.
Out came our friend, Mike Couple, whom we hadn’t seen for a year. Our last contact had been at the cabin north of Vancouver. His khakis and shirt were hanging off him; he must’ve lost twenty pounds yet looked as disheveled as usual. “I was about to find you two, but nature called first.” He walked toward us.
“Wash your hands,” Sue said.
“Oh yeah.” He turned abruptly toward a row of three sinks. “You need to learn how to hide better. It wasn’t hard to track you down.”
“We’re not really trying to hide … except at this second,” I said.
He wiped his hands dry before coming over to us. He gave me a hug, which was not in his character. Then he moved over and embraced Sue.
Sue took a step back. “Jeez, Mike, no offense and it’s great to see you, but you smell as bad on the outside as you do on the inside.”
“Sometimes it’s hard to find time to shower and change clothes when you’re on the run.” Mike cocked his head to the right. “How’d you know it was me, Sue?”
“Everyone has their own scent, and you’ve farted around me enough times in the past that I know your stink.”
That grossed me out, but actually, she wasn’t wrong. I focused on Mike. “Who’re you running from?”
“I’ve been running since I last saw you, but that’s a long story for later,” Mike said. “I picked up a tail at the airport when I came into town three days ago. I thought I’d lost them, but I think they followed me here.”
“Hmm,” I was still standing next to the door and opened it a crack. I could see Ivan and Jorge standing in front of Agent Stenson. I motioned for Mike to take a look.
After he had a peek, I gently closed the door. “Is that your tail?”
“Yeah, and there’s another guy who looks like a frickin’ bulldog.”
“Furyk,” Sue said.
“You know them?”
“Yeah, they’re FBI or CIA, we’re not quite sure,” I said. “You two wait here. I want to go help Ivan and Jorge.”
I walked out into the hall. “Oh, there you are. I had to take a quick detour.”
Ivan caught on right away. “We were wondering where you had gone.”
Stenson glared at me with suspicion. “Where were you going? I saw you come outside and then turn around.”
“I needed to relieve myself.”
“We’re meeting for a drink,” Jorge said. “They have nothing to do until they fly out tomorrow night.”
“Why are you going for a drink with your suitcases?” Stenson pointed toward Jorge and Ivan’s feet. Then he looked back at me. “You had a suitcase when you came outside. Where is it?”
“No, I didn’t.” Denial was the best I could do at that second.
“Ivan was helping me with my bags,” Jorge said. “I’m going to sleep at my own home tonight. Then I’ll pick everyone up tomorrow and take them to the airport.”
“Where is everyone going?” Stenson asked.
“We’ve already told your partner,” I said.
“Just checking if anything’s changed.” Stenson looked from Ivan to me, focusing on our eyes. “Have you booked your flights?”
“Of course,” I said.
“Do you have the tickets?”
I shrugged. “Not on us.”
“What are you doing here, Agent Stenson?” Jorge deflected.
“Just passing by.”
Jorge’s eyes narrowed.
“Uh-huh.”
“Let me remind you that you need to contact Lieutenant Furyk or myself once you settle in and give us your phone numbers for future contact.”
“Yes, sir.” I said.
Stenson looked over our shoulders. “Where is Badowski?”
“Keeping Mr. Donald company,” Jorge said.
“What about Ms. Clark?”
“Probably waiting for us in the lounge,” I said.
“Fine, then.” He turned and started walking toward the back exit. He stopped at the men’s restroom door and hesitated, then opened it.
My heart skipped a beat, and I wondered if I should go tackle him.
He poked his head inside and then pulled it back out before continuing outside.
I exhaled.
We waited a good minute, not saying a word. Then Jorge went to the back door and peered out. Walking back to us, he said, “Get Sue and let’s go to the lounge to have our drink. We can’t leave right now. He’s standing by his car.”
I went to the restroom and walked inside. “Sue? Mike?”
There was a thud in the closest stall as my suitcase hit the floor. “Fucking heavy.” Then Mike had to fight with the door, because the suitcase was jamming it from fully opening.
I went to help him.
Sue stepped down from the seat of the toilet in the second stall and came out. She dropped her suitcase and went straight to the sink to wash her hands. “Who knows what’s been going on in there?”
“The coast is clear,” I said.
Ivan and Jorge’s eyes both went wide when they saw Mike.
“Very interesting to find you here,” Ivan said.
“Carajo,” Jorge said.
Mike shook both of their hands. “Nice to see you gentlemen again.”
“And you,” Ivan replied.
For some reason Jorge didn’t seem impressed at Mike’s arrival.
“The bar is down there.” He pointed back to where we’d originally come from.
The lounge wasn’t very big. It was dark with shadowy lighting, and there were worn burgundy cushioned chairs around six square tables. A server was talking to the bartender on the other side of the bar. Two middle-aged ladies occupied a table, chatting and laughing.
We went to the back corner and pulled up an extra chair. The server noticed us right away and came to take our order. No one really cared what we drank, so we ordered a bottle of Malbec to share, except for Mike who had to have a Budweiser.
“So what brings you here?” Ivan asked Mike.
“He’s been trying to find us.” That’s not right. “Actually, he’s found us.”
“Right.” Mike settled back in his chair. “You know I’ve been trying to do my own thing lately, to create perceived distance from you.”
Sue raised her hands and shrugged.
“No, we didn’t know what you were trying to do lately.”
“Yeah, all right, I’ll give you the whole story later.” He still had traces of his Rhode Island accent, where he’d grown up. “But I knew you were in England and getting heat from the 2020 Report. By the way, it was very well done.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“Anyway, since the focus was on you, I was hoping all the bad guys would forget about me so I could move around freely.”
“Go on,” Sue said.
“When the fucker, Schmidt, got wasted and they were blaming Nick, I thought for sure it was the perfect time to go to the seed bank and see firsthand what was going on.”
The drinks came and we paused while the server unscrewed the cap and poured wine into our glasses.
When the server left, I said, “We were going to try getting close to the seed bank ourselves. How’d you do?”
“Not even close. I didn’t have the resources. I drew attention, and now I’m being tracked. I made it back to where I’d been laying low in Amsterdam …” He took a long pull of his beer.
I watched Mike. His wavy brown hair always looked unkempt and his clothes wrinkled. I remembered some of the questionable past events of the man Sue and I had known since college and thought Amsterdam was a good fit for him—what I’d heard about the place anyway.
“Then I heard about Jack’s death by fucking Peter Bail,” Mike continued. “I knew I had to get back to you guys. You wouldn’t quit, and I didn’t have the means to do anything on my own. I’m obsessed about getting these fucking world-wreckers.”
You wouldn’t guess it about Mike, but he was smart and passionate when there was something he believed in. The seed bank had become his focus after he’d discovered information obtained by his short-term girlfriend, Summer Perkins.
“How did you find us?” Ivan asked.
I noticed Jorge watching Mike, not saying a word and not drinking his wine.
“I got a fake passport and headed for Dallas because I knew you’d come here. I hung way back at the funeral and then followed you to the hotel. That was something—you actually talked with Lovemark and Da Silva.”
“Yeah, that was unexpected,” Sue said.
Mike nodded. “Then I waited awhile before I tried to come find you, because I didn’t know what rooms you were in. Luckily, we stumbled upon each other. Did you know there’s a gray car following you guys?”
Jorge finally spoke, “Yes.”
“What is the plan now?” Ivan asked. “We may have to fly out to the destinations we told Agent Stenson and Furyk and then regroup.”
A sudden plan with potential crystallized in my head.
CHAPTER 21
May 13, 2003
Last night Ivan, Sue, and I booked evening flights with the same airline. That way we could stay close together when we checked in. Ivan chose a one-day layover in New York, so he’d have to leave from the domestic terminal as well.
We’d been able to get Mike to our room without anyone noticing. I’d given him my bed, and I shared Sue’s. We both made a big deal about me staying on my respective side so Mike wouldn’t suspect that we’d become “more than friends.”
Mike had started snoring within seconds of us turning off the lights. He was six years older than me and seven older than Sue. After we’d met at and attended Washington State University together, Mike had followed a journalism career also and worked for GM Comm companies, the last two being the San Francisco News, and then KLU-TV, where he had become a producer. He and I had played golf regularly when we were both living in San Francisco. He became wrapped up in all this when, after dating Summer Perkins, he’d discovered that she was gathering information on the Norway seed bank. The documents she possessed had gotten her killed by Brad Caulder, Lovemark’s private henchman; Summer had come too close to discovering the truth. I was the one who’d found her in a seedy bar where she’d wanted to meet and share what she had. Combining our information on genetic engineering and pesticides with what Mike was able to obtain of Summer’s hidden seed bank research had helped fit the pieces of the puzzle together. After we’d escaped from the Naintosa thugs in Vancouver, Mike had disappeared. I’d been worried about him and was glad he’d come back to us.
We checked out of the hotel by eleven in the morning.
Jorge picked us up in the potentially bugged rental van, and we went to the hospital. As we drove, Sue, then Ivan and I each read the details Jorge had written down of the escape plan we’d formulated last night.
Mike had waited behind until the coast was clear and then was supposed to get a cab to go pick up his belongings. The plan was to go to the hospital and wait for us near where we’d parked in the garage. The van would be backed into one of the stalls we were sure we could get.
Lorraine was standing at Lee’s bedside, adjusting his pillow when we entered the room. Lorraine’s face blushed as she stepped back.
“We’ve arrived,” Sue said as she locked eyes with Lorraine for a second.
“Good news.” We were used to Lorraine in jeans and T-shirts, but today she wore a skirt and tight mauve blouse. She even had makeup on. “Lee gets discharged tomorrow.”
It was nice to see Lorraine paying so much attention to Lee. “That’s great, Lee. Are you well enough to travel?” I wondered if we should postpone our plan by a day.
“No. It’ll be at least a few weeks until I have enough strength to be of any good.”
“Maybe a month,” Lorraine added. “We’ll start his rehab right away.”
“We’ll need …” Sue caught herself. “Great that you’ll be able to start the next part of your life.”
Lee almost smiled.
Jorge passed Lee the instruction sheet he’d given us, so he knew our plan.
I also gave him a piece of paper on which I’d written down Paul Ang’s contact information and what we hoped would happen in Key West. “Here’s our contact information in Seattle. Make sure to keep in touch.”
“Sure will.” He took both pieces of paper and placed them under his pillow.
There were chairs for all of us that we’d collected from previous visits. We had an hour to kill, so attempted to make small talk. Most of it was lies in case anyone was listening. We were anxious, hoping we could pull off losing our tails and escape.
I was surprised we hadn’t seen the Ford since the men in it had tried to abduct Sue and me, but sure they were still lurking.
“I’m meeting with Jack’s lawyer and the bank next week to start getting everything sorted out,” Lee said.
“Will you be able to have any authority?” I asked. “Other than on the operating accounts?”
Lee raised an eyebrow. “I’m the executor.”
“You never told us that,” Ivan said. “That would not make his family happy, especially his brother, Malcolm.”
“Jack was aware of that, and we made every provision we could.”
I didn’t know why I was still surprised at how close Jack and Lee had really been. And Lee was much more than just muscle; he had keen intellect. I remembered Jack had told me one time that Lee had great business sense.
“Rose arrived at her daughter’s and is settling in,” Ivan said.
“That’s great to hear,” Sue said.
We’d run out of things we could talk about without giving anything away, so we sat in silence and twiddled our thumbs.
Finally, Jorge looked at his watch and said, “Time to go. We don’t want you to miss your flights.”
Ivan, Sue, and I shook Lee’s hand and gave Lorraine a hug.
I had to purposely take deep meditative breaths and walk slow, because I wanted to race to the van, get to the airport, and get this over with. I attempted to clear all the anxiety from my mind. Sue and Ivan looked equally as antsy.
As we came out of the elevator in the parking garage, I could smell a cigarette burning. When we arrived at the van Jorge pressed the fob that unlocked the doors. Sue stood beside me and the car parked next to
us, cutting off any view toward the concrete wall. I opened the side door and Mike appeared with the two black and two gray duffel bags. He jumped into the van, going straight to the back, sitting down on the floor between the seats. Sue and I sat in the middle row. Ivan closed the side door and then climbed into the front passenger seat.
Within two blocks of the hospital, the Chevy pulled into its usual position behind us.
Traffic was heavy with people going home from their day’s work. It was good that we’d given ourselves extra time.
The sun was setting behind us when we arrived at the airport and drove straight to Domestic Departures. The area was busy, but Jorge managed to wedge us into a spot out front. The Chevy wasn’t so lucky and had to proceed forward.
Ivan, Sue, and I took our luggage from the back and said goodbye to Jorge. Sue even gave him a kiss on the cheek for effect. Mike stayed hidden in the back of the van.
Inside the terminal we found the airline we’d booked with and entered the line that snaked back four long rows. The time it would take for us to get checked in would give anyone following us ample time to find us—we’d anticipated that.
It took twenty-five minutes for us to reach an airline representative that gave us our tickets and checked our bags. Ivan had gone to the attendant two stalls to the left of Sue and me. As our luggage disappeared on the conveyor belt, I wondered if we’d ever see our suitcases again.
We waited a minute for Ivan to join us before proceeding toward security. There was a steady stream of people all walking in the same direction. That was good.
Ahead of us was a janitor fiddling with his cart of cleaning supplies on the left side of the corridor. As soon as we were a few feet away he locked eyes with me and opened a door next to him. We walked through, and the door closed behind us.
We were in a supply room. In front of us hung three sets of airport janitorial outfits clipped to a rack of industrial cleaning products. Each had a short strip of masking tape with the letter S, I, or N written on it. We each took the one meant for us and pulled them over our clothes. The navy-blue pants had stretchy waistbands, and the navy-blue smocks had a yellow strip on each side. Ivan’s and mine had padding sewn in the front to give us the appearance of having sizable guts. There were caps as well that we pulled down low. Sue’s hat had a black wig sewn into it, and she put on platform shoes that gave her four inches of extra height. A mirror on the wall allowed us to make any needed adjustments.
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