Jet crept along the underside of the pier, staying out of sight of any guards above as she pressed herself into a channel along the waterline. Thirty meters from the gates, she climbed up the side of the wharf, feeling for fingerholds in the crumbling cement. She pulled herself level with the pier floor and looked over the edge, where four armed guards were watching the approach from the street – none looking behind them, as she’d hoped. Any threat would come from the entry ramp, not the water, at least as far as they were concerned – a fatal mistake if she was successful.
She hoisted herself up and rolled into the shadows of a crane boom. Three empty semi-rigs were parked nearby, along with several utility vehicles – forklifts, a truck-mounted crane, a single-seated container transport, and a tanker truck. Jet darted from vehicle to vehicle, keeping low, sticking to the unlit areas and avoiding the central approach until she reached the partially open steel doors on the street side of the building and peered inside.
The interior was as big as a train station, and she could barely make out the men standing by a group of shipping containers within its depths. Leo’s jacket stood out even in the gloom, though, and she spotted two men with rifles between the attorney and her. Unlike the oblivious gunmen at the gate, these shooters looked alert.
Her eyes narrowed as she studied the layout. There were no windows, so it would serve no useful purpose to scale one of the walls and traverse the roof. She debated creeping through the interior and trying to silently take out the gunmen, but the risk that one of them would make enough noise to serve as a warning was too great. As if to confirm her assessment, a radio crackled to life from their position, and she heard the men give a status update with clipped brevity.
As she evaluated her options, she had to concede that the security was too organized, and there were too many unknowns. Trying to get close enough to take out Leo in anything resembling a surgical manner wouldn’t work.
Maybe she could maneuver to the cabin cruiser and lie in wait? That seemed her best bet, and she was preparing to retrace her steps to the base of the wharf when she heard voices behind her. She ducked out of sight as footsteps approached. From behind the nearest vehicle she watched as one of the men from the van marched past her, close enough that she could have reached out and touched him, and continued into the warehouse, where the two sentries were holding their weapons at present arms.
Rudolf’s voice called out to the gunmen, “It’s okay. He’s with us.” The man from the van waved and continued toward the shooters, who frisked him quickly before allowing him to continue to where Leo and his group waited.
The new arrival shook hands with Rudolf and Leo, and Jet edged back to where she had a full view of the proceedings. A large black man emerged from inside the container they were gathered around, held up what looked like a submachine gun in the light, and said something to Leo. Leo replied, and she shrank lower behind the entryway wall.
It would be impossible to kill Leo with so many armed men around. Her lack of intel on the area had led her to the false conclusion that her odds would be better on the wharf, but she realized as she surveyed the layout that she’d miscalculated. She backed away from the entrance until she was in the shadows by the vehicles and considered her next move. Her next choice was the cabin cruiser, and she was edging toward the rear of the tanker truck when she saw the glow of brake lights from near the gate.
A black SUV pulled to a stop and idled near the entry. She eyed the new arrival and shook her head. If there was a vehicle waiting, Leo might not return to the party on the boat. Acid burned in her stomach at the thought of the attorney eluding her, and she was close to scrubbing the operation when her shoulder bumped the oversized front tire of the tanker, giving her pause.
An idea popped into her mind and she mulled it over. It would be risky, though unexpected, certainly beyond dangerous – and the timing alone could be disastrous if she miscalculated any part of it.
That said, it could work.
Assuming she didn’t die trying.
Chapter 53
Leo watched the American inspect the diamonds. The newcomer exchanged observations with Levi as he sorted through the contents of the suitcase – their consensus was that the stones were of high enough quality to easily hit the minimum valuation, and that if there were more available, a regular exchange of weapons for diamonds would be viable.