The Evening News (46 page)

That situation was complicated by Miguel's own strong desire for Socorro
.
But as the group's leader he continually reminded himself that he could
not afford to join in the competition over her
.
His leadership role, he realized, had had other eflects as well. Looking
in his shaving mirror recently, he realized he was shedding his
unremarkable "everyman
”
appearance. Less and less did he resemble an
innocuous clerk or minor manager, which had once been his natural
camouflage. Age and responsibility were giving him the look of what he
was-a seasoned, strong commander
.
Well, he thought today, all commanders made mistakes and White Plains
clearly had been one of his
.
Thus, for everyone's varying reasons, it was a big relief as 7:40 P.m
.
neared and final pullout procedures got underway.

Julio would drive the hearse, Luis the "Serene Funeral Homes
”
truck. Both
vehicles were loaded and ready
.
The hearse contained a single casket in which Jessica lay, under deep
sedation. Angus and Nicholas, also unconscious and in closed caskets
,
were in the truck. On top of each casket Carlos had placed a garland of
white chrysanthemums and pink carnations, the flowers he had obtained
that morning
.
Strangely, the sight of the caskets and flowers subdued the conspirators
,
as if the roles they had rehearsed in their minds
and were about to act out had somehow become easier to assume
.
Only Baudelio, fussing around the three caskets, taking lastminute readings
with his external equipment, remained solely attuned to immediate concerns
,
this being one of several times during the next few hours when the success
of the enterprise would depend totally on his prior judgments. If one of
the captives should regain consciousness and struggle or cry out while the
group was en route, especially while being questioned, all could be lost
.
Even a suspicion that the caskets were in any way unusual could result in
their being opened and the entire plan foiled-as happened at Britain's
Stansted Airport in 1984. On that occasion a Nigerian, Dr. Umaru Dikko
,
having been kidnapped and drugged, was about to be flown to Lagos in a
sealed crate. Airport workers reported a strong "medicine-type smell
”
and
British Customs officers insisted that the crate be opened. The victim was
discovered, unconscious but alive
.
Miguel and Baudelio both knew of that 1984 incident and wanted no
repetition
.
As the moment to leave for Teterboro approached, Socorro had appeared
,
strikingly seductive in a black linen dress with matching jacket trimmed
with braid. Her hair was tucked under a black cloche and she wore gold
earrings and a thin gold necklace. She was crying copiously, the result of
Baudelio's prescription of a grain of pepper beneath each lower eyelid. She
now gave the same treatment to Rafael; at first he had objected, but Miguel
insisted and the big man gave in. Soon after Rafael adjusted to the mild
discomfort, his tears rolled out too
.
Rafael, Miguel and Baudelio, each wearing their dark suits and ties, looked
suitably cast as mourners. If questions were asked, Rafael and Socorro
would pose as brother and sister of a dead Colombian woman, killed in a
fiery auto accident while visiting the U.S., whose remains were being flown
home for burial. And since the woman's young son-so the cover story
went-was one of two others killed in the same accident, Rafael and Socorro
would be Nicky's sorrowful uncle and aunt. The third "dead
”
person, Angus
,
would be described as an
older distant relative who had been traveling with the other two
.
Baudelio would be a supportive member of the bereaved family, Miguel a
close family friend
.
Elaborate documentation corroborated the cover story
fake death certificates
from Pennsylvania where the fatal accident supposedly occurred, graphic
photos of a turnpike traffic disaster scene, and even press clippings
purportedly from the Philadelphia Inquirer, but in fact printed on a
private press. The documents had included new passports for Miguel, Rafael
,
Socorro and Baudelio and two spare death certificates, one of which had
since been used for Angus. The document "package
”
had been obtained through
another of Miguel's Little Colombia contacts and cost more than twenty
thousand dollars
.
Included in the cover story and false news reports was a critical feature:
All three bodies were so badly mangled and burned that they were
unrecognizable. Miguel counted on that to deter any opening of the caskets
during their removal from the United States
.
The hearse and truck now had their engines running and behind them was the
Plymouth Reliant, with Carlos in the driver's seat. He would follow the
other vehicles at a distance, though ready to intervene in case of trouble
.
With the exception of Baudelio, they were all armed
.
The immediate plan was to proceed directly to the airport, which should
take about ten minutes, fifteen at the most
.
In the courtyard of the Hackensack house, Miguel checked his watch. 7:35
P.m. He instructed the others, "Everyone aboard
.”

Alone he made a final inspection of the house and outbuildings, satisfying
himself that no significant traces of their occupancy remained. Only one
thing troubled him. The ground where the hole had been dug to bury the
cellular phones and other equipment was uneven compared with the area
surrounding it. Julio and Luis had done their best to level the earth and
spread leaves, but signs of disturbance remained. Miguel supposed it didn't
matter greatly and at this point nothing could be done.
Returning to the hearse, he climbed into the front seat and told Julio
tersely, "Go
!”

Dusk had settled in, with the last traces of sunset on their right as
they headed for Teterboro.

Luis was first to see the flashing police lights ahead. He swore softly
as he braked. From the passenger side of the hearse, Miguel saw the
lights too, then craned to survey their own position in relation to other
traffic. Socorro was in the middle, seated between the two men
.
They were on State Highway 17 headed south, with the elevated Passaic
Expressway a mile behind. Traffic both ways on 17 was heavy. Between
themselves and the flashing lights there was no turnoff to the right, and
central dividers made a U-turn out of the question. Miguel, beginning to
sweat, tightened his hold on himself and instructed Luis, "Keep going
.”

He checked to make sure the "Serene Funeral Homes
”
truck was immediately
behind
.
Carlos in the Plymouth would be farther back, though it was impossible
to see him
.
Now they could see that the traffic ahead was being funneled into two
right-hand lanes by several state troopers. Between the lanes was some
kind of portable structure like a tollbooth and additional troopers
appeared to be speaking with drivers as they stopped. Off to the right
were more state police vehicles and flashing lights
.
Miguel told the other two, "Stay cool. Leave any talking to me.,,

They inched forward for another ten minutes before gaining a better view
of the head of the line. Even then it was not clear exactly what was
happening; by now it was dark, the many lights confusing. It appeared
,
though, that after exchanges between the police and each vehicle's
occupants, some cars and trucks were being directed to the side for
closer examination, others waved on
.
Miguel checked his watch. Almost 8 P.m. There was no way they could make
the Learjet rendezvous on time
.
Despite warning the others to stay cool, Miguel's own tension was mounting. After their remarkable success so far, was this to be the end of the line, resulting in capture or death in a shoot-out with police? Of the two, Miguel knew he would prefer death. The chances of bluffing their way out of this present jeopardy seemed slight. He wondered: Was it best to make a run for it now, at least put up a fight, or should they continue sitting here, letting the minutes tick away, with their only hope the unlikely gamble of getting through?
Luis muttered, "The fuckers are looking for us
!”

Reaching under his coat
,
he produced a Walther P38 pistol and laid it on the seat beside him
.
Miguel snarled, "Keep that out of sight
!”

Luis covered the gun with a newspaper
.
Beside him, Miguel felt Socorro tremble. He put a hand on her arm and the
movement stopped. He saw her looking steadily ahead, her eyes on an
approaching state trooper
.
The uniformed figure appeared to be alone, unattached to the group at the
head of the line. He was glancing into stopped cars as he passed, pausing
occasionally, apparently responding to questions. When the officer was a
few yards away Miguel decided to take the initiative. He depressed the
switch which lowered the electric window beside him
.”
Officer
,”
Miguel called out, "can you please tell me what this is about
?
”

The state trooper, who seemed little more than a youth, came closer. A name
tag identified him as "Quiles
.”

"It's just a driver sobriety check, sir, in the interest of public safety
,”
he said with a smile that seemed forced
.
Miguel didn't believe him
.
Then, as the trooper took in the hearse and its contents, he added, "I hope
you haven't all come from a wake where there was a big booze-up
.”

It was a feeble lunge at humor which came out clumsily, but Miguel saw his
chance and grabbed it. Riveting Trooper Quiles with a glare, he said
sternly, "If that was meant as a joke, officer, it was in extremely poor
taste
.”

The young trooper's expression changed instantly. He said, chagrined, "I'm
sorry . . .”

As if he hadn't heard, Miguel pressed on, "The lady beside me has been
visiting this country with her sister. That is her beloved sister in the
casket behind us-tragically killed in a traffic accident, along with two
others in the funeral van behind. Their bodies are being flown from here to
be buried in their own land. We have an airplane waiting at Teterboro and
we appreciate neither your humor nor the delay
.”

Taking her cue, Socorro turned her head so the trooper could see tears
streaming down her face
.
Quiles said penitently, "I said I was sorry, sir and madam. It just slipped
out. I do apologize
.”

"We accept your apology, officer
,”
Miguel said with dignity
.”
Now, I wonder
if you could help us proceed on our way
.”

"Hold on, please
.”

The trooper walked quickly forward to the head of the
line where he consulted a sergeant. The sergeant listened, looked their
way, then nodded. The young officer returned
.
He told Miguel, "I'm afraid we're all a bit on edge, sir
.”

Then lowering
his voice in confidence, "The truth is, what's happening here is a cover
and we're really looking for those kidnappers. Did you hear what they did
in White Plains today
?
”

"Yes, I did
,”
Miguel answered gravely
.”
It was terrible
.”