Chapter 16

The sun came in through the window, bathing the room in its early morning golden glow. Outside the window, I could hear the birds singing their joyful songs and calling to one another.

I sat up against the pillows. I felt a lot better and there was not that stinging pain when I moved. Either the painkillers are either working, or I am healing faster than I thought. It was day five after my fateful meeting with a stray bullet. Lucky the projectile was slowed down by the aluminum skin of the Puma as well as the backrest of the pilot’s seat.

That meant only a little of the energy of the projectile entered my back, further slowed by my shoulder blade, then had just enough energy to blow out through the front of my body below my collarbone. It only slightly grazed the upper lobe of my right lung.

The doctor’s biggest concern was the two bloody holes in my body and the damage to my shoulder blade. But today I felt fine and to hell with everyone, I am getting up and out of this bed. Yeah, I hear you. Don’t worry, Ashwin Andrew Windsor is not lying down. Nope, I’ll do like in the cowboy movies: when shot, roll over and light a cigarette ... just, I don’t smoke.

There was a rustle of fabric by the door. The next moment an all too familiar fragrance came to me. Angie had arrived with breakfast and a smile on her face. Her hair hung over her shoulders, and again she was wearing a light summer dress. This one had a two-tone pastel coloured design. Flat heeled sandals completed her wardrobe.

“Morning! I see you bribed Alex again,” I said.

“Hello there,” Giggle. “I didn’t have to bribe him, he just told me that your breakfast was ready and I could take it to you.”

“Oh. But thanks. They say breakfast doesn’t need to be looking great if it is served by a good-looking waitress.”

“Are you flirting with me, Sir? I can always ask the dragon lady to bring you your breakfast,” Angie said with a mock stern look on her face, but her eyes betrayed that she liked the flirting.

“I thank you, your grace. Will her majesty be joining me in this fine spread of cuisine?”

“I’ll go fetch mine just now,” Angie said and sat the “breakfast in bed” tray across my lap, the extended legs of the tray on each side of me. “There, close your eyes, say grace, and I’ll be back just now.”

With that, she fluttered out the door. Boy, can I get used to this treatment! Especially if done by this enigma of a girl.

I was just about to tuck in when TC came in the door, casually dressed in a light-coloured t-shirt and cargo shorts.

“Ah, I see you got breakfast. I’ve had mine. This place isn’t good for my health. If I keep on eating like this, I’ll develop a nasty airbag around my midriff,” he chuckled.

“Hi TC, what have you been up to since yesterday? Enjoying your time-out?”

“Oh, nothing much, just organized a plane crash and some decoy would-be corpses,” TC said and sat down in the chair by the window.

“Well, spit it out. Why, where, and when? It seems funny for a man of your talents to be helping in set-building for a film crew.”

“Well, the Boss phoned and told us the crook duo out in Lüderitz have somehow managed to trace the Cessna to Windhoek. That’s not all. They also managed to trace Lorie to the hotel in Windhoek. Lucky the Boss made a fake reservation at the hotel, now we managed to fake the three Rothmans and Lorie’s deaths.”

“How the hell did you do that?”

“Easy. We dressed Darya up as Angie, red wig and all. We always suspected that the leak came from the FBO in Windhoek. So, we had Lorie file a flight plan to Swakop. Then the four, the three ‘Rothmans,’ and Lorie took off in that direction, faking a crash about sixty to ninety clicks out.”

“There will be a search and rescue attempt,” I said.

“Also taken care of by the Boss. That guy is resourceful, you know. He’s got contacts at places I don’t even know places existed! Here, take a look at the afternoon edition of the newspaper. You’re the first to see it as the morning edition only hit the streets an hour or so ago.” And TC tossed a newspaper next to my breakfast tray.

“That’s the Boss. Never underestimate his resourcefulness.”

I looked at the folded newspaper with a colour photo of a burned-out and busted-up wreckage of an aircraft that could be that of a Cessna 210. Splattered in big bold letters across the top of the photo; “Businessman and Family Die in Plane Crash.” Underneath was an article and a very nice photo of Angie. It looks like Grumpy Charley is pulling out all the stops to protect the Rothmans.

“Well, it seems like Roland has got the news,” TC continued, and placed his hands behind his head, stretching back in the chair.

“How so?”

“Shadow called. Roland ordered full speed ahead on the ship, then went to his cabin and shut himself in. He is seeing no one, not even ‘Shadow’ himself.”

“Oh boy! That sounds ominous. Why would he do that? And who the hell is Shadow?”

“Because the boss has a line on the fact that without the goodies inside that missing submarine, old Roland will be bankrupt. Now with the Rothmans ‘dead,’ he has no way of getting part of the loot. And you don’t need to know who Shadow is, only that you did meet him a time or two.”

“Okay, it makes sense. Let’s hope Roland’s got a forty-four Magnum with him in that cabin.”

“I thought you would have like to ventilate his brain for him?”

“Nah, it might be too messy. Let’s pray the devil’s spawn piece of shit does it himself,” I said, and took a fork full of egg on toast while trying to read the article in the newspaper.

Just then Angie came in with her own tray of breakfast and two mugs of coffee. She looked at the newspaper lying on the bed.

“Ooh, is that us? I do hope you got my good side.” Giggle. “Where did you get that ghastly photo of me? I was like fifteen there! And it even magnifies my freckles. Yack.”

“Good side or bad side, it does not matter. You’re supposed to be cremated.” TC said and got up. “Here you go, Miss Angie. Have a seat. I should be going anyway.”

“Thanks, Mister TC. I’ll sit down to eat, but you can stay and chat some more if you want.”

“Nah, I’m needed outside by the chopper. We might also depart for greener pastures.”

“You did not say where Lorie and the decoys are heading after their Oscar-winning performance?” I asked.

“Oh, they backtracked and flew under the radar with the transponder switched off. They have the range to reach a place called, Phuduhudu, in Botswana to refuel and then head for some private strip somewhere in the North-west province of South Africa, near the town of Brits. I believe the three girls will reunite with the rest of the Angels there. Lorie will lie low for a while and hide the Cessna there as well.”

“You mean to tell me that Friederich, Gretah, and Angie were impersonated by those three girls in our team?”

“Yip. They were convincing, too. Leah looked great as Gretah! Not to mention Olivia as Friederich, moustache and all.” I was wondering about that statement. Does it mean that the hard case ex-marine has got an eye on the German girl? Or maybe the American girl? She is a good looker. Curious. And, oh yeah, there’s more of them and that’s where they hole up: in Northwest Province, South Africa. Nice to know. Lorie would be safe there and no one will mess with the Angels.

“Then who will fly the Puma out of here?”

“That will be you. So get better. We will be needing you in say, about three or four days from now.”

“Just great! And I’ll have no co-pilot! Who will help me in the cockpit?”

“Well, there’s Friederich Rothman. He helped Leah get the bird back here the other night. So I think he will gladly help again.” TC chuckled. “So long. Catch you later, Ash, Miss Angie.” Dipping his head towards Angie and lightly touching his right-hand fingers to his head in a half salute towards Angie, TC ducked out the door.

I was flabbergasted. Do they think I will be able to fly that monster outside? Okay, if they think I am fit enough to fly the helicopter, then maybe I could. Maybe I should get up and try to move around a bit more. To hell with that doctor and nurse.

I looked over at Angie, who was smiling at me over the rim of her coffee mug.

“And? Your take on all this?” I asked Angie.

“His royal protector of helpless innocent girls, Ashwin Andrew Windsor, once said wise words coined once upon a time, long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away: ‘Do unto others, BEFORE they do unto you...” Angie tittered, then casually started to eat her breakfast as if nothing else in the world mattered.

I looked at Angie as if seeing her for the first time. Maybe it was the short light summer dress, her sparkling green eyes, and the ginger red hair tumbling like a cascading waterfall over her shoulders. Maybe it was her laugh or her giggle. Or maybe it was her voice. Or maybe it was her wittiness and innocent wisdom? Who knows? To hell with the age gap! I think I’m in love!

Late afternoon saw me up and about. Okay, if you call getting stiffly out of bed and hobbling to the chair by the window and sitting down out of breath “up and about”, then I suppose this qualifies. Nevertheless, it felt good to be out of bed.

Gretah came around to see how things were going with me and sat down on the bed, crossing her legs and placing her hands in her lap.

“Sorry I don’t have another chair available,” I said, and Gretah shook her head in the negative.

“Not to worry, I’m just checking on you. How do you feel?”

“Not tip-top, but ready to venture downstairs and see what all is going on out there.”

“Not much. I discovered a pool out back and wanted to try it out. It might cool me down a bit.”

“Yes, I suppose the heat outside is near boiling point,” I chuckled.

“First I need to pop into some store and get a bathing suit. I seemed not to have packed one,” she smirked, and I chuckled at her humour. Of course, she did not “pack” a bathing suit. Where she came from, she did not have that many options for leisure attire.

“Well, it’s a drive out to Windhoek, maybe there’s a store closer. I don’t know the area here that well. You should ask Alex.”

“Oh, there’s one about twenty minutes out. I’ll get Alex later to take me there later,” Gretah said.

“Good, you’ll feel much better if cooled down in the pool.”

“Mister Ash, I wanted to ask you something, and please be frank and truthful with me,” she said, and I had a feeling that here I’ll be dealing with a mother looking out for her little girl.

“Well, it all depends on what you need to know,” I answered Gretah.

“Who are you and who do you work for?”

“My name is Ashwin Andrew Windsor. I’m an independent charter pilot trying to survive in a competitive industry. Three ageing aircraft are in my inventory.”

“Then how is it that you came to work for Roland Rothman, my husband’s brother?”

“I was contracted to fly a DC-3 aircraft out of the desert.”

“Contracted by Roland, or someone else?”

“Missus Rothman, may I ask why this is important to you?” I counter asked and Gretah looked down at her hands in her lap.

“I just want to get to know how this ... this, let me rephrase. I want to know how you got involved, and ... seem to protect Angelique from Roland.”

“Well, Missus Rothman...”

“Gretah, please. Call me Gretah.”

“Well, Gretah, the answer to that is not so easy. All I can say is that I don’t work for Roland, and who I do work for is not relevant at this stage. The less you know, the better for yourself, Mister Rothman, and Angie.”

“Please, Mister Windsor, you must understand that I find it difficult to understand. How can a team of highly trained professionals infiltrate that place we were kept, kill most of the guards, fly us out in a sophisticated helicopter, set us up in a safe house, and then I learn that my daughter was kind of protected, by an evidently professional bodyguard cum helicopter pilot?”

“It is all in a day’s work for me, Gretah. Please understand that I am not at liberty to discuss any of these operations. I know you have many questions and many worries, but I am on your side of the fence in this mess and so are Lorie, TC, and his team. There are others behind the scenes that I don’t even know about. You just stay calm and be sure we’ve got your back.”

“And my daughter? Are you just friendly towards her or not? Is it part of your professionalism?” Gretah said and looked me directly in the eye. So, does she need to know what my intentions towards Angie are?

“Missus Rothman, I met Angie a few weeks ago. I first thought she was arrogant and too big for her shoes, but I came to know her: the little scared and frightened young girl, believing her mother and father were killed in questionable circumstances. Once I saw through that wall she had built around herself, I got to know the true Angie. I will never play with her or hurt her. So don’t ask me anything about Angie that I did not discuss it with Angie first. Angie and I must have these conversations first. She is an adult woman,” I said and got up out of the chair.

“Do, you want to lie down again?”

“No. If you are going to show me that pool you spoke about, Gretah, let’s go. The sooner I get going again, the better.”

“Are you in love with my Angelique?”

“Who is not in love with her? Angie is one in a million,” I counter-asked. “I do love her but, don’t you pressure her. Angie is young; only starting her life, and there’s much going for her. For one thing, she needs to finish her degree.

It does not look like she has many friends. Let me fill in for a while until she decides to go on. Let’s cross that bridge when we get to that bridge.”

“I agree with you on the subject of Angie finishing her degree. But you know, you are a diplomat. You tell me to go to hell in such a way that I’m looking forward to the trip.” Gretah said with a smirk. “Let’s go and look at that pool. They have a bar there, so maybe we could get some Cokes or a juice,” She stood from sitting on the bed. For a moment she looked unsure, then turned to me and said:

“All I can say to you, Ash, it looks like Angie likes you a lot. She more than likes you. If it is only Stockholm syndrome, or not, I don’t know. Just you’ve got to walk a little slower when you’re with her. You got to stand a little closer when you hold her. Take the time to be tender, that’s the plan. You got to stand a little taller while her world falls to pieces. You got to live for every moment she gives you. Make the ‘one in a million’ understand. Only then can you hold her in your hand,” Gretah counselled, coming from her heart, and I knew she knew. A mother sees where no one else can see.

I smiled at her.

“If she chooses to be with you, be good to my baby.”

“Thank you. But don’t say anything to her. I first need to know if Angie is of the same mind. Let us take it at her time and pace.”

“I admire your patience with my little girl. She really is one in a million,” Gretah said. “Let’s go. Fresh air will do you good.”

(Albatross II, approaching Oranjamund.) It was a sombre mood that hung over Roland as he sat at his desk in his cabin, cherishing a tumbler of whisky. The bottle on the desk to his left side was nearly three-quarters empty. It was the second bottle Roland had opened since he shut himself inside the cabin just after he got the call from Max with the news of his brother’s death. Although he did not see eye to eye with his brother, they were of the same blood.

Brooding about his misfortune, Roland’s been drowning his sorrows since midday. Cookie came around with his lunch, but he sent him away, not even bothering to get up, just shouting curtly; “Go away!”

Just after 16:00, the First Officer came to ask about where to anchor. Roland just shouted that they should just anchor outside Oranjamund and wait for further instructions.

The same thing happened when Klaus came to see him. Roland just sent Klaus away by saying he will tell him in the morning what to do.

It was around 16:20 when his cell phone rang. A miserable Max was on the other end of the line.

“It’s true. They’re dead. The aircraft was found somewhere south-east of Otjimbingwe in a ravine. It was totally destroyed, and it seems like the Rothmans and the pilot died on impact.,” Max said, sounding sombre and at a loss.

“How did this happen?” Roland slurred.

“It’s too early to tell, but it looks like structural failure. Apparently, a wing broke off. There’s some speculation about the carry-through spar on these aircraft cracks, and that thing goes unnoticed. The left-wing separated while in flight, resulting in a rapid loss of control and subsequent collision with the terrain.”

“Shit!” Roland exploded and banged his fist onto the desk.

“Yeah, this is a major setback. Instead of going in directly to the place, we now have to search for the damn sub.”

“What are our chances of finding it?”

“I’ll have to go through old granddad’s stuff again. There must be something in it...” Max sighed.

“What do I do in the meantime?”

“Just go on mining the diamonds. I’ll find us some more diamonds up north. That way we can get the funds needed to search for the sub, even if it takes a few months.”

“A few months!” Roland exclaimed.

“What? Did you think we’ll just walk up on the wreck?”

“No, but we need some position as to where it might be.”

“I said, I’ll go through granddad’s stuff again. There must be something there.”

“How did the Rothmans stumble on it.”

“If I knew, I’d have done the same long ago. Relax, Roland, all will be good. Don’t do anything irrational. Be cool. This is just a minor setback.”

“Yeah, let me go ahead and get the things finalized for mining some diamonds.”

“Good.”

“How did you get this info about finding the wreckage?”

“It’s in the newspaper, photo and all. Confirmed by the FBO in Windhoek.”

“Shit! I thought, well maybe, they could have survived the crash,” Roland sighed.