Bernard impatiently drummed his fingers on the black marble kitchen counter. From time to time, he tapped the screen of his phone to check the time.
“When are we leaving?” Noud asked quietly.
“Exactly at seven-thirty. That’s when everyone is having dinner. Either starting or finishing, but for sure, they’ll be busy with their stomachs. Even Ted will be sipping on a diet coke and nibbling on a few dates by then.”
Noud grinned.
“You’re unbelievable.”
“So are you.”
Noud blushed shyly. He was just about to say something when Bernard grabbed his phone from the counter.
“We’re leaving. The car’s here.”
A worn-out, silver car with no markings was waiting for them outside the house. They placed the two small sports bags on their laps to get in as quickly and discreetly as possible. Noud quickly checked their passports.
“We won’t need those,” Bernard stated.
“What do you mean?”
“I never said we were leaving the island.”
“But weren’t we supposed to disappear for a while?”
“Yes, we were.”
“Then why—?”
“We’ll talk about it later,” Bernard muttered, nodding irritably toward the driver.
A few minutes later, the car pulled up in front of an apartment complex overlooking the ocean.
“Are you serious? We’re staying in the city?” Noud asked in disbelief.
His companion didn’t answer. Instead, he pulled out two Hawaiian shirts, two straw hats, two rainbow-colored mirrored sunglasses, and seashell necklaces from his bag.
“We’re going on a little vacation,” Bernard grinned.
Noud rolled his eyes but said nothing as he put on the tacky accessories—items he wouldn’t have touched under normal circumstances.
Ted crushed his coke can. He flinched as the crackling sound echoed in the kitchen. Something wasn’t right. He paced around the house, listening intently to every sound. Something felt very off. He went into the bathroom and picked a piece of date skin from between his teeth. He couldn’t pinpoint what had changed, but a bad feeling crept over him. He stared at himself in the mirror, as if trying to read the answer in his own eyes.
He could hardly wait for eleven-thirty, to sit by the pool with Heidi. At the same time, the unease that had taken hold of him interfered with his excitement. He had to pull himself together by then because opportunities like this didn’t come around often. He needed to interrogate that little brat, too. That nosy Carlos couldn’t always be one step ahead of him.
Carlos, nervous, started scrubbing the grill again. He needed some kind of rhythmic movement to calm down. That idiot Ted just couldn’t sit still. What a damn knight in shining armor! Well, he was going to put an end to that cigarette break—big time. He had a twist in mind for this story that would make four-eyes regret ever spying or questioning the kids. A smug grin spread across his face. At last, the master plan was coming together. He had figured out how to take down all his opponents in one brilliant move. Dropping the scrubber from his hands, he clapped them together in satisfaction. He wasn’t going to waste any time. The next moment, he was already pounding on the glass door of his peculiar neighbors’ terrace—Noud and Bernard’s.