“That is the only way we can do it,” added Anton. He pointed his finger at Clive. “You are responsible for this and will pay us back before the day is over!”
“Not a problem,” Clive said. “My money is in a safety deposit box. I’ll get it as soon as the bank opens.”
Anton nodded, then turned his attention to Jack. “Under the circumstances, given what they did to your lady, we have no quarrel with you.”
“Okay, but I want to see the coke in my hand before they’re released,” said Jack.
“That is not a problem. You will see that it is high quality. Wait here and I will get it.”
Anton went to the outbuilding, entering through a side door, and flicked on the lights. A few minutes later he beckoned for them to come inside.
Jack entered and saw that the building was being used as a workshop. There was a table saw in the room, along with piles of lumber and partially built pieces of furniture. Some of the furniture was clamped for gluing and resting on sawhorses. Another piece of furniture on a workbench was wrapped in bubble wrap.
An open door at the far end of the workspace led into another room, and Jack caught a glimpse of a band saw and another workbench, with tools hanging on the wall above it.
“Over there,” said Anton, pointing to a set of weigh scales on the nearby bench. On the scales was a clear plastic bag containing a brick of white powder. “Check it out, it’s yours.”
Jack checked the weight. It was slightly more than a pound. Anton had broken a kilo in two and was not concerned that he was offering more than had been bargained for. He picked up the bag and examined it. “Looks good,” he said. “The weight is a little over.”
“Consider it a tip to get you the hell out of here and never come back,” replied Anton. “First, though, call your women and tell them to release my guys and tell Klaus to call me as soon as they’re free.”
* * *
It was quarter after four when Laura took the call from Jack. When he explained the situation, she freed Klaus and Liam and, still holding the shotgun on them, allowed them to get dressed.
“Now get out,” she said coldly.
Klaus hesitated and glared back at Laura, until she pointed the shotgun at his face. Then he turned and, holding his jaw and mouth with one hand, followed Liam out the door. Once in the hotel parking lot he turned to Liam and mumbled, “You able to drive?”
Liam glanced nervously back at the hotel. “Yeah, that kind of sobered me up.”
Klaus tossed his car keys to Liam, and once inside the car, with his free hand he retrieved a pistol he had hidden under the dash.
“Want to go back and do the whores?” asked Liam.
Klaus glanced up at the hotel, then down at his pistol as he rethought his actions. Go up against two whores waiting in a room with a shotgun … maybe not such a good idea. Besides, it’s not them I want. He took his hand away from his mouth and looked at the blood on his fingers. “No, not the whores. I want the fucker who did this to me. Speaking of which, I better phone my friends.”
* * *
Anton answered the call from Klaus and walked toward the end of the workshop so he could talk without being overheard. “You free?” he asked.
“Yeah, Liam and me are driving away from the hotel,” said Klaus, “but the fucking pimp … I’m sure he broke my jaw. I’m in a lot of pain. Also busted most of my teeth and my lips are all cut up. I’m spittin’ blood everywhere.”
“Get Liam to take you to a hospital.”
“What about the pimp?”
“Orders are for me to do him and Clive as soon as I hang up.”
“Wish you could keep the pimp alive until I get there,” Klaus said. “Can’t you gut-shoot him or something?”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
“As soon as I’m out of Emergency, I’ll take Liam home and be right over,” Klaus said. “If the pimp’s still alive, I’m going to use every tool we got in the shop on him.”
Anton hung up and looked at Jack and smiled, then motioned with his finger for Clive to approach him. “I need to tell you exactly how you will repay us.”
Clive had taken a few steps forward when Anton raised a .32-calibre pistol and pointed it directly at his face. “You will pay with your life,” said Anton calmly.
Clive’s mouth opened to scream as Anton pulled the trigger.
The bullet entered Clive’s face beside his nose before ricocheting around inside his skull, turning his brain to mush. He was dead before his body hit the floor.
Chapter Nine
Roche saw the man and long-haired woman hurry into the café ahead of him. Earlier he had spotted them strolling around the park and ostensibly admiring every flower bed they came to. Another man he had seen in the park was a short distance away staring at a display case in a nearby store window.
Roche silently cursed himself for having been fooled by Kerin, then entered the café and took a seat.
* * *
Kerin entered the public washroom and a peek under the stalls told him he was alone. This time he made his call direct to dispatch and quickly explained the problem. He tapped his foot nervously as he waited while dispatch placed an urgent call to Interpol.
The feel of cold metal behind his ear told him he was no longer alone. He froze as a Latex-gloved hand reached for his phone. He released his grip on the phone and slowly turned around, facing the muzzle of a pistol.
The sound of police radios and voices from dispatch could be heard over the phone, then a dispatcher said, “We’ve connected with Interpol in Canada. They want to speak to you directly.”
For a brief moment Kerin clung to the hope that he was only being robbed, but that hope evaporated when his eyes shifted from the pistol to a watch with a gold-and-silver band being dangled in front of him.
Kerin knew he was going to die as he stared at the smiling face taunting him from behind the watch.
“Are you there?” came the dispatcher’s voice over the phone.
“You’re the Ringmaster!” Kerin yelled. “It’s —”
He was interrupted by the gunshot. Several urgent requests from the dispatcher for him to respond went unanswered.
* * *
In the café across from the park, Roche watched the couple who had entered shortly before he did. The woman flicked her long hair out of the way and placed her hand over her ear. She appeared to be listening intently. Her face registered panic, and a comment she made to her companion sent them both running from the café. Two men who’ d been outside on the sidewalk joined them as they raced to the park.
Roche waited a moment, then went to the doorway to look. At the park near the washrooms he heard a woman’s screams. Another couple who had been walking a dog stood staring at the commotion. Other people bolted from parked cars and ran toward the washrooms.
Roche apologized to the waitress and told her to cancel the tea he’d ordered. Then he left.
Chapter Ten
Constable Jane Martin, on duty at the Interpol office in Ottawa, tried to calm the panic rising in her throat when she received the information from Paris that an undercover police officer in Canada was about to be murdered. Given the time of the call, she deduced that British Columbia was the most likely location. Her line to the dispatch office in Paris was still open, but she was already typing two names into the