Algorithm - Book 1 - The Medallion

Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Linda and Hedda slipped through the breaker door and flattened themselves against the outer wall. A hundred yards away, four cars sat alongside the office building. One was a police car and it was moving away. The two women ran toward the office, hoping to get their attention. Linda halted mid-stride and tugged at Hedda's arm.

"Hey, what're ya doin'?"

"The police are leaving. What does that tell you?"

Hedda thought for a moment. "Well … That they're done here? … That maybe they finished their investigatin'?"

"Exactly. There must be someone inside the office they talked to, and that someone convinced them that everything's fine."

"Damn."

"Let's get a closer look at who exactly's inside the office and so persuasive."

The two edged their way along the perimeter of the parking lot. Linda pushed back a pine bough to get a better look. A branch cracked behind her.

It was 1978 and Linda was eleven years old. She had been waiting for her two sisters and parents on a lonely stretch of beach on the north coast of Cuba. It was a hot summer morning, and time seemed to drag on. She feared that something had gone wrong. When at last she heard the purring of their outboard motor, she stepped out of a mangrove thicket and waded into the shallow waters of the lagoon. She could see the small boat approaching. That's when she heard something crack behind her. A solitary soldier stood at the shoreline staring out at the approaching boat. His grin parted a dark moustache revealing a missing front tooth. He stood just a few feet away with a rifle in one hand. His mouth grimaced as he turned to look at her.

Hedda caught up with Linda and said, "Sorry about that. Not used to sneakin' around."

When they arrived at the back of the office, they peered through a corner of the six-lite door. Inside, a stooped-over elderly man dressed in a dark business suit was shuffling toward a chair in the center of the office. The tufts of white on his balding head were in the shape of a raggedy crown. As he pivoted to sit down, Hedda gasped, "It's Herman. It's Herman Borman."

The soldier motioned for everyone to come into shore. Linda saw the crestfallen faces of her family and with her shoulders slumped and head bowed in surrender, she waded back.

"Herman owns the rights to this mine. He gave Ben and me permission to run some excavations in the River Slope section …"

Before Linda knew what was happening, Hedda turned the handle and threw the door open. She marched into the office. "Herman Borman! What's the meanin' of all this?"

If Herman remained seated, pushed back his chair and placed his right hand in his jacket pocket.