Searching for Stolen Love Read online

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  Adnan followed Jasmin's car to the parking lot in Budva at the only five-star hotel. He pulled the car over on the street and watched Keith Swanson climb out of the car and walk away. Then Adnan began thinking. How in the hell did Keith steal Jasmin's car? Jasmin loved that car, and he would never let anyone touch it, let alone drive it. Keith is too weak to overpower Jasmin.

  Adnan parked his car and followed Keith on foot until Keith checked into the Las Palmas Hotel, one of the local dives in town. Although Adnan was not rich, he would never stay at that hotel.

  Adnan walked behind the hotel and found a beach chair. He sat in the chair and smoked a whole pack of cigarettes, watching Keith's room. Around three in the morning, Adnan walked to Jasmin’s car, popped the hood, and pulled the sparkplug wires out. Then he returned to his car to sleep. Unfortunately, Adnan had only 30 euros to his name and could not afford a hotel for the night. He thought about using Damir’s 5,000 euros, but Damir would kill him if he spent any of it.

  Adnan parked his car several blocks away from the old castle of Budva near a park. He slept in the back seat by resting his head against the hand-rest on the back door and lay on his back. He was too big to sleep in the back seat completely stretched out, so he slept with his knees bent. His back screamed furiously, as shots of pain climbed up and down his spine, whenever he scooted a little.

  Adnan woke up in the car around noon as the sun shown overhead. He jerked his head up and looked out at the marina filled with yachts. He climbed out of the car, stood up straight, and stretched his back for several minutes, easing the screaming backaches.

  Adnan reached for his phone and called Jasmin, whose phone was still out of service range, and then he called Damir, who didn’t answer. Next, he reached for a cigarette and started smoking.

  Adnan didn’t have a full night's sleep last night. As he leaned against the car smoking his cigarette, he saw the two women he met at Sasha's yesterday. Svetlana, whom he screwed, carried a shopping bag. He waved to her as a satisfied grin appeared across his face after seeing one of his conquests.

  Svetlana stuck her nose in the air and pretended not to see him. Adnan muttered to himself, “Fucking whore!”

  Then the ladies drove away in a sleek red, E-Class coupe Mercedes. Olesya drove, while Svetlana sat on the passenger side. As they drove past Adnan, they glanced at him and began giggling. Then Olesya stomped on the gas pedal and sped away.

  Adnan flicked a half-ass wave while his grin widened, and he scratched absently at his crotch, but the women didn’t acknowledge his presence. His cell phone began to ring. He quickly flicked his cigarette onto the park's lawn and fished the cell phone from his pocket.

  “What the fuck is going on?” Denis screamed. Denis, the chief investigator worked in the Tuzla police department for twenty years. He was Adnan's contact, and he supplemented his income to look the other way.

  Adnan felt sick and placed his left hand on his head in confusion. Then he asked, “I don’t understand? I’ve been in Montenegro for the last two days.” The voice in the back of his head kept screaming, 'What the fuck? What’s going on? Who’s doing this?'

  “I went to the drug house yesterday. An arsonist burned the house to the ground. We had to wait this morning before we could comb through the ashes. We found a body in the rubble. We are not sure who it is, but from his size, it looks like Jasmin. Then an hour ago, I was called to the university. One of the staff members found Damir in his office. Someone shot him in the chest. We also found a small quantity of cocaine in his office.”

  “Oh shit! This is bad!”

  Denis screamed, “YES THIS IS BAD! I don’t have enough authority to contain this. The Bosnia government will investigate these crimes and demand I arrest the perpetrators. The mayor of Tuzla just found about this. He’s demanding answers from the police department. A line of reporters is standing outside the university, asking questions about Damir. So, do you have any information about this?”

  “Like I said, Damir sent me to Montenegro on an errand. I've been here for a couple of days. I don't know what’s going on, but I’m following some leads.”

  “Then you may want to stay there for a while until this investigation blows over!” CLICK, then the call went dead.

  Adnan kicked the car’s tire hard with his boot while muttering, “What the fuck?” Then he opened the trunk to his car and popped open the secret compartment that contained his gun. He slipped the Zastava pistol into a shoulder holster and zipped up his jacket.

  Adnan lit a new cigarette and began pondering about Keith. He appeared weak, but he turned into something much more. Keith became a much fiercer opponent, and Adnan had been looking for a challenge for quite some time. He clenched his right hand into a fist and smacked the palm of his right hand several times.