Contraband (Stone Barrington #50) - Stuart Woods Page 0,3
can he talk?” Dino asked.
“Tomorrow or the next day,” she said.
* * *
—
After dinner they took their cognacs out to the fantail and enjoyed the night. There was no moon, and the incredibly bright Milky Way splashed across the sky.
“You forget what it’s like out here, with no town lights to ruin things,” Stone said.
“It’s just spectacular,” Max said.
Stone pointed at the other end of the lagoon. “We’ve got company.”
“I didn’t hear anybody come in,” Dino said.
“I guess we were at dinner.”
“It looks to be fifty or sixty feet,” Max said, “with a dark hull and no cabin lights burning. Hard to make out in this light.”
“I guess they turned in early,” Stone said. “We’ll get a better look at them in the morning.”
Viv stood up and yawned. “I don’t know about you all,” she said, “but I’m bushed. This kind of yachting is hard work.” She kicked Dino’s foot.
“I’ll join you,” Dino said, taking the hint. “Good night.”
Stone and Max were sitting together on the couch.
“Do you think they turned in early for us?”
“Probably,” Stone said. He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. “It would be rude to disappoint them.”
She kissed him back. “I didn’t come out here for a one-night stand,” she said.
“Neither did I,” Stone said. “What are you doing tomorrow night?”
“We’ll see,” she replied.
3
Stone turned over in the night, reaching for Max, only to find the covers on that side of the bed undisturbed. “Oh, well,” he muttered. As he slid back into sleep, a bright light flashed against his eyelids. He opened his eyes a moment and stared at the ceiling, where the light had seemed to come from. Then he turned over again and fell asleep.
* * *
—
Breakfast was on the rear deck, with everyone in bathing suits and terry robes.
Max spoke up. “Did anybody else hear that machinery noise last night?”
No one had.
“Maybe it was some piece of equipment in the engine room,” Stone suggested. “I did think I saw a flash of light, though, when I woke up for a moment.”
“It’s pretty deserted out here,” Max said. “Did you notice that our company is gone?”
“Who was it?” Dino asked.
“Not sure. Looked like another motor yacht,” she replied. “It was hard to make out in the dark.”
“Maybe they sailed at dawn,” Stone said.
“We’ll have company soon enough, though,” Max said. “The first seaplanes will be in soon, and the tour boats will be here before noon.”
“Not your first visit out here?” Viv asked.
“I’m a Key West girl. I’ve been coming out here to swim since before I could walk.”
* * *
—
After breakfast, Stone called for the SCUBA gear and he and Max strapped on their tanks, weights, and masks.
“Are you certified?” Max asked.
“No, I never took the time,” Stone said, “but I’ve probably made a couple dozen dives.”
They were standing on the fantail, next to an unclipped wire railing. Max stepped off into the sea, Stone followed. In the clear water the wrecked airplane was visible to the west. She led the way to the aircraft.
As Stone arrived, he could see the rear cargo door standing open and tied back with a piece of cord. The rear compartment was empty.
Max pointed and shrugged.
Stone pulled himself into the roomy compartment and looked around. He saw a small picture frame fastened to the rear bulkhead, with nothing inside. He went outside again and swam to the vertical stabilizer. No registration numbers; neither were there numbers painted on the sides of the fuselage. He turned to Max and gestured a thumbs-up. She nodded. They broke the surface near the yacht and swam to the boarding ladder, where the crew waited to take their gear and hand them robes.
They joined Dino and Viv, who were sunning themselves on the fantail deck.
“What did you find?” Dino asked.
“Zippo,” Max said. “Nada.”
“No luggage?”
“No, but I saw a cargo net on the bottom when we were swimming back.”
“There was no aircraft registration aboard, either,” Stone said. “Only an empty frame. And no registration numbers anywhere.”
“Can you paint over them underwater?” Viv asked.
“No, but you can have them made of plastic in a design shop and stick them on and pull them off at will.”
“Maybe that flash of light you saw in the night came from underwater,” Max said. “And our neighbors were gone early this morning.”
“Maybe that’s who the airplane was meeting here,” Stone said.
“Can’t the airplane be identified by an engine number?” Viv asked.
“Maybe, but it’s a lot of trouble to get to the engine underwater.”