As he swam lap after lap, he came to a decision. Whatever the consequences, when this was all over, he was going to turn himself in. If he ever wanted to be free, then he would need to do the time he had been sentenced to serve. Maybe they would be lenient on him, maybe they would even reduce his time for having come back - who knew? And if he ended up getting more time added on, well, he would cross that bridge when he came to it.
He felt a weight lift off of his shoulders as he swam a final lap around the yacht and climbed back up the ladder, where the ubiquitous armed guardian watched his every move. He grabbed his towel and dried himself off.
Chapter Twenty-One
Laura was curled up on a couch in a spacious room on the main deck of the yacht, reading a book when James came in from his swim. He sat down on a chair next to the couch and finished drying his hair.
"Are you getting your hour a day of reading in?" James joked.
Laura smiled as she looked up from her book.
"Yeah, the habit kind of grew on me when I was in Utopia. They don't have much of a selection here, though."
"What did you think about the program at Utopia?" James inquired.
"I think it was good for me," Laura responded. "My life was definitely a mess when I went there. I think the structure was good for me. It helped me level out and clear my head. The twelve step stuff helped me, too. I was a bit weirded out by the whole 'Higher Power' thing to begin with, but after a while, that sort of began to make sense to me, too."
"So you believe in God?" James asked.
"Yeah, I do. I mean, I look around at all this," Laura waved her hand at the seascape that could be seen through the windows, "and I think there definitely must have been a creative being that made it all. I don't think it happened by accident. What about you?"
"My mom believed in God. She prayed to Him to heal her when she had cancer and to help me stay out of trouble - neither one of those prayers were answered. God certainly doesn't do things the way I would like Him to."
For the first time since they'd known each other, Laura looked at James and felt empathy with him. She could identify with feeling like things hadn't worked out the way she wanted them to.
"I guess that's the reason for steps two and three," Laura responded.
James looked at her with a puzzled look.
"Steps two and three of the twelve steps," Laura continued. "Step two is basically believing that there is a Higher Power Who wants to help straighten our lives out, and step three is where we make a decision to turn our lives over to that Higher Power. Thinking back on all of the crappy things that have happened to me in my life, being sent to Utopia was the best thing that ever happened to me. I mean, if I hadn't been sent there, I'd probably be dead by now."
"Yeah," James concurred, "me, too. I mean, I believe there is a God, and I want to be a better person than I was before I went to prison. Like you said, being sent to Utopia was one of the best things that has happened to me in a long time. I liked the reading thing, too. I never really read much, but now that I'm away from Utopia, I miss the books I was reading."
"What were you reading?" Laura asked.
"It was a book by William Penn - the founder of Pennsylvania. It was called Some Fruits of Solitude. I still remember a quote from the introduction of the book. I wrote it down in my journal and read it over and over. 'We understand little of the works of God, either in nature or grace. We pursue false knowledge, and mistake education extremely. We are violent in our affections, confused and immethodical in our whole life; making that a burden, which was given for a blessing; and so of little comfort to ourselves or others; misapprehending the true notion of happiness, and so missing of the right use of life, and way of happy living.'"
There was a long pause after James finished the quote. Laura felt a hint of something inside that hadn't been there for a while. She felt that James might not be that different from her after all.
"That's beautiful, James. That quote describes what my life was like before Utopia."
James turned and looked at her, directly in the eyes.
"What about now?"
"What do you mean?" Laura asked.
"I mean, what about after this is all over and we get a load of cash? Then what? How do we get back on track to learning how to live a better way than we did before? How do we do that, while we're fugitives? Money can change a lot of things, Laura, but I know enough now to understand that money isn't going to make me a better person." James looked down at his feet and shook his head. "I just don't know what to do."
There was another long pause, but the silence was broken by the sound of the cigarette boat engine approaching the yacht.
On the boat ride back from the island, J.T. thought to himself about how the run to the bank had followed the same routine as the day before. After they entered the car with the day's allotment of cash, they had driven to a narrow alleyway where he was blindfolded. Next, they drove for another fifteen minutes before stopping, where he was fairly certain that Nick and one of the commandos got out of the car. After a few minutes, they returned and drove back to the marina, where the blindfold was taken off and they boarded the boat for the return trip to the yacht.
He had been paying close attention to the surroundings today to see where the best opportunity might be for delivering a note to someone at the bank to let them know he was being held prisoner against his will. He thought that the best candidate was likely the receptionist in the atrium. His main concern was what she would do with the information. If she took it to her boss, Mr. Takata, would he tell Nick or go to the authorities? If Nick had paid him off as part of this whole scheme, then Nick would be notified. It was risky either way, but then again, desperate times called for desperate measures. The next hurdle would be to find some paper on the yacht to write a note on. The place had been cleaned out of anything to write on - a move no doubt initiated by Nick in order to prevent just what J.T. was planning to do.
Once they were back on the yacht, the afternoon and evening followed a predictable pattern, even down to the bottle of wine that was delivered to their cabin once they were locked in for the night. He surveyed the room and found a small shelf of books. He immediately went over and began to casually thumb through each book, finally selecting one that had a blank page at the back of it. He could remove this page and use it for writing an S.O.S. note. He turned it back to the front cover and noticed that it was a copy of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne. He smiled to himself as he sat down and began to read. It was a book he had read once in high school and enjoyed immensely. No time like the present to reacquaint himself with it, he thought.
He read for about an hour as both James and Laura each showered and appeared to be getting ready to turn in, each of them dressed in the designer pajamas that Nick had so graciously provided for the occasion. Nick was certainly going out of his way to make everything seem as hospitable as possible. It was an attempt, no doubt, to lure James and Laura over to his way of viewing the situation, and illicit their support. Now it was time to see just how far that effort had gone.
J.T. went over to his bunk and put the book on top of his pillow. As he turned around, he noticed that both James and Laura were reading books of their own. Utopia, it seemed, had had some positive effects on them all. He hoped it would be enough of a common bond to help see them through the difficulties that remained to be faced. "Can we talk about our plans?" he said out loud.
He spoke quietly, but loudly enough to be heard by both James and Laura. He sat down beside Laura, who reluctantly put down her book. James came over and sat down on the other side of Laura so they could communicate with a minimum of volume.
"I have a plan," J.T. began. "There is some danger involved, but I think it just might work."
"Let's hear it," James responded.
"I was able to get a pen at the bank yesterday, and I found some paper that
I can use to write an S.O.S. note on. I think I can deliver it to the receptionist at the bank without being noticed. If so, and if she helps us, she could contact the authorities and let them know we are being held captive."
"And then what?" Laura replied. "We wait for the police to storm the boat and rescue us? Have you forgotten we have four armed guards and that lady guarding us while you are gone? They may be able to rescue you on land well enough, but out here, anyone getting within a mile of this boat will be seen. James and I are likely to be killed in the process."
"Like I said," J.T. continued, "There are risks."
"Why don't we just go along with Nick's plan?" James mentioned. "I mean, he seems like he has no intention of harming us. Once he's done with us and lets us go, we can do whatever it is we want, right? Why go ahead and risk getting killed on an escape?"
"Yeah," Laura agreed, glad to have James thinking along the same lines as she was. "What's the rush?"
"The rush is," J.T. proceeded, "that Nick may not intend to let us live once this is all over. Why would he give us eleven million dollars just for our cooperation when he can just as easily put a bullet in our heads and dump our bodies in the ocean? This man is a thief, remember that. Secondly, I'm concerned about recovering the money. He's taking it somewhere; he's not storing it on the boat. If I lose track of it now, I may never get it back."
"So that's what this is about?" Laura said angrily, raising her voice to a level which risked their being heard by the guards.
"Keep your voice down. Laura!" James whispered cautiously.
Laura lowered her voice, but not her intensity as she continued. "This is all about you getting that stolen money back, isn't it?! And you are willing to put us at risk to do it!"
"Look," J.T. lobbied, "you have to remember that is money that I'm using to pay back the people who got fired or lost their pensions when Nick and I destroyed the companies they worked for. That money is being used to pay mortgages, provide college tuition, pay medical bills. If I lose it now, I may never get it back. I'm trying to do the right thing here."
The fire ebbed in Laura's eyes and her voice toned down as she responded. "O.k., I get that. But I'm not willing to risk my life so you can make amends for the things you did. Remember that program you talk so highly about? I seem to recall that amends are only to be made when you won't be hurting someone else, or have you forgotten that?"
J.T. was silent for a moment as he recalled the ninth step of the program, the steps he had tried to live by the past few years.
"You're right," J.T. said in a subdued tone, "I guess I forgot about that in the process of trying to think about how to save the money. But the first part of what I said is still a good reason to think about it. What if Nick's plan is to kill us when he has all the money? I still think it is worth the risk, but I won't try it unless we all agree."
He paused and waited for James and Laura to consider what he had said. Finally, James spoke.
"There's another possibility."
"What's that?" J.T. queried.
"You could get caught trying to deliver the note. Then Nick might not be as accommodating as he has been. Who knows what he might do? We already know he is willing to kidnap the three of us and risk being caught doing it by the FBI. If we try to blow the whole deal for him now, he may decide to go back on what he promised us and kill us after all."
"James is right," Laura added, "I don't like our chances. I say we wait it out and take our chances on Nick keeping his word."
J.T. sat back and let out a long sigh, running a hand through his hair as he did. He was obviously disappointed.
"O.k.," he said, resigned, "I guess I'm out-voted. I'll continue to go along with Nick's plan and hope for the best."
As J.T. lay awake in bed that night, he considered the possible outcomes that might befall them. Losing the money was regrettable, but the possibility of being killed within the next ten days was front and center. As he lay in the darkness, he uttered a silent prayer.
"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." And with that, J.T. Thornbacker drifted off to sleep.
Nick opened up his laptop and quickly reviewed the transcripts just delivered to him on the USB thumb drive by the man in the radio room. With so much riding on this operation, he was leaving nothing to chance. The video and audio devices he'd had installed in the cabin where his new guests were staying ensured that any movements and any conversation, no matter how hushed, would be captured for his review. A note at the end of the transcript indicated that nothing unusual had appeared on the video feed for the evening. As he re-read the transcript of the conversation that had just taken place, he smiled and congratulated himself. The psychological dossiers he'd had prepared on each prisoner at Utopia had helped him choose just the right accomplices to his plans.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The next day, the routine of the previous two days continued. J.T. and company arrived at the bank and went through the withdrawal process. They got in the car and went on their way as they had done previously. The car exited the narrow alleyway per the usual route and circled around to the third road before exiting the round-about.
No one in the vehicle thought anything about the man at the end of the road who was walking slowly along the sidewalk. Silas had positioned himself so that he would have a perfect view down the street and be able to tell if the car turned anywhere.
Silas bent down and pretended to be tying his shoe when they got close to where he was standing so that Nick wouldn't get a good look at his face and possibly recognize him. With a hat and sunglasses, it wasn't likely, but Silas had known stakeouts to be blown for simpler reasons.
The car continued down the street, almost to the end, before abruptly turning into an alleyway. Moments later, two men, each carrying a duffel bag, came out of the alley and walked down the sidewalk to one of the shops, and then went inside. A few minutes later, they came back out, got back in the car, and continued down the street going in the opposite direction from Silas.
Silas took out his phone and dialed Marty, who was positioned in an alleyway at the end of the street with a rented moped.
"Marty, he's coming your way. Follow him, but not too close," he instructed.
"O.k., I see him," Marty replied before disconnecting the call and putting the phone back in his pocket.
The car drove past where Marty was waiting. He waited a few seconds for good measure and then pulled out behind them, following from about half a block away. This time, they drove along busy roads where he could blend in with the local traffic and not be noticed. Marty stopped when they pulled in to the Barcadere Marina parking lot. He got off the moped and began to walk in their direction, being careful to act as if he was in no hurry. He was close enough to see that they boarded a cigarette boat and quickly began moving away from the dock, out to the open ocean.
After putting his phone away, Silas began walking down the street to see where the car had been parked and to examine the shop that the two men had entered. He was fairly certain that one of the two men had been Nick Bartonovich. The alleyway offered no surprises. It was too narrow for more than one car, and dead-ended into another building. He came out of the alleyway and made his way to the shop door where the two men had entered. It was a bakery on the first floor, with a wooden staircase leading up to the second floor. An acrylic sign hung down from the ceiling over the staircase that read "CES Enterprises".
"Bingo," Silas thought to himself. He wandered over to the bakery counter and picked out some delicious looking croissants. After paying for them, he left and headed back down the street to where he had parked the van. He took out his phone and called Marty.
"Did you find out where they went?" he asked when Marty answered the phone.
"Yes, I did. Dey went to da marina and left in a boat."
"Good work, Marty. Meet me back at my hotel; we've got some planning to do."
Once they were back on the boat, J.T. went to his cabin to change out of his suit. As he hung the pants up in the closet, something slid out of the pocket and onto the floor. He bent down to pick it up. It was a small pen with a piece of paper taped to it. He unfolded the paper and began reading what was written on it:
J.T. - I know you are being held hostage and that Nick Bartonovich is using you to withdraw money from the bank. I am here to help you escape. I need to know as many details about your daily routine as you can give me: where you go each day, and where you are being held would be very helpful. Write them out on the back of this paper and slide it between the cushions of the couch where you sit each day when you go to the bank. I will place further instructions in the same place for you to retrieve the following day. - A friend who can help.
How did this get into my pocket? J.T. thought to himself. He carefully reviewed the errand to the bank from earlier in the day, trying to focus on who had the opportunity to pass him the note. He finally remembered a man who had brushed against him as he left the bank. That must have been it. He quickly walked over to his bunk and stashed the note and pen under his mattress before heading back up to the dining room for lunch.
The afternoon consisted of various leisure activities. Reading, fishing, swimming - everything you might expect from a vacation except for the armed guards. At one point, Nick even tempted Laura and James into going water-skiing. James had done a bit of water-skiing with a local boys club as a young man, and after a few bungled attempts, he was able to hold his own. Laura, on the other hand, had never skied before. Before the end of the afternoon, though, she was able to stay up on the skis and even jump a few small waves created by the wake of the boat. Mia and Nick took their turns on the skis, as well. They were both quite accomplished skiers, and Nick showed off his skill as he slalomed on one ski.