He beamed.
‘It was very fortunate for Jose. He did not have to drive to Santa Rosa de Lima. Señor Vidal’s friend met him halfway at Zacatecoluca because of the heat.’
So that was it.
I drew in a breath of relief. Vidal hadn’t been suspicious of us. This hadn’t been a manoeuvre to catch us in the act.
‘Will you have the car ready tomorrow at 07.30?’ I said.
‘Yes, Señor Burden. You can rely on me.’ He paused and looked hopefully at me. ‘If the Señora doesn’t need me, I go.’
‘I’ll check first.’
I went into the lobby and called suite 7. Val answered.
‘This is Burden,’ I said. ‘Roberto wants to know if you would like a last drive?’
‘I’ll ask my husband.’ Her voice sounded calm. There was a pause, then she said, ‘No, it is all right. We are going to take a swim later,’ and she hung up.
I told Rivera he could go and he went off happily. The time was 17.10. I had nothing to do. I would have liked to have taken a swim but if Val and Vidal were coming down I thought it wiser to keep out of their way.
So I walked down to the city and in the stifling heat, wandered around the shops. I suddenly remembered I should take Rhoda back a present: no easy task as she was always critical of what I bought her. I finally bought a snake skin belt which I thought might please her.
I returned to the hotel at 18.30 and went to the bar. Carrying a gin and tonic out on to the terrace, I sat down.
As I settled myself, I looked across the pool. Val and Vidal were sitting under the shade of a tree. He was wearing purple swim trunks. His chunky body was covered with coarse black hair. Looking at him, I saw the brutal power and strength of him. With his short thick legs and his barrel shaped chest he looked more like an ape than a human being.
Abruptly, he turned his head and looked at me. He seemed to feel instinctively if anyone was regarding him. Then he spoke to Val, looking beautiful in an emerald green bikini. She looked in my direction and smiled, then nodded to Vidal who raised his hand and beckoned to me to join them.
The San Salvador-Guatemala-Miami flight was full. Arriving at el Aeropuerto de Ilopango twenty minutes before takeoff, Vidal said to me, ‘Call us when we can board,’ and he and Val went to the V.I.P. lounge.
Rivera and I checked in the luggage. I got hold of one of the airhostesses and warned her the Vidals were on her flight. She promised to take care of them. I then tipped Rivera, shook hands with him and thanked him for his service, not that he deserved thanking. He had done as little as possible.
When the last of the passengers had passed through the security screen, I went to the V.I.P. lounge.
‘All ready for boarding Mr. Vidal,’ I said.
They took their seats. Satisfied they were in good hands already the airhostess was offering them champagne which they refused — I went to the economy class and took my seat.
In one week from tomorrow I would be a member of Vidal’s staff I still couldn’t believe it. Val had promised she would catch Vidal in the right mood and she had seized the chance when he had returned so unexpectedly. This surprised me. I had left her terrified yet she had been able to recover enough to persuade Vidal he would save money by employing me.
When I joined them by the pool, Val had said she would change for dinner and she left Vidal and me together.
‘This idea my wife has of you joining my staff,’ he said as soon as she had gone, ‘is smart. Dyer should have thought of it. It will save me money.’ He gave me a sharp look. ‘Save the dimes Burden’ (I noted the ‘mister’ had been dropped), ‘and the dollars take care of themselves. I should have been told agency commissions were so high. She tells me she has discussed the idea with you and you’re ready to work for me. That’s okay with me. I’ll give you a week to tie up your end so report to Dyer tomorrow week, huh? My wife wants to work with you. That’s constructive thinking. She knows the work and it will occupy her. Everyone needs to be occupied. She tells me you are efficient. I hope so Burden. I don’t get along with inefficiency. See my attorney, Jason Shackman. He will give you a contract. You will take instructions from my wife. If you have any questions, ask her.’ He got to his feet. ‘Keep on your toes. Pull your weight and you’ll be happy working with us.’ He bounced away to the hotel.
I leaned back in my seat and fastened the safety belt. It had come off! In a week’s time I would once again be working with Val. It would be turning the clock back six years. I’ll be with her constantly was my greatest wish. There will be moments like this when he is away, she had promised. Those were the moments I would live for.
I thought of all the things I had to do during the coming week. I thought of Rhoda. I would have to be very careful not to give her the slightest suspicion there was more to this offer of Vidal’s than promotion and money.
I must warn Val to keep away from the Trendie Miss boutique. It would be fatal if Olson saw her. He might tell Rhoda who she was and then the red light would go up.
At Miami airport, I joined Val and Vidal at the Customs barrier.
‘Take care of the baggage Burden,’ Vidal said abruptly. ‘Come, Valerie. The Rolls will be waiting.’
There was some delay before I cleared the baggage, then, as I followed the porter out into the lobby, I saw Vernon Dyer, immaculate in a lemon coloured suit, waiting. He gave me a sneering little grin.
‘So you have become one of us, you poor, misguided fellow,’ he said. ‘Tiny has just broken the news to me.’
‘Tiny?’
‘We call him that: top secret of course. Well, welcome to the slave house. I hear our Mrs. V. is putting her harness on again. At least Tiny won’t have to pay her, but rather you than me. Strictly between slaves, old boy, she can be difficult: repeat difficult. There are times when she can even be horrid.’ He chuckled. ‘Must be frustration. It can’t be fun to bed with hairy Tiny.’
I felt like hitting him, but I controlled myself.
‘I’ve got baggage here.’
‘I’ll take care of it. Thank God this is the last time I’ll have to be his dreary porter. See you next Monday, old boy,’ and with a languid wave of his hand, he directed the bagman to take the baggage to a waiting estate wagon.
Back home, I found the expected chaos. Surprisingly, Rhoda was out. The bedroom and the living room were in a depressing state of confusion. She had managed to spill her face powder over her dressing table. Cigarette butts overflowed from ashtrays. The bed was unmade. She had dropped her lipstick on the carpet and had trodden on it. The bathroom was in a complete mess and her clothes lay where she had dropped them. I spent a couple of hours clearing up. By then it was lunchtime. I made myself a martini and went into the kitchen. As I expected, she had done no shopping for the weekend. Apart from a few cans of sardines, there was nothing to eat.
I wondered where she had got to. We seldom went out on Sundays. She preferred to slop around and sunbathe on the balcony. I had only a cup of coffee on the aircraft and I was now hungry. I decided to go down to the Coffee shop. As I started towards the door, Rhoda came in.
‘Oh, hello.’ She came across to peck me on the cheek. ‘I wasn’t sure when you would be back. Have a good trip?’
For a Sunday she looked surprisingly smart although she hadn’t bothered to put on her usual elaborate make-up.
‘Where have you been?’ I asked.
‘At the Club.’ She pouted. ‘I got bored sticking around here on my own. Is there anything to eat?’
‘You know there isn’t! Let’s go to the coffee shop.’
‘Oh, God! That again! I thought you might have picked something up on your way back.’