Albert Regains His Face
Chapter 43
The team met two days later at Dick’s hotel and this time Albert Wu was cordially invited to attend the meeting as an honored guest. The venue was the swimming pool and everyone was enjoying the sun and swims.
“Albert, you shocked me. I thought you were planning to leave or were still loyal to Amar, one or the other, I suspected,” Chi spoke to the others seated around a large, round table. Like the fruity drinks, the table had an umbrella too.
“How come you stuck with us? You almost died remaining loyal to our team,” he quickly added.
“That’s easy. It came down to a matter of pride, my pride, my face. I never forgave Amar for ordering Johnston to torture me. It was needlessly hurtful and cruel. So it wasn’t about money or drugs in this instance, it was about deep seated anger and my powerful desire for revenge. I feel vindicated now that the bastard is dead.”
“I get it now,” Angie mentioned to the table. “Khun Avery purposely didn’t seize your computer after your initial email to Amar. That was part of a plan, right?”
“That’s right,” Dick replied. “It was all part of a ruse to entice Amar to come here and it worked. I also had Albert lay some false trails to see if his movements and whereabouts were being monitored online by anyone, specifically Amar. The airline bookings and car leasing were simply more red herrings suggesting he might flee the country. It was all disinformation and nothing more than a head game to keep Amar confused and off balance with the mixed signals.”
“By the way, I gave Kris a nice sendoff to wherever Muslims go when they die. I threw his knife and worry beads onto his pyre so they could never be used again. I kept his ashes in an urn as a remembrance of his cruelty to me. I have some rosebushes behind my building that need fertilizing from time to time. The ashes seem to work wonders on the plant roots. I water them occasionally as well,” he said, winking as he spoke the last words. We all laughed at his outrageous act of defiling Amar’s memory and mortal remains.
What Albert forgot to mention was the fact he took several photos of Kris and fingerprinted him for the purpose of posterity—that meant he wanted evidence to support his upcoming claim for the reward. He didn’t think Avery would stiff him, but one couldn’t be sure about friends these days. Moreover, he saw no need to inform the team of his umbrella insurance policy for his rainy days. And there were many of them in Thailand so he’d better spend the money wisely.
Dick then offered a toast to his colleagues and now friends. They were finished, only the police still had to be notified that the bad actors in Bangkok could be now be rounded up. Chi would take care of that bit of housekeeping.
“Here’s to all of us. But, most importantly, here’s to Denny Williams and Jimmy Boonchai who gave their lives for our cause. Let’s always remember them.”
Sometimes those who served and protected couldn’t come up with more eloquent tributes or novel accolades for their fallen comrades.