He set the food on the counter and pulled his pistol from the concealed-carry holster at his waist. He tiptoed toward the archway that led into the living room. As he caught sight of Willy and Joe Bones on the couch, gagged and trussed like chickens, he froze. A small figure in a black wetsuit stepped from the shadow to his right, putting one hand on his pistol and the other on his elbow.
Before he could react, he felt the pistol torn from his numb hand. His index finger was caught in the trigger guard, and he screamed as he felt the finger snap. Still pinching the nerves in his elbow, the figure pivoted and drove an elbow into his nose. Stunned, Fats went down. He never quite lost consciousness, but he was trussed like his comrades before his vision cleared.
He heard a bass voice rumble, "Okay, tha's three, an' we got a pistol. Let's get to work."
He watched as the person in the wetsuit removed Joe Bones's gag.
"You're fuckin' dead," Joe Bones snarled.
"No. I'm Dani Berger, and this is my friend Sharktooth. You're Joe Bones, and we're here to set you free."
"Set me free?"
"Well, in a manner of speaking. Soon, you won't have any worries at all."
"Yeah, yeah. What do you want?"
"I thought you might be smart enough to cooperate. I know all about you guys and Guido Cappelletti. I'm a live-and-let-live kind of person, but you boys have pissed me off. Here's the deal; I want you to talk to Guido on the phone. You need to get him to incriminate himself on two counts: killing John Welsh and kidnapping my half-brother. We'll be recording the call. We'll turn the recording over to the authorities in the States, and you shitheads will go on an expense-paid vacation. How's that sound?"
Joe Bones gave a harsh laugh. "That ain't happening, you stupid bitch. If you know what's good for you, you'll haul ass, right now."
Fats saw Dani Berger glance over her shoulder and nod. He was guessing she looked at the person she had called Sharktooth. A black giant with dreadlocks to his waist stepped between Fats and Joe Bones.
"Sure you won't reconsider?" Berger asked.
"Fuck you," Joe Bones said.
Fats saw the giant bend at the waist and reach forward. When he straightened up, Joe Bones was dangling from one of the man's hands, suspended by his bad leg, shrieking in pain. The Berger woman nodded again, and the giant dropped Joe Bones. Bones lay on the floor, whimpering.
"Shall I place that call for you?" Berger asked. "Or should I ruin your other knee first?" She knelt in front of him, pressing Fats's pistol to his right kneecap.
"Call him," Joe Bones said.
"Okay. You need to get him to say where my brother's being held, as well as acknowledging that he gave the orders for the killing and the kidnapping. Try anything else, and we'll disconnect the call and adjust your attitude before we call back. Understand?"
"Yeah," Joe Bones said.
****
Guido and Franco sat in Guido's study, trying to make sense of the killing of the guard and the arson at the warehouse. It was clear that Joey DeLuca had told someone about the warehouse. The thing they couldn't understand was who might be behind the destruction of millions of dollars' worth of cocaine. Any of their rivals might have tortured Joey for the information, but they would have stolen the goods, not destroyed them.
They were sitting in glum silence when Guido's cellphone rang. He studied the display. "Joe Bones," he said. "What the hell could he want, this time of night?"
Franco shrugged.
Putting a finger to his lips, Guido locked eyes with Franco and put the phone on his desk. He touched the screen, and then the speaker icon. "Yeah?"
"Don Guido?"
"Who the fuck else you think would answer my phone this time of night?"
"I just wanted to make sure. I been doin' some thinkin'. I — "
"That's gotta be new for you. Thinkin' about what?"
"Well, it goes back to when you told us to kill John Welsh. Then — "
"The fuck are you talkin' about? Kill John Welsh? Who the hell is that? I ain't ever said to kill anybody. I don't even know that name."
"The guy was shackin' up with Angela, remember? And then when we couldn't find her, you had us kidnap Rollie Stanwicke to force the Berger broad to give up — "
"You're out of your little tiny mind. I got no idea what the fuck you're talkin' about."
Guido disconnected the call and stared at the phone for a few seconds. "That son of a bitch was tryin' to set me up," he said.
"You think he had somebody else on the line?" Franco asked.
Guido shook his head. "He musta. Or maybe he was tapin' it. No other reason I can think of that he'd name names and say shit like that. He knows better than to do that otherwise. You think of any other explanation?"
"No. You think he's workin' with whoever torched the warehouse?"
"Shit if I know what to think. Let's call Fats. See if that asshole's still at the villa."
"You gonna have Fats and Willy work on him?"
"Yeah, if he's there."
****
"Too bad, Joe Bones," Dani said.
"I did the best I could, I mean, I — "
"You've got one more chance to save yourself some pain. Do you know where my brother is?"
"No, but Guido usually stashes people in one of the warehouses."
"Where are the warehouses? Give me a list."
"Cut me loose; I can't write."
"No way. Start talking." She knelt in front of him and put the muzzle of Fats's pistol against his good knee.
"I, um ... there're six of 'em. There's a list in my briefcase."
"This yo' briefcase?" Sharktooth held an expensive looking, slim, dark brown leather satchel.
"Yeah."
Sharktooth opened it and extracted a folder. Flipping it open, he scanned a couple of pages and nodded at Dani.
She handed the pistol to Sharktooth and drew her knife. With her left hand, she grasped Joe Bones's hair and pulled his head back. With a fluid motion, she drove the five-inch, double-edged blade up under his chin. It pierced his soft palate, and entered his brain. As he convulsed, she withdrew the knife and wiped it on his shirt. She turned to Fats and stuck the blade behind the gag that Sharktooth had tied over his mouth. Before she cut through the cloth, a ringing sound came from the pocket of his shirt.
She extracted his phone and stood up, studying the screen. After a moment, she touched the connect icon and the speaker icon and moaned "Hello," in a breathy, sultry voice.
"Fats? You there?" asked a scratchy voice.
"Ahh," Dani sighed. "Oh, yes. Yes! More ... ahh ... "
"Lemme speak to Fats," the scratchy voice ordered.
"Sorry, handsome," Dani drawled. "Fats has his mouth full right now."
"Listen, you stupid whore. Do you know who I am?"
"Caller i.d. said you were Guido. Want to have a little fun, Guido?"
"Who the fuck are you, bitch? I'm gonna have Fats skin your ass."
"Ooh, I'm scared, Guido. My name's Dani Berger. Do you know who I am?"
"You're dead."
"Funny. That's what Joe Bones said a few minutes ago, but he was wrong. He's the one that's dead. I want my brother back. If he's in good shape, I might let you live. Or maybe not. Depends on how you behave. I gotta run. Willy's waiting for his turn." She disconnected.
"I shouldn't have stayed on the line so long. We'd better get moving," she said. "He might be sending backup."
Sharktooth shrugged. He reached down and cupped Fats's chin in his right hand and put his left palm on the crown of the man's head. He jerked his hands in a twisting motion. There was a soft pop, and Fats went limp. He turned to Willy, who was writhing and making an effort to talk.
"You have something to say, Willy?" Dani asked.
He nodded with vigor. She cut his gag off.
"Don't kill me, and I'll tell you where your brother is."
"I'll find him anyway. Or not. He's a jerk; it doesn't matter. No guarantees. Talk and take y
our chances."
"Don Guido usually puts hostages in the warehouse on the Miami River."
As he spoke, flashing blue lights reflected from the TV screen.
"Bettah go," Sharktooth said. "Shoulda talked sooner, Willy." He reached down and snapped Willy's neck. "Mm. Smell that Chinese food. Shame to let it be wasted."
"Come on, Sharktooth. Liz will feed you. Let's go."
He and Dani stepped through the sliding door and sprinted to the beach. They slid into the water and paddled away. Every so often, they turned to watch as security guards in blue pants and white shirts surrounded the house, pistols in hand.
They heard the squeal of feedback from a loudhailer. Then a booming voice announced, "You have no way out; you have one minute to come out of the house with your hands up. If we see weapons, you will be shot. Come out now!"
"Hope they not too close," Sharktooth said.
"I wish we could have taken care of the bodies," Dani said.
"Not too late," Sharktooth said, as he manipulated a cellphone-sized device.
There was a muffled explosion and tongues of flame shot from the windows of the villa.
****
"Did they say how long it would take for them to get there?" Guido asked.
"Five minutes, at the outside," Franco said.
Guido looked at the clock on his desk and shook his head. "God damn island-time bastards. It's been fifteen minutes. We shoulda heard — "
The ringing of Franco's cellphone interrupted him.
"Andretti," he answered. "Yeah. Hang on."
He put the phone on Guido's desk and switched to hands-free mode.
"All right. Tell me."
"We got in place and made the announcement. Gave them a minute to come out. Then it blew."
"What d' ya mean, 'it blew?' What blew?"
"The house exploded. The fire department — "
"Exploded? How? What about the people?"
"The firemen said nobody in there was gonna live. It's such a hot fire that they haven't managed to do anything but keep it from spreading to the undergrowth. They're worried more about the neighboring places. Said your villa's a total loss."
"Right. Okay. The alarms didn't go off?"
"Only the smoke detectors after the explosion. The intrusion alarms weren't armed."
"Okay, thanks."
"Yes, sir, Mr. Andretti. Tell Mr. Cappelletti he'll get our written report once everything's sorted out."
"Right." Andretti disconnected the phone.
"Jesus," Guido said.
"What should we do now, boss?"
Guido shook his head. "My father always said, 'When you don't know what to do, don't do nothin'. Take a nap.' Might as well call it a night."
Chapter 26
Dani and Sharktooth swam, towing the dinghy out of Cowpet Bay to avoid attracting attention. When they reached the relatively open water of St. James Bay, they clambered aboard and started the outboard. By the time they pulled alongside Vengeance in Christmas Cove, the false dawn had lightened the sky. They weren't surprised to find Liz and Angela waiting for them in the cockpit.
"Did you sleep at all?" Dani asked, as she stepped up onto Vengeance's side deck and made the dinghy fast.
"No, of course not," Liz said. "Tell us what happened."
"Okay, but I promised Sharktooth you'd feed him. I could use a cup of coffee myself," Dani said. She peeled herself out of the neoprene wetsuit and reached for the towel that Angela offered.
"No problem. I'll get started while you two rinse off," Liz said, heading for the companionway.
Thirty minutes later, they sat around the dining table in the saloon. They sipped coffee and discussed their next steps.
"I don't know anything about his warehouses," Angela said, "other than the fact that he has several around Miami. But you said you have the addresses."
"Yes," Dani said, looking up at the clock on the bulkhead. "It's late enough to give Luke a call; maybe I'll catch him on his way to the office." She stood up and fetched the satellite phone from the chart table, turning it on as she settled back into her spot at the dining table. Once it booted up, she placed the call and switched it to speakerphone mode, placing it on the table.
"Pantene," a weary voice answered.
"Luke, Dani here, with Angela and Liz. Sharktooth's with us, too."
"G'morning, everybody. What're you doing up this time of day?"
"Waiting until it was late enough to call you," Dani said. "We're an hour ahead of you, anyway. You on your way to the office?"
"Yeah. About ten minutes out. Why?"
"I emailed you a list of warehouse addresses. They all belong to Guido Cappelletti. There'll be one that's — "
"One of his warehouses burned down night before last," Luke interrupted. "Rumor has it somebody's trying to run him out of business. There were a couple of his guys in the ashes; their necks were broken."
Dani looked at Sharktooth. He smiled innocently and shrugged. "Luke?" she asked.
"Yes?"
"One of the warehouses on the list is on the Miami River. I have it from a reliable source that they're holding my brother there against his will. I want to make a formal report; he was kidnapped. He didn't leave rehab voluntarily."
"Shit, Dani! You shoulda called me sooner. How sure are you? Who told you this?"
"A little piece of garbage named Willy Napolitano."
"Willy the Weasel," Luke said. "Where'd you run into him?"
"Uh, we were at a ... um ... at a party together last night."
"And why the hell would he tell you anything?"
"I can be charming when I want to, Luke."
"Yeah, that's what Mario said. Spare me the details. Where's Willy now?"
"I'm not sure. Why?"
"Looking for enough info to flesh out the request for a warrant. Where was he when you talked to him?"
"St. Thomas."
"Come on, Dani. I know that; remember, I told you about Willy and Joe Bones being down there. Where in St. Thomas was this party?"
"Some rich guy's villa. Look, Luke, it would be better — "
"Cappelletti's villa?"
"It could have been."
"Was Joe Bones there?"
"I think so, but Willy was the one who told me."
"How long ago?"
"About six hours."
"Damn. This is like pulling teeth. You're keeping something from me, aren't you?"
"You said, 'Spare me the details.' I'll tell you whatever you need to get the warrant, but I have to protect some people. Don't take that the wrong — "
"Okay. I get it, Dani. I don't want to know any more. You're just like Mario with his 'need to know' shit. You aren't hangin' me out on this, are you?"
"No. Everything I've told you is true. Anything else you need?"
"No, I think I can find a judge that'll go for this. After all, it's Guido Cappelletti we're talking about. It's gonna take me a couple of hours to put it all together. I'll call you after we make the raid."
"Thanks, Luke."
"Okay. Gotta run. I'm parked at the precinct."
****
Guido awakened in a cold sweat, certain that he was in trouble. He rolled to a sitting position on the side of his bed and looked at the clock. It was 7 a.m. Sometime between sleep and wakefulness, it had come to him. The Berger bitch was trying to set him up for her brother's kidnapping and Welsh's death. She'd put Joe Bones up to that phone call. However she did it, she must have taken out Fats and Willy, too. He wondered briefly who she had helping her, but he put that aside for later. What mattered right now was covering his ass.
He picked up his cellphone and called Franco.
"Good morning, Don Guido."
"Yeah. We been had, Franco."
"I don't follow — "
"Never mind. My old man was right; it came to me in my sleep. I need to see you right now."
"Okay. I'm on the causeway. Be there in a coupla minutes."
"Good."<
br />
****
Five minutes later, Franco stepped out onto the veranda where Guido was still sipping his first cup of coffee.
"What's up, boss?"
"She had Willy and Joe Bones."
"Yeah, and Fats, too," Franco said. "So, she wasted 'em. Or they died in the fire. So what."
"Bones negotiated all the warehouse deals."
"Yeah? So?"
"Willy's been around the block with us. She had the two guys who could do us the most damage. Had them at her mercy, for who knows how long."
"We'll get her, boss. I'm — "
"You're not following. She mighta made them tell her where her brother is."
"But they didn't — "
"Bones could give her a list of warehouses. Willy's been in on how many snatches over the years? How many people has he held in that damn warehouse on the river?"
"They wouldn't talk, though. Not them."
"She had the screws on Bones enough to make him try that stupid setup over the phone. No tellin' what she got from them."
"So what are you sayin', Don Guido?"
"Get rid of that damn brother of hers. Quick."
"Okay. I'll call — "
"Don't call nobody. You do it; no comebacks on this one. Nobody but you and me knows, okay?"
"You got it, boss."
"Get rid of the girl, too."
"Girl? You mean Suzie?"
"Yeah, I guess. The one that was here with him. She knows too much."
"Did that already. She was wanting more money for the gig, so I fixed her up with our video guys. She had a date last night that didn't go well; she thought she was gonna be a porn star. May happen, but the boys made a snuff film, so she ain't gonna talk."
"Good job. Nice we got some use out of her on her way out."
****
The crew of Vengeance was napping when the satellite phone rang at about noon. Dani staggered from her berth to the chart table and fumbled to pick it up. Before she answered, she noticed that the call was from Luke Pantene.
"Hello?" she mumbled, not wanting to wake the others.
"Dani?"
"Yes, Luke, I'm here."
Bluewater Rendezvous: The Eighth Novel in the Caribbean Mystery and Adventure Series (Bluewater Thrillers Book 8) Page 18