by Gina Cresse
Hobson was impatiently waiting for him when he knocked on the hotel door.
“I told you noon. I was just about to forget it and let you settle for only half the payment you’ve already gotten,” Hobson said.
“Traffic was bad and parking was worse,” Kephart replied.
“Whatever. Anyhow, here it is,” he said as he handed Robert a nylon sports bag. “I don’t want to hear from you ever again. If I decide we can do business in the future, I’ll contact you. Do you understand?”
“Perfectly,” Robert replied, taking the sack from Hobson.
Robert turned to leave the room. Then he looked down at the sack, wondering if it was safe to open. It could be a bomb, for all he knew.
“Wait a minute, Hobson. Mind if we open this together? To make sure the contract is complete?”
Hobson stared at him in disbelief. Then he laughed. “You think it’s a setup, don’t you? Go ahead. Open it.”
Robert eyed him suspiciously as he unzipped the bag. Inside were bundles of money. He reached in and inspected one of the bundles. Everything appeared okay. “Looks like you’ve met your end of the agreement,” Robert said as he closed the bag.
Hobson glared at him, then motioned for him to leave. Robert returned to his car and looked around for any suspicious vehicles. He thought he sensed someone following him the past couple of days. He drove directly to A-1 Mini Storage and opened the unit he had recently rented. He transferred the money from the sack to his brief case, and laid the computer on top of the file cabinet. He’d rented the unit and moved out of his furnished apartment when he received the E-mail message from Hobson, expressing his dissatisfaction with the DEA agent job. Kephart decided that relocating his business out of the country would be better for him. Too many people knew how to find him here. He locked the unit up and went back to his hotel.
Kephart sat down on the hotel bed and pulled a card out of his pocket then dialed the number written on it.
“Hello,” the gruff voice on the other end answered.
“Khan. It’s Kephart.”
“Where’s my money?” Khan demanded.
“Don’t worry. I’ve got your money. I should keep it after the mess you’ve made of this job. You were supposed to take care of that plane remotely—you idiot. What the devil is that box they found in the wreckage?”
Khan didn’t answer. He cleared his throat. “Where’s my money?”
“You’ll get your money. You stupid… Oh, forget it. You’re not worth the aggravation.” Kephart paused and thought for a moment. He came to some sort of last minute decision. “Listen. Just meet me at the airport in front of the United terminal in two hours. I’ll have your money for you. Then you can be on your way to wherever it is you came from.”
Click. Khan hung up on him. Kephart stared at the receiver in disbelief, then laid it back in its cradle. He picked it up again and dialed.
“Hello. Kerstin?”
“Yes, Robert. Is that you?” she asked. Her voice sounded anxious.
“It’s me. Listen darling. There’s been some trouble with my new business partner. I’ve just decided I’m going to try to catch a flight to Geneva tonight. I’m probably going to be staying in Europe for awhile. Can you arrange for an apartment for me? I’ll need something with space for an office and reliable phone service.”
“Of course, Robert. Are you okay? You sound strange.”
“I’m fine, darling. I just need to get out of here for a while. I’ll call you when I arrive in Geneva.”
“Okay, Robert. I’ll take care of everything here for you.”
“Thanks. See you soon.”
Robert packed the few belongings he had with him and returned to his car. He would stop at the mini storage unit one more time to pick up the money and his computer. Before he could get the door unlocked, two men startled him from behind. When he saw them earlier, in the parking garage, he wasn’t too concerned. They were both in blue jeans and casual shirts. One wore a San Francisco Giants baseball cap and the other had a portable radio with the headphones draped loosely around his neck. It appeared as if they were on their way to a baseball game. Robert, of all people, should have realized how looks could be deceiving. In an instant, the one with the cap pressed the barrel of a gun in his back.
“Mr. Kephart. Would you please come with us?” he said.
“I would prefer not to,” Robert replied.
The gun pressed harder into his back. “I’m sorry, Mr. Kephart. I guess I shouldn’t have posed that as a question. You will come with us, now. Give my friend here the keys to your car, please.”
Robert handed the man his keys. They put Robert in the backseat of his car, and the man with the gun slid in next to him. The other got behind the wheel and started the engine. Robert would never be seen again. He was loaded into a private Lear jet and thrown out somewhere over the Pacific Ocean.
Chapter Thirteen
Geneva—1996
We touched down in Geneva fairly early in the morning. I exchanged some of my currency for francs, and secured a taxi to take me to a hotel. A young man, who was on my flight, asked if we could share the cab. We had spoken briefly several times during the long flight, and he seemed harmless enough. He introduced himself as Steve, an engineering student from UC Santa Barbara. He carried a backpack, searching for adventure while in Europe on his summer break from school. I agreed to share the ride and we loaded his backpack into the trunk.
As the taxi made its way through the narrow, winding streets, I gazed out the window and watched with pleasure as small shops and cafes readied themselves for the day’s business. Tables were being set, and people were talking and laughing as they tended to their work. The taxi driver took me to the Rhone River Hotel, a beautiful building situated on the river that shares its name. I told Steve I insisted on covering the taxi fare. He thanked me for my generosity as he removed his backpack from the trunk and disappeared into a crowd of people gathered on the sidewalk. I paid the taxi driver, then tried to calculate what the tip should be in francs. I finally settled on what I thought was the correct amount, then watched his expression as I handed it to him. He seemed neither disappointed nor elated, so I assumed that either I calculated correctly, or he was one heck of a poker player.
After checking in, I found my way to the room and opened the curtains. The view of the Alps and the river was breathtaking. The clear blue sky played host to a dozen or so puffy clouds, dancing carelessly above the horizon. Their reflections, almost perfect mirror images, moved along with them on the glassy river below. I gazed out the window for a few moments, watching the sailboats skim across the smooth water, and thought of my beautiful Plan B, now a pile of charred teak and melted fiberglass at the bottom of Uncle Doug’s harbor. I choked back the tears that began to well up. Crying wouldn’t help my situation.
I looked around the room. The furnishings were darker than I liked, but it was a nice enough room. I bounced once or twice on the bed. It seemed comfortable. Most importantly, the bathroom was clean and well stocked with towels. I splashed some water on my face, attempting to overcome the effects of jet lag. Wearing the same clothes I had put on the night my boat exploded, I looked and felt like a mess. I couldn’t remember how long ago that was—it seemed like an eternity. I wasn’t even sure what day of the week it was. What I did know for sure was I needed to get some fresh clothes and a toothbrush. I pulled the airline boarding pass from my jeans pocket to throw away. Some folded papers came out with it, and fell to the floor. I picked up the papers and unfolded them. They were the pages from Robert Kephart’s address book. I had forgotten I put them in my pocket after I made the call to Kerstin. I assumed they were destroyed in the fire. Good. That would save me having to search for her. After putting her address back in my pocket, along with the room key, I let myself out into the hallway.
I made my way down through the lobby and out onto the street. I didn’t have to go far to find shopping and I picked up enough clothing and undergarmen
ts to get me through several days. I also purchased some basic necessities—toothbrush, toothpaste, comb, etc. Then I sat at the cosmetic counter of an expensive department store and let the girl working there give me a complete makeover. I laid a small fortune on the counter to pay for my purchase, then picked up my small bag of cosmetics.
Back in my hotel room, I put away my recent acquisitions and lay down on the bed for a quick nap. My intention was to rest my eyes for fifteen minutes. Six hours later, I woke up hungry. I did a double take when I looked at the clock next to the bed. It was almost six o’clock. I showered and put on new clothes, then walked down to the hotel restaurant. It seemed strange to order dinner—I felt more like having breakfast. I capped off my meal with a chocolate bar. I couldn’t travel all the way to Switzerland and not get a taste of that famous sweet stuff.
After dinner, I walked back through the lobby and out to the street. I hailed a taxi and showed him the address on my folded paper. Ten minutes later, we stopped in front of an older, neatly kept house. It was small, just like the rest of the homes on the block. There was a light on in what appeared to be the kitchen. I could see a woman through the window, either washing dishes or cooking—I couldn’t tell which. I was about to leave the cab and go knock on her door when a second figure appeared in the window. This one was a man. He came up from behind and put his arms around her, then kissed her on the neck. Finally, the taxi driver asked if this was the right address.
“Oh. I’m sorry. Yes. This is the right address,” I said as I watched the couple in the window.
I should have called ahead of time, I thought to myself. Then would not be a good time to meet with Kerstin. I would have to wait until tomorrow—after I’d had a chance to call to let her know that I was in Geneva. That way, we could meet in private. “Can you take me back to the hotel?” I asked.
His eyebrows raised and his bottom lip protruded as he pondered my request. “Certainly,” he replied.
When I returned to the hotel, I placed a call to her. “Hello. Kerstin?”
“Yes. Who is this?” she asked.
“This is Devonie. Remember me?”
She hesitated. “Oh, yes. Devonie. How are you? Are you still safe?” she asked. The concern in her voice sounded sincere.
“Not exactly. I have a feeling I am going to need your help after all. I’m here in Geneva. Can we meet tomorrow morning?”
“Of course. Has something happened?”
“You could say that. Someone has killed a dear friend of mine, and almost killed another. And the boat I live on was blown to smithereens.”
“Oh, my. Do you know who did it?” she asked.
“The really scary thing is, I think the FBI may be behind it, at least the bombing of my boat, and the accident that nearly killed my friend. Does that sound likely to you?”
“It’s very possible. I know that on several occasions, Robert worked closely with the CIA. There is another man, his name is Khan. He is the devil himself. You do not want to get anywhere near him if you can help it.”
“Khan? How is he connected to Robert?” I asked.
“He only worked with Robert once. The two of them had a falling out of sorts, and Khan feels Robert still owes him. You need to make very certain Khan doesn’t find you. He’ll certainly harm you in order to get what he wants.”
“I’ll do my best. I’ll need you to help me identify these people I’m supposed to be hiding from.”
“I will.” Kerstin said. “Was there a computer in the things that you found of Roberts?”
I hesitated. The very person who told me to trust no one was now asking me to trust her. “Yes, there was… but there wasn’t anything useful on it,” I finally replied.
“Are you sure? Did you check everything?”
“I’m pretty sure, but I suppose I could have missed something. Why?”
“No reason. I’m sure that if you checked it, there probably isn’t anything there. Where should we meet?” she asked.
“River Rhone Café. Do you know it?”
“Yes. Is nine too early?”
“That would be fine. I’ll see you then.” I said, and hung up the phone.
I booted up the laptop again. I had a feeling that Kerstin was more interested in that computer than she would have me believe. I checked all the directories again. There was nothing else that I hadn’t already looked at. Frustrated, I shut the thing down and went to bed, but I couldn’t fall asleep.
I had been dressed and ready to go since seven the next morning. Every five minutes, I impatiently checked the time on my watch. It would only take ten minutes to walk to the café to meet Kerstin. Finally, at eight-thirty, I grabbed my purse and let myself out of the room. I made my way down the long corridors and around the corners. I came up behind a couple strolling down the hallway, holding hands and speaking some romantic European language. It was one of those dialects that could make the phrase,”Boy, that chili really gave me gas,” sound as though he were offering her the moon on a silver platter.
The aisle was narrow. I forced myself to slow down and be patient. I kept my distance to give them and myself a comfort zone. There was no rush. I had plenty of time. When we all rounded the last corner into the hotel lobby, I spotted two familiar faces talking to the desk clerk. I stopped and did an about-face. There was no way out to the street without walking right past them. I couldn’t go back to my room—they were probably on their way there. I walked briskly down the hallway until I came upon a maid’s cart and let myself into the open room she was cleaning. The maid was busy in the bathroom, so I kept watch, peering out the small opening of the door until I saw Cooper and Willis walk by. When they disappeared around the corner, I left the room and hurried toward the front doors. Halfway across the lobby, the desk clerk spotted me and hailed my name loudly enough that it could be heard all the way to the kitchen of the hotel restaurant.
“Miss Lace! You have some guests going up to visit you! I’m glad I caught you before you left, otherwise you would have missed them!” he called out. How did he even remember who I was? I must have made some sort of impression on him when I checked in.
“Thank you. I passed them on the way down,” I answered, not slowing down as I made my way closer to the exit.
I turned to look over my shoulder just as Cooper rounded the corner and spotted me. Willis was right on his heels. I darted for the huge revolving glass doors and pushed my way through.
“Wait! Stop, Miss Lace! We just want to talk to you,” Cooper called out as I pushed my way out onto the sidewalk.
I started running, gaining about a half a block before they got out of the hotel lobby and chased after me. I was running and watching them behind me at the same time. I didn’t notice the car ahead, with the open door. The man stepped out, and I ran right into him.
“Whoa, there,” he said as he grabbed me to keep me from falling. Then, he noticed the two men running after me. “Quick. Get in,” he said as he shoved me into his car. I slid over to the passenger side. He jumped in, started the engine, and took off, just as Willis grabbed onto the door handle. He tried to hang on, but wasn’t able to keep his grip as we accelerated out into the traffic.
I looked at him in amazement. “Craig. What in the world are you doing here?”
Chapter Fourteen
Craig didn’t answer immediately. He was too busy trying to drive in unfamiliar territory as he watched in his rear view mirror for my two pursuers. When it seemed we were safely out of the city limits and no one was following us, I initiated a conversation again.
“Okay. Now you can tell me what in the world you’re doing here,” I demanded.
“First things first,” he said. “Are you okay?”
“I think so, but I don’t know for how long. These guys are really persistent. I’m afraid that it’s just a matter of time before my luck runs out.”
“If they can’t find you, they can’t catch you. I’m going to do my best to make sure they can’t find you.”
“Speaking of finding me, how did you know where I was?” I asked.
“It wasn’t too hard. I just followed you to your gate at the airport. After you boarded, I found a young college student who was on your flight and gave him a hundred dollars to follow you after you landed in Geneva. I told him there would be another hundred for him when he called me with the name of your hotel.”
“Ah, that would be Steve,” I said.
“Yes. I believe Steve was his name. Nice kid.”
“Okay. Next question. What possessed you to follow me here? Didn’t I tell you that I didn’t want you involved in this?”
“I can’t help it. I have this uncontrollable need to rescue poor helpless damsels in distress,” he said.
“I’m not helpless,” I stated emphatically, with a bit of ire in my voice. If there was one thing I was most proud of, it was my independence.
“I know. I know,” he said in self-defense. “I was just kidding. Please don’t sentence me to the dungeon for my poor attempt at chivalry.”
“I’ll grant you a pardon this time, but be aware that you’re on probation, so you just better watch your step,” I teased. We both laughed, then the seriousness of my situation came hurling back at me and the smile left my face.
“Seriously, what possible reason could you have for being here? You hardly even know me, and you know nothing about my situation.”
“That’s not entirely true. After I ran into you at the airport, I canceled my trip to the medical conference and went directly to your uncle. I told him about our encounter at the airport and demanded to know what was going on. I told him I intended to follow you here, and the more I knew about your situation, the better able I’d be to help you. Arlene convinced him to tell me what he knew. I think she has a soft spot for me.”
“Oh. I’m sure of that,” I said.
“Anyhow, he filled me in on the little bit of information he had. He also told me you hadn’t really had a chance to give him all the details, since it seems you’ve been on the run from someone ever since you arrived in Del Mar. He did give me some information for you, and he wants you to call him just as soon as you can.”