Near Dark (Scot Harvath #20) - Brad Thor Page 0,115
screw up, or even killing him in his sleep, then that was just the way it was going to have to be.
To take advantage of Harvath letting his guard down, he needed to be able to pinpoint him. That’s why Key West had been so perfect. He had served up the job to Didier on a silver platter. But somehow Harvath had managed to escape—unless he and the Belgian had fallen into a mangrove swamp and had been eaten by alligators.
Aubertin doubted it. Harvath was still definitely alive. The foiled kidnapping of his stepson in Boston was enough proof. He was still out there, somewhere. And Aubertin was right back to where he was before. He either needed to reacquire Harvath’s location, or find a new way to flush him out into the open.
How to accomplish either of those was the question. He had been wracking his brain, but still had yet to come up with an answer.
One would come, it always did, but if he pushed too hard his mind would keep it at bay.
As was often the case, some of his best answers came when he stopped thinking about the question—which was why he was sitting in the salon of the Château de Chantore, having a morning coffee, and waiting for a New Zealander family from Wellington to come downstairs.
They were return clients, who had not only been delightful to work with last year, but had also tipped very well.
Until the contract on Harvath was closed out—and provided Trang didn’t come up with some sort of plan to screw him—he still had bills to pay. The time to make hay was while the sun shined.
And if focusing on the history of Normandy helped him unlock what to do about Harvath, then all the better. His day with the Kiwis would be even sweeter.
He was about to take another sip of his café au lait when his phone chimed. Looking down, he saw a request from NormandyGuides.com.
High season was kicking into gear.
CHAPTER 45
SAINT-MALO, FRANCE
The jet that touched down at Aviano to fly them to France was a variant of a Gulfstream IV, known in U.S. Air Force parlance as a C-20H. It was part of the 86th Airlift Wing, but for all intents and purposes—from crew uniforms to the aircraft’s registration—it appeared to be a private civilian aircraft.
Harvath and Sølvi had had just enough time to grab a shower and scrounge something to eat before it was time to leave. Over microwaved breakfast burritos and coffee in Styrofoam to-go cups, he explained everything he had learned about their assassin. He also explained his decision not to involve French authorities.
He had multiple connections to get any help he needed. The American and French presidents had an excellent relationship. CIA Director McGee worked very well with the head of French Intelligence. Even Gary Lawlor had extremely solid connections throughout French law enforcement. In the end, though, Harvath had thought it best to operate under the radar.
There was no telling what kind of tripwires Aubertin had in place, nor whom he might have paid off and in what area of the government. One word that the Americans were looking for him and he would vanish. For the first time, Harvath felt like he had the advantage. He didn’t intend to waste it.
When they landed at Dinard-Pleurtuit-Saint-Malo Airport, Nicholas had bad news again. NormandyGuides.com did have a phone number for Aubertin, but it was no longer in service. Strike one.
Though it was first thing in the morning, Aubertin had already responded through the website to their request for a guide. Unfortunately, he explained, he was booked up and could not help them. Strike two.
He did, however, suggest a colleague whom he felt would take exceptional care of them and provide a terrific tour of the D-Day beaches or any other sites in the Normandy area they might want to see. He included her name, cell phone number, and a link to her bio on NormandyGuides.com.
It wasn’t a home run, yet they hadn’t struck out entirely. They were still in the game, but now with a degree of separation between themselves and their target. Until they developed a better lead, this new guide—Dominique Loiseau—was the best shot they had.
While Sølvi deplaned and went into the private aviation building to pick up their rental car, Harvath remained on board and wrapped up the list of things he needed from Nicholas. Once it was complete, he disconnected the call and deplaned as well.