Jeffrey Siger - Assassins of Athens

'I thought some prudence was in order. Considering what happened in Sardinia, I wasn't about to go anywhere without equivalent assistance. Oh, yes, I spoke to Linardos about our little chat yesterday, and he checked with his newspaper sources in Italy. It wasn't police. It was mercenaries. You were right about one thing, though: Mr Kostopoulos is a very dangerous man indeed.' The Old Man picked up a newspaper and started reading as if he didn't have a care in the world.

Demon made a mental note to get copies of those tapes and envelopes into the hands of more than one friend. Of all the nuts running around threatening to kill him, this was the one most likely to do it.

It was a slightly less than three-hour trip, and passengers weren't allowed to stay with their vehicles. They had to go above unless, of course, you were part of the Old Man's party. There always were exceptions for him. Demon watched one of the dozen men in fatigues tinker with a pair of headphones. 'What's he doing?'

The Old Man looked up from his newspaper. 'Practicing.'

Demon sounded impatient. 'Practicing what?'

'He's trying to catch signals. He's a counter-surveillance specialist. That's some of his equipment. He can pick up a gnat recording a hum a mile away.' He smiled. 'After your little recording session at the club, you didn't think I was going to make that mistake again, did you? If this turns out to be a setup, I think the operative word is "duck."' 'The Old Man and Demosthenes are on their way to Mykonos, but they're in a black Mercedes limo taking the fast boat from Rafina and traveling with a dozen military types in black fatigues. The limo's surrounded by four black Cayennes. Looks like a goddamned military convoy.'

Andreas hadn't left the hospital. Kouros updated him every half hour. 'I was afraid of something like that. But it's not unexpected. I'll let Tassos know. Anything else?'

'I'm on the boat with them. I tried walking by the limo on the way to the upper deck, but the Cayenne-guys started checking me out, so I didn't push it. I'll try again later. But it won't be easy. I've no excuse for being down there. The boat was full, and they wouldn't take my car. I had to flash my badge to get on as a passenger.'

'Don't worry, I'll have someone meet you when you get in.'

'It's due in at six forty-five p.m., at the new harbor in Tourlos.'

'Okay. Let me know if anything changes.'

Andreas hung up. He hadn't bothered to leave Lila's room. It didn't seem to matter how loud he talked or what he said. He wondered if she'd ever hear him again.

He called Tassos. 'The Old Man is on his way by boat from Rafina.'

'Boat?'

'Yes, the Hi Speed. It gets into Tourlos at six forty-five p.m. Looks like he's trying to surprise you by showing up early.'

'Don't worry. We'll be ready for him.'

'It's ready for them. He's traveling with Demosthenes and a dozen guys like Kostopoulos' major. Two Cayennes in front and two in back of the Old Man's limo.'

'What kind of limo?'

'Is that important?'

'Could be.' 'It's a Mercedes 600.'

'Thanks.'

Andreas paused. 'You know, if he's hiring first-rate professional talent, my guess is they'll sweep the place for bugs.'

Tassos didn't sound concerned. 'We're ready for that.'

'How?'

'We just are. Like I said, it's set up to run through the Center's system. It's undetectable. Gotta run — have to get ready for our guests. Bye.'

Andreas hoped Tassos knew what he was doing. But if anything went wrong, it was Tassos' people who would take the heat. That reminded him: he'd better have someone pick up Kouros at the harbor, and tell his own surveillance guys to be careful. This was no time to take unnecessary chances. He didn't want anyone else getting hurt. At least not any of the good guys. Mykonos' new harbor lay like a chubby-bottom north-to-south 'H' about one mile north of the island's historic old harbor. The western leg of the 'H' sat out to sea, connected to the onshore leg by a hardly noticeable bridge. The distance between the two legs was well less than one hundred yards at the south and no more than forty yards at the north. Cruise ships docked at the seaward northern end of the western leg. The Hi Speed and other large ferries docked and unloaded from the stern at its southern seaward end. The areas between the legs were for smaller craft.

A part of the onshore leg ran alongside and from three to nine feet below the main road into town. It was approximately a quarter-mile long and seemed forever under construction. People were used to it. A giant's sandbox, complete with all the old-time trucks, cranes, bulldozers, and other sorts of tank-tread earthmoving equipment every giant's little boy would love to play with. It even had a set of blocks: car-size concrete ones, lined up along the seaside and used to keep pressure on footings that some day would support the 'soon to be completed' marina.

The loudspeaker blared, 'We are arriving at Mykonos. Drivers please return to your vehicles.'

Demon was sleeping, the Old Man dozing. The Old Man leaned over from the passenger's side of the back seat and said to the driver, 'Did you tell them where we're going?'

'Yes, sir.'

'And how to get there?'

'Yes, sir. I told them to take the back way, up that steep hill next to the taverna across from the stop sign where we come out of the port.'

'Good.' He leaned back and looked at Demon. 'I prefer not to be predictable. Just in case.'

'I understand.'

The boat docked and the rear door began descending. Drivers started their engines.

Demon looked at the Old Man. 'Do you mind if I ask a question?'

'Possibly.'

'What are you planning to say to Kostopoulos?'

'Ah, now that's a good question. And one I'm prepared to answer.'

The Cayennes in front started moving. He leaned forward again. 'Stay close, no more than ten yards behind.'

'Yes, sir.'

The Old Man continued. 'He is a very interesting man, more so than I realized. He has both the willingness and capacity to do whatever he thinks necessary to achieve what he sets his mind to. He is not swayed by emotions or fears. He stays focused. He has the qualities of a Spartan.'

This was not what Demon wanted to know. He did not need a lecture. He wanted to know the game plan. He thought of saying, 'And Spartans helped end the Golden Age of Athens, so now what?' But didn't. He assumed the Old Man was dragging things out to kill time — some bus looked to have traffic backed up coming out of the port.

'I am going to tell Mr Kostopoulos exactly what he wants to hear. He wants to be accepted. He wants glory. He wants prestige. He wants to be among Greece's aristocracy. I will offer him all that. I will offer him everything he's ever wanted. And I am the one man in Greece who can guarantee all of that to him.'

Demon nodded. Those were his goals, too. 'But, what if Kostopoulos doesn't agree?'

They were up to the stop sign, but the bus responsible for the traffic tie-up still blocked the road they intended to take. People were screaming at the bus driver to move. He screamed back that he couldn't move it, that the bus was broken, and walked into the taverna.

'What shall we do, sir?' asked the driver.

'Always problems. Tell the men to go along the sea road, and just past that construction.' He pointed to a large yellow excavator working below the wall next to the road. 'Take the first left up the hill.'

The traffic started moving again. The first two Cayennes sped out onto the main road. The Mercedes started to follow, but a motorcyclist shot up along its right side and cut directly in front of it. The limo driver slammed on his brakes and missed the motorcyclist by inches. 'Malaka!' the driver screamed. 'Sorry, sir, I didn't mean to swear.'

The Old Man didn't seem upset. 'That's okay, just catch up with them.'