Page 324 of The Black Trilogy

The aircraft landed with a gentle bump, shaking me from my thoughts, and after disembarking, I went to find a connecting flight to Cali. The city lay three hundred miles from Bogotà, so flying there was faster than driving. An hour later, I clambered onto a small plane with Nate and seven other passengers for the final leg of the journey.

By the time we’d landed at the snappily named Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport in Palmira, I’d shed several layers of clothing as the temperature climbed into the low thirties. In the terminal, I bought a bottle of water then strolled outside to find a cab, leaving Nate to do his own thing. As I rode to the hotel in a battered Toyota, the city was coming alive with the hustle and bustle of daily life.

The air-conditioned lobby of the Coralia Club provided a welcome respite from the heat. Luxurious, quiet, classy. They’d changed the decor since I was last there, and a pair of newlyweds posed for photos next to a cluster of palm trees in one corner.

“Maria Delgado. I don’t have a reservation, but—”

“One second, ma’am.”

The instant I gave my name, the manager came and took over my booking, sending the receptionist who’d greeted me to fetch a cold drink as he offered me a seat. He tapped away at the computer before shaking his head.

“I must apologise. We only have the second largest suite available. The largest is occupied by a couple on their honeymoon.”

“It’s fine. I don’t need a suite at all. A regular room will be fine.”

“No, no, you will have the suite, please, Ms. Delgado.”

As I left the lobby with a porter carrying my small bag and the manager marching in front of me with the room key, I saw Nate coming in the front door out of the corner of my eye. At least he’d arrived okay.

I’d been in my room ten minutes when the phone rang. What did my uninvited companion want?

“You got here, then,” I said.

“Emmy, I only had to find a hotel. It really wasn’t difficult. Give me a little credit.”

“Sorry. I mean thanks for coming.”

“That’s better. What room are you in?”

“The Palm Suite.”

“A suite? Don’t you think that’s overkill for the amount of time we’re going to be here? I just asked for a basic double.”

“So did I. There’s a standing instruction to put me in the best room available whatever I say.”

I could almost see his eyes roll.

“I spoke to Nick. He needed to know where we were before people started getting worried. Needless to say, he’s not happy. With either of us.”

“I’ll tell him it was all my fault when I next talk to him, that I made you go. He’ll believe that.”

“No, he won’t. Because I told him I trusted you, and I thought this was the best way forward.”

He did? It was rare for Nate to stick up for me like that. He hadn’t been my biggest fan when we’d first met, and we’d had a number of differences of opinion over the years.

“Thanks for having so much faith in me.”

“You’ve earned it. So, what do we do now? Call Eduardo?”

“I don’t have to. The hotel manager will have phoned him the second he got back downstairs.”

“You mean it’s just a case of waiting? There’s nothing else we can do?”

“Nope. I’m going to the gym.”

I did an hour on the treadmill, running until the nervous energy inside me settled before moving onto weights. Nate came in after half an hour, and we studiously ignored each other until I left. With little else to do, I spent the afternoon sitting by the pool, reading through the case notes on my tablet and turning over every so often so I didn’t burn.

Relaxing in the sun felt odd with all the horrors going on back home. Wrong. But fifty bucks said the authorities monitored this hotel because of who owned it, and who knew how many ears were listening?

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