Burim went back to the bedroom. Pia knew she had to accept Burim’s help, however distasteful it was to her. Now she wanted more than anything to get out of there, to go and find George. Burim closed the door and relayed what Buda had said. Would she be willing to forgo the revenge she was entitled to? Pia knew justice was being twice denied-she was being prevented from implicating Rothman’s killers and also from seeing some street retribution brought down on the person who attacked her.
“If that’s the way it has to be, I want to talk to those men outside,” Pia said.
“Okay,” Burim said. “But I want to shake on our agreement: an Albanian shake.”
Burim thrust out his hand. Pia eyed it. She didn’t care. She shook hands, and her skin crawled when she touched his.
They walked into the living room where everyone was still standing, although in slightly more relaxed poses.
“I am going to accept the offer,” she said to Buda. “I will do what you ask and drop the investigation. But I have a couple of things to say.” Pia walked over to Neri and stood right in front of him. Neri started to shake, looking first at Prek, then at Buda, then at Burim.
“You are a piece of trash.”
“I swear I didn’t do anything. I can’t, it’s impossible-”
Pia jabbed Neri hard in the sternum with her forefinger.
“You’re not so tough when the girl is awake, are you, huh? You know what my father is going to do with you? He’s going to cut off your tiny little prick and shove it up your ass.”
“No, no, I didn’t-”
“I’m sorry?” Pia jabbed Neri again. He was crying now, great shuddering torrents of tears pouring out of his eyes. He held his hands together, pleading with Pia.
“You see how much stronger than you I am? You’re a pathetic little boy.” Pia poked him once more, and Neri collapsed backward onto the couch where he sat whimpering.
“And you,” Pia addressed Drilon. “You will never speak to me or ever come near me again.”
Drilon looked at Burim and raised his hands as if to say, “I don’t understand.” Quickly Pia went on.
“Now I have a question for you.” Pia looked at Buda, who raised his eyebrows.
“Me?”
“Some men paid you money to frighten me?”
“Yes.”
“Some men paid you money to kill me?”
“Yes.”
“Are these the same men who asked you to kill Dr. Rothman and Dr. Yamamoto?”
Buda paused.
“Yes.”
“Why did they do it? When I realized the deaths weren’t accidental, I couldn’t figure out why anyone would want to go to such lengths to kill two medical researchers. The work they were doing-they were about to change the world.”
Buda looked at Burim. Was it possible to control this woman at all?
“Some people had investments that were threatened by the research.”
“Investments? You mean they did this for
“I guess,” Buda said. Why does anyone do anything? he thought.
Pia was incredulous. She thought back to her heart-to-heart talk with Rothman and how it had seemed to be the start of something meaningful in her life: the father she never had. She recalled Yamamoto’s kindnesses, small and large. And Will, his life snuffed out too. Then she remembered standing in the blue-lit room looking at the pulsating baths of artificial organs and the enormous excitement she had felt. And the even greater joy she experienced at the awe-inspiring sight of the artificial pancreas. Now, it was very likely those two rooms were being closed up and put in mothballs. The research would continue, but not at Columbia and not with her. Pia felt empty and bereft.
It was likely that Rothman and Yamamoto’s killers were in this room. Pia couldn’t touch them, she knew that; her life depended on their getting away with murder. But she wasn’t completely powerless.
“In that case, there’s something I want you to do. And then I promise I will stay off the trail and hold my tongue.”
Pia told the men her idea. Buda liked it-this job had far too many loose ends. Burim agreed that it would satisfy his daughter’s honor. The men shook hands again, and then each in turn shook hands with Pia.
Buda was happy with the resolution, although he was left with more work to do and he’d have to decide what to do with his men, especially Neri, who seemed to have fallen to pieces completely. Prek and Genti were eating the lukewarm takeout, but Neri was still cowering on the couch.
Buda found an old pair of his wife’s sneakers, which were too large for Pia but would work for now. He took them into the bedroom where she was resting.
“What will you do now?”
“You think I’m going to tell you?” she said.
“Listen, I’m sorry it happened this way.”
“It’s a bit late for that. Please, leave me alone.”
When Pia came back into the room, it was filled with cigarette smoke. The men were standing around talking and a couple of them were laughing. Pia went over to Buda.
“Where’s my cell phone?”
Buda looked at Prek, who shrugged.
“May as well let her have it. Just don’t turn it on till we’re done here.”
“I won’t.”
Prek took Pia’s cell phone, student ID, and wallet she used for her credit card and cash out of his jacket and gave them back to her.
“I’ll be outside,” Pia said. “It stinks in here.” Without another word, she went outside, slamming the door behind her hard enough to shake the house.
Burim shook his head. “She is her mother, exactly.”
“We should go out there-she might call someone,” Prek said.
“She won’t,” Buda said. “She’s Albanian, she promised.”
“She’s half Albanian,” Burim said. “And half Italian. I better go.”
The men laughed.
Standing on the other side of the van, Pia had turned on the phone and it flooded with messages and e-mails and texts. She saw there was a text from Lesley Wong.
“God bless you,” it read. “Praying for Will’s recovery.”
“Pia?”
It was Burim. She shut off the phone and emerged from behind the van.
“We’re leaving,” Burim said.
Pia had but one thought. Recovery? Could Will possibly be alive?
62.
GREEN POND, NEW JERSEY MARCH 26, 2011, 12:03 A.M.
Buda gave his men their marching orders. He would drive back to the Bronx with Prek and Genti, while Neri would remain at the house and clean it and the van thoroughly to erase all traces of Pia’s stay. Buda was quite specific about what products Neri would use and how long he should spend on each part of the task. Buda emphasized what a good job he wanted Neri to do and that it would take him the entire weekend to complete. That
