The Visitor

I’m an aviation enthusiast, so you might think that this assignment would please me. My job gives me access to a Gulfstream G350, one of the most prestigious private jets on the market, but you would be very wrong to think that. True, aircraft have fascinated me my entire life and I have even flown a couple, with an instructor’s help, but watching this plane line up for its final approach fills me with disgust. The loathing is not for the G550, but for the man it transports to my town for periodic visits.

Archibald Winsted Buchanan, called Archie by his friends and slime ball or worse by those who have to work for him, is 55 years old and sports a bad comb-over. At 5’10” his weight far exceeds what his frame should carry, and he reeks of stale cigar smoke. Archie is also obnoxiously wealthy. Mr. Buchanan’s visits normally last for three to four days, and consist of business meetings and phone calls during the day followed by drunken, twisted, debauchery-filled nights. He regularly grows his fortune by making special arrangements for people who can afford his fee. Polite society might call him a broker, or a deal maker. To others, he’s known as a fixer. If you want to buy a mansion, that’s not for sale, Archie will make it happen. If you need weapons or drugs delivered anywhere in the world, Archie will get it done.

I assume by now you must be wondering how I know so much about Mr. Buchanan. I’m his driver when he’s in town. It’s not a job I asked for, it is one that dispatch assigned to me when his former driver disappeared four years ago without giving notice. He’s still missing. Since that time, Archie has requested me as his chauffeur, claiming he feels more comfortable dealing with the same people. The real reason is the fewer people who know what he does and who his clients are, the better. I may be just the driver, but I’m privy to many phone calls and meetings simply because they happen in the limo, and Archie never raises the glass partition. He claims to be claustrophobic.

Ironically, Archie is why I have a second job that I wasn’t even looking for. A large cash of weapons and explosives were delivered to a rebel group. It helped them overthrow a government that was friendly to the U.S. The unexpected weapons transfer raised the ire of an unnamed government agency and placed Archie squarely in their sights. The same agency made me an offer I couldn’t refuse, so I didn’t. Frankly, I couldn’t care less who rules some banana republic, but I do care about stopping what’s happening to the young girls Archie recruits.

The man is a world-class predator. His recruiters find vulnerable teenage girls and convince them, with their parent’s consent, to join his modeling agency. Once onboard, they are drugged, forced into catering to Archie’s perversions, and then sold to various human traffickers, never to be heard from again. The parents receive letters telling of wonderful trips and opportunities, but eventually, all communication stops.

Since starting my government job, I have placed recording devices in the limo and the cabin of his jet. He allowed me on board because I told him how much I admired his aircraft and wondered if he would be so kind as to let me check it out. Archie’s ego is his weak spot, so he is more than happy to show it off. After the first tour, he granted me access anytime I pleased. The Feds love the information the audio and video provide.

They took Mr. Buchannan into custody as he stepped off his jet today. The agents knew that once his legal team saw the evidence against their client, it wouldn’t take long for them to work out who the rat (I prefer undercover agent) was, so they asked me if I wanted to go into witness protection. I declined but asked if they would pay for a ticket to Zurich. When asked why, I told them I always wanted to see the Alps but couldn’t afford it. They agreed, and that’s where I am now.

The Alps are an attraction, but not my main one. My main reason for being here is the diamond trade. You see, while I was placing the surveillance equipment on the G550, I stumbled across a velvet pouch containing fifty large diamonds stuffed between the sofa cushions. I know it sounds crazy, but when opportunity knocks, you really must answer.