by Dale Mayer
“We’re not ignoring her plight,” Vince said, “but you’re not equipped to come with us.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “I could take our research vessel.”
“No, you can’t,” Dr. Walker snapped. “It’s not yours. And a lot of money is tied up in that vessel. It’s not a simple case of you just hopping on board and going. There’s paperwork required, and grant money needed. It’s extensive. We never get enough grant money to cover the days as it is.”
She turned on him. “No way we can let Laura be out there like this. We have to go after her.”
“We are going after her,” Vince reiterated.
Just then a vehicle drove up. Vince ushered everyone over and loaded the little luggage they had. But not everybody could go because the vehicle was too small.
Vanessa snorted. “I’ll take the second ride. These guys can all go back on their own.” And she walked toward the research craft. She called back, “Besides, I still have to lock down and wait for the next crew to come and take this ship away again. Because of what happened, we’re being moved, but another crew is coming on board,” she said. “I’m not leaving it.”
In her cabin, she realized she still hadn’t even packed. She’d been so focused on Laura and rescuing all their work that she hadn’t thought about the need to pack. Obviously they were leaving right away. Although technically their original flights didn’t leave until tomorrow. She just couldn’t think of leaving without Laura. Vanessa didn’t go on a trip like this already thinking about losing a valuable member. Particularly in these dodgy circumstances.
She packed, pondering the strange turn in her life. There were financial costs of changing their flights and renting a sleeker faster boat to search for Laura. Hotels, food, etcetera.
Just then Vince came down the gangway and sat across the berth from her. “Now what are you thinking about?”
“Your boat is too slow,” she said bluntly. “So is this one. These are not meant to sail the high seas or to go after pirates. We need something faster.”
“There is no we about it,” Vince said in exasperation.
“What if I could get us a small racing yacht?” She was thinking fast. Trying to find a way forward.
“Then there’s a good chance that small yacht could get lost out in the Pacific Ocean,” he said. “I highly doubt you have that kind of money.”
“No,” she said, “I don’t. But maybe someone I know does, like somebody from the global research community.”
“Besides, it would have to already be down here to be of any value. A yacht stateside won’t help much.”
She grinned, held up her finger. “True, but I just remembered. Someone, with a yacht, is down here somewhere. I know he’s on a business trip right now, but he’s planning on a sailing holiday in a couple weeks, so the yacht is available in the short-term. If I could reach him …”
“Regardless, if we took it, even with his permission or blessing,” Vince said, “it could still end up being destroyed in the process.”
She glared at him. “We have to do something. I can’t take this research vessel. It’s not mine. The one that you used to rescue us isn’t yours either, and it’s too slow.”
“We know that.” Vince snagged her hands, stilling them. “We’re looking into options. But we won’t go out on a search blind. There’s a very good chance Laura is here in town or already in a different part of the world. We take action when it makes sense.”
She nodded. “I know.” And suddenly she was just so tired. She’d gotten no sleep and, now that her safety was no longer an issue, was fully focused with worry for her friend. It kept fraying at the edges of her psyche. “I don’t know what to do,” she murmured. “It’s so damn unfair.”
He nodded and tapped the palms of her hands.
She stared down at the half-moon crescents she’d dug in as she had clenched her fingers together. She sighed and tried to relax. “It’s nothing compared to what it could have been. If you hadn’t rescued us, you know we would be dead by now.”
“No,” he said. “You could have lasted at least three more days in there. Somebody would have found you.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know about that. It seems to me that I didn’t have many options left.”
“It may seem like that, but we’ve rescued you, so you can forget about that part of it.”
“I can’t forget about it,” she said harshly. “Not while Laura is out there.”
“We’re not asking you to forget about her,” he said. “You’re not equipped, and you’re not skilled for this.”
Her bottom lip trembled. To her shame, she realized she would burst into tears. She stood, stiffening her spine. “Then take off,” she snapped, “and let me know exactly what happens and when. I want her back here. Do you hear me?” she ordered.
He gave her the gentlest of smiles. “You know something? I don’t believe we’ll be following any orders you give. But nice try.”
She stared at him, bewildered. “I don’t get it. You have no idea where she even is.”
“No,” he said, “but I do have lots of team members working on this. I’m not rushing out there until I know where she is. When I know where she is, we’ll go get her back.”
She sagged in place. “I can stay on the research vessel for two more days. They were our scheduled days anyway. Although the next crew is coming to take possession of it, I doubt they’ll be here today or tomorrow, particularly if I tell them that I’m staying to look after it.”
“Why would you do that?” he asked.
Her gaze narrowed. “So I can see you bring Laura back.”
He smiled. “You must care for her.”
“Absolutely,” Vanessa said. “She’s a terrific woman. She’s older than I am by at least fifteen years, but she’s been a mentor for me and, in many ways, almost a mother. After my mother died, she has been the closest thing I had. I can’t stand to think of her suffering in this way.” The tears came to the corner of her eyes. She brushed them away impatiently. “Get her back for me, please.”
“You can count on it,” he said gently.
*
Vince had absolutely no business promising her anything of the sort. But she was the kind of woman you couldn’t ignore. Although he hadn’t wanted to lie, and, in his heart, it wasn’t a lie but a promise he might not be able to keep. That wasn’t something he wanted to happen. He’d do his best, but … life sometimes didn’t turn out the way you hoped.
His phone buzzed. He checked to find a message from Levi.
Nobody has any information on the missing woman. Are you sure she’s part of the team?
Yes, contact the university. Her name should be on the list of team members.
Right, Levi typed back. Will do.
Vince put his phone in his pocket and lifted his gaze to Vanessa.
“What’s the problem?”
“Because of the kerfuffle over the government paperwork here,” he said, “we’re having trouble getting anybody to believe us that Dr. Sanchez is missing. Because, as far as they are concerned, she was never here in the first place.”
Vanessa slumped back in her chair.
He nodded. “I know it’s frustrating, but we’ll sort it out.”
“Somebody has to have paperwork with her name on it,” she exclaimed. “The city, the university, something.”
“Do you have anything? Did you bring any paperwork with you? Papers that you have to show to the city or to the harbormaster?”
She frowned; then her face lit up. “Let me see.” She dashed into the lab.
He followed at a much slower pace. It was really a beautiful research vessel. It was set up for great functionality and had the latest tech on board. He stood at the doorway to the lab, amazed. “This is absolutely nothing like the old research vessel we’ve been using,” he said with a laugh. “And that grand old boat you were held on had its own kind of beauty but in a more old-fashioned sense, like for fish
ing or whatnot.”
She turned and smiled. “No, that old boat does not quite compare to this new research ship. Yet, if I hadn’t been held captive on it, I’d have loved to spend some time on her. It was almost like a ghost ship.”
Vince nodded. “It was likely taken from someone years ago,” he said. “I imagine the pirates have multiple vessels they can use, depending on their needs.”
“You’d think so, but then why would they have cut loose from it?”
“Not sure,” he said.
He had to admit it really bothered him. According to Vanessa and her team, at least one other person had closed the hatch, and the hatch had definitely been locked from the top. He suspected the kidnapper had another rowboat or power boat pulled up on the side. Once he got onto that, he just let the boats drift apart before he turned on the engine and left. With the storm, the older boat would easily have been tossed and turned in the sea, possibly sinking in the process. An easy end to the four researchers.
That brought him back to Dr. Sanchez. “How much money does she have?”
“She doesn’t have much personally,” Vanessa said. “But her family does. You were right. They’re very much into the drug cartels, but it’s been a while since we had that conversation.”
He sat back and stared. “You know that changes things entirely, right?”
She shot him a glance as she sorted through the paperwork in front of her. “Why?”
“They may have picked her up to take her back to Colombia. For all you know, it could be warring drug cartels from each side.”
“She walked away from that life over ten years ago,” Vanessa said. “No way they would drag her back into it.”
“You’ve got to think about this. What if they needed her back home as a power play? She wouldn’t have a choice if they threatened to kill her family. Maybe that’s the whole reason all of you were attacked. It’s not like they took anything. They didn’t even take this expensive high-tech research ship.”
She’s straightened slowly and studied his face. “So you think this was all to do with her brother?”
“Who is her brother? I’m not sure I understand the dynamics here,” he said.
“Her brother is the head of the family. He’s a very powerful man,” she explained. “I know Laura was afraid of him. She refused to go home, preferring to live at the university with her research and the students.”
“But he might have needed her to go home.”
“What does that mean in terms of trying to find her?”
“I think we don’t need to rush out to the deep blue sea yet,” he said slowly. “Maybe send out some feelers in Colombia to see if she returned home again.”
“She’d still need rescuing,” Vanessa pointed out.
There was almost a challenge in her voice, as if she expected him to travel to Colombia and track this woman down. He realized that, from her point of view, since she’d been rescued, so, of course, Dr. Sanchez would be. He didn’t think it would be anywhere near as easy as that.
He also wasn’t sure he was the right person for the job if that was the case. He had zero experience with Colombia. Whereas he knew that Merk, Stone and Swede had done several jobs there.
His fingers tapped the lab table as he thought about the options. Then he picked up the phone and sent Levi several text messages with the information she’d just given him. Levi’s answer came back with several question marks, nothing but question marks. Vince responded with Yes, check the family and the village to see if anybody’s sighted Dr. Sanchez yet. Apparently the family’s big enough, wealthy enough, and her brother is the big cartel boss so that there should be some media announcement about it.
I’m checking the feeds, Levi sent back. Stay where you are.
No problem, he said. We’re currently staying on the research vessel that we brought back to port. Vanessa is staying on until the new crew arrives.
Her father won’t like that, Levi said.
Good luck trying to convince her to change her mind, Vince sent back. When he was done, he looked up to find Vanessa studying him curiously. He raised an eyebrow. “What?”
“You’re grinning,” she said. “I hardly find anything in this situation to smile about.”
And he realized he really was grinning like a fool. “Sometimes we need to find a little bit of humor to lighten up an ugly situation,” he pointed out. “That doesn’t make it wrong.”
She nodded.
Just then someone hollered outside the ship. “Hi. Anyone here?”
Vince called up to answer Johan. “I’m down here in the lab.”
Within a few minutes Johan joined them. He walked around the lab of the research vessel and whistled several times. “Talk about state-of-the-art. This is nice.” He frowned and then turned to Vince. “It makes absolutely no sense why the pirates didn’t take this ship.”
“Except for the fact that it’s an American vessel,” Vanessa suggested. “It belongs to the university. Once the pirates kidnapped and killed Americans, they are engaging the entire US government. Do they want that kind of headache?”
Vince wasn’t sure about any of that. He filled in Johan with the update on Dr. Sanchez’s family scenario.
At that, Johan stopped midstride. “Colombian drug lords, for real?”
Vince turned to Vanessa.
“All I know is what I told you,” she confessed. “The last thing I heard from her was that she hadn’t been home in a long time and had no intention of ever going home.”
“While she was on American soil, it might have been a little harder for them to kidnap her.” He focused on Vanessa. “How often does she come on these research trips?”
They both watched Vanessa wince. “This is her first time.”
At that, they both looked at each other and nodded. “So this was much more likely a snatch-and-grab to take her back home again. Her life is quite likely in danger,” Johan said. “But hardly from the high seas.”
Chapter 7
Vanessa hated to hear their newest theory. She hadn’t even considered Laura’s life might be in danger by leaving the US. But it did make a twisted kind of sense. She hadn’t had many discussions with Laura about her family. She was remarkably closemouthed. Then, if she did belong to a drug lord family—which, of course, she hadn’t really admitted—she wouldn’t want everybody to know about that. And, if her life was in danger, it explained why she had not traveled much. “Why would she have come on this trip then?” she asked suddenly.
“You said there was a mess-up in the paperwork, so we’re not even sure she was supposed to come, correct?”
She thought about that. “I don’t know how all the mess-ups started. And I’m still looking for paperwork to confirm her part as my team. But I suppose, in a way, her brother could easily have just plucked Laura from here, taking advantage of the mix-up, and nobody could prove she had been here.” She shook her head. “No, of course not. We had the paperwork. Surely the university has a copy if I can’t find one here. Laura’s expected back at the university. When she doesn’t arrive, you know they will act.”
“Maybe,” Vince said. “But, for all you know, she handed in her notice before she left. Maybe she wanted to return home, or maybe she was coming here to disappear altogether.”
Vanessa groaned. “Okay, as conspiracy theories go, this is getting wilder and wilder.”
“They have a tendency to do that,” Johan said, chuckling. “But the bottom line is, we need to delve into Dr. Sanchez’s life. As soon as we figure out what she was up to herself, we’ll have an idea whether she was trying to escape a situation that was about to get ugly or if she fell into a situation that’s about to get uglier.”
“None of this is reassuring.” Vanessa walked to the rear of the lab, got her laptop, brought it to the lab table and sat down. “While we’re in port, I should do some research on her. Talk to some of my friends, see what they might know. She did date another professor I know quite well. He might b
e a good source of information.” She brought up her email, searched through and found Chaz’s contact info. She sent him an email, asking if he had heard from Laura, and did he have any idea about her family or future plans she had.
His response came back fairly quickly with What are you talking about?
She groaned. “He’s acting like he doesn’t know anything.” She repeated the question, saying that they were looking for her here in the Galápagos. They’d all been kidnapped, and everybody had been rescued but Laura.
This time when the response came, she tapped the table. “He’s not being very forthcoming.”
“Give us his name. We’ll get Levi or Ice on his case. Even the local cops wherever he lives could loosen up his tongue.”
She raised her gaze, startled. “Do you guys have that kind of influence?”
They both nodded. “Absolutely.”
At their direction, she emailed the professor’s email and phone number to both Levi and Ice.
“Now that we’ve done that,” Vince said, “who else would know anything about her? Does she have any family in the States? Does she have any other former boyfriends? Does she have any close friends? Children?”
“No family, no children,” she said. “There were a couple men she dated, that I know of, this professor being one, but I think he’s an ex now. I’m not sure if she has a current boyfriend or not.”
They pressed her with more questions, but she didn’t have any more answers.
“Who gave permission for her to come on this trip?”
“The head of the marine department,” Vanessa said. “I was asked who I wanted on the team, and I suggested eight names. I’ve got four of those I chose.”
“Who did you not want?”
She hesitated. “Do I have to say?”
“Dr. Walker by any chance?” Vince asked in a dry tone.
She nodded. “Is it that obvious?”