“The funny thing is I don’t really think it’s been all bad. I mean, I’ve never had so much excitement, it’s like someone shook me awake.” She found her eyes locking onto his as she said this and it took an effort to look away again.
“Life definitely won’t be the same after this,” she continued. “In some ways I feel a lot more ready for anything now. You know what I mean? If I get through this then everything else is easy.”
“I know that feeling,” replied Vladek. “When I got out of prison I felt ready to take on the world, nothing in my life was ever going to be as hard as that.”
“I can believe that and it doesn’t seem like you’ve been doing too bad. Until this whole mess, but even still, I think you’ll be able to get us through it. Maybe I should have said that before.”
It had been a simple thing for her to say that, to let him know that he had her trust. His face brightened up again and he sat up straight in the chair. “We can do it together, we just have to do everything perfectly and make no mistakes.” He laughed then, loud and boyish and she couldn’t help but join in.
“Yeah, we just have to do it all perfect and make no mistakes and we’ll be fine. Life really is that simple.”
“Exactly, funny no one else figured it out yet. Here, why don’t we get out of here and go for a walk or something. It’s getting darker now and we can wrap ourselves up, not that anyone over here is looking for us but we can still take care.”
“Yeah sure, I like to walk, it clears my head and I’ve just been sitting around here all day.”
They got their shoes and coats on and minutes later were going out the front door. Chloe hadn’t seen the front of the cottage in the daylight before and she was struck again by how neat and clean and pretty it was. “This is a real little romantic hideaway you chose for us Vladek.”
“Yeah, well, I thought if I was going to whisk you off then I could at least bring you somewhere nice. I could control that at least.”
They walked briskly down the path that ran along the lake shore. Sometimes it brought them right along by the water but other times it diverted around private property. They didn’t talk much but it was just nice to be out and moving and to observe the first signs of spring appearing in the trees.
It got darker and they decided to turn back because there were no lights along the path. Chloe’s hand itched to reach out and take Vladek’s but she stopped herself. It would have been nice to do that or even better if he put his arm around her shoulders but it wouldn’t have been appropriate. They’d only slept together once and she still hadn’t decided if that was a one off thing. Besides, things were already complicated enough without starting to develop feelings for him.
When they got back they turned on the television and there was some news about the robbery. They’d found a boat at the bottom of the lake that they believed had been involved in the heist and were in the process of recovering it. A walker had seen it go under on the day of the robbery and had reported it to the police. It was found several miles north from the burnt out getaway car.
“It’s no problem,” said Vladek confidently. “There’s absolutely nothing on that boat to link it to me and my alibi puts me at the total other end of the lake. Even if the cops suspect something, they can’t prove it, and soon we won’t even have the jewels anymore. The real danger is tomorrow when we go to retrieve them, that’s when we’re at our most vulnerable.”
“But you said that’s much further south anyway, didn’t you? They shouldn’t be looking anywhere around there even if they are now paying more attention to the lake.”
“Let’s hope so but we’re gonna have to be extra careful tomorrow. But we don’t need to worry about that now, let’s see about ordering some food. There’s a great pizza place in town that deliver, you like pizza?”
“Is that even a question that people ask each other? I mean, is there anyone actually alive that doesn’t like pizza? Pizza is perfect, in fact, I don’t think there’s ever a time when I wouldn’t eat pizza.”
“That’s a yes then.”
“Bacon and mushroom, extra cheese, loaded.”
He smiled at her, glad they’d moved on from talk of the police and the getaway boat, and went to find the flyer to put through their order.
Meanwhile Chloe changed the channel and flicked around for something easier to watch that would keep her distracted from thoughts of police and diamonds and mobsters. After a few minutes she came across a Seinfeld marathon. An evening of pizza and Seinfeld, maybe her luck was finally starting to turn after all.
- 20 -
Vladek
Vladek shot bolt upright in bed. It was still pitch dark in the room and his heart was racing. He didn’t know where he was at first but it slowly came back, he was in the cottage and Chloe was in the other bedroom.
He couldn’t remember what the nightmare was but he remembered being hurt, shot or stabbed or something and the pain had been so real that he’d jerked awake. It was almost five, the time he’d set his alarm. It was weird how that sometimes happened, how accurate the body clock could be. He often woke up just before his alarm when it was for something important.
His heart was still racing from the dream and he shifted up into a sitting position let breathing to return to normal. Once the alarm went off he’d get up.
The bedroom wasn’t as nice as the one he’d shared with Chloe the night before. He’d wondered if they’d end up in bed together again. He had thought about making a move, a part of him wanted to but he’d held off and told himself to be patient. They’d spent a nice day together considering everything that was going on and he could settle for that.
The shrill sound of the alarm brought him back to the present and he got quickly to his feet and got dressed. They couldn’t afford a leisurely breakfast this morning, they had to get going if they wanted to get back over to Cayuga Lake by dawn. He could already hear Chloe moving around in her room as he pulled on his shoes.
They moved efficiently around each other in the cottage as they collected all their things. They’d make up for their skipped breakfast with a big lunch later in the day, hopefully when they were safely through Ithaca and well on their way to Manhattan.
Once they had all their stuff together they did one final sweep and left the cottage. It was still night with only the very slightest brightening appearing to the east. Vladek drove to the owners of the cottage first and slipped the key in their letterbox with a thank you note. Then they were on their way, heading north first before turning east once they cleared the top of the central lake at Geneva.
As much as he liked his Mustang Vladek would have been glad for a less conspicuous car. Not only did the Mustang stand out like a sore thumb but also now carried a crack in the windshield and a bashed-in front bumper.
He drove slightly over the limit, wanting to get there and get it over with as fast as possible. They passed through Geneva just before six and not long after had their first view of Cayuga Lake on their left hand side.
“So, are we getting close?” asked Chloe. “Where did you actually hide the jewels, did you bury them or something?”
“Yeah, we’re getting close. We need to go to where I tie up my boat.”
“You didn’t leave them in your boat, seriously?”
“No, but I need the boat to get them.”
“Underwater?”
“Yeah, it seemed like the best idea at the time. Let’s hope they’re still there and I can find them.”
A short while later they left the main road and headed down a smaller track that led to the lake. The sky was getting brighter by the minute and the streetlights had already begun to turn themselves off. The track became bumpier as the surface deteriorated and Vladek had to slow right down before finally parking up on the verge where he usually left his car on his fishing trips.
“Let’s hope there’s nobody about. It’s usually pretty deserted around here so let’s hope it stays that way and no one pokes their nose into our
business.”
He felt rattled and remembered how it had been the day of the raid. Dimtri stumbling across the pavement covered in blood, his screams in the car and then the headlong dash across the lake and his frenzied attempts to cover his tracks. He was about to go and get the cause of all those troubles. It was like voluntarily painting himself with a target. But it was a necessary step to finally be rid of them.
“You should stay on the shore, there’s no need for you to come with me. It’s probably safer as well just in case anything happens.”
“It seems pretty quiet, there’s nobody about.”
“You can keep watch as well. I gotta go that way, towards Ithaca. Around a hundred meters from here there’s a little rocky outcrop. It’s difficult to access from the shore but that’s where I need to go.”
She watched him untie the boat and cast off before heading in the direction he pointed. There wasn’t really a proper path through the trees but she hurried along as best she could.
Vladek had the engine running as low as he could but it still seemed deafening loud in the early morning air, like a klaxon siren urging all the law enforcement within a five mile radius to come get him.
He began to regret using the boat and wondered if he should have just tried to retrieve them from the shore but once the rocky outcrop came into view he knew it would have been impossible. It was too steep and isolated and he would have needed climbing equipment to get down to the shoreline at that point.
He eased off the throttle and brought the boat to a stop as near as he dared, then set up his fishing rod for the sake of appearances. He went into the small cabin below then and quickly got undressed before pulling on a wetsuit and over it his old fishing jacket. Then he went back up and let his senses settle.
There was nothing but the occasional early morning bird-call and in the far distance the sound of machinery cutting wood. There were no other boats north of him that he could see and the few to the south were far away and barely visible.
He looked back to the shore and spotted Chloe. She couldn’t get close to him because of the terrain but she gave a wave to catch his attention and then a thumbs-up. He had to just do it and get it over with while he had the chance.
He glanced over his shoulder to the rocks behind him, around fifteen feet away, and got his bearings. He spotted the deep jagged crevice he’d taken as his guide the last time. The bag should be just where the large crack pointed, buried under rocks around three feet below the surface.
His skin felt tight and his shoulders tense as he prepared to spring into action. One final look around and then he moved. The jacket came off and he slipped over the side of the boat and swam steadily towards the spot he’d picked out. The next twenty minutes were the most dangerous. Until they were back in the moving car again they could be surprised at any moment.
Once he was right up close and almost in touching distance of the rocks he dived. Despite being relatively clear it was still murky enough and he had to use his hands to feel his way. He followed the crack down towards the lake floor and then cast his hands around hoping to feel the canvas of the bag.
His lungs started to burn and he still hadn’t found it. There was nothing there and he had to surface again to catch his breath. His thoughts raced, wondering if someone had indeed seen him leave them there on the day of the robbery. If some opportunist had taken the jewels for themselves then they’d have nothing to hand over to the Russians and were truly fucked.
He forced himself to calm down and not give in to panic. He dived again, this time scrabbling even more desperately between the rocks at the bottom. His lung capacity was reducing rapidly and he was just on the verge of surfacing when he felt the brush of canvas against his fingers.
He had it, he had the bag! It was buried deeper than he remembered but he managed to grab a handful of the fabric and tug it free. He broke the surface with a huge gasping breath and sucked in greedy mouthfuls of air before making his way back towards the boat.
He pushed it over the side and climbed back in, quickly putting his jacket back on and sitting with the rod. His senses wound up tight as he flicked his eyes around and strained his ears for the slightest new or unusual sound. Glancing over at Chloe he gave her a thumbs-up and a tight, tense grin.
After another couple of minutes he moved the boat away and went back towards the car. The weight of the diamonds was already oppressive. If they were caught with them there was no excuse and he wouldn’t be able to talk himself out of it. But if they were ever going to get the Russians off their backs it was a necessary step. Just another twenty four hours and it would finally be over.
- 21 -
Chloe
Chloe could see the change on Vladek’s face as he came back towards the shore. She didn’t quite understand it at first but once he got close and she saw the bag she felt it as well. She was in deep and if they got caught she could no longer protest her innocence.
Was she really just acting crazy? What was she doing with him at seven in the morning with a bagful of stolen diamonds? And did she really need to stay with him now as he went to New York?
Life had been so simple, hard and difficult but simple. But it was small and boring as well and now she was caught up in something dangerous and exciting. It was exhilarating. Just being around Vladek was exhilarating and strangely enough she didn’t feel that nervous. It was like everything she was doing with him was toughening her up, and maybe that’s just what she needed.
It wasn’t like she was turning into a hardened criminal or anything, far from it. Maybe it was just that the big bad world didn’t seem so big or bad anymore. If she could get caught up in something like this and still get through it then she could face anything.
That was something he did to her, just being near him and with him she felt more capable and confident in the world. Maybe she was foolish and naïve but she liked that feeling he gave her. She wanted to stay with him and help him and see how it all turned out.
She could see the pressure on his face and wanted to give back some of the strength that he gave her. “Good job, even if someone had been looking right at you they wouldn’t have seen much, you kept the boat between you and the lake the whole time. Now come on and let’s get moving, we need to get out the other side of Ithaca as soon as possible.”
He seemed a little surprised at her words. Maybe he thought she’d be more anxious now they had the bag but he was encouraged by her attitude.
“Yeah, you’re right, let’s get going. I’ll feel a lot better when we’re a hundred miles from here.”
Chloe eyed the dripping black bag suspiciously as he stuffed it in under the passenger seat. One part of her longed to have a look inside and see the cause of all their trouble but she resisted the temptation. Maybe it was better not to see them, maybe then she’d want to keep them.
They drove back up the bumpy track and were just approaching the main road when a large SUV thundered around the corner towards them. Vladek jerked the wheel sharply to the side, bringing them to a juddering stop, and blew the horn loudly. The man in the SUV just raised one finger off the wheel in acknowledgement as he flew past, making no effort to slow down.
“Goddamn, fucking fuckwit!” exclaimed Vladek. “That is exactly the opposite of what my nerves needed right now. These assholes don’t expect anyone else on these roads and treat it like a damn rally track.”
Chloe’s hands were trembling with the shock and she gripped them tight together in her lap as Vladek slowly got the car moving forwards again. Within a few minutes they were on the main road and heading in towards Ithaca.
They avoided downtown and took a big detour through the southern suburbs before joining the main road heading southeast on the other side of the city. They saw one police car as they left Ithaca but the cops were too occupied setting up a speed trap for incoming cars and weren’t paying attention to anyone driving out.
Vladek was checking his mirrors obsessively all the way through the city and i
t wasn’t until they’d left the outskirts several miles behind them that he relaxed. He reached across and took her hand then, a relieved smile on his face.
“I think we’re past the worst of it Chloe. We made it and it’s all downhill from here on out. Fuck me, I’m glad that part’s over!”
It felt good to feel his hand and Chloe felt a small regret that they’d spent the previous night in separate rooms. She was a new person now and she was with him. They did crazy, dangerous things together and she’d never felt more alive in her whole life. She wondered if she’d ever be able to go back to her quiet nights with her crochet and only Jackson for company.
But she was still that person, only now she had a strange surge of confidence that made her determined to seriously do something about opening her own craft shop. It was time to grow up and get serious and take what she wanted from life. She’d been squeezing Vladek’s hand tight and felt him pull it away to change gears. “Oh, sorry, I forgot to let you go.”
“That’s no problem, you can use me as your stress ball any time.”
He smiled over at her and for a second she wondered if he was going to give her back his hand but he kept it on the wheel. He turned on the radio and wound down the window a little. Suddenly they were having a proper road trip and it was as if they’d left all their troubles behind. She could almost forget the millions of dollars’ worth of diamonds only inches from her feet.
Vladek’s vintage Mustang rumbled on, eating up the miles relentlessly and taking them ever closer to the showdown in Manhattan. They followed highway 81 south past Binghamton and didn’t stop for lunch until they were past Scranton.
Debbie’s diner was cozy and the salads they ordered with crispy grilled chicken were delicious. Vladek ordered sides of cheese fries and onion rings and Chloe watched in fascination as he dispatched everything with tidy efficiency. They ordered homemade blueberry pie for desert and washed it all down with strong coffee.
Chloe never travelled much and had always been a bit of a home bird. But now she was on the road and eating lunch in a town where no one knew her name. Nobody even knew where she was or what she was involved in.
Rough Diamond (A Mafia Romance) Page 10