Stairway to the Bottom - a Mick Murphy Key West Mystery (28 page)

I didn’t recognize into a satchel.

“Bring him back,” I said. “Can I sit up?”

“Slowly, you don’t want to tear the stitches,” Murdock said.

“Only Jesus came back from where this guy is,” Bruehl said as he stood.

Norm helped me up. “Dead?” I looked around the fishing boat. “What happened?”

“I came from underneath as Chris pulled him off you…” He patted his dive knife. “You should be thankful I was a Boy Scout. Now he’s chum in the Gulf Stream.”

The boat began to move toward Key West, I recognized the tower at Fort Zachary Taylor in the foreground.

“Is Tita okay with just Chris?” My head began to clear with the fresh air. The boat sped toward the harbor, splashing through the choppy water. My side throbbed and I was unsteady on my feet. The shit had begun to hit the fan and I had a feeling there was a pile of it yet to be tossed.

“Jim Ashe has a boat following her,” Norm said. “Problem is we don’t know where the Russian was taking you.” He looked toward the stern. “Somewhere back there he’s missed.”

“Why?” I said and looked aft. “Why all this?”

“Alexei is a thug,” Norm said. “He wants the diamonds.”

“I don’t have ‘em.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Norm said as we sat outside the small cabin. “You’re a link.

When he finishes with you he expects to have the diamonds, or know what his next move is.”

“If he kills me…”

“Not if, when,” Norm said. “There’ll be another link, somewhere, and he’ll move onto that.”

“Damn it,” I said and almost laughed.

“You think it’s funny?”

“Alexei is a bad version of Sydney Greenstreet’s character in the Maltese Falcon,” I said.

“I’ll have to watch the movie when I get home, maybe I’ll understand this crap.” Norm rubbed his chin and looked uncomfortable in his wet bathing suit. “Things are gonna get worse, Mick. Maybe Tita should leave. It’d make this easier.”

“I don’t think she’ll go.”

“Make her.”

“You haven’t been paying attention, have you?”

“Go with her.”

“Run away?”

“Take her out of harm’s way,” Norm said. “You don’t want to make her a target. If they didn’t know about her before, they do now.”

“Sounds easier to do than it is.”

“Do you want me to talk to her? Explain the facts of life?”

“The more frightened she is, the more stubborn she becomes.”

“Don’t I know it!” he said. “That’s nothing.” He pointed at my side. “The Russians, the Mexicans, brutality is a sign of strength to ‘em. The stronger they are, the more brutal their tactics.” He pointed at me again. “They would’ve got you back on a boat and let you bleed out, slowly while questioning you. If they didn’t like your answers, you’d have slices on both sides, maybe on the bottom of your feet. Wherever, it would hurt and bleed. And low, so you could see the bloody deck. And the pain when they smacked the cuts, I don’t have words to explain it.”

“I’m already scared, Norm,” I said and wondered how he knew all this. “Pauly’s two guns didn’t do me much good, did they?”

He slapped his thigh, were his dive knife was. “You were out of your element.”

“I won’t be again.”

“The only good thing about this is we’re no longer waiting,” Norm said. “I’m checking for Alexei. We find him, we get him.”

“Who’s we?” The motion of the boat was making me queasy.

“You and me, hoss. Always, you and me,” Norm said and smiled. I hadn’t seen that smile since we faced off with the Tijuana cartel.

“Hell, Jim Ashe’s SEALs are all over this like horse flies on stable shit,” he drawled. “And your buddy Pauly and his Jarheads, they’ve got itchy trigger fingers. It’s Alexei that should be scared.”

Chapter 63

I
t took a few minutes for the boat to catch up with the
Fenian Bastard
. A go-fast followed on the starboard side, its engines whining because of the low speed and a thirty-foot fishing boat trailed off her aft. Norm pointed at them.

“Both belong to Pauly,” Norm said. “Jim Ashe has at least one somewhere.”

“What about the Coast Guard?”

“It’s best we keep this to ourselves,” he said.

“Sounds right.”

We’d passed a variety of boats heading toward the harbor as we caught up to the
Fenian Bastard
. We blended into the harbor traffic, as did all the other boats and so would the one that belonged to the Russians. If they attacked us on the water it would be a different story.

“They could be following her.” I held onto the rail.

“Could be,” he said. “Could be they’re looking for their comrade.”

I stared at him but couldn’t read his expression. I expect direct answers from Norm, so when he’s evasive he’s lying or, scarier, he doesn’t know the answer.

Tita and Chris waved when they saw us. Two men stood off to the side.

Bruehl and two guys waved back from our boat, signaling all was okay.

“Pauly’s guys with her?” I looked to Norm.

“I was taking care of your ass, hoss, so I don’t know,” he said. Evasive again.

Tita waved for me to come aboard and Norm shook his head no. He got on the marine radio and told her to go to the prearranged channel. Prearranged with whom, I wondered.

“We’ll meet you at the dock,” Norm said into the mic.

“He needed stitches. Over.” He put the radio away, not waiting for her reply.

As we neared the Coast Guard base, our boat moved away from the others and took the channel between the base and Fleming Key. The sailboat’s mast was too high to make it under the bridge, so Tita had to take the long way around the Key. We’d be at the dock in minutes; it would take her an hour.

I could see Pauly at my slip, as we made the cut between the military base and Hilton Haven. He was talking with Mike and Karen McAloon.

The boat pulled into my slip and someone tossed Pauly a bowline. He held onto the line. Mike and Karen walked over.

“I’m surprised it took you this damn long to cut yourself,” he yelled in his Texas accent.

“Are you okay?” Karen said as she slapped Mike on the top of the head. “Be nice.”

“I’m fine,” I said and wondered what Pauly had told them.

Norm helped me make the long stride to the dockside steps. My side smarted as I stretched to reach the top step. I smiled at Mike and Karen but I wanted to scream.

Murdock handed me a small vial. “Pain pills if you need ‘em.” He moved back onto the boat.

Pauly tossed the bowline back and the boat slowly maneuvered out of the slip.

“You’re lucky Tita can handle the
Bastard
by herself,” Mike said and ducked before Karen hit him again.

“Don’t I know it.” I looked at Pauly.

“You want to come aboard and wait?” Mike said, the gruffness gone. “I’ve got beer.”

“Of course you do,” I said. Mike’s taste in beers went in the direction of whatever Winn Dixie had on sale, but his cigars were always top notch, so I put up with his bargain-basement brew. “Give me a little while.”

“You come when you’re ready,” Karen said and led Mike away.

“See you in a little while.” I turned to Pauly. “What did you tell them?”

“That you cut yourself while snorkeling.”

“They believed you?”

“Mike seemed to get a good laugh out of it,” Pauly said. “Walk to the parking lot with me.”

Norm and I followed Pauly. They walked slowly, for my sake.

“Do you realize the shit-pot of trouble you’re in?” Pauly said to me, but he looked at Norm.

“He’s beginning to,” Norm answered for me.

“Tita’s not safe here,” Pauly said. “You’ve gotta get rid of her.”

“I told him that too,” Norm said.

“I’ll tell her the truth, with Norm to back me up, and maybe she’ll listen,” I said. “Her work is done so I think she’s sticking around because of me.”

“Lie to her,” Pauly said. “Drive her to Boston, but get her out of here.” Unlike when Norm told me the same thing, Pauly’s words had urgency to them.

“I’ll do what I can,” I said.

“And I’ll do what I can to keep you both safe,” Pauly said as he approached the ramp to the parking lot. “Your friend Nash…”

“Ashe, Jim Ashe,” Norm said.

“Sorry. Jim Ashe’s SEALs are in the water, by Rat Island,” Pauly said. Rat Island is just outside the cut from Garrison Bight.

“Bric’s in a small barge out there and he can use it to seal off the cut, if anything goes down on the water. Whoever it is can’t get back up support through the cut and they’re trapped in the bight.” Pauly looked around the parking lot as we approached. “You can’t see ‘em, but I’ve put a couple of men up here. Something looks funny, they’re on it.”

Norm laughed. “Hell, why ain’t you prepared for a seaplane?”

“Who said I’m not?” Pauly answered. “Sniper at the yacht club.”

Norm looked toward the Key West Yacht Club. “See I’m not the only Boy Scout.”

“Lifestyle can make you be prepared too,” Pauly said.

“Yeah,” Norm said. “Langley said the chatter has quieted down on Alexei. Jim Ashe said he’s off the grid but then again, he’s made a life of not being found.”

“Has anyone talked to Richard?” I said.

Pauly and Norm glanced at each other.

“Mick, the last thing we need…you need, is the local cops involved,” Norm said.

“I second that,” Pauly said. “What we’re doing ain’t exactly following the rules.”

“More important,” Norm said. “What we’re planning to do is against the law.”

Chapter 64

T
ita brought the
Fenian Bastard
into the slip like an experienced sailor. It made me proud because when she first came to Key West, sailing was a new adventure for her.

Though a novice, she refused to be intimidated by the size of my boat and sailed us to the reef with little help from me after four or five lessons.

Pauly made himself scarce, saying he had things to do.

“You need anything, just yell,” he said and walked away.

“Someday you’re gonna have to tell me why he likes you,” Norm said as we saw the
Fenian Bastard
lower its sails and move through the cut. “You think he’s a reformed smuggler?”

“Probably not,” I said and wanted one of the pain pills. “I’m not judgmental and he likes that.”

“Everyone’s judgmental, hoss. One way or another, but you need to give a shit first,” Norm said and walked to the finger slip so he could take the bowline. Norm had made it clear during our years of friendship that he didn’t give a shit about too many people or causes. I was an exception to his rule and never really understood why.

Tita let Norm and the others tie off the boat. She ran to me and I held her off with my right arm as she tried to give me a hug.

“Gently,” I said.

She smelled like the ocean, sun and wind, gave me a salty kiss and then raised my T-shirt to see my injury underneath. Murdock stitched the wound, put antibiotic goop around the sutures that stained the shirt, and told me to bandage it on the boat.

“Don’t get it wet for a couple of days,” he’d said while he bagged his equipment.

I was salty from the swim and wanted a shower almost as much as I wanted a pain pill.

“Does it hurt very much?” Tita stared at the redness.

“Only when I laugh.”

“I’ll try not to do anything funny.” She turned to Norm, looking for answers.

He broke off his conversation with Chris and came to us. “You need to stay here tonight,” he said looking at Tita, his voice firm so we knew it wasn’t an option. “Your house is under surveillance, just to make sure it’s safe.”

“Here is safe?” Tita scanned the crowded marina, her words a challenge.

“It’s protected,” Norm said. “I think we’ve learned nowhere is
safe
.”

“He’s right,” Chris said as she walked up. “There are people here to protect you. Alexei knows where you are and he knows we know it.” She smiled. “He’s spending his time looking for an alternative because he needs Mick alive. It won’t take him twenty-four hours to come up with a workable plan.”

“So what do we do in the meantime?” Tita said.

“You need protection,” Chris said. “It seems you’ve got people doing just that. Let us help.”

“They got to Mick in the water. Why not here?” Tita needed an explanation because it was her nature to expect answers to her questions. Always the lawyer, even when not in court.

“Everyone makes mistakes,” Chris said. “Ours was in thinking we had time. We don’t, so now we prepare.”

“Tita, you know your safety is primary to us,” Norm said. “Give us ‘till the morning.”

“How bad is that wound?” It was her way of saying okay. But she would hold them to the morning.

Norm and Chris told Tita the wound’s purpose was to disable and hurt me, to let me bleed out slowly to scare me, but they assured her that Murdock and Bruehl had closed it and I would be fine.

I wanted to believe them. I wondered if Tita did.

“We need to eat,” Tita said.

“Mick
needs
to keep still for a couple of days and let the wound heal,” Norm said.

“I can have something delivered.”

“Best not to have strangers showing up,” Chris said.

“I’ll have someone get take-out for you. Is that okay?” Norm asked.

Tita looked at me. I nodded.

“I know what he likes at the Outback,” she said.

Tita gave the food order to Norm who promised it would be here in no time. Then he and Chris left assuring us they’d be in touch by phone if they heard anything. Otherwise, we’d all have breakfast in the morning.

I had to stretch again to make it from the dockside steps to the deck of the
Fenian Bastard
. It hurt and I wouldn’t have been surprised if the stitches broke. I waited a moment on deck expecting to feel blood pouring from my side but nothing happened. I felt sewn up tight as a Thanksgiving turkey.

Tita had left the hatch open and I took the steps down into the main cabin one at a time. The air inside was briny from the sail.

“I hooked up the shore power and water,” Tita said as she came into the main cabin. “Turn on the air.” She closed the hatch and I switched the air conditioner to high. She ran water at the galley sink. “Everything’s working.”