Liesel showed the hotel’s location to Caspian on her phone.
“Once you’re there, look for a blue van with diplomatic plates in slot G33,” continued Ranger. “Someone will be waiting for you. I’ll text you the cipher through the encrypted app.”
“To drive us where?” Caspian asked.
“To the German consulate. It’s right next to the Park Bosphorus Hotel. It’s literally a five-minute drive from the Hyatt.”
Caspian frowned, but it was Liesel who asked the question. “Why the Germans? Is the BND involved?”
“There’s too much heat around the American, Canadian, and British embassies. Turkish counterintelligence flagged them all this morning. They’ll be watching everyone who goes in and out. That’s why I don’t want you two to simply walk into the German consulate. And to answer your other question, Liesel, yes, Nicklas is facilitating everything on the German side.”
“And what happens after we get to the consulate?” she asked.
“You’ll be taken to Hezarfen Airport,” Ranger said. “It’s a private airfield about thirty miles west of Istanbul.”
“You sure that’s a good idea?” Caspian asked. “Last time we were at an airport, we almost got caught.”
“This isn’t a commercial airport,” Ranger said. “You’ll be flown out on a private jet Nicklas arranged through the German executive-transport wing. There’s no manifest.”
“Okay ... and where are we flying to?” Caspian asked, trying to keep up.
“Valencia.”
“Spain?” Liesel asked, stepping closer to the phone. “We’re going back? Why? I thought you wanted us back stateside.”
Caspian had been about to ask the same question, so he listened to Ranger’s reply carefully.
“Veloce, the yacht Caspian spotted, was chartered from a brokerage firm in Valencia. It’s a small operation, and they don’t keep digital records.”
“No online records? You mean everything is still on paper?” Liesel asked.
“Either that or they have a server that’s not connected to the internet. We couldn’t find anything.”
“Can’t you hack into their bank records?” Caspian asked.
“We did. They do have smaller accounts with local banks, but their main accounts seem to be with a Swiss bank. And, as you both know, the Swiss banks are much harder to break into.”
Caspian looked at Liesel, then asked, “Didn’t the Guardia Civil already check the boat out? And what about Hobb? What did you learn?”
“Yeah ... well, that’s where it gets a bit murky,” Ranger said. “The Guardia Civil sent a patrol boat, but it never came back.”
“Wait . . . what?” Caspian asked.
“It has gone silent, and so did theVeloce.”
Liesel cursed under her breath. Caspian thought this over, then said, “Even if we get our hands on the charter records, it will probably trace back to some shell company.”
“Maybe, but if you can find the hard copy of the contract, I bet the banking info, or at least the name of the Swiss bank they’re dealing with, will be on it.”
“That’s not much to go on,” Liesel said.
“But it’s the only thread we’ve got. For now,” Ranger replied.
Liesel crossed her arms. “You’re working on something else?”
Ranger paused. “Kind of. Too early to share anything with you. But I’ll keep you in the loop. For now, get to the Hyatt’s parking garage. IfVelocetruly disappeared, you won’t be the only ones looking for answers.”
Caspian hung up, turned off the shower and the faucet, then met Liesel’s gaze.
