him. He paused and leaned his head against the ship's cold iron. "You will pay for this," he whispered. He was talking to a people that he had never seen.
__________
The old man on anchor watch was still unconscious, with a swollen lump on the back of his head where Fasil had slugged him. Fasil dragged him to the first mate's cabin and laid him on the bunk, then sat down to think.
Originally the plan was to have the crates picked up at the Brooklyn dock by the importer, Benjamin Muzi. There was no way of knowing if Larmoso had contacted Muzi and enlisted his aid in this treachery. Muzi would have to be dealt with anyway because he knew far too much. Customs would be curious at the absence of Larmoso. Questions would be asked. It seemed unlikely that the others on the ship knew what was in the crates. Larmoso's keys were still dangling from the lock on the forward compartment when the captain was killed. Now they were in Fasil's pocket. The plastique must not go into New York Harbor, that was clear.
First Mate Mustapha Fawzi was a reasonable man and not a brave one. At midnight when he returned to the ship, Fasil had a brief conversation with him. In one hand Fasil held a large black revolver. In the other he held $2,000. He inquired about the health of Fawzi's mother and sister in Beirut, then suggested that their continued health depended largely on Fawzi's cooperation. The thing was quickly done.
__________
It was 7 P.M. Eastern Standard Time when the telephone rang in Michael Lander's house. He was working in his garage and picked up the extension. Dahlia was mixing a can of paint.
From the amount of line noise, Lander guessed the caller was very far away. He had a pleasant voice with a British clip, similar to Dahlia's. He asked for the "lady of the house."
Dahlia was at the phone in an instant and began a rather tedious conversation in English about relatives and real estate. Then the conversation was punctuated with 20 seconds of rapid-fire slangy Arabic.
Dahlia turned from the phone, covering the mouthpiece with her hand.
"Michael, we have to pick up the plastique at sea. Can you get a boat?"
Lander's mind worked furiously. "Yes. Make sure of the rendezvous point. Forty miles due east of the Barnegat Light a half-hour before sunset. We'll make visual contact with the last light and close after dark. If the winds are over force five, postpone it for exactly 24 hours. Tell him to pack it in units one man can lift."
Dahlia spoke quickly into the telephone, then hung up.
"Tuesday the twelfth," she said. She was looking at him curiously. "Michael, you worked that out rather quickly."
"No, I didn't," Lander said.
Dahlia had learned very early never to lie to Lander. That would be as stupid as programming a computer with half-truths and expecting accurate answers. Besides, he could always tell when she had even the temptation to lie. Now she was glad that she had confided in him from the beginning on the arrangements for bringing in the plastique.
He listened calmly as she told him what had happened on the ship.
"Do you think Muzi put Larmoso up to it?" he asked.
"Fasil doesn't know. He never had a chance to question Larmoso. We have to assume Muzi put him up to it. We can't afford to do otherwise, can we, Michael? If Muzi dared to interfere with the shipment, if he planned to keep our advance payment and sell the plastique elsewhere, then he has sold us out to the authorities here. He would have to do that for his own protection. Even if he has not betrayed us, he would have to be dealt with. He knows far too much, and he has seen you. He could identify you."
"You intended to kill him all along?"
"Yes. He is not one of us, and he is in a dangerous business. If the authorities threatened him on some other matter, who knows what he might tell them?" Dahlia realized she was being too assertive. "I couldn't stand the thought of him always being a threat to you, Michael," she added in a softer voice.
__________
The old man on anchor watch was still unconscious, with a swollen lump on the back of his head where Fasil had slugged him. Fasil dragged him to the first mate's cabin and laid him on the bunk, then sat down to think.
Originally the plan was to have the crates picked up at the Brooklyn dock by the importer, Benjamin Muzi. There was no way of knowing if Larmoso had contacted Muzi and enlisted his aid in this treachery. Muzi would have to be dealt with anyway because he knew far too much. Customs would be curious at the absence of Larmoso. Questions would be asked. It seemed unlikely that the others on the ship knew what was in the crates. Larmoso's keys were still dangling from the lock on the forward compartment when the captain was killed. Now they were in Fasil's pocket. The plastique must not go into New York Harbor, that was clear.
First Mate Mustapha Fawzi was a reasonable man and not a brave one. At midnight when he returned to the ship, Fasil had a brief conversation with him. In one hand Fasil held a large black revolver. In the other he held $2,000. He inquired about the health of Fawzi's mother and sister in Beirut, then suggested that their continued health depended largely on Fawzi's cooperation. The thing was quickly done.
__________
It was 7 P.M. Eastern Standard Time when the telephone rang in Michael Lander's house. He was working in his garage and picked up the extension. Dahlia was mixing a can of paint.
From the amount of line noise, Lander guessed the caller was very far away. He had a pleasant voice with a British clip, similar to Dahlia's. He asked for the "lady of the house."
Dahlia was at the phone in an instant and began a rather tedious conversation in English about relatives and real estate. Then the conversation was punctuated with 20 seconds of rapid-fire slangy Arabic.
Dahlia turned from the phone, covering the mouthpiece with her hand.
"Michael, we have to pick up the plastique at sea. Can you get a boat?"
Lander's mind worked furiously. "Yes. Make sure of the rendezvous point. Forty miles due east of the Barnegat Light a half-hour before sunset. We'll make visual contact with the last light and close after dark. If the winds are over force five, postpone it for exactly 24 hours. Tell him to pack it in units one man can lift."
Dahlia spoke quickly into the telephone, then hung up.
"Tuesday the twelfth," she said. She was looking at him curiously. "Michael, you worked that out rather quickly."
"No, I didn't," Lander said.
Dahlia had learned very early never to lie to Lander. That would be as stupid as programming a computer with half-truths and expecting accurate answers. Besides, he could always tell when she had even the temptation to lie. Now she was glad that she had confided in him from the beginning on the arrangements for bringing in the plastique.
He listened calmly as she told him what had happened on the ship.
"Do you think Muzi put Larmoso up to it?" he asked.
"Fasil doesn't know. He never had a chance to question Larmoso. We have to assume Muzi put him up to it. We can't afford to do otherwise, can we, Michael? If Muzi dared to interfere with the shipment, if he planned to keep our advance payment and sell the plastique elsewhere, then he has sold us out to the authorities here. He would have to do that for his own protection. Even if he has not betrayed us, he would have to be dealt with. He knows far too much, and he has seen you. He could identify you."
"You intended to kill him all along?"
"Yes. He is not one of us, and he is in a dangerous business. If the authorities threatened him on some other matter, who knows what he might tell them?" Dahlia realized she was being too assertive. "I couldn't stand the thought of him always being a threat to you, Michael," she added in a softer voice.
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