Flight

We didn’t get off the ground until 4:00 a.m., by which time the lights at SeaTac had flickered a few times and winds smashed into everything. The last report I got indicated that there are a million people in Seattle without power and SeaTac is closed because it has no power either. Taking off was like riding a rollercoaster, only not as much fun.

11:00 a.m.

I was originally scheduled for a seven hour layover at DFW, but because the flight was five hours late, I spent most of the layover time in Seattle. The late take-off gave me some opportunity to dig deeper into what was going on in Belize. Not only is she there, but she’s spending a bunch of money at local markets in San Pedro. It looks like she is settling in for a long winter’s nap. The emergency power backups in my office kept the servers running, though I’m down to one server instead of the array of ten that Dag set up. At least I can still do research.

So Brenda owns property under the name of Ashley Lark in San Pedro. I booked a reservation at the Belize Yacht Club, even though I had to commit to a week’s stay at $165 a night. I also had to book a fifteen minute flight on a local carrier to get from the airport in Belize City to Ambergris Caye. Seems typical that Brenda would choose a place in the most touristy part of Belize.

I switched SIMS in my phone again to see if there were any messages and Cinnamon had called from my apartment. She said the power was only out for a flicker on Capitol Hill so I have power and she is staying in my apartment. She’s afraid to go to work and intends to stay put in my place until I call. I’m not going to call until after I’m settled in San Pedro.

I keep going back to the list of people who make up the Committee. I can’t believe some of these guys would stoop so low. They each have a shell company that sells mobile phone services. One of the other companies subscribes to their service for the company phones. The shell company contracts to buy network time from the Mobile Operator at a base amount. Then they sell it at a higher amount. That much could be a pseudo-legit business. But they route the calls through carriers that markup the rates hugely. Those carriers bill the service back to the Mobile Operator at an inflated cost. The Mobile Operator is only getting five or ten cents a minute for calls and they are being billed a dollar or a dollar-fifty. The big gouge is into the pocket of the operator.

These guys have sold services, not only to each other, but to eighty percent of the top 500 companies in the world. They are raking in billions.

Well, it’s time to board for Belize. I’ll check in later.

9:00 p.m.

Beautiful!

I wish I was here for pleasure. It was 85 degrees when I landed and now that the sun has set over the clear blue Caribbean, it is a perfect 72. My room on the second floor looks out over the water with a perfectly wonderful deck where I can sit and have coffee in the morning. It is paradise.

I landed right on time at 3:30 this afternoon and caught the shuttle flight across to Ambergris Caye, the largest of the islands off the coast of Belize and just inside the Barrier Reef. The sand is perfectly white, and so is the hotel. The room is spacious and comfortable and people are running all over everyplace waiting on you.

Once I was settled in, I did some shopping. I didn’t pack much for my little adventure, but I did toss in a couple of extra wigs and my makeup bag. I bought a bikini (much to the surprise of the shop clerk), a pareo, and sandals. When I got back to my room, I stripped off all my makeup and showered thoroughly. There’s really no reason for me to pretend to be a boy here. Even if Silas didn’t revoke the warrant for my arrest, he can’t enforce it here, and he can’t stop me from travelling elsewhere.

On the other hand, Brenda knows me only in my blonde wig, which is why I also grabbed my short red bob when I was abandoning my apartment last weekend. It’s an easy look, and with makeup that plays down my lips and cheekbones, I really don’t look anything like I did when Brenda met me in Dag’s office. I’m now Riley Finn.

I had a nice meal in the restaurant. It’s been so long since I actually relaxed and had a meal that I indulged myself at the Celebrity Restaurant. I had the BBQ Grill Chicken, Vegetables, Rice & Beans, and Chocolate Cake. It was all exquisite, even if a little pricey. I’m trying to figure out who I’m going to bill these expenses to. I might have to tap into Brenda’s bank accounts. ;-)

As I was leaving a man approached me and offered to buy me a nightcap at the Splash! Poolside bar. I was going to blow him off when I realized he was old enough to be my father or grandfather. Then I realized who he was. Jonathon Reinholdt, CEO of Reinholdt Electro Conductor Corp. I let him down a little more gently and suggested that we take a rain check until tomorrow evening.

Jonathon Reinholdt is one of the Committee. And he’s staying here at the Belize Yacht Club. I guess it’s time to go back to work.