Chapter 31: Danger for the Golden Argosy

Chapter 31: Danger for the Golden Argosy

Several people were hurrying towards Mel’s office as quickly as they could. Mel and Tanya had made some phone calls, and they had made it clear that speed was all important.

Bert Weatherby, the Transport Manager of TWA and Tanya’s boss, arrived first, followed by Ned Ordway.

‘What’s this all about?’ Weatherby asked.

‘We’re not sure, but we think there may be a bomb on board the Rome flight.’

Weatherby looked hard at Tanya, but he said nothing. Mel told the two men all that he and Tanya knew. While he was explaining the situation Harry Standish came in with Bunnie Vorobioff, the girl who had sold the insurance policy to Guerrero. As she listened to what Mel was saying, she began to look pale and frightened.

‘What we have to decide,’ Mel told them all, ‘is whether we should warn the captain of Flight Two, and if so, what we should tell him.’ The captain of Flight Two was Vernon Demerest, he remembered.

The telephone rang. There was more information for them about Flight Two, giving them the present position of the plane, and its height, speed and course. There was some news from Joe Patroni, too. Runway three zero would be out of use for at least one more hour.

Weatherby asked: ‘That woman - the passenger’s wife. What’s her name?’

‘Inez Guerrero,’ Ordway told him.

‘Where is she?’

‘We don’t know. My men are looking for her now.’

‘She was here,’ Mel said. ‘We had no idea-’

‘We were all slow,’ Weatherby said.

Tanya knew that he was remembering that he had told her to ‘forget it!’ when she had tried to talk to him about Guerrero.

‘Perhaps we should send a description of Guerrero to the captain,’ she suggested.

‘Yes,’ Mel agreed. ‘We have someone here who has seen him and can describe him.’

He turned to Bunnie. ‘Are you Miss Vorobioff?’

All the men turned to look at her. Weatherby almost whistled, but he managed to stop himself just in time.

‘Do you remember the man we are talking about?’

‘I - I’m not sure,’ she said nervously.

‘A man called D. O. Guerrero. You sold him an insurance policy, didn’t you?’

‘Yes.’

‘So you can tell us what he looks like.’

‘No -I can’t.’

Mel looked surprised. ‘But I thought you said earlier that you could!’

‘I’m sorry. I don’t remember now.’

Ned Ordway stepped towards Bunnie. ‘Listen,’ he said. ‘I know that you can describe this man. You’re frightened, aren’t you? You think that it will get you into trouble?’

Bunnie did not answer.

Ordway’s voice was hard as he went on. ‘You’ll be in really big trouble if you refuse to tell us what you know. Now, I’ll ask you once more. Do you remember Guerrero?’

‘Yes,’ she said quietly.

‘Describe him.’

‘A thin man with nervous hands. A pale yellowish face and thin lips. He had no Italian money, and had to search his pockets before he found enough coins to pay for his insurance policy.’

‘And you sold him one!’ Weatherby cried. ‘You must be mad!’

‘I thought-’

‘You thought! But what did you do? Nothing! Oh, we’re all mad to allow you to sell insurance at an airport.’

Mel turned to Standish. ‘Would you like to say anything?’

‘Just this. If this man has a bomb in his case, he must be able to reach it easily. If anyone is going to try to take the case from him, it will have to be done very carefully.’

‘Of course,’ Mel said, ‘there may be no bomb. He may be just an ordinary passenger.’

‘I don’t think so. I wish I did, because my favourite little girl is on that flight.’

If only I had acted earlier! Standish was thinking. How will I tell Judy’s parents if anything happens to her?

‘As a Customs man, I’m used to watching people,’ he went on. ‘Let me say something about Guerrero. I’m sure that he’s a dangerous man. Put that word in your message to the captain - dangerous.’

As the message was being prepared and sent, Ordway received some news from his men. They had found Inez Guerrero.

She had been sitting quietly in a corner when she heard someone ask: ‘Inez Guerrero? Are you Mrs Inez Guerrero?’

She looked up and saw a policeman. A different policeman from last time.

‘Are you Mrs Guerrero?’

‘Yes,’ she whispered.

‘Come on. The whole airport’s looking for you.’ Ten minutes later she was sitting in Mel’s office, surrounded by people.

‘Mrs Guerrero,’ Ordway asked, ‘why is your husband going to Rome?’

She did not answer.

‘Please listen to me carefully. We need your help. I have to ask you some questions about your husband. Will you answer them?’

‘Come on!’ Weatherby said impatiently. ‘This is wasting time. Get rough with her if you have to!’

‘Leave it to me, Mr Weatherby’ Ordway said calmly, ‘Shouting won’t make this any quicker.’

‘Inez,’ he continued. ‘May I call you Inez?’

‘Yes,’ she whispered. ‘Inez, will you answer my questions?’

‘Yes - if I can.’

‘Why is your husband going to Rome?’ He could hardly hear her answer.

‘I don’t know.’

‘Have you got any friends there?’

‘No.’

‘What is your husband’s job?’

‘He was a builder.’

‘Was? Isn’t he now?’

‘Things went - wrong.’

‘Is he in trouble?’

‘Yes.’

‘In debt?’

‘Yes.’

‘Then how did he pay for his ticket?’

She told Ordway about the ring that D. O. had sold.

‘Did you agree to this?’

‘No! I didn’t know what he was doing.’

‘I believe you, Inez. Did your husband often do strange things without telling you?’

‘Yes.’

‘Was he ever violent?’

‘Yes,’ she whispered. ‘Please, why do you want to know all this?’

‘Did he ever use explosives?’

‘Yes - he liked using them.’

Everyone in the room was suddenly silent.

‘Where do you live?’

She gave them her address.

‘And where did he keep the explosives?’

‘In a drawer in the bedroom.’ A sudden look of shock crossed her face.

Ordway saw it. ‘You thought of something then! What was it?’

‘Nothing.’

‘That’s not true! Tell me, Inez, what was it?’ Ordway had stopped being gentle and polite. Now he was shouting ‘Tell me! Tell me!’ at her.

‘Tonight - the explosives - I didn’t think of it before.’

‘Yes! Go on!’

‘They had gone.’

Nobody spoke.

‘Did you know that your husband was going to insure his life heavily?’

‘No - no-’

‘I believe you. Now listen to me carefully. We think that your husband intends to use those explosives to blow up the plane he is on. He is heavily insured, and the money would come to you. The explosion would kill everyone on the plane - including children. Inez, you know your husband. Could he do a thing like that?’

Tears poured down her face. She could hardly speak. ‘Yes,’ she cried. ‘Yes, I think he could.’