Good Deed Bad Deed, Marcia Morgan [summer beach reads TXT] 📗

hunt for insured valuables and the crooks that stole them. When you have a husband who carries a gun, you never relax.”

Hugh knew it was time to cut it short. He got up from his chair and put his arms around his wife. “Well, my dear, all that worry seems to have had absolutely no effect on your beauty.”

Paris tried to stifle a smile, but Hugh knew her every expression and that for the moment he had appeased her. He felt it was safe to return to the subject at hand and said, “When will the necessary forms be completed and faxed to the airline so they will release the exhibit to the ‘armored cars’ we’re providing?”

She knew he was referring to the need for Interpol and Scotland Yard to have the information immediately. Flawless coordination between the two would be necessary in order to intercept the transfer of the exhibit and arrest those involved. Hugh had been told that as a fail-safe measure crates identical to those used by the Spanish museum would be used. They would have approximately the same weight and would be given over to the criminals for loading onto the truck. One of the crates would contain enough gold to support a solid robbery indictment, not just attempted robbery. An additional indictment for conspiracy could be possible.

“Now that I know what name will be on the trucks, I just have to fill it in on the forms. It would be best to email a copy to the appropriate person now and tell them that I will be faxing a copy as well. I need to fax a copy to either Interpol or the Yard, right?”

“I’d send it to both. I have their fax numbers in my phone.” He took it out of his pocket and began scrolling for the information then reading out the numbers while Paris jotted them down.

She stopped writing and looked up at Hugh. “Once we send this information it’s out of our hands. Olivia and Valerie’s safety will be in these men’s hands. If the whole group isn’t involved in the actual robbery, whoever is waiting—the leader maybe— will know something’s wrong when he can’t reach them. Who knows what he’ll do then. Worst-case scenario he’ll make a call to wherever they’re being kept in Spain. I can’t bear to think of what could happen then.”

“I know what you’re thinking because I’ve been worried about that too,” Hugh said. They looked at each other and Paris’ eyes misted over. “Let’s not borrow trouble. Remember, Ben and Ana are in Pamplona by now. Our son is resourceful, and regardless of the information on Ana, I think she’s on Ben’s side. In my profession you learn to read people pretty well. I’ve been exposed to plenty of tricky people. They have certain mannerisms in common.”

“With me it’s a gut feeling. I hope it can be trusted.”

Hugh stood up and leaned over, putting his hands on her desk and looking squarely into her eyes. “Send the emails then send the faxes. Let’s get this show on the road.”

Within ten minutes it was done. Paris had done her part as instructed by the kidnapper and also as required by law enforcement. Hugh was sure he would hear from his contacts within an hour. They would confirm that everything was in place. Within thirty-six hours it would be over. Then there was the matter of rescuing their daughter and Ben’s ex-wife.

Neither would be content to sit back and wait for news. Hugh pulled Paris up from her chair and held her firmly by the shoulders. She was somewhat startled but said nothing. Their eyes met and he said, “We’re going to Spain.” Paris recognized that resolute expression. She had seen it many times.

* * *

In spite of the stressful situation in which Ben and Ana found themselves, the landscape between San Sebastian and Pamplona served to provide at least a bit of distraction. The motorway eased through the northern boundary of the Pyrenees, where craggy peaks began to soften into rolling green hills and more pastureland. The sun was no longer overhead and had begun its descent into the western sky, yet the heat of the day remained constant. Without air conditioning the only thing to do was to keep the windows down and allow the warm wind to circulate inside the car. Ben had turned on the radio to help pass the time, but after a while Ana suggested they turn it off, that the lively music was making her more nervous.

“Sure, turn it off, but I can’t talk about what we could be dealing with. It would distract me too much from my driving.”

“Let’s not do that. We need to arrive in one piece. I don’t want to talk about it either. It’s on our minds, regardless.” Ben glanced aside and could see that Ana was pondering something. She broke into a smile and said, “You’re a writer. Tell me a story. Can you do that and drive too?” She waited for him to answer, but he just smiled and shook his head no. “Well then, tell me more about your family—off the record. Everything is off the record for now. Amazing how a little interview can escalate into a life-changing situation.

“You’ve got that right. I suppose we’ll have to start over with all that, once this whole situation is resolved—if it’s still relevant. The whole idea has lost its shine for me. Of course I was never really keen.” He paused then added, “But I do like one life-changing thing that happened.”

He quickly glanced at Ana, grinned and winked. She knew what he was referring to and felt a slight flush of embarrassment. Then she quickly returned to the subject of the interview. “It would sure take a different turn at this point. I can see it becoming more of a news story than an interview. Whatever it wants to be, it’s the least of our concerns.” Ana tossed her hair and continued