Chapter Forty
The Cambodian rendezvoused with the remaining two members of his team on the ninth floor. His white Thai shirt was stained with blood. He held his left side and was clearly in a great deal of pain. He spoke to them in excited, stuttering tones.
“This is bad. Very bad. Udom and Boon-Nam Are dead. Shot by those CIA guys. They almost killed me too. We got to get out of here fast. Khun Ut is going to be really pissed when he hears about this.”
He raised his bloodied shirt and looked down at his side. There was a deep, four-inch, ugly gash where the heavy slug had grazed him. The sight of it made him ill and he began to feel faint from the loss of blood. He leaned on one of his men, while the other called for the elevator, and the three of them rode down to the lobby. They exited the elevator, scurried across the lobby and out the front door, one black shirted security guard on each side of the Cambodian, holding him up like a drunk.
Outside they climbed into a white van and headed straight for Khun Ut’s warehouse in Ban Mae Chan. In the backseat one of the men used a first aid kit to bandage Ung Chea’s side, while the other drove and called ahead for medical assistance to meet them at the warehouse. The Cambodian dozed during the twenty minute drive and thought about what he was going to say to Khun Ut in the morning.
But he didn’t have to wait until morning.
The Cambodian and the two security guards were met by Khun Ut when they pulled into the warehouse compound. Although it was the middle of the night, Khun Ut was impeccably dressed in a dark blue safari suit and polished Wellington boots. His longish black hair was slicked back, and he was smoking a long, thin cigar. He smelled of liquor and was slurring his words, which indicated he had come directly to the warehouse from one of the local nightspots.
Khun Ut took immediate command of the situation. “Get him upstairs to my office and put him on the couch.” Motioning with his cigar to a man in a white lab coat standing next to him, he added, “Dr. Vikorn, sew him up. He looks like he has lost a lot of blood.”
While the doctor was dressing his wound, Ung Chea nervously related the events of the evening. “Just as we pushed the door open this big farang came out of nowhere and started shooting. He blasted Udom and Boon-Nam before I could react, and then the guy in the room shot me and I had to get the hell out of there fast or I wouldn’t be here to tell you about it.
“Boss, believe me, those guys were good. Really good. They had silencers too. They are professionals. Definitely the guys we were looking for.”
Khun Ut pushed back in his chair and put his polished boots up on his desk. He thought for a moment and exhaled a long stream of smoke toward the ceiling. “So now we have their names and descriptions. You can give me a description of them, right?”
The Cambodian grimaced as the doctor went about cleaning and stitching up his side. It was clear that Khun Ut’s disapproval weighed heavier on him than the wound in his side. The welling tears were not just from the physical pain. “Well, er, I think so. I mean, it all happened very fast. They were farangs. One was a big guy. Heavy. Muscular. He came out of nowhere, dressed in his undershorts. He carried a long pistol—silenced, like the Japanese Yakuza use. And, and, so did the other guy.
“I didn’t get a good look at the other guy. He was lying on the floor in the room with his long gun aimed right at me. He looked me right in the eye. He was aiming right at me. Scared the shit out of me, boss. He is the one who shot me. The big guy shot Udom and Boon-Nam. Bang, bang, both gone. Just like that. I was lucky to get out of there alive. I did my best, boss, really I did…”
“Calm down Ung Chea, calm down.” Although Khun Ut hated that the operation had gone terribly awry, he enjoyed being in charge—in control when everyone else was panicking. “Let us figure out where we are and what we are going to do next. We lost a battle but we did not lose the war. Those guys will pay for what they did. We know who they are now. We will find them and kill them.”
Ung Chea was reassured and the doctor was almost finished stitching him up. Soon he could rest. He took a deep breath and said, “Their names are Robert Humphrey and Ralph Callaway. I think Callaway is the big guy registered in room 1050, and Humphrey is the guy that shot me from the room next door, 1048. But I am sure we will not find them there any longer.”
“Yes indeed,” said Khun Ut, thinking out loud. “You can bet they have beat it out of there. Those are probably not their real names either. But they showed passports when they registered so they have documentation in those aliases. They are professionals all right. They must have rented a car in one of those names as well.”
“That is right. They did.” Ung Chea brightened. “The hotel clerk told me they had paid for parking in the hotel garage, so they definitely have a car.”
“Okay, we will check all the rental car agencies in the vicinity of Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai in the morning. We will find out what they are driving, and we will nail them that way. Divert all of our surveillance teams to scour both cities and every place in between to find that vehicle. Start at the airport. We will find them, Ung Chea, and then you can have them.”
Chapter Forty-One
Santos and MacMurphy spotted a small business class hotel named the Orchid Lodge on the northern outskirts of Chiang Mai and pulled into the parking lot behind it.
It was almost four in the morning, and they were exhausted from lack of sleep and the adrenaline flow they had experienced earlier that evening. They grabbed a couple of well deserved hours of sleep in the car and then went into the hotel to freshen up and eat breakfast.
“Maybe we should reef our sails a bit,” said Santos. They were drinking coffee after having ordered huge American breakfasts of ham and eggs, home fries, fruit and juice.
“What’s that, one of your New England expressions?” MacMurphy was already feeling better.
“Yes, and it’s a good one too. That’s what you do when the seas get too rough. You slow down and ride out the storm. Maybe we should go to the mattresses and wait until things quiet down a bit.”
“Go to the mattresses? That’s what the Mafia does when they want to hide out, right? You’re just a font of esoteric, useless knowledge.”
Santos toasted him with his coffee cup and a large grin. “Right. That’s what we should do. Slow down, regroup and strike when we’re ready.”
“We’re ready now. We just need to get a clean car, transfer our gear and head for the jungle below Ban Mae Chan.”
“Maybe Charly or the General can get us a car. We also need a place to stay. We can’t use these aliases in any more hotels. Humphrey and Callahan are blown.”
“Yeah, you’re right. And that’s the only set of alias docs we have with us, so I guess that means no more hotel rooms or rental cars.”
Culler was thoughtful. “Hmmm, we could steal a car. That won’t be a big problem. I can hotwire anything on wheels. But we’ll need to use the General or Charly to find us a place to stay, a safehouse or something.”
“I’d rather not use the General or Charly any more than we absolutely have to.” MacMurphy paused and then said, “See that couple sitting over there?” He nodded at a young American couple sitting a couple of tables away from them. They were eating breakfast and planning their day’s sightseeing activities with maps and brochures spread out on the table.
“Yeah, what about them?”
“I’ve been watching them. They’re American tourists. Maybe honeymooners. They probably don’t have a lot of money; otherwise they would be staying in one of the four-star hotels, not a cheap business one like this. And I’ll bet they also have a rental car, because it looks like they are on their own.”
“So, what does that mean? You want to steal their rental car? We could probably do that.”
“No, they would scream and report it. The cops would be looking for the car and we’d be right back where we are now. I think maybe we could buy their car.”
Culler shook his head. “You think you can buy their rental car from
them? Why would they want to do that?”
“Persuasion and charm, Mr. Santos, something you techies have very little of. And, of course, money.”
MacMurphy got up and went over to their table. “You guys are Americans, right? I overheard you talking. I’m also American. Where are you from? Are you touring this little corner of paradise?” He was friendly and non-threatening and offered them a big, beaming smile that nobody could refuse.
She was cute, in a plain sort of way, with light brown hair in a bob. She wore hiking boots, knee-length khaki shorts, and a sleeveless yellow shirt. He was tall and skinny with longish unkempt brown hair. He was dressed in jeans, boots and a light blue, Disney World tee-shirt with Mickey Mouse on the front. They appeared to be in their early twenties.
Culler watched admiringly as his friend worked his case officer magic on the couple. Within minutes they were laughing and shaking hands like old friends. Mac pulled a chair up to their table, and they chatted and laughed as they looked at the maps.
Ten minutes later Mac paid their bill, and they all got up together and started heading for the front entrance. Mac excused himself for a moment to return to his table where Culler Santos was sitting.
He winked at Culler. “Okay, it’s all arranged. Pay the bill and join us outside. We’re going to switch cars.”
Santos’s jaw dropped and he started to say something but Mac was gone, following the young couple out the door. Case officers, he thought, shaking his head. They are indeed a unique bunch, all charm and persuason.
Santos suspected the case officer had probably just seduced the young American couple into lending him their car.
He found them outside in the parking lot at the side of the building. They were standing beside a small, white Toyota RAV4 SUV with an Avis sticker on the left rear bumper.
Mac introduced him to the couple. “Ralph, meet Linda and Sam Peoples. Linda and Sam, meet my associate Ralph Callahan.” They all shook hands and did their greetings while Mac announced that they had agreed to swap cars for a few days.
He explained: “Linda and Sam really don’t need a 4WD vehicle and we do, and rather than us having to go back to the Avis counter at the airport and taking the chance that they don’t have one available, they kindly agreed to swap the 4WD for our Toyota Corolla. Wasn’t that nice of them, Ralph? It’ll save us a ton of time.”
“Yeah, that’s great,” replied Santos, puzzled.
“Would you bring our car around so we can swap out the suitcases?”
“You bet. And…thanks guys, really,” he said to the couple.
Fishing the keys out of his pocket, Culler jogged around to the back of the building. When he returned he parked their Corolla next to the RAV4.
The Peoples had very little in the way of personal effects in their car. Most of their things were up in their hotel room. But their eyes widened at the sight of Culler Santos and Mac moving all of their gear, including two long, heavy duffle bags into the back of the RAV.
Mac dug into one of the bags, located an envelope full of one hundred dollar bills and counted out five thousand dollars. He handed the stack of bills to Sam Peoples who quickly dropped the wad into Linda’s large handbag.
“Now you guys enjoy the rest of your vacation,” Mac said, “and don’t worry about returning your car. We’ll take care of that. And remember, when you get ready to depart just leave the Corolla in the parking lot of the hotel, and take the shuttle bus to the airport. Leave the keys with the bellman and tell him to call Avis to come pick up the car. We’ll do the same with the RAV4 when we’re done with it.”
Linda and Sam were delighted. “Thanks Mr. Humphrey,” said Sam. “This is really going to make our vacation. The Lord was smiling on us today.”
“He certainly was,” said Linda with a beaming smile. “God bless you. God bless you both.”
Chapter Forty-Two
Culler drove and they waved back at the young couple as they pulled out of the Orchid Lodge parking lot and turned south toward the heart of Chiang Mai.
Culler was still shaking his head in amazement over what Mac had just accomplished. “How’d you know what buttons to push with that couple?”
“Well, it’s really pretty simple.” Mac adjusted the seat back and got comfortable. “First I put’em at ease, showed’em I wasn’t a threat. Then I elicited information about them, like the fact they were almost broke, and had to pay extra for a 4WD vehicle they didn’t want in the first place, and how they got hassled at the Avis rental counter. You know, stuff like that. Then I just made up a story that fit with their story.”
“What story was that?”
“Well, I told them you were my father and you were sick and…”
“Bullshit! What did you really tell them?”
Mac laughed. “I said we had a mission to accomplish up north on the border. I told them I didn’t know if we were going to make it in time because we were already late, and the roads up there are so bad that our two wheel drive car that the same rental car agency gave us may not make it. I commiserated with them and said we had ordered a 4WD vehicle, but they didn’t have any when we picked up the vehicle.”
“And then you asked them if they would be willing to switch vehicles with you for five thousand dollars?”
“A little smoother than that, but you’re right, that’s about it. The exchange fulfilled all their needs: money, they got rid of the bumpy vehicle and there was no downside to the deal.”
“They weren’t the least bit suspicious?” asked Culler incredulously.
“Well, maybe a little bit at first, but then I explained that we were with Interpol and that’s why we could be so generous with the money. And when I reiterated about there being no downside, I mean they would have our car and the money and all, well, they just bought it.”
“And we didn’t have to steal one.”
“Right, if we had to steal one we’d just have the cops on our tail along with Khun Ut’s crew. Double trouble.”
Culler thought for a moment. “But what about those kids? Khun Ut is looking for us and it won’t take him long to figure out what car we were driving. Aren’t we placing them in serious danger now? What happens when he finds the car with them in it?”
“Well, hopefully Khun Ut won’t find them. And if he does, well, he’ll find out quickly enough that it’s not us. I mean, maybe he’ll question them and find out what happened, learn about the switch and all.”
Both men were thoughtful, considering the possible consequences for the innocent young couple.
Santos broke the silence. “Well, you certainly bought us some time, but those kids are going to be in deep kimchee if the Cambodian gets a hold of them and decides to…well, I don’t want to think about it.”
“Yeah,” said Mac, “I really hope that doesn’t happen.”
Mac sat up abruptly and looked around him. They were entering the city traffic of Chiang Mai. “Where are we going?”
“Chiang Mai. Isn’t that where we want to go?”
“Hell no! Not now. We’ve got a new car. That’s all we wanted. We’ve got nothing further to do in Chiang Mai. Our job is in Ban Mae Chan. Turn around and let’s do what we came here to do.”
Chapter Forty-Three
Later that evening, Khun Ut was enjoying dinner, surrounded by friends at the expensive Chao Phraya restaurant, when his cell phone rang.
He dug the phone out of his pocket and glanced at the caller ID. With an annoyed expression, he announced to his guests, four lovely young women dressed in traditional long Thai silk sarongs and three men in business suits, that he had to take the call.
He walked away from the noisy heart of the restaurant into the foyer and spoke into the phone. “What is the problem?” He knew there had to be a problem or the Cambodian would never interrupt his dinner.
“Actually, there is no problem, Boss. You always think there has to be a problem for me to call you. This time it is good news. I thought you would want to hear it right away
.”
“Okay, what news is good enough to tear me away from Toi, Daeng and their beautiful friends?”
“Our guys found the car. They got it staked out right now. It is parked behind the Orchid Lodge, a small business hotel on the north side of Chiang Mai.”
“Are you sure it is them?”
“One hundred percent. We got the make and registration number from the Avis agent at the airport. Plates match and it has an Avis sticker on the rear bumper. No doubt about it, Boss.”
Khun Ut was excited. He paced back and forth in the foyer, careful not to be overheard by other guests entering and leaving by the front door. “Did you check to see if they are registered at the hotel?”
Yes, but their names did not show up. They probably registered under different names. One of the hotel staff thought he saw two guys that matched their description having breakfast there this morning.”
“Okay, okay, that is good enough. Good work, Ung Chea. Tell your guys not to spook them.”
His mind was suddenly spinning with ideas. Should they wait in ambush and get them when they get back into their car? Should they try to find them in the hotel and get them in their rooms? No, he had a better idea.
“Keep an eye on the vehicle and make sure they don’t leave. If they try to leave, take them out. Let me see, it is almost ten now so they probably will not be going anywhere tonight, right?”
“That is what I think, Boss. They are probably in for the night. They are definitely not in any of the public areas of the hotel, not in the bar or restaurant or anyplace like that. We checked all those places.”
“Okay, listen, call Sunthon right away. Tell him to get over there right away and wire the car. We will blow the bastards to hell when they start the car in the morning. Make sure you are there to witness it, and make sure there are no survivors. Got it?”
Plausible Denial Page 11