Майкл Ридпат - The Marketmaker

‘Tell me what happened?’

I told him all about the kidnapping, our escape, and Isabel’s recapture.

When I had finished, Luís sighed. ‘Kidnapping is a fact of life in Rio. I had expected it to happen some time, but frankly I assumed either myself or Cordelia might be the victim. I thought Isabel would be safe.’

He paused for a moment, his eyes looking into the distance over my shoulder. Then he focused back on me. ‘There’s a man called Nelson Zarur who has advised me about these matters, taking precautions and so on. He’s a security consultant. He helped a friend of mine’s family when he was kidnapped. I’ll give him a call.’

‘Shall I wait here?’ I asked.

Luís smiled. ‘I’d like you to, if you can. We will have to talk to Dekker Ward about this. And I’ll have to tell Cordelia.’ His expression clouded. ‘It will be good to have a friend of Isabel’s here.’

Luís probably didn’t know how good a friend. I was glad of the opportunity to stay.

Luís made some phone calls. I couldn’t understand what was said. Most were calm and controlled. One involved lots of listening with a pained expression on his face — Cordelia. Then he left the room. A few moments later I heard a loud keening — Maria.

It was hard to sit there, doing nothing, watching while Luís calmly put things in motion. I felt shaken, physically and mentally. My muscles were tired and ached, and the bruises and scratches I had picked up on the hillside were making themselves known. Details of the kidnap came flooding back, and of Isabel’s reckless attempt to escape. If the gunman hadn’t hesitated she could well have been shot. Or perhaps she had calculated that they wouldn’t shoot a kidnap victim unless they absolutely had to.

And then the moment when I had left her, tangled up in the bush. She had wanted me to go, but I still felt I should be with her now, wherever she was.

How were they treating her? Had they hurt her? Punished her for escaping?

And then the most important question of all. Would we get her back alive and unharmed?

Luís finished and gestured to the phone. ‘Why don’t you get in touch with Dekker?’

Relieved to be doing something, I dialled Ricardo’s number in London.

‘Dekker.’

‘Ricardo. It’s Nick.’

‘What’s up?’ There was concern in Ricardo’s voice. He could pick up the concern in mine.

‘Isabel’s been kidnapped.’

‘How?’

I told him.

Ricardo took it coolly, like a big trade going wrong. ‘OK, Nick. Now don’t worry. Kidnapping’s a local pastime in Rio. It nearly always ends in a ransom being paid and the victim being set free.’

A thought suddenly struck me. I knew how ruthless Ricardo could be. Surely even he couldn’t...

He answered my unspoken question. ‘Don’t worry. If they ask us for a ransom, we’ll pay. All Dekker employees are insured against kidnap at Lloyds.’

‘I didn’t know you could do that.’

‘Well, you can, and we have. We’ve never had to use it before. But there’s a procedure. As soon as we hear of the demand, then we’ll get a negotiator on the case. But since it’s Isabel, they’re more likely to go to her father.’

‘I’ve told him. I’m at his apartment now.’

‘Good. How’s he taking it? Does he know what to do?’

‘He seems to have thought all this through beforehand. He’s got hold of some kind of security consultant.’

‘Excellent. Now, can you stay in Rio until things become clearer?’

‘I’d be happy to.’

‘OK. Keep me informed.’

I was comforted as I put down the phone. Both Ricardo and Luís were taking the situation calmly. I began to hope that Isabel’s life was safe in their hands. Knowing that this was a common event made me feel better. If we just stuck to the rules, and so did the kidnappers, then Isabel should go free. Eventually. After being kept locked up in some hole somewhere for God knows how long. And I wasn’t quite happy with the idea of Ricardo using his tough negotiating tactics for Isabel’s life.

I tried to calm myself down too, to be useful. It was difficult. The tide of worry threatened to overwhelm me. Would she be hurt? Would they let her go? Would they treat her well? Why hadn’t I stayed with her?

Nelson Zarur was at the apartment within half an hour. He was an odd-looking man, short with a round orange face and bulging eyes. He wore a bright green short-sleeved shirt and tan trousers. Luís had mentioned he was a retired policeman, although he didn’t look much over forty-five.

Luís introduced us, and asked Nelson to speak in English for my benefit. I was pleased to be included.

Luís asked me to describe the kidnapping itself. Nelson took notes in an old notebook with a cheap biro, occasionally asking detailed questions.

‘That area is a favourite place for kidnappings,’ he said. ‘There have been three there in the last year. Quiet streets next to a highway. Perfect. And the Tijuca forest has been used before as a staging post to keep the victims for a couple of days while they get somewhere else ready.’

‘So what can we expect now?’ Luís asked him.

‘The most important thing to remember is that this is a business transaction,’ Nelson began. His English was fast and accurate, although his accent was strong. He sounded confident, and his confidence was infectious. He clearly knew what he was talking about.

He went on: ‘The kidnappers have goods of value to you, which they want to sell. They can only do that if the goods are in good condition. So that is why it is in their interest to keep Isabel healthy.’

‘I’m not sure I like the idea of thinking of my daughter as goods to be traded,’ said Luís.

‘Of course not. And that’s what the kidnappers will be playing on. They will use everything they can to make you think that they are callous sadists who are just about to harm your daughter for no good reason. But they’re not. Kidnappers in Rio are usually very rational. All they want is the ransom. My job is to help you remember that, to try to keep this a commercial transaction, and to ensure that Isabel is returned safely for the smallest sum of money.’

He leaned forward and touched Luís’s arm, his round orange face sincere. ‘I’ve advised on sixteen kidnaps so far. In all but two the victim was returned alive. The odds are heavily on our side.’

Luís frowned. ‘That’s good to know. But will she... I mean will they—’

Nelson interrupted, ‘We have no way of knowing what conditions she will be kept in. That depends entirely on the kidnappers. But they won’t touch her. In my experience they never do.’

Luís’s frown lightened. Rape hadn’t occurred to me, thank God. But it would have done eventually, and I was very pleased to hear what Nelson had to say.

‘You have to decide whether to tell the police,’ Nelson went on. ‘I would strongly recommend it. They will keep their distance and won’t interfere with the ransom negotiations. And if we are open with them there is less chance of them stumbling blindly into the middle of something.’

Luís hesitated. ‘But what if the kidnappers tell us not to contact them?’

‘It’s quite likely that they will say that, but the police will keep a low profile. However, we should try to keep the press out of it if we can. The fewer people who know about this the better.’

‘How big’s the forest?’ I asked. ‘Do you think the police will find them?’

Nelson shook his head. ‘There is no chance of that. As soon as they realized you had escaped, the kidnappers would have moved on. But the police might learn something if they find the remains of the camp you saw.’

Luís nodded. ‘OK. We’ll tell the police. What happens next?’