April 2: Down to Earth (46 page)

"Do you want to call in help and search for him?" Carol's driver asked.

"No, he made his petty point. He can play at independence until he needs something. I'll know anything he buys with the credit card and if anyone asks what he is doing, we can honestly say he cut us loose and doesn't want his elbow jiggled. Less risk for us really. Take me back to the office, John."

"Yes Ma'am."

Gunny posted in the Honolulu Daily Trader and Free Board: Need ride, aprox. 27 miles to suburbs from PalmAire Condos. $500 offered. Luggage and one male. Solo drivers able to show current license only. Within the next hour pays bonus cash. Prepared to be generous, for prompt and discrete service. Reply to this address to lock/schedule job.

The first message offered a ride, but indicated the man had a couple cousins who needed to come along. He just replied: "NO." After a few more minutes a message arrived. "Licensed driver with pickup truck. You must share ID before ride. Half cash up front. Can arrive ten to twelve minutes," he replied: "Acceptable. Will be in second lot on left from south entry. Waiting in a full size white Audi. Will load own luggage."

The pickup was old and boxy, but he noted the tires were good and it ran smoothly when it stopped. He went to the driver's window and offered his driver's license for ID.

"You have any objection if I tell my sister your name and address?" she asked, cell phone in hand.

"Not at all. You can tell her you are delivering me to this address if you wish too." He showed her the Satos address and a map on his phone and she repeated it to her sister. She showed him a local license, the first name Dolores and the last name an unpronounceable Hawaiian name, but held her finger over the address. He didn't mind. The photo matched and a girl has to be careful.

He offered her two-hundred and fifty in cash and she tucked it in her jeans. When he opened the trunk and transferred his bags, he wondered if she'd drive off and keep the half fee for no work, but she didn't. He tucked his bags in the corner behind the passenger seat and pulled a cargo net over them.

"You left your keys hanging in the trunk," she warned him.

"Yes, I did that on purpose. I'd advise you not to take advantage of it. It's a State Department vehicle and even in this nice of a neighborhood I imagine it will be stolen quickly. It will be a big hassle for the people that loaned it to me and an even bigger one for whomever boosts it," he said smiling.

She just laughed, shaking her head. "I like a man with a sense of humor," she told him as she drove away.

A few miles away he was out of range of his bugs. He wondered  briefly if he should have set a relay, but then they would be found pretty soon by her staff anyway. They weren't very sophisticated bugs.

* * *

You can get to that address from the west side and it would be closer you know," she said after awhile, looking at the route he had highlighted on his phone.

"Thank you, but there may be people watching for me to approach from the west and I'd rather they didn't see me arrive. I'd appreciate it if you'd leave the long way around too.

"Is this turning into a risk for me?" she asked, frowning.

"No, because you have my name and address. You are welcome to verify you dropped my off if anyone asks. I'd just rather they didn't get opportunity to ask. If they have no idea how I got to the place, I'd be amused and happy."

"Military, aren't you?" she said squinting.

"Navy, Master Sergeant," he supplied.

"Hmmm, you're a long way from Maryland," she observed.

He didn't say anything. It was true.

* * *

When they drove up the Satos' driveway and parked, Dolores just gave a long whistle of appreciation. It was a pretty nice place just about anywhere. In Hawaii it was palatial.

Chapter 40

"Your man is here," Adzusa called from the doorway. "Want to come out and meet him?

"Not in my pool clothing," April objected. The household swam naked, but April didn't feel comfortable lounging around like that. She'd have felt even stronger about that, if she knew they wore suits before her visit. She had on a short silk robe.

"They just started up the drive. Run and throw on a t-shirt and shorts and he'll still be unloading and greeting people."

By the time she got down to the driveway, Gunny had four large bags on the pavement and was handing money to the driver, at the window of a really old piston engine pickup. Li was waiting patiently for him to get through.

"I am Li, a manager of the household," he introduced himself. "We have you in the room across the hall from Miss Lewis, We will put your bags in your room, if you'd like to join the family at the pool and get acquainted. The Santos will be coming down for dinner soon."

"I'll show him the way Li, thank you," Adzusa told him.

"I'd rather unpack my own things if you don't mind," Gunny said worried.

"As you wish," Li agreed tilting his head. "We expected you to have weapons. You will find there is an open gun safe in your room and you may set the combination as it pleases you."

"Oh, OK, thanks," Gunny said with a big grin. "All the comforts of home. Miss Santos, Miss Lewis, I'm happy to meet you finally."

"You know us by sight," Adzusa said waving him to follow her and started for the house. "How deeply were you briefed?"

"I've read intelligence analysis folders for everyone here. That gives me a collection of bare facts, tempered by the collection methodology and tainted by the politics of the intelligence organization. I plan on giving a great deal of weight to my personal observations. Feel free to offer any information that helps my primary goal of Keeping-Miss-Lewis-Alive."

"Just April, please."

"And how do you wish to be addressed? Adzusa quickly inquired.

"Master Sergeant Tindal will do fine," he assured her.

"In your dreams," Adzusa told him.

"Most of my friends call me Gunny," he said. Ignoring the aside.

They sat around a pebbled glass table and Adzusa invited him to pick a chair with a casual wave of the hand. Informality was fine with him.

Gunny looked April over, giving her a closer examination than was possible walking along. He didn't try to pretend he wasn't scrutinizing her and her first reaction was discomfort. She thought immediately of the creepy beam dogs, who had leered at her in the cafeteria at home. But Gunny was serious, not leering and his eyes went everywhere like the vacuum rats but he wasn't checking her out as they say, he was looking at her like Jon had looked over Neil McAlpine when they had met back home. Like two big dogs deciding which was Alpha.

That was how he was gauging her now, she realized, for her potential, wondering how capable she was. It was creepy in a new, different way. He wasn't checking her out, he was sizing her up. How hard would
he
be to take? Pretty formidable she realized. Surely harder than the guys on New Las Vegas had been. She broke eye contact, embarrassed she had fallen into staring back him, in the same coldly analytical mode.

Gunny for his part, could tell she walked different, taking smaller steps on her injured side and holding her arm protectively over her injured ribs. He wondered what she was taking for the pain? Would it slow her down?

"If you want to know more about me and what is going on, ask your people to give you a comprehensive folder on Jon Davis, Jan Hagen, Bob Lewis, Steve Lewis, Ajay Singh, Jeff Singh, Heather Anderson and Don Adams. Those are all people off Earth, so I'm sure they were considered too unimportant to include in any briefing. Oh and Preston Harrison. He's dead, but if not him, anything about the Patriot Party. If I find any of them, they'll be dead rather quickly too," she vowed.

"It's pretty hard to guard somebody who is determined to go into harm's way," Gunny pointed out. "The Naval officers who were protecting Harrison found themselves in conflict and picked badly. When he acted to arrest you aiding him do so was outside their mandate of protecting him. Be aware I won't draw a weapon to aid you, if you attack someone not an immediate threat. Even if they are an avowed enemy. That isn't my job."

"Oh, I'm not going to go hunting them. But if a bunch of them would foolishly congregate, I wouldn't hesitate to call down fire on them."

"Ah good. I was afraid you had some crazy honor thing, about exposing yourself to fire like you did with Harrison and got shot in the ribs for it. If you'd caught that one in the head we wouldn't be having this conversation."

"And my friend Easy is going to jump all over me about that," April admitted. "He already chewed me out about my tactics on New Las Vegas, when we rescued Don Adams."

"When you jumped on the guys back like a frigging pony? Damn right," Gunny agreed.

"What should I have done? I want to hear your version before I tell you his."

Two to one? With one guy already waving his gun around and threatening your friend? Shoot 'em dead where they stood without apology. Then put a couple just-to-make-sure rounds in them before leaving cover to go to your friend. I'm assuming you had no close backup and Adams wasn't armed?"

"No, my backup was all the way back on my ship and I hadn't seen Don Adams in a year. I had no idea what level of help he might be." April grimaced. "Jon and Jan are probably going to chew me out too, next time I see them."

"Well it sounds like you are surrounded by good advice, if you'd care to start listening."

April laughed out loud. "My friends will all like you just fine," she predicted." Easy said I should have just reached and squeezed the trigger, when that idiot pointed the grips at me."

That got a startled look and grin from Gunny.

Li came in and sat off to the side, just nodding politely at them. Two of the young women came in and served pitchers of fruit punch and some finger food. Bacon wrapped shrimp and little skewers with chicken and pineapple. They took a glass and plate over to Li. April poured for Adzusa and Gunny after they withdrew. Gunny, done with her, was twisting all around frankly appraising the place. For security or for wealth, April wasn't sure.

April stopped and thought about Gunny arriving. She got a puzzled frown. "I'm surprised you had to hire a ride. I'd have thought you'd have a government car of some sort."

"Ah, well, Ms. Jordan from State met me and was giving me a ride out here, but she wasn't inclined to offer me a vehicle. She felt I should call and wait for a car and driver whenever I had need."

"What did you do? Get out of the car and walk away?" Adzusa asked.

"You
seriously
have no idea what sort of person I am, if you think I'd do that," Gunny told her. "With all my bags to carry too? I kicked her and her driver out and took their car," he informed them.

It took some time for the girls to stop laughing and settle down.

"I confess," April told him. "I was immediately irritated with Ms. Jordan, when she came on our shuttle and tried to take charge of Adzusa and me. She was just so
sweet
about it, like she was doing a social favor. She was really useful and I'd have welcomed what she offering from somebody else, with a different manner. But everything the woman does just infuriates me. I fear I treated her worse than was necessary."

"She has this way of trying to manage you like you are a little kid. As if you need such direction," Adzusa said. "I expected her at any moment to tell us to hold hands and come along like a couple Kindergarteners."

"I don't care for being managed either," Gunny allowed. "I wasn't entirely sure I could remove all the bugs and tracking devices from their vehicle so I found a local entrepreneur willing to give me a ride for cash. I can buy my own ride now and be sure the vehicle is clean."

"What did you do with their car?" Adzusa asked.

"I left it in a condo parking lot. If they have decent tracking on it they should have it back by now. I only cut the factory antenna."

"Did you just leave the keys in the ignition? Azusa wondered.

"Not at all. I left them hanging in the trunk," he said with a straight face.

After the second round of laughter was under control Adzusa asked, "How would you know who runs a pirate cab? Have you been to the islands before?"

"I posted a, need a ride, notice in The Honolulu Daily Trader and Free Board. We have similar trader boards in Maryland and illegal jitneys. It wasn't hard to get immediate discreet service, far cheaper than an airport limo."

"No, but you take your life in your hands dealing with the unknowns. I'd be terrified to hire a ride that way, off a public board."

"I didn't fall off the turnip wagon yesterday. I could be a bit more difficult to rob casually, than most of the young bucks would expect."

"Even if you buy a car, watch out," April warned him. "I bought a new Mercedes and by the time we went from the airport to the dealer to pick it up it had three bugs and a drone following us home. That's likely to happen to yours. But between Li and myself, we can likely get it cleaned up for you."

"Yes and my father can arrange a driver, to assure it isn't disturbed while you are in somewhere," Adzusa promised.

"I'm looking forward to meeting your father. You mentioned getting a folder on Harrison. I had one that was such useless drivel, it was like a press release. I'm hoping maybe Mr. Santos can get me a more useful data set, on Harrison's successors and party."

"My father is retired. I'm not sure he'll agree to do so, but you can ask him."

"He may be retired, but I'm eligible to retire right now if I wish. I don't plan on having a brain wipe when they muster me out. I suspect if he makes a call or two, the phone tree that activates would be remarkable." He lazily sucked a second bacon wrapped shrimp off a toothpick and savored it. That reminded April she was ready for lunch.

"I'm hoping nobody gives that woman a hard time for dropping me off. If they think she has some relationship to me beyond a paid ride it is fantasy. But the idiots sometimes see patterns where none exist. I came in on the side opposite where I thought they'd be looking."