Thriller: Code Name: Camelot - An Action Thriller Novel (A Noah Wolf Novel, Thriller, Action, Mystery Book 1) (25 page)

TWENTY-SIX

T
he morning sun
woke Noah as it always did, and he found himself cuddling Sarah close. He kissed her cheek until she woke, then rolled over and climbed out of bed.

“I could use some breakfast,” he said. “Want some?”

Sarah nodded as she sat up on the edge of the bed and reached down for her clothes. She slipped into them, then said, “I’m gonna run back to my room and get a quick shower, meet you down in the breakfast room.” She blew him a kiss and was out the door.

Noah went to the bathroom and got a quick shower of his own, then shaved before he slipped into clean clothes and left the room. He wasn’t surprised, as he stepped out of the elevator, to see Sarah and Neil at a table. She pointed, and he saw that she already had a waffle and a cup of coffee waiting for him.

“So, today’s the big day, right?” Neil asked. “I got a message that Moose will be landing in about two hours, and everything is in place on my end.”

Noah nodded. “Yep,” he said, “As soon as Moose can get to wherever he’s got to go and confirm what he’s looking at, I’ll signal you to transfer the money. Then, once we get the word that he’s taken possession, I’ll take Pablo down, then grab Felicita and meet Sarah at the rendezvous point.”

Neil cocked his head sideways. “Forgive me for being a party pooper, especially since I won’t even be at this party, but tell me again how you plan to assassinate one of Mexico’s most notorious arms dealers, right in front of several of his cronies, and then walk out unscathed with a pretty girl on your arm. Somehow, I think I missed part of the plan, here, and I’d really like to be able to believe that I’m going to see you again. Just in case you’ve forgotten, the blonde and I are sort of dependent on you for our continued existence and survival.”

Noah smiled. “Ask me a hard one,” he said. “The answer is simple. Pablo won’t know he’s dead yet, and since he won’t know it, neither will his buddies.”

Neil’s eyes went wide, and he put on a sick grin. “Okay, so you’re going to kill him, but he won’t know it. Exactly how is it that he’s not going to notice that?”

“Easy,” Noah said. “Since we’re going to be concluding a very lucrative business transaction today, I expect Pablo to be in a rather friendly mood. He and I will share a drink, a double shot of tequila each from Eduardo’s top shelf. He’s got a bottle of
Tres Cuatro Y Cinco
up there, and a tequila man like Pablo won’t be able to refuse if I offer to buy it. I’ll have Eduardo pour the drinks from the bottle, and I’ll carry them to the table. I’ll add a specially prepared swizzle stick to each glass, so by the time I get to Pablo, both of them will be laced with campsonol, a poison that acts rather slowly but can’t be counteracted once it’s gotten into the bloodstream. It mimics the symptoms of a heart attack, paralyzing the heart and stopping it, and it’s almost impossible to detect unless you know exactly what you’re looking for. Pablo is old enough, and his lifestyle is crazy enough, that no one will be surprised at a heart attack, so no one will be looking for poisons.”

Neil looked at Sarah. “Excuse me, dear, but did you catch that? He did say that
both
drinks will be laced with this deadly stuff, right?”

Noah chuckled. “I did, indeed, but what I failed to mention is that I will have a tiny amount of bentonite clay under each of my thumbnails. Bentonite has an amazing property, in that whenever it comes into contact with a liquid, it develops an electrical charge that causes it to bond with any toxins in that liquid, including campsonol. Once it has bonded, it and the toxin it bonds to will simply pass through my digestive system and be expelled the next time I take a dump. All I’ve got to do is allow Pablo to choose the glass he wants, then dip my thumbnail into my glass a couple of seconds before I toss it back.”

Neil shook his head, and Sarah leaned her face in her hands. “Does it ever worry you, the things you know?” Neil asked. “I mean, what if you get this wrong, and use something besides bentonite?”

“That isn’t likely,” Noah said. “Bentonite is harmless, and actually has a number of nutrients in it. I got a snuffbox in my pocket that’s full of the stuff. If I’m searched, all I got to do is take a pinch. Like I said, it’s harmless, and that’s how easy it is to get it under my thumbnails. Just take a pinch, and shove some up in there.”

They finished breakfast, and spent the rest of the morning in Noah’s room. Neil provided him with the fake ID for Felicita, which he left with Sarah. The girl wouldn’t need it until it was time to cross into the United States, so he didn’t want to get caught with it.

At last, it was time to put all the plans into action. Moose was in place in Dubai, and had made contact with his backup team. Everything was set. Neil would remain at the hotel, stationed at his computer and listening to everything that went on in the bar, while Sarah would keep the car as close to Noah as she could. If anything went wrong, all Noah had to do was say, “Jumping Jehoshaphat,” and Neil would tell Sarah to get to the bar as quickly as possible. If that happened, it was likely that Noah would have to fight his way out, so he’d want his escape vehicle to be ready and waiting outside.

At ten minutes before two, Noah climbed out of the car in an alley, three blocks away from the bar. He walked the rest of the way, carefully making sure that he wasn’t being followed. Once he was certain that he was clean of a tail, he made his way to the bar and walked through the door.

“It’s good to see you again, my friend,” Pablo said as Noah took a seat at the table. Felicita hurriedly took the chair at his side, and slipped a piece of paper into his hand.

Noah unfolded it, and then smiled. The price that had been named for the girl was only twenty thousand dollars, and he turned to Eduardo, smiled once more, and then nodded.

He turned back to Pablo. “I’ve taken the liberty of arranging another little transaction, while I’m here,” he said, “and I’m sure you probably already know about it. Would it be convenient for me to simply add the additional price to the transfer I’ll be making to you today?”

Pablo’s smiled. “I will tell you what,” he said. “If all goes well with our business, I will pay that price for you, and you may have the young lady as my gift. Is it true that you wish to marry her?”

Noah looked at Felecita, then smiled and put an arm around her protectively. “It is,” he said. “Where I come from, it’s not easy to obtain such a delightful little beauty with such exciting skills. I plan to take her home with me, and keep her barefoot and pregnant from now on. That’s sort of a tradition, back home.”

Pablo laughed out loud, throwing back his head to show how great was his delight in Noah’s answer. “My friend, I think that is a tradition that we should adopt here in Mexico. But, come, let us now discuss business. You have arranged for the necessary funds?”

“I have, indeed,” Noah said. “However, the Dragon is somewhat skeptical. Since you said the material is somewhere in his neighborhood, he would like to verify that it is genuine before he allows me to complete the transaction. Can you accept those terms?”

Pablo grinned. “If you had said anything else, I would probably have had you shot. While I do not know this Dragon, I suspect that I do know his employer, and I’m quite certain that she would not authorize such a payment without being certain of what she was buying. You have contact with your man?”

Noah pulled out his phone, an Iridium satellite phone that did not bother with cell towers. “With your permission?” he asked, and Pablo nodded. Noah dialed the number, and a few seconds later he heard Moose on the other end.

“Hello?” Moose said, his accent thick.

“Mr. Dragon,” Noah said, “I’m sitting here with my agent, who will tell you where to go to verify the product. I’m going to hand him the phone, now.”

He passed the phone to Pablo, and the old Mexican smiled. “Señor Dragon,” he said, “you are in Dubai? Is that correct?”

“I am,” Moose said. “To where must I be going?”

“Not very far,” Pablo said. “You are familiar with the Armani Hotel Dubai? It is on Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Boulevard.”

“But of course,” Moose said. “I am staying there myself, right now.”

“Excellent, excellent,” Pablo said. “The product you are seeking is in room 427. Knock on the door, and simply say that you have come about the insects. The men inside will allow you to examine the merchandise, so that you may tell my friend here that it is genuine.”

“Very good,” Moose said. “Of course, you know that it is quite early, here. Will they be expecting my visit?”

“Yes, Señor Dragon. I made sure they understood that someone would probably want to inspect it at this time.”

“Very good. Will you stay on the line with me? The room you speak of is only a few doors down.”

Pablo nodded into the phone. “Of course, I would be delighted.”

They heard the sounds of doors opening and closing, and then Moose’s footsteps as he walked down the hall. There were other footsteps around him, and Noah knew that he would have a couple of men with him. If he had been alone, it might have raised suspicions. There came the sound of a knock, and then Moose could be heard saying, “I have come about the insects.”

A door opened, and several voices could be heard speaking at once. A moment later, things got quiet and they heard Moose say, “Give me just one moment.” There was a rustling sound, and then a sound like static from an old radio.

“The product is genuine,” Moose said. “I will wait here while you conclude your business.”

Pablo smiled and handed the phone back to Noah. “Señor Dragon would like to confirm to you that the product is indeed what you seek.”

Noah smiled, took the phone and said, “Mr. Dragon?”

“My client will be very pleased with this product. Please conclude the transaction so that I may take possession immediately.”

“Yes, sir, I sure will, and I’ll call you back as soon as it’s done.” Noah ended the call and smiled at Pablo. “Looks like we’ve got us a deal,” he said. “Have you got transfer instructions for me?”

Pablo reached into a pocket and withdrew a sheet of paper, which he unfolded and laid in front of Noah on the table. There was a string of numbers on it, and Noah recognized them as SWIFT codes and foreign bank account information. He dialed another number, and when Neil answered in a very practiced French accent, he said, “Henri? This is John. We’re ready to make the transfer I discussed with you last night. Use this information.” He read off the codes and numbers from the paper in front of him, and Neil read them back to confirm them. A moment later, Noah looked at Pablo and smiled. “Check your bank,” he said.

Pablo looked at Henrique, who was punching buttons on a smart phone. A moment later, he passed the phone to Pablo, who broke into a huge smile.

“Well, my friend,” Pablo said, “it appears that our transaction has been quite successful.” He looked at Felicita, and flicked his eyes to Noah. “This girl is now yours, as my gift. I hope she comes to realize just how fortunate she is.”

“Oh,
Señor
, I do know,” she said. She looked at Noah, her eyes filled with love and leaking tears. “Señor John, I will make you the most happy of men.”

Noah leaned over and kissed her, then looked up at Pablo with a smile. “Well, this has been a good day all around,” he said. “Will you allow me to buy us a celebratory drink? I’ve noticed a bottle of
Tres Cuatro Y Cinco
up high over the bar. I’d be happy to purchase it for you, if you’ll share a drink with me from it.”

Pablo laughed. “How could I refuse? Eduardo, fetch it down.”

Noah laughed as well, then got up and went to the bar. “Eduardo,” he said, “two double shots!”

Eduardo climbed up onto a stool and got the bottle, then poured the drinks. Noah reached for the cup full of swizzle sticks that was sitting on the bar, and snagged the two gold ones he had slipped into it the day before. No one in this bar used swizzle sticks, so he had been fairly sure they would be safe there. He dropped one into each glass, and carried them back to the table. He extended his right hand toward Pablo, but wasn’t surprised when Pablo reached for the glass in his left.

They each swirled the amber liquid once with the swizzle stick, then took them out and laid them on the table. They clinked their glasses together, and together they tossed them back. No one noticed that Noah dipped his thumb into his glass while he was stirring it.

He sat there with Pablo for another thirty minutes, and then looked at Felicita. “Are you ready, sweetheart? We’ve got a lot of paperwork to get done, so I can take you back home with me. We might as well get started today.” He turned to Pablo. “Excuse me,
Señor
, I should ask your permission to leave.”

Pablo looked over at Henrique, who was once again punching buttons on the smart phone. When Henrique smiled and showed Pablo that his bank account still showed the presence of the money, Pablo smiled at Noah.

“Señor John,” he said, “may you and your lovely young lady find great happiness, just as you have given it to me this day.
Vaya con Dios, Señor
.”

Noah rose from the table, holding the girl’s hand as he did so. A moment later, after she had grabbed a small bag from behind the bar, they were out the door and walking swiftly toward the corner. Alerted by Neil that the deal was done and Noah was out and on the street, Sarah pulled up in front of them as they arrived, and he hurried the girl into the backseat of the car, then slid in beside her.

“Felicita, meet Sarah,” he said. “Sarah, Felicita. You got that little present for her?”

Without a word, Sarah picked up the Texas driver’s license that had Felicita’s name and picture on it and passed it back to him. He showed it to the girl, and she looked confused.

“Señor John? What is this?”

“This, Felicita, is your ticket to a new life. We’re going to take you into the states, and if anyone asks you, you were born in Odessa, Texas, exactly nineteen years ago today. I’m your boyfriend, and I brought you to Ciudad Juárez for your birthday. Do you understand?”

She looked at the driver’s license, and then up at his face. “And then you will marry me?”