South Pacific Affair

by Drew Lindsay

‘Palace guard’s mouths are shut is what you are saying,’ said Ben.

  Lolohea glanced around again and then looked back at Ben. ‘There are police who do a specific job as you know, and then there is the army who have many responsibilities including palace security, the safety of the king and the royal family.’

  ‘And look out for anyone who tries to cross the lines,’ said Ben.

  Lolohea nodded. ‘The king has involved the Commissioner of Police in relation to the royal necklace and that has involved me.’

  Ben nodded.

  ‘One nose in particular, is out of joint because of this.’

  ‘Sergeant Amasio?’

  ‘I have no evidence against Sergeant Amasio,’ said Inspector Lolohea.

  ‘If he is involved, he might be stupid enough to come after me,’ said Ben.

  ‘If he is involved, he’ll use someone else. You will have to be extremely careful. He has many contacts from both sides of the tracks. He’s lived in Nuku’Alofa all his life.’

  ‘Thanks for the warning,’ said Ben.

  ‘There isn’t a police presence on Fa Fa Island as you are obviously aware. At this stage I must rely on you to keep watch and if necessary take steps to keep people safe.’

  Ben nodded.

  ‘I am to be notified immediately if anyone acts in an aggressive way towards you or your clients.’

  ‘Agreed,’ said Ben.

  Inspector Lolohea handed Ben a business card. ‘My private mobile number is there. It’s for emergencies only. I have your contact number.’

  ‘I understand.’

  ‘And you will pass on any information you receive concerning persons who may be a threat who are staying on Fa Fa Island?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Who is your person under suspicion in Australia?’

  ‘His name is Isaac Ford,’ said Ben. ‘There is probably another but I’m putting my money on Ford. If you can find any association between Ford and someone who has access to the royal palace and the king, you might be on the money.’

  ‘You honour me with your trust,’ said Paul Lolohea. ‘Fa Fa Island will afford you a fair degree of protection. ‘Some say there are ghosts on the island. If that is true, they will protect anyone who serves the king.’

  ‘Are you happy for me to speak with Loa Tei?’

  ‘Yes you may if she will even give you the time of day,’ said Paul Lolohea. ‘Don’t get trapped with her beauty.’

  Ben nodded but he didn’t say anything. He felt that Lolohea had attached far deeper meaning to his words than a simple warning about Loa Tei.

  ‘Do you want to speak with her employer?’

  ‘What’s your view?’ asked Ben.

  ‘Wasting your time.’

  ‘Then I’ll focus on her,’ said Ben. ‘Is she under surveillance?’

  Lolohea hesitated for a moment. ‘Occasionally.’

  ‘Is she surveillance aware?’ asked Ben.

  ‘Unfortunately, yes.’

  ‘Do you have any firm evidence to link her with Joseph Hunter and the stolen necklace?’

  ‘A simple business arrangement is all we have. The rest is speculation. She spent a day with him on Fa Fa Island just before he was murdered. She claims it was just business and we can’t disprove that. I was hoping that Mrs. Hunter could assist us with more detailed information.’

  ‘I’ll talk to her about that,’ said Ben. ‘She’s hardly told me a thing about her last trip to the island.’

  Sophia and the king stepped into the rear courtyard. The soldiers snapped to attention. The king shook Sophia’s hand and walked back into the palace. Ann climbed out of the back of the police car and waved at her.

  ‘Do you need a lift into the city?’ asked Inspector Lolohea.

  ‘No thanks,’ said Ben. ‘I’ll tuck these two into a good coffee house which isn’t far from here and I’ll pay a visit to Mr. Langi’s chemist shop.’

  ‘You’ve obviously been here before?’

  ‘Some time ago,’ said Ben, ‘and after the riots in 2006. Nuku’Alofa hasn’t changed much.’

  ‘Langi has another shop further out of town. Tei works in the main shop just down from the markets. It’s impossible to miss.’

  ‘Thanks,’ said Ben as they walked back towards the police vehicle.

  ‘I have given you a warning in relation to Loa Tei,’ said Inspector Lolohea.

  ‘I appreciate the warning,’ said Ben.

  Lolohea smiled. ‘I sense you have more to fear from your Aboriginal companion.’

  ‘Are you married Paul?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Do you want to ask her on a date or something? She needs a distraction.’

  ‘Inspector Lolohea appeared startled for a moment but then smiled and glanced at Ann. ‘I’m not so sure.’

  ‘I can prepare her for your call,’ said Ben.

  ‘She obviously doesn’t like police,’ said Lolohea.

  ‘She doesn’t quite know what she likes just now,’ said Ben. ‘I think you’re tough enough to handle her.’

  ‘One thing at a time,’ said Lolohea.

  Ben, Sophia and Ann walked the short distance from the royal palace to “Friends” café in the main street of Nuku’Alofa. ‘What did the king want to know?’ asked Ann.

  ‘He asked if I could tell him how Joseph died.’

  ‘That’s weird,’ said Ann.

  ‘Perhaps not,’ said Ben. ‘Did you tell him that your husband was tortured?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘And did you tell him that it appears that your husband didn’t talk under fairly painful torture?’

  ‘I told him that,’ said Sophia.

  ‘All for a piece of jewellery,’ said Ben.

  ‘He asked for details concerning the assaults on me and Ann,’ said Sophia. ‘He wanted to know if we were injured and if we had full trust in Ben.’

  ‘That’s all?’

  ‘Yep.’

  ‘I want you both to stay here and have some lunch while I go and have a chat with Miss Tei,’ said Ben.

  ‘Yes,’ said Ann. ‘I’ve seen the photo of her you know. It’s all over the bloody Internet.’

  ‘I’m not going to speak with her about her body.’

  ‘Who speaks when flesh is pressed against flesh,’ said Ann. ‘Actually that’s not entirely true. I have this urge to be very loud and quite vocally naughty when…’

  ‘Will you shut up for a few seconds?’ asked Ben.

  ‘The meeting with the king has stirred her blood,’ said Sophia. ‘She’ll settle down later with a few wines.’

  ‘I will not!’ said Ann.

  ‘If you behave,’ said Ben, ‘I may have a very nice man lined up to take you on a date.’

  Ann stared at him. ‘Not that bloody copper?’

  ‘He’s single,’ said Ben.

  ‘He’s too good looking to be single. Look at his body for God’s sake!’

  ‘Then be a good girl and wait here with Sophia while I wander off for a while.’

  Ann glanced at Sophia. ‘He’s jerking me around and you know it, don’t you?’

  ‘I don’t think Ben jerks people around,’ said Sophia, ‘other than people who are trying to hurt us.’

  Ann was silent.

  ‘I’ll be back in half an hour,’ said Ben.

  ‘Milba didn’t warn me about this side of you,’ said Ann.

  ‘What side is that?’

  Ann stared at him. ‘The damn bossy side.’

  ‘Perhaps you would like to go and interview Loa Tei?’

  ‘That bitch upset Sophia. I’d tear her eyes out.’ Ann turned her head towards the front counter and waved her hand in the air. ‘Who have you got to sleep with to get a waitress around here?’

  “****”

  CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

  The large chemist shop was one block from the main markets and easily identifiable. Amongst the majority of ramshackle stores and stalls, the chemist shop stood out with crisp white signs and an impressive sto
re-front. Ben walked into the welcome air conditioning. The door closed automatically. Gifts and a small array of clothing occupied the left hand wall of the shop with the right side dominated with row after row of products to treat and cure almost any physical ailment from a runny nose to a fungal nail infection. Cosmetics occupied the far right wall and the dispensing counter was at the rear.

  Ben had contemplated that the photo of Loa Tei was enhanced to the point where he may not recognise her. He was wrong. In real life she was breathtaking. She wasn’t wearing a bikini but her white chemist’s outfit did little to hide the curves of her body. Her long black hair was tied back in a pony tail. The white uniform came to just below her knees but buttons on her shirt strained against the thrust of her breasts. She had either put on weight or the uniform had shrunk in the wash. Either way she could have sold Ben a bottle of Tongan sand for $100 and he would have handed over the money without question. She was around 5 feet 11 inches tall in flat heeled black leather shoes. The smile on her amazingly beautiful face seemed genuine, although Ben had been fooled before. Her olive skin was gently suntanned and her lips touched with a hint of light mauve lipstick.

  ‘Can I help you sir?’

  Ben instantly thought of 8 things to say but none of them were appropriate. ‘I’m after something that soothes the skin after sunbaking.’

  ‘We have Reef coconut cream which will soothe your skin and also extend your tan for a while.’

  ‘I’ll take one,’ said Ben.

  ‘It’s expensive here,’ said Loa. ‘You should have bought it in Australia.’

  ‘You’ve picked my accent,’ said Ben.

  ‘Can you pick mine?’

  ‘Tongan,’ said Ben. ‘Your English is perfect with just a hint of American and some Australian thrown in for good luck. Did you get that from Joseph Hunter?’

  Ben expected her to react but she didn’t. Her deep brown eyes looked up into Ben’s blue eyes. ‘I didn’t learn all that much from him. I taught him a few things.’

  Now she had Ben on the back foot. ‘I’ll take the coconut cream thing.’

  ‘Should I call the police?’ she asked as she walked to the back counter.

  ‘Inspector Paul Lolohea?’ said Ben as he followed.

  ‘He’s no fun,’ she said, walking behind the counter.

  ‘I’m not much fun either,’ said Ben. ‘I’m just looking for something.’

  ‘Reef coconut cream for sunburn.’

  ‘I don’t have sunburn,’ said Ben. ‘I hope it smells like real coconuts.’

  ‘Yes it does. It’s very sensual.’

  ‘I like sensual,’ said Ben.

  ‘Are you here to kill me?’ asked Loa as she rang up the sale. Her hands were trembling slightly but her face remained calm. ‘I don’t know anything.’

  ‘Anything about what?’

  ‘Whatever you are looking for.’

  ‘I’ll start with the Reef coconut cream,’ said Ben. ‘What does Loa mean in Tongan?’

  ‘Storm clouds.’

  Ben handed over Tongan money. Their fingers touched briefly. ‘What is your name?’ she asked.

  ‘Ben.’

  ‘What does that mean?’

  Ben smiled. ‘I don’t have a bloody clue. I’m Ben Hood. I’m here with Sophia Hunter.’

  ‘Are you her boyfriend?’

  ‘Bodyguard.’

  ‘I didn’t know she was here.’

  ‘The king summonsed us.’

  Loa slid the package across the counter towards Ben. ‘I’ve been questioned several times.’

  ‘Was Joseph alive then?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ said Loa. ‘I only found out recently.’

  ‘He was tortured and murdered about two weeks ago,’ said Ben.

  Loa was silent. She looked down but her eyes were full of tears.

  ‘He meant something to you?’

  ‘I was stupid,’ said Loa. ‘He used me.’

  ‘How did he use you?’

  ‘I’m being watched,’ she said. ‘You had better leave.’

  Ben put his business card on the counter. ‘I can get the surveillance called off but only on one condition.’

  She looked up at him and brushed the tears away with the back of her hand. ‘There is always a condition.’

  ‘I need to talk to you alone. I need to talk to you somewhere where you feel safe.’

  ‘I live with my parents. I feel safe with my family.’

  ‘I’m on Fa Fa Island,’ said Ben.

  ‘I’m never going back there again,’ she said.

  ‘Will your parents allow me to visit you at your home? We need to talk and you know it Loa.’

  ‘My parents will do what they think is best for me.’

  Ben was silent.

  ‘I’ll ring you or perhaps I won’t ring you.’

  ‘You know what this is about, don’t you?’

  She nodded.

  ‘Please ring me,’ said Ben. He picked up the after sun lotion in the bag and left the store.

  ‘You’re unusually quiet,’ Ann yelled at Ben over the roar of the huge outboard motor.

  ‘Just thinking,’ Ben called back.

  ‘Was she that good?’

  ‘She would have won the Miss South Pacific competition easily,’ said Ben.

  ‘Couldn’t help herself,’ Ann yelled. ‘Had to do the bikini shoot and pissed it all away.’

  Ben didn’t reply. Sophia watched him carefully as she hung onto the stainless steel rail inside the small half cabin. The boat lunged through the rather large ocean swell with Peter expertly judging how to approach a particular wave and what speed to negotiate each swell. Once they got into the lagoon and behind the shelter of the weather shore of Fa Fa Island, the boat’s speed would increase on the high tide as they headed through the coral outcrops towards the white sandy beach.

  Back at the fale, they changed into less formal attire and walked to the restaurant. ‘I don’t see why we have to come,’ said Ann.

  ‘I have to use the WiFi and I’m not leaving you girls alone,’ said Ben.

  ‘What could possibly hurt us here?’ asked Ann, clearly annoyed.

  ‘You’d be surprised,’ said Ben.

  ‘How long are you going to be on that damn computer?’ asked Ann. ‘I want to go for a snorkel on the reef.’

  ‘Not long,’ said Ben.

  ‘You promised to do what he said,’ said Sophia. ‘You owe him.’

  ‘I know,’ said Ann as she caught up to Ben and slid her arm through his. ‘You didn’t really try and set me up with that bloody copper did you?’

  ‘I gave him your mobile number,’ said Ben. ‘He might ring you.’

  ‘He looks like trouble.’

  ‘So do you,’ said Ben.

  ‘He’s white. I think he’s a Kiwi.’

  ‘Yep,’ said Ben.

  ‘I suppose a bit of a nose rub wouldn’t be out of line do you think?’

  Ben glanced down at her. ‘A nose rub?’

  ‘To start with.’

  ‘I have no idea who that woman is,’ said Sophia. ‘My personal assistant has been taken over by a lunatic.’

  ‘You should talk,’ said Ann.

  Ben set up his laptop on a table under a coconut tree at the restaurant. The two girls went to the bar. Ben connected to the Fa Fa Island WiFi and two emails slowly downloaded. Both were from Rodney and both contained information that he had half expected, but was hoping would lead to nothing. In fact the contents of the emails would put him on high alert and probably keep him awake for most of the night. The photograph of Claudia Abrams had been easily identified. Ben read slowly through the information Rodney had almost miraculously gleaned about her. Infiltrator, bodyguard and suspected assassin. Born, raised and trained in Israel. Suspected associate of Natalie Goodsong from Sydney, a gem collector with a highly dubious business reputation.

  The second woman who had already identified herself as “Nancy” was in fact Nancy Fiumara, Lawyer from Sydn
ey. Once again, a person of rather dubious reputation because of her client base. Strongly suspected to be associated with antique and jewellery collector Isaac Ford. Ford’s whereabouts were presently unknown.

  Ben copied the body of the email into a fresh email and sent it through to Inspector Paul Lolohea. He sent a hurried email back to Rodney, summarising details of their meeting with the king and promising to ring him that evening.

  Ann and Sophia went snorkelling on the reef just out from their fale. Ben would have loved to get underwater again but he felt it more prudent to sit and watch. He smothered himself with 30+ suntan cream and sat on a chair in the sand under the shade of coconut trees. No one came near them. The uneasy feeling in the pit of Ben’s stomach would not let up. Something was brewing and he sensed it as surely as frogs sense a drop in barometric pressure. You weren’t supposed to feel this way in the South Pacific. This was a magic place for relaxation and restoration of the body and mind. The opposite was happening to Ben. His chest was tight. The slightest sound or movement startled him. He contemplated that he was over-reacting and then rejected that thought immediately. This island should have felt secure but he considered it open ground just now and that made him fearful for the lives of Sophia and Ann. He should never have allowed Ann to come. She was far too restless. Then again, back in Sydney she could have been even more vulnerable to yet another attack. People were getting desperate. Ben knew that desperate people do just about anything to achieve their goals, even if their physical and mental capabilities are not in tune with their actions. Then they are often simply unpredictable and dangerous.

  Sophia held up a large bright blue star fish and waved at him. He waved back at her and she dived underneath the crystal clear water.

  The tall, black haired woman approached from his right. She wore a brief white bikini top and a multi coloured sarong around her narrow waist. She looked at him but her eyes were hidden by large black sunglasses. She walked slowly towards him. Ben noted the sensual swing of her hips and the confident stride of her long legs. She was bare footed. ‘Do you mind if I sit down?’ she asked.

  Ben waved a hand at the spare lounge beside his. She stretched out beside him and looked out over the lagoon. ‘Your women seem to be having a good time.’