Leaving the gate as it was, he walked around the estate. By the time he returned to the villa, it was 09.15.
He found Marvin with Amando in the guardroom. He was glad to see Amando looked utterly stricken. He was white and shaking. Frost was sure that when Grandi arrived, Amando would be skinned.
‘She’s gone,’ he said. ‘The boats are all there. Mr. Grandi will be here by 16.00.’ He sat down, waving the other two to chairs. ‘I’m in charge, and it’s my neck that’ll be chopped.’ He talked in his hard cop voice. ‘You two were drugged. How could you have been drugged?’ He glared at Amando.
‘I... I don’t know.’
‘Then you’d better start thinking!’ Frost snapped. ‘Did you have a drink last night?’
‘I have a glass of milk every night. Suka brings it to me.’
Frost looked at Marvin.
‘We had beer, but I opened the cans. That soup! Did it taste odd?’
Marvin had now recovered. He was staring thoughtfully at Frost.
‘It tasted fine.’
‘It could have been doped, couldn’t it?’
‘Then why wasn’t your soup doped?’
Watch it, Frost warned himself, this sonofabitch is a trained cop.
‘This is the way I see it,’ he said. ‘As I told Mr. Grandi, to get at his daughter, there had to be an inside man to neutralise the fence. There are four men on the estate: Mr. Amando, you, myself and Suka. You two were drugged because you were both in the villa. I wasn’t drugged because I was in my cabin, and there is no way I can reach the guardroom to neutralise the fence without getting attacked by the dogs? Right?’
Marvin’s eyes narrowed.
‘I guess that’s right. Suka, huh?’
‘Couldn’t be anyone else.’ Frost looked at Amando.
‘You with me?’
‘Yes... yes,’ he said in a quavering voice. ‘I’ve never trusted Suka.’ He got unsteadily to his feet. ‘I am feeling bad. I must rest before Mr. Grandi comes. I will be in my room,’ and he walked unsteadily from the guardroom.
‘This is the end of the road for him,’ Frost said, as the door closed.
‘Let’s get that yellow sonofabitch in here and grill him!’ Marvin said.
‘No! We do nothing until Grandi arrives. Those were his orders. As soon as he arrives, we’ll take Suka apart.’
‘So we sit around here for eight goddamn hours, doing nothing?’
‘That’s what I’ve got to do, but you’re officially off-duty. Go and get some sleep.’
Marvin poured more coffee.
‘I couldn’t sleep.’ He drank, then sighed. ‘Gee! My kid’s going to be disappointed. I promised to take him to the fun fair. I’d better call Mrs. Washington and tell her I won’t be coming.’
‘Why do that? Why disappoint the kid? Grandi won’t be here until 16.00. That gives you at least six hours to be with your kid. Go on, see him, and get back here before 14.00. Why not?’
Marvin hesitated, then his face lit up.
‘I’ve never broken a promise to him... not ever. Do you think it’ll be all right, Mike?’
‘Sure. I’ll just have to sit around, counting my fingers. The action won’t start until Grandi gets here. Go on, get off.’
Still Marvin hesitated.
‘How about Suka?’
‘We have him trapped,’ Frost said. ‘The guard won’t let him out and the fence is electrified. I intend to stay right here by the telephone in case they call again. I intend to lock myself in when you’ve gone. No problem.’
‘Well, then if you’re sure, I’ll get off.’
‘I’ll alert the guard to let you out. Have a ball with your kid.’ Frost reached for the telephone and gave the guard instructions to let Marvin out and let him in on his return, then he went on to the guard, ‘Mr. Grandi will be arriving around 16.00. Let him in,’ and he hung up.
After some twenty minutes, he saw Marvin drive away in the T.R.7.
At their last meeting, Frost had told Silk of his idea of making Suka the fall guy, and Silk had approved. He had told Silk what he then was going to do, and again Silk approved.
‘One Jap less is one Jap less,’ Frost had said.
He got to his feet and went to the door leading to the villa and raising his voice, he called, ‘Suka! Hey, Suka!’
Leaving the door open, he returned to the desk and sat down.
After a delay, Suka appeared in the doorway.
‘I want you to go down to the harbour right away,’ Frost said. ‘When I checked the grounds, I found the harbour gate open. I forgot to shut it. I have to stay here by the telephone. Will you go down and shut it?’
Suka nodded.
Frost got up and pressed the button that neutralised the fence.
‘The current’s off,’ he said, trying to speak casually. ‘Go ahead.’
Suka nodded and hurried away.
Frost was aware his heart was thumping. He had never killed a man, but what was one Jap less?
Drawing in a deep breath, he pressed the red button, turning on the current. The moment Suka touched the gate, he would be dead.
Seven
At exactly 14.00, Jack Marvin walked into the guardroom.
‘Hi, Mike! Any excitements?’
It had been a long wait, and Frost was jittery. Suka hadn’t returned, that must mean he was dead.
It was the only way, Frost had argued to himself. Having made Suka the fall guy, it would be too dangerous for him to live. From time to time, he wanted to go down to the harbour, but if Amando came to the guardroom and found him missing it would poke a hole in the story he was going to tell.
He was going to tell Grandi that he had immediately suspected Suka, and had taken precautions to make sure Suka couldn’t leave the estate. He had told the guards to let no one out and he had electrified the fence. Obviously, he would say, Suka got in a panic and had decided to take off in one of the boats, forgetting the fence was electrified and had been killed. The police would have to be called, but Frost felt he could deal with them. Suka had been killed accidentally.
Marvin was the man to find the body.
‘Not a thing,’ Frost said, ‘but I’m goddamn hungry. You eaten?’
Marvin grinned.
‘I’ve been eating hotdogs and ice cream with the kid for the past hour. Why didn’t you tell Suka to get you something?’
‘I thought I’d wait until you got back. Be a pal, and tell him to hustle up a snack.’
‘Sure.’
It was over ten minutes before Marvin hurried into the guardroom. He looked worried.
‘No sign of him. I’ve checked his cabin.’ He stared at Frost. ‘You don’t think he’s scrammed?’
‘No way,’ Frost said impatiently. ‘He’s around the estate some place. Take a look, Jack. I’ve got to stay by the telephone. Watch it! The current’s on. Don’t touch the fence.’
‘Okay,’ and Marvin hurried away.
Frost went to the refrigerator and took out a can of beer. He drank the beer slowly. In a few minutes, Marvin would find Suka’s body. He finished the beer, lit a cigarette, then walked to the guardroom door and looked along the path leading to the harbour. Minutes ticked by, then he saw Marvin come running up the path. The alarm on Marvin’s face sent Frost’s heart thumping. So Suka was dead! Frost felt a chill run down his spine. He had murdered a man!
Marvin was shouting something as he ran, but Frost didn’t register what he was saying.
‘What the hell’s up?’ he exclaimed, and went to meet Marvin.
‘He’s scrammed!’ Marvin blurted out, coming to a halt. ‘The harbour gate’s open, and the motorboat’s gone!’
Frost felt as if an ironclad fist had hit him below the heart. He stood motionless, chills running over him as he stared at Marvin.
‘Hear me!’ Marvin snapped. ‘He’s scrammed!’
Frost made an effort and pulled himself together.