Laura read and reread Rob’s first text, willing the words to say more than they did. The loud beeps had awoken her from her restless slumber. She had intentionally turned the volume to maximum in the hope that she would receive something, even though the news reports remained clear – everybody found at the resort was dead.
Tears of mixed emotion rolled down her cheeks: heart-warming joy for knowing that Rob was alive, but concern that he was not safe. Also, odd feelings she couldn’t quite understand – there was no warmth to the words of the text; it was simple, matter of fact and dry. He’s not giving anything away, nothing about how he’s feeling, she thought miserably. Much the same as my hurried texts over the last few weeks before our holidays. Damn, I wish I could turn the clock back!
Laura’s phone beeped again. This time a text from Gurning informed her that he had just spoken to Rob and was arranging help to bring him home. He added that would be challenging because Rob was being hunted having rescued the Estes boy. Gurning ended by writing that Rob had asked after her.
How on earth did Rob get involved with the Estes family? Laura pondered, concern mounting. That was not a family to be involved with, whether as a result of a rescue or not!
Some more beeps a short while later disturbed her turmoil. Another text from Rob made her heart leap, but it was, again, so short. It must mean that he isn’t replying to my text. I wonder why? Reading the text only made her turmoil worse. Why is he asking me to let Steven know he’s okay? It must mean that Steven didn’t tell me everything and that Rob’s in danger. Oh, I so wish I was there with him. Why didn’t I go with him?! Knowing that she would both be unable to enjoy the rest of her holiday and would be a drag on her friends, Laura picked up her iPad and booked a flight home for the next morning.
9
Early the next day, Gurning informed the Foreign Office so they could, in turn, inform their counterparts in Sweden that Freja had been found. He briefed Graeme Spreachley, his counterpart at MI6 dealing with international intelligence matters and operations. Gurning wanted to send one of his best men, Nat McCall, to Mexico to help with Rob’s rescue. Nat had worked on many of the operations launched so far to dismantle Demir’s criminal network and Nat’s involvement would give Rob a lot of assurance. It also helped that Nat was a former special forces officer.
Spreachley agreed to pool resources and immediately shared that MI6 had heard that the hit on Estes was not an internal Mexican affair. As a result, sources indicated that the cartels were meeting to discuss their response.
* * *
That afternoon, Gurning waited anxiously to hear from Rob. Knowing that it was early morning in Mexico and that Rob would have a long trek to reach somewhere with reception did not help. Rob had already encountered members of the Estes cartel, and if the heads of all cartels were meeting, that could only mean one thing: possible collusion to not only find the perpetrators but also Alvaro. And that meant finding Rob!
Laura arrived at Thames House just after lunch, frantic for news and immediately met with Gurning in his office.
“Laura, there’s nothing we can do until Rob calls in. I understand your concern and I will, of course, ensure that you are informed as soon as he calls. And yes, you can join that conversation. Depending on the time, I will link Nat in by conference call.”
“Thank you, Steven. I should have been there with him. You know he invited me to join him?”
“Yes, I did know, and there were good reasons why you couldn’t go. Once Rob is back, I think the two of you should take some time out, go somewhere, and spend time together.”
Laura looked at him, unsure whether to share her feelings for Rob, or not. Even though she respected Gurning in a way that transcended a normal boss-employee relationship, Laura was apprehensive of doing so. Although, maybe he’s already guessed, or has Rob said something?
Gurning broke her train of thought. “In the meantime, you can be useful. It’s a small matter that will benefit from your insight for a few days until Rob’s return.”
“Oh yes?”
“Yes, yesterday evening some boys found a number of barrels of chemicals in a disused warehouse not far from Southampton. Sensibly, they called the police who immediately called us.”
Laura raised an eyebrow. “Why call us?”
“Two reasons. First, they couldn’t understand the language but recognised the toxic labelling that apparently did not appear very professional. That in itself was suspect. Secondly, thanks to Burak, the Spanish police have located and searched Donald Norcott’s house. There was a concealed basement office which revealed very little. However, there were some hand-written notes that referred to electronic espionage and some reference books on chemical warfare.”
“So you think there could be a link, that the chemicals found near Southampton could be for a chemical attack?”
“I hope not, but we want that potential discounted. Given the proximity and importance of Southampton, not to mention the nearby naval bases, I’m concerned. The brief is waiting on your desk. I was hoping you could go down there and take a look tomorrow and let me have your assessment.”
“Of course, when…”
“It’s probably nothing, there have been a number of similar incidents over the years, none of which have come to anything. You should be able to wrap the matter up quickly, ready to take some time out with Rob. The two of you need it.”
“When do you think we will get Rob out?”
“No idea yet. I need to speak with Rob and get Nat on the ground. Encouragingly, the Mexican authorities want to help so they can take the young Estes boy into protective custody and prevent him from becoming a figurehead.”
“Oh, Steven – you also mentioned electronic espionage. Is there anything to do on that?”
“Ah, no. The Spanish say that there is insufficient information to go on – merely Norcott’s notes ticking-off when he had passed cryptically referenced documents on to someone. Sadly, the place was virtually sterile. Burak’s requirements for caution were clearly respected.”
Having finished their conversation, they wandered down to the Thames House canteen for some lunch.
* * *
As Laura and Gurning were having lunch, Rob and his hostess set-off for San Pedro Mixtepec. At the same time, the heads of the Mexican drug cartels and Alvaro’s uncle were arriving for their meeting at an expansive, heavily guarded hacienda in the barren, rugged landscape of northern Mexico. They mostly arrived by helicopter, flying low through the valleys to avoid detection. The hacienda was perched on the edge of a valley with commanding views in all directions.
Once all were settled, Alvaro’s uncle called the rare meeting to order. “Welcome, thank you for coming. My sources in the Oaxacan police have informed me that two of the dead found at the resort were members of my brother’s assassination squad. Identity checks have confirmed they were foreign mercenaries.”
“How can you be so sure they weren’t on your brother’s team? After all, he didn’t always use home-grown talent,” grumbled one of the others.
“Apparently it was easy to distinguish between his protection team and the attackers; they had different weapons and no identification.” The questioner nodded, satisfied. “So, the question is what we are going to do?”
“Before thinking about that, I want to know why Henrique was targeted. I won’t participate in anything that he brought upon himself,” stated another.
“I agree,” came yet another voice. “We need to know if this was an attack on all of us and our business, or personal to Henrique.”
“I can answer that,” volunteered a grey-haired man, his rugged, tanned features matching many of those around the table, but his cold, staring eyes penetrated the others sending a chill throughout the room.
Alvaro’s uncle regarded the man he had met only once before. “Well?”
“Henrique pioneered our entry into the UK and Europe. Remember, a few years back we had become too reliant on the US market – we still are. Henrique pioneered other avenues that many of us have benefitted from. If we had paid attention we would have known that has caused tensions. I’ve heard that our competitors aren’t happy about the drop in price and their lower volumes and have been looking for ways to deter us.”
Outraged grumbling broke out around the table. When it had died down, Alvaro’s uncle refocused the group. “So, what are we going to do about it? We have two choices: first, we back-off like cowards, and stick to our traditional markets, or we take the fight to those who dare fight us!”
