Chapter Nineteen

Bottom Dealing

A method of illegally influencing the outcome of a game by way of dealing from the bottom, rather than the top, of the card deck.

o

"The Major's gonna have my hide for letting you talk me into this," Z moaned as he settled into his seat aboard the Earl's private jet.

"He's had two agents in the Middle East for weeks now," Eroica replied, looking around for his seat belt at the same time. "And what progress have they made?" He found the belt and looked over at the agent.

"Um…"

"Precisely. All you've got is a questionable source demanding another one million U.S. dollars with nothing to show for the first payment. He's just stringing you along, and you know it. D'you really think the Major is pleased with that lack of progress?"

Z sighed heavily. This was true enough. No one in the terrorist community believed that Iron Klaus had suddenly decided to chuck everything. They were obviously waiting for him to make some grand gesture of defiance first. And now even Eroica's sources were finding the Earl's own inquiries suspect. "You still should've let D and E make contact. They're a lot closer to Beirut than we are."

"And I'm a lot closer to the Bakchials than they are," Eroica said pointedly. "I've been dealing with Mr. Bakchial—junior and senior—for a good many years." He paused, grudgingly adding, "And if you must know, Mr. Bakchial senior has a bit of a crush on me. I can get away with just about anything with him."

Z rolled his eyes but did not reply.

"Anyway," Eroica sighed, twirling one of his long curls around a finger, "if anyone can get the information on these things that the Major is after…"

"Pocket nukes."

"Yes, those. If anyone can get info on them, the Bakchials can. They know everybody. Who has what, or who knows whom, and so on.

"For the right price."

Eroica gave the other man a steady look. "You're very cynical since all this started," he observed.

Z gave a small snort, glancing idly out the window as the plane started to taxi down the runway. "You sound surprised."

"I probably shouldn't be after you threatened to kill me, but I never thought of you as the cynical type."

"And I never thought of you as the CIA type," Z shot back smoothly.

"Touché."

oOoOoOo

"You know we're always happy to do anything for the great Eroica," Mr. Bakchial the younger was saying as tea was poured for his guests, his father tittering beside him.

"You're most kind," Eroica replied urbanely, taking the tea as it was handed to him.

"But the world has become so much more dangerous," Bakchial went on in a serious tone. "So many evil men."

"Terrorists are nothing new," Z injected darkly. He received a withering look from the Earl but did not respond, keeping his face neutral.

"Quite so," Eroica agreed blandly, taking a sip of his tea.

Bakchial looked from one to the other. "And your request is, to say the least, unusual. Even for you."

Eroica put on an air of nonchalance and causally leaned back, setting his tea on the table beside him. "Yes," he sighed, playing with one of his curls. "I'm afraid the request really isn't from me. I'm working under a rather vulgar contract," he confessed. "It's my employers who want the information. Apparently you refused to deal with them directly, so they asked me."

Bakchial's face brightened for a moment only to darkened quickly. He leaned over as his father suddenly whispered in his ear. He nodded, looking at Eroica again. "Is it true what they say, then? That the man you used to chase, one called Iron Klaus is…?"

Eroica's eye flickered. "Is what? What have you heard, exactly?" he asked, having to struggle to keep up the pretense of disinterest.

"That he's gone mad. Wants to blow up the world—or at least NATO headquarters."

Z's eyebrows went up, his expression of neutrality slipping momentarily.

"Ah, well, I'm hoping he just got fed up and chucked it for—"

"And," Bakchial interrupted pointedly, "they say that you are really CIA." Beside him, his father nodded vigorously.

I'll bet they do. Eroica gave an amused laugh upon hearing this. He paused a beat, waiting to see if the man would say more. When he did not, he threw up his hands in mock surrender. "Yes, yes, it's all true!" he cried out suddenly. "I'm really a CIA operative who's been working undercover as an international art thief for decades. I confess to my crimes and throw myself on your mercy." He lowered his head crossing his hands across his chest, the picture of repentance.

The elder Bakchial could not contain his delight and burst out laughing at this over-the-top, and apparently tongue-in-cheek confession. He put a hand to his mouth, but was unable to stop laughing.

Z found himself chuckling as well, despite the fact that he knew it all to be true. But the incongruity of it all was just too ridiculous, as was the Earl's characteristically overdramatic confession.

Mr. Bakchial the younger looked at his father, who had tears streaming down his face. Then he too started to laugh. "I never said I believed them, my lord."

Eroica flashed a brief smile. "I wouldn't want you to think ill of me," he said, and held out a hand in Z's direction. "This is the real agent. Only he's from NATO, not the CIA."

Both Bakchial's eyebrows went up upon hearing this and Z took his cue perfectly. "We believe the Major is trying to locate the three pocket nukes that went missing sometime after the fall of the Soviet Union," he said calmly. "We were able to piece together enough to learn he was in contact with a group in Bali that is also trying to get hold of them."

"NATO wants to get them back," Eroica rejoined, "before anyone who might actually want to use them—does." He paused a beat before saying, "Can you help us?"

The obviously overwhelmed Bakchials sat staring a moment. There was another whispered conversation, and the younger man said, "Excuse us, please."

"Certainly."

Z waited until the men were out of the room before turning to the seemingly unperturbed Earl. "They're not going for this," he said in a low voice.

Eroica calmly poured himself another cup of tea and sat back before replying. "Of course they are," he said, glancing idly out a window. "They'll do anything for me, I told you."

"Even when you're CIA?"

"They don't believe that for a second. No more than the terrorist network believes that Iron Klaus and his entire Alphabet went mad." Eroica tossed his hair over one shoulder. "I can't say I blame them. I had a hard time believing it myself."

Z's eyes grew wide. "Do you still believe we went mad?"

Two sparkling blue eyes turned in his direction. "Mr. Z, the first thing you did after the start of all this was threaten to kill me." Eroica actually grinned at the guilty look this received. "Would you've killed me?" he asked innocently.

Z shook his head. "No, sir. We were ordered not to harm you."

"Just scare the shit out of me, is that it?'

Z shifted in his seat but did not reply.

Eroica grinned at him. "To answer your question, no, I don't think you went mad. I think NATO did and the Major was the only sane one in the lot." He paused, adding, "But knowing the Major as we do, that's not very reassuring for the world, is it?"

Before Z could think of a suitable reply, the door on the far side of the room opened as their hosts returned.

oOoOoOo

"So Bakchials major and minor came through, huh?" Klaus remarked when Z checked in with a status report.

"Yes, sir," Z replied.

"They say it will take some time before they can get back to me," Eroica injected.

"Goddamn fucking Arabs!" Klaus spat. "Always with the bloody tomorrow."

Eroica grinned at this, throwing an amused look over at Z. "Actually, Major, the person they need to contact is out of touch just now. From their tone, I can only guess this person is part of a terrorist cell, probably working both sides."

"Shit. Now the whole operation hinges on the word of a bottom feeder."

"That's a bit harsh, even for you."

"So sue me," Klaus snorted.

Again, Eroica brightened. "Ah, that brings up another point. Cash. We're gonna need a lot of it."

"How much?"

"Thirty million U.S. dollars," came the startling reply. "Cash, naturally."

A pause. "Each?"

"Yes."

"That's the figure D and E came up with, sir," Z injected. "The Bakchials verified that it's the price being quoted on the Black Market." He looked over at the Earl and asked, "Will Mr. James be able to scrape that together?"

Eroica considered. "I'm sure he can. To be honest, I have no idea how much money I actually have at this point. The operation was supposed to be self supporting. After the first big heist, it was."

"That might not be a problem," Klaus injected knowingly. "Your thieves weren't very selective in what they stole in Virginia. My men just came across a box full of information on some hidden bank accounts. Possibly the ones that James was tracking."

The Earl's eyebrows went up and he exchanged an amazed look with Z. "Oh? Hidden where, Major?"

"So far, at least four in Swiss banks and a couple more in the Cayman Islands."

"Not much James can do with those without their access codes."

"Did I say I didn't have the access codes?" came the amused reply.

Eroica gave a squeal of delight. "Major, you keep this up and I may have to change my opinion of you."

Klaus could not deny being amused by this, although it did not come through in his voice this time. "You keep this up and I many change my opinion of you."

"At this point, I'm not sure if that's good or bad, Major."

Klaus gave a snort. "You idiot."

oOoOoOo

NEXT: Chapter Twenty - Queer Hand