Decker's Dilemma (14 page)

“Okay, two guys walked into the bar. It took me a minute, but I recognized them from somewhere.”

“Am I supposed to guess where?”

“No, you haven't seen them before. They were the two guys who followed me the other night after work.”

“Who you
thought
were following you,” Decker said. “As I remember, you weren't positive they were after you and I didn't see them behind you when I saw you walking down Magsaysay. My trained eye surely would've spotted them if they'd been there.”

“Your trained eye?”

“Yeah. I'm very observant.”

“Whatever. Anyway, they probably got lost in the crowd of people leaving base that day. But Sunday they must've followed me to the Sea Gull.”

Decker sat back and crossed his legs. “Then I doubt if they were following you.”

“Why do you say that?”

“It's simple. Why would they take the trouble to avoid detection and then show their faces?”

“That's what I can't figure out.”

“Did you talk to them?”

“No.”

Decker looked at Hack, skeptically. “Then what makes you think they were following you?”

Hack sat back in his chair. “Well, I saw them the other day. And then I saw them at the Sea Gull. And they were looking at me. It's too much of a coincidence to see Biff and Dave twice like that.”

“You know their names?”

“No, it's what I call them,” Hack said. “The younger guy with bleach blond hair reminds me of a surfer. I call him Biff.”

“And how did you come up with ‘Dave'? He remind you of your best friend from grade school or something?”

“David Letterman.”

“Letterman? Hack, my boy, you need to expand your culture beyond
Beach Blanket Bingo
and late-night television.”

“Their names aren't important,” Hack said, his brows knitted in a pensive vee.

“Okay, what happened next? Did you approach them?”

“No way. They creeped me out. I finished my beer and got the hell out of there.”

“Let me guess. You think they followed you?”

“I don't think they did. I
know
they did. I stopped at a
sari sari
store and waited and saw them leave the bar right after I did.”

“You should've confronted them.”

“Are you nuts? I was too scared. I ran to Magsaysay, hopped on a jeepney, and didn't get off until I was a couple miles from base. And guess who was on the jeepney with me?”

“Johnny Carson? Annette Funicello?”

Hack rolled his eyes. “No, Ensign Limpert.”

Decker choked on his beer. “Limpert? Where was he going?”

“I have no idea. He got off when I did, but I stopped to eat and he walked the other direction.”

“I've never seen him in town,” Decker said. “I can't imagine his wife letting him run around at night like that.”

“He wasn't exactly running around,” Hack said. “I don't think he'd been drinking and he didn't seem lost. He knew where he was going.”

“He's a strange little man” Decker mused. “How'd you get back to base?”

“I didn't,” Hack replied. “At least not right away. I took a trike back to within a few blocks of Magsaysay and got a hotel room.”

“Alone?”

“Yes, alone.”

“I spent the night there and snuck back to the ship early this morning.”

Decker reflected on Hack's story. “It sounds to me like your imagination is running wild.”

“I know it was Limpert,” said Hack. “I talked to him.”

“I believe that,” Decker said. “I mean about Biff and Dave.”

“I know what I saw,” replied Hack.

“What you
thought
you saw, shipmate. Are you sure they were the same guys who were following you the other day?”

“Yes.” Hack paused. “Well, not exactly sure, but pretty sure. They fit the discription.”

“Any number of guys walking around base fit those descriptions. Look around this bar. Clean these guys up and half of them would look like your boys.”

Hack's eyes drifted around the room. “Maybe you're right.”

“Of course I'm right. And why would they visit the same bar as you if they wanted to be discreet?”

“I don't know,” Hack shrugged.

“And I don't know either. Just doesn't make sense. Let's forget about those two jokers and concentrate on the task at hand. We need to put together some talking points before we meet Mr. Fortuno. Someone's out to kill me and I need answers.” Decker took out his Book of Dates and pencil and tore a page from the back of the notebook. “Now, what do we want to know from this guy?”

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

1310, Saturday, February 8

The two sailors sat across from Rusty—Hack staring at the scenery, Decker writing in his Book of Dates—as the jeepney jostled its way towards the northeast end of town.

“Catching up on your life story?” asked Hack.

“It was a big day yesterday, my friend,” Decker said, not looking up. “Election day. It could be the end of the Marcos era, but I doubt if he'll go quietly.”

Rusty nodded in agreement as the vehicle slowly ascended a steep incline. Decker and Hatch watched the city of Olongapo spread out from the bay towards the mountains. To the south lay the Bataan Peninsula, famous for the site of the American and Filipino armed forces' last stand against the Japanese invasion force in early 1942. Famous, too, for the infamous Bataan Death March following the U.S. surrender of the Philippines to the Japanese in May 1942.

“His wife died several years ago,” Rusty said, breaking the silence. “He spent little time with her anyway. He had two small kids when I worked for him. They must be grown by now. He used to spend all of his time in his office, but he built this place in the hills several years ago. It's where the wealthy people live. It even has an underground bunker. No windows and a secret passage through the rear wall that leads to a building next door.”

“Why does he need something like that?” Hack asked.

“An escape route,” Rusty explained. “In case the police show up. No one is supposed to know about it, but I found out by accident when a maid let it slip.”

A few blocks from Fortuno's house, Rusty tapped the roof. “
Para, para
.” The jeepney came to a stop and the three men exited out the back.

Rusty wiped the sweat from his forehead. “We wait here. My friend Baby will take you the rest of the way. He will wait for you while you visit Fortuno. He has a blue trike. Can't miss him. Please tip him enough,
pare
,” Rusty admonished, winking at Decker.

Five minutes later, Rusty began fidgeting with his watch. “He is late. Sorry about this. He is on Filipino time.” He nervously shuffled his feet. “I want to stick with you guys, but if I am not home soon, Weny will be suspicious.”

Decker and Hack understood completely. They said their goodbyes as Rusty caught the next jeepney headed towards base. A couple minutes later the sailors spotted Baby motoring towards them. They climbed in the trike and rode the remaining six blocks to a spot near Fortuno's house.

Baby cut the engine and edged it towards the side of the street. He turned to the sailors. “Half block more,” he said. “His house is at the top of the hill. Black metal fence around it. Easy to spot.” Baby pointed with his lips towards the opposite direction. “I wait in the café. Walk there and I will be waiting.”

They agreed to the plan and Decker handed Baby a wad of pesos. The sailors walked up the hill the last few feet to the edge of a manicured lawn. An imposing structure built into the hillside, Fortuno's house jutted over the side of the cliff, giving an illusion from below that it was suspended in air. From street level the house was equally appealing. A short but wide driveway led to a covered parking area big enough for four cars. They both noticed the Rolls Royce, Mercedes coupe, and a large Land Cruiser 4 X 4.

The sailors walked along a stone path that led to the main entrance. Two white columns framed the entrance, and a large mahogany door that was at least twelve feet tall loomed in front of them. Decker and Hack exchanged glances.

“This is your idea,” Hack said. “Go ahead and knock.”

Decker hesitantly extended his hand and knocked timidly three times. They listened. No sound coming from within. Decker knocked louder and this time they heard footsteps walking through the house. Decker leaned into Hack and whispered, “It's a woman.”

“How do you know that?”

“Sounds like feminine footsteps in heels.”

The door opened and Decker was indeed correct. A tall, beautiful Filipina greeted them with the door slightly ajar, her left hand resting on her cocked hip. She eyed them suspiciously from head to toe. “What do you want?”

Her firm demeanor got Decker and Hack's attention, but what they focused on mostly was her beauty. Young, probably early 20s, Decker guessed, with soft but finely-toned features. He thick brown hair fell a few inches below her shoulders. She wore a loose-fitting yellow top and extremely short white cotton shorts that accentuated her olive skin.
She has to be six feet tall,
Decker thought to himself, trying to compare her with his six-foot-two frame.

“We're here to see Mr. Fortuno,” Decker said softly. “I believe he's expecting us. Please tell him that Decker and Hack are here to see him. Friends of Rusty.”

The woman inspected them a second time, wary of the presence of American sailors. She glanced behind her, then turned to face the sailors. “Very well. Wait here. I'll see if he's free.” She closed the door and they heard the distinctive click of a lock.

“Sounds like we struck out,” Hack said. “I bet she's going to leave us standing here.”

“I think you could be right,” Decker agreed, looking up at the sky as thunder boomed in the distance. “And it's going to rain. Let's give it five minutes and get out of here. I suddenly have a bad feeling about this place and I don't want to get caught up here in a storm.”

Hack marked the time with his watch. “I hope Rusty's message got to him. Who do you think the girl is?”

“Could be his maid,” Decker said.

“She didn't look like a maid. Not dressed like that.”

“Could be his girlfriend.”

“A girlfriend that young?”

“Happens all the time, especially with old men who have money. It's the life of the rich. Young women don't mind. They get to spend money on anything they want. The old man gets what he wants before he dies and, in the end, the young woman gets the money. That's what makes the world go round. Trickle down economics.”

“I don't think that's what it's called. But whatever it is, I hope I never get that like.”

“Like what? A rich old man or a young man marrying an old woman with money?”

“Neither one.”

“Well, I think you're safe on both accounts.”

Another minute passed and Decker and Hack were about to walk away when they again heard the foot falls of high heels walking across hardwood floors. The door opened and the woman, who this time introduced herself as Olivia, invited them inside and told them to follow her.

They passed through a long entryway that opened to a large family room with slick mahogany floors and large windows facing the city below and Subic Bay beyond. Hack glanced at Decker with a better-behave-yourself look as both of them eyed Olivia's perfectly formed derriere while she walked ahead of them. She led them across the family room to a screen door that opened to an expansive deck hanging over the hillside.

Hack was the first to take a tentative step on the wood flooring. “An engineering marvel. I just hope it holds our weight,” he whispered to Decker.

Decker didn't have time to reply. His eyes met Mr. Fortuno's glare. The old man, sitting at a table under an umbrella in the far corner of the deck, took off his black-framed reading glasses and sized up the two sailors. He wore a long-sleeve white cotton shirt, untucked and unbuttoned to mid-chest, tan slacks, and dark brown Mephisto boat shoes. His white hair, thin across the top, curled along the back of his shirt collar. A stack of papers and a glass of bourbon sat in front of him. He didn't bother to stand.

Olivia announced their entrance and went over to the man, kissed his forehead, and asked him if he wanted anything. Mr. Fortuno smiled at the young woman and put an arm around her hips. “
Hindi bale na lang, anak
,” he said with a faint smile. “We'll be fine. I'll have Jimmy get our guests something to drink.”

With a gold Rolex dangling from his wrist, Mr. Fortuno dropped his left arm from Olivia's hips and patted her on the butt as she walked away.

Olivia pouted. “Okay, Daddy. I'll be inside if you need anything. I'm going to call Abbey.”

“Oops, not a girlfriend,” Hack whispered to Decker with a bemused smile.