“Business partner?”
“I was his distributor in Rotterdam and sometimes supervised distribution here.”
“That’s how you knew Gilles.” I thought back to his reaction when Daniel had given the news about Gilles’ death. “You suspected Gilles would tell Shahab about your plan.”
“He was always a coward.” Fran?ois sighed. “When I heard Gilles had been tortured, I knew my time was limited. Gilles would’ve told Shahab after the first punch. He was terrified when we found out élodie was dead. That’s why he gave those other crates away. He didn’t want anything in his possession if Shahab came around asking him questions. And look how that worked out for him. When I left your office, I tried to play it cool so I could get away, but that stupid lawyer Shahab hired for me took me straight to that monster.”
“That was Shahab’s lawyer?” Manny asked.
“Oh, they’re best pals. Bastards.”
I thought about everything he’d told us so far. “How did you find out who Shahab’s distributors were?”
“I don’t know how élodie did her research, but she was able to track down all of them. I think she did a lot of stalking. She told me that she knew where they were, but wasn’t sure about their names and exact details. So I used my contacts to find out more about the vineyard. Turned out that all of the workers are there because Shahab threatened to torture and kill their families. We made contact with one who was willing to give us everything she could find in Shahab’s books. For a price.”
“élodie sent her the money through the hawala system.”
“Yes. And we got what we needed.”
“How did this worker get the information to you?” I asked even though I was sure I knew the answer.
“She was very clever. She worked in Shahab’s office. She was the one who printed the labels for the bottles. She told us she would put the names and towns of the distributors on the labels. It would be in the lines of the background.” He huffed softly. “We never got it. élodie took those four crates to check the labels and get the names. But then Shahab killed her.”
“You used the past tense for the woman who gave you this information.”
“Oh. No. She’s not dead. She managed to escape with her family before Shahab found out about all of this.” He glanced down at his chest. “Where is that bomb squad? You must get this off me.”
“They will be here soon.” The doubt on Manny’s face couldn’t be about their arrival. Did he doubt they could disarm the bomb? I glanced at Colin still sawing the rope. It looked like he’d cut through the centre and was now struggling with the last half.
Panic crept up on me and I forced myself to focus. “What was élodie’s plan?”
“She wanted out.” Fran?ois shuddered and tried to control his breathing. “That’s why she sold me Shahab’s business model for one million euros. I negotiated of course. For that money I wanted her to help me plan the first shipment, use her hawala contact to pay our informant in Iran as well as pay for the artefacts.”
“You mean the artefacts you stole from the Iranian people?” Colin’s voice was strained.
“I didn’t steal it. Someone else got 3D-printed copies made and paid a worker at the museum to replace the originals. I only paid for it.” He winced. “élodie told me it was as good as stealing it myself. But she was no better than me. She dealt in drugs. Art is actually better. It’s a victimless crime.”
Colin stiffened, but didn’t respond.
“All I wanted was for the drugs to give me enough money to build a healthy portfolio of art.”
“To sell illegally.” Colin’s anger gave him more strength to cut through the rope, but the progress was slow.
“Doesn’t matter now.” Fran?ois looked at his chest again. “élodie will never get to study music. And if you don’t get this off me, I’ll...” His head jerked up when the sound of sirens came closer.
“Deep sea perch can live up to a hundred and forty-nine years!”
“We’re getting there, bud.” Colin increased his sawing. “Almost through.”
I wasn’t sure how many vehicles were outside, but it sounded like more than three came to a screeching halt close to the door we’d entered. Within seconds footsteps sounded in the warehouse. I didn’t move.
“Over here,” Vinnie called out. “The old man and I are armed and there’s one bomb here.”
“Clear!” a few male voices called out from around us.
“Can’t stay away from the action, Genevieve?” Daniel walked to us, his assault weapon lowered.
I frowned. “I don’t like action.”
“I know.” His smile was genuine. Then he sobered as he looked over the situation. “Well, you sure find a lot of it.”
“Where’s your bomb guy?” Manny asked.
“Where is he?” Fran?ois searched the aisle. “You need to get this off me.”
“I’m here.” A muffled voice came from the end of the aisle. A suited man was slowly walking towards us. He was dressed in a blast-resistant suit, his large helmet obscuring his features. “Why are there so many people here?”
“The Sumatran-Andaman earthquake in 2004 lasted five hundred to six hundred seconds!” Caelan was slapping his thighs again. “Doctor Lenard! The three-toed sloth can move maximum five metres a day.”
Everything slowed down in my mind. I looked at Fran?ois, his badly injured face, his broken hands and the bomb strapped to his chest. He’d used the last nine minutes to confess his entire criminal career and plan. I wondered if he’d accepted that he would die. Or was it that he desperately needed to relieve himself of the guilt he suffered for playing a role in the deaths of so many people?
“You need to get these people out of here, Daniel.” The bomb disposal technician stopped in front of Fran?ois and leaned over to look at the device.
“It took more than two thousand years to build the Great Wall of China!”
“I’m almost done, bud.” Colin glanced over his shoulder towards Fran?ois and the technician, but quickly turned back to continue sawing.
Caelan was losing control, his movements becoming more erratic by the moment. Then a realisation crashed into my thinking brain, followed by a rush of adrenaline. Caelan’s facts had first been about volcanoes to warn us about the bomb. All the other facts had been somehow related to time. I gasped.
“Jenny?” Colin looked at me.
I stared at the bomb disposal technician. “There’s a timer.”
“What?” The technician stilled. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”
“Because we didn’t bloody know.” Manny took a step away from Fran?ois. “If there’s a timer, there’s a countdown. What are we looking at?”
“Give me a moment.” The technician’s hands were steady as he took a device from his bag and aimed it at the bomb. The device immediately showed a red light. “A lot of explosives here.”
He took another device from his bag. A mobile x-ray machine. He aimed that at the bomb. The display showed a lot of wires. The technician put the machine down. “There are no wires under the lid. I’m going to remove it to see what we’re looking at.”
“It takes twenty-seven point three two days for the moon to orbit around the Earth!”
“Shit.” Colin’s jaw was tight as he worked harder to cut through the last wires on the rope.
“Oh, God. I don’t want to die.” Fran?ois was crying, yet trying hard to control his breathing.
The technician carefully removed both the ropes that held the lid in place. With steady hands, he removed the lid. And tensed. “Evacuate. Now.”
Daniel didn’t hesitate. “Evacuate! Evacuate! Evacuate!”
The sound of boots running towards the door filled the warehouse. I stood frozen.
“I’m not done yet.” Sweat was forming on Colin’s forehead. “How much time do we have?”
“Twenty-three seconds.” The technician grabbed a wire cutter from his bag and tossed it to Colin. He lifted his bag and looked at Fran?ois. “I’m sorry, sir.” Then he looked at Colin. “Don’t waste time.” He grabbed his bag and ran to the exit, slowed down by his bulky suit.