Scent of Gardenia (Scott Tucker Series) (30 page)

Chapter
75

Mike got
some sleep, but not enough. He decided to lay there and think.

Obviously,
Scott was now in the hands of that woman. Would they be successful and save him
again? What about the others? Three of the people kidnapped, he knew
personally. Jules was capable. He knew Jules well enough to know if he saw any
opportunity to overpower her, he would do it. He thought about Holly being one
of the captives.
Unfortunately her
presence complicated and limited the men’s actions. Margaret could just
threaten to harm Holly to get the others to do whatever she wanted. Today, we
are going to change the roles.

*.*.*

It was
still early when Mike woke up again, but the others could now be contacted. He
dialed Mercedes’ room. She answered right away. “Hello.”

“Mercedes,
its Mike. You sound like you’ve been awake for hours.”

“I
couldn’t sleep…I know I should have, but knowing Scott is with that
woman…well…I just couldn’t get my mind out of gear. You must be up. I’ll call
Ralph and see if he wants to meet for breakfast.”

“Okay,
I’m headed over to your hotel. I’ll meet you in the dining room in a half an
hour.”

“See you
then. Goodbye.” Mercedes hung up.

Mike
went over to give the couch a kick where Sam was sleeping. “Come on sleeping
beauty, we need to get the show on the road.” Sam didn’t move. “How about a
nice hot breakfast?”

Sam sat
up in bed, looking at his watch. “Isn’t six a little early? I feel like I just
put my head down.” He started to stretch.

“Let’s
go Sam; we’re supposed to meet Mercedes and Ralph in less than a half hour in
their hotel dining room.” Mike went into the bathroom to do a quick clean-up.

*.*.*

Mercedes
went into the restaurant downstairs. Ralph said he would be down shortly. She
ordered a pot of coffee, pouring herself a cup. It tasted good. She saw Ralph
approaching. They were the only ones in the dining room, which fortunately
opened at six.

“Good
morning Mercedes,” Ralph said, with a large yawn as he took a seat.

“Good
morning Ralph. I might say you don’t look well this morning.”

“Thanks
for the compliment.” He poured himself a cup. “Well I look better than you did
the other night.”

“Now
that you brought that up and we’re alone—“

“Like we
were that night,” Ralph interrupted her.

“Yes,
like we were. I need to ask you something about the other night.” Mercedes put
her cup down, waiting for him to pay attention to her. “How did I get
undressed?”

Ralph
lit up like a light went on, but just smiled at her, hiding behind his coffee
cup.

“Ralph,
I need to know. Did you take my clothes off and put me to bed?” Mercedes asked,
feeling her face turning red.

His grin
widened, but he still didn’t answer. Finally, he said, “Yeah. It was tough
duty, but someone had to do it.”

She
studied him. “That was much too easy…I don’t believe you.”

“Well,
what do you remember about that night?” he asked.

“I
remember having too much to drink and getting sick in the bathroom. Everything
was spinning including the toilet bowl.”

He
laughed and she kicked him in the shins. He looked serious and offered, “Well
when you came out you headed into the bedroom and we both got undressed.”

“No…no.
That wouldn’t have happened again,” she said, drilling into his eyes. “You’re
lying to me. Please Ralph, I need to know. Did you take my clothes off and go
to bed with me?”

He
nodded.

She
leaned across the table and made sure no one was coming. “If you want to be my
friend, you have got to tell me the truth. Please Ralph.” She bowed her head
and sat back. A few seconds later she leaned across the table again. “Ralph,
this is important to me. I woke up naked, with my dress thrown on the chair. My
underwear was on the floor. What did I do, and what was your involvement?” She
leaned back in her chair, feeling like she was going to cry.

He shook
his head. “Okay. You came out of the bathroom and went into the bedroom and
started to remove your clothes. Honestly, I was watching, and you got pissed at
me. You threw your dress towards the chair, and then started to unhook your
bra. At that point you pushed me out of the bedroom. I wanted to sleep with
you, but under the circumstances I left.”

She felt
relieved but uncertain he was telling the truth. “Ralph, is that the honest to
God’s truth? You didn’t take my clothes off, or see me naked?”

“Well,
I’ve seen you naked.”

“I’m not
talking about that previous mistake. Are you telling me the truth about the
other night in my room?”

His
smile went away. “I wanted more than anything to sleep with you the other
night, but I couldn’t take advantage of you…you were really snookered. I didn’t
think you would remember anything about the night, but I knew you would be
bullshit with me in the morning. I know you think I’m a jerk, but I do have
some scruples.”

Mercedes
got up, went over to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Ralph, I have more
respect for you now. Thank you for being honest…and a gentleman that night.”

“Mercedes,
I had a great time dining, drinking and dancing with you that night. I didn’t
want to negatively impact being able to enjoy your company again.”

“Thanks
Ralph. That is a big load off my mind.” She smiled at him, refilling her coffee
cup.
Scott, I may have had too much to drink, but I didn’t do anything I
would be ashamed about. Now we have to rescue you. She felt the weight lifted
off her shoulders.

*.*.*

Mike
spotted Mercedes and Ralph sitting alone in the dining room. He headed over to
them with Sam trailing along behind. “Good morning, everyone,” Mike said. Sam
echoed the same thing.

In
concert, Mercedes and Ralph replied, “Good morning.”

Mike sat
down, pouring himself a cup and tried to pour Sam a cup, but Sam shook his
head. The waiter, dressed nicely in a white jacket over black trousers, came
over and took their orders. Sam ordered a cup of tea and a bagel with cream
cheese.

“Okay,
so what’s the plan for today?” Mike asked, looking at Mercedes and then at
Ralph.

Ralph
replied, “Just after nine, we’re going to go to Margaret’s home and rescue them.
We’ll make sure her truck is gone.”

Mike
asked, “And what if she hasn’t left?”

“Why
would she be there? You booked an excursion for three people…do you think she
would pass up that booking?” Ralph said, waving his arms. He looked out the
large windows at the overcast day. Normally the sun would be shining, but it
actually looked like it was going to rain.

Mike
studied him, and then looked over at Mercedes. “This woman was smart enough to
keep men for many months without being detected. I don’t want to underestimate
her capabilities. I think we should make sure she’s at her dive shop before we
head to her house.” He let that thought sink in. “If we do that and she’s not
at the dive shop…what do we do?”

Mercedes
intervened, “That’s a good point Mike. Let’s go to the dive shop first and make
sure she’s there, and then go to her house. If she’s not at the dive shop, I
don’t think we should risk going to her house. She might just be running late.”

Their
breakfast arrived, which gave them some time to think more about this. When the
waiter left, Sam asked, “I’m not one for calling the police, but do you think
that might be the right next move?”

Mercedes
put her hand on Sam’s shoulder, holding answering his question, and asked,
“Ralph, did you hear anything from Max Gordon?”

“Yes,
there was a message for me at the desk that he was still in the Bahamas, Freeport to be specific, participating in the questioning of the man found with one of the
missing yachts.”

“Well,
that leaves the decisions up to us. I’m not in favor of contacting the police
at this point. I think we can successfully get the hostages out…my fear with
involving the island authorities is they might not be as sensitive to the
hostages as we are. We’re out on this limb now, let’s play it out and see what
it brings. If Margaret is at the dive shop when we check that out…I think we
need to go through with a dive, or she will suspect something. Our not showing
up might spook her; causing her to do something drastic, and I don’t think we
can take the chance,” Mercedes offered.

Mike and
the others ate their breakfasts and considered their next action.

*.*.*

They
were headed to the dive shop with Sam at the wheel of the cab. Their plan was
to observe the activity at the shop before pulling into the shop’s parking
area. Ralph brought a pair of binoculars.

Sam
found a small grove nearby and pulled off the road. Ralph was quickly out of
the cab and focused his binoculars on the shop. He reported what he was
observing, “The pickup is not in the parking area, but there’s a motorbike
parked in the lot. A man is on the boat and looks like he’s getting some equipment
ready, but I can’t really see what exactly he’s doing. I can’t see any woman on
the property. She could be inside, but I doubt that.” Ralph lowered the
binoculars and offered them to Mercedes.

She took
them and studied the area without saying anything. A few minutes later she
offered, “You’re right Ralph, there’s no sign of a woman and there’s a man on
the boat moving some heavy items.” She walked away from the edge of the woods
with the others following her. When they were next to the cab she handed the
binoculars back to Ralph. “Well, Mike was right…she’s not here. I think we
should wait a few more minutes to see if she arrives, and then go through with
our dive plans.”

Mike
offered, “I haven’t skin dived since I was here years ago. However, I can ask
for a refresher. What about you and Ralph?”

Mercedes
answered, “I had equipment on once when I was a teenager with my grandfather,
but I’m not sure if I could fake it.”

Ralph
smiled. “I guess you both will have to follow my lead. We’ll just tell him you
haven’t done it for years.”

Sam
shook his head. “Why don’t you folks just say you’ve changed your minds…pay
something and leave? It’s not like it’s the best of days for diving.”

Chapter
76

Sam
drove them next door and Mike got out. He headed down to the dock where the
boat was tied up.

He
approached the man on the boat. “Excuse me, I’m Mike Miller. I booked an
excursion for today.”

The man
came over, offering his hand and displaying a big smile. “Yes, Mr. Miller how
do you do. Where’s the rest of your party?” he asked.

“Well,
I’m sorry but I would like to cancel our excursion. Maybe I can reschedule for
another day.”

The
man’s smile was replaced with a scowl. “This is highly irregular.” He turned to
move something in the back of the boat.

Mike
reached for his wallet. “I’ll pay you for the boat and equipment, which Rusty
indicated was a hundred and twenty five dollars. I’ll even throw in another
twenty-five for the inconvenience.”

The man
came over, looked back at the parking area and then at Mike. He took the money
from him. “Would you mind calling Rusty from the phone here and explain this to
her, as I’m just doing her a favor today to take you folks out.”

Mike
thought quickly, responding, “I thought she was going to take us out today?”

“Well,
would you reconsider if she was going to do that?”

“It’s a
very cloudy day, why don’t we just reschedule.”

The man
jumped over the side of the boat, heading to the small dive shop. Mike followed
him, but wondered what he was going to tell Margaret.

*.*.*

The man had
never introduced himself to Mike and told him to wait outside while he tried to
reach Rusty. Ralph joined him while he was waiting outside.

Ralph
asked, “I thought there might be a problem…what’s going on?”

“I paid
him a hundred and fifty for the boat and the inconvenience, but he wants me to
talk to Rusty about our canceling this trip. Any suggestions?”

“Why
don’t you try to reschedule for tomorrow. I heard the weather is supposed to be
nicer. That will give us a chance to plan what we’re going to do.”

The man
came to the door, waving Mike to come inside. He went up the stairs and into
the dive shop.

“I
finally got Rusty on the phone and she wants to talk with you. Rusty here’s Mr.
Miller.” He handed the phone to Mike.

“Hi
Rusty. I’m sorry for the change in plans. Tomorrow is supposed to be a much
nicer day, can we reschedule for tomorrow?”

There
wasn’t an immediate response to his question. “Well tomorrow is Sunday. I’m not
usually working that day. However, if you still want to go out I can do it, but
it will cost you another one-hundred and fifty dollars. What you paid the man
he’s going to keep for his inconvenience. What time tomorrow?”

“How
about the same time. Are you going to be diving with us?” Mike asked, hopefully
trying to get a commitment from her.

She
finally laughed. “That will cost you an additional hundred. Do you still want
to go through with the dive? That’s going to round off to five-hundred dollars
for three people.”

He saw
his opportunity. “From what I hear that’s not much to pay when you’re diving
with us. A friend told us there’s a lot to see on the dive, and afterwards.”

“Oh, did
those friends happen to dive a few days ago?”

“Yes,
and they were extremely satisfied.”

She
laughed, what seemed like an honest laugh this time. “Well Mr. Miller, I’m
looking forward to seeing both you and your guests, and thank you for asking
for my presence…I’m sure the dive will be most rewarding and memorable. Can I
talk with my associate please? Have a nice day. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Mike
handed the phone to the man and went outside. “Ralph, I think we’re on for
tomorrow.”

*.*.*

They
told Sam to head away from the dive shop, and didn’t care where. They had to
review, if not, revise their plans.

“I think
I’ve locked Margaret into taking us diving tomorrow. So, if we assume she shows
up we can crash her place to rescue her captives. I was honestly surprised she
wasn’t there this morning. I could have sworn she said she was going to dive
with us. She quoted me five-hundred dollars for tomorrow’s dive, with her
accompanying us. She’s pretty expensive.”

Sam
pulled into a scenic lookout, and they all got out.

Mercedes
asked, “Do you think she suspects something’s not right?”

“I
thought I got those vibes when I talked to her. However, when I asked if she
was going to dive with us, she seemed to lighten up. I mentioned friends had
told me about how memorable it was diving and afterward…and she seemed to come
alive. I just let her take things from that point on. If she’s onto us, she’s a
very good actress,” Mike said.

Ralph
put his foot up on the bumper of the cab. “Okay, let’s map out our plans for
tomorrow, and let’s have some alternative plans. Any suggestions to what we
planned for today? And Mike, you were right to check out the dive shop
first…that was a real surprise she wasn’t there.”

The sun
was trying its best to poke through the clouds. Mercedes tried to put her
feelings aside about Scott spending another day with Margaret. Her mind was
drifting in and out of the time she had Scott immobile.
She wondered how
this woman fed her captives; let alone taking care of bathroom necessities.
What about baths and shaving? Maybe she had help?

Mercedes
spoke up, “Do you think she has help at her house? How does she take care of
four people; feeding, bathing and sanitary needs?” She thought more about that
and added, “It would seem like she would have considerable work to do to
maintain four slaves.”

Ralph
immediately replied, “If she had help, we didn’t see any sign of another
vehicle at her house the night we were there.”

“Yes,
but we were there at night. Maybe she has someone there during the daytime.
That could be a problem, even if we get her to the dive shop tomorrow. Maybe we
need to observe her house today?” Mercedes offered.

“That’s
not going to work because she’s there. She wouldn’t need anyone, if she was
going to be there. Today is Saturday, so maybe she has someone there at
different times of the day during the week.” Mike thought about that. “Would it
make sense to go to Denny Longo’s and get his support for tomorrow? We could
have him follow her boat and intervene if he saw any trouble.”

Ralph’s
head snapped to look at Mike. “Are you actually planning to go out on a dive
with that crazy person?”

Mike
answered, “Actually, I’m not sure if I want my life in her hands. I think we
need to give this some more thought.”

Mercedes
moved suddenly, and they all looked at her. “Maybe that’s the right way to
proceed. We should talk to Denny about following us out tomorrow. We should
show up as planned at the dive shop and let her head out to the diving area,
and then we collectively immobilize her. There’s three of us and only one of
her. She couldn’t possibly get the upper hand on three of us.”

Sam
interjected, “Are you sure?”