Scent of Gardenia (Scott Tucker Series) (20 page)

Chapter
47

“Carol,
call upstairs and tell Mr. Marshall’s secretary I have to meet with him right
away. I’m headed to Ralph’s office and then to see Max. My hope is that the
three of us can meet upstairs in a few minutes. If he asks, tell him something
has happened in Bermuda…that should get his attention. Thanks.” Mercedes
conveyed all this as she hustled by.

Mercedes
saw Ralph’s door was open and stuck her head in. “Ralph, something’s happened
in Bermuda and we need to meet about it.” He wasn’t moving. “I’m talking about
now.
I’m going to find Max and then go upstairs.” He wasn’t moving. “Suit yourself.”
She left almost at a run.

She came
around a corner and almost knocked Max over. “Good, I found you. Max, something
has happened in Bermuda and we need to talk about it right away. I just told
Ralph and I’m headed upstairs to talk with Mr. Marshall.” Max wasn’t a man of
many words and just followed her.

*.*.*

“Mr.
Marshall, thank you for meeting with us on such short notice. As you know,
Ralph, Max and I went to Bermuda about the missing men investigation. Well just
a few minutes ago I got a call that the two people doing a private
investigation on one of the missing men are possibly missing themselves. The
vehicle they were using was found burned and they have not been heard from or
located. It could be possible that they got too close to whoever is kidnapping
those men.” Mercedes said this so fast she had to catch her breath.

“Max,
what’s your take on all of this?” Mr. Marshall asked.

“I just
heard this myself. I don’t like the sound of it. We should call Chief-Inspector
Hughes and get his input. Can we call him from your office, or would you like
us to do it downstairs?”

He swung
his phone around on his desk and waved his hand offering it.

Max
picked up the receiver and realized he didn’t have the number. Mercedes handed
him a card with his number and Max dialed the phone. “Yes, this is Agent Max Gordon
with the FBI; can I please speak with Chief-Inspector Hughes?”

“He’s
very busy this morning, but let me see if he can talk to you. You said FBI Agent
Max Gordon, right?”

“Yes,
that’s right. Thank you. It’s very important.”

There
was an extended delay and everyone was quiet in Mr. Marshall’s office. “Yes,
this is Inspector Hughes…Mr. Gordon?”

“Yes,
thank you inspector. I’m with two other FBI agents; Mercedes Strong and Ralph
Reynolds, along with our director, Mr. Marshall. We understand Holly Compton,
and Jules Bennett are missing, along with his cab found burned. Can you update
us with anything else?”

“Well
Mr. Gordon we’re only a couple of hours into this situation. Yes, you’re
correct the two people have not been located and we believe someone may indeed
have them. Mr. Bennett’s cab was indeed found in a scenic lookout and burned.
We’re processing the vehicle, but preliminary findings indicate an accelerant
was used to totally destroy the vehicle. There were no signs of the two people
near the cab, and no signs of any struggle there. We’re trying to backtrack
their whereabouts leading up to their disappearance.”

“Inspector,
thank you. How can we assist?”

“We have
the situation under control. I suggest we keep you informed of our progress.”

Everyone
looked over to Mr. Marshall who was shaking his head. Max responded,
“Inspector, we would feel more comfortable if we were to return to Bermuda and help in any way we can.” Mr. Marshall was nodding his agreement.

“Mr.
Gordon, I don’t see the need for that.” They didn’t respond to him. “Suit
yourself though.”

“Inspector,
we have nine missing US citizens, who we believe, went missing in, or around Bermuda, and one has turned up murdered. I think we can justify providing some of our
resources assisting there. Are you personally in charge of this new
investigation?”

“Yes I
am. I’ll be your contact if you indeed decide to come here. I have to go,
things as you can imagine are very busy here. Have a good day. Bye.” He hung
up.

Mr.
Marshall spoke. “Excellent job Max. I think the three of you should all go
there as soon as you can. Thanks for touching base with me so quickly. Please
keep me informed, and if you need anything let me know.”

They all
left Mr. Marshall’s office. “I’ll have the reservations made. I suggest you
both be ready to fly out tomorrow and pass along any of your current duties to
other staff,” Max asked, “Any questions?”

Neither
Mercedes nor Ralph said anything but nodded their heads.

She
thought about how much she wanted Scott to be with her, but she didn’t want him
anywhere near Bermuda.

Chapter
48

I heard
Colleen making Mike’s flight and hotel reservations. I decided to make my pitch
to go too.

“Mike,
what’s the plan?”

“Colleen
is making my reservations, which you may have already known.” Mike studied me.

“Mike, I
would really like to team up with you on this investigation. We’re talking
about one of our own missing down there. I’ve helped before and I think I can
help again.”

“Nice
try Scott. However, you’re needed here to keep your projects going. Right now
you’re the only one with the connections to get the Wang computer set up.
Scott, I’ll make a deal with you—if I need your help I’ll call. Okay?”

I tried
to think of other reasons to convince him, but nothing came to mind. “I
understand.” Mike watched me to see if we were done. “I’ll get out of your way
so you can get ready to leave. Is Paddy okay?”

“He’s
still on the phone with Victor Young as far as I know. I wouldn’t be surprised
if Victor got on a plane and headed down there himself.” Mike started to put
things into a briefcase and I knew it was time to leave.

*.*.*

I went
into my office and saw the coin still face down on the desk. I’ve got to make
this a better day. I dialed her number.

The
phone rang about six times and finally, “Hello, Agent Strong.” Her voice
sounded rushed.

“Mercedes…Scott.
I’m glad I caught you. Can you talk? What’s happening there?”

“Scott,
you’re lucky you caught me. I was just putting some things in my briefcase for
our trip. Ralph and I are headed to Bermuda, and Max is also going back with
us. We leave on the first flight tomorrow.”

I heard
what she said, but I also heard Ralph’s name. “I wish I was going with you.”

“That’s
nice, but we need to get some investigative work done,” Mercedes replied, but
with some attempted humor.

“Mercedes,
you’re forgetting how well we worked on the task force together. We made a good
team. I’m thankful you had my back when I needed it.”

“I know
Scott, but things are different now, especially with other members going with
me. Speaking of having your back…would you like mine before I leave?”

“Is that
all, or do I have a choice?”

“Why
don’t you come over to my apartment? I have to pack and I’m leaving here in a
few minutes to get my stuff together. We have no idea how long we’re going to
be there. Something doesn’t fit right down there and I can’t quite put my
finger on it. So, did you decide, or do I have to say anything else to get your
motor running?”

“I’m
coming.”

“I hope
so. Bye.”

*.*.*

I
couldn’t leave this early for her apartment…even though I wanted to. I picked
up the coin, shook it and let it drop. It landed ‘heads up’ this time.
I’m
already making it a more positive day.

I called
my contact at Wang to discuss the offer of the computer setup. He put me in
touch with his director and I explained what we had been doing with the MIT Lab
and the Real Estate listing project. He said this was in line with what they
were trying to do, and having a facility using their equipment to solve
business problems was easy to sell. He wanted a list of the equipment we
needed. I promised him a call within the hour.

Bill’s
equipment list was sitting in my ‘in box.’ I checked the list and changed the
quantities on a couple of the items. I called Wang and told them the equipment
we would need. This would be a big success. I was promised the equipment in
less than two weeks. Now there was nothing more to do there. There was also
nothing more to do on the actual real estate listing project. Bill was working
on putting that data together with the help of some of Stephen’s people.

I made
one more important phone call to Wang. My contact there said they were still
discussing their improvement process I outlined previously, but one of the
senior management reviewers wanted a Cost/Benefit analysis. It had been started
but he was not optimistic it would be done for several weeks. There was nothing
more I could do there.

I pulled
out my copy of Charlotte Williams’ letter and reread it. I could feel her
frustration and her words hit me hard again…and now with Holly going missing I
knew what I needed to do.
I had my own plan which is why I needed to get
these things off my ‘to do’ list.

Chapter
49

I left a
status note on my desk in a folder labeled ‘Status of Projects.’ This was just
in case anyone needed to know what was happening on my projects.
There’s
nothing like planning ahead.

I headed
to my apartment to take care of some personal things. Mrs. Abbott spotted me
and asked, “Scott, how is your day going?”

“Mrs.
Abbott, I’m making it a ‘heads-up’ kind of day. Thank you for asking.” I’m not
sure she spotted my wink. She smiled a big smile and went back to tending her
hanging plants.

I put some
clothes together, which I thought were appropriate and found my passport. I put
my toiletries into a sealed bag and thought about anything else I might need. I
decided I could always add it later. I left the bag next to the couch and
headed to Mercedes’ apartment.

*.*.*

The
doorman was getting to know me and my routine. He indicated he would have my
car taken care of. I tipped him my usual five dollars, which put a smile on his
face. Two minutes later I was getting off at the 23
^rd
floor. I
knocked on Mercedes’ apartment door not expecting her to answer, but to my
surprise she answered.

“Why,
Scott, what a surprise! What brings you here?” she said, stepping out of the
doorway so I could enter.

I was
surprised to see her in a business suit, but she looked very professional. “I
thought I could help you pack,” I answered, with a big smile.

There
was no hand shake, no kiss and no real greeting. “Good, then let’s get to it,” she
said, heading toward the bedroom. She had two large suitcases open, one on a
chest at the foot of the bed and the other on a small stool near her closet.
She opened a drawer and took out the contents, handing the pile to me, nodding
to put it in one of the suitcases. I noticed bras and panties of different
colors.
I wondered if Ralph was going to see any of these.

“Scott,
here’s some more things to add to that case.” I took them and put them in the
case. When I turned to face her, the top of her business suit was unbuttoned to
reveal she wasn’t wearing anything under it. She knew I noticed because I was
staring.

She put
her hands behind her on her dresser and it reminded me of her pose at the cabin
years ago. “Scott, do you remember my saying earlier, ‘something doesn’t fit
right down there and I can’t quite put my finger on it. So, did you decide, or
do I have to say anything else to get your motor running?”

“I
remember.” She unzipped the skirt and it fell to the floor revealing she wasn’t
wearing anything under it.
I think she set me up, I’m sure she wouldn’t have
gone to work like this…would she?

“Well
Scott, I’ll say it once more—something doesn’t fit right
down there
and
I can’t quite put
my finger
on it—does that give you any ideas?” She
said it, emphasizing the words.

I was
getting excited when I first spotted her top unbuttoned. She smiled noticing my
full excitement. I went over to her quickly, but she didn’t change her pose. My
kiss showed her how much I missed her and my finger found she was more than ready.
I didn’t rush and she wasn’t rushing me. A few minutes later she slipped off
her top and started removing my clothes.

She
laughed. “And I thought that was a gun in your pocket. I bet even though it’s
not a gun, its loaded.”

*.*.*

Mercedes
bed was comfortable, her shower was too, but if there was a prize for the most
comfortable—she would have won it.

Hours later
we were both spent, lying side by side on the bed. “Scott, I’m going to miss
you. I have no idea how long we’re going to be in Bermuda. I’m trying to cram
enough memories to last me several days. I hope you don’t mind.”

Her
comment forced me to laugh. “If this was the treatment each time you took a
trip…maybe you could take more.”

She
punched me in the stomach and we were back at it again.

*.*.*

We slept
for a short time. Mercedes looked at her bedside clock. “Scott, I’m really
sorry, but they’re picking me up in just a few hours and I have to get some
sleep. I’m sorry, but I have to ask you to leave. You know if you stay we’re
not going to be sleeping. Do you mind?”

“Mind? I
try to mind everything you tell me to do. That started last night…remember, you
asked ‘if that gave me any ideas.’”

I tried
to dress and leave, but the third time my clothes stayed on and she saw me to
the door. In fact, she waved goodnight to me in the hall. She’s real gutsy. I
waved to her, but I was very close to heading back.
I honestly got the
feeling she didn’t really want me to leave.

On the
way down in the elevator I had a strange feeling—
what will I do if something
bad happens to her down there. My mind went to Ralph, but he wasn’t the biggest
concern at the moment. However, now that I thought of Ralph…how could Ralph be
expected to keep his hands off her? Have they made love? Will they make love on
this visit?