Nemesis Chapter 44

Nemesis Chapter 44

Jim and Grant pulled into the parking lot of the Commerce Building and went inside.  Grant walked up to the receptionist and flashed an official-looking badge.

"We're from Interpol," he said gruffly when she looked up at him.  "We need to see Minister Sanders.  Could you tell us where we can find him?"

"He's in suite 408," she answered.  "Let me see if he's in and can see you," she added, as she reached for the phone.

"We'll find it ourselves, thanks," Grant said, in a voice that defied argument, as he and Jim found the elevator and went up to the fourth floor.

Outside suite 408, Grant and Jim exchanged nervous glances, then Grant rapped heavily on the door.  When Sanders opened it, he was clearly in a hurry - and not pleased about having uninvited guests.

"I'm afraid I'm in a bit of a hurry," he exclaimed, as he attempted to muscle past the agents.  "I have somewhere I have to be."

"I'm afraid the only place you're going is downtown with us, Minister Sanders," Jim replied, putting both hands to Sanders' chest and pushing him firmly back inside his suite.  Grant followed them in and closed the door behind him.

"What do you want with me?" Sanders protested.  "I've done nothing wrong!"

"That's not how your buddy Garcia tells it," Grant advised, and both he and Jim watched Sanders turn white.

Grant whipped out the photographs he'd taken earlier of Jim with Nicholas in character as Garcia, and threw them on the table next to Sanders.

"Garcia told us your plan to use your position to spike the poor people's rice crop with drugs," he lied, recalling what Nicholas had advised him about the dual-chute packing machine a few moments before.  "He gave you up as the primary planner, overseer, and financier of the operation."

"Now wait a minute," Sanders argued.  "All I did so far was help find the location to build the warehouse.  Garcia is the overseer, and a man named John Christie is the chief financier."  Sanders looked at Grant, his eyes pleading.  "Surely you must believe me."

Grant looked at Jim, and Jim shrugged.  "Well, now, I guess we'll have to see who we believe once you come downtown and give us a full statement."

With lightning speed, he grabbed the Minister's hands and held them behind his back while Grant slapped a pair of handcuffs on them.  Then the two agents led Sanders out to their car, past the curious receptionist.

Grant opened the back door, and as Jim maneuvered Sanders into the backseat, Grant whipped out his dart gun and shot the minister in the side of the neck.  Then Jim climbed in beside him as Grant keyed his communicator.

"Nicholas, Max, we've got Sanders and we're headed your way.  We'll be there in twenty minutes."

*******

When Max arrived at the warehouse, Nicholas as Garcia went over to the driver's side window to greet him, so as not to arouse any suspicion among the farmers.  He needn't have worried; they were too busy with packaging the rice that they hardly looked up.

"Christie will be here in about ten minutes,"  Max advised, as he got out of the sedan and followed Nicholas at a brisk clip around the side of the warehouse where the real Garcia and the farmer lay unconscious.

Max helped Nicholas drag the farmer out of sight, with Nicholas doing the lion's share of the work since Max was still nursing his broken bones.  Then the two of them positioned Garcia in plain sight, to look as if he were simply taking a nap.

When they were finished, Nicholas looked at Max and raised an eyebrow.  "What did you do to slow him down?"  he asked slyly.

Max smirked.  "He had a couple of blowouts," he quipped, "and not much sense about changing tires."

Nicholas grinned and slapped Max playfully on his right shoulder.  Just then, both men heard the crackling sound of tire tracks approaching the warehouse.  Max glanced behind him long enough to catch a glimpse of the familiar Jeep.

"Nicholas!"  Max hissed.  "It's Christie! Get out of sight now!"