Kevin Gardner was furious.
A new avalanche had cut off the passage to Bern and his train was returning to Thun. At least he’d call on the local Police once more for any new leads on Ariel. How could she have left like that he thought. Where is she now?
* 2 *
Joey and Carlos watched the news report about the major LA quake. They were sitting in the suddenly quiet Sky Harbor Lounge at Phoenix Intl. Airport, while waiting for their boarding call to New Orleans. They’d bought the perfect house online and wire transferred the down-payment. They would finally have a happy home in an old Victorian townhouse overlooking Jackson Square, near the heart of the French Quarter. But Carlos was getting more and more agitated as the news continued.
“We’re going back, aren’t we?” he asked. So much for a new home, he thought.
“How’d you guess?” said Carlos. Joey had discovered recently that Maria Antonia was Carlos’s sister. That was why they’d come to California. She ran the bank job Joey wanted no part of. In his sleep, Carlos had been mumbling something about her not being able to fly. “I’ll go change our tickets,” said Carlos.
* 3 *
Roger Conner sat by Cassandra’s bed in the ICU of Monrovia Memorial. It had taken too long to get her here in the ambulance. The quake had destroyed the off-ramp for the nearest hospital, so they had to come farther to treat her gunshot wounds. The paramedics had done the best they could, but she had lost a lot of blood. Even with all the transfusions, she was now in a coma. He didn’t know what to do. So he sat, waiting.
* 4 *
Julie Novak stood on the jagged gap of the dam while Johnny would film her telescopically from across the chasm, on the west. She pictured a new Pulitzer on her mantle. He gave her the start cue. “This is some of the violence by what is now being called the Arroyo Canyon Quake. The reservoir is gone,” Johnny panned into the torn cement and rebar. “as the epicenter was directly under this upper dam, where I am now standing, just north of Eastvale.” Johnny panned up. “This is Julie Novak for Twelve News.” It was the best piece she’d done in ages. Another tremor wobbled her into the gap. She was tied by a harness to a handrail, but now she was hanging upside down. She dropped the mic and a shoe. His camera better still be taping. Damned good footage! This is Julie Nov…uh… She passed out with Johnny shouting in her earpiece.
* 5 *
“Devon Wait!” Val grabbed the phone and closed it. “We have to give him a chance to explain. Maybe he didn’t do it. You’re just so ready to jump to the easy answer, you’d make a good cop. Charlie could never have shot me. That, I know.”
He’s right, damn it, she thought. But she hated when Val got all bossy and mean. And Charlie did deserve a chance to explain why he had this evidence in his possession. Val called his brother but got the “voicemail full” tone. Something was definitely wrong, as he always answered when he could.
Across town, Charlie was paying cash for a new Honda Insight.
* 6 *
Julie Novak was swaying back and forth from the harness that tethered her to the handrail above. Remnants of the exposed rebar were dangerously close to impaling the up-and-coming superstar news anchor. Fifteen feet above where she dangled perilously close to the rebar, a telephone pole with live electric transmission lines fell against the handrail to which she was secured.
Johnny made sure to catch it all on tape. After all, if Julie wasn’t there to take the glory of the story, he still was.
* 7 *
Charlie’s Insight was cruising north on the 101. He’s never driven this stretch of road before, but he was mesmerized with its beauty. In a few minutes he’d be in Monterey where he’d look for work at the aquarium. He’d always been fascinated by marine biology.
* 8 *
Sister Margaret prepared Ariel’s tea with an extra special ingredient to help her rest. She brought the tea to Ariel and helped Ariel drank the tea while still restrained. By the end of the cup, Ariel was getting drowsy.
Just as Ariel nodded off to sleep, a light knock came to the interior chamber door. Sister Margaret opened the peep hole to see who was knocking. With a smile she opened the door.
“Father Perseus, how good of you to come,” Sister Margaret kissed him on the cheek as was the local custom.
“Sister Margaret, so good to see you. Your message said you had a gift for Project Andromeda?” Father Perseus was eager to see his new addition.
Sister Margaret led him to Ariel’s bedside.
* 9 *
Carlos Almodóvar was having a fit at the America West ticket counter. The Ontario airport was shut down until further notice and there were no flights available to Los Angeles until next Tuesday. The closest he could get was a flight to San Diego in 2 hours or John Wayne International tomorrow morning.
In his best theatrical Spanish accent, he went off, “But don choo know who I yam? I yam Carlos Almodóvar, the son of the famous Pédro Almodóvar, and if choo wan to keep joor yob. Choo will git us on that plen!”
On the inside Carlos was busting a gut with laughter. He didn’t know how he was keeping a straight face, so to speak. He bet the ticket agent didn’t even know who Pédro Almodóvar was, let alone he was openly gay and didn’t have any children Carlos knew of. The flustered ticket agent went to the back room to get her manager.
The ticket agent returned with two boarding passes, “Your flight leaves for Los Angeles in 45 minutes. Thank you for flying America West.” Carlos couldn’t wait to tell Joey and Maria this story.
* 10 *
Maria Antonia coughed a big bubble of blood. She saw it splatter against the plexi-glass divider of the taxi. Her head ached. She saw outside it was getting dark.
* 11 *
Sister Margaret watched as Father Perseus’ priests carried the last of the sleeping girls into the van that would deliver them to Venice and on to the Andromeda site. She suspected the project, out in the Mediterranean, was nearing completion. Father Perseus was never clear on that, but he always paid handsomely into her special account. She didn’t tell him this last angel had wandered into the church in the middle of a storm or that she had removed the ID tag from her wrist. She suspected his overwhelming charm was how he convinced “his angels” to willingly join the project to save the human race. She quietly hoped he would someday consider inducting her into the actual inner project.
* 12 *
The cab that Maria Antonia woke up in had landed nose down on the slab of concrete that was the Mile High Bridge. Her own nose had finally stopped bleeding, though she had to use the torn inner lining of her dress as a kleenex. Then it dawned on her that her purse wasn’t the only thing missing. The bag with the heist money was gone and so was the cabby. That bastard. She spotted him up on the edge of the road, his feet hanging over a large boulder and tossing pebbles into the dry river bed. His head was covered in some kind of green paint and blood. Far off, she heard the unmistakable rumble of a Harley as it raced around the last bend in the road, heading into Eastvale.
“Oh my God, Lady,” said Chris, “I thought you were dead and gone.” When he saw her, he came down to help her up to the road, apologizing the entire way. “That guy must have followed us ‘cause he knew who you were and knew what was in that bag.” Chris watched all the color drain and flush again into Maria Antonia’s face.
“I know who it is,” she whispered, “and now he’s a dead man.”
* 13 *
Charlie had topped off the tank in King City. He found a route on his GPS to avoid all the CHP’s on the 101. It took him to the coast via the Arroyo Seco Rd. He followed the Pacific Coast Hwy up, through Big Sur as he drove along the twisty road. The rising sun was just setting on the sleepy, scenic community of Monterey. It was a magical view as he saw it from the ridge into town. He found a motel, not too far from the Aquarium. The manager suggested pre-purchasing his ticket for the attraction a day ahead to beat the crowds. After a hearty breakfast, he opened his laptop to take advantage of the motel’s free WIFI and searched for a place to live that wasn’t too far from the Aquarium. The realtor he called was ready to show him a few sights overlooking the ocean that were available to rent immediately. After he settled in, he would contact Val.
* 14 *
AMERICAN SCIENTIST MISSING IN AVALANCHE read the headline of the English copy of Swisster, with the picture he’d faxed to the local paper. The article noted that Ariel West was the sixth missing person who might be buried in the disaster. Rescue crews continued the hunt. Kevin knew he could even wait until spring to know for sure. Out for an early coffee, he noticed a strange sign of a delivery van. “St. Andromeda Candles.Com” floated above a spiral nebula. It was driven by a handsome, young priest. He tried to ignore the feelings of something amiss as he stepped into the warm cafe. The van turned the corner and sped away. Everything was strange in foreign lands.
* 15 *
An orderly wearing a surgical mask entered Cassandra’s room. He released the break from the wheeled bed and began rolling Cassandra out of the room.
“Where are you taking her?” asked Roger.
“The doctor has ordered an MRI,” the orderly replied. “You should wait here, I’ll have her back in a jiffy.”
The orderly wheeled Cassandra out of the room, down the hall to the elevator. Roger thought it was odd the orderly was wearing a surgical mask yet it wasn’t out of place for where they were. The orderly’s eyes were familiar too, yet he couldn’t place them.
* 16 *
“That brother of mine, I never could trust him!” Maria was going off.
Chris Darby didn’t know what to say. “Your brother stole your bag of money?”
“Of course it was him. He’s the only one that knew where I would be,” Maria further convinced herself.
Ring, ring, ring.
Chris Darby’s attention was drawn to Maria’s purse by his side. “Hey Lady, your phone is ringing.”
Maria was thankful Carlos didn’t take her purse in addition to the bag of stolen cash. She looked at the phone displaying UNKOWN CALLER. “Hello?” she answered.
“Maria, it’s Toby. Are you alright?” Toby inquired. He had to find out if Maria knew it was he that took her duffel bag from the cab driver.
“Toby, I’m stranded beneath Mile High Bridge. Please, come get me. You wouldn’t believe what my brother Carlos has done.”
* 17 *
In Santa Monica, Carlos and Joey’s plane was just landing. Carlos turned on his cell phone as soon as they landed and called his sister. Busy. Redial. Busy.
* 18 *
Danny saw the electrical lines fall precariously close to where Julie was dangling in the gap of the collapsed dam. He radioed in for the electric company to cut the electricity so the EMT’s above could save her. The electric company gave the all clear signal to the EMT’s just in time for Brian Evans to clip on his microphone.
“This is Brian Evans reporting for Twelve News where our very own Julie Novak has tonight become the story. While reporting on the collapse of the dam, a strong aftershock caused Julie to lose her footing leaving her to hang like a piñata…”
Danny had to chuckle. Julie was never going to live down that comment.
* 19 *
“Maria, be patient and I’ll send Jason, the drummer from the band. He’ll take his 4-wheel drive truck through the canyon to pick you up. I’ll have him take you to the hospital to make sure you’re not hurt,” Toby said. Now he just hoped he could get through to Jason.
“I’ll meet you at the hospital. Call me when you get there. I love you.” Toby knew that last bit always worked with women.
* 20 *
Kevin sipped his cappuccino gazing out the window at Lake Thun. Andromeda, Roma-Venezia-Knossos. There it was again on a matchbook on the table. He called Carson about the embassy’s lame response to Ariel. Maybe he could help. They’d just pulled up the wings of their plane. The jagged fuselage lay beyond. Another two of those odd vans sped by the window and along the lake. Something nagged at him.
* 21 *
Toby couldn’t believe that she’d done it. Maria Antonia had run the bank job he had shown her how to do. He’d explained it to impress her when they first met. They joked about robbing the bank to teach that uptight bitch, Mrs. Murphy, a lesson. That was a year ago. Then, when he’d quit the bank to go on tour, Maria Antonia left him like a hot potato. She was his first girlfriend. It had caused trouble with his ex-boyfriend and drummer of Cuerpo, Jason Right. He knew he couldn’t do two relationships at once.
* 22 *
I’M HEADING TO SF-CP, said the text Charlie sent Val. He must be driving, thought Val. He decided he wasn’t going to tell Devon that he was going after his only brother. She was spiteful sometimes and he couldn’t trust her to do the right thing about his brother. Val knew that no matter how much money he might have taken, he was going to be scared. And scared leads to trouble. Charlie was good at that.
* 23 *
“Maria Antonia Almodóvar Benton Donati, where the puck are you? Our plane just landed. Call me you trickly bruja.” Carlos left a voicemail for the third time at the car rental booth. Joey was hungry, but they could hit a drive-thru on their way to her old house in Eastvale. That was probably where she went after the quake.
* 24 *
Toby glided down the Ventura Freeway, headed for the Coast Highway, thinking how lucky he’d been to see her at the airport. But what was up with the flight attendant’s outfit? She was still a mystery. The tank was full and so was his backpack. He had no need to stop, at least until, perhaps Carmel or Monterey. He was done with her lies, especially when she split up his band the last time. This time he would start a better Cuerpo Sin Cabeza with musicians that didn’t care if he liked men and women both.
* 25 *
Jimmy West finished his champagne and flagged the fight attendant for another. Carson had called him to go to Bern for Ariel, his niece. He was still livid about what Cason had done, but this emergency involved little Ariel. Besides, Bobby Evans could handle the vineyard. He’d hired Bobby right out of Stanford with an agricultural degree. It didn’t hurt that Bobby was brothers with a news anchor for Twelve News.
* 26 *
“Call me, Chris,” said the cabby. He’s so gallant, thought Maria Antonia. He’d chopped off both her heals to ease her walking. He shared a powerbar and his jacket from his backpack as they made their way to town. What the hell did Carlos mean “his plane just landed?” And where the hell was Jason, Toby’s jealous, fag drummer?
* 27 *
“Excuse me, Nurse,” Roger asked at the nurses station when Cassandra hadn’t come back for over an hour.
“Yes, Mr. Connor? How may I help you?” the head nurse said perfunctorily.
“How is Cassandra Connor’s MRI going? Will she be returning soon?” Roger inquired.
“Let me check the computer for you.” Click, click, click… “According to the computer there hasn’t been an MRI scheduled for this evening.”
“Then who was it that took my Cassandra? Call security, I think she was kidnapped!” Roger was frantic. He pulled out his cell phone, hospital rules or no, he had to get hold of Feng Feng.
* 28 *
Even from the opposite side of the interstate, Carlos could see the silhouette of Maria walking down the shoulder of highway 60. “Driver, take the next exit and turn around. We need to pick up my sister on the other side over there.”
“Sure thing,” the cab driver acknowledged.
* 29 *
Kevin was enjoying his cappuccino. He knew he’d be enjoying a whole lot more though if Ariel were there with him. With that last thought, his cappuccino didn’t taste as good. He quickly drank the rest of his cup.
As he got up from his seat at the café, he could see the flickering of candles from the stained glass window of the church across the street. He thought it would be a good thing to light a candle for Ariel and say a prayer.
He started across the street and the last St. Andromeda Candles.com van stopped to let him cross the street. Inside the cab of the van, Father Perseus motioned the sign of the cross in Kevin’s direction. Though he should have felt comforted by such a kind gesture, Kevin actually felt a little creeped out with the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. He knew this wasn’t a good sign.
Kevin hurried into the church to light that candle.
* 30 *
“And just where do you think you’re going without me?” Devon demanded.
“I … I … I was just …” Val stammered.
Devon grabbed the cell phone from Val’s hand and pushed a few buttons. “Uh-huh, just as I thought. You got a message from Charlie and were going to go looking for him without me. You are so busted!” Devon put on her sweater and picked up her purse. “Well, let’s go. I’ll phone Dad on the way so he won’t be worried.”
All Val could do was shake his head. He and Devon had been inseparable ever since elementary school and there was no keeping anything from her. He wished he knew how she did it. “Okay, just don’t do anything rash. We want to hear his side of the story, remember.”
* 31 *
Toby knew better than to drive a long distance after having been up for over 24 hours. Somewhere past Oxnard, Toby started getting drowsy and nodding off.
* 32 *
Charlie sipped his Bud as he lay on the deck chair of his new balcony overlooking the killer sunset over the Pacific Ocean. His scuba training had come in handy on his resume. Their father had trained him and Val on those summer Caribbean excursions. The job paid just enough to cover rent and food. But it was too soon to spend anything from the bank job that could be traced back to him. His scenic “backyard” ran all the way to the rocky shore below. In the morning he’d stash the money among the rocks behind his bungalow. In two days, he’d begin at the aquarium. This was going to be fun.
* 33 *
Carson West, still jet lagged, really needed a nap before taking his brother, Jimmy with him to the American Embassy in Bern. Carson’s plane arrived at 3:15am local time and he’d gone straight to the hotel. Jimmy would land in about three hours and that gave him just enough time to catch some winks and refresh. Then they would find Kevin and chew his ass for not taking better care of his little girl.
* 34 *
“How long ago did he take her?” asked Feng Feng as she raced along the street.
“About thirty minutes ago,” said Roger. “I’ve checked all the exits, but I think he used the Emergency Room entrance to sneak her out. I’m downstairs now and he looked familiar. He was one of the guys who shot at us.”
“I’m just outside the Emergency parking lot,” said Feng Feng. “Hurry up. One of the ambulances that just left was kind of out of place. That may be our kidnapper.”
Feng Feng caught Roger racing out the automatic doors, running right toward her car. He jumped in as she squealed the tires to follow the old 50’s era Cadillac ambulance she’d seen leaving. That car and its unique tailfins would have been retired decades ago. “When I first saw that old Caddy, I thought they might be filming a period movie, but there were no equipment or crew anywhere.”
* 35 *
Kevin had lit a candle and prayed before the statue of the Virgin Mary. “Blessed Mary, please protect Ariel and keep her safe. Please show me the way to save her, light my way and help me find her. I ask all this in your name, Amen.” For the first time in his life, he looked at her face and was struck how real and wet the Virgin’s eyes appeared. A tiny twinkle there filled him with a sense of comfort. He knew he would find her as long as he didn’t give up. He stepped out into the cold air of the courtyard of the church and saw one of the nuns stop in her tracks across the yard. Upon seeing him, she ran back to a dark passage, out to the street. He knew he had to follow her. But there was nothing there but trash cans and the street beyond. “Wait,” he called after her. But she was gone.
* 36 *
Paul Syler sat on the barstool of his den and watched the boys playing a Star Wars video game on the 42” screen. It helped to keep Kyle’s mind off the fact that his mother had just died in the earthquake. He wished he’d had a friend as good as Josh was to Kyle, when he was a kid. Paul beamed with pride. Now he had to track down Kyle’s dad, Kevin the archeologist who was somewhere in Egypt.
* 37 *
Kevin looked at the trash cans at the side of the church. A piece of cloth was hanging out of lidded can. It was a memory trigger for Kevin; it was the same pattern as the hospital gown in which he last saw Ariel.
He opened the can and on top of the discarded hospital gown was Ariel’s hospital wristband.
* 38 *
The old Caddy ambulance was speeding through the streets with Feng Feng and Roger following close behind. The rear tinted windows of the ambulance rolled down and two thugs dressed as hospital orderlies aimed their guns at the following car.
“Duck, Mr. Roger! I do evasive move. Hold on.” Feng Feng said. Her accent only came out when she was under stress. “Call Agent Richter on my cell phone.”
* 39 *
The third time Toby nodded off he nearly swerved off the road. He knew he had to pull over to sleep. He pulled off near Carpinteria and checked into a seaside motel. Little did Toby know it was a hotbed of illicit activities.
* 40 *
Charlie fell asleep on the deck chair of his balcony. The sun was down, and he was getting chilled. That’s when he woke to the sound of his cell phone ringing. He checked the phone. Val again. “Hi Val, what’s up?” Charlie answered as cheerfully as he could.
“Charlie? Where the hell are you?” Val demanded. Charlie always called him Val the Inquisitor, but never to his face.
“I’m staying with some friends of Carlos and Joey in the Castro. I’ll be home in a few weeks.” Charlie offered Val a bone.
“We’ve got to talk, Charlie. I’m driving up to meet you.” Val asserted.
“Gotta go, Val. We’re going clubbing.” Click.
“Charlie!” Damn him. Charlie thought.
* 41 *
Detective Cranston was examining the body in the Mini-Cooper. He had no need to take dental imprints because the body was wearing dentures, or rather the dentures were in the mouth of the victim. Rather odd that the dentures were not in place.
“Edgar, isn’t it odd that a burn victim’s dentures were not in place?” Detective Cranston asked of the medical examiner.
“Well, it all depends on how much burn damage has been done to the head. In this case here, it could go either way. But what is interesting here is that this body had been dead for at least a week before being burned in that fire.” Edgar Romero loved dropping bomb shells on unsuspecting detectives.
“Huuuuh! You mean … this was all a set up to throw us off the tracks?” Detective Cranston said this to himself as much as to Edgar.
* 42 *
With Carson safely out of town, Adelle combed through Carson’s paperwork for bank account numbers. So convenient they got married on their way home….
* 43 *
Father Perseus snuffed the cigarette in the ashtray, driving the first van off the plane’s back ramp. Now, it was down to the docks and out to the private island. Surrounded by marshland and lagoons, it was a hidden, forested castle in the middle of Venice’s sinking delta. Like clockwork, they’d left Zurich, no one the wiser, as Perseus had planned. Nobody bothered the clergy here in Venice, as they drove delivery trucks onto the barge. The island had been a fortress, a monastery and a rock musician’s summer villa. Now it, with its hidden canal and moat, was his. He named it Andromeda. Unlike the goddess tied to the rock called Neptune’s Hammer, the castle was cut into the bedrock of the island and was safe from the “Curse of Venice.”
* 44 *
Carson had taken that precious shoulder bag that was thermally insulated yet he only used it for industrial documents. Why? Adelle wondered what else was in the bag. She’d gone over the house, and once more honed her hunting skills. She found hidden passages and trinkets in unseen compartments but nothing substantial. Carson was clever but Adelle had been a magician’s assistant. She found jewelry and bands of cash, knowing where they would be if she needed them later. Carson would never know that she had discovered his secrets, or what she was now scheming.
* 45 *
“Kevin Gardner? This is Paul Syler. Our kids go to school together.”
“Yes. Kyle has mentioned you and your son, Josh, is it?”
“I’m sorry to have to say that I’m calling with some bad news.” Paul had gotten Kevin’s cell from Nancy’s phone before he passed it on to Kyle.
“Is Kyle okay? Is he hurt?”
“He’s fine. He’s safe here with us. But in the earthquake we just had, your wife, Nancy was killed. She asked me to look after him until I could find you.”
“When it rains, it pours…the saying goes,” said Kevin with a trembling voice.
“Look, there’s no rush for you to hurry back. Kyle has a roof over his head and three square,” said Paul, hoping it didn’t sound snide after such bad news.
“Kevin, I’ll pay you back as soon as possible. It’s just that I’ve got a major problem on my hands that I have to attend to first. Then we’ll be home soon.”
“Kevin, no worries. We’ll work it out. Call when you can. Here’s Kyle…”
* 46 *
Charlie sat at the counter of Rosie’s Grill, taking slow sips of his cold beer, as he waited for his “to go” order of chowder with fish and chips. The biker in black leather pants and vest strolled into the diner and sat down next to Charlie and dropped his back pack between them.
“Howdy,” said Toby and picked up a menu. Charlie noticed the shiny zipper of the pack was open just enough to barely reveal $100’s in stacks. Charlie flagged the waitress and ordered two more beers.
“You look dry. Let me buy your first one.” Charlie knew most people accept a drink that’s already been ordered. “Nice bike.”
“Thanks and thanks,” Toby held eye contact too long, dazed by the youth.
This is going to be easy, thought Charlie and wrote “follow me” on a matchbook.
* 47 *
Father Perseus’ faithful servant Ignazio unloaded the human cargo from the vans. He led them to the new maternity ward for their “crop” to be raised. The demand for black market babies born to mothers in good health was outpacing the supply. This was the first group of women to be cared for in the newly opened wing. On the other side of the hall, the old wing housed the previous batch of women who had just started delivering their babies. All but two of them were already paid for by couples that couldn’t adopt through legitimate adoption agencies.
* 48 *
“This beer sure tastes good after a long ride. Thanks again. I’m Jackson. Jackson Turner,” Toby introduced himself. He picked up the alias from the motel in Carpinteria. On the way to his room, after grabbing a bite to eat, he noticed a door wide open. He peered in to see the occupant lying on the bed, elastic around the arm, needle still in the vein. Toby saw his opportunity to change his identity – the dude’s wallet was on the nightstand. He left his own wallet and took the wallet of the deceased, Jackson Turner.
“I’m Tanner. Tanner Cooper. I just moved into the apartments next door,” Charlie didn’t want any association with Eastvale. This way Val and Devon would never be able to track him down. “So Jackson, what’s your story? You into guys or girls?”
“Must one choose?” Toby gave a smile and winked at Charlie.
* 49 *
Adelle was getting restless. She loved living in the tropical Cayman Islands. Carson was a dear to have purchased a bungalow for their new life together. Carson could still head Astrodyne Aeronautical Systems but he would be away for a few weeks every month while he tended to company business.
Adelle put on her Adriana disguise and grabbed the duffel bag of cash from the bank job. Since she was in on the bank job, there was no dye pack in with the money. In her snooping through Carson’s belongings, she found a bank statement, along with some deposit slips. Adelle went to the bank and deposited the entire duffel bag into Carson’s account. Adelle knew that such a large deposit would send up red flags and initiate an investigation. Especially since the Cayman Island banks were under such close scrutiny by the U.S. government. She knew she could turn this meager amount from the bank job into so much more by implicating Carson.
* 50 *
“Detective Cranston, let’s run a DNA sample through CODIS to see if we can identify the victim,” Edgar Romero offered. “I’ll call you if we get a match.”
“Good idea, Edgar. You’re the best. How long do you think it will take?”
“It could take several hours. It all depends on how much traffic is on the database, but at this hour, it should be pretty fast.”
* 51 *
Kevin flagged down a police officer and told him about Ariel and what he found at the church. Kevin led the officer to the trash can where he found the evidence, but it was gone.
* 52 *
Ariel felt fresh from her nap. She watched from the balcony as the boat took the new mothers and babies to San Marino Island. Another island haven, it too, was once a mountain. She was lucky to be alive and awake. Father Perseus had brought her out of the Armageddon. Flood, plagues and sea monsters covered most of the fragile Earth. Mankind was almost gone. Andromeda Island protected the last few who would bring humanity back from near extinction. They’d taken her first son, Kevin Jr. to San Marino while she was in coma. Her second son, Noble was forming in her belly. She peered hard across the northern sea to the new shores of the Italian Alps. Rome, Cairo, London, New York and LA, as most capitals of the world, had sunk below the waves.
* 53 *
“Know what?” Devon asked Val in that quiet, icy tone. “I don’t care where you go. So go. But if there’s no trust, what’s left?” She answered for him, “Not much.”
Val knew better than to try to say anything when she talked like this. She wouldn’t hear a single word he said until she cooled down. To top it off, her dad needed her for the dinner rush. He was short a hostess and two waiters. Val had driven her in, cringing the entire way. The 7-11 was still closed, under repair while the restaurant had hardly a scratch. But he had to find Charlie and that meant leaving her behind. This was one of those rare moments when he didn’t know if the quarrel was ending their relationship. Devon had been his only girlfriend. Now what would he have? Not much.
She got out of his silver Jetta and walked into the diner without even looking back once. Devon was mad as Hell but she stopped just inside the heavily tinted doors and considered apologizing. But he drove away before she could go back out to say she did understand. To tell him that she was stupid to make him choose. His hand was wiping his eyes as he left the parking lot. It was the first time she had seen him cry.
* 54 *
“Hey Jimmy,” shouted Carson West. “I just got a call from George Digby.” He elbowed his brother in the adjacent seat of the costly jet flying them to Thun.
“What?” Jimmy asked. He wondered how Carson could be so darned perky.
“George Digby. He’s the chairman of Royal Cayman Bank. You remember our beach house on Grand Cayman?” It was a five acre mansion with a private pier, 30’ yacht and a crystal blue lagoon up to the backyard. “Adelle just unloaded $250,000 into the personal account. The branch manager wasn’t aware that I remarried and called George. He phoned me to okay adding her on. He gets a special bonus this year, ‘cause she didn’t see the other accounts. He shredded the transfer notices for us and moved our balance to the Zurich numbers, tax free. She can only use the one in Cayman. I thought getting the prenup was hard. She can keep the Range Rover.” Jimmy’s smiled and shut his eyes.
* 55 *
“They’re on the 605 south!” said Roger on Feng Feng’s phone. “I think they’re heading for the S.S. Cassandra at the harbor. We’ve taken heavy gunfire.”
“Yeah,” said Agent Richter almost casually. “I’ve got the live LAPD chopper video of your car chase. Boy, she’s like NASCAR. We’re east on the I-5 and laying the trap at the docks. LAPD’s above you. They’re hanging back for safety. See ya soon.”
No more ammo, thought Roger. Then a gurney rolled out and flew at them. The windshield shattered, blinding them for a second. The air blasted off the Miata’s hardtop and windshield onto the cars behind. Tires and crashing metal faded as they raced on...