Crash Course by Derek Fee (pdf to ebook reader .txt) 📕

He swung his arms and lifted his knees which ached from the long night in the Atlantic. The guards converged on him from either end of the boat making no attempt to conceal their intentions. As he approached, the man who had asked about Jaime slipped a knife out of his waistband. Kane reacted immediately, moving forward smoothly to meet the challenge. As the two men converged, he slid sharply to the left and at the same time delivered a side kick to the man’s groin. The knife thrust cut through the air as his foot hit the man’s testicles. The guard grunted and collapsed on the concrete causeway, and the knife flew from his hand and clanged on the stone causeway throwing up a spark as it skipped.

The second man moved away from Kane and jumped into a small fishing boat. He reappeared instantly, brandishing an evil looking gaff and wearing a smile which said he was about to settle Kane’s hash. He circled slowly around Kane pushing the gaff forward, testing his enemy’s defences. Kane moved deftly aside while trying to get a grip on the wooden shaft. Once he nearly succeeded but the guard withdrew the gaff swiftly causing the hook to open a vicious wound in Kane’s thumb. The two men circled each other probing for a moment of weakness. The guard feinted to stab the pointed gaff in Kane’s direction. Kane parried and then moved sharply aside as the real thrust followed. The guard’s head was level with Kane when he released a punch which rocketed into the temple of his opponent. The man collapsed as though he had been shot, the gaff sailing through the air and landing with a splash in the water.

Kane retrieved the fallen knife and jumped aboard the nearest fishing boat. He cut off two lengths of fishing line and securely tied the two prone men then removed the scabbard from the larger man’s belt and slipped it onto his own. He returned to his boat and carried the packages of cocaine onto the concrete quay. Phase one of the plan which had been slowly formulating in his brain was now complete. One by one he carried the packages to the car and deposited them in the trunk.

He climbed into the driver’s seat and examined the contents of the car. An Uzi and four 25-round ammunition clips were hidden under the rear seats as well as an envelope containing over a hundred fifty-euro notes. He replaced the Uzi in its hiding place and slipped the cash into his pocket. He was adrift on the north-western coast of Spain with a fortune in cocaine. He had managed to avoid the fate that Safardi had designed for him. But something was nagging at the back of his mind. He was sure that Safardi had ordered his death while he was on his way to Galicia. That meant that something had triggered the change in plan. It might be wise to find out what that something was before he paid his visit to the police.

He picked up the car phone, removed the room card for the Carlton from his jeans pocket and dialled the number of the hotel.

Chapter Fifty

Kane didn’t have to dwell on the fact that neither Morweena nor Doc were answering and that David and Tom hadn’t seen them since earlier the previous day. In a situation like this, he had learned to always think the worst. Which meant that Safardi had got his hands on them. It wasn’t worth expending mental energy on working out how. He needed to get back to Marbella as quickly as possible. He left Rianxo and travelled on the winding narrow coastal road inland towards the township of Padrón. It was imperative for him to hit the motorway as soon as possible. Then he would have to rest. It was twenty-four hours since he had last laid his head on a pillow and although he felt he could keep going for a few more hours, he knew that he would be more use to Morweena and Doc operating at his full strength. He had survived. Jaime had been consigned to the Atlantic Ocean and Safardi’s guards were sitting on the quay. On the upside, he was certain that Safardi would agree to exchange the cocaine for his prisoners and they would be free to go their separate ways. But on the downside, if Safardi decided to double-cross him, then the odds would favour the Arab. He had no illusions about the gravity of their situation. He thought of Morweena and remembered the scene in the glade in the Doñana. If Safardi harmed her, then he would ensure that a Colombian necktie would be the least of the Arab’s problems. He tried to banish the thoughts of the future from his mind and concentrate on getting himself into striking distance of Safardi as quickly as possible.

The BMW sped through the village of Padrón heading directly south over what passes for a main road in one of Spain’s most underdeveloped provinces. His next goal was the city of Vigo and rest.

Safardi was awakened at six o’clock with the news that Kane had disappeared with his cocaine. Jaime hadn’t returned from the collection which meant that Kane had somehow overcome the Columbian and disposed of him. It was unthinkable but the only conclusion consistent with Jaime’s failure to appear. Kane had overcome the other two men and they were currently stuck in Rianxo. They would pay dearly for their incompetence. He had been thinking quite a lot about Kane in the last twenty-four hours. The man gave him a bad feeling and the sooner he was out of the way the better. Safardi had been looking forward to watching Pedro take his pleasure with Morweena and then killing her slowly but he must remain calm. All was not lost. Morweena Penhalion was his trump card. He would have to keep her safe until the cocaine was recovered.