by Dale Mayer
“I surely hope nothing has befallen him,” Tony said. “He’s one of the best assistants we’ve ever had. As a researcher, he’s best, bar none.”
“Sure,” she said. “But he was also Dr. Sanchez’s assistant. So, if something has happened to her, what’s the chance that, just by association, something has happened to him?”
The two men joined them. Vince looked down at her and smiled. “You look better.”
She laughed. “Meaning, I looked like shit before?”
He shook his head. When she raised an eyebrow, he gave a slight shrug. “Let’s just say your tough day showed earlier.”
“Very nicely put,” she said. “I am feeling much better. A shower and a change of clothes will do that. However, none of us have managed to find Jasper.”
“And nobody we have talked to has seen him,” Vince said, holding up both photos of Dr. Sanchez and Jasper.
She studied them. Something about seeing them in black-and-white photos hit her stomach harshly. “You really think something has happened to them?”
“We know,” Johan said, his voice hard, “that something has happened to Dr. Sanchez.”
Feeling stupid, she quickly waved her hand. “I know that. I know that. But having Jasper’s face right there … only to not be here all of a sudden, I’m hoping he just went for a walk or is sitting in a restaurant somewhere.”
“And he could have gone back to his room. Did either of you check there?” Dr. Walker asked, his snide tone evident.
“He left his phone behind, so we can’t text him. And he cannot respond. If he went back to his room,” Vanessa said, her frustration rising to match his, “then he would have seen the texts on his phone and answered them.”
“Possibly,” he conceded. “But we don’t know that.”
“What we do know is they’re both missing,” Johan said.
“And under very different circumstances,” Tony said. “Surely they’re not connected.”
“The fact that they’re both missing from the same research team,” Vince said, “means they are connected. Different circumstances though.”
“Jasper isn’t missing until it’s at least been twenty-four hours, right?”
“Hardly,” Vince said. “He could be classed as missing immediately. There’s absolutely no way to know what’s happened to him.” He changed the subject. “We found a nice restaurant around the corner, more outside than in, and appears to be local food, if you’re up for that. Otherwise, we can stay here at the hotel.”
Vanessa brightened at the thought of a local eatery.
But Dr. Walker spoke his mind. “The hotel will be better.”
Her response was a grimace.
Vince grinned at her. “He doesn’t get to make that decision,” he said. “There’s five of us.”
She looked over at Tony who half rolled his eyes at her.
“We all prefer eating locally,” Tony said. “But Dr. Walker has this thing about not eating food he doesn’t recognize. So the hotel food would be much easier on him.”
She gave in gracefully because she knew that was true. They had taken him a couple times to dinner at places against his wishes, and he had been violently ill afterward. She’d half wondered if he hadn’t shoved his fingers down his throat just to make it happen. She nodded. “That’s true. The hotel it is then.”
Vince nodded, hooked his arm through hers and said, “Then maybe tomorrow, if we’re still here, we’ll try a local restaurant for lunch.”
She brightened and nodded. “I’m up for it.”
“I’d rather be on my way home,” Tony said. “I don’t understand what the holdup is on getting flights.”
“Likely paperwork, either that or for questioning or both,” Vanessa said cheerfully. “You know the university has to book all that stuff. We’re off schedule, so it’s quite possible we’ll just stay here because our flights were due to go out tomorrow anyway. It’s probably cheaper for them to keep us here in the hotel than it is to change the flights.”
Dr. Walker’s face looked a shade paler, but he nodded. “Quite possible. But I was really hoping to go home as early as possible.”
“How many kids do you have, Dr. Walker?” Vince asked cheerfully.
Dr. Walker smiled. “Twin boys. They’re eight now.”
“Lovely,” Johan said with a grin. “There’s nothing like sons, and twins would just double the fun.”
“And double the trouble and the expense,” Dr. Walker said dourly. But there was a twinkle to his eye.
“Anybody else got kids?” Vince asked the group in general.
Vanessa shook her head. “Nope, not me. Tony, I don’t think you do either, do you?”
He shook his head. “Dr. Walker is the only family man among us.”
“Neither Jasper nor Dr. Sanchez either?” Johan asked curiously.
Vanessa shook her head. “As far as I know, nope.”
The men shrugged and nodded. She figured it was both a question to see just who and what the group was like and also digging a little bit more about Dr. Sanchez.
“I think I’m also the only one who’s married,” Dr. Walker said, as if that was an achievement in itself.
Then again, considering he’d been married for fourteen years to some poor berated woman, it probably was an achievement. “I’m not,” Vanessa said. “Jasper isn’t. Tony isn’t. Laura might have been at some point, but I don’t remember.”
The men nodded.
At that point the maître d’ asked how many for a table and then asked them to wait and disappeared.
It was a very nice restaurant, so she half expected the high-class treatment, but it seemed a little overdone when most of the customers were in shorts and sandals. But whatever, as long as she got to eat.
As they were seated, drinks were ordered, menus handed out, she settled in against the window, studying the vista outside. She was much more of an outdoors girl and would have been more than happy with a beer and local fare on a side street. But she could also dress up and be a good girl in a nice restaurant too. It wasn’t the time to really cause fights. They had enough discord with the now two missing persons from their team.
She looked at the menu and smiled. “At least there are some local favorites on here.” She ordered a seafood appetizer and pasta with seafood dish. When she closed the menu, Vince stared at her. “What’s the matter?”
“Nothing. Just didn’t realize you liked seafood so much.”
“I love it, and when I can get it local and fresh …”
He nodded and ordered the exact same thing. She didn’t know if he did it on purpose or because he really wanted it.
With the other orders in, an uncomfortable silence settled on the table. She looked for a conversation starter and then said brightly, “I know you were hired by my dad, but, as part of the group you rescued, I really appreciate you coming and saving our sorry asses. So, thank you.”
Both men looked at her in surprise but nodded their heads.
“You’re welcome,” Vince said. “And you’re right. Your father did arrange this. But the university would have also. We’ve been in contact with them steadily, now that we’ve arrived and found you. And they’re quite concerned about Dr. Sanchez.”
“But what can we do about it now?” Tony asked, puzzled. “Surely the local authorities are looking for her.”
“They are, indeed,” Vince said. “But that doesn’t mean they will have any luck. It would help a lot to know where her last movements were. And, of course, we wanted Jasper for that.”
*
Vince had been keeping track of the people coming and going in the restaurant, just to see if he didn’t like something going on here. He was still working out where Jasper was. It didn’t feel right. But, with nobody talking and nobody having seen any sign of him, it was like Jasper had dropped off the edge of the earth. Kind of like Dr. Sanchez.
Vince waited as the waitress returned, her arms laden with their meals. He checked hi
s phone several times while she delivered their meals.
Vanessa leaned across the table. “What are you expecting?”
He shrugged and said, “Anything at this point. I’d really like to see one of those two people show up.”
“You know she won’t show up again,” Dr. Walker said. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but let’s get real. She’s probably lost at sea.”
“I don’t think so,” Johan said calmly. “I think she was either taken off the ship by force, or she left on her own. There’s such a major gap between the time anybody last saw her and when you were taken prisoner that anything could have happened.”
“But why?” Vanessa asked.
Vince watched as she picked up a huge succulent shrimp and bit into half of it. The pleasure that wafted across her face gave an instant physical reaction. This was a woman who would be passionate no matter what she did. She would eat well; she would play well, and life would give her all kinds of good things because she was someone who took the time to enjoy the small things. And, when she got something extra-special, she would make sure she enjoyed it. He had to admire that.
He looked down at his own plate, heaped high with prawns and grinned. He picked up the first one and popped the whole thing into his mouth. And even he had to stop and close his eyes. Fresh lemon squirted into his mouth along with the wonderful flavors of fresh seafood. There was seafood, and then there was this seafood. He swore to God they must have been picked out of the sea within the last hour because it was so fresh tasting.
“Aren’t they good?” Vanessa asked in amazement. “I can’t believe how fresh they are.”
Vince nodded and didn’t waste time on words. Only the two of them had ordered seafood, and he was fine with that.
Dr. Walker had stuck with tried-and-true steak and a baked potato. Vince figured Walker probably ordered that no matter where he was. Not everybody’s comfort level extended to trying new and different things in other parts of world. As Vince looked at his plate, he realized his wasn’t all that unusual. It was fresh seafood with pasta. That was pretty standard no matter where you were. It was just the quality of the actual food that made his stomach sing with joy.
Another waitress refilled their water glasses. He looked up at her and smiled. “You must get a lot of tourists through here,” he said.
“Tourists, researchers, lots of workmen,” she said with a grin. She looked at the people at this table, and her eyes narrowed. “Aren’t you part of the research team from the university with Dr. Sanchez?”
Silence fell on the table.
Vince said encouragingly, “Yes. Have you seen Dr. Sanchez lately?”
The waitress shook her head and smiled. “No, I haven’t. But I did see Jasper this morning.”
“Oh, interesting,” he said lightly. “Where did you see him? We were trying to contact him to invite him to dinner.”
The woman looked surprised. She checked her watch and said, “It was probably a good six or seven hours ago. He was walking out of the hotel.”
“Darn,” Vince said. “We were hoping he was around.”
“I don’t think so,” she said with a frown. “And he wasn’t alone. Two men in black suits were with him.” She glanced at the others and said, “That’s one of the reasons why I came over here. I was hoping you’d seen him since. There was just something about the way the men were talking to him that was a little unnerving. But I was coming on my shift and was late already. So I didn’t give it too much thought. Until I saw you guys, and I remembered how unnerved Jasper looked.”
“You know Jasper well, do you?” Vince asked.
She flushed.
He realized his intuition had hit that one on the head.
“Well enough,” she said hurriedly. “He’s a really nice man.”
Vanessa smiled up at her. “He’s a wonderful man. Would you recognize the two men he was with? Did they get in a vehicle and drive away, or did they walk?”
“They got into a vehicle. I think it was a black car,” she said with a frown. “But again, I’m sorry. I just caught him in a glance, recognized he wasn’t very happy and came inside.”
“Did he see you?”
The waitress nodded. “Yes. He flashed me a bright smile. I guess that’s why I wasn’t thinking anything was wrong.”
“So you didn’t actually see him get into the vehicle?” Johan asked.
She frowned and looked down at him. “Not really. I did see him stand at the back, and one of the men was waiting for him to get in. They were kind of blocking his exit so he couldn’t back out. No, no,” she said hurriedly, “I don’t know. I can’t really say what it was about it that bothered me.” And then she caught sight of someone on the other side of the restaurant. “I have to go.” She hurried away.
“Interesting,” Dr. Walker said. “I didn’t think Jasper knew anyone here.”
“Apparently he does,” Johan said with a nod at the waitress.
Dr. Walker grinned. “Jasper is a healthy young man, but, as for those two men in black, I don’t know.” He frowned. “Government men?”
“That’s an interesting guess,” Vince said, pulling out his phone. He sent Levi a text with an update. “It’d be easy enough to check.”
“Not really,” Dr. Walker said. “The government around here is notoriously unstable. You’ll get a yes one day and a no the next day.”
“I think that’s standard for governments all over the world,” Johan said. “Doesn’t really matter which one it is.”
Vanessa chuckled. “Isn’t that the truth. It goes for all microcities too, like a university system. Just when you think you got your grants and all your paperwork in order, they turn around and say, Nope, you don’t. You’re missing something, and until you do it, you can’t have whatever it is you are after.”
“And maybe that’s standard for all companies,” Vince said. “Besides, a quick check at the government level here will see if he’s their guest,” Johan said lightly. “A consulate is here as well. Maybe he’s there.”
“Oh, now that’s a great idea,” Tony said. “I never even thought of that.”
With several more emails fired off, Vince returned to his meal. When his texts came in several at a time, the others all watched as he calmly ate his shrimp. He looked up and grinned. “They can wait thirty seconds. This is an excellent meal, and I intend to enjoy it.”
But, after a couple more bites, he pulled out his phone and flicked through Levi’s responses.
He said in a noncommittal voice, “Levi is following up on it. There are very little security or traffic cams here, but he’s checking with the government and the embassy.”
“That’s good to know,” she said. “Maybe somebody can roust out some answers.”
Just then her phone dinged. She pulled it up and said with delighted surprise, “It’s from Jasper.”
She flicked her screen to bring up the message. All the color drained from her face. She stared up at them. “He says he’s in trouble, and he needs help.”
“What kind of help?” Johan asked.
“He doesn’t say.” Her fingers were busy texting him back. Absolutely. Where are you? What can we do? She hit Send. “What kind of trouble could he be in?”
“It’s hard to say,” Johan said. “At least he’s alive. That is a really good solid step.”
Vince nodded grimly. “But for how long?”
Chapter 10
“At least he’s alive. I guess that means he did come back to his room and grabbed his phone. He had to have seen all of our messages though,” she repeated out loud. “God, is this what our world has come to?”
“Considering Dr. Sanchez is missing,” Vince said, “and Jasper disappeared without any word to any of us, yes.”
“Why wouldn’t he have texted me earlier?” she said, looking down at her phone, waiting to see if she would get a response.
“Because he couldn’t,” Tony said. “It’s the only answer that makes any sense.�
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She looked over at him, hearing the quake in his voice. Tony was one of the best scientists she knew, but he wasn’t into this cloak-and-dagger stuff and definitely not into a dangerous lifestyle. He loved his rocking chair, his pipe and a fireplace. He had two beagles at home, waiting for him. And she understood the kind of guy he was. He was very similar to her father in many ways. Just thirty years younger.
She laid the phone on the table as she continued to eat, her gaze constantly on her phone, waiting to see if something came in. When there was nothing, she looked up at Vince.
He smiled at her reassuringly. “Depending on the kind of trouble, you know we have help available.”
She swallowed hard and took another bite. “I just don’t understand what kind of trouble.”
“No,” he said, “but just the fact that there is trouble might be enough to get some help. My boss will contact the consulate and see if they know anything about it.”
“What about the people who give us the permits? Maybe they can find out if there’s been any kind of trouble with the research team.”
At that moment, taking the last bite from his plate, Vince looked up and saw four men outside the double glass entrance to the main lobby of the hotel, all similarly dressed in some uniform. … Law enforcement maybe? Or military? They crossed the entrance and headed toward the front reception desk. Vince glanced at Johan and saw his gaze had narrowed, his face frozen, and said, “Trouble just arrived, don’t you think? Or are they on our side? Or does their presence have nothing to do with us?”
“I’m thinking trouble. And for us. There’s nothing amiable about their looks. I’d rather be safe than sorry.” Johan glanced around. “We better find a back exit for our friends here.”
Not giving them a chance to argue, Vince moved all three into Johan’s care, moving them out the restaurant through the kitchen. He wasn’t even sure where that would take them. He walked over to the front counter and paid the bill, then casually walked out to the lobby.
Vanessa had followed behind him.