Istana Nurul Iman Palace
August 26
Peter took the stairs two at a time. At the top, he turned left, knowing that was the general direction back to Guan-Yin’s apartment and the control room. Again, the wide hallway was deserted. It reminded Peter of a large luxury hotel with its numbered doors extending down the corridor. Lining the walls were a mix of side tables supporting vases stuffed with fresh tropical flowers, pairs of silk-upholstered chairs, and plush love seats.
Their footsteps were muted by the thick carpet under foot. Ahead, Peter heard a sound and noticed one of the doors was ajar. Diesel focused on the sound, too. It took a few seconds to recognize the noise—a vacuum cleaner. And then laughter rose above the mechanical din.
Hugging the wall, they took several swift strides toward the sound. The vacuum noise stopped and was replaced by conversation. The voices sounded feminine and carefree. Peter turned to a nearby love seat and shoved the rifle underneath the cushions. Just as he straightened, the door fully opened and two maids entered the hall. They startled upon seeing Peter, and then one of the women noticed Diesel. His tail was wagging and his lips parted in a way that many viewed as a smile.
“Oooh. Your dog is handsome,” she said in heavily-accented English. She was young, maybe twenty. The other woman was older and Peter immediately noticed the familial similarities. Mother and daughter, perhaps?
“Hello,” Peter replied as he closed the distance to the two women. The younger housekeeper leaned over and ran her hand along Diesel’s head and back. His warm tongue lapped her hand and arm, earning a cheery giggle.
“He’s beautiful. What is his name?”
“Diesel,” Peter replied. “He’s a good judge of people, and he obviously likes you.”
Diesel’s nose found a pocket in the light-weight uniform jacket the younger woman was wearing. She removed a wrapped cereal bar. “Are you hungry?” The canine sat at attention and stared longingly at the food bar. “May I?” she asked Peter.
“Sure. But I warn you, he’ll be your friend for life.”
She peeled back the wrapper and began to feed small bites to the canine.
“My daughter has always loved animals,” the older woman said.
“My name is Peter. You speak English very well.”
“Of course. It is taught in our schools. Also, the Sultan has many foreign guests.”
“So these are rooms for visitors?” Peter motioned down the long hall.
The mother nodded empathetically. “No one is here now. But next week there will be many visitors. From all over. There are more than 400 guest rooms in the palace.” She held up four fingers.
Peter smiled. “Everything is beautiful. Reminds me of photos I’ve seen of the English palaces.”
As the daughter gave Diesel plenty of attention, her mother eyed Peter suspiciously. “I am a guest of Lim Guan-Yin,” he said, hoping to place her at ease.
She nodded.
“Actually, I’m lost, and I hope you can help me. I was walking Diesel through the gardens, and came back through a different entrance. I’m not sure where I am.”
She smiled at Peter’s chagrin. “What is your room number?”
Do they know about the shootout in the garden apartment? He quickly thought up a lie, not wishing to take the chance.
“Actually, I’m a friend of Eu-meh Lim and her daughter, Jade, and have been invited to meet Guan-Yin. Can you point me in the right direction?”
“I can show you the way,” the daughter said with bubbly enthusiasm.
“We have work to do,” the mother admonished, turning her daughter’s smile to a frown.
Facing Peter she said, “Go down this corridor to the end and turn right.”
“How will I know which door is hers?”
“There is only one. As the mother of the Sultan, Lim Guan-Yin is revered. Her apartment is the entire east wing. But her offices are on the ground floor. If you are meeting over business, the grand stairway is also in the east wing. You’ll see it.”
“Thank you. It was nice to meet you.” Peter and Diesel started to leave. “Oh, is there a restroom nearby?”
The daughter pointed back the direction Peter had come from. “Just beyond the stairway,” she said.
“Got it. Thank you again.” Peter and his ever-present companion turned and casually walked away. He had no trouble finding the restroom—the door was marked with a man silhouette. Like every other space Peter had seen in the palace, the restroom was also opulent. Designed to be used by only one person at a time, the large space was divided into two compartments of unequal size. The marble counter and gold-plated sink with matching faucet occupied the larger area.
Peter locked the door and phoned Lacey. She picked up on the second ring. “I have some information on the location of the control room,” Peter whispered. “This place is like a hotel, and I was talking to a couple of the housekeepers—”
“Do you think that’s a good idea? What if they report you to the palace guards?”
“I don’t think they know what’s going on. Most likely the security details are rarely shared with the housekeeping staff. Besides, I don’t plan on staying around very long. So, like I was saying, they told me that Guan-Yin’s apartment is the east wing.”
“Where in the east wing?” she asked while pulling up a floor plan of the Istana Nurul Iman Palace. Her contact at the NSA had emailed the map just before Peter called. It was dated back to the construction of the palace, so it would not reflect any remodeling that may have been done. Still, it was the most detailed information she had on the building layout.
“No, her apartment is the east wing. All of it. And the control room is adjacent to her office which is on the ground floor. The entry to the control room that I saw was a hidden door, disguised to blend in with the wall of the reception room of her office. Sorry I can’t be more specific.”
“I’ve got it. East wing… Assuming the original layout hasn’t been altered… Okay. This is extremely helpful. I’ll forward this to Commander Nicolaou.”
“Good. Now I’ve gotta go.”
“Wait. Are you in a secure location? A place you can lay low until help arrives?”
“I still have a job to do. Don’t try to reach me. I’ll call back when I can.”
Peter turned off his phone and placed it in his pocket. “Okay Diesel, you ready?”
The pitty looked expectantly at Peter as he opened the door, awaiting the next command. “Let’s hope the coast remains clear and there really aren’t any guests here today.”
Swiftly and silently the pair advanced down the wide hallway. Peter paused just long enough to retrieve the rifle he’d placed beneath the cushions of the love seat. The high-pitch whine of the vacuum cleaner was coming from one of the rooms they passed. At the end of the hall, Peter stopped and carefully peaked around the corner. About twenty-five yards away was a solitary gilded door adorned with flower bouquets in wall-mounted vases on either side of the entrance. It was a little farther, maybe thirty-five yards, to the grand staircase that the housekeeper had mentioned.
Knowing that guards could come by at any time, Peter took a deep breath and dashed across the open hallway for the door.