Danger Point

by Douglas J Bourg

  After a while Eric stops by our table. “How is everything?” We nod our appreciation, mouths full of the bananas foster we’re sharing. “Jeannie, I hope you’re in town for a few days.”

  “I’m working at the Bowers Museum for the next three months, Eric, so I hope to get back here again. The food is amazing.”

  “I hope so, too. Bobby needs to be seen with someone respectable for a change.” He smiles and pats my shoulder as a customer waves him over and off he goes.

  “Nice guy,” she says.

  “Yeah, he and Lisa have worked very hard, but it’s sure paid off,” I say. “What do you say to a nightcap at the Red Fox? We can leave the car here and walk over. It’s only a few blocks.” Jeannie nods and we get up from the table. I leave a tip for Michelle and we head out the door and into the warm evening. Jeannie takes my arm as we stroll down El Camino Real.

  “Bobby, do you ever think about us?” She says playfully. “What might have happened if you had stayed in Hawaii?”

  “Sometimes. I guess I feel like I was such an ass that I try to put it out of my mind. I was such a kid back then. I didn’t think about how much I could have hurt you.” She squeezes my arm and we make the rest of the walk in silence. I open the door for her, and we make our way into the Red Fox and find two seats at the end of the bar.

  “Is this your local haunt?” she asks.

  “DJ and I usually end up here a couple times a week. It’s a real local bar, but they have great lunches.”

  Ray comes down the bar toward us. I introduce her and order a glass of wine for myself and start to order one for Jeannie when she says, “Just water for me, thanks, I still have to drive back to Santa Ana.”

  When Ray comes back with my wine and her water, Jeannie excuses herself to use the ladies room. I take this opportunity to ask, “Ray, are you sure that Micky said the answer to his problem was all in his head?”

  “I don’t know, Bobby. He was pretty drunk. He was just mumbling, not talking to anyone in particular, but I think he said the answer to his problem was in his head. I think his exact words were something like: ‘it’s all in the head.’ I don’t know. He got up and left right after he said it. That’s all I remember. Sorry.” A couple of young girls in very high heels and very short skirts come in, and Ray heads down the bar to take their drink orders; and hopefully to check their IDs.

  When Jeannie comes back I introduce her to a few friends who stop by to say hello. We finish our drinks and I say, “Let’s walk down Del Mar before we drive back to the harbor. We can window shop.”

  “That sounds lovely. It’s such a beautiful night.”

  “Great. Let me just use the bathroom.”

  I keep thinking about what Ray said about Micky, it’s in his head; it’s in the head. Suddenly, I feel like I’ve been hit by lightning. How could I have been so stupid? Micky loved to party. He’d often hide his party goods so that if he was ever searched by the cops, he wouldn’t be holding. I remember he once told me he had hollowed out a niche for his stash in a spot behind a tile a men’s room. A bathroom is a head to a sailor. I step over to the sink area and check there first. No loose tiles. I start to look around the toilet area, but I don’t have much time before someone starts pounding on the door.

  “Hurry up, pal. A guy’s got to go,” I hear through the door.

  “Sorry, bro,” I mumble, as he pushes past me into the bathroom.

  I walk back to the bar and over to Jeannie. “I think that I know where Micky hid the codex for the box,” I take her hand and lead her out of the lounge.

  “Where?”

  “I’m not sure yet. I’ll let you know when I find it,” I’m not positive I can trust her yet, and besides, I don’t want to get her in too deep.

  We walk over to Avenida Del Mar holding hands like teenagers. Jeannie turns to me, stopping us on the sidewalk, leans in and kisses me. “Santa Ana is such a long drive.”

  It takes me a minute to recover my voice. “Well, ah—I’ve been staying on DJ’s boat in the harbor. That’s not nearly as far.” I smile and kiss her back. I hope the boat’s not too much of a mess.

  “The boat sounds romantic,” she says, to my great relief. We walk back to the car with our arms around each other. If we were in a cartoon, little hearts would be floating above our heads.

  ◆◆◆

  He had lost them at the museum and had been hanging around Frasier’s house. Frasier came back alone in Paladin’s van. What the hell happened to Paladin? He hadn’t come back to the house. This should have been so easy. He had better find Paladin and The General’s paperwork, but fast. Instead of buying an island, he could find himself buried under one.

  Chapter 23

  Jeannie and I are suddenly awakened by pounding on the salon door.

  “Hey you guys, wake up! C’mon, rise and shine. I have fresh coffee,” DJ yells through the closed door.

  We get up, throw on last night’s clothes, and try to smooth each other’s bed head before opening the door. We find DJ sitting with a cardboard tray of paper coffee cups and a pink bakery box set out on the cockpit seats.

  “Bobby, you look like shit,” he says with a grin, “but Jeannie, you look fantastic.”

  “Coffee, how nice,” Jeannie says, smiling and blushing. “Thank you, DJ.”

  “Yeah, thanks.” Three coffees. Smug bastard. I hope Jeannie doesn’t think I planned this with him. I may have to kick his ass later. “What brings you down here so early?”

  “You know me. I’m an early riser.” He is having way too much fun.

  Time to change the subject. “Remember how Micky never liked to have his stash on him? Well, told me once he’d stuck it behind a tile in the men’s room at the Red Fox Lounge. The secret isn’t in his head; it’s in the head.”

  DJ smacks himself on the forehead, “Of course! Why didn’t we think of that before?”

  “I’ll head down there later on when the bar is slow and try to find his hiding spot. Maybe we’ll find the answer to opening the box.” I help myself to a donut.

  Jeannie shakes her head when I offer her one. “I’d like nothing better than to stay here all day, but I have to go home and get changed. I can’t very well go into work in the same clothes I had on yesterday.” She blushes again. She picks up her purse and kisses me goodbye. DJ helps her off the boat and she heads up the dock.

  “Hey, wait! I’ll walk you to your car,” I say. I vault over the side of the boat and run up the ramp to the gate. “Where are you staying?”

  She turns around and smiles at me, “I’m staying at a friend’s house in Cameo Shores in Corona Del Mar. Call me if you find the codex. Or, call me even if you don’t.” She looks over my shoulder to see if DJ can still see us before she gives me a long, passionate kiss.

  ◆◆◆

  He’s sitting on a bench overlooking the sailboat. When the woman gets up to leave, Paladin follows her to her car. They kiss. Interesting. Then she gets into her car alone and drives out of the marina. He has to make a decision. Follow her or stay here? He starts his car and pulls out after the woman. He has the tracking device on Paladin’s car, so he can monitor them from his computer. The woman, though, is new. He’d better figure out if she’s important or just a one-nighter.

  She drives up Coast Highway, through Dana Point, Monarch Beach and into Laguna Beach. He follows, but not too closely, and watches as she pulls into the turn lane and making a U-Turn. Has she spotted him? He can see her in his rear view mirror as she heads up into the hills. He can’t make the same maneuver in this early morning traffic without raising suspicion. When he can, he turns around and heads back up the street. He sees her just in time to watch the gate close behind her car. She’s pulled into to John Gomez’ property. What the hell is going on? He finds a spot across the street from the house and parks his car. In this area of exclusive houses, he won’t remain unnoticed for long. The phone next to him starts to beep.

  “Yes, General. No, sir. I’ve been following a female fri
end of Paladin’s. I’m not sure if she’s just a girlfriend, but I thought I’d better follow her just in case. Sir, she just pulled into John Gomez’ house. Yes, sir. I’m aware of that, sir. Thank you, sir. I will.”

  He stares at the phone after the call is disconnected. The General just offered him another million dollars to find the container and the papers Webber had stolen. He knows he has to find it before they’re able to open the container. The General had just explained, in great detail, what would happen to him if he failed. Plus now he was supposed to follow and report on this new chick’s activities, too? Shit, shit, shit! Every day this money was getting harder to earn.

  ◆◆◆

  DJ and I head into San Clemente to get breakfast and look for Micky’s hiding spot. Coast highway is deserted this morning. Across the highway, the surf was running about five foot, clean and glassy. It’s killing me not to be out there, but we’ve got more important things to do.

  He nods and says. “Then we can stop by the T-Street job and make sure everything’s ready to start work again on Monday.”

  We head into San Clemente along Coast highway which is deserted this morning. Across the highway, the surf is running about five foot, clean and glassy. It’s killing me not to be out there.

  “So,” DJ says, giving me a sideways glance, “You guys looked pretty comfortable this morning.”

  “I know. It’s been so long, but it was like we’d never been apart.”

  “What really happened between you two, Bobby? You never told me why your relationship didn't work out.”

  “Well,” I sigh, “after eating shit at the pipe contest, John G. asked me if I wanted to recuperate at his guest house. He said I could stay as long as I liked. Jeannie had come over from Japan and John G. gave her a job as an aide. She and I just connected. We’d go for long walks, hang out on the beach and talk. She was the one who got me to go back into the water. She helped heal my spirit and I fell in love with her. I thought it was mutual. Then one day after surfing, I headed up to the main house and saw John G. and Jeannie together. I was crushed. They didn’t see me and I never told either of them. I went back to the guesthouse, packed my bags, grabbed a bus to the airport and flew into LAX. You know the rest.”

  “That sucks, dude.”

  “I don’t think I ever really got over her. Spending last night together was magic.”

  “Are you going to tell her you saw them sleeping together?”

  “I don’t know,” I say, staring out at the ocean as we drive along coast highway.

  We pull into the Red Fox parking lot and walk into the bar. It’s packed. Shit. Word must have gotten out about the food here. The RFL is owned by the same people who own Antoine’s next door. The breakfast is amazing and there’s almost always a wait. The insiders know you can order the same breakfast at the RFL because both places share the kitchen and chef.

  “Grab us a couple of stools at the bar. I’m going to hit the head,” I say.

  I push open the door the bathroom and it’s empty. I lock the door and stand there looking around. Micky’s hiding place would have to be quick and easy to get to. I hear a knocking on the on the door already. Shit. Coffee must be worse than beer. I’ll never get this bathroom to myself. I flush the toilet and excuse myself past the guy waiting outside, and walk over to sit next to DJ.

  “No luck, yet, but I know it’s in there. I’ll go and search some more when it opens up.”

  “Ray’s going to think you have a problem. Let’s order some food, I’m starving.”

  We order breakfast. The bar is going off. We’re sitting in the middle of a party.

  “What’s going on, Ray?” I ask.

  “It’s Sherry’s birthday today,” he answers. “It’s going to be crazy in here all day. You know the day crowd: any reason to eat, drink and be merry.”

  He sets down two free drink tokens in front of everyone at the bar. “Drinks are on the house, everybody, courtesy of the best owner ever, Antoine!” The bar erupts in cheers. I see the bathroom is empty, so I get up and go back to have another look. Again, after a few minutes, someone is banging on the door to use the bathroom. Shit, at this rate I’ll never find the hiding spot.

  I sit down next to DJ again and say, “Hey, when we’re done with our food let’s get out of here. There are too many people. I’ll come back tonight, before the night crowd gets going.”

  “Sure, Bobby.”

  I wave away the beer Ray offers me. I think I’d better stick with coffee, but DJ thanks him for his. “After we’re done with breakfast, can we stop by my house?” I ask him. “I need to check the garage and pick up my mail.”

  He nods as he takes a sip of his beer and says. “Then we can stop by the T-Street job and make sure everything’s ready to start work again on Monday.”

  ◆◆◆

  The woman’s in John G.’s house for about forty five minutes. That gives him time to find out that the car, a Lexis ES5, is leased to Jean Marie Francis of Haleiwa, Hawaii, and is being paid for by The Rigdel Corporation. He’s betting the Rigdel Corporation is owned by one John Gomez.

  After she comes out of the house and gets into her car, he follows her up the coast into Corona Del Mar. He misses the light and watches her pull into Camino Shores, and out of sight. When the light turns, he drives into the fancy subdivision. He has to cruise up and down a couple of the streets, before he sees her car parked in front of a house that looks like it had been recently remodeled. Landscapers are working on the front yard. Down the street, another house is being reroofed so there are a lot of cars and trucks around. Good. Now he can watch her without being noticed.

  He opens his laptop, turns on his Wi-Fi hotspot and locates Paladin’s tracking signal. They’re at the house that was blown up – Paladin’s house. He closes this laptop and starts walking up the street toward the woman’s car. A lunch truck pulls up to the first job and a crowd of workers surround it. Perfect. He walks past her car, bends over to tie his shoe and puts the tracking device into the wheel well. He straightens up and walks back to his car.

  Ten minutes later, she gets into the car and backs out, obviously in a hurry. He follows her as she turns left at Newport Coast Drive. She’s on her way to work at the museum. He’s sure of that. He’s tagged her car and has her address. If she’s going to work, nothing more will happen with her for a while, and Paladin and Frasier haven’t moved. He realizes he can go back to his place and crash for a while. He needs to eat and get some sleep. But first he has to call his contact and find out who’s behind the Rigdel Corporation.

  Chapter 24

  “Hey, DJ, let’s swing by your house so you can go to T-Street on your own. I’m supposed to meet the architect at my house in an hour or so, and I want to spend some time looking around and maybe even do some clean up before he gets there.”

  “That’s fine. The meeting at the T-Street job could last for a couple of hours and you don’t need to sit through all that. Call me when you’re done, maybe we can grab a beer.”

  I pull up in front of my house and walk over to my mailbox. Crap, it’s full. As I sit down on the curb to sort through it, Murph pulls up in his truck. He parks in front of what’s left of my house, and walks over to me. I hear the quick horn of the truck acknowledging it’s locked. What is the point of that stupid noise? I never got that.

  “What did Jeannie have to say about the puzzle box?”

  “She didn’t have much more to say about it, but I did figure out where the codex is hidden.”

  “What? Where?”

  “Micky never carried his stash on him if he could avoid it—he didn’t want to get caught carrying drugs, so he had hiding places in his regular drinking spots. He never used the term ‘bathroom’; he always used the term ‘head.’ I tried to find his stash spot at the RFL, but it’s was too crowded. I want to try again tonight, around seven thirty or eight o’clock, when it’s still slow. You wanna come with?”

  “Damn right I do. We need to get this thing o
pen before I get caught lying to my boss. Is the box safe?”

  “Nobody will find it. I haven’t told anyone, but I guess you should know where it’s stashed in case something bad happens to me.”

  “I’d like to say nothing bad will happen, but I can’t the way things have been going. You didn’t even tell DJ?”

  “No. He’s really been an unwilling participant in all of this and with him being so worried about his family, I’m trying not to drag him in too deep. I hid it on the boat. Well, not exactly on the boat. The fender on the port side has a fishing line strung through the bottom of it. The box is wrapped in a waterproof container there. No one could see it, even if they were right on top of it because of the silt at the bottom of the harbor. No matter how well it’s hidden, unless we find that codex we’re screwed.”

  “Too true. I’ll meet you at the Fox at seven thirty tonight.”

  Murph waves goodbye as he unlocks his truck – another useless honk - and drives away.

  I turn to look at my destroyed house. There was still crime scene tape across the front and a ‘Do No Enter’ red tag on the front door, issued by the city. My phone beeps and I look down to see a text message from my architect telling me he has to cancel our meeting today and will call to reschedule later next week. Terrific. I came over here just to get depressed for nothing. I spin the combination padlock on the side door of the garage, walk inside and push up the garage door. I find some work gloves and grab the trashcan, drag it over to the yard and start cleaning up the broken glass and other debris on the front lawn. I’ll have to order a dumpster, but for now I just pile things up. After an hour or so, my phone beeps but I don’t bother to check it. Now that I’m on a roll, I want to get some of this cleared up. Two more hours go by and so do my neighbors. They all say the same thing: how lucky I am to be alive, that I can rebuild and that I’ll love the new house even more, yadda, yadda. I know they mean well and I’m grateful to have such good neighbors, but I could really do without the platitudes