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nicked and scarred and mean.
The other three in the team had been suggested by Hestler, which was good
enough for Jay. They were brothers: Hector, Benny, and Carl. For some reason,
they didn t reveal their surname. They looked like the weakest links,
wide-eyed during the flight from L.A., amazed to be visiting hotels and Paris
and car rental offices, like Europe was one giant theme park. One of them had
even brought a camera with him, which Jay had confiscated straight off.
Hestler agreed that they acted like kids, but he d seen them in fights. Once
they got going, he said, they were real bastards. He thought they d had their
whole moral training from video games and spaghetti westerns.
It took a couple of trips to bring all the stuff in. Everyone was damp, and
not liking it.
Start unpacking, Jay ordered.
Hestler looked at him. Are we going now?
Why not?
It s raining hard!
Hestler, we re going to be in a fucking boat. We d get wet even if the sky
was blue as a South Carolina morning. I bet you re the sort who runs out of
the swimming pool when the rain starts.
There was more laughter at this. Hestler didn t appreciate being its butt, but
he stopped questioning Jay s decisions.
Jay turned to Jiminez. See if you can find any oilskins.
Jiminez nodded and set to work. Choa, Watts, and Schlecht were handing out
armaments. Each man had a submachine gun, either the MP5 or a Cobray M11. They
also received a pistol, ammo, and knife. Jiminez refused the knife, preferring
his own blade. Hestler and Jay were the only two to be given grenades Jay s
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orders. The other men could be professional baseball pitchers, he still
wouldn t have trusted them with a grenade.
We take those three bags with us, Jay said, pointing to the ones he meant.
If you have dry clothes with you, put them in a backpack.
Watts and Schlecht handed out the backpacks. They were day-walker spec, big
enough for a change of clothes and some provisions. Belts and holsters were
next. Creech could hardly believe the evidence of his own eyes. He didn t feel
so bad now about ratting out Reeve. After all, Reeve hadn t warned him what he
was getting him into.
All Creech hoped now was that he d get out of this alive. Jiminez had found
some waterproof clothing, not quite enough to go around. Jay examined the two
boats, only one of which was big enough to accommodate all of them. He decided
they should take both: a backup was always useful.
Are these ready to go? he asked Creech.
Might need some fuel, Creech said, trying to be helpful.
Do it. Hector, you watch him. Benny and Carl, go move the cars, see if you
can get them out of sight.
The three brothers nodded. Jay still didn t know which of them was which. He
bit his bottom lip thoughtfully. This mission was costing Kosigin dearly; he
didn t want one single fuck-up.
Hey, Hestler, you ever skippered a boat?
Some, Hestler said. Hestler had done most things in his life, one reason why
he was so useful.
Okay, Jay said, you take the motorboat. You can take the three stooges with
you. The rest of us will take the bigger boat. He looked down on Creech, who
was carrying a canister of fuel down the short metal ladder that led to both
boats. You re in charge of the bigger boat, Mr. Creech.
Creech managed to nod. Er& he said. But then he swallowed. He d been about
to ask about the hire fee, but looking into Jay s eyes it suddenly didn t
matter anymore.
It was a terrible day to be in a boat. The Minch was notorious anyway, and
this was the sort of day which merely added to its reputation. The two boats
kept in radio contact, for though they were only thirty feet apart, there was
no way a shout could be heard from one to the other, and even hand signals
were difficult, since most of the men were holding on with both hands to stop
from being pitched over the side.
I think we should go back! Jay had heard Hestler say more than once. He d
just shaken his head towards Hestler s boat, not caring whether Hestler saw
him or not. The Chicano whose name Jay had forgotten was puking over the side,
his face close to green. Jiminez didn t look too good either, but stared
ahead, refusing to acknowledge he was having any problem. Watts and Schlecht
had sailed before, but never when we weren t carrying dope. Choa was staring
at the sea like he could control it with his anger, the way he could control
people. He was learning a very old lesson indeed.
What happens if we capsize? the Chicano squealed, wiping his mouth with the
back of his hand. What happens then?
Jay said something the youth couldn t make out. Jiminez repeated it for his
friend.
Fallback.
Fallback? What fallback? The youth turned to spew again, and that ended the
argument.
The wind s easing, Creech said. He was pale in the face himself, but not
from the weather. Forecast said it would be better in the afternoon.
We should have waited, growled Choa.
Jay stared at him, then looked at the sea again. It was the same shade of gray
they painted navy ships, with great spumes of white where the waves clashed.
Yes, he should have waited. This way, they would land on the island less than
a hundred percent ready to do battle. He wondered if the Philosopher had
worked that out&
Hestler wiped stinging water out of his eyes; he was thinking much the same as
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ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
Jay.
Jiminez and his friend were staring at Jay, not sure what to think. What the
fuck is he doing? Jiminez s friend asked.
He s singing, Jiminez told him. Jay was singing Row, row, row your boat at
the top of his voice.
Nobody joined in.
There! Creech said eventually. There s the island. He was as relieved as
anybody, though he was filled with a certain dread, too. Hands tightened
around guns; eyes peered at the coastline. There s only one real place for a
landing, that wee bit of beach.
The beach was a narrow strip of sand so dark it might have been coal dust. The [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl wyciskamy.pev.pl
nicked and scarred and mean.
The other three in the team had been suggested by Hestler, which was good
enough for Jay. They were brothers: Hector, Benny, and Carl. For some reason,
they didn t reveal their surname. They looked like the weakest links,
wide-eyed during the flight from L.A., amazed to be visiting hotels and Paris
and car rental offices, like Europe was one giant theme park. One of them had
even brought a camera with him, which Jay had confiscated straight off.
Hestler agreed that they acted like kids, but he d seen them in fights. Once
they got going, he said, they were real bastards. He thought they d had their
whole moral training from video games and spaghetti westerns.
It took a couple of trips to bring all the stuff in. Everyone was damp, and
not liking it.
Start unpacking, Jay ordered.
Hestler looked at him. Are we going now?
Why not?
It s raining hard!
Hestler, we re going to be in a fucking boat. We d get wet even if the sky
was blue as a South Carolina morning. I bet you re the sort who runs out of
the swimming pool when the rain starts.
There was more laughter at this. Hestler didn t appreciate being its butt, but
he stopped questioning Jay s decisions.
Jay turned to Jiminez. See if you can find any oilskins.
Jiminez nodded and set to work. Choa, Watts, and Schlecht were handing out
armaments. Each man had a submachine gun, either the MP5 or a Cobray M11. They
also received a pistol, ammo, and knife. Jiminez refused the knife, preferring
his own blade. Hestler and Jay were the only two to be given grenades Jay s
Page 170
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
orders. The other men could be professional baseball pitchers, he still
wouldn t have trusted them with a grenade.
We take those three bags with us, Jay said, pointing to the ones he meant.
If you have dry clothes with you, put them in a backpack.
Watts and Schlecht handed out the backpacks. They were day-walker spec, big
enough for a change of clothes and some provisions. Belts and holsters were
next. Creech could hardly believe the evidence of his own eyes. He didn t feel
so bad now about ratting out Reeve. After all, Reeve hadn t warned him what he
was getting him into.
All Creech hoped now was that he d get out of this alive. Jiminez had found
some waterproof clothing, not quite enough to go around. Jay examined the two
boats, only one of which was big enough to accommodate all of them. He decided
they should take both: a backup was always useful.
Are these ready to go? he asked Creech.
Might need some fuel, Creech said, trying to be helpful.
Do it. Hector, you watch him. Benny and Carl, go move the cars, see if you
can get them out of sight.
The three brothers nodded. Jay still didn t know which of them was which. He
bit his bottom lip thoughtfully. This mission was costing Kosigin dearly; he
didn t want one single fuck-up.
Hey, Hestler, you ever skippered a boat?
Some, Hestler said. Hestler had done most things in his life, one reason why
he was so useful.
Okay, Jay said, you take the motorboat. You can take the three stooges with
you. The rest of us will take the bigger boat. He looked down on Creech, who
was carrying a canister of fuel down the short metal ladder that led to both
boats. You re in charge of the bigger boat, Mr. Creech.
Creech managed to nod. Er& he said. But then he swallowed. He d been about
to ask about the hire fee, but looking into Jay s eyes it suddenly didn t
matter anymore.
It was a terrible day to be in a boat. The Minch was notorious anyway, and
this was the sort of day which merely added to its reputation. The two boats
kept in radio contact, for though they were only thirty feet apart, there was
no way a shout could be heard from one to the other, and even hand signals
were difficult, since most of the men were holding on with both hands to stop
from being pitched over the side.
I think we should go back! Jay had heard Hestler say more than once. He d
just shaken his head towards Hestler s boat, not caring whether Hestler saw
him or not. The Chicano whose name Jay had forgotten was puking over the side,
his face close to green. Jiminez didn t look too good either, but stared
ahead, refusing to acknowledge he was having any problem. Watts and Schlecht
had sailed before, but never when we weren t carrying dope. Choa was staring
at the sea like he could control it with his anger, the way he could control
people. He was learning a very old lesson indeed.
What happens if we capsize? the Chicano squealed, wiping his mouth with the
back of his hand. What happens then?
Jay said something the youth couldn t make out. Jiminez repeated it for his
friend.
Fallback.
Fallback? What fallback? The youth turned to spew again, and that ended the
argument.
The wind s easing, Creech said. He was pale in the face himself, but not
from the weather. Forecast said it would be better in the afternoon.
We should have waited, growled Choa.
Jay stared at him, then looked at the sea again. It was the same shade of gray
they painted navy ships, with great spumes of white where the waves clashed.
Yes, he should have waited. This way, they would land on the island less than
a hundred percent ready to do battle. He wondered if the Philosopher had
worked that out&
Hestler wiped stinging water out of his eyes; he was thinking much the same as
Page 171
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
Jay.
Jiminez and his friend were staring at Jay, not sure what to think. What the
fuck is he doing? Jiminez s friend asked.
He s singing, Jiminez told him. Jay was singing Row, row, row your boat at
the top of his voice.
Nobody joined in.
There! Creech said eventually. There s the island. He was as relieved as
anybody, though he was filled with a certain dread, too. Hands tightened
around guns; eyes peered at the coastline. There s only one real place for a
landing, that wee bit of beach.
The beach was a narrow strip of sand so dark it might have been coal dust. The [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]