“Basil Westmount. Remember him?”

“Yes. Two years ago he defended the guy with the speed lab. He brought the accused’s girlfriend to court with a pillow under her blouse as a ploy to get sympathy from the jury.”

“It worked. He got off.”

“I don’t think his client will get off this time,” replied Jack.

“Never be too sure. He’s already claiming entrapment.”

“They claim that with every undercover operation. Let a judge or jury decide.”

“How long do you need on your end?” asked Laura.

“Tomorrow is when Oskar meets the boss. At the same time I’m supposed to check out a company in a place called Hat Yai. I don’t think they figure I’ll be coming back from there.”

“There is no way we can hold Virgil incommunicado that long,” said Laura.

“It wouldn’t matter if you did. Westmount knows. You can’t stop him from making a call.”

“What do we do? If we don’t cut him loose, it will blow your case out of the water.”

“Tell Westmount that Oskar is about to go into a meeting where it is anticipated that he will be arrested immediately after.” Jack paused as he saw Barfoot, Oskar, and Pike enter the wheelhouse, then said, “Make it abundantly clear to Westmount that there is no way we will cut Virgil loose.”

“He’ll call Oskar immediately.”

“I know,” replied Jack.

Jack shut off his phone and went back to the wheelhouse where Barfoot was navigating the yacht away from the pier, while Oskar and Pike looked on.

“Everything okay?” asked Barfoot.

“I’m not sure,” replied Jack. “My ex called to say my little guy got up in the night for whatever reason and fell down the stairs. She thinks his leg is broken.”

“My God, the poor little guy,” replied Barfoot. “Is he at the hospital?”

“I don’t know,” replied Jack. “My phone died when we were talking. Guess I forgot to charge the battery. Oskar, could I borrow yours for a few minutes?”

“Sure,” replied Oskar, handing Jack his phone.

“Jack, give me your phone,” said Barfoot. “I have the same type. I’ll charge it up for you.”

Jack nodded and passed his phone to Barfoot, while pretending to make a quick call on Oskar’s phone. “I got voicemail, so she must be on the line,” he said, “I’ll try again in a minute.”

“Maybe she’s calling an ambulance,” offered Barfoot.

“Maybe,” replied Jack. “Or a neighbour to babysit. I’m going to go back out on the deck. It might take some time to calm her down and get things looked after.”

Jack didn’t have to wait long for the call.

“Hello. Oskar Cruickshank?”

“Speaking,” replied Jack.

“My name is Basil Westmount. I’m a lawyer representing your brother, Virgil.”

“Oh? Well whatever he is involved with, it has nothing to do with me.”

“Actually you’ll want to listen to what I have to say,” said Westmount. “First of all, let me caution you about what you say. I suspect it may be very buggy where you are in southeast Asia.”

“Really?” said Jack.

“At this very moment, I am walking out of the RCMP Major Crime office in Surrey. Your name came up tonight as being under investigation.”

“Me? That’s absurd,” replied Jack. “I’m not involved in anything illegal.”

“No, of course not and I, uh, understand your need to be prudent, but I am calling as a favour for Virgil.”

“Virgil doing me a favour? That’s a laugh. Let me guess, you’re charging him some outrageous amount and he needs money. What was he caught with, running dope across the line?”

“No. For your information, he is being charged with multiple counts of sexual assault. He is not requesting money, he —”

“Rape! Well that doesn’t surprise me. What a piece of degenerate shit. Wish somebody would lob his balls off and feed them to the dogs.”

“He is doing you a favour,” said Westmount, letting the irritation show in his voice. “He found out that somebody you recently hired, a man who goes by the first name of Jack, is actually an undercover RCMP officer.”

Jack did not reply.

“Did you hear me.”

“I heard you.”

“I understand you are about to go into a meeting.”

“How did you know that?”

“The RCMP informed me. They are holding your brother incommunicado so he can’t call and warn you.”

“How did he know?”

“He told me he overheard them talking. Laughing that they were about to catch both brothers. You and him. Once they discovered he knew, they tried to cut a deal, but Virgil wouldn’t go for it.”

“That has to be bullshit,” growled Jack. “I know Virgil. He’d sell our own mother to make a buck. He only has one guy he looks out for, and that’s him. More likely he already told them about me and is reneging and trying to cut another deal.”

“Uh, well —”

“You tell that piece of shit if I ever see or hear from him again, I’ll be taking out an insurance policy on him!”

“I don’t understand.”

“He will.”

“Well, uh, I’ll pass the message along, but your brother aside, if you are in legal difficulties and are being brought back to Canada, I would be glad to handle —”

“Did you say your name was Westmount?”

“Yes.”

“I’ve heard about you.”

“I have had good success with many high-profile cases,” replied Westmount optimistically.

“That’s not what my friends say. They say you don’t have the brains that God gave a goat and you rip off your clients. If I need a lawyer, I’ll get one myself, you slimy weasel.”

Jack hung up and glanced up at the wheelhouse and saw Oskar watching him. Jack gave a thumbs-up sign and turned his back while deleting the log of the incoming call before dialing Laura’s cellphone to make it look like he had called his ex. Moments later, Jack smiled as he headed back to the wheelhouse.

That should hold Virgil and Westmount off for a day or two. Then what’s the worst that could happen? They plan on killing me tomorrow regardless …

Jack was wrong on that count. They planned on killing him today.

Chapter Forty

Back in the wheelhouse, Jack handed Oskar back his phone.

“Everything okay?” asked Barfoot.

“I suspect it’s only a sprain, but she is taking him to get checked out at Emergency.”

“Takes after his dad in the athletic department, I take it,” said Pike with a smile.

“I guess so,” Jack replied, looking sheepish. “So, where are we going?”

“I thought we would cruise around a few of the islands,” replied Barfoot. “Maybe do a little fishing and drinking. Perhaps some snorkelling and spearfishing, as well, if anyone wants. I have all the gear on board.”

“Count me out of the snorkelling,” replied Jack. “But a cold beer sounds great.”

“Not a problem,” replied Barfoot. “I have to use the head, so I’ll grab you one on the way back. In the meantime, how about taking over the wheel while I’m gone?”

“You’ll trust me to handle this?” said Jack.

Barfoot smiled and said, “You look like the trustworthy type. Try not to steer it into any islands or other boats. I’ll give you a quick course on some of the instruments if you like.”

“I think you better,” Jack said with a laugh.

“Actually, Ben is well-versed with the Princess,” added Barfoot. “He can keep an eye on you.”

Yeah, that makes me feel better …

The next hour slipped past with Jack and Barfoot at the helm, while Oskar and Pike sat below on the lower deck drinking beer. It was a moment when Jack wished Jim Purney was part of the crew.

Barfoot pointed to an island to the east. “That’s Ko Tarutao. It’s a marine national park in Thailand.”

“Thailand?” Jack asked. “I thought we were in Malaysia.”

“We’re just over the border. Set a direction due west and we’ll come to some more Thai islands.”

“Don’t we have to clear customs?”