Clint Faraday Mysteries collection A Muddled Murders Collector's Edition (23 page)

“
We can’t
find much, but it will come in an hour or two,” Manny reported.
“It’s to do with the Ruskies, but you could see that isn’t all. It
doesn’t make any sense to me to go to all that trouble over a lousy
twenty grand in phony money. Those people are as much as
untouchable for that crap anyhow. Spend another five grand of it
with certain officials and their investigation will come to nothing
because the stuff keeps right on coming in while they’re under
constant surveillance or something on that order.

“
This
character who calls himself ‘Hank’ doesn’t fit in with that bunch.
At all.

“
Clint,
that little deal is going to lead into a big deal. Are you sure you
want to be involved? I can’t do much to help with those
cruds.”

“
I want
to know what it’s about. If it’s something over my head I’ll drop
it. I would have already if that Hank character hadn’t come here.
As you said, he doesn’t fit with that bunch of cheap thugs in
Panamá City. I think he flew in on a private plane. One was landing
just before I talked to you. Several people saw it, but the airport
says they have no records of any private flights landing at that
time.

“
It was a
Cessna two engine job. White and dark green.”

Manny grunted and called a number to ask for
some information about the green and white Cessna that landed there
yesterday afternoon. It was not the plane that was supposed to
deliver a friend, but it did. He only wanted to know if it was the
same concern who sent that one. He waited a minute, then said he’d
have to check with another agency to learn why there was no record
of a plane several friends noted – and one took a picture of while
it was being directed by an official there at the airport. He
waited another minute, then said, “Mil gracias!” and hung up.

“
Curiouser and curiouser,” he mused. “Why would Jim
Blanchard get involved with that bunch?

“
Jim is
into land development scams all over the whole damned world. He
doesn’t need to get involved with this kind of penny-ante crap!
What the HELL is going on here?

“
I think
you should back off. Now I want to know what’s up. I’ll handle
it.

“
Oh,
Jesus! I hope he doesn’t recognize me!”

Clint turned to see “Hank” coming in the door
and toward their table. He greeted him, “Hi, Jim! Miss
something?”

“
Hello,
Clint, Marko,” he returned. “It was far too fast for you to have
handled from someplace in the Greek Isles.”

“
Another
one!” Clint said to Manny. “You manage to take one hell of a lot of
heat off of Marko by being here. I don’t think there are two hoods
in the states who don’t think you’re him.”

Jim looked just a little confused. “How could
you handle something like this from the Med? It won’t work!”

“
Ever
heard of telephones?” Manny asked. “It doesn’t make one iota of
difference where you are. Hell, it could be done as quickly through
e-mail!”

“
No! I’ve
met you before! The disguise is good, but not perfect. It’s you!”
he said positively, but his body language told Clint he was very
unsure.

“
Sit,
Jim!” Clint invited. “Let me tell you how this was done.

“
For
people to actually believe it’s a disguise and trick to hide you
have to get someone with the same general look as you. You train
them to act in certain ways. It took Marko a month to get Manny to
do that thing with the eyes and lips. When he says something
important he will raise the left eyebrow a tiny bit (Clint noted
how Jim was watching Manny’s face) and put his tongue tip on his
lip. That kind of thing was my suggestion. It’s the kind of
unconscious thing people note and detectives look for.

“
Do you
know how hard it was to get him to use that solid gait ... you
haven’t seen him walk. That’s another one.

“
Now you
won’t ever be sure I’m not making this up, so it really could be
Marko.

“
One
thing: can you actually even picture Marko talking like Manny?
Actually?”

Sylvia, his wife, was spending a lot of time
teaching him to NOT sound like a cheap hood. He’d come across
beautifully already.

“
Yeah. I
can talk like I got some education, huh?” Manny said in a growl
that was a small bit higher than when he was Marko. “I got what you
call high-class yap when I consciously concentrate ... think about
it.”

Jim grinned. “Christ! You almost pulled it
off! ‘Consciously concentrate?’ Now, THAT I can’t picture from
Marko for a picosecond!”

“
What the
hell’s a pico-whatever? Jeez!” Manny said.

“
Sheesh,
not jeez,” Clint corrected.

“
Oh,
yeah. Got to get the more sophis ... lingo down.”

“
And
you’re not completely sure, even now,” Clint said, smirking. “You
WILL continue to waste your time and resources in watching Manny.
You can’t afford not to.”

“
Clint
knows the most effective methods for use in any number of areas,”
Manny said. “Marko – or I – have the greatest good fortune in his
being a friend.

“
So!
Marko found out who you were in seconds. At least you will
understand that he hasn’t yet ceased his involvement with friends
here. He won’t. He is rather more loyal to his friends than
most.

“
So
what’s it about? It’s not a handful of funny-money.”

“
It’s
about me wanting to get uninvolved with that bunch. They suckered
me in and will use me for a goat. The money had some people’s
prints on it that would get them in too deep with ... certain
others. Arsson mentioned Clint here several times during the game –
which was noted by the cameras.

“
By the
way, he is a VERY expert cheater. I wish he worked for me! He made
fools out of the clowns ... but that’s neither here nor
there.

“
Someone
panicked. He said you’d probably check it if it was spotted and
they’d be in it. If it was grabbed it would be routine to check it.
Two people at that game are no longer of importance to him. Their
bodies will be found soon enough when the car in the canal is
found. They dumped it on me to get the stuff back before it was
printed. You had it, so it was printed. I know that, but they
don’t, so I got it and burned it so their prints won’t be found. I
told them to not be so stupid as to handle the stuff. They said
they only wanted to see how good it was. I said that’s why they
make latex gloves. They agreed it was stupid and wouldn’t ever
happen again.

“
I still
want out. I don’t like their methods. My own scams don’t hurt
anyone who can’t afford it. It’s high-end and is set up to where
the investors are in it because they think it’s just a bit crooked
is why we can get it so cheap. Same as those things on the net
where you can get part of an inheritance or something if you let
them use your bank account to launder the money. If you’re that
stupid and crooked you deserve to get cleaned out. You KNOW you’re
dealing with crooks from the start.

“
It
occurred to me that Clint here is probably my best bet to get out
of it. You can set something up that will make them want me out.
I’ll go to a lot of places later, but never again here. If you can
set something up for Marko that’s this good you can scare them with
having association with me.

“
Damn it!
You’re right! I STILL don’t know for sure that this isn’t Marko!
It’s a BRILLIANT ploy either way!”

“
Five
million cash – the good stuff – if you can work something
out.”

“
I’ll
think about it,” Clint promised. “Five million to a fund to educate
the indigenos. I don’t want anymore money.”

Jim studied him a minute, then shook his
head. “I don’t believe this!”

“
Because
you’re into greed,” Manny said. “You never seriously asked, ‘What’s
it for?’ – have you?”

“
No – and
I’m not about to now.”

“
I’ll be
in touch,” Clint promised.

“
Got any
ideas for Jim?” Manny asked next day. Jim had gone back to
Changuinola and his plane. He had stopped for fuel there when he
decided to see if Clint could get him out of the Russian mob
bit.

“
We have
to find out who the two are with the damning prints on that money,
then I can find something to make them think Jim will be better-off
somewhere else.”

“
Danskie
Chekov is Danskie Chekov. Kreniev is most probably Kreniev. I
suppose they’re trying to be inconspicuous is all. Conspicuous
among that crowd can be dead if you’re big enough to threaten the
real biggies. I think what they’re afraid of is being found. They
probably are very big in one gang and it’s not time for that to be
known until they’ve built the power base to ensure they don’t end
up in a car in the canal.”

“
Then I
can handle it. I’ll need someone GOOD at protecting people in
Panamá City. I’ll also need to know where to go to let some little
things slip out. By accident or association.”

“
Association?”

“
If two
and two are added and you get the answer as being six that’s
because you don’t understand simple addition,” Clint replied with a
smirk.

Manny gave him the finger.

“
George
Mortendahl?” Clint asked the slight man in a rumpled suit with a
pink carnation in the shirt’s pattern.

“
I ain’t
done nothin’!” he whined. “I ain’t never even said nothin’ to
you!”

Clint laughed. He could spot the condition of
the person under those loose clothes. He was trained for that.

“
We have
to go to a place called Karpy’s to get a little drunk on vodka – or
I do. You have to be there because I bought you a beer and you can
maybe con me out of another one – or preferably rum,” Clint
instructed. “When I’m a little wasted you can happen to ask me what
I’m doing in Panamá and I’ll say what has to be said, then we can
go to Moppie’s Bar out in the burbs to get a bit drunker and run my
alligator mouth a little more, then back to the Hotel
California.”

He nodded. They got a cab and headed for
Karpy’s.

“
Wha...?
Oh, I’m looking for this guy who has some information about someone
else. I want to know who’s behind something else and why and he’s
the only one who can give it ... it’s none of your
business!”

“
Who?” he
asked.

“
A guy
who delivered something to me. He has to know who sent it, see?
It’s none of your business! I just bought you a damned beer, for
Christ’s sake. I didn’t hire you for a consultant in the detective
business!”

“
Maybe I
know where to find him. Got a name?”

“
Jim
Blanchard.”

“
Never
heard of him.”

“
I’m out
of here! I have to get him here in Panamá. If he leaves I can’t ...
It’s none of your business!”

He went out to a cab. The bum got in with him
and he was heard saying he wasn’t about to pay for some beggar to
ride in anymore cabs.

Moppies was much the same routine, but Clint
kept saying he had to get him here in Panamá or he couldn’t use the
pressure he had.

They went back to the Hotel California where
Clint yelled he was sure as hell not going to get any room for some
beggar and no beggar was going to stay in his room! He stormed off
with Mortendahl smirking at his back. Mortendahl flashed a twenty
at the guy at the desk and went out front to ask another gringo for
a cigarette.

“
What did
you do?” Jim asked on the phone the next morning. “I’ve been
instructed to not be seen anywhere for awhile. There’s a hint I
should get out of Panamá. How do I handle it?”

“
Whine
about having too much business here,” Clint suggested. “If you can
be found anywhere it won’t matter anyhow. I’ve left a seed that I
have to get to you in Panamá or I won’t have any leverage. You can
tell them Marko may have told me something that wouldn’t make a
difference except here. Maybe proof that you paid off an official
for someone else. Presidente Torrijos is really cracking down on
bribes and corruption. That won’t be shit anywhere but Panamá. You
won’t dare to come back here for at least seven years.” He told him
a few more ideas, then went back out to be seen trying to find Jim.
Jim was at the condominium, but Clint didn’t know which unit or
even which floor. He’d be hanging around the lobby a lot. Jim could
sneak out through the service elevator to the garage and be out of
Panamá before Clint could stop him.

That worked. Jim said he’d gotten them to
help him get away to his plane and he was leaving Panamá. He
wouldn’t be back.

Clint headed back to Bocas. On the bus he
spotted the one following him. He acted almost crazy because some
damned crooked scumbag gave him the slip and had the nerve to call
him and gloat. He would get his ass if it’s the last thing he ever
did.

Now to work on getting the Ruskie gangs after
each other. He was slowly formulating a plan. Manny would be able
to make part of it work and Judi would make the rest work.

“
Clint,
do me a favor,” Manny asked. “Don’t get more involved in this. Drop
it.”

“
I’m
going to get them after each other,” Clint said. “I won’t do
anything they’ll come after me for. It’s going to already be out
before it would do them any good to come after me and there won’t
be any revenge part because it was innocent remarks.”