‘You’re right. It does mean a lot. I’m giving you five minutes to evacuate this building and move all your people and transport out of here. Is that clear?’
‘Five minutes?’ the man said, looking deeply perplexed.
‘If your vans aren’t out of here by –’ Hobart checked his watch ‘– twelve minutes past the hour you’ll be cited for obstruction of justice, your vehicles will be impounded and could be held for months and I doubt very much whether your business licence will be renewed. Do you understand everything I’ve just said?’
‘I do, sir,’ the man said as he turned on his heel and pushed his way back into the building.
Hobart watched him go. Then he faced Klodi who was standing between him and the front doors. ‘You’re in my way,’ he said.
Klodi stepped aside in the face of a superior power. Hobart and the officers marched in.
As they walked into the lobby beneath the massive chandelier Cano was coming down the broad stairs at the other side of the elevators. As he stepped onto the marble floor it became evident to him by the excited activities of the event staff that something was happening about which he was unaware.
‘Where’s Skender?’ Hobart asked as Cano approached.
‘What’s going on?’ Cano asked, ignoring Hobart’s question and looking past him as several event-staff personnel hurried from the ballroom and out through the main doors.
Hobart hated being ignored and this place was sorely trying his patience. But he stuck by his plan and held on to his temper, though with increasing difficulty. ‘You want to know what’s happening?’ he asked, forcing a smile. ‘I’m closing down your building, your opening ceremony, everything. And now you listen to me. You speak to me one more time like I’m the bellhop and I’ll run you downtown so fast your feet won’t touch the ground. Now take me to Skender!’ he shouted.
Cano remained cool as ice. Hobart’s efforts to impress him were as effective as hail on armour. ‘One moment,’ Cano said, holding up a finger as he took his cellphone from his pocket and stepped to one side to use it.
Hobart gritted his teeth as he looked at one of the cops. Cano spoke quietly on his phone for a few seconds before pocketing it and walking to the elevator. ‘Mr Skender will see you,’ he said as he pushed a call button.
Hobart turned his back on Cano who was just beyond earshot and talked to the cops. ‘Your chief is on his way. This is an emergency situation. We have a suspected bomb in the building. Skender’s bodyguards can stay for the time being but I want everyone else out of here. That includes security staff, administrators, janitors, cooks and busboys, everyone. Got it?’
The cops looked at each other and nodded.
‘Go to it,’ Hobart said before turning to head for the elevator. ‘Lead on, Mr Vleshek,’ he said, making a meal out of the name.
Cano walked inside and Hobart joined him. The elevator doors closed. Cano thought he could sense that Hobart was unusually confident about something, then dismissed it as one of the FBI man’s little moments of power.
The elevator arrived at the penthouse. Hobart followed Cano out, past two suited thugs who were guarding the elevator doors and along the curving corridor to the conference room where Skender was studying his model town and making notes.
Skender looked up as the glass doors opened and the two men walked in.
‘Hobart’s emptying out the building,’ Cano said.
Skender studied them both as if he had not quite heard correctly. ‘Say that again?’ he asked.
‘He’s sent the caterers away,’ Cano said.
‘Home,’ Hobart corrected him. ‘I’ve sent them home.’
Something inside Skender almost snapped as he realised the significance of the information. But he held himself in check as he looked at Hobart, reassessing the man.
‘Just in case you don’t understand my English, I’ll spell things out for you,’ Hobart said, wearing the hint of a grin. ‘Your party’s over. The opening ceremony – it isn’t going to happen. Not today at least.’
‘You want to tell me why?’ Skender asked, putting down his notepad.
‘I have reason to believe there’s a bomb in your building,’ Hobart said.
‘You do?’ Skender said, glancing at Cano.
‘That’s right. I’m not here to argue with you, Skender. I want everyone out of the building.’
‘Why do I get the feeling that you suddenly grew a pair of balls, Hobart?’ Skender asked, walking towards him. ‘You used to walk in here with your cap in your hand like some busboy and now suddenly you’re – how is it you Americans say? – walkin’ tall. What happened? Your wife give you your annual blow job last night?’
Hobart wasn’t fazed by the insult. ‘You’re right about the change. This is just the first step. I warned you about crossing the line.’
‘Warn?’ Skender said, closing on Hobart, barely holding on to his temper. ‘Is that like a weather warning, or a tough-guy warning?’
Hobart suddenly felt a pang of unease in his core as Skender moved into his space, looking more dangerous than he’d ever seen him before. Everything he knew about the man, his history of violence since his youth, appeared to be written on his face. He suddenly felt uncomfortable being this close to it.
‘So what was this line I crossed?’ Skender asked, his voice sounding more croaky as it got quieter.
‘Kidnapping, for one,’ Hobart said, feeling as if he might get the upper hand at this meeting if he showed Skender some purpose.
‘What are you talking about?’ Skender said, genuinely surprised. Then his suspicions flashed to Cano but he did not look at him.
‘Sally Penton’s kid,’ Hobart explained. ‘The woman your two boys killed, Leka and that moron Ardian,’ he said, deliberately staring at Cano, knowing that the man was furious but did not dare show it. ‘They’re the reason you have a bomb in your building,’ Hobart continued, looking back at Skender. ‘Come on. Don’t you know what’s going on in your own house? Maybe I should be talking to this guy. I bet
Cano choked back his surprise. But at that moment he was more concerned about Skender who had thrown him a most dangerous look.
Skender was beginning to boil over inside. Had Hobart been able to see the danger he might have held back a bit. He had Skender on the run but did not know how tight was the corner that he was chasing the Albanian crime lord into.
Skender instantly believed Hobart about the kidnapping though he genuinely knew nothing about it. Nor did he know of the supposed bomb in his building but he believed that too. Cano had kept everything from him. Skender knew that Cano’s deviousness was rooted in fear as well as in the hope that he could resolve the problem on his own but matters had gone beyond that now.
‘The walls are closing in, Skender,’ Hobart said, unable to hide his satisfaction at seeing these two evil men in mental turmoil. ‘I’ve been waiting for you to drop the ball. It was only a matter of time.’
Suddenly Skender’s fist slammed into Hobart’s solar plexus under his heart, stopping it just for a second and knocking every ounce of wind out of him.
‘Time is what you ain’t got a lot of,’ Skender said. As Hobart toppled forward, grabbing his chest in pain, Skender took him by the throat with a gnarled peasant hand, pushed him upright against the central pillar and powered a fist into his side, cracking something. ‘You need to learn your place in this world, little man.’
Hobart’s legs buckled. As he went down Skender kneed him viciously in the face, knocking the back of his head against the pillar as his nose burst open.
‘Now tell me. How much do I give a damn?’ Skender demanded.
Hobart dropped to the floor, trembling as he tried to roll onto his side. Skender kicked him brutally in the face and as Hobart collapsed onto his front the Albanian loomed over him like a salivating wolf savouring his kill.
‘Let me tell you your future,’ Skender said. ‘My deal with the Feds goes on. I have what they want and I’m gonna deliver, from time to time. One of my new conditions is that they dump your ass. You know they will, because I’m more important to them than you are. Now I’ll tell you what else I’m gonna do, and I want you to listen carefully. Are you listening to me?’
Hobart was in a bad way but Skender callously rolled him onto his back with his foot. Blood trickled across Hobart’s face and he blinked to hold on to consciousness as Skender went in and out of focus.
