I do not own Monk, Natalie, Leland, Randy or Crystal.
Thank you for the reviews! and keep them coming!
MR MONK MEETS THE REDEEMER
CH15
Randy and Crystal were concentrated on Leland's call.
"Kreeshtow Redentoh?" Leland said, "I have no idea of what you're talking about, Natalie."
"She is speaking of Corcovado, Cristo Redentor, or Christ the Redeemer, a big statue of Christ with open arms atop Corcovado Mountain," Crystal said. "I lived many years in Rio; I know the city pretty well."
"Uh... Okay. Thank you, Crystal," said the Captain, leaving the table to find a place less noisy in the club to speak to Natalie. "Corcovado, Natalie. Does this means something to you?"
Randy thanked Crystal's help by giving her a gentle kiss on the mouth. Then, holding her hand, he joined Leland, who had stopped near the exit door.
"Oh, Gosh, Natalie, please, promise me you'll be careful. Don't forget you're in a foreign country, and we don't know about the street rules over there. I will see what connection I can establish from here. Yes… yes…Corcovado. Natalie? Hello? ... Hello? ... Damn connection!" finished Leland, looking desolated at the phone.
He put it in his pocket, sighed and said, "Party time's over, Randy."
He gave a look around the club again; he observed the band playing enthusiastically, the pleasure of the audience scattered at tables in front of the stage and his pint half finished on the table. He sighed again, and convinced himself aloud, "We have a job to do. Let's go!"
Randy followed the Captain still holding Crystal's hand, who was hanging her leather jacket on her shoulder, smiling at Randy.
Natalie jumped in the near empty taxi. "Corcovado," she said, and pointed to a car ahead of them. "Follow that car, please, Corcovado, please." She repeated, pointing to the car ahead.
The taxi driver answered in broken English, "Yes, speak English. Go Corcovado? Okay!" and drove in the direction of Corcovado, behind the car Monk was in.
Natalie tried to connect again to Leland. She kept her eyes on the car where Monk was, and once again spoke to the taxi driver, "Please sir, look at that car. Black car, over there. There!" she pointed to the car.
"Oh, yes, many cars. Look!" said the taxi driver.
"No, no, sir, you..." She sat on the edge of the seat, and started to gesture as she spoke slowly, holding the cell phone next to the ear, "Yooou..."
"Okay, okay, me," said the happy taxi driver.
"Yes, you fooo-llow," and made her two fingers walk in the air.
"Yes, okay, okay, me follow!"
"Yes! You follow thaaaat car," and pointed to the black car that was now two cars ahead. "Car," she steered an imaginary wheel; "black," she showed her cell phone color; "in front," she pointed ahead; "you, follow," she smiled at the driver.
"Oh, okay, okay, yes, me follow black car in front."
"Yes! Please!" she fell back and rested back in the seat, flipping off the phone. It hadn't completed the call.
Ten minutes later, they were at Corcovado.
There were few cars in the parking lot at the foot of the hill. Natalie saw the black car crossing the parking lot and taking a side street, which led to the top of the hill. She asked the driver to stop the car.
"Okay, stop here. Here, thank you," She gave him 30 U.S.dollars, and got out of the car quickly.
"Thank you, Madame!" Said the driver, smiling for the great tip he had received.
Natalie saw three installations in front of her: there was a museum, with large glass windows covering the front; a Tourist Information Center with the doors closed already and also the entrance to Corcovado Park, with an information counter by it.
She entered this building, and saw some posters with amazing views of the Christ Statue and the city below it; on the counter there were some leaflets about Tourism in Rio de Janeiro, guides to tourist routes and schedules and explanations of the visitation rules for the statue.
She approached a young woman who was behind the counter, "Excuse me, can I still go up the hill to see the Christ Statue?"
"Yes Madame. The last train is leaving; if you hurry you can get on it." She pointed to a side exit, where Natalie could see the red and white train with two wagons in a row starting its slow ascent. It was an adapted train, with opened laterals, similar to a streetcar, but not as tall as the ones in San Francisco.
"It is 20 U.S. dollars, madame."
Natalie handed the sum to the girl and ran to climb into the train. There were more than a dozen tourists in the car, chatting and snapping photos of the landscape. The train went along the side of the hill, in the same ascent as a roller coaster. The difference was that it moved slowly and steadily. Along the tracks, there was a stone paved street, from where the car with Monk had probably crossed.
It was a starry and warm night, the forest cracked as the temperature changed and some birds were making noise, while flashes popped from the tourist cameras all along the way. Natalie only wished that the train could move faster.
After five long minutes of ascent, Natalie saw the black car stopped on a secondary tarmac road alongside the stone paved street. Natalie used that moment while the tourists were distracted by a waterfall on the opposite side, and quietly jumped off the train, crouching behind the plants. Now she was thankful it were moving slowly.
She stayed there for a few moments, watching the street. There was nobody in the car, or near it. She decided to cross the street and take a closer look.
Once she got near the car, she was sure nobody was in it. She looked around. A bit further ahead, there was a building, with large rectangular windows and a metal door in front of it.
A sign above the door read "Estação Ambiental I – Floresta da Tijuca" and the translation below it read, "Environmental Station I –Tijuca's Forest." The windows had gray shutters, which were closed like the door. Natalie walked around the car and stopped on the side of the building.
The back of the building seemed attached to the hillside, and at the side wall there was a large dumpster with some empty square wooden boxes laid on it. Above the dumpster was a small opened window through which Natalie heard some voices. Without any hesitation, she approached the boxes, and climbed up until she reached the window. She stayed there, immobile, listening to the people inside the building.
There were three men speaking. Natalie did not understand what they were saying, but she clearly heard it when they dropped something heavy on the floor. She heard as it was dragged across the floor, and then the closing of the door.
In a few seconds, she heard the men opening the front door and walking to the car; then the car turned around and started back down the road. She was silent for a moment, to make sure that the three men had left.
She stretched her neck to see through the window to the inside of the room. It was no surprise to her to see Monk there, unconscious, lying on the ground with his hands tied in his back. As limited as her vision was, she noticed some empty metal cages behind him, the kind that are used to kept small animals; at his feet was a bookshelf with some books and cardboard boxes with folders inside; the room smelled like a school laboratory.
"Mr. Monk. Mr. Monk, wake up… Mr. Monk?" whispered Natalie through the window. Monk didn't move.
Thank you, Kathy, for you great patience!