“Yippie! Candy!” they each replied.

“It means you’ll have to go to bed early tonight. No putting up a fuss.”

“We won’t,” one replied.

“I’ll be good,” replied the other.

Virgil glanced back. Your mommy won’t be riding any bus tomorrow. Neither will either of you, if you see my face tonight … so you better be real good … just like your mommy will be …

Chapter Thirty-Five

Back in the hotel in Langkawi, Jack listened as Stew sat on the toilet, wearing only his underwear while holding a waste-paper container in front of him.

“How long have you been sick?” asked Jack.

“For the last two hours. Going at both ends at the same —”

Jack grimaced as the sound of vomiting interrupted and asked, “When did you last eat?”

“About midnight. I couldn’t sleep, so I had some of the chicken.”

“That you bought at eleven o’clock yesterday morning?” asked Jack, glancing at the takeout food container on the coffee table. “Tell me you had it in the fridge.”

“No. I was upset yesterday after coming back from what you guys told me, I simply tossed it on the table and forgot about it. The air-conditioning was on all day, though, so I thought that would be enough to keep it —”

Jack waited until the next round of heaves quit before saying, “Well, at least we know they didn’t poison you. Get dressed and I’ll take you to the hospital.”

By seven o’clock in the morning, Stew was in a hospital bed with an intravenous tube in his arm to treat him for dehydration. The investigative team met with Jack in the reception area of the hospital.

“If he dies, they’ll collect the insurance legitimately,” said Randy.

“I’m sure he will be okay,” replied Jack. “Might miss his flight tonight, though.”

“Which means we better stay and cover him off,” noted Willy.

“Definitely,” replied Jack. “Oskar mentioned that there were a couple of other guys available to replace Rabbit, so we’re going to have to be vigilant.” He glanced at Randy and said, “Guess we’ll need to divide the team again. Watching Oskar will be a priority, plus a team on Pike in case they split up. Of course, Stew, as well.”

“You forgot to mention yourself,” noted Randy.

“I think I’m safe until they send me to Hat Yai. This is a small enough island that we can quickly call on each other for help if the situation calls for it.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard that one before,” said Tina, rolling her eyes.

Jack saw Randy giving him a hard look and said, “I expect I’ll only be hanging out at the pool. If anything seems the least bit fishy, I’ll call you. We’re spread too thin as it is, so there’s no use in wasting manpower watching me tan.”

Randy sighed, then nodded in agreement. “Ahmad, could two of your men stay in the hospital with Willy to supply cover for Stew? Perhaps even have your people in the bed next to him?”

“I will arrange it so,” replied Ahmad.

“Thank you. I would then like you, Jim, and Tina to watch Oskar. That still leaves one of your men, Ahmad, to watch Pike, along with myself and Pom. Hopefully, Oskar and Pike will also stay around the hotel. Except for the hospital detail, the rest of us will be there, too, which means we’ll be able to help each other with surveillance.”

“Sure,” quipped Willy. “You’ll spend your day watching Jack guzzle martinis at the pool. I think I prefer my shift of keeping an eye on the nurses.” He grinned.

“Sounds like an excellent plan to me,” Jack said, chuckling. “We just need to keep everything together until tomorrow when Oskar meets his boss, then we might all be celebrating at the pool.”

“Providing Oskar meets his boss in a place we have wired,” said Tina.

Jack glanced at Jim and said, “I’m counting on you for that.”

Jim nodded nonchalantly. Jack had seen him in stressful situations before and admired how he could appear to look so calm and stress-free. The success or failure of the entire investigation might hinge on his ability, yet you wouldn’t know it by looking at his face. Note to self, never play poker with this guy … besides, he’d probably have a hidden camera directed at my cards …

Two hours later, Jack knocked on Oskar’s door and told him that Stew was in the hospital with food poisoning.

“Food poisoning!” replied Oskar, as his face lit up like he won a lottery ticket.

“He’ll pull through and should still make his flight tonight,” added Jack. “I think he’s mostly suffering from dehydration.”

“I see,” said Oskar, frowning. “Perhaps I’ll go visit him and see how he’s doing.”

“He’s in a ward with other people. I think he wants to sleep.”

“Are you going back to bed?” asked Oskar.

“No, I’m not sure what I’ll do. Maybe grab breakfast or hang out at the pool,” he replied, trying to keep his options open. If Oskar and Pike got together to talk in private, he wanted it to be in their rooms and not the restaurant.

An hour later, Jack found a lounge chair at the pool and lay down. Pike was working out in the gym, so when he saw Oskar heading for the restaurant, he decided to stay where he was.

As Jack lay there, he watched a couple with two small boys arrive at the pool. It made him think about Natasha, Mikey, and Stevey. He missed them and wished he was home to give them all a hug and tell them he loved them. Maybe I should write them a letter and give it to Randy to hold before going to Hat Yai …

“Hey, Jack! How the hell you doing?”

Jack looked up and saw John Barfoot smiling down at him.

“John! What are you doing here?”

“I said I would join the company if they hired you. Didn’t think I would let you down, did you?”

Jack stood up and Barfoot gave him a warm embrace.

“Where you staying?” asked Jack.

“A little ways down the road at the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club,” Barfoot said, gesturing with his thumb.

Damn it, your timing couldn’t be worse.

“Is everything okay?” asked Barfoot.

“I’m just surprised,” said Jack, giving a smile. “A nice surprise, though.”

“I told you I had a home in Malaysia. Hope you hadn’t planned on coming all this way without looking me up.”

“Well, uh, I’ve been busy. I’m working on Oskar’s schedule, so —”

Barfoot chuckled and said, “I’m teasing you. Where is he?”

“In the restaurant. I’ll take you there.”

“Thanks, but I’ll find him. I need to talk to him about a few details before signing on any dotted lines.”

“So you’re not officially with the company yet?” asked Jack.

“Not yet. He contacted me last night and sweetened the pot a little. Once a few details are worked out, I’ll be on board. Maybe I’ll tell him I’ll think about it for a couple of days. Make him sweat a bit,” added Barfoot with a grin.

“A couple of days sounds great,” replied Jack.

“I’m looking forward to working with you. Any good golf courses around or a place that makes burgers as good as the Country Rose?”

Jack smiled and said, “I haven’t had time for golf, and after you’ve had the Rose burger, any other would be a disappointment.”

Barfoot grinned and told Jack he would be back as soon as he talked with Oskar.

As soon as Barfoot left, Jack caught Jim’s eye and met him in the poolside washroom and started to tell him what happened.

“I heard,” said Jim, touching his earpiece. “People really are creatures of habit. Didn’t you notice the new night light in the flower bed?”

“No,” replied Jack.

“Good. You weren’t supposed to. If Oskar and Pike come out, make sure they sit there.”

“I’ll always leave a towel or something there and try to reserve it for them,” replied Jack. “But now we have another problem.”