Caribbean Capers

by Dan Kelly

  “Dave probably should have waited on the false IDs until we could get some believable disguises, wigs, a beard and/or moustache for me, colored contacts, whatever.”

  “I think Dave wants to get us out of here and in Bogota as quickly as possible. The more time we have on the ground to reconnoiter the better our chances of succeeding, but I think our donning some kind of disguise before we deplane is a good idea.”

  “When Dave finishes talking with the captain, ask him about getting something for us to use.”

  It took another fifteen minutes for Dave to break away from the captain and return to his car. Pete asked, “What was that all about? It looked like whatever you were trying to sell him he wasn’t buying.”

  “I told him that what went down here involved a highly sensitive federal government mission, so sensitive that only a few people at the very top of our government were in the loop. I asked him to put a lid on any local investigation until I could get approval to clue him in or have someone contact his chief. I asked him to stonewall the press until I or someone higher up than I got back to him. It took a lot of convincing, but I got him to give me seventy two hours before he did anything.”

  “I think it’s time for the Scrounger to do his thing. If anyone can keep a permanent lid on what happened here, he’s the one. If the media gets wind of what is behind what happened here, Sea Wasp could be in serious danger of being exposed. Some of those investigative reporters could find the proverbial needle in a haystack without breaking a sweat.”

  “I hear you. Let’s go back to the shop and I’ll arrange for a couple of car rentals for you and then you can go home and get some rest.”

  During the drive back, Abby told him about her idea of using disguises and Dave agreed with her. “I’m sure Phil will be able to come up with something that’ll work.”

  By the time they got back to the shop and Dave made his calls to the car rental agency and Phil it was nine thirty. At ten o’clock, two Kia Optimas were dropped off in front of the shop and they didn’t come from any car rental agency either. Pete’s thinking, “Where there’s Scrounger, there’s a way.”

  When they got into their cars, they each found a large plastic bag containing wigs, colored contact lenses some casual clothing, including hats, and one of them contained a goatee and a moustache.

  They headed for home to pack and hopefully get some sleep. It had been a long day and they both were exhausted. One of the paramedics had checked out the cut on Abby’s scalp and said it looked a lot worse than it was and that all she had to do was keep it clean. He gave her some antiseptic cream to put on it to prevent infection and said it would soon scab over and should heal without any problem. It hurt like hell though and she was hoping the pain wouldn’t keep her awake. She needn’t have worried. Seconds after her head hit the pillow she was out like a light.

  Pete wasn’t so fortunate. When he got home the message light on his phone was flashing, so he checked his messages. There was only one and it was from his brother Paul telling him to call him as soon as he got in no matter what time it was. “Uh oh, something’s happened. He sounds both angry and worried. That’s not like him. He doesn’t get shook up easily.”

  His brother answered his cell on the first ring. “Where the hell have you been? I’ve been calling you all night”

  “I’ve had a rough day, bro. Answering my phone was very low on my priority list.” He told his brother about the tail and the shooting and when he finished Paul was silent for a long enough time to prompt Pete to ask, “Are you still there, Paul?”

  “I’m still here. Damn! This is the worst pile of shit your buddy Desoto has gotten you into yet.” After a brief pause he went on to say, “I’m sorry to do this to you after the day you’ve had, but if I didn’t clue you in you’d probably disown me.”

  “What the hell has happened to get you so worked up?”

  “Earlier today I found out from Dad that our champion of the down trodden mother on behalf of Bob Trumball has filed a civil suit against Juan Fuentes for $5,000,000. She’s also considering doing the same in some of the countries in the Caribbean. Dad is apoplectic and I’m sure he’s wearing a hole in their carpet from pacing the floor with worry over what retaliation might be coming her way. Why would she do such a thing? Trumball certainly doesn’t need the money and she doesn’t need the fees if she were to win the suit and actually collect the settlement.”

  “Come on, Paul. The reason is as plain as the nose on your face. Justice! You and I have heard her pontificate countless times her creed of ‘A world without justice is a world of chaos and hopelessness.’ She was always going on about the inequities in the world when she heard about some guilty party getting away with something terrible because they had enough money to afford some high priced attorney and/or buy friends in high places. Mom’s very selective when it comes to picking a fight. She doesn’t go off half-cocked. She must feel very strongly about this to be willing to take the risks associated with such action. Nothing Dad, you or I might say is going to change her mind. One thing we could do though is arrange for some protection for her.”

  “You mean around the clock body guards? Since we don’t know how long we’d need them that could cost a lot more money than we can come up with.”

  “True, but maybe I could prevail on the Scrounger to help us out here. You and I’ve been helping him so maybe he’ll feel obligated to return the favor, although he’s paying us and we can’t afford to pay him, but as he would say that’s just a technicality.”

  “It’s worth a try. Maybe he could justify helping us and the expense of doing so by saying Mom’s actions are contributing to his strategy of harassing the cartels into making mistakes that will seriously hamper their operations.”

  “I’ll be seeing him tomorrow morning and I’ll run it by him then. Abby and I will be picking up plane tickets and false ID because we’ll be flying to Bogota later in the morning. I’m beat or I’d tell you all about it. I’m sure Dave will clue you in and want your help in interrogating the wounded shooter and finding the shooters who got away. He’s doing his damndest to keep the locals from getting involved.”

  “You’re flying into a hell of a hornet’s nest, Pete. I hope you’re using professional grade insect repellent. In other words, I hope your using your head when it comes to sticking your neck out.”

  “I’ve got Abby watching my back. She can shoot the wings off those suckers before they can get a buzz on.”

  With a worried chuckle Paul said, “You two have hit it off pretty well haven’t you?”

  “Now don’t you start pecking around where you shouldn’t be pecking. That could be dangerous for your pecker and his buddies.”

  Paul’s thinking, “Whoa! I think I stumbled into something here, Although I can’t see his puss, I’d bet a year’s salary that an embarrassed look just popped up on his kisser that he’s trying his damnedest to hide.” Paul burst out laughing and said, “Well I’ll be damned! The confirmed bachelor sailor has run into a tide that he can’t buck. I can’t wait to tell Mom and Dad.”

  “You always were a tattle tale.” Pete slammed down the phone, but he really wasn’t that angry at his brother. He was more annoyed with himself for being so easily read. “Man, I’m in unchartered waters where Abby is concerned and if I’m not careful I could wind up in one hell of an emotional typhoon with her smack dab in the middle of it. Damn it, Brody, knock it off. You’re beginning to sound like one of the characters in those romance novels Mom used to read.”

  Pete packed and then hit the sack for some much needed sleep. He wanted to be wide awake when he and Abby landed in Bogota and he didn’t know how much sleep he was going to get in the coming days.

  Chapter 32

  - Miami -

  At fifteen minutes to eight the next morning, Pete pulled into the parking lot at Morrison’s Dive Shop right behind Abby. They were early because both were anxious to get the show on the road.

  They found Dave in his office
talking with someone on the phone. He didn’t look like he went home last night. He was wearing the same clothes he had on yesterday, he needed a shave and his face had that lack of sack time look that everyone who has had to burn the midnight oil is familiar with.

  When he hung up, he gave each of them an envelope containing their falsified documents, passport, credit cards, driver license, Social Security cards, Triple A cards, etc. as well as their plane tickets.

  When they opened the envelopes to check out the contents, they discovered one of the reasons why Dave looked the way he did. The pictures on the ID showed them wearing the disguises Dave gave them last night. How he pulled that off they didn’t have a clue, but Abby wasn’t that surprised as she’s been working with Dave for a while and has seen him do some amazing things.

  He also gave each of them a stack of Colombian Pesos. “There’s a million pesos in those stacks, a mixture of one, five, ten, twenty and fifty thousand bank notes. As you know, it looks like a lot of money, and it is for many of the locals, but a million pesos at the current exchange rate is only worth a little over $560 in U. S. green backs. We want you to have some of the local currency on you should you need it in a hurry. As you also know, the exchange rate is highly volatile, so who knows what a million pesos will be worth tomorrow.”

  Pete hit Dave with his request for some assistance in providing protection for his mother while she’s engaged in a head-to-head legal battle with Juan Fuentes and the look on Dave’s face when he heard what his mother had done was one of incredulity yet admiration. “Man, Pete, this guy kills people for the smallest slight. He is not going to take kindly to being sued. I’ll have to run this by Phil and it’ll be up to him to figure a way to allocate some resources to keep your mom alive and well. That’s the best I can do.”

  “I appreciate you doing that, Dave. You can tell Phil I’m calling in some IOUs. I’ve bailed him out a lot of times. Now I’m the one that needs some help.”

  “Will do, Pete.”

  An hour later they were at the airport waiting for their flight to be called. His mother’s predicament was pushed to the back of his mind as he and Abby concentrated on their game plan for when their feet hit the ground in Bogota.

  Chapter 33

  - Bogota, Colombia -

  Their flight boarded and lifted off on schedule, arriving in Bogota fifteen minutes early. Before leaving the plane, they donned their disguises which got some quizzical looks from the flight attendants, but nobody else seemed to notice them. They cleared customs without a hitch, their IDs not attracting any close scrutiny. Aloncia Flores was there to greet them, holding a big sign in her hands that read ‘Welcome Patricia and Donald Weaver’ and she quickly ushered them to a limo which took off like they were late for an important meeting.

  “Welcome to Bogota Senor and Senorita Weaver. I am Aloncia Flores and I will be your liaison during your visit. We are heading to the villa where you will be staying and after we get you settled in we’ll meet for cocktails on the veranda and discuss your agenda for the coming days.”

  Abby quickly catches on that Senora Flores’ demeanor and the way she is speaking is all for the limo driver’s benefit, so she goes along with the little charade and gives Pete a nudge to follow suit. “I’m looking forward to meeting the other developers and potential investors for the proposed internet high-end fashion mall. It’s taken a lot of time and effort to get to this stage.”

  Pete jumped into the dialogue with, “This is a fascinating new marketing concept that is loaded with profit potential. I’m anxious to find out how these people will react to it.’”

  “You should be getting a lot of feedback early on. These people are not shy when it comes to

  expressing themselves.”

  Nothing more was said until they were dropped off at the villa and the limo headed back to the airport.

  As they entered the courtyard of the villa Aloncia said, “Okay, you can relax now and forget worrying about what you say and do to protect your real identities. Everybody here is on your team, including the servant staff. I’ll explain in more detail after you’ve had a chance to unpack and freshen up. When you’re ready, please join the rest of the team out on the veranda. Anyone you see can show you the way.”

  A middle aged lady with a radiant smile joined them in the courtyard and Aloncia introduced them to her. “Maria, this is Abigail Keenan and Peter Brody, the Americans I told you about yesterday. Maria is my right arm when it comes to keeping the villa looking beautiful and running smoothly and assisting me in my more dangerous undertakings as a Sea Wasp agent. I trust her with my life and you will find that you can too. Maria, please show them to their rooms so they can get settled in and then join the group on the veranda.”

  Aloncia left them with Maria and entered the villa. “Senor Brody, Senorita Keenan, please follow me.”

  Abby said, “Maria, let’s start off on the right foot. I’m Abby and he’s Pete. There’s nothing special about us that requires that you address us so formally.”

  “With that gorgeous smile still on her face she responded with, “As you wish, but you two are very special to us.”

  Without saying another word, she heads towards a set of beautifully carved wooden double doors, made more ornate by the exquisitely hammered iron and shiny silver and gold hardware, on the other side of the courtyard.

  Pete whispered to Abby, “She must have us confused with someone else. We’re about as special as corn flakes.”

  Glancing at Pete with one of those appraising looks that make him feel as though he’s as naked as a jay bird Abby said, “Some people think that if you risk your life to help them you’re something special.”

  What she was thinking but didn’t say was, “And because you don’t think what you have done to help Sea Wasp succeed in its mission and what you are about to do is anything special, that makes you even more special. Agh! What the hell is wrong with me? Where is all of this hogwash coming from? I need help!”

  A half hour later they were roaming through the villa, familiarizing themselves with their surroundings and admiring the craftsmanship evident everywhere they look. “Abby, this place is like something you’d see in a movie. I wonder who owns it. The cost of maintenance alone has got to be a budget buster.”

  “I doubt that whoever owns it has to worry about a budget. The cost of the furnishings alone must be in the seven figures.”

  “You know your furnishings.”

  The familiar sounding voice came from behind them and before they could identify it they turned around and were flabbergasted to see a smiling Damien Christensen walking towards them.

  Pete completely loses his cool and yells out, “Damien! What the hell is going on? What are you doing here? How did you get here? You’re not only on the FBI’s most wanted list. You’re on the President’s most wanted list. Where have you been?”

  “It’s a long story and I’ll tell it to you when you calm down a little.”

  Unlike Pete’s, Abby’s surprise at seeing Damien is only momentary and very mild as her experience in dealing with the unexpected and extensive training in zeroing in on the key issues in a situation quickly kick in. “Who are you working for, Damien? The last time we saw you it looked like you were bosom buddies with Pablo Salazar and Juan Fuentes.”

  “I heard about that. You two have really been getting around, much to the cartels’ chagrin I might add.”

  “Okay, you’ve got good hearing. Now answer my question.”

  Damien stopped smiling. He quickly realizes that Abby is not in the mood to be trifled with. “I work for and report to only one person. He is the only individual who knows what I’ve been up to this past year.”

  “Well, that person is in knee deep shit with the President. Who is it?”