The 16mm Caper

Chapter 22

Peter wasn't under any illusions about what the woman might do if he so much as blinked while he was alone in the living room, but he knew he had to do something before ten in the morning. He sat up in the dark and strained his ears to hear any sound from the bedroom.

Vera had closed the door and warned him with a smile that if he wanted Mary to be of any use as a wife and mother down the road, he'd better be a very good boy. He stared into the dim light coming from the window and spotted the dark bulky image of Mary's purse on the side table. Quietly he slipped across the room and dug inside, his fingers closing tentatively over the cell phone.

Dylan and Catlin had to be warned in case he was forced to give up the location, which seemed most likely under the circumstances. Hunkering down beside the couch, he pulled the blanket over his head and looked on her list for Catlin.

The number rang several times before a grumpy Dylan shouted a noisy greeting into the phone. Peter ducked lower and whispered Dylan's name. It took several tries to finally establish who it was, and to keep quiet while he explained the problem. An unhappy Dylan agreed to pack up the material and get hold of Harv to see what he recommended.

Peter said he would be at the Scotia Bank on Queen East at ten in the morning. He hoped they could devise something that would get them off the hook, and he warned Dylan that the woman was a living, breathing, killing menace.

Mary curled up on the very edge of the bed with the blanket tucked tight all around her. She was afraid to close her eyes and she watched silently as the woman went through a series of pretty spectacular moves before the dresser mirror.

"You should try these," Vera said over her shoulder. "Keeps the body limber and tough without sacrificing that soft skin and rosy glow that men all fall for." She did a quick handstand and walked around to Mary's side of the bed, folding her body down in an arch that left Mary staring at her taut stomach. As fast as she bent, Vera was back up straight with both hands resting on the edge of the bed. "Exercise is the secret, Mary. Tone and concentration."

"I think some of your hand work might have something to do with your success."

Vera laughed and pointed a long nail at her. "Pressure points. Everybody has them and anybody could do the same thing. It just takes practice."

"Who are you? Why are you doing this?"

"I like what I do. Doesn't matter to me if Peter gives up the film or not, I get to do my thing." Her smile was cold, and it was underlined with a hand riding down over the top of the covers. Mary flinched and pulled away. "If you don't care why not pick on somebody else then. Those two animals you seem to know."

"Who, Dumb and Dumber?" She laughed again. "I already have plans for them. No, you see, Mary, this film thing is important to somebody I know, and that makes it somewhat important to me. Not an overriding importance but enough to see that this person is satisfied. If you get your boyfriend to give it up then all this goes away like it never happened."

"I don't control him. I can't promise he'll do what you want."

"Control. That's the ten-dollar word, Mary. You see I can make you promise, and I can make him promise too. I just don't want to have to do it that way when by being friendly we can all get what we want." Vera moved over her onto the other side of the bed and lay on her back. "The problem arises when one party isn't honest."

In a moment of irritation, Mary responded angrily. "Who makes you the one to decide who does what? What right do you have coming in here and terrorizing people?"

"I decide what I do and that gives me the right." Vera turned her head on the pillow and stared at Mary. "Just remember the ten-dollar word, Mary."

******

Harv listened to Dylan's story about his call from Peter and shook his head. "I guess he didn't have much choice but how we're gonna get outta this bank visit business," he shook his head again. The two men sat down and began running ideas past one another.

"Where is the damn film anyway? I offered to share a safe deposit box with him but he refused. Now he's using it as a delay."

Dylan chewed the inside of his cheek. He and Peter swore not to reveal the location of the film and for obvious reasons. He looked at Harv and made a decision. "I can't tell you. I made a promise."

"So you know?"

"Yes."

Harv waited a beat and then slapped his thighs with his hands. "Right. We'll have to do a surgical lift."

"Huh?"

"We deploy our team and when they get to the bank we remove Peter and Mary from their captivity cleanly and with precision."

"Team?" Dylan held up his hands. "What the hell are you on about, Harv?"

"What I was trained as at one time-Special Forces. And our team is you and Catlin, Cheryl and me."

"Good God, man, we aren't soldiers!"

"We're all soldiers in the war against terror, Dylan." Harv's intensity made Dylan cower back in his chair. "It's not a fire fight we're talkin' about here, it's a precision extraction with concise timing and execution."

"It's tomorrow morning! You can't plan something like that overnight! We don't even know what we're up against!"

"A good soldier makes his plans on the fly and doesn't look back."

Harv, I think you've slipped a gear somewhere."

Dylan rose to leave but Harv grabbed his wrist. "Listen to me. We get to the bank early. We stake out the best positions and when they arrive we just surprise and overwhelm them. We'll have two more people to help with Mary and Peter. What can go wrong?"

"Just everything." Dylan sat back down, and two hours later was browbeaten and brainwashed into agreeing with Harv's plan, figuring there was no way the women would agree. After a few phone calls, both Cheryl and Catlin were willing to help -Cheryl because it meant her job, and Catlin because Mary was her best friend. Dylan threw up his hands in surrender.