At 6:00 a.m. Chic and Danny were eating breakfast. They were on their way by seven. They took their time, checking out the interesting foliage on shore along the way. They didn’t expect to see anything relevant to the investigation, but you never know. They pulled into the peer in El Estor at eleven thirty. Since El Estor was the only populated area beyond Fronteras, it seemed reasonable that if the crew of the Angel came ashore, it would be in this isolated place.
It was a crappy little place. The people were friendly enough, but it was simply a small, remote village with a couple of open-air places to eat.
Chic knew from experience in Central and South America that the best and safest food was at the outdoor vendors. Here you could see your food being prepared and cooked. The beef stew and rice were excellent. The vendor was more than happy to introduce the boys to the two local whorehouses. Every sailor confined to a boat for a long time will visit a local whorehouse at the first opportunity.
Chic and Danny picked the cleanest one to start with. The madam was most helpful. She retrieved a beautiful young girl, who could have been anywhere from fifteen to twenty-two years old to talk to Chic. The girl remembered the captain and his friend. She said he was a nice guy, treated her well, and gave her a big tip. She would be happy to have him back.
She said her little brother was down near the pier that night. He saw the two guys from the big yacht get shot. Two men were hiding in the dark, and as soon as the captain and the other guy were shot, they fell into their dinghy. The men took the dinghy and sped off with the bodies inside.
Chic had the girl get her brother, Pee Wee, who told the same story with a little more emotion. Pee Wee explained he was hiding in the dark, drinking beer. He was only twelve, so he knew he had to lay low. He also confessed that he smoked a little cigar. He was about to light up when he heard the shots. He showed Chic and Danny where he was hiding, where the shooters were, and where the dinghy was tied to the dock. He told them that they headed out across the lake without their lights on. Next morning, the big boat was gone.
Pee Wee made Chic promise not to tell his mother about any of this. Chic patted Pee Wee on the head, gave him ten dollars, and swore his secrets were safe.
“Danny, what’s the chance of finding the bodies?” he said.
“Absolutely no chance. We may as well go back to the motel. We might even get a little fishing in tomorrow.”
“You got it. There’s no point in looking for Doug and the captain. They have gone to collect their great reward. Let’s spend tomorrow fishing and then head back to Florida.”
“You got it, boss.”
As they walked down the street toward their boat, Chic noticed a rough-looking dude at an outside bar, trying not to be noticed. Chic couldn’t really explain how a person trying not to be noticed in an open situation was, to the trained eye, waving a red flag. Chic nudged Danny’s arm and without turning his head asked, “Did you notice that tough-looking guy at the bar on my left?” He’s not a good guy. Did you bring your weapon?
“Yes, it’s in my backpack secured in the boat locker,” said Danny.
“Good. I have mine too, along with extra clips. We need to assume we’re going to be attacked before we leave Lake Izabal.”
They tried not to look too obvious about getting out of there, but their pace quickened. As they pulled away from the mooring, Chic saw the guy at the bar leave the area. Chic didn’t like the way this guy looked or the way he was carrying himself. He exited the bar area like a man on a mission.
Chic told Danny to take the helm and he would retrieve their 9mm Glocks along with extra clips. Chic had no doubt that the killers were going to attack before they could get to safety, if there was such a place in this area of the world. Chic made ready for battle as much as one can be on a moving boat.
“You know, Danny, the fact the crooks could get these two killers in place this fast has to be through a leak. If that’s not so, we got here in the middle of their planned operation to take out a couple of important witnesses. Had we been able to catch Doug and Captain Hayes, we may have been able to identify our true enemies. So, we show up, and the bosses get a chance to kill witnesses as well as the law men who are after them. Awfully convenient, don’t you think?”
“Put it that way, Chic, and I’d say we better lock and load.”
“I know one thing,” Danny said with a crinkled brow. “You know these guys only have long guns, and we only have pistols. That is a clear advantage on their side. We’ll have to find a way to get in close for a kill shot.”
Chic said he was working on the problem. “I’ll set up a protected area on what we think will be our firing position.” Chic removed the seats and leaned them along each side of the boat. Life jackets were placed between the hull and the boards. Every loose board, box, and book was added to the mix. In the most likely defensive positions, he placed the tool boxes. As on most fishing boats, there was a fair supply of tool boxes to aid in this effort. Reflecting even one bullet could help save a life.
Aside from protection from the junk he found, Chic knew he was an excellent shot and was fairly certain Danny was also. He also brought along an adequate supply of 9mm ammunition and left all but a few rounds of hollow points behind. If they needed the hollow points, they each had one clip.
Chic also found that there was a 12-gauge shotgun on board to use to fire flares. This could become useful. Chic laid out the shotgun along with all the flares in the protected spot he had selected.
“What do you think, Danny? See any way we can improve on this?”
Danny carefully surveyed their firing position. His expression told it all. They were vulnerable, and this was going to be a fight to the finish. “Looks okay to me, Chic.”
“The next question, Danny, is whether we should stay close to the shore where we can limit their approach and we can make a run for the shore, or go out to the middle of the lake. Which is better in your opinion?”
Both men went silent as they made their calculations. If they guessed wrong, it would be their last miscalculation.
Chis spoke up first. “I believe that close to the south shore is best. They can’t follow us in on shore with a vehicle, so we won’t be assaulted from land. It will have to be from the water. We can run to shore, get out, and use the boat as our barrier. They will eventually have to come closer to us, which will give us an advantage, as they’ll be moving and we’ll be firing from a stationary position. They’ll either have to come to us or wait for another time.”
“I agree. That’s as good a plan as we can devise. It’s better than running around in the open water.”
“Great. Run toward the south shore and stay out about a hundred feet. The minute they start firing, let’s move to shore and get out behind the boat, where they’ll have to come within our firing range to get us.”
The two assassins wasted no time. As soon as Chic and Danny left their mooring, Miguel and Lucas got to their boat and quickly left. Their assumption was that their target would head for the center of the lake and blast away at full speed. The assassins were no more than fifteen minutes behind their targets. They had sufficient speed to easily catch the fishing boat their targets were in.
The assassins actually passed Chic and Danny within twenty minutes of leaving the marine area.
Chic picked up the assassins in his binoculars as they sped by. Chic realized that the assassins had failed to consider that they might not be able to see an old fishing boat going along the shore backed up by verdant jungle. They could not easily see a slow boat. Chic’s boat was not a shiny white boat and was not easily seen.
“Pull into the shore, Danny, and let’s find a place to tie up the boat. If they find us, we’ll be in a position behind the boat.”
The assassins kept on for another fifteen minutes thinking the other boat was simply faster than they thought. They finally stopped their boat, drifting for a few minutes while they studied their situation. Now they realized their problem. They would have to backtrack along one side of the shore or the other. They couldn’t do both sides at the same time. They couldn’t go down the middle because then they wouldn’t be able to see either shore. This was going to be more difficult than they thought.
The assassins decided to backtrack on the south side of the lake, purely because the south side was closer to them than the north side. After much thought, they decided to turn and go back west about a thousand feet from the south shore. If they didn’t find the targets that way, they would simply have to go back to base and get them that night or the next day at their hotel. They reduced their speed to approximately fifteen knots where they could study the water to their north and shoreline to their left.
Chic found what was a perfect location as possible under these circumstances. They anchored the boat on shore, partially hidden by bushes and trees. The boat was pointed toward the open water. They actually were standing on a small, sandy knoll surrounded by water. They were protected by the boat and motor.
Thirty minutes later, Chic spotted the boat headed west back toward their area.
The assassins passed by them the first time. They came back in an easterly direction and finally spotted them. They could see the boat but not Chic and Danny. The assassins idled in the area with their bow pointed toward the shore.
Chic and Danny considered moving back into the jungle but decided the boat provided better protection.
The assassins decided to start firing from their present position. They let loose with a volley of twenty to twenty-five shots before they let up. They managed to shoot a few holes in the boat, but the engine protected them from any injury.
When the volley stopped, Chic was able to observe them close enough to realize they did not use a pair of binoculars. They were going to have to attack now or leave.
Miguel was behind the wheel, and Lucas was the shooter. Miguel gave full power headed toward Chic and Danny, and Lucas began firing with his rifle as they charged. At this point, it was too pistols versus one unsteady rifle. Miguel was headed directly at Chic’s boat. When they got within a hundred feet of Chic and Danny, they seized their opportunity. They were able to quickly take Lucas out with a couple of body shots, using the hollow-head bullets. Miguel got in closer and made a hard right turn, swinging the boat sideways to Chic’s boat.
At this point, Miguel was clearly in range and exposed.
All three shooters let loose with rapid volleys at about the same time. Miguel was taken down quickly but not before Danny took a shot in his left shoulder, and Chic was hit by shrapnel in the right temple. When the smoke cleared, Chic could see that Danny was shot in the shoulder area. Chic quickly got the first-aid kit from the barriers he had set up and went to work on Danny’s shoulder. It took awhile, but he was able to stop the bleeding. It looked like some bone may have been clipped, but it appeared there were no body organs or vital parts damaged.
For Chic’s part, a bandage took care of his problem until he could find time to check for foreign objects in the injured area of his forehead.
Chic made Danny as comfortable as he could, tied the assassins’ boat to his boat, and headed back to Fronteras. The trip to Lake Izabal, Rio Dulce, and Fronteras was a disaster for Danny and Chic. They never expected that the crooks they were investigating would be waiting on them. A betrayal almost cost them their lives. It actually cost the lives of two of their witnesses, Doug and Captain Hayes. Two assassins were killed, and he and Danny were injured.
When they arrived in Fronteras, the two dead assassins had to be turned into the locals and of course the process that was required involved a lot of people and the State Department, and depending on the will of the local police, it could take days. Only through the intervention of the State Department, Heath, and other law enforcement officers were they able to get Chic and Danny released so they could get Danny home as quickly as possible for medical attention. Fortunately, Chic’s injuries were not major, and Danny, after receiving some medical attention, was patched up enough to make the trip back home.
Suzy was going to be really upset about the gun battle and the fact that he received some injuries. Chic knew he should probably call, but he would see her within a few hours, and getting out of this area was the first priority.
Chic was deeply concerned that he had been the victim of the Renfro family at least twice. This one family, whom he thought so highly of in the beginning, was proving to be his nemesis. Was he losing his touch, or were they that good at deception? He reviewed everything he knew about Ken and his family, and even with hindsight, he couldn’t put his finger on the demon.