Poseidon's Ransom

Chapter Thirty Five

Washington got back to the edge of the woods, about fifty yards away from his car. He stood in the shadows and waited a few minutes to be sure there was nothing on the road. Happy he was alone, he came out and jogged quickly to the lay-by. He looked up and down the road again, and was about to climb in, when he saw the parked VW.

‘Fuck,’ he said out loud.

He ran to the car and smiled when he saw the keys in the ignition. Quickly he drove up over the grassy verge and through the trees, bumping into several as he found a way in. By weaving in and out he managed to get the vehicle well away from the road.

It’d be impossible to see at night, but even in daylight it would not be found unless someone stumbled across it. He switched off the engine, wiped his prints from the door handles and steering wheel, then threw the keys away into the darkness. A few minutes later he was back in the Audi and heading to the villa. He was at the crest of the hill when his smartphone pinged several times. He looked at the screen… INTRUDER.

He stopped the car, swiped the screen and tapped the security application. It showed the patio doors had been opened. ‘What the fuck,’ he said out loud.

He thought for several seconds, his mind racing. It can’t be the Templari already. Burglars maybe. Yeah, it had to be. There were always thefts from the villas. He grinned and set off down the hill.

A few minutes later he pulled to the side of the road and parked. He waited and watched as the odd car came and went, each time illuminating the gates of his villa. There was a big 4x4 parked on the other side of the road. That meant two to five men. He took out a small pair of binoculars. No one in the truck. That’s an expensive vehicle for burglars, he thought.

He was about to drive away, then remembered the four hundred thousand dollars in the concealed floor-safe. Is it worth the risk? he thought.

He checked the Glock, a full magazine less four rounds. Is it worth it. Do I really need four hundred K?

He looked at the 4x4 again, smiled, then started the engine. ‘Au revoir, Monaco,’ he said out loud.