Unleashed, page 14
“Okay, good. Tell her to have him let us know if he hears from that seller again, or if he gets wind of a used 44 Cat Aquila, especially if it has Florida registration numbers.”
“She said she would do. Should I hold the phone?”
“Yes, please.”
I heard a beeping noise. I focused on the horizon to see if I could find anything and couldn’t.
“Yup, that’s a sighting all right. It’s bigger than a sailboat,” Nigel said.
“Hand me the binoculars.” I spotted her right away. There were more than two people on the deck, but I couldn’t tell who they were.
“I think I’d better cool it. The wind is going towards them, so they’ll hear us long before they’ll see us. But I can call in coordinates, rough ones. If you want.”
“Let’s get the bird out there first, Paul,” Nigel requested. I nodded agreement and handed the nosecone back to him. He handed the comm to Shannon and scrambled to the rear. A short time later, I heard several clicking sounds. Paul banked Little Bird, retreated a few hundred feet and began to hover low over the water so we would have a lesser chance of being heard.
Nigel sat back down, strapping in, reached behind him to retrieve the drone, holding it in his left hand, and flipping the on switch. We heard a low-purring whir of the motor kicking into gear. With his right hand, he slid open the cabin door, transferred the bird over, extended his arm outside the cabin so the wings wouldn’t get caught on the doorway, and just dropped it. He didn’t bother closing the door until he was able to take back the controller and start to direct its flight.
Then he closed the door and clicked it shut.
“Paul, you’re gonna want to get some elevation or I’ll lose signal. We’re stretching the boundaries, here.”
Little Bird did a slow spiral upwards and after a couple hundred feet, he leveled out.
“That’s fine. We’re getting some good picture quality. Hold on. There!”
I turned around and saw the white deck of the fat little boat, but when Nigel magnified the picture, we could practically see what kind of beer they were drinking. There were three people on the deck, and as we all studied the pictures, none of them looked like either of the two boys. We did recognize one of the houseguests, though. That was welcome information.
Nigel directed the drone to come back toward us and then take another pass. He skillfully got a good shot of the below-decks, where an open door showed one of three bedrooms on the boat. Someone was hog-tied, wrists and ankles together, lying on their side on the bed. And there was just one.
Only one.
But there could be more in the other two bedrooms.
Nigel took about twenty still photos, which would be uploaded to his computer back at the island. All of them would have their coordinates, as well as the date and time recorded on each of the frames.
“You have enough?”
“Can we get Karin to get into your computer to forward them on?” I asked.
“Sure thing. I have no secrets,” said Nigel. “Why don’t you dial Karin and hold the phone up to me. I don’t want to put this thing away if I have to re-photograph anything.”
Nigel gave Karin access to his computer, and about a minute later she got confirmation that the photos arrived intact. “Karin, make sure to tell them their direction, and that they’re traveling about thirty to thirty-five miles per hour, okay?”
I heard her answer back that a cutter was on its way over and there would be an intercept within the hour.
“Music to my ears, Karin. Looks like we got them just in time. Tell them thanks. I’m out.”
She confirmed.
“Hot damn. That was close, but I think we got it done. Now up to the Navy. Thank God for Uncle Sam.”
“Good deal,” said Nigel. “I’m putting her to bed.”
“Does she follow us home?” Shannon asked.
“Nope, you’ll see.” He handed the comm to Shannon temporarily. “Don’t touch that.” He said, pointing to the stick.
Unstrapping, he lifted the black memory foam that held the drone parts and pulled out a folded one-foot square piece of netting, attached to a metal arm which telescoped to make it longer. Nigel opened the door again, shouting Paul instructions.
“I don’t want the drone to hit Little Bird, and it’s dangerous, this part. So, I want you to just try to pull up, walk along side of her on your right. Try to get as close as you can but be the higher bird. This arm expands to about ten feet. But the net is what will catch her.”
Paul trailed behind the drone, and above, then slowly lowered us and got us closer. I was praying for no turbulence or that drone could foul our blades and we’d be dropping to the sea in no time.
But his skillful maneuvering got us so close that Nigel plucked the drone right out of the sky like fishing for salmon. He barked to Shannon to cut the power on the comm. We all breathed a sigh of relief when he carefully maneuvered the netting and drone inside and set it behind us.
“Let’s take her home, Paul. I think we got a mission accomplished here. I got a date with a shower. I’m soaking wet.”
I chanced a backward glance at Shannon’s face and saw her downcast eyes. But then she raised them and smile at me.
I was going to enjoy that shower.
Chapter 22
Just before we arrived back at the palace, Karin called us to say that five hijackers had been captured, with no significant injury, and both the brothers had been rescued. We were all in a buoyant mood when we landed.
Harry was waiting for us at the front door. His face was downcast.
Marco grabbed me around the waist and gave him the good news about the boys.
“Couldn’t come at a better time. The sultan’s having a rough afternoon. He’s been coughing non-stop. I saw a little blood on his Kleenex, and then he denied it. Is he sick, Marco?”
“I can’t answer that. But it’s hard to diagnose when he won’t go to the doctor. You get him in for some tests.”
“I will. I’m going to stay over a bit until he’s feeling better. He worked himself up pretty good.”
“That’s the way he is. You should know that by now.”
“I certainly do.”
“I need to talk to him about his plans for Africa. I don’t want to bring up too many things at once, so you tell me if he’s well enough to perhaps receive some bad news.”
“Oh dear. Someone got hurt. They cut off one of the boy’s ears?”
I had a hard time keeping a straight face. “Should we go see him and give him the good news ourselves?” I added. “Maybe then we could assess how he’s feeling, and Marco could talk to him, but just a little bit. Would that work?”
“He won’t really tell me. Maybe he’ll be more honest with you. I know he has a good heart and just wants to protect me. But, at the same time, this is a complicated family unit. There are a lot of people to consider here.”
“Let me see what I can do,” Marco said. “Oh, and do I have permission to put the team up here tonight?”
“I don’t see why not. They’ve earned it. I have three vacant bungalows, so if they double up, should be enough private space for them. We’ll have a feast tonight to celebrate the return of my brothers. I’ll have to get more staff in, but it’s easy to do.”
“And you promise to get everyone to hold over?”
“Yes, boss.”
“Why Harry, are you angling for a job?” I asked him.
“I have one, as you know. But I plan parties and events all the time in Brooklyn. For something like tonight, I’m all over it.”
“I’m counting on you,” Marco said.
On our way to the front door, I posed an idea. “Marco, you should consider hiring Harry. Seriously.”
“I have an assistant. But maybe going forward. For our grand opening, whenever that will be.”
“You’ll get there. I like his energy.”
“I do too. In fact, I have another idea as well.”
“Tell me.”
“I don’t want to spoil it. But come with me to speak with him.”
We received a warm welcome from Karin and Forest.
“How did you know you’d need the drone?” Forest asked.
“It was just the strength of the team. I don’t think we’ll do any project without them now.”
We headed off toward the sultan’s rooms when I remembered the party tonight. “Marco, you didn’t tell them about the dinner.”
“Thank you. Going to fix that right now.” He turned around and shouted out to the two of them. “And everyone stays over tonight. We have a big dinner, debriefing. Mini board meeting with alcohol.”
“I’m up with that,” said Karin.
“Tomorrow we’ll get you guys back to the Maldives.”
“Cool, boss! Thanks.” said Forest.
I was struck with how the palace was beginning to feel like a fancy office building. It felt like the whole place was transforming.
We entered his chambers, passing by the throne room with his elephant god dominating everything in there. I recognized his younger, pregnant wife waiting by the door.
“How is he?” Marco asked.
“He just seems to want to rest.”
“That’s probably what he needs,” I offered.
“Harry thought I could—”
We heard the sultan’s voice from across the room. “Marco, is that you? Please come in.”
She moved aside, whispering, “Not too long. He’s very weak.”
“I bring good news, your highness,” Marco started off. “The boys have been found, and the U.S. Navy gets all the credit. They might be home in time for dinner. They’re going to have to give statements first, and then they’ll be home.”
“I’m delighted with this. I’ve been dreading the outcome. I’ll have to get up and make more of an effort—”
But the sultan fell back, disoriented and confused. “The mind is willing, but the body tells me I have to rest. I was looking forward to fishing with both of you.”
“We’ll do that. We’ll do that soon.”
“Shannon, you come over here to the other side and sit with me awhile.”
I did as instructed.
“You sit too, Marco. Now tell me, Surya says you slept in the throne room last night, Marco. And you brought alcohol in there. Was there something that went on between the two of you?”
“I wanted to talk to you about it.”
“Oh, dear. Something else has happened?”
“I’m just going to be brutally honest with you, your highness. They aren’t ready. They are young in their business years. They understand business theory. But not how to go about getting things done. It’s a lack of maturity, and it’s not a character flaw, they just haven’t had to, well, work. They don’t understand the concept.”
“But they both went to—”
“Yes, very gifted students. That’s theory. They have no street smarts.”
“So, what does this mean?”
“We should do the project when they get some experience. I suggest give them something to build here, not this African complex. And here’s another thing. West Africa is having problems right now. It’s even more dangerous than before. That alone is almost enough for me to recommend we not do this.”
“Right now, or are you turning me down, Marco? Just be honest with me. I consider you—a son to me. Please be honest.”
“No, I’m not turning you down. But I don’t want to be responsible if something happened to them. This whole thing today—it’s mostly their fault. And they invited those men into your house, your highness. You don’t have nearly enough security here. You trust everyone. You are extremely vulnerable. They are the same way. Learned it from you.”
“So this is also about me? You don’t think I’ve raised my sons to be worthy citizens?”
Marco leaned over and grabbed the sultan’s hand. “No, my friend. Hear what I’m saving. Nothing could be further from the truth. They’re naïve. They buy a boat without checking title. Spent nearly a million dollars on it, too. That’s a lot of money.”
“Well, to me, I’d just rather they be happy. If they waste it on things like this boat, it won’t really hurt me, or them.”
“But a million dollars is a lot of money to a lot of bad guys. People do bad things for far less. It bothers me that you are so exposed.”
“I do not want to live in a prison.”
“You have to protect your legacy. I told them the same last night. If they’re not careful, they could undo what ten centuries of your ancestors created here. This little jewel, someone could try to grab it. And they could do it in one generation.”
“What’s the point of having wealth if you have to be locked up with it?”
Marco looked over to me. I could see he was asking for my help.
“I think what Marco is trying to tell you is that the world is changing. This little kingdom was well insulated from all the rest of the world’s problems. Now, you’re less than three hours from active wars, concentration camps, food shortages. Where there’s instability. You can’t ignore this any longer. You used to be able to. And it isn’t anything you did. It’s what’s going on out there. Outside.”
“I never made demands of the outside. And my family, if they wanted to stay, they could stay forever. I’m seeing that the younger generation too, they want to go live their lives away from this island. I used to think my grandfather was too harsh to not allow us to travel abroad to go to school. Now I understand why. Is my little kingdom dying? Is this what you mean?”
“It will die, if you don’t change. Who in this family can run this household like you can?” Marco asked.
“I see your point. So if you’re not leaving me, not turning down the job, then what are you saying?”
“I’m saying they aren’t ready now. I said I’d do it, but not when the odds are stacked against us. Maybe in a few years. They’re not ready now.”
“Well, that’s the problem, then, isn’t it? I don’t have a few years. I have a year at best, Marco. And not a word of this to Harry, either. You do not have my permission to tell anyone.”
“Understood.”
“Marco, how did you do it? What special quality made you so successful? Was it your training? You were one of a handful. What made you so different?”
“I was tested, you’re right. And some of my colleagues in class expected to and didn’t make it. Eighty-seven percent didn’t. But the honest truth is that I just didn’t quit. I had no options. I didn’t grow up in a hothouse where everything was provided for me. I got to experience the value of my own work. In giving them everything they want with no consequences; you not only endanger you and your wives. You endanger them.”
“So, teach them. Mentor them.”
“I made it because I had a huge advantage.”
“What was that?”
“I started from zero, and I wanted it with my whole heart. I was constantly on the lookout for something that would derail me, send me back to the dorms or make me drop out. After a while, I knew they couldn’t get rid of me.”
“So, what can we do, then?”
“We hire lots of mentors. We exhaust them with information. We make them study things they didn’t learn in their programs. We hire project managers, financial managers. We take on less ambitious projects, like drilling wells for villages. Things that don’t pay well. We do it because we want to learn, and change. They have to learn to live in the world, while doing good things that we are proud of.”
“Like build houses.”
“Yes, that’s a good goal. But we don’t do this in such dangerous places, not when they’re learning. I still think your Africa project has merit. But it’s not something we can just do overnight.”
“Where will these mentors teach them? Do they go back to school?”
“Well, I’m just now thinking about this, and not sure why I didn’t come up with it before. Maybe, your highness, they start by working for me first. I have a project. On the Gulf. They could help me get that one off the ground. But I warn you, they’ll learn to work hard. Otherwise, they’ll be fired.”
The sultan started laughing, and then coughing. “That would be something, wouldn’t it? You? Ordering my sons around?”
“It’s not about ordering them around. It’s about teaching them to work. Because it’s worth it to learn to preserve your legacy. Their legacy. If they care about that, they’ll learn everything they need. They’ll be unstoppable. A force for good, not some ornament hanging on a fence or in a museum somewhere. Your kingdom will not only survive. It will thrive.”
“Let’s do it. Let’s get this started.”
I was proud of Marco for telling him not want he wanted to hear, but what he needed to hear.
“There are two conditions, your highness,” Marco added.
“Go on.”
“First, they have to say they want it. I’ll work out a plan, and schedule, a long-term plan for the Africa project too.”
“Otherwise, they don’t get to participate. They get fired.”
“Exactly.”
“And the other condition?”
“You give me a couple of weeks. And we’ll live in my house. You’ll wear shorts and flip flops. We’ll go fishing every day. Nobody will know who you are. You’ll learn how to cook, bake bread, go shopping. You become curious about what’s out there. How average people live and cope with their daily lives. You can only bring one wife, because those are our laws. But you come and learn what it is like to live outside your cocoon, in my world. I want to take your training wheels off. If you do it, just for two weeks, I think they will too.”
“What do you think, Shannon?” the sultan asked.
“It’s the chance of a lifetime, your highness. I’d take it.”
“But the question is, what do you think, your highness? Do you want it?”
“I think I’d like to try. When I get feeling stronger. Not too long, but I should get to the doctor, don’t you think?”
