Counterpoint

by John Day

  Brown face pulled a knife, as Mrs Bryant entered the room from the other end, carrying a tray of drinks. She gave a stifled scream as she noticed the three new visitors. It was not just the knife, that startled her, though it should have been enough, it was the man holding it.

  “Manuel,” she gasped. “How did you find me?” Then she looked at Max accusingly.

  Max answered her look, “I don’t know these people, they have travelled on the same plane and boat, but we don’t know them.”

  “You do!” Hissed Rafael, the greasy looking man. “You killed my brother, Jose and nearly killed me. We were the two divers following you up from the Zenobia.”

  “Ah! So you were out for a quiet night-dive, not after a certain lorry wheel we had recovered?”

  Manuel raised his arm, barring Raphael’s sudden lunge towards Max. Rafael moved back and fell silent. Max could see the matter of Rafael’s dead brother was just placed on hold.

  Manuel motioned Mrs Bryant, with his knife, to sit down, and she did so.

  “I have come for the diamonds,” he directed at Max, “Where are they?” He demanded, pointing the knife at Max’s throat.

  “They’re not here,” Max snapped back.

  Manuel backhanded Max across the face, and through teeth clenched with pent up anger, growled, “Don’t mess with me, I have chased after these damned stones for years, and I want them, now!” Max raised his hands, gesticulating he honestly did not have them with him.

  Another swipe knocked Max back into his chair and made his nose bleed.

  Max could see there was no way out of this; no smart move or heroic action was possible. “OK! OK! The jewels are in the safe deposit boxes of twelve banks in Cyprus. Most of one of the 12 packets we took out of the tyre has been sold. I have a banker’s draft for €2.5 million here in my pocket, it was for Mrs Bryant. The rest is in my bank, all €3 million. I can write a cheque for it now if it will help?”

  Manuel sneered. “You’d better be telling the truth because Rafael will stay here with your girl and Mrs Bryant. You will come with Atsoo and I to Cyprus, to get the stones. Any tricks and you will all die.

  Max stiffened as two more men eased into the room behind Manuel and the others. Manuel sensed something and glanced round. One man grabbed Manuel’s knife hand jerking it up, his other arm encircled Manuel’s throat, and they staggered and swayed as Manuel tried to turn the knife on his attacker.

  The second man grabbed and struggled with Rafael.

  Max leapt up, and kept Manuel’s knife pointing higher, and away from anyone. Atsoo grabbed Rafael’s knife and stabbed wildly at the man holding Manuel.

  Seeing the second knife raised against him, the man twisted Manuel to face it as Atsoo struck. The thin blade penetrated Manuel’s chest easily, right through his heart. Atsoo screamed with shock at what she had done, she had killed the man she loved, not saved him. Rafael broke free and snatched up Manuel’s fallen knife, and slashed at the jugular vein, of the man who had held him.

  Max leapt at Rafael, and they fell to the floor. Rafael fell awkwardly and tried to save himself, smashing his temple against the sharp corner of a massive sideboard. He fell dead on the floor. Atsoo snatched up the fallen knife and attacked Max. A deafening explosion obliterated the sickening smack of a 9 mm bullet, as it punched through Atsoo’s skull.

  Mrs Bryant stood silent, gun smoke curling from the barrel of her Browning, as Atsoo fell dead onto Rafael.

  Carla rushed past Mrs Bryant into the kitchen and returned with a towel. Rafael had nicked the neck of the man who held him and blood was spurting from the wound. While his colleague applied the towel, and administered first aid, Max used his mobile phone to call for medical help. Mrs Bryant calmly took over the call in Greek, explaining the situation and giving the address.

  The uninjured man explained he and his wounded colleague were from Interpol and had been following Manuel and Rafael. They were investigating the death of Rafael’s brother, Jose. Their only suspects were all dead, so what part did Max, Carla and Mrs Bryant have to play in all this.

  Max thought extremely quickly and explained how Manuel had murdered Mr Bryant and that he and Carla were delivering a deathbed message, from her late husband, personally. The police officer noted all they said, and when the local police arrived, explained all that had happened. Whilst, not under arrest, Max and Carla had to stay on the Island and surrender their passports, until the police cleared the matter up.

  Two days later, the police told Max and Carla they were free to go home. They would charge Mrs Bryant with the killing of Atsoo, but in view of the circumstances, it was a formality and she would be free to return home.

  Max gave her the bank draft, and the message from her husband, that he loved her and the two children very much, and how sorry he was that he had ruined a good life together, by getting involved with smuggling diamonds.

  She took the message stoically; she had loved her husband with all her heart, in spite of his failings. At last, she could get on with life without substantial hardship, now that she had money.

  Chapter - A shocking discovery.

  “Well, my love!” Sighed Max. “It’s time to go home, back to your hideaway and see how the statuette looks on your hall table.”

  “Yes, I think we might have outstayed our welcome on the Ocean Raider,” replied Carla. “I’m surprised we haven’t heard from Sam, perhaps we are out of work, permanently.”

  The plane touched down at Malé airport, and Carla phoned ahead for the launch to take them to the ship. It would be 4 hours before they could be picked up, so she called Amy to see if they could visit. Amy was thrilled and said she would put the coffee on. A water taxi took them and their luggage to David’s boat, where they were warmly greeted, by Amy and David.

  The girls instantly went into natter overdrive, whilst David poured drinks and talked about his and Amy’s future plans. Both Max and Carla avoided mentioning the extreme elements of their recent visit to Poros. It was just as well David and Amy felt they had a full and exciting life, it gave them plenty to talk about, and they did not pry into the gaps in the others’ tales.

  Max overheard Amy ask Carla if she knew anything about her parents. “Nothing at all, ” she replied, “I don’t even remember much about my foster parents, I lost touch with them when I went a bit wild.”

  Amy went on to mention the curious visit from a woman claiming to be researching the psychological effects of adoption, especially with twins.

  “I was 19 at the time and having a fantastic time with older men, so I didn’t think too deeply about it. She visited regularly for nearly six months, and we became quite close. Strange really, I often wished she was my mother; I had an affinity with her like no other person I had met. Anyway, she was going back to Italy, somewhere in the north I believe, just for a week and then would come back and see me. She said she had found out something rather interesting that concerned me, and needed to check it out! Well, she never came back. Just shows how thoughtless some people can be. I got all keyed up about what she had to tell me, and then nothing! Lana Green was her name.”

  A chill ran through Carla at the sound of the name, then she matched her age with the death of the Duke’s wife, Carla would have been 19 then. Amy saw Carla’s mind was racing, her face with a fixed expression of disbelief, her bright blue eyes darting as the facts and possibilities flashed through her brain.

  “What’s the matter?” Said Amy concerned. Carla did not appear to hear Amy; she spoke over her.

  “Was Lana Green elegant, very attractive, blond hair in long ringlets and with blue eyes that seemed filled with love?”

  Amy gasped, “Well, yes, yes she was just like that. How do you know?”

  “You’ll never believe this Amy, but I know who she was.”

  “Who was she? What do you mean, was?”

  “She is dead!” Replied Carla sadly. “If it is the same person I am thinking of, gosh, it can’t be, but everything matches, dates, nort
hern Italy, her description, everything!”

  David realised he was talking to no one; Max was listening intently to the girls.

  Then it dawned on Max. Lana Green, the beautiful woman in the portrait in the Duke’s office must be Amy’s mother. They looked so much alike, apart from the hairstyle. Amy and Carla are exact genetic matches so Lana must be Carla’s mother, as well!

  Carla burst into tears; her worst nightmare had come true. As she saw it, her best friend had actually seen her mother, unknowingly for six months, she had got to know her, and obviously there was love between them even if they hadn’t realised it.

  Her friend had been loved, and missed enough for her mother to come looking for her, but where was Carla’s mother, Carla deserved to be loved and missed too. Carla had suppressed her feelings about her unknown parents all her life. She desperately wanted them to find her and love her, but they never came. She thought it must be because she was not good enough or worth enough to be missed.

  Sure, she had been loved and cared for by the Duke, but he was not her father. What if the Duke was Amy’s father? What had happened to prevent Lana from bringing up Amy herself, or with the Duke?

  In her emotional state, Carla’s reasoning failed her; she could not see the obvious possibility.

  Max tried to comfort Carla whilst Amy and David looked on in stunned silence.

  Before more could be said, the launch from the Ocean Raider arrived. Max led the still sobbing Carla aboard and sat her down, then went back for luggage, and to say goodbye. He suggested to Amy and David they met again when Carla had recovered, because he had something to add to the story, which would go a long way to clearing up the mystery. He would phone them tomorrow.

  Max return to Carla huddled up in the cabin.

  The man smoking on the jetty turned away as Max boarded the launch, Max suddenly looked across in his direction.

  “Nosey sod!” Max thought, must be wondering what all the sobbing is about, and then he dismissed it from his troubled mind.

  Geoff Collins, the nosey sod, knew all about the commotion on David’s yacht, though it was of no interest to him. His camera case concealed a state of the art listening device; he had aimed at the open entrance to David’s cabin. The part he was interested in, however, was that Max and Carla would be meeting David and Amy again soon. If he lost the launch that was heading away, back to the Ocean Raider, he still had a way of picking up their trail again.

  Collins waved casually at a group of small boats moored nearby. A launch engine burst into a deep muffled roar as it headed towards the jetty, to pick him up. Leaping aboard, not taking his keen eyes off the rapidly disappearing launch, he directed the helmsmen to follow Max and Carla.

  Geoff Collins, currently on a mission to recover the statuette for his new employer, was a complex man. He would be 52 in January though he looked older. His craggy face and close-cropped greying hair worked well for him by making credible the three contradictory personas he readily employed, when out to deceive.

  On one hand, he could look intimidating, his withering eye contact and “Don’t mess with me” expression made most adversaries back down.

  Alternatively, he was the sharp-witted and intelligent man of authority. A man others obediently followed and could confide in, and trust. A man with a human touch, a warm smile, drinks with anyone, fun to be with, but never out of control.

  If he did not want to be noticed, he could soften the expression and appear slow-witted, kindly and ineffectual, totally unimportant, a grey man, the sort of unnoticed body that makes up a crowd. This was his role today.

  His great talent was tracking down people and information. He always knew the right questions to ask of the right people. His instinct led him to conclude seemingly impossible tasks in a very short time. So far today, he had discovered that the Ocean Raider had been at sea for almost a week, and no one knew precisely where she was now. However, two of the guests on board were due back soon and often visited the yacht that had been pointed out to him. His apparent idle loitering near the yacht listening carefully to what David and Amy said had paid off already. His next goal was to get aboard the Ocean Raider and find out if the statuette was there, or if anyone knew where it might be.

  In essence, he needed to be the proverbial fly on the wall. Somehow, he had to stimulate conversation about the statuette, and the events after the agent Stephen Jackson took off with it, in the helicopter.

  The crew would provide hearsay background information, the officers, even the captain may know more than they would openly discuss. There might be some paperwork to provide a lead. Who were the guests on board at the time, where were they now, and were they likely to be connected with the statuettes disappearance?

  An object like the statuette, so unique and valuable would be difficult to transport from place to place. The security around it would be high, and the delicate nature of its construction would result in careful handling. If the current owner moved it without apparent security, in a simple box marked “Glass. Handle with care” for instance, the owner would personally make sure there was no chance of dropping it. Such clues of overprotection would be noticed.

  How could he pull off the next phase of his mission?

  Back aboard the Ocean Raider, Max helped Carla down to their cabin. She apologised for the scene and said she would call David and Amy first thing in the morning. Max thought this was the best time to tell her about the DNA results. There is a limit to the effect shocking news can have on a person. Two shocks close together have less impact than if a long time apart.

  “Carla, I have something to tell you, relevant to this afternoon’s discovery.” She looked up at him, her eyes were red-rimmed, and she looked so vulnerable. He glanced away for a moment to gather courage, then looked deep into her large blue eyes, and waded in.

  “I had a DNA test done on Amy’s hair, and it was a perfect match to your own. She is your twin sister!” Carla’s face was expressionless, her eyes flickered to and fro and back again and her mouth opened, but nothing came out.

  Max reached into his pocket and gave her the printed results. “Oh! So that is why you were talking to me about sisters the other morning. You knew then.”

  Max thought she would be annoyed with him for keeping it from her, but she was not.

  “I understand why you kept it from me until now,” she said meekly. “You did what you thought was best. You are such a kind person, this is one of the reasons I love you so much!” She put her arms around his neck and hugged him tight. Eventually, she said, “I am really so happy Amy is my sister, I know a lot about our mother that Amy doesn’t and so we can fill in many spaces and answer questions together. I will appreciate that. It raises the question about the Duke’s role in all this though.”

  Max could see she was much better now; her nimble brain was working overtime to sort out the facts.

  Chapter - Spooked.

  Philippe opened the door of his hotel room in Malé and let in the last of the seven men gathered there for the briefing. Each man had travelled alone to this destination to avoid attention, leaving one person watching the Ocean Raider.

  In low voices, the men discussed the situation and how to deal with it. According to the two men who were tailing Max, the statuette must still be on board the Ocean Raider. He and Carla have only carried normal luggage off the ship. Two other men who were watching the ship and monitoring communications confirmed no parcels or other objects large enough to be the statuette, have left the ship. The report also mentioned the incident at Poros, this annoyed Philippe intensely.

  “Those two have pulled something off and got away with it, again!” Pulling himself together, Philippe asked, “Where is the Ocean Raider now?”

  “At this position,” replied one of the men pointing to a cross on the chart. “Wilson is still watching the ship in case it moves away, or the object is transported off. The only problem will be if a helicopter lands on board, we cannot follow it at such short notice.”<
br />
  “I know! ” Philippe snapped back “That’s why we must make our move straight away, and board her.”

  “My contact is waiting for us to pick up the guns and equipment you wanted, do you want me to tell him we are on our way?” Said another man.

  “Yes, do it now, say we will be there in half an hour,” ordered Philippe. “Boarding will take place in six hours’ time under cover of darkness.”

  ***

  After a short rest, Max and Carla went to dinner. Captain Steel inquired about their plans for their cargo in the vault and vacating the ship. He politely avoided the subject of Carla’s distressed state earlier when she came aboard.

  “I have planned to leave the day after tomorrow,” replied Max. "Fine," said Captain Steel, “We will be sad to see you go and must say you two are the most interesting guests I have ever met. The place will be so dull without you.”

  Carla smiled sweetly at the captain and winked at Max. She is back on form, thought Max.

  After dinner, the two walked arm-in-arm around the deck enjoying the warm sea breeze, and velvet blackness, of the sea and sky.

  “Those stars are like our diamonds,” whispered Max in her ear. Then he gently nibbled her earlobe and kissed the side of her neck.

  She squirmed and chuckled and said, “I want to look at the statuette again.”

  “OK, I’ll speak to the purser and get it out of the vault; I’d like to look closely at it again, as well.”

  He left her to go back to their cabin, whilst the box was retrieved from a vault.

  Placing the box carefully on the coffee table, they raised the lid in the privacy of their room. The object sparkled with astounding brilliance even in the relatively dim light. Carla reached in and with a clean hand towel to prevent oils from her hands tarnishing the gleaming metal, carefully lifted it out.