“Not funny, Payaso. You wouldn’t write a stupid plot like that, would you, Nick?”
“No, I won’t do that, John. He’ll have to be trusted with the ship while Diego and Jed clear the safe-house they’re headed to in the Cayman’s. He will have to watch Fatima closely.”
“I get it,” Gus said. “Fatima kills the oaf Leo and steals the boat forcing Diego and Jed to forage another ship to go after her. I like your plotting in this one, Nick.”
John was swiveling from Nick to Gus with open mouthed shock. When he saw Nick shaking his head, John pointed a finger at Gus. “That is really not funny, Payaso, you villain. You are mad because Jed will no longer be the only confidant of the formidable Diego.”
“Pay no attention to Payaso. He won’t be writing the novel. I don’t have to kick you guys out of here one at a time so you two don’t start fist fighting in the hall do I?”
“No, we’re fine,” Gus said. “John and I are brothers.”
“Speak for yourself, wife of Tina T-Rex.”
*
Nick obtained the tickets for the Salem Ferry at the window for their entire group. It took only minutes. Soon, they were standing at the boarding plank, waiting for the crew to allow them on board. A middle aged man with a crew vest greeted them as he walked over to his first in line patrons.
“Good morning, folks. Where are you from?”
“California,” Jean answered for everyone. “We’re going to Salem.”
The man chuckled. “That’s good, because this ferry only stops in Salem. I know what you mean young lady. You won’t be going further than Salem. I guess you’ll be taking in all the tours then, huh?”
“We sure are. Will you be on the boat?”
“Yep. I’m going to tear your tickets, and wait for the go ahead from the crew. On board I do an introduction before I share some historical notes about the harbor area and the sights we pass on the way.”
“Cool,” Jean said.
The man nodded and took the proffered tickets from Nick, tearing off the stubs and handing them back. “I hope you folks have a wonderful day. The weather is supposed to stay nice and balmy. I’ll see you all on board. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to ask me.”
“We will, Sir,” Nick said. “Thank you.”
As the man walked to the next people in the growing line, Nick spotted a loner dressed in a business suit, complete with briefcase, bowler hat, and cane. True to his new mission of watching for any sign of someone extraordinary in manner or interest, Nick continued watching the man from behind his sunglasses using his peripheral vision. The businessman lowered his sunglasses while watching Jean and Sonny taking selfies of themselves to post on Facebook and Twitter. He then fixed his sunglasses and began scoping out all the women riding on the ferry just as Nick was watching him, using peripheral vision while pretending to check the harbor scenery. Nick knew better. The man was an amateur at surreptitious surveillance. His eyes strayed when he saw a fresh movement by his targeted interest.
Something in the man’s bearing tripped a circuit in Nick’s head. He was off in a number of ways. His hands, although clean, were gnarled and work worn. That was no sin in Nick’s book, but it worked against the man’s overall appearance. His legs were slightly bowed too, unusual for a desk jockey or executive. When approached by the man doing a recital on the boat, the businessman handed him his ticket while ignoring all casual chat, finally turning away once he had his ticket stub in hand again. At first viewing the man seemed a blue collar worker who clawed his way up from menial labor to the top of an unknown profession.
Nick marked him for further perusal once they were on the boat as an additional exercise. His scanning of others riding the Salem Ferry did not reveal anyone else of interest. One group of four college age girls garnered his attention because the businessman did not take his eyes off them while they got into line. Their animated interaction and laughter held the businessman’s undivided attention. Almost as an afterthought, he looked off to the girls’ left while continuing his peripheral interest in the girls. Then a crewmember removed the rope blocking the boarding plank, stepping aside and greeting the passengers.
On board the boat, Rachel watched Nick keep watching the water streaming by as their historical host gave his talk. He only looked away to glance at Gus as he was handed a drink. Rachel put a hand on his arm.
“Are you okay?”