Detour Paris: Complete Series (Detour Paris Series Book 4)

by Dancer, Jack

  "The dick brain?"

  "Precisely."

  "But, if you were really in love it wouldn't be with the dick brain; it'd be with your heart."

  "Honey, take it from me. When you're in love, really in love, it's everything: Brain-brain, dick brain, heart, liver, kidneys, everything; all the sweetbreads. Nothing's left out."

  "I envy you, Tucker. I do. But, I really envy Monica. I just wonder if she knows what she has with you. Does she, Tucker? I mean does she really know how you feel about her? Does she know you're willing to give up a €120 million for her? She doesn't does she? How could she?"

  "No, she doesn't know."

  "Of course, she doesn't. She's been kidnapped. She should know though. She should know how much you love her and you're willing to give it all up for her. Do you have any idea how important that would be to a woman, Tucker? It's like giving up your life for someone. You can tell someone you'd give up your life for them. You can tell them all day long. But, how do they know you would, really? How do you prove it? You can't. But, giving up all that money? You can prove it doing that, and you'd still be around to bask in all the love and commitment you'd get in return. She needs to know, Tucker."

  "She doesn't."

  "Tucker, she does. Why wouldn't you want her to know how much you love her?"

  "No, I mean she doesn't know about the lottery ticket."

  "What?"

  "She doesn't know about the lottery ticket. I never told her about it."

  "What are you saying? The guy dropped the lottery ticket in your train compartment when he came through the door and fell, right? It was in a newspaper, and you unknowingly picked it up and discovered the ticket when you got to Barcelona. How could Monica not know? She was there. She was with you the whole time. Wait . . . Are you telling me you didn't tell her you found the ticket?"

  "Right"

  "You mean you, and she went through all that stuff together on the train and even since then with those guys; I mean my brothers coming after the two of you, and you never told her you found that ticket?"

  "That's what I'm telling you."

  "She even got kidnapped because of the ticket, and you never told her about it? Are you kidding me, Tucker Blue?"

  "That's what I'm telling you. I never told her about the ticket. She has no idea."

  "You were just going to keep all that money for yourself? Jesus Christ! You asshole! And here you're telling me you love her, but you planned all along to cheat her out of something that could be costing her her life? What's wrong with you?"

  "I didn't want her to get hurt. I thought if she didn't know about it, then she wouldn't be at risk if anything were to happen, anything bad."

  "Like being kidnapped?"

  "Yeah, exactly. If she didn't know anything about it . . ."

  "She wouldn't have any information to give. Is that it?"

  "Yeah."

  "Or, if you were to get busted for committing a fraud - because you're claiming something that's not yours; she'd be an innocent party? Something like that?"

  "Exactly."

  "Or, if you were to decide later you wanted to dump her you could and keep all that money for yourself, and she'd be none the wiser?"

  "That's not what I had in mind, but it could be construed. That's the risk I'm taking for not telling her and there's no way for me to prove otherwise, is there?"

  "Only if you forfeit the money to save her. That would prove your intentions."

  "That's what I think too."

  "But, do you really want to do it?"

  "Only if I have no other choice."

  "But, you always have choices, Tucker."

  "Not if it's the only way I can save Monica."

  "God, Tucker. You do love her."

  "That's what I keep telling you."

  "Then we've gotta save her. But, we can't tell her about the lottery ticket."

  "She already knows about the lottery ticket."

  "But, you just said she didn't. You didn't tell her."

  "Think about it."

  "Mother."

  "Right."

  "Now she knows you've been keeping her in the dark all along."

  "That's probably what she thinks."

  "And she'd be right."

  "Not necessarily."

  "Wait. You're confusing me here."

  "No one knows for sure I have the ticket. I might not. Drusilla suspects but she doesn't know for sure."

  "But, you do, right? Have it, I mean? "

  "As long as people think I have the ticket, there's a chance to save Monica."

  "You're not going to tell me are you?"

  "Whatever I say won't matter."

  "Because I won't know if you're telling me the truth."

  "You'll know in the end. If you make it that far."

  "And you want me to help you knowing there may be nothing in it for me?"

  "You'd be saving someone's life."

  "If we live through it."

  "Yeah."

  "But, you said . . ."

  "I did and you will."

  "How can I believe you?"

  "Trust."

  "You're crazy, you know that?"

  "So, you've got company."

  "Scary."

  "Ready?"

  "Yeah."

  "Okay. It's your show. How are you going to do this?"

  “See those boulders over there?” she points.

  “Yeah, the tunnel entrance?”

  “Yes. You get comfortable here and hide yourself as best you can so you can watch me go in. I'll be coming out that way too.”

  “You better. Wait. I have something for you.” I reach into my pocket and bring out a small disk and a pen. "I'm going to attach this small disk to the inside of your collar. Your hair should cover it. If you're searched, they'll have to pull your collar back to find it. It's actually a GPS transmitter. I can track you on my iPhone, so I'll have an idea where you are in the castle and when you're coming out. I can only guess, using your floor plan sketches, where you'll be at any given moment, but I have it set for trace so when we get back we can revise the floor plan sketches and have a tighter read on the actual dimensions of the place.

  "This pen looks like a writing pen, and it is if anyone wants to inspect it, but it's also a Stealth Pen. When you get to the tunnel entrance press the button on top, and it'll start recording video and audio. It's wireless so if there's cell service, I'll be able to see everything you're seeing, and hear everything too. If I can't pick up a signal, it'll still record, and we'll review everything when we attach it to a USB port on a computer.

  "Take this too so you can see your way around.” I hand her a small flashlight. "Just twist the top to turn it on and off.”

  “You think of everything don't you?” she says. "What if I told you, I'm falling in love with you?"

  "Please don't go there. I don't think I can take any more love at the moment."

  She then takes me by surprise leaning over and kissing me. My knees go weak, and I can't help but think this woman really does have a delirious effect on me. How can I feel this way with someone who tried to destroy me? She's a Mata Hari, a she-devil. It's no wonder that men are the weak ones; we're helpless around women like this.

  “Wish me luck, Tucker.”

  “Wait, one more thing. Take this,” and I hand her a small stun gun. "You probably know how to use this right?”

  “I do. We keep them on the planes for unruly passengers.”

  “Wow, I didn't know that. How unruly does a passenger have to be?”

  “They have to get physical.”

  “Well, take it. I don't want you going in there with nothing. And keep in mind too that you can call out my name. If the Stealth Pen's sending a signal, I should be able to hear you, and I'll come after you.”

  “I like that idea,” she says and gives me a peck on the cheek then turns and starts trotting toward the boulders. When she gets there, she takes a quick peek inside first then gives me a
small wave before vanishing inside.

  [“Holy shit Bluesman. Hanging with you is better than watching 'Days of Our Lives' brother. But, how can you possibly pass on that incredible creature? I don't care if you're in love. Have you forgotten it's the duty of single men everywhere to spread it around? Have you forgotten, ‘Give Every Piece A Chance,’ ‘Make Love Not War,’ all of those higher virtues that we promised to embrace and uphold?”]

  "Give it a rest Speed. I'm pressed for time here. Where's the bridge with the moneybag? It's still there isn't it?"

  [“Yes. Get back in your car and fire up the GPS. I'll give you the lat-long.”]

  I bundle up what's left of our picnic into the blanket and jog down to the car where I throw it, my camera, and the AR-70, into the trunk and jump into the driver's seat.

  "Alright what're the coordinates, Speed?"

  [“42.481172, 1.981833. It's a tiny walking bridge called the Pont del Carrasut spanning the Riu d Estauja, which appears to be a very small river or stream that follows along the foot of the castle hill you're on. You should be able to drive right up to it or at least get real close.”]

  I'm there in less than five minutes. The bridge is very small all right, and appears to be made of flagstone or slate, hand-laid about ten thousand years ago, a very funky bridge. I walk up and look underneath, and I can see part of the nylon bag sticking out of a pile of rocks where it's been tucked up. Moving a few stones I retrieve it easily. I drop it to the ground and unzip it; the money's there. Thank you Jesus.

  Back at the car I open the trunk and the well for the spare tire. I remove the tire and throw it into the brush and stuff the bag into the wheel well and cover that with all the picnic stuff and the backpacks, then return to the same spot in the copse of trees where the car was parked before. I grab the AR-70 and my camera and make my way back up the hill to a spot between a large tree trunk and some bushes around it giving me a good view of the tunnel opening.

  I'm picking up no audio or video from the Stealth Pen yet, but I have a dot on the GPS Tracker and every ten seconds the dot jumps forward.

  Fifteen minutes into this and I'm one with the woods. I can hear the faintest sound, notice the slightest rustle, and it comes from the many hours I've spent sitting on a deer stand, hunting. It's really quite an amazing transformation when it happens, when you finally relax and allow yourself to settle down so all your senses tune into the world around you. At first, you think there's nothing in the woods. You don't see squirrels scampering around, maybe not even hear the birds chirping very much, and you think nothing's out there. But, once you're fully relaxed and tuned in; everything comes alive, and there's so much activity it's almost like Times Square. I've experienced exactly the same thing floundering (that would be gigging flounder - the fish) at midnight with no one else within shouting distance. If you're quiet and still long enough, everything comes alive, and you're nothing less than astonished there's so much life around you.

  The dot on the GPS Tracker hasn't moved. I flip over to the Stealth Pen video on my iPhone, and an image comes into view. It's a little shaky, but I can see Julia entering the room. She startles two men who are standing in front of her, both frozen in two-hand positions, aiming their pistols straight at her. She's holding up a key in front of her, showing them.

  “. . . know . . . key . . . hidden,” her words come breaking up into my earplugs.

  “. . . daughter . . . get her.”

  One man reaches to his belt and brings a small radio to his mouth and speaks, but I can't tell what he's saying, too much static. The man belts the radio and his pistol, and begins looming into the video as he walks over to Julia while the other man continues holding his gun on her. He reaches out and she steps back, and I can see an arm swing across at him. He jerks back, and she steps forward causing him to continue taking steps back.

  “Fuck . . . away . . . touch me,” her broken words come through.

  The man's face is etched in fear, and the other man with the pistol is stepping back until he's against the wall, obviously confused and frightened. He raises both hands, palms out, and is shaking his head as if saying he doesn't want any trouble.

  The room brightens from the left, and Julia turns in that direction and lo and behold; there appears the diminutive doctor standing in the doorway, her mouth agape in disbelief. Her face suddenly contorts, and she's speaking, but there's only static over mumbling. The video starts flickering worse than it was, but I can tell Julia has taken some steps toward her mother.

  “Need . . . talk . . . private . . . important . . . must . . . critical . . .”

  Libica turns to the two men and with a wave of her hand, they scurry out of the room and disappear. Libica's arms fold in front of her, and she mouths something that I'm guessing is, "Speak.”

  “Here . . . sit . . .” she says, and Libica turns and walks out of the room with Julia following. The video is shaky and cutting in and out, but I can see they're walking down a hallway, making a turn and then another, until they reach a door where a guard is posted. He opens the door, and the camera follows Libica into a large room with a desk surrounded by bookshelves. She walks around the desk and takes a seat in a large ornate chair. She looks like Lily Tomlin's Edith Ann in the chair. I nearly laugh out loud.

  The herky-jerky video shows Julia taking a seat in front of the desk. Libica's expression is taunt, mean, her mouth a thin cut. There's no audio now at all, but I can tell Julia said something that riled her mother because her face suddenly shifts to anger. Her mouth is moving quickly, and her face seems to be blushing. When her fist slams against the desk, and she stands I know she's pissed. The way the video moves, Julia, has stood up too and is leaning across the desk into her mother's space. Libica backs up and drops into the oversized chair. A sudden and certain change in her expression tells me Julia just told her what's about to happen to her. Julia sits back down.

  Libica fishes into her pocket and pulls out a cell phone, punches the face of it with her forefinger a couple of times then pauses, reading. I can almost see the blood draining from her face, and she promptly returns the phone to her pocket. She mouths some words but this time without anger behind them. She looks away from Julia as if contemplating for a moment then looks back, and I think I can detect a touch of sadness coming over her face, but she's fighting it. She drops her head into her hands, elbows resting on the desktop in defeat. When she comes up, her face is teary, she was crying. Holy shit, she's human after all. She shakes her head slowly as if she can’t believe what she's hearing, then looks up and nods reluctantly, sadly but accepting defeat.

  Then the video and audio go dead and stay dead for maybe, twenty minutes. When it reappears I see Drusilla rising from the desk. She walks back to the door and opens it, and Julia follows her out into the hallway, but this time they take a right turn and continue walking, Libica in front, Julia following. The video flickers then blanks out altogether.

  “Shit,” I say and flip over to the GPS tracker and watch the screen. The dot skips forward then around until it's still again. I flip back over to the Stealth Pen receiver but the screen's still blank. After a moment, it flickers like static and continues until Monica focuses into view. She's sitting in a chair. I'm looking, as best I can, for a missing finger and can't find one, no bandage, nothing. Thank God.

  Monica jumps up with a huge smile across her face and rushes at the camera, and the screen goes black again. I'm guessing at this point Monica has her arms wrapped around Julia, hugging her.

  When the video returns Monica is standing to one side of Julia. I can't see her face, but I can see Libica across the tiled room, the completely tiled room; and the photo of the flayed girl comes to mind.

  “It's the same room,” I nearly scream out loud.

  Libica opens a door and disappears closing the door behind her.

  I leave my secure area between the tree and bushes and sneak over to the boulders and the tunnel's entrance. I pull out my little flashlight and check that
I have the Superglue in my pocket. I do. I twist on the little flashlight and start into the tunnel. What a creepy place, I think to myself. Dark, musty, but it's plenty high and wide, maybe ten feet wide and the same high. I try to hurry through, knowing I've got thirty yards to go before I get to the large wooden door with old rusted metal bands on it. I spot the keyhole. I pull the handle very slowly down testing that it's locked. Then I pull out my Superglue, unscrew the cap and shove the nozzle into the keyhole and unload the entire bottle. I recap and put it back into my pocket leaving no evidence behind, then retrace my way out.

  When I'm again at the tunnel's opening, I take a right-hand turn and walk along the side of the hill until the tree line disappears, and an open area spans out before me for twenty five yards or so to the next copse of trees on the northeastern side, where I want to be. I scan the area carefully to make sure no one is looking down from either the castle or anywhere else, then, crouching; I run as quickly as possible trying not to trip and fall on my ass and roll down the hill completely. That would not be good, mostly embarrassing. Fortunately, I make it to the stand of trees and find a rock to stand on so I have a clear view below. If Julia comes out anywhere below I should see her.

  When she leaves and goes back to the same tunnel she used to enter and finds the door won't open I'm hoping she'll choose to use the northeast tunnel to exit. It makes sense to me since it's closer to the original tunnel than the others.

  The only reason I'm doing all this is to see if I can catch her in a lie because when she does return, and we leave this place I want to drive back around the eastern side of Castle Hill and have her point out the entrances to the other two tunnels. I'll photograph those, and we'll use them come exchange day. But, for this exercise, if I know where the northeast tunnel exits for sure - because I'm going to watch and photograph her as she exits - then I'll know if she's pointing out the correct locations of the other entrances. It may sound silly, but I can't trust this woman yet, if ever. This should be a good test to see if she lies to me.