Gardens of the Queen

by Nicholas Harvey

  “Hasn’t moved.” AJ pointed to the trawler.

  “I can’t believe they brought the Explorador de la Reina all the way here; that poor old boat struggles back and forth to the islands off Cuba, that must have been quite a trip in the storm,” Carlos sympathised.

  They both stood staring at the old trawler-turned-research vessel resting idly in the flat, calm water. From behind the concrete structure of the port a small skiff appeared slowly chugging towards the Cuban boat.

  “Look,” AJ alerted Carlos.

  “That’s our skiff!” Carlos immediately recognised the little craft, “And that’s Silvio driving it.”

  The skiff had a small outboard with one man at the tiller and a second man sitting in the bow.

  Carlos continued, “I don’t know the other guy but it looks like one of the Russians doesn’t it?”

  AJ strained her eyes at the little boat a thousand yards away. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s the one that we saw open the boot.” She pictured the man standing there stunned from Sydney’s kick. “Where’s the other Russian, I wonder?”

  Something moved between the two men, a cover of some sort. “Did you see that?” Carlos shouted.

  AJ did, but was it fluttering in the wind or was there something else there? The cover moved again as the skiff disappeared behind the trawler, pulling up along the starboard side, the far side from them.

  “They have her! They have Sydney! We must get to the boat before they leave!” Carlos looked at the water between the pier and the trawler as though he was contemplating swimming across right now.

  “Wait, wait,” AJ grabbed his arm, “You can’t go there, if they catch you they have everything they need!”

  Carlos paused and looked at her, his eyes frantic. “I swear that was her they have in the skiff, they’ve taken her to the Explorador, I’m sure the hard drive too. They’re going to leave, we have to stop them! Once they go we lose everything; I cannot let them take Sydney!”

  AJ had been thinking all along about getting to the boat and every time she’d convinced herself it was a crazy idea. They had no idea who was on that boat but she was nearly as convinced as Carlos that Sydney was on the skiff, which probably meant they’d pull anchor and leave. Why wasn’t the other guy with them? She looked at Carlos.

  “Of course, the other Russian stayed.” She waited for him to figure it out.

  “To find me,” Carlos caught on.

  “I’ll go to the boat, you have to stay hidden.” AJ started back towards the van.

  Carlos trailed her. “No way, you can’t go alone, I have to come too, you don’t know the boat. Besides, how can you get to the boat without them seeing you?”

  AJ opened the back door of her van and dragged out her dive kit and a tank. “Don’t worry, they won’t see me coming.”

  “Shit,” he said, surprised, “that might work. But you still don’t know the boat, I have to come with you.” He reached in the van to grab another kit but there wasn’t one, only tanks.

  AJ smiled. “Sorry. Tell me all about the boat, I need to know the layout.”

  She hauled the gear to the pier, questioning her sanity all the way, but every other option seemed to have the same dead-end answer. If they called Whittaker he’d need proof before searching a foreign boat, she’d learnt this before. Besides, hopefully Reg had him chasing the other Russian and in case they were wrong and Sydney was still in his boot, he needed to catch him. They could go get her boat but by the time they got her boat in West Bay and came back the trawler could be gone, and if it wasn’t they’d see her coming anyway. If she didn’t act now the Cuban boat would leave, she was sure of it, and they’d never see Sydney or the hard drive again. The Gardens of the Queen would be destroyed and she could have stopped it. Well, tried to at least. She had to at least try.

  She realised Carlos was telling her about the boat and pushed her mental debates aside to pay attention.

  “There’s not many cabins and only three levels so it’s not too complicated but everything’s quite small and tight. The top level you can see,” Carlos pointed to the trawler, directing AJ to the wheelhouse. “Stay away from there. You have to go up the outside stairs behind it or inside from the main deck and there’s no reason to go there. The main deck level is the galley and the dining area which is most likely where people will be. Problem is you have to go in the back of that section to get to the stairs down to the lower deck. When you go in the door, which enters from the stern, the stairs down are on your right, but the hall ahead opens into the galley and then the dining room. Once down the stairs there are only cabins and doors to the engine room and storage. Most likely they will put her in a cabin down there.” Carlos made the sign of the cross and put his hands together. “I pray they do this.”

  AJ finished preparing her gear and jogged back to the van with Carlos in tow. “Okay, so I need to go through the door in the back, down the stairs to the right, and there will be some cabins and she should be in one of them?”

  “Yes. And the guy who was driving the skiff, that’s Silvio, he’s a good man. I believe he would be helpful if you ran into him and told him you were with me; we are friends. He’s doing what he’s told by Gurov but at heart he doesn’t want to hurt anybody. The other Cuban that’s probably on the boat is Julio – he’s younger, I don’t know about him, he doesn’t care about much except having a good time so I wouldn’t trust him.”

  AJ took off her tee shirt and shorts and slipped a wetsuit top over her bathing suit, relieved she made the decision to wear a swimsuit. She didn’t have a full wetsuit in the van but at least the top would give her some coverage; she really didn’t want to lay siege to a Cuban trawler in a two-piece bathing suit.

  “Okay, so I’m going to try and avoid anybody but if I do run into somebody, let’s hope it’s your friend.” She closed the van door.

  “So what exactly is your plan?” Carlos asked with more than a hint of concern.

  AJ walked back down the pier to her gear. “That’s a good question.”

  She dipped her mask in the water and washed it out, thinking, what is my plan?

  “I’m going to get Sydney and leave. If the hard drive is handy I’ll take that too. Mind you, as we’ll be back in the water when we leave I doubt that’ll help. Beyond that I think I’ll have to make it up as I go.” She attempted a smile but she knew it wasn’t convincing. After all, if she couldn’t convince herself, how would she convince Carlos? She sat on the side of the pier and slipped into her BCD and buckled it, the base of the heavy tank banging on the concrete pier.

  “I should be going with you,” Carlos said solemnly.

  AJ slipped her fins on and looked up at Carlos. “I know you want to but you need to stay hidden, I’ll be fine. Hide in the van; the keys are in the ignition in case you need to move but just stay out of sight if at all possible.” She pulled her mask down.

  “Thank you AJ, be safe, I will see you both shortly,” he managed, though his voice was cracking.

  AJ gave him an okay sign. “Be right back, oh and check my phone, it’s in the van, maybe Reg will call with good news. But whatever you do don’t tell him or anyone I’ve gone to the boat. They’ll send in the cavalry and if we’re right the trawler will take off.” She turned and looked at Carlos, hoping he could see her serious expression through the lens of her mask. “Promise me Carlos, you can’t tell them. Well, let’s say for one hour; if I haven’t come back by then I’d say send the cavalry, I probably need them. Promise?”

  “Okay,” Carlos muttered reluctantly, “I promise.”

  AJ pushed off the pier into the clear blue warm water to a scatter of small fish. Before she could second guess herself any further, she descended and kicked away from shore.

  Chapter 66

  Whittaker looked up as a grey four-door saloon rolled slowly through the open gates into the police yard and pulled up next to him. He could see Mikhail scan the yard but if he was alarmed at the constables and detectives waitin
g for him his face didn’t betray it. Roy smiled and waited patiently for the Russian to weigh his options.

  Mikhail shut off the engine and stepped from the car. “What is so important that I had to come here, Detective?”

  The armed detective kept his weapon concealed but moved to keep a clear view of Mikhail without Roy blocking his vantage, Mikhail’s eyes calmly tracked him. Roy noted the man’s every move was slow and predictable; his eyes weren’t darting about but slowly took in all around him. There was no doubt in Roy’s mind Mikhail was a highly trained agent well versed in keeping situations calm.

  Roy extended his hand to the Russian. “Thank you for indulging me, just a few loose ends I’d like to clear up.”

  Mikhail shook his hand firmly. “Fine, I’m here, what are your loose ends I can help you with?”

  Roy maintained his smile. “I must have been mistaken yesterday, I thought you told me you weren’t staying on island?”

  Mikhail paused, clearly processing but his expression never changed. “Why is this important? Surely you have more pressing concerns than where I sleep?”

  Roy’s smile widened. “Indeed I do sir, your sleep is of no concern to me.” His smile evaporated. “But I prefer to be told the truth Mr. Gurov, that is a concern to me.”

  Now Mikhail laughed, which he managed without any sign of joy. “And I prefer my privacy detective, so I omitted to tell you I took a hotel room. Again, how is this important enough to interrupt both of our busy days?” He looked around him at the other policeman all watching him or looking at his car, “And tie up half your police force it appears.”

  Roy’s reply was all business. “Are you aware, sir, that it is strictly illegal to bring a firearm to the Cayman Islands?”

  Finally Mikhail’s expression changed, his face tightened and his jaw set. They were all subtle signs but Roy could tell he was angry.

  “Is it normal in the Cayman Islands to search the rooms of foreign diplomatic guests, Detective?” Mikhail’s voice was now tense and his eyes were darting from Roy to the other detective.

  “Only when they act suspiciously and a judge agrees to issue a search warrant,” Roy calmly replied. He knows he has the Russian trapped and can tell Mikhail has come to the same conclusion. Trapped is when a man like this could be the most dangerous but Roy cautiously assumed Mikhail was smart enough to know his options were limited.

  “I had to do some searching to find an MP-443 Grach in our database, we don’t see too many guns here.” Roy looked Mikhail squarely in the eyes. “Other than the ones we carry.” He wanted to make sure the Russian knew their little island police force weren’t just going to yell stop if he ran. “A Russian-made gun issued to Russian military and the Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation. Seems strange for a marine biologist to carry a weapon in the first place but certainly one issued to soldiers and agents, Mr. Gurov?”

  Mikhail relented, appearing to accept his cover was blown. “How would you like to proceed, Detective? Obviously my government will be eager to secure my exit from your island so why don’t we contact our nearest embassy, which will be the one on Cuba?”

  Roy pointed in the direction of Constable Spalding, away from the car. “Please join my constable over there, Mr. Gurov; he will check you for any other weapons and we will now search your car.”

  Mikhail walked towards Spalding with his hands in clear view. The armed detective stayed out of reach but tracked him carefully.

  “Is there anything you’d like to tell us before we search your person and your vehicle?” Roy continued, making a point of looking at the boot of the car as Mikhail stopped and turned around by Spalding.

  “I do not have anything to hide from you, Detective, you will find nothing,” came the Russian’s smug reply.

  Chapter 67

  As the sun lowered in the western sky with evening approaching its intensity dropped, although the temperature didn’t change much. Inside the van was hot and humid and Carlos rolled the windows down to catch the light breeze off the water. He settled on the floor between the front seats and the second row bench seat to remain out of sight. The quiet and stillness after the frantic events of the afternoon seemed surreal and he felt detached and helpless. He should be the one heading to the Explorador de la Reina to find Sydney, not a stranger he’d met a few days ago who was risking everything to help him, and for what? Why would she leave the safety of the island, alone, and head straight into harm’s way on the trawler? Because AJ recognised Sydney didn’t deserve any of this chaos he’d brought down on them? That was certainly true and he expected everyone to shun him when this was over. Including Sydney.

  He held his head in his hands. All this over a stretch of coral reef that most people didn’t even know existed. But it was not just a stretch of reef, it was miles of reef that had taken thousands of years to grow, evolve and flourish and would be destroyed over the course of a few weeks. Carlos could picture the barges and heavy equipment descending on Jardines de la Reina as he sat there, helpless, doing nothing. In two days’ time the blasting would begin. The destruction of life would be unimaginable as the beautiful coral was blown apart and replaced with massive concrete pedestals to house the Goliath rigs. The delicate balance of the ecosystem established over lifetimes would be destroyed and another chunk of the globe’s precious reefs will be lost as we humans rapidly wipe out the natural growths that keep the air we breathe in balance.

  He slammed his fist on the seat beside him, his mind overwhelmed with frustration and above all fear for Sydney from the avalanche of events he’d created. He’d completely forgotten to check AJ’s phone so it startled him when it rang, dancing on the centre console of the van. He picked it up and saw ‘Reg’ on the caller ID. He tentatively answered the phone, “Hello?”

  After a pause, “Who’s this?”

  Carlos was relieved to recognise Reg’s voice, “It’s Carlos. Have the police found the Russian? Do they have Sydney?”

  “Whittaker is on it, Gurov should be at the station now. Where are you?” Reg sounded serious but Carlos didn’t know the man well enough to gauge his mood.

  “I am by the water next to a restaurant called Casanova, you know it?”

  Reg chuckled without amusement. “Yeah, I know it, stay put, I’ll be there in five minutes.”

  Carlos hesitated, wondering how he could explain AJ’s whereabouts. “You are coming here?”

  “I’m only a few minutes away, is AJ with you?” Reg finally asked.

  “No, she’s…” Carlos stumbled, trying to get the words right in his second language. “She’s away for a moment.”

  “Okay, I’ll be right there, hopefully Whittaker will call any second with Gurov in custody,” Reg finished and hung up.

  Carlos was left pondering how he could explain why AJ wasn’t there and where she had gone. From the van he couldn’t see the trawler and he dare not step outside any more in case he was spotted. He pictured AJ under water navigating her way across the front of the harbour; it was quite a distance and he prayed she was good with a compass. She’d been gone only a few minutes and he wondered how long it would take to reach the trawler. Twenty minutes? An hour didn’t seem like much time to get there, find and free Sydney and get back. How was Sydney getting back? There was only one set of Scuba gear. She could breathe off AJ’s reserve regulator but it would take a lot longer swimming back without fins. He kept churning over the myriad of scenarios in his mind and none of them made him feel any better. He was convinced Gurov no longer had Sydney and she was on the boat. Which meant everything was riding on AJ and her cursory plan.

  Chapter 68

  AJ was usually calmed as soon as she submerged, with all sound becoming dampened and limited to the air passing through the regulator. She found it soothing and the rhythm of her steady, even breathing relaxed her even further. This evening she found it a little harder to settle down as the stillness focused her attention on what she was about to attempt. The first problem was fi
nding the trawler from underwater starting from nearly half a mile away. It was easy to underestimate how tricky navigation could be when above the water looking clearly at the destination. Once underwater with limited visibility and the scale and distance distortion of the human eye looking through water from behind a mask, it was easy to get disorientated and horribly lost. She’d taken a compass heading from the pier but decided to rely more heavily on her knowledge of the local terrain. This area to the north of the harbour wasn’t frequented very often by the dive boats. The cruise ship snorkellers tended to cover the waters as it was walking distance from the terminal and several tour companies guided them to this spot. But she had done some open-water class work with students here and there were some key underwater landmarks she knew could be used.

  Using her compass heading she finned across the shallow pan and found some scattered coral leading into more reef formation at around ten feet depth. Turning slightly to her right took her to where the reef dropped into more of a sandy bottom, where she turned back south-west to follow the edge of the reef. The coral landscape consisted of little peninsulas and recesses where the fingers of reef extended and retreated towards the deeper water and she connected the peaks of the outreaches staying on her compass heading. Curious tarpon with their long silvery bodies and strange hinging jaws hung by a coral head and watched her pass with mild curiosity. A stingray belched sand from under its wings in the flats to her right as it burrowed down to a tasty shellfish meal. On a normal dive AJ would linger and enjoy the sights of the undersea world, revelling in the privileged moments spent observing life below the surface, but today she passed by with nothing more than a fleeting glance. Too much was riding on her and while she’d formulated a solid plan to find the trawler, she was a long way from knowing what she would do once there. They’d taken the skiff alongside so there had to be a ladder or some means of getting from the surface to board the boat – locating that would be task one. A shiver ran through her when she thought much beyond that.