Parker paused, as if making sure she was finished. ‘You rush into this, ma’am, and you’ll surely regret it,’ he said. ‘But, you let them control things from the get-go, and you’ll regret that all the more. In this kind of situation, paying up too fast can be as dangerous for the hostage as dragging your feet. How much is the Eisenberg Rainbow worth?’
‘As a piece, it’s priceless,’ Eisenberg said without modesty. ‘And too renowned to sell as a whole. But, if they broke it down into the individual stones they’d probably realise about five million on the black market.’
I watched the slight wince as he spoke about the necklace being stripped for its parts. Interesting that the kidnappers had asked for something more than money, I thought. They’d picked something it would hurt him to give up, and that could not easily be replaced – like the boy himself.
‘You think we give a damn about the money? Five million?’ Nicola Eisenberg flicked her fingers as if at a troublesome mosquito. ‘That’s just noise in the accounts for people like us.’
That was about the time I decided I really didn’t care for Mrs Eisenberg.
‘But not for the kidnappers,’ Parker said quietly, his voice pleasant even though I could tell he shared my instant impression. ‘For them, it’s a starting point. An amount so far out of reach they don’t think they’ve a chance in hell of getting anywhere near it. You agree to pay without hesitation, without negotiation, and before long they start to wonder if they should have asked for more – a lot more. And that makes them angry. Who do you think they’ll take that anger out on, ma’am?’
When she paled but didn’t reply, I said, ‘If these are the same people who took the others, they accepted half their initial demand in the first two cases and the hostages were released unharmed. The problem came when the Benelli family dug their heels in
Had they made Benedict choose which one? Was that why he’d lost the finger that mattered least to his musical career, or was it purely down to luck?
I didn’t mention the fact that although Manda reported rough treatment during her own captivity, the beating had not gone anywhere near as far as the one delivered to Torquil. The level of violence seemed to be increasing as the perpetrators went on, perhaps as they grew bolder with each successful kidnap. Or had Torquil done something special that the others hadn’t? Despite his unlikely physique, he was into extreme sports, I recalled, and no coward. Had he tried to escape?
The experts reckoned that the best time to get away from potential kidnap was in the first few moments. At that point, you are an object of high value to your captors. They may ultimately kill you if the risk, or the fear of exposure, becomes too great, or they realise they aren’t going to get their money. But at the point of contact they need you demonstrably alive.
After the initial window of opportunity has passed, the recommendation is that you should remain calm and compliant. Resistance is likely to earn punishment, just to keep you manageable. I could not imagine Torquil had taken easily to the concept of absolute obedience.
For most victims, their ultimate survival depends on the skill of the negotiator. Parker was patient and implacable, and had a growing reputation as one of the best. He had even, on occasion, managed to arrange the return of those kidnapped without any money changing hands. According to the statistics, only eleven per cent of hostages are released under those circumstances, and in the last year Armstrong-Meyer had been responsible for more than their share.
If their people had done their homework, the Eisenbergs would be well aware of those figures.
‘Advise us,’ she said at last, shaping it as a command rather than a plea. Her eyes slid to her husband’s stony face and when he offered no immediate objections, she added, ‘Hypothetically speaking, naturally. How would you
Parker’s expression clearly said he knew there was nothing hypothetical about it, but he answered anyway in an even tone. ‘When they next contact you, it will be by phone—’
‘What makes you so sure?’ butted in the chief lawyer, as if justifying his existence.
Parker nailed him with a studied glance. ‘Experience,’ he said, succinct. ‘They need to gauge your attitude, how far they can push, and they can’t do that any other way. When they make contact,’ he went on, leaving a pointed gap in case the lawyer felt the need to jump in again, ‘you need to tell them you can’t get your hands on the piece in time. You send it to London to be cleaned, I understand?’ There were surprised nods. ‘Don’t be afraid to sound stressed, worried. It’s what they want. You need to make them feel you’re doing everything you can to resolve this, but events are beyond your control. They need to be assured that they have you worried enough to comply in the end, even if they don’t get everything they initially ask for.’
Eisenberg pursed his lips, considering. ‘I have to admit, I hate the idea of giving in to these kind of threats,’ he allowed.
His wife snorted again. I was reminded of Dina’s arrogant white horse, with half the elegance and none of the charm. ‘If it was some damned company takeover, you’d sure as hell manage to pay up with a smile on your face,’ she said in a bitter growl.
‘Offer them a lesser piece from Mrs Eisenberg’s extensive jewellery collection. Something with a value of say, one million, max,’ Parker said, doing his best to ignore the bickering. ‘Tell them it’s a good offer for a couple of days’ work. They know that the longer they have him, the greater the risk they take.’
To an outsider, it must have sounded like Parker was being cheap for the sake of it, but there was a lot more to it than that, even if Nicola Eisenberg’s reaction was one of outrage.
‘You’re suggesting we
Parker sighed. ‘Mrs Eisenberg, suppose you were … buying a property? You go in with a crazy low offer, expecting the owners to throw it right back at you. Instead, they fall over themselves to sign the contract. First reaction?’
Nicola Eisenberg frowned for a moment, but I could hear her brain whirring from across the room. ‘That there must be a catch,’ she admitted at length. ‘That maybe there was something wrong with the place that we’d missed.’
‘And if there’s nothing wrong with it?’
‘I guess I’d assume the vendors were in a hole financially, and we could have gotten a better deal,’ she said, sliding a sideways look at the lawyers. ‘I’d stall, look for legal loopholes that would allow us to revise our offer, then nail their balls to the wall.’
The lawyers, all male, shifted uncomfortably in their seats.
Parker waited, his expression bland, for the penny to finally drop, saw the second that it did. ‘Yeah,’ he said. ‘I’m not suggesting a bargain just for the sake of it, or because I have any intention of saving you money. I’ve had a lot of experience. I know how these people think and react. And, trust me, paying up their full initial demand, without a flicker, will not be a wise decision for your son’s safety.’
Eisenberg, however, merely glared at his wife. ‘You think I can’t handle this?’ he demanded. ‘I handle multimillion-dollar deals every day of the week. All we need is for the damn girl to make the drop.’
‘Oh, I know
‘Mr Eisenberg!’ Parker cleared his throat. ‘You’re an acknowledged expert in your field,’ he went on. ‘If I was looking to buy out one of my competitors, I’d want you on my team, but this, sir, is a whole different ball game …’
He didn’t need to finish.
Eisenberg looked like he was still going to argue, but his wife put a hand on his arm, suddenly, squeezing the cloth of his six-thousand-dollar suit with impossibly long fingernails painted blood-red. He glanced at her, the taut lines of her face, and a short silent battle of wills ensued. When it was over, his shoulders seemed more rounded than before. Nicola Eisenberg frowned, as if she’d rather fight with him in public than see him slouch.
‘OK, OK,’ he said hollowly. ‘In that case, Mr Armstrong, I’d like to retain your professional services.’ He made a kind of general see-to-it gesture to the lawyers, who ducked their heads. He spread his hands in a gesture of submission, or maybe he was just trying to shake off his wife. ‘What do we do now?’
‘We’ll see what information can be gleaned from the DVD,’ Parker said. ‘See if we can get any leads as to where your son is being held and formulate a recovery plan, just in case.’
‘I will
