The Scottish Banker of Surabaya - By Ian Hamilton Page 0,81

Cameron around and held him while his brother taped the banker’s eyes and mouth. The policeman quickly marched the Scot to the Nissan, its rear door already open. He bundled him inside, slammed the door, and then climbed into the driver’s seat. Prayogo was already at the wheel of the Porsche.

Waru turned the Nissan into the left lane and started up the hill. Prayogo followed. “Off we go,” Perkasa said.

Ava looked in the direction of the golf course. There was no one in sight. As they drove back over the hill, she saw one car approaching from a distance. It couldn’t have gone any better. “That was beautifully done,” she said.

“I told you they were good guys.”

They drove straight west, past the CitraLand exits, until the highway gave way to a two-lane road and countryside. The few houses they saw were set back from the road, most of them on stilts and with shutters rather than glass windows — no more than small square boxes, places to sleep and eat and stay dry in the rainy season. Waru turned off the paved road onto an unmarked dirt path that was full of potholes. The Nissans handled it easily, but she could see that the underside of the Porsche was taking a beating.

Waru’s house was a slightly larger version of the square boxes on stilts. It stood about twenty metres back from the road, the nearest neighbours about two hundred metres away in either direction. “This was a farm,” Perkasa said.

The lead Nissan parked in front of the house. Prayogo drove the Porsche to the rear. Waru waved at Perkasa to park alongside him and then walked towards the back of his vehicle.

“I’d like to see the house first,” Ava said quietly.

Perkasa spoke to Waru. He shrugged and led the way up six wooden steps to the front door. It was unlocked, and he opened it with one light twist of a knob. There were six rooms: three bedrooms, a bathroom, a kitchen, and a living area. The living room had a wicker couch and chair with cushions that looked as if they had been bleached by the sun, a television, and a coffee table. The kitchen had a dark wooden table with six chairs.

“We’ll put him in the kitchen,” Ava said. “His wrists should be cuffed to the back of the chair and his ankles taped to the two front legs. Waru should move the table and the other chairs out of the way in case Cameron starts flailing about. I wouldn’t want him to do any damage to the furniture.” As Perkasa translated, Ava began to move the chairs to one side.

Prayogo had now joined them in the kitchen, carrying the picana and the transformer. “The transformer can go on the floor near the chair where we’ll seat Cameron,” she said.

The policeman and his brother left the house to get the Scot. Ava leaned back against the sink. “They don’t have to be here while I’m questioning him,” she said.

“I’ll give them the choice, if that’s okay.”

“Fine.”

She heard a noise from the front door and went to look. Cameron’s legs weren’t supporting him all that well, and the brothers were half carrying, half dragging him up the steps. He also seemed to be trying to talk through the tape. To Ava it sounded like he was saying, “I’ll pay, I’ll pay.” Yes, you will, she thought.

They sat him down roughly on a chair that was now situated by itself in the middle of the kitchen. As Waru adjusted the cuffs, Prayogo knelt and taped Cameron’s ankles. Ava expected him to strain, but he sat slumped, turning his head from side to side as if he was trying to sense where his abductors were. Whatever cockiness he possessed had disappeared.

“Leave him with me for a few minutes,” she said to Persaka.

Cameron’s body twitched and his neck stiffened. She knew he had heard her.

Perkasa spoke to the brothers, who nodded and turned to leave. “I’ll be outside when you need me,” he said to Ava. “The boys are going to drive over to Waru’s mother-in-law’s house. It’s only ten minutes away, so they can come back in a flash.”

She waited until the front door closed.

“Hi, Andy,” she said.

( 30 )

The house wasn’t air-conditioned, and although some of the windows were open there was hardly any air flow. Cameron was sweating badly. Ava didn’t know if it was because of fear or the heat. The sweat gathered at his hairline and on