She sat with her back to the woods, giving Blaine an opportunity to reposition himself if he needed to get a better angle on the chair that Strong would occupy. When he hadn't called after a few minutes, she reasoned that he was happy with the arrangement.
She reached across and slipped her hand under the napkins covering the wine bottle in its ice bucket. It was adequately chilled. She thought about summoning the waiter and having him open it, but decided to wait. She was nervous; a glass of wine would be calming, but she wanted a clear head.
She picked up her napkin and dried her hand. As she put the napkin in her lap, a burly man appeared at the doorway from the inside dining room. When he saw her looking at him, he leered and blew her a kiss. Grinning, he approached her table.
"A girl like you in a place like this gotta be looking for a man," he said, his voice heavily accented. He stepped to the side of the table and rested a gnarled hand on the starched table cloth. "You and me, we could have some fun while you wait."
Dani studied him, her face blank. "I don't think so," she said. "Your fingernails are dirty and your breath stinks, even from over here. What do you want? Money?"
He grinned, revealing gaps in his teeth. Dani saw the glint of stainless steel from the left side of his mouth and matched it with the accent; she pegged him for a Russian. "Yeah, but first, I want you." A heavy knife appeared in his right hand. "Stand up and take off that dress. You think my breath stinks, just wait until you taste what I got — " he was interrupted as Dani locked his left wrist with her left arm and drove her right palm into his left elbow, her weight behind the blow as she straightened her legs. He crashed across the table with a grunt of surprise. He dropped the knife as he recovered, shoving himself erect using both hands on the table top.
He whirled, swinging his left forearm in a vicious backhand blow. Dani saw it coming and took it on her shoulder, but the force knocked her back against the railing on the edge of the patio. Stunned, she shook her head and pushed herself off the railing. She was dropping into a crouch as he grabbed her short hair, jerking her to her full height.
"Now, you pay, bitch," he growled, drawing back his open hand to slap her. As he swung, she twisted her hips and brought the edge of her right foot down on the top of his left kneecap, grabbing the sides of his shirt with her hands. He screamed as his knee was dislocated, and he released his grip on her hair. She lunged forward, smashing her forehead into his nose with a loud crack. His scream became a gurgle as he choked on the blood from his broken nose.
Dani backed away as he staggered toward her like an enraged ape. She felt the wine stand behind her and grasped the bottle by its neck. She swung it around to connect with the side of his head with as much momentum as she could muster behind the blow. He crumpled and began to convulse as he sunk to the floor.
Dani put the bottle down on the table as Strong charged through the door, yelling, "Leave her alone, you bastard."
"Hi, Kev," she said. "Sorry you missed the floor show."
"My God, Dani! Are you okay?"
"No. He ruined my hairdo. All that work for nothing. Liz will be so disappointed."
"Who is he? You know him? Where did he come from?"
"Calm down, Kev. I don't know him, and I have no idea who he is or where he came from."
"How did you — " Strong was interrupted by the arrival of two local policemen.
"Is everything all right?" one of the men asked.
"Except for this oaf who fell and hurt himself," Dani said. "He bled all over a perfectly good bottle of my favorite Pinot Grigio."
"I am so sorry for the inconvenience, ma'am," the senior policeman said. "We have been chasing this mon; he is a mugger and a petty thief. What happened?"
"He came through the door and fell across my table while I was waiting for my friend. I think he had a seizure of some sort."
"Where did all the blood come from?" the junior policeman asked.
"Maybe he bit his tongue. I don't know. Or he hit his face when he fell." Dani said.
"Let's get him in the wagon," the senior officer said. "We've disturbed these people too much already." Turning to Strong, he continued, "I apologize that we didn't stop him sooner."
Strong nodded, a strange look on his face. The two policemen each hooked a hand under the unconscious man's shoulders and dragged him away.
"Sorry I didn't get here sooner," Strong said.
"That's okay," Dani said.
"I can't believe what I just saw, Dani."
"What's that?"
"That guy was an animal," Strong said.
"His manners and grooming were atrocious," Dani said, nodding.
"That's not what I meant. He was a brute; he could have hurt you."
"He thought so, too, but he was mistaken. It was probably the dress and the makeup that misled him."
"I don't ... " Strong shook his head, frowning.
"That was a joke, Kev. He was just another overconfident bully. They're all the same. Why don't you order us another bottle of wine and tell the maître d' we're ready to be served. I'll be back by the time they clean up the mess.
Dani had dropped her napkin to hide the commando knife on the floor. She stooped and picked the napkin and the knife up, pretending to blot her forehead with the napkin. "I'll go to the ladies' room and see if I can repair the damage."
Chapter 14
"What's new, Greg?" Danilov asked, as Greg Baklanov joined him for a late lunch. "Heard anything from Strong?"
Greg pulled out a chair and sat, shaking his head. "Not from him. He's probably still at lunch with her. But I did hear from the two cops we hired to drag Chernov away after Strong put him down."
"From the cops? Not from Chernov?" Danilov raised an eyebrow.
"Chernov didn't make it."
"Didn't make it? You mean he didn't show up? I'll have his — "
"Didn't make it, as in, he's dead," Greg interrupted.
"Dead? What the hell?"
"When the cops got there, he was unconscious, with blood running out of his ears and nose. They had no idea what happened, but they dragged him out to their van and called our guys who were supposed to get him out of the country. By the time our guys got him in their boat, he was dead. Looks like Strong hit him on the side of the head with something heavy."
"Strong? I can't believe he's got that kind of balls. Besides, he knew Chernov was going to roll over. Why would he go overboard? Unless ... " Danilov shook his head.
"Unless Chernov decided not to roll over?" Greg finished his boss's thought.
"Yeah. It doesn't make any sense. This could cause a problem. The cops know he's dead?"
"No. As far as they know, he's back here recuperating."
"Good. Any reason to think Chernov might have changed the plan?"
Greg shrugged. "No, but he was always a little bit of a wildman."
"He was a fucking psychopath, like all those Spetsnaz bastards," Danilov said, "but he still followed orders. He understood the plan?"
Greg nodded. "He was excited about the 30 days paid leave; had a woman lined up to meet him in Costa Rica. We booked her tickets."
"You know anything about her?" Danilov frowned.
"We've got her name and passport details, obviously. Hungarian, but other than that, nothing. Not yet."
"Not yet?" Danilov asked.
"We're checking on her background, how he knew her, how long. The usual stuff."
Danilov nodded. "Good. She may be a liability. If she's expecting him in Costa Rica and he doesn't show ... "
"I have it in hand, Andrei," Greg said. "We'll contain the damage, not to worry."
"Where's the body?" Danilov asked.
"On the bottom in 1,500 meters of water, by now. The boat should be back here any time."
"Let me know about the woman. We may need to eliminate her."
Greg nodded. "We'll check her out. Even if she's not a liability, she might be a worthwhile acquisition. Chernov had good taste in women, for bein
g such a sick bastard."
"That would be at least some compensation for losing Chernov. But only if she's clean — no family looking for her, nothing like that."
"Right. She may not give a rat's ass what happened to him, in which case we'll just ... "
"No!" Danilov smacked the table with his open palm, rattling the china. "Don't go soft on me. I will not trust a woman to keep her mouth shut. If she's got people who'll look for her, she's going to have an accident. If she doesn't, give her the treatment and put her in inventory. Clear?"
"Yes," Greg said.
"How many do we have?" Danilov asked.
"Once they finish reprogramming Rosa, we'll have 11 in salable condition."
"Rosa? She's the chambermaid?"
"That's right."
"She give up who she was working for?"
Greg shook his head. "Not yet. That's why they haven't finished with her. We don't want to risk the drugs erasing her memory until we get that out of her."
Danilov nodded. "Anything else?"
"No, nothing."
"Good. You'll have to debrief Strong by yourself; I'm entertaining those assholes from Colombia tonight. I want details on what went wrong first thing tomorrow morning."
"Sure, Andrei. No problem."
"Okay. Enough of this unpleasant shit. Ready to eat?"
Greg nodded, and Danilov touched the button under the edge of the table in front of him, summoning a stewardess.
****
Dani stood at the sink in the ladies' room, studying the strange commando knife dropped by her attacker. She fiddled with a knurled lever on the butt of the handle, and it came free, dropping a heavy cylinder into the palm of her hand. Examining the cylinder, she saw the nose of a bullet protruding. She concluded that there was a single-shot gun hidden in the handle of the knife. Exactly how it would work wasn't clear to her, but she could figure that out later. Reassembling the knife, she squeezed it into the purse that Liz had insisted that she carry and turned her attention to her reflection in the mirror over the sink.
Looking at her forehead, she saw the beginnings of a bruise where she had head-butted the man. She ran her fingers over the reddened skin, testing to see if it were tender. It wasn't, and she couldn't feel a knot forming. That was good; the bastard's nose had absorbed the impact. Head-butts were effective, but they could sometimes backfire.
She dampened a paper towel and wiped a few flecks of dried blood from her face and neck, deciding that she was as presentable as she could make herself. She unlocked the door and walked back to the table. Strong saw her coming and rose to his feet, holding her chair for her. Forcing a smile, she nodded her thanks and sat down.
"You okay?" Strong asked.
"Fine," she said. "A little surprised, though. That's not the kind of thing I expect here."
"The cops said they'd been chasing him," Strong said.
She nodded. "I heard."
"I guess there are thugs everywhere," Strong said. "Sorry I was delayed; I'd have taken care of him for you."
Dani took in the bluster in his tone and the scowl on his face. She refrained from laughing at him. He was a good actor, but not that good. He didn't have the demeanor or the movements of a man who could handle himself in a fight.
"It's not your fault, Kev. I can take care of myself."
"I'll say. I've never seen anything like that; not in real life, anyway. Do you practice some kind of martial arts?"
"Not really. They're mostly for show, anyway."
"How'd you do that, then? I thought you must have a black belt in something."
"I haven't led a sheltered life. I learned to hold my own around the waterfront from the time I was in my early teens."
"But those moves you used; where'd you learn to fight like that? I'd like to learn that kind of stuff."
"Well, you start by getting your ass kicked, Kev. After enough times, you learn what works."
"But you never even looked worried. Were you scared?"
"Of course I was scared. But worry is just a distraction once a fight starts. You just focus on doing as much damage to the other guy as you can before he does you in. You don't stop until one of you is incapacitated. Bullies like that fool always expect a small woman to cower, so that gives me an advantage."
"He could have killed you, though."
She shrugged. "I'm sure he thought so. He was wrong, at least this time. Did you order a fresh bottle of Pinot Grigio?"
"Yes, and I told them we were ready for lunch. The maître d' said you'd already ordered for both of us. The wine should be out in a few more minutes."
"Good. Is it okay with you that I ordered?" A worried frown wrinkled her brow. "I know this place well, and ... "
"Sure. That's fine. I'm okay with it. Why are you frowning?"
"I didn't know how you'd react to a woman ordering your meal."
He chuckled. "You think I'm a macho man, huh?"
"You have that reputation, and from the roles you've played ... " she shook her head and offered a coy smile, thinking that Liz would be proud.
"I didn't think you knew who I was when I introduced myself the other evening."
"I didn't. But I found out."
"You looked me up?" He raised an eyebrow, smiling.
"Not exactly. The charter guests wondered who sent me flowers. When I told them, the woman swooned, and her husband explained who you were."
"Ah," Strong said, a pleased grin on his handsome face. "So she's a fan?"
"Both of them, actually."
"Love it! Don't let me forget; before we part, I'll give you a note for them."
"I'm sure they'd appreciate that," Dani said.
"You're not a movie person, though?" he asked.
"Real life is exciting enough. No offense, but I can't sit still for make-believe."
"Uh-huh. Have you seen a lot of movies?"
She shook her head. "A few, when I was younger. None that made a lasting impression. I guess I'm sort of an adrenalin junkie. I like making my own excitement."
"I see." Strong was silent for a moment.
"You wanted to tell me about this movie that you're working on," Dani said. "What about it? Do you think it might catch my interest?"
"Well, I don't know. Sounds like you might be a tough sell."
"I'm willing to listen, but in all honesty, I'm more interested in the mechanics and the business side of making a movie."
"Fair enough, but why are you interested in that?" Strong asked. "To me, that's the dull part."
"My education's in finance and management. But I agree that it's dull; that's why I'm sailing instead."
"If you think it's dull, how did you end up studying finance and management?"
"My mother's family's in the investment banking business. It was sort of forced on me, at first."
"I see. Your dad in the family business, too?"
"No. He and my mother split up not long after I was born. He thinks investment banking is just a form of piracy for cowards."
Strong laughed. "I think I might like him. What's he do?"
"He's in international trade, but his passion is sailing. He has a fleet of big charter yachts."
"So that's where you got the sailing bug?"
"He started me as deck crew on one of the yachts the summer I was 12."
"The boss's daughter? Must have been fun."
Dani shrugged. "You'd have to know my father. He made sure I learned to carry my own weight."
"Good for him," Strong said. After a momentary pause, he asked, "You really want to hear about the movie?"
She nodded, smiling, as the waiter offered her the wine. "That's fine," she told the man. "I'll taste it."
He poured a bit into her glass and she sniffed it before raising the glass to sip it. "Good," she said.
The waiter filled their glasses and put the bottle back in the ice bucket, leaving them alone again.
"Now, tell me about the movie. You've strung it out to the point where I'm cur
ious," she said, smiling, tipping her head forward and looking up at him.
"Okay. It's called Cassie's Dream. The screen play's original; I commissioned a writer I like to do it. It's about a young woman who's determined to build a business around something she's personally committed to on several levels." He paused, looking at her for a reaction.
Dani nodded. "Okay. I can see some possibilities there."
"I'm sure you can. I have to tell you, I did a real double-take when I saw you in the bar the other night. You look exactly like what I picture Cassie looking like. That's no bullshit. And the more I learn about you, the stronger the resemblance becomes." He paused again.
"Keep going, smooth-talker," Dani said, smiling.
"As soon as they've served us," he promised, waving to the waiter who was hovering over a steaming tray just out of Dani's view.
****
"How did it go?" Liz asked, as she answered Dani's call on her cellphone.
"I just put Strong in a taxi," Dani said.
"I heard. I was expecting that you'd call any minute."
"Blaine called you?"
"Yes. I just got off the phone with him. I told him how to get to the place where I dropped you off; we figured I could pick you both up in a few minutes."
"All right. I'll see you then."
"Wait a minute," Liz demanded. "I asked how it went."
"How much did Blaine tell you?"
"Nothing; we cut it short, because we both thought you'd be calling. He said he got some great shots, but we could all talk when we got back together. He sounded a little evasive. Or maybe just puzzled. What happened, Dani?"
"I'm not sure. Everything went about as expected with Strong, but I don't really want to get into it until you and I have some privacy."
"Okay. What do you mean, 'with Strong?' Did something else happen?"
"Yes, but I haven't been able to make sense out of it. It would be better to just talk through it with Blaine and see what his reaction is. I've got my own thoughts; I'll share those with you later."
"Not Blaine? Did he see whatever it was?"
Bluewater Drone: The Eleventh Novel in the Caribbean Mystery and Adventure Series (Bluewater Thrillers Book 11) Page 9