"Great!" Ortiz said. "Where are you staying?"
"On my boat," Dani said. "We're at a private dock on Star Island."
"Wow! You're living large. Do you know the yacht club?"
"The Miami Yacht Club?" Dani asked.
"Yes. It's pretty close to where you are, and the food's excellent."
"Right," Dani said. "I know it well."
"Okay, then. I'll book a table there for noon. How's that?"
"Okay," Dani said.
"I'll pick you up around 11:45, then."
Liz shook her head and mouthed, "Meet him there."
Dani nodded. "Actually, David, it would be better if I met you there. I have some errands to run this morning."
"Okay, great," Ortiz said. "I'll look forward to it. Thanks, and 'bye for now."
Dani disconnected the call and put the phone down, taking the coffee that Liz offered her. "How'd I do, coach?"
"Great. I thought it would be better if you had your own transportation, though, just in case," Liz said.
"I think so, too. I'll take the dinghy; it's a short trip, even at no-wake speed."
"What did you think of his story?" Liz asked.
Dani shrugged and took a sip of coffee. "I don't know."
"Was it a plausible explanation of what you overheard last night?" Liz asked.
"Maybe. It almost seems contrived, though."
"Why?"
"The way he dropped in the 'béké's daughter' reference, like he knew it would have made me suspicious."
"Poor guy," Liz said, grinning. She raised her coffee mug to her nose and inhaled, closing her eyes. She sighed and then took a sip. "You're the most suspicious person I know. He doesn't stand a chance."
"Does that mean you agree with me?"
Liz peered into her coffee mug for a moment, thinking. She looked up at Dani and nodded. "Maybe so. But he could have been telling the truth."
"Why didn't he just call her 'mom's friend,' or something? Why explain what béké means?"
"Your first question is a good one, but he's probably a little upset about his mother, and maybe that really is what they call her friend, and it just came out naturally."
Dani shook her head. "But why explain it, then?"
"Because you asked, Dani."
"I still don't like it, Liz. It was too convenient, and then there's the coincidence of my being a béké's daughter."
"That's why I thought you should have your own transportation. Don't get in a car with him, at least not until you know more about him."
"That's how I feel, too," Dani said. "I think I'll go see if Paul's awake. Maybe he can check this guy out with the MPD."
****
"Did he say which exile groups are working with him?" J.-P. Berger asked.
Phillip shook his head. "No. But then he wouldn't, normally. Martinez was always good at being discreet."
"But he did say that they wanted to overthrow the Castro government?" J.-P. asked.
Phillip hesitated. "No, now that I think about it, he didn't. Not outright. I asked twice, and he never quite answered. He didn't say anything to indicate that I was wrong about him being anti-Castro, but he was careful. He also mentioned that we might be overheard, so he gave himself an out, I guess. Both with me and with anybody who might have been listening."
J.-P. nodded. "He has the reputation of being a smooth operator. When do you think you'll hear back from your contact at the agency?"
Phillip shrugged. "It's not an emergency, so I didn't put any pressure on them. I just told them I needed advice on how to proceed with Martinez."
"What do you think they'll do?"
"It's hard to say, J.-P. I'm sure they'll check him out, but beyond that, your guess is as good as mine."
"Will they have you get back in touch with him?"
"Probably, unless they decide to ignore him."
"Would they not tell you that?"
"I don't know, J.-P. This is new territory for me. I haven't called them since I retired."
"How did Martinez want you to contact him once you had an answer?"
"He didn't. He told me they'd know once I made my call and that he'd get in touch then."
J.-P. frowned. "That is strange, to me. What do you make of it?"
"Whoever Martinez is working with must have someone on the inside," Phillip said. "Either that, or they're monitoring my communications."
"Is either of those things likely?" J.-P. asked.
Phillip shook his head. "Neither is likely, to my way of thinking. But we both know that either is possible."
"You are better versed in this part of the business than I, Phillip. Which do you think is more probable?"
Phillip studied his friend for a moment as he considered his answer. "It's more probable that they have a mole somewhere in our government, I think. Not that my communications are so secure, but my movements and patterns of use are too erratic, these days. Monitoring my communications would be more difficult than planting a mole, I think."
"I don't quite take your meaning," J.-P. said. "It seems to me that penetrating the agency would be more difficult."
"In some ways, yes," Phillip said. "But the scope of an effort to monitor all my possible means of communication would be so broad that it's probably beyond any of the organizations Martinez might be allied with. I don't mean it's impossible, but it would take the kind of infrastructure that the NSA might have. It's not something a coalition of exile groups could do, in my opinion."
J.-P. nodded. "Then why would they involve you?"
"Now I'm the one who doesn't understand," Phillip said. "Can you ask that a different way?"
"Perhaps I was ahead of myself. If they have an inside source, why would they need you? Why not go to their inside person?"
"Ah! I see your point. First, their inside source could well be someone at a low level; someone who can monitor and report, but who has no authority within the organization."
J.-P. nodded. "I understand that now, thank you. But you said, 'first.' That implies that there may be a second possibility."
"There are many possibilities, J.-P." Phillip smiled. "The one I was thinking of is that for some reason, they want my involvement."
J.-P. frowned and shook his head. "But why?"
"They could have a mole in any of several places, but I have a certain track record. If I'm involved, it could imply endorsement by certain parts of the U.S. government. That could be important to them for a lot of different reasons."
J.-P. nodded. "Thank you for explaining. I was overlooking the international political aspects."
"Or it could be as simple as the fact that Martinez remembers me," Phillip said. "It could also be because he knows about my connection to you, and he wants something that only you could supply."
"And what would that be?" J.-P. asked.
Phillip smiled. "I wouldn't know. I'm retired, remember?"
"You will always be a partner in our business; you know that. Any time you wish to take an active role again, you may."
"Thank you. Yes, I do know that. But it's best for all of us if I don't know the latest about what's in the portfolio. Unless I do resume an active role, at least."
J.-P. nodded. "Did Martinez say whether they had money to pay for these weapons?"
"It didn't come up," Phillip said. "That could be another reason he approached me. He knows I used to arrange financing. Or maybe not. There's plenty of money in the exile community."
"How many men does he want to equip?"
"He didn't say. Why?"
"Just curious," J.-P. said, with a smile. "Business is business. Training? Did he mention that?"
"Not yet, J.-P. You almost sound hungry for business," Phillip said, a teasing smile on his face.
J.-P. chuckled. "Always. So, while you are thinking like a super-spy, let's talk about how I'm going to get Mario and his wife out here without telling him what's going on."
****
Table of Contents
&n
bsp; Bluewater Drone
Antigua
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Epilogue
A Note to the Reader
About C.L.R. Dougherty
Other Books by C.L.R. Dougherty
Read the first three chapters of Bluewater Revolution, the twelfth book in the Bluewater Thrillers series --
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Bluewater Drone: The Eleventh Novel in the Caribbean Mystery and Adventure Series (Bluewater Thrillers Book 11) Page 25