Jago started opening and shutting the doors to the offices and rooms under the pretence that he was looking for Mr Harding again. He travelled down the corridor.
Jago repeated this room after room. “Hello, Mr Harding, are you there? It’s Derek from the theatrical group. Can I have a word?”
He uttered the same words as he opened the office in which Mick had waited.
He switched the light on and saw Mick wince at the brightness. He took advantage of this momentary lapse and shot him once in the shoulder. Mick fell against a filing cabinet but managed to lift his pistol which was in his other hand. Jago fired again, and Mick’s gun fell to the ground.
Jago spoke. “So, you’re one of those psychos who killed the girl?”
Mick’s pained rely came. “I suppose you’re the boyfriend, are you?”
“No, not the boyfriend.”
“Then it’s got nothing to do with you. It’s none of your business. But I can tell you this though. I enjoyed every minute of it.”
Jago shot him again. This time in the thigh. Mick cried out in agony as the wound poured with blood. He reached for it with his hands which, in turn, multiplied his pain.
“Enjoy that, did you? You see, without a tourniquet you’ll slowly bleed to death. You might be able to grin and bear the pain of applying one, but with a wound in one shoulder and another in a bicep, that might not happen. Anyway, I’m asking the questions. Who are you working for?”
“Go to hell!” spat Mick.
Jago closed in and stood on his leg wound, resulting in Mick screaming. He went to grab Jago’s leg, and Jago pushed his pistol’s suppressor into his shoulder wound, Mick recoiling in agony.
“I asked you a question.”
Mick managed to splutter out angrily, “And I said, go to hell!”
Jago turned to leave, paused and turned back, aiming at Mick’s other leg. “Have it your way.” He fired another round and saw Mick’s trouser leg turn an instant crimson.
Mick was fumbling in his pocket, and Jago saw him produce a grenade. He ran at Mick, easily tearing the grenade from Mick’s grip which was weak due to his wounds. Jago swung to one side of Mick, who was still against the filing cabinet in the corner of the room. He gave Mick a hefty boot on the side of his torso, forcing him to double over on one side. As he did, Jago pulled the pin and shoved the grenade down the back of Mick’s tucked-in shirt.
Realising what had happened, Mick desperately tried to untuck his shirt, however, his arms pained and restricted him in doing so. Jago calmly and swiftly left the room commenting, “You won’t be hurting anyone ever again.”
Closing the door behind him, Jago picked up the pace and ran down the passageway, just reaching the main entrance as the explosion rang out.
***
“Abi, what have we got so far?”
“Well, I’m in the process of running the guy’s photo that you sent over. By the way, did you have to use a headshot? It doesn’t make facial recognition easy, you know.”
“Needs must, Abi, needs must.”
“Anyway, you might be interested to know that Henry L. Greenslade is in town. He’s not far away. I’ve spoken to him about Kim, and he’s happy to meet you. He’s given me his direct line which is on its way to you now along with his location. Bernie and I have also done some digging, and it appears that Greenslade is at the mercy of the unions and the people who run the union, namely gangsters. And would you believe the one name that keeps appearing again is Van Dooren, who incidentally has been telling potential investors huge falsehoods about his Chinese connections and a twenty-year operator’s licence that doesn’t exist. I’ve put details on the secure drive for you along with the covert recording that Dom made.”
“Thanks, Abi, good work. I’d like to keep tabs on Van Dooren. I want to know his whereabouts at all times. Can you keep me posted hourly?”
“Will do, Boss. Where are you off to next? By the way, Dom’s on his way to you in the Aston. I tasked him just in case you were in need of support, but I see from the phone messages, pictures and the police report in the area you’re in that you don’t need that.”
“That was a good idea, it could have gone either way. You never know. Can you get Dom to go over to Mark’s and babysit the pair? I don’t want them to be on the receiving end of anything like Katie had to put up with. I’ll make my way over to Greenslade and see what information I can get there. Does he appear legit?”
“Dom is on his way to Mark’s, and yes, Greenslade does appear legitimate. He’s diversified in recent years. His main business is still shipping, but he has a couple of factories in Asia, three restaurants and a hotel near Heathrow which is where he’ll be staying. I also have some intel on the photos that young Ian sent. Evidently, he planted information in the photos that, when enlarged, provided coordinates of dumping, details of cargo manifests, and personalities involved. There may be more intel on its way. Joe and I are in the middle of checking the details now. Also, the Ocean Beautiful Organisation has been compiling a report, naming and shaming governments and companies who have been flouting the laws and international treaties. Some of those named were from the fleet of Henry L. Greenslade.”
“Oh really! That’s worth knowing. Carry on and let me know how it develops. I’m off now.”
“Okay, Boss. Oh, before you go, how is the new Stealth Hawk performing?”
“It rides like a dream. I’m very impressed, and you can go ahead and order the other two now.”
“Brilliant, I’ll get them ordered.”
Chapter 13 - Manipulation
“Good afternoon, this is Jack Jago. I’ve been given this number to arrange a meeting with Mr Greenslade.”
A man with a strong American accent answered, “Hello, Jack, this is Henry Greenslade. When can you come over? I’m free for the rest of the day and can be at your disposal.”
“Oh, I thought that I’d be speaking with one of your assistants?”
“Hell no, I gave him the day off. We’re quite informal around here.”
“I see. That’s good because I’m outside your hotel now.”
“What you waiting for? Come on in.”
“I’ll be with you in a couple of minutes.”
“See you then.”
Jago dismounted his motorcycle, secured his helmet and walked into the lavish lobby area of the hotel. A tall, grey-haired man in a pinstripe suit walked up to him with a hand extended ready to shake. The stretched-out arm bore the hallmarks of wealth as the Rolex sat snuggly on his wrist.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Jack. I’m Henry.”
“Good to meet you, Henry. You can call me Jago, just Jago.”
“Very well, Jago. Shall we go somewhere a little more private?” said Henry Greenslade as he led Jago towards a lift.
“Yes, that would be good. I take it that you undertake frequent countermeasure sweeps?”
“Every day, at least once. You have to these days. Don’t you agree?”
“Yes, I completely agree.”
They entered the lift and, as the doors closed, Henry asked, “Is she safe?”
Jago looked him in the eye. “Yes, she’s safe.”
Henry nodded in appreciation and fell silent until the eleventh floor was announced.
“Here we are, I’ll get Maria to fix us some drinks. What would you like? Bourbon, Cognac?”
“Have you any red wine?”
“But of course, we’re in a hotel you know. What sort would you prefer?”
“A nice Rioja would go down well, if that’s alright?”
“Sure, no problem.” He called Maria who dutifully arrived within seconds. “Maria, please order a bottle of the finest Rioja that we have.”
Jago interrupted, “Honestly, just one glass will do nicely. I’m still working.”
“Very well, order a large glass of the best Rioja, and I’ll have a glass of my usual.”
Henry led Jago to a small glass-walled room with a view over to the airport.
“We can talk in here. How can I help you, Jago?”
Jago explained about the plastic waste, Ian’s death and Kim’s involvement. He waited for a response from Henry.
Initially, Henry absorbed the information. Jago felt that the information wasn't news to him, merely confirmation of what he already knew.
Then Henry spoke. “It’s unfortunate that some have lost their lives in this mess. From a selfish point of view, I’m glad that it wasn’t Kim, although I know that she must be suffering having lost two friends. I will help in any way that I can. It’s time that all of this comes to an end.”
“I’ll cut to the chase. What do you know about the activities of ships in the fleet of these companies? Ria Corps Inc. and Pine Line Shipping Inc.”
“Why, I think that they’re in my portfolio of companies, under my holding company you understand. What about them?”
“Do you know their operations?”
“To be honest, not really. I own them, but others manage them for me. I only listen to the finance these days. Why, is there a problem with them?”
“It seems that they’re about to be named in a report stating that they’re dumping plastic waste and toxins into the oceans. There may be some union issues relating to cargo.”
“I see. Well, I can make some enquiries.”
“You mean to tell me that you don’t know what your companies are being used for and why? How will your investors take the news when it goes public?”
“Does it have to go public?”
“Of course it does. People have given and risked their lives for this exposure, your daughter included, albeit unwittingly.”
“But—”
“There are no buts in this game, Henry, just facts and plenty of evidence to substantiate the claims.”
“I see. If you know all of this, what do you want from me?”
“Let’s suppose that I had the name of the people controlling the unions that in turn control your shipping operations, you know, those that you were bullied by, forced to comply with. That cooperation might make certain names leave the list.”
“You think that this could happen?”
“I’m confident that it would go a long way in building bridges along with some other form of generous offer of aid. And I’m sure that Kim would appreciate the gesture to an organisation that she fully supports.”
“Kim supports it?”
“And here’s me thinking that you would have kept up to date as to her activities from afar.”
“I have intermittently, at least that’s what I thought I was paying for. I expect you think me such a fool?”
“I’m not here to judge anyone. My sole aim is to keep people, and the marine life in our oceans, alive. I want results.”
“I’m just going to make a secure call.” Jago stood as if to leave the room.
“No, stay where you are. I have nothing to hide.”
The video monitor came alive.
Henry spoke. “Robert, how are you doing? I’m at two in the afternoon here in London. What time do you have in Houston?”
“Good morning, Henry, we’re at nine in the morning here. What can I do for you today?”
“Robert, I need to know about the activities of two of my companies, Ria Corps Inc. and Pine Line Shipping Inc. And I want to know everything — operations in the last twelve months, persons in charge, union issues, cargos, the whole monty.”
“Okay, Henry, I can do that. When do you want it?”
“I need that information by the end of your office hours today.”
“Today?”
“Yes, you heard me, today. And I don’t want any excuses. I’ll speak to you later.”
And with that, Henry cut the line. At that moment, Maria appeared with the drinks, and they toasted to each other’s health.
Turning to Jago, Henry said, “That’ll set the cat among the pigeons, I’m sure. In the interim, one name I can give you regarding union control and wrongdoings is someone you may or may not yet know. It’s a guy by the name of Van Dooren, Luis Van Dooren. He’s a real piece of work with his private army. He’s extremely bad news.”
“How do I find him?”
“I’m not sure. He tends to stay in the background and let his minions do his dirty work. I’m sure that if you rattle enough shipping containers they’ll come out to play.”
“That’s fine with me.”
“I’m sure that it is. What about Kim? May I see her? Do you think that she’s ready to see me?”
“I’ll be honest with you, she didn’t want to contact you directly, but she was okay with me contacting you. I believe that now would be a good time for you to get together. She is in need of support from different quarters. Would you visit by yourself or with a driver?”
“Does it make a difference?”
“It does if you want you and your driver to stay alive.”
“In that case, I’ll be using a driver, and I can get the vehicle details to you.”
“Good, I’ll call my man who is with them and give them an ETA.”
“ETA?”
“Estimated time of arrival.”
“Oh, yes of course. Thank you, Jago. I do appreciate your time. If there’s anything that I can do for you, just let me know?”
“I might take you up on that. I have two motorcycles that I want to import from the US. Can I get my colleague Abi to call your office?”
“Yes, by all means. Get her to ask for Michael.”
***
“Abi, I’m heading for the port with an ETA of sixty minutes. I’ll park the bike at RV 3, go in on foot and by sea. I’ll use Hatch 4 to enter the harbour apartment and I need a few minutes to get tooled up. I’m going after Van Dooren.”
“Isn’t that just the coincidence of the year so far?”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning Van Dooren and his cronies were spotted by our eye in the sky approximately an hour ago. They’re in the compound within the port. And there is quite a lot of boat activity, not ship — I repeat, not ship.”
“What type of boats?”
“To me, a boat is a boat, although they do look as if they can go fast.”
“In light of that sparkling piece of intel, I’ll also prep the Seabreacher. Can you ensure that the tracking is up and running?”
“I can do that. Do you need Dom or someone else to assist?”
“Not at the moment. You could put Fi on standby in the vicinity. She’s available, isn’t she?”
“Yes, she’s finished her last assignment. I’ll call her up.”
“Okay, I’m setting my personal tracker now. Have you got a signal?”
“Yes, but if I have it, it’s possible that others do too. You know that?”
“That’s the idea.”
“Okay, you’re the boss. Take care.”
Chapter 14 - Into the Lion’s Den
Jago arrived at RV 3 at 4.10 p.m., parking the motorcycle undercover. He swiftly covered the mile or more to the water’s edge where he slipped into the water and swam out, heading for the harbour wall. Upon reaching the wall, Jago submerged and located a pushbutton entry pad providing access to a hatch leading to the harbour wall apartment. He punched in the numbers and entered the chamber. After flushing out the seawater, he entered the apartment when Abi’s voice came across the tannoy. “Jago, it seems that Mr Van Dooren is leaving the compound. He’s heading for the boats, and at the last drone pass he has two bodyguards with him.”
“Thanks, Abi, I’ll tool up and take the Seabreacher. I should be ready in five minutes. Can you make a couple more discreet passes?”
Jago entered the kit room and selected an all-in-one black suit, combat vest and body armour, a utility belt and a thigh holster. He also grabbed a couple of combat knives, placing one in a sheath on his vest and another in a sheath to sit above his right boot. As he was putting on his boots, Abi answered, “Sorry, Boss. I was tied up on a call. In answer to your question, yes, I’ll make anothe
r couple of passes, and I’ll send you updates and coordinates as you launch.”
“Thanks, Abi,” said Jago, selecting an H&K MP5SD with five loaded fifteen- round magazines. He transferred his favourite Sig Sauer P239 pistol to his thigh holster before making his way down to the Seabreacher in the boat bay.
Abi announced, “Boss, they’re starting off, and it looks as though they’re going across the bay in a west, south-west direction. I’ll send you the coordinates now.”
“I wonder what’s there? Are there any ships in the path of their current bearing?”
“No, nothing appearing at the moment. I’ll keep you posted.”
Jago unhitched the blue and green Seabreacher from its mooring, climbed into the craft’s cockpit, and set the coordinates before powering up. Remotely opening the bay door, he steered the now semi-submersed craft out into the open sea. He could see the distant wash from Van Dooren’s boat in the distance from his bubble-top panoramic canopy. Advancing, Jago remained semi-submerged to close the gap. Knowing that he could dive five feet in thirty seconds gave him the confidence to push at speed, at around sixty miles per hour, whereas submerged speed would significantly reduce to twenty-five miles per hour.
As Jago closed in, he slowly submerged, allowing the snorkel cam to be his eye.
“Abi, do you have anything else to report?”
“There’s a ship at anchor about a mile and a half out to sea. A motor launch has just set off for there on the same course as Van Dooren’s boat. They should converge in about five minutes. I’ll position the drone at a discreet distance and record.”
“Okay, I’ll hold off. Let’s see what transpires,” said Jago, coming to a halt about half a mile behind. Remaining submerged, he observed the two boats meet. Then suddenly there were flashes of gunfire, first aboard Van Dooren’s boat, and then from boat to boat as the launch retreated towards the mother vessel. Van Dooren’s vessel turned about, heading directly for Jago.
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