He studies me carefully after dropping that bomb, trying to gauge my face for a reaction. I’ve been prepared for every scenario since I first had a conversation with the woman still standing next to me, so I manage to hide any type of a reaction.
All of his money plus half of everything else. I’m surprised at how little the request affects me. Of course, none of this was about the money in the first place, at least not for me. My team might not feel so indifferent about the matter. Even if I gave up all of my share of the bounty, at least a little would have to come from their end.
If I play by Constantin’s demands.
“I can give you all of my share. That comes to almost two hundred and fifty million euros. Plus the earrings.”
He clucks his tongue and shakes his head. “No, no, no, Señor Marín. That is not how this works. You have no negotiating power here. I make the demand, you follow it. Comprende?”
“It will take me some time.”
“You have one more week. My people will have an account for you to which you can wire the funds. The earrings you can send by mail. Insured of course.” His cold smile returns.
I nod, thinking about how I’m going to break this to the rest of the team. Which suddenly has me begging the same question that popped into my head when I first realized someone was after me.
“How did you find out about me?” I ask, assuming I won’t get an answer.
This time when Constantin smiles, it does reach his eyes. “That is the amusing bit. That little tart you stole from was a thief herself. If only she had waited a while, the earrings would have been hers. Instead, she seized the opportunity you so generously provided her. Do you honestly think I wouldn’t have jewelry like microchipped with a tracker so long as they were still mine?”
I silently curse myself.
I knew that one day something minor and seemingly harmless would come along to slip me up, and all it took was a pair of earrings. Obviously I scan everything I take. He must have activated it after the fact. Perhaps that damn woman was smart to choose the diamonds instead. At least I can rest easy that it wasn’t a member of my crew who betrayed me.
“Once we traced your location, it was easy enough to follow you to Ibiza. The girl was an interesting development. I don’t recall any of the people working with you having such nice figures underneath those suits of yours. And here she is, still with you a week later.”
This time it’s harder to keep a neutral expression on my face. I know exactly what he’s doing.
My instinct is to rise up, smash my fist into his face and threaten to do far worse if either him or any of his hired professionals so much as lay a finger on her. But that would only make things worse. For her sake, I have to not only keep it cool, but do exactly as he asks.
The good news is, his only concern about her seems to be as leverage to get me to do his bidding. If he knew who Leira was, he might be a bit more intrigued, especially considering this mysterious tie she has to Richard Coleman, even if he is just a name given to her by her father.
“I suggest you don’t let me down, Enrique. For her sake. One week. I’ll give you until midnight next Friday.”
Chapter Forty-Six Leira
The small plate of food before me in the bar lies mostly uneaten. I’ve managed to nibble on a bit of the bread from the bruschetta, but all it did was remind me how tied up in knots my stomach is.
I’ve passed the time thinking the worst
Use my judgment? How long is too long for Enrique to be gone? What exactly is the acceptable time period for a hostage situation?
Without a watch or even a phone, I have no concept of how much time has passed. Why the hell doesn’t this bar have a clock? Considering the drunk beside me, I can probably figure out why. I’ve already had two drinks myself, despite Enrique’s caution. I don’t even recall what I ordered. But he’s not the one who has to sit here wondering if he’s dead or not, and if so, am I next?
My eyes have been glued to the marina, waiting for that boat to come back. When it does, I nearly spit out the sip of the cocktail. I sit up, waiting for him and those goons to get off, but it’s just him by himself.
His face looks dangerously grim.
The knot in my stomach tightens just a bit more.
By the time he walks through the doors of the restaurant, his expression magically transitions to that playfully devilish look, no doubt meant to put me at ease.
I plant a smile on my face to similarly try and put him at ease.
“So, who was it?” I ask, unable to contain myself any longer.
“Let’s get out of here first,” he says with a tight smile.
After paying, he guides me out. He does a good job of hiding it, but I see him surreptitiously looking around, which has me looking around as well.
What’s going on?
We walk until we reach the path that goes along the beach before he starts talking.
“It was one of the people I stole from. Constantin Papadopoulos. He wants his money back.”
I breathe a sigh of relief. “Well, that’s not so terrible then, is it? I mean, I’m sure it’s a lot for you but—”
“He wants his back and half of everything else from all the others. Plus some items stored back on the island.”
“Oh.” I stare ahead, feeling my brow crease. “I guess that would be difficult?”
“To put it mildly. I don’t mind giving up
