worry.'
She pulled away from him.
'Of course, I do, Leo. Come back to reality, would you?'
The tone of her voice silenced Leo. He raised and dropped his hands in a gesture of surrender. He started banging a tight fist against his lips. Cassie paced along the side of the pool. After a long minute she spoke again.
'What do you know about Buena Suerte?'
'Like I said, nothing. But I'll make some calls about it.'
After another long silence, Leo shook his shoulders.
'Maybe we just give the money back and say it was a mistake,' he said. 'We find a go-between who will – '
'Then we have Chicago after us, Leo. This Turcello person. Think, would you? We can't do that.'
'I'll tell them that when you went into the room last night the briefcase wasn't there.'
'I'm sure they're going to believe that. Especially, since the mark has suddenly disappeared.'
Leo flopped back into his seat under the umbrella. A defeated look was overtaking his face. There was a long period of silence while neither looked at each other.
'Sometimes you can steal too much,' Cassie said, more to herself than Leo.
'What?'
'Max used to say that sometimes you can steal too much. We just did.'
Leo pondered the statement in silence. Cassie folded her arms across her chest. When she spoke her voice was resolute and strong. She now looked directly at Leo.
'Let's take the money. All of it. We split it and we run, Leo. One point three and change each. It's more than enough. Fuck Chicago and Miami. We take it all and run.'
Leo was shaking his head before she was finished speaking.
'No way.'
'Leo…'
'No fucking way. You think you can run from these people? Where are you going to run? Name a place where it's worth living and they can't find you. No place, that's where. They will hunt you down to the end of the fucking earth just to prove the point. Bring your hands back to Chicago or Miami in a shoe box and put 'em on display at the wise guys' Sunday buffet.'
'I'll take my chances. I've got nothing to lose.'
'Well, I DO! I'm set up here. I am dug in and the last thing I want is to spend the rest of my life changing my name every month and holding my Glock behind my back every time I open a fucking door.'
Cassie came over to the table and crouched next to Leo's chair. She held the plastic armrest with both hands and looked up into his eyes but he quickly looked away.
'No, Cass, I can't.'
'Leo, you can take two million and I'll take the rest. It's still more than I'll need. Two days ago I was thinking I'd be lucky to get a couple hundred out of this. You take the two. It's enough for you to – '
He got up and walked away from her. He went back to the edge of the pool. Cassie leaned her forehead against the armrest. She knew she wasn't going to convince him.
'It's not the money,' Leo said. 'Aren't you listening to what I'm telling you? It doesn't matter if it's one million or two million. What's the difference if you aren't around to spend it? Let me tell you, there was a guy a few years back. They tracked him all the way to Juneau-fucking-Alaska. Went up there, gutted him like a salmon from the river. I think every couple years they have to make an example. To keep everybody else in line. I don't want to be an example.'
Still crouched like a hiding child, Cassie turned and looked at his back.
'Then what do you want to do? Wait until someone comes here and guts you? How is that different from running? At least if we run we have a chance.'
Leo looked down into the pool. The vacuum moved silently along the bottom.
'Fuck…,' he said.
Something in his tone made Cassie look expectantly at him. She began to think maybe she had convinced him. She waited him out.
'Two days,' he finally said, still looking down into the pool. 'Give me forty-eight hours to see what I can do. I know some people in Miami. Let me make some calls, see what I can find out. And I'll check on things in Vegas and Chicago. Maybe I can talk our way out of this. Yeah, maybe make a deal and even keep a piece of this for ourselves.'
He was nodding to himself, getting himself ready for the biggest negotiation of his life – of their lives. He couldn't see Cassie shaking her head. She didn't believe they had a chance his way. But she stood up and came to his side.
'Leo, you have to understand something. Turcello isn't going to give you a cut of what's in the briefcase. He never was. You call his people and tell him you have it and you'll be saying, 'Here I am, guys, come get me.' You'll be this year's salmon.'
'No! I tell you I can get us out. I can negotiate with these people. Remember, it's all about money. As long as everybody gets something, we can get out.'
Cassie knew she wasn't going to convince him. She was resigned.
'Okay, Leo, two days. And that's all. After that we cut it up and we go. We take our chances.'
He nodded his agreement.
'Call me tonight. I might know something. Otherwise, do what you do. I can only reach you at the dealership?'
She gave him her cell phone number, telling him not to write it in his book.
'I'm going, Leo. What do we do with the money?'
'The usual. It's still the perfect spot.'
Cassie hesitated. She knew it was best for him to hold the money, but parting with it gave her pause. Then she remembered something that had completely slipped her mind amid the recent developments.
'Hey, did you get my passports?'
'All I can tell you is that I got word they're on their way. I'll check the drop again tonight. If they're not there tonight, they will be tomorrow. Guarantee it.'
'Thanks, Leo.'
Leo nodded. Cassie turned toward the sliding door.
'Wait a minute,' Leo said. 'Let me ask you something, what time was it when you went in the room?'
'What?'
'What time was it when you went in the guy's room last night? You must've looked at your watch.'
She looked at him. She knew what he wanted to know.
'It was five after three.'
'And what, it took five, ten minutes tops to do the job, right?'
'Normally.'
'Normally?'
'He got a phone call, Leo. I was in the closet with the safe. The phone rang and he talked to somebody. I think it was about the payoff. He was going to make it today. Then after he hung up he got up and went into the bathroom.'
'And you snuck out.'
'No. I stayed in the closet.'
'How long?'
'Until he was asleep again. Until I heard him snore. I had to, Leo. It wasn't safe. You weren't there. I couldn't leave until – '
'You went into the void moon, didn't you?'
'It couldn't be helped, Leo, that's what I'm trying to – '
'Oh, Jesus Christ!'
'Leo…'
