by Nick Elliott
‘But Alastair was always more concerned with maritime fraud, the commercial aspects of crime on the high seas, which is why he took such an interest in the P&I world, including Claire here and yourself through your work at the CMM.’
‘Which leads us to the present,’ Claire interjected. Amber Dove laughed. Her face lit up taking on an attractiveness which was hidden before.
‘I know. I’ve been going on a bit.’ The two women had a friendly rapport. There weren’t the underlying competitive tensions so often present when men converse.
‘So, you now have the coordinates revealing the whereabouts of the Lady Monteith. You will pass these on to Mr Nakamura and his Dark Ocean or Genyosha cronies. They will attempt to salvage cargo from the wreck believed to be gold in one form or another, for the purpose of what exactly? And what about Buchan? Do we know his agenda?’
‘I thought I knew why Buchan wanted to get his hands on the cargo: to replenish the family coffers,’ I said. ‘But from my enforced meeting with them on the Toyama Maru, Buchan’s role in all this isn’t clear; whether he’s really collaborating with Dark Ocean as he claims, whether he thinks he can double cross them and seize the cargo for himself, or whether he’s being blackmailed or otherwise coerced.’
‘Surely he despises Dark Ocean. They were part of the imperial Japanese war machine that commandeered his fleet and wrought havoc on his family business,’ Wood contributed for the first time.
‘Yes, but Buchan is an opportunist,’ I said. ‘He might think it better to make a pact with the Devil if he can see something in it for himself.’
Amber Dove spoke. ‘So let’s just reiterate what we believe to be Dark Ocean’s aims: the revival of Japanese imperialism; turning the concept of a Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere into a present-day reality; an ultra-nationalist agenda; what else?’
‘Are we sure they’re serious?’ said Benedict Wood. ‘I mean could they pull it off?’
‘They’re deadly serious,’ I said. ‘They’re a lot better organised and resourced than the other ultra-nationalist groups blaring out their fanatical rhetoric and martial music on the streets of Tokyo. Whether they can pull it off, I couldn’t say until we know more of their plans, the specifics I mean. By the way, did you get the Admiralty chart I asked for?’
‘I have it here,’ said Wood bringing it across to the table along with a set of parallel rules and a pencil. He unrolled it keeping the corners down with four brass paperweights.
I found the coordinates that Tim Younger had given me and marked the location where they intersected with a cross. We could now all see clearly where the wreck apparently lay and its proximity to the Jiapeng Liedao islands, and to Hong Kong itself.
‘So, with these coordinates which I’ll give them, they’ll be able to locate the wreck,’ I said. ‘They’ll need a sonar fish for that. Then ROV-mounted cameras can probably identify what cargo she had on board allowing them to decide how to salvage it. From what my father knew and what Younger told me, Dark Ocean know the wreck is Golden Lily’s Site 176 and that there’s something of great value there, probably gold, which they wish to claim as they have so many of the other one hundred and seventy five other treasure troves.’
‘And,’ added Ben Wood, ‘we can assume they intend to use the proceeds of all this loot to fund their imperialistic dreams in the region, for which they will need very deep pockets indeed.’
‘Quite,’ said Amber. ‘So, Angus, after we’ve got Zoe out of Athens, you get back to Hong Kong and do everything you can to help them find the wreck.’
‘And then what?’
‘Don’t worry. We have something in mind which we’ll share with you when the time is right. But there’s something more I need to tell you, and I’m taking this opportunity of briefing Claire and Ben here too. Admiral Carvill is already aware of it.
‘You know that after Alastair’s death we removed all his records: laptops, back-ups on external drives, everything. He didn’t use the Cloud of course. It was all encrypted and much of it we already had, but when we got all his equipment back to London we did find some notes that caused us concern. They were notes that he’d obviously felt he could not trust to be shared even with us. And they were highly speculative too; he was making some pretty huge assumptions so perhaps he simply wasn’t ready to share them until he’d gathered more evidence.
‘They amounted to a dossier. They concerned this case, the Lady Monteith, Site 176 and Dark Ocean. They made reference to your father’s own investigations too, Angus.’
I looked at Claire. She raised her eyebrows indicating that she was hearing this for the first time.
‘The gist of the Marshall Dossier as we’re calling it, was that there was a direct link between Dark Ocean and its aims on the one hand and those of another organisation, the Foundation for Oriental and Asian Studies, on the other. He described it as a symbiotic alliance.’
‘And just who are they?’ asked Claire.
‘A right-wing think-tank based in Switzerland. On the face of it they just publish learned papers on the state of Asia’s economies.’
‘But?’
‘But, one of their members and contributors is a right-wing economist by the name of Ikuo Takahashi. Alastair had spotted one particular treatise he’d written on how he surmised that the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere might yet be achieved. I’ll let you see it but believe me it’s inflammatory to put it mildly. It was never published by the Foundation so we’re not sure how Alastair came by it.’
‘So what’s your conclusion?’ I asked.
‘We haven’t concluded anything but you’ll agree it seems quite possible that Ikuo Takahashi is associated with your Dark Ocean. And here’s what concerns us. His paper outlines a proposed economic model for wresting control of all ocean transport and trade as well as port redevelopment programmes throughout the Far East. In effect it would form the basis of a modern co-prosperity sphere.’
At this point Admiral Carvill lifted his heavy frame out of his chair. ‘Look at this,’ he said turning to look out of one of the portside windows. We all got up and moved over to watch as the Royal Navy’s new carrier, all 3.5 billion pounds worth, moved past on her way out for sea trials.
‘Big Lizzie we call her,’ said the admiral proudly. ‘Pride of the fleet. Mind you, it’ll be another four years before she’s ready for active service.’ I counted seven tugs fussing around her as HMS Queen Elizabeth was manoeuvred under the three iconic bridges.
‘I read they’re still using Windows XP software on her,’ chipped in Ben Wood. ‘A bit risky I’d have thought.’
‘’Well I wouldn’t know about that,’ blustered Carvill.
‘Nothing wrong with Windows XP, in its day,’ said Amber Dove defensively, ‘and anyway, there’ll be a team of cyber specialists on board.’
Besides the 65,000 ton aircraft carrier, a small product tanker was making her way westward to load at the Grangemouth refinery. To the east of the bridges a supertanker was loading North Sea crude at BP’s Hound Point terminal.
As we returned to our seats I asked, ‘How practical is it, this economic model?’
‘We’ve had a couple of tame UCL transport economists go over it. They tell us it’s well postulated and feasible but only if all the pieces fall into place for them. There’s a lot of theory…’ Amber Dove tailed off not needing to add that it hadn’t been tested in practice.
‘And the end game?’ I said. ‘As I recall, the term co-prosperity sphere was one of the greatest euphemisms of the twentieth century. Surely they don’t think such a concept can be justification for Japan’s wholesale invasion and hegemony of Asia.’
‘No, of course not,’ she said. ‘That was put to the test and look what happened. No, this is more subtle, more sleight of hand, but nonetheless devastating, potentially. And whether bonkers or not we cannot afford to ignore the threat it presents.’
‘So where from here?’ Claire asked. If she had her own ideas on how to handle
this she wasn’t revealing them, instead deferring to Amber Dove.
‘Securing Zoe is our first priority,’ I interrupted deliberately including everyone one in the task.
‘I’ve thought of that,’ said Claire reiterating what she’d voiced to me in the Botanic Gardens. ‘We’ll bring her over here for a month or so. She can get experience in the CMM office. I’ll assign her to one of the syndicate claims managers. She can continue her legal studies while she’s here and be safe too without knowing anything of what’s behind it.’
‘We’ll need to extract her covertly,’ said Benedict Wood. ‘We can use the SIS Athens station to handle that.’
‘I’ll handle it,’ I said. ‘I know her, the whole scenario.’
They looked at one another before Amber Dove replied. ‘No disrespect, Angus, but extraction is a job for professionals. It needs planning. It’s a process.’
‘And it needs to look natural,’ I said. ‘I don’t want a posse of spooks trailing around after her. I’ll go to the office, tell her what the plan is and we’ll catch the EasyJet flight to Edinburgh.’
‘What about the watchers? Once they see you both on the move they’ll act. They’ll snatch her,’ said Ben Wood.
‘Not the way I’m planning it they won’t. I know how to do this, trust me.’
‘You’ll need backup.’
‘I don’t need backup. It’s a distraction.’ I said trying not to sound obstructive for the sake of it.
After humming and hahhing over this for a while they eventually agreed on the condition that I liaised closely with – read: took my orders from - Claire as my case officer who would be in Leith ready to receive Zoe.
We returned to the subject of FOAS as we were now calling the Foundation for Asian and Oriental Studies. ‘You leave them to us,’ said Amber. ‘We’ve got people working on it.’
‘Who else is in FOAS besides this Takahashi?’ I asked.
‘At present we have very little to go on. And I’m afraid what we do know we can’t share with you just yet, Angus. It’s “need to know” but Claire will brief you as and when it becomes relevant to your side of the case. For now, you get Zoe over here safe and sound then take your lead from Claire.’ She began to tidy the papers in front of her signalling the end of the meeting. Then she stopped and looked up as if she’d just remembered something. ‘Oh, by the way, we’re treating this as an off the books case, Angus.’
‘You sound just like Alastair,’ I said. ‘Are they ever on the books?’
She smiled. ‘Worst case, we need to have deniability in place, you understand.’
***
I had dinner that night with Claire. We went to a Spanish place in George Street and sat in a discreet booth where we could speak privately. Claire said she had something important to talk to me about.
‘Angus, I’m sorry if I sound a bit bossy at times. It can be difficult to separate the professional from the personal.’
‘Forget it,’ I said. ‘I’ll let you know if it’s getting to me. Let’s just deal with the business at hand.’
‘It would be tragic if this arrangement, me as your case officer, ended up fracturing our, she hesitated, our love for each other.’
I moved closer to her. ‘It won’t do that, Claire.’
‘Promise you’ll tell me. You’re not the best communicator, especially when it’s personal stuff, are you?’
‘I promise.’
‘Good.’ We kissed, both of us aware that our relationship was complicated by circumstance, and far from stable. How could it be otherwise?
‘I wanted to give you some pointers about this business. You could say it comes under tradecraft. I can’t tell you everything I’ve learned about how to stay safe and how to get results, but I’ll tell you a few things that might help.’ She took a sip of her wine. I could tell she’d been preparing this speech and I gave her my full attention.
‘When you are trying to get information, say anything to get the answer you want. Just for example, it helps to share your own doubts with someone to build rapport and trust. Empathise with them as if you’re on their side even though you’re not. Exude confidence too, play the role of certainty in an uncertain world, reliability in the midst of madness. Build trust by sharing your own vulnerabilities and then show how you deal with them. I know some of this sounds contradictory but you need to learn to act a part.
‘Also, when you need to, develop a story, a legend, you’re comfortable with in a difficult situation. If you believe it you can get away with it. With the right cover story anything is possible. Again, it’s about acting.
‘Don’t be surprised what these Dark Ocean people uncover about you. They’ll already know about your past, the landslide, maybe your affairs. But they’ll dig into your psyche too, your character. You can think on your feet. You learn quickly, but think about your appearance too, your body language. Look normal and you can stay hidden in plain sight. And control your emotions. Learn to switch off your anxiety.’
She talked on, downloading what she’d learned from her photographic memory, speaking intently, determined I should absorb what she was saying.
‘Thanks, Claire. I’ll bear it all in mind.’
‘It will take its toll, this case,’ she said. ’Believe me.’
Chapter 16
‘What are you saying, Angus? That I’ve been watched by these people for the past weeks? You never thought to tell me? Did you think it was not important, or what?’
Zoe was reacting to my attempt to tell her about her surveillance by Dark Ocean. It was taking time as at every indignant outburst on her part I had to start explaining again – as far as I could.
‘As long as you didn’t know, you were safe,’ I said. ‘I couldn’t risk you knowing and reacting impulsively. You must see that. Imagine if you’d decided to run off, or worse to challenge them rashly. For sure they would have seized you, Zoe.’
‘What does “rashly” mean? I don’t know this word.’
‘It means foolishly.’
‘Ah! So I’m foolish. What about you getting into this situation in the first place, and putting me in danger? Honestly, Angus, I never thought…’
There was no placating her. She just had to blow off steam. After a while I told her that the CMM wanted her to attend a six-week training course at their headquarters in Leith.
‘You’ll love Edinburgh,’ I said, ‘especially at this time of year. It’s one of the most beautiful cities in the world and they’ll look after you well. You’ll be wined and dined. You might even meet a handsome young Scotsman.’
‘What, in a skirt? What’s wrong with handsome Greek men? Anyway, if I said yes, when would this be?’
I’d known she’d jump at the chance despite her protestations. She’d been nagging me for a trip like this ever since she’d joined.
‘Wednesday.’
‘Wednesday? That’s two days from now. How can I be ready? And what about the work here? Will you be in the office or swanning around as usual?’
“Swanning around” was a phrase she’d learned from me, and which she used frequently to describe my business trips, or any other absence from the office.
‘Anyway Angus, there are things I need to speak to you about. Urgent things.’
‘Go ahead,’ I said, but at that moment the phone rang. It was Eleni, in tears.
‘I need to see you, Angus-mou. Can you come now? I want you, agape-mou.’
‘What’s wrong, Eleni, tell me.’
‘It’s Dimitrios. He’s gone. He’s left me, Angus. I can’t explain over the phone. I’m at the flat. Please come.’
‘Okay,’ I said. ‘I’ll be with you in half an hour.’
‘Now, please agape-mou.’ She rang off sounding distraught.
‘Zoe, I have to go. That was Eleni. Dimitrios has left her apparently. She’s upset.’
‘Go! She needs you, poor girl. You should still be together anyway.’
Zoe never missed an opportunity to proffer h
er advice on the state of my domestic affairs.
‘We’ll talk tomorrow,’ I said.
‘Tomorrow? I can’t come in tomorrow. If I’m to go to Scotland I need to buy clothes and other things. I need the day off.’
‘Alright. That’s fine. I’ll tidy up the case files and collect you from your parents’ house at five on Wednesday morning.’
‘Five! Why so early?’
‘Because the flight’s at seven-fifteen, Zoe.’
‘Oh God! Do I have to take such an early one?’
‘Yes, I want you on that flight, it’s all arranged,’ I said. ‘No arguments. And we’ll talk on the way to the airport.’
‘If you insist.’
***
Thinking back to that early morning journey to the airport, what I remembered was Zoe’s excitement. She was a bright young law student and I’d given her the chance to get good practical experience, both in my Piraeus office and now, in the CMM’s headquarters back in Scotland. She’d been reading up about Edinburgh and how many Greek students attended the universities there. She’d asked whether Brexit would prevent Greeks studying in Scotland. I began to worry that she might want to stay and I wouldn’t get her back.
They came as we were sitting having a coffee in a restaurant up on the mezzanine floor above the main departures hall. They would have tracked us all the way from when I’d collected her from the family home in Ekali. It was almost casual. Two of them, tall men in their thirties I guessed, one I recalled wore a black leather jacket. It was him who came up behind her and jabbed the needle deep into her neck. The next sensation I remembered was a white light bursting behind my eyes.
When I came round my head was thumping with an ache that was off the scale. I was being lifted from the floor onto a stretcher. I opened my eyes. It hurt. I tried turning my head, and felt sick. I had to get up. Instead I let them lift me but I remembered straight away what had happened, what I’d seen. They’d taken Zoe, and it was my fault. Why hadn’t I followed the IMTF’s advice and had them extract her – the experts? Because I’d been too fucking obstinate.