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“Right. But there’s good news. You don’t have to talk to anybody or be nice to anyone.”
“That is good news.”
“In fact, as far as anyone at the party knows, you won’t even be here. I want to put you in the back with Willem, my head of security. You and he will monitor the meeting on the boat’s surveillance system.”
“I came all this way to sit in a broom closet with a hall monitor?”
He comes over and puts an arm around my shoulder, leading me down a deck into the bowels of the boat. The decor is simpler down here since it’s mostly a utilitarian space for the staff, but it’s still nicer than anywhere I’ve ever lived. He takes me forward until I figure that we’re right under the living room. There’s a door with a keypad. The sign on the door says AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY.
As he punches in a code on the keypad I say, “This is a yacht, right?”
“Right.”
The lock clicks open.
I look around.
“This thing is huge. Is it a boat or a ship?”
“A boat. As far as I know all yachts are boats.”
“Then what’s a ship?”
“A very big boat.”
“But this is a very big boat. Why isn’t it a ship?”
He looks at me for a second.
“I can see how you’d make a good Devil.”
“Sorry. Doors like this just make me nervous.”
Abbot pushes it open.
“You’re not under arrest. You’re with me now, remember? If anything, you get to arrest other people.”
“Terrific. Now I’m a cop. All of my worst fears have come true.”
“You’ll do fine.”
Inside, the room is dark except for a bank of video monitors that ring the walls. I don’t know how many rooms this bucket has, but it looks like Abbot has every square inch of the place covered. I go over to get a better look at the setup.
“You have as many trust issues as I do. I feel so much closer to you now.”
A guy sitting at the control console turns around and gives me the eyeball. He has a cop mustache but a tailored shirt. His gold tie clip has three Greek letters on it. This guy hasn’t been in college in fifteen years, but he still flies his frat colors. Audsley Ishii used to do that. It isn’t love at first sight for either of us.
“Willem, this is Stark,” says Abbot. “Stark. Willem.”
Willem holds out his hand and I shake it. His heartbeat races a little. It’s obvious by his smile that he thinks I’m the scum they scrape off the sides of this boat, but he stays professional and says, “Welcome aboard.”
“Thanks, Willem. I appreciate the hospitality.”
That confuses him. But his heartbeat slows. The guy is the real thing. He gets excited, but has enough training to get it under control fast. I can’t see where he keeps his gun, so my guess is it’s strapped to his ankle and he can get it out as fast as he can corral his heart. He’d be a good guy to have on your side in a fight.
Trouble is, I don’t think he thinks we’re on the same side.
Abbot goes to the monitors and points to a cluster of six that cover the living room and surrounding corridors.
