Among Thieves

Chapter Thirty-Six

No one in Devon’s apartment felt much like talking. Their only discussion concerned the plan to swap the paintings for Sally.

There wasn’t much to it, really. Calling it a plan at all might have been generous, but it was the best they could come up with on such short notice. Finn’s office was, they decided, the best place to make the exchange. It was the kind of a place where it would be quiet enough at night that people would mind their own business. At the same time, it was close enough to a decent neighborhood that if gunshots were fired, the police would be called quickly. That might make Kilbranish think twice about opening fire.

The call came in to Finn’s cell phone at six exactly. The phone was sitting out on an empty wine box that served as a coffee table, and the three of them were staring at it as if it were some supernatural charm. They all jumped when it rang. “He’s punctual,” Finn said. He picked his phone up and answered on the third ring. “Finn here,” he said.

“Mr. Finn, do you have an answer for me?” Kilbranish asked.

“I do,” Finn said. “We’ve got the paintings.”

He could hear Kilbranish’s breathing get heavier on the other end of the line. “So, Devon was planning on crossing me,” he said. “Devon made a mistake.”

“He did,” Finn said. “We’re gonna correct that mistake tonight, though.”

“Yes, we are. But if he crossed me once, he’ll do it again. How am I supposed to trust you?”

“You don’t have a choice,” Finn said. “If you want the paintings, you’ll trust us, Mr. Kilbranish.” He said the name with emphasis.

“Very good, Mr. Finn,” Kilbranish said after a moment. “You know who I am.”

“I do. I only tell you that because if anything goes wrong, I’ve written a letter that I’m giving to a colleague of mine. The police and the feds and Interpol will know who and where you are within hours. So things better not go wrong.”

“That’s all up to you. I want you to put the paintings in a car and send your client to meet me,” Kilbranish began.

“No deal,” Finn said. “We’ll do this our way.”

“You don’t dictate terms, Mr. Finn. I do. I have the girl.”

“And I have half a billion dollars of stolen art. Art that you’ve traveled across an ocean after two decades to find. You have a girl I met a few days ago. Her father didn’t even know her last year.” As Finn spoke, Devon’s face turned white, and he got up, reaching for the phone. Kozlowski pushed him back down onto the sofa. Devon struggled for a moment, but the detective put a hand on his mouth, pushing the back of his head deep into the cushions. Physically, Devon was no match for Kozlowski. “If you think you have all the leverage,” Finn said into the phone, “think again. We’ll do this, but only on our terms.”

Kilbranish didn’t answer immediately, and Finn feared he’d pushed too hard.

“When and where?” Kilbranish said at last.

“Ten o’clock,” Finn said. “My office in Charlestown. You know where it is? We’ll have the paintings. We make the exchange, then you leave.”

The breathing was still heavy. “Just two of you,” Kilbranish said. “No one else.”

“Just me and Devon,” Finn agreed.

“If you cross me,” Kilbranish said, “I’ll make sure you die. I kill for a living. I’ll kill everyone you know. You understand that?”

“I understand,” Finn said. “If this goes the way it’s supposed to, you won’t have to worry. You’ll have the paintings, and as long as we’re safe, no one will ever know what went down.”

“I’ll be there,” Kilbranish said. Then the line went dead. Finn closed the phone.

Kozlowski let go of Devon’s face. “What the fuck!” Devon screamed as he jumped off the sofa. “Don’t touch me again!”

“Then don’t jeopardize this plan again,” Kozlowski said quietly. “You do anything that puts me or Finn or your daughter in danger, and I’ll kill you if I have to.”

Devon looked at Finn. “Why did you say that? Why would you tell him no one cares what happens to Sally? If he kills her, I swear to God, I’ll kill you both!”

“Calm down, Devon,” Finn said. “I had to say that. I had to make him think that he has less of an advantage than he really does. It’s the only way.”

“I didn’t fuckin’ agree to this!” Devon yelled. “I didn’t agree to lose control!”

A police car went by the apartment, its siren blaring and its flashers casting colorful shadows through the windows in the living room. They all looked out nervously, and no one said anything until it had passed.

“None of us are in control anymore,” Finn said. “The most we can do is to try and manage this the best we can. And I don’t give a shit what you agree to, Devon, this is about one thing now. Getting Sally back. That’s it. You do what you’re told, and we’ll all get out of this alive. Just remember, this guy won’t hesitate to put a bullet in your daughter. Keep that in mind.”

“What did he say?” Kozlowski asked. “Will he be there?”

“He’ll be there,” Finn said. “He said if anything goes wrong, he’ll kill us all.”

Kozlowski stood up and took a deep breath. “Then I guess we’d better make sure that nothing goes wrong.”

Kilbranish hung up the phone at the house in Quincy and went straight to the door that led down to the basement. He had to move quickly; he wasn’t waiting until ten o’clock.

As he moved down the steps, he caught the stench. Broadark’s body had been there for more than a day. The basement was cool, but not cool enough to prevent decomposition, and it was clear from the smell that the organic processes had begun in earnest. A few more hours and the smell would make its way upstairs. By the time the next person entered the house, the body would be found in short order. That was fine with him, though. He had the place rented for the rest of the month. By the time anyone else came in, he’d be long gone. With luck, he’d be fighting again.

She no longer turned toward him when he came down the stairs. For the first day she’d jumped every time the stairs creaked. No more. That was normal. He’d had enough experience in kidnapping to recognize the signs of acceptance. It happened to all of them eventually, and it made his job easier-not only in that it made her less likely to try to escape, but in that it made her seem less human. It was easier to kill them once their spirits had been broken.

He moved over toward her and sat on the crate near her. He nudged her in the head with the muzzle of his gun. “It’s time,” he said.

At that, she turned her head and looked at him. He could see the terror in her face, and he could read her thoughts. She was wondering whether he was going to kill her now. Good, he thought. It was right that she remain frightened.

“I’m going to cut the tape on your hands. I’m taking you to your father.”

He reached forward and pulled the tape off her mouth. She still winced when it pulled the skin off around her lips, but not nearly as much as she had the first time. He had to give her credit for that, at least; she was no princess.

She worked her mouth in circles, testing its coordination as he cut the tape away from her hands. “Are you letting me go?” she asked.

“That depends on your father,” Liam said. “If he and his lawyer do what they were told to do, I’ll let you go.”

“If not? If they don’t do what they were told to do? What happens to me then?”

He said nothing, and continued to work at the tape, cutting it away from her feet now. He didn’t have the time to deal with this sort of melodrama. She sat up and rubbed her wrists. The skin around them had been torn completely away now; he figured she’d been testing the strength of the restraints. The same was true of her ankles.

“Tell me,” she said. “What happens to me if my father fucks up?”

He pointed his gun at her, holding it inches from her forehead. “Then you die. If you or your father or the lawyer doesn’t do exactly what I want, then I’ll kill you without even thinking about it. Do you understand that?”

She nodded.

“Your life is in your father’s hands.”

He watched her as it sank in; watched her digest the information. For a moment there was a flicker of hope in them-just an inkling of the spirit he had seen in the first day or so. Then it vanished, and her eyes went flat again. He wondered why, but in the end it didn’t matter. It was no concern of his.

“We’ve got to get back to the office in Charlestown,” Kozlowski said. “If it’s just gonna be you and Devon, I need eyes in the place.”

“What are you gonna do?” Finn asked.

“Wire the place up with cameras,” Kozlowski said. “Every corner, every square foot of the office. Right down to the toilet. If this asshole takes a leak, I want to see what he’s got hidden in his pants.”

“How long will it take?”

“Half hour. Forty minutes, tops.”

“Okay,” Finn said. “Let’s get it done.”

They put Devon’s money back in the bag in the bathroom ceiling-they’d figure out what to do with that later-and headed back out to the car. The three of them piled in and Kozlowski pulled out, headed back to Charlestown.

Two minutes later a nondescript American-made sedan with federal plates pulled out, following the electronic tail attached to Kozlowski’s car. Another thirty seconds later an unmarked Lincoln spun a U-turn and fell in line, following the FBI.