The QE2 Is Missing

A key rattled in the door and Josep dropped the phone and reached out and grabbed Aurelia cruelly about the mouth and pulled her tight up against his chest, at the same time grinding the gun hard into her side. The pain was terrible and she did not move or resist as he dragged her to one side, out of direct view of the door. At the same time the men in the bathroom stepped back silently out of sight.

Chvosta came in and only saw Josep and Aurelia when he turned to close the door. His eyes widened.

“Close the door carefully and lock it,” Josep said, twisting Aurelia’s face even more painfully against his chest as he pointed the gun over her shoulder. Chvosta did as he had been directed. Other than the key his hands were empty.

Josep threw Aurelia onto the bed, then tossed her purse to the others as they emerged from the bathroom. “Where is the bag?” he said.

Chvosta looked at Aurelia, who was holding her hand to her blood-stained mouth where Josep had crushed her lips against her teeth. Then he smiled broadly, almost laughed out loud.

“Not here as you can clearly see, Josep, not here at all. I’m surprised to see you here, though I should have realized our Uruguayan friends would have lax security. I am glad that I prepared for all exigencies.”

“The bag with the diamonds — you have exactly ten seconds to tell me.”

“But I am trying to tell you. I was sure these people would attempt to renege on payment so I arranged that as soon as I had the diamonds — and sooner than they had imagined — I would put them in a safe place.”

“What safe place?”

“The ship’s vault, of course. What could be safer than that?”

21

Josep’s face went white with rage and his hand tightened about the gun, his finger trembling against the trigger.

“Don’t do it,” Chvosta said softly. “The diamonds are in the safe, the receipt for the bag is in my pocket. If you shoot me you gain nothing and perhaps lose the diamonds. Think about that, Josep. You have always killed with a reason in the past. Don’t change that now.”

“Keep both of them covered,” Josep ordered his men, then picked up the phone again. “The Czech is here now — but without the diamonds. He says that they are in the ship’s vault.”

“I don’t doubt that for a second. He’s a shrewd operator. All right, we’ll work this out. Stay there until I call you back. And have Chvosta call the Germans at once before they send a raiding party down there.”

Josep pressed down on the disconnect, then handed the telephone to Chvosta. “Call Wielgus. Tell him where the diamonds are and hang up. Not a word about us, understand?”

“Understood, obviously. And I had planned to make that call now in any case before they do something foolish.” He took the phone and dialled a number. “Dr. Wielgus please, Libor Chvosta calling. Yes, I’ll hold on. Is that you, Doctor? Of course. The diamonds? In the ship’s vault where they will be safe. Such language, Doctor! Goodbye.” He hung up, smiling. “They are very upset, Aurelia, about what you did to that pretty boy. There is a chance he may lose his arm.”

“Good,” she said, holding a tissue to her bleeding lip. “Next time I'll shoot him between the legs and see if he loses that, too. Who are these people? You seem to know this one.”

“I do. This gentleman is known as Josep. He is with the Tupamaros. We have had some business dealings with them. But this was before you joined the organization.”

“Shut up and go sit beside her on the bed,” Josep ordered. “I must think.”

“We think before we act,” Uzi said. “But we think fast. This is, as the Americans say, a whole new ball game. How do we get the diamonds from the vault?”

“Seems simple enough,” Hank said. “Chvosta must have a receipt, we could use that. Or force him to take them out for us.”

“It can’t be that simple or the Germans would do the same thing with him. He would have planned better than that. Hank, call the cashier’s office, it’s number eight-four-two, tell them you have something you would like to put in the vault.”

Hank dialed the number and spoke to one of the cashiers. He listened closely, thanked the man, then hung up.

“You’re right. Chvosta planned this very well. This is Saturday night and the day shift is gone. The vault is closed with a time lock and won’t open again until Monday morning.”

“Then we must seize the cashier’s office,” Concepcion said, and they all turned to look at her. “Seize it and burn our way into the vault. It will not be hard. There will be acetylene torches in the engine room.”