“How do I know you haven’t already hurt her?”
“You don’t. You’ll just have to believe me. You didn’t believe me the other night, but you believe me now, don’t you?”
“Yes. I saw the headline. You really did make Renee lure that poor kid out of the bar.”
“She did it to protect you.”
“What did Mabry ever do to you that you had to kill him?”
“Your idea, Kip, not mine.”
“Remember, I’ll hurt Renee if you don’t do what you’re supposed to.”
“I’ll do whatever you want.”
“I’m almost as mad at you for pissing her love away as I am for the other stuff. She risked her life for you.” His crying had calmed, but the tone of his voice was a toxic mix of anger and self-pity.
“Don’t hurt her, Jim. Please. I’ll do anything you want me to, but don’t hurt her.”
“We’ll see about that.”
“I’m listening. Tell me what you want me to do.”
“Don’t worry, Kip. Amy will know.”
“Amy? What’s she got to do with this?”
“Maybe everything.”
“Jim, this is-”
“Shut up! Just shut up and listen. Don’t tell those security guys we spoke. You tell them, you’ll be signing Renee’s death certificate. Someone else’s too. That will be more blood on your head, Kip.”
“Someone else?”
“You just worry about Renee for now. Promise me you won’t tell those guys.”
“I promise.”
“Say it to me. Say the words.”
“I won’t tell them. I promise.”
“You ruined everything, Kip. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be.”
“I know you think that, but what’s Amy-”
“Get to wherever she is and you’ll understand. See you in a few hours.” And with that, he hung up.
I never felt more pressed for time than I did at that moment. Every foot gained took an eternity. Flashing brake lights taunted me. I weaved the car in and out of traffic just to give myself a sense of progress, to stop me from completely losing my mind and bolting from the car in a dead run. I called Amy’s cell four times, only to get her voice mail. I thought about breaking my word and calling Tony or Tom McDonald, but Jim had put the onus on me. Up until this point, the blood on my hands was naive blood, blood that Jim had put there. Not anymore. The illusion of deniability, such as it was, had been stripped away. From here on out, if there was blood to be spilled, I would not be able to keep its stain at arm’s length.
Forty-Nine
The address belonged to a red brick building. Only the knowledge that Amy was inside distinguished it from the other houses on the block. There was a silver Chevy Malibu parked in the driveway. I drove around the block a few times before parking and going up the front steps. My heart was pounding as I forced myself to knock.
“Who is it?” I thought I recognized Tom McDonald’s voice.
“Kip Weiler.”
The door pulled back, but there was no one standing on the other side. I’d taken a step forward when a hand latched on to my wrist, yanked me hard inside, and forced me face-down onto the carpet. My arm was being held immobile by a wrist lock when the door slammed shut behind. I was pulled up onto my feet, arm still behind me, something hard-the muzzle of a gun, no doubt-stuck in my neck. A thick-necked, middle-aged man with salt and pepper hair, dark, suspicious brown eyes, and a neutral mouth stepped out of the shadows. He patted me down so thoroughly that there would never be secrets between us. He removed my wallet from my back pocket, opened it, and alternated his gaze from my face to my driver’s license. All of it, from the knock on the door to this, took no more than twenty or thirty seconds.
“It’s him, Tommy. It’s Weiler. Let him go.” My arm was freed. “I’m Tony Dee,” said the man in front of me, offering me his right hand. I shook it. “And that guy behind you with the map of Kerry on his face is Tom McDonald.”
I turned around to see a silver-haired man about my size with sparkling blue eyes, a ruddy complexion, a disarmingly crooked smile, and a Glock pointed square at my belly.
“What was the name of the woman who contacted our firm?” he asked, politely but firmly.
“Meg Donovan.”
He holstered the Glock.
“How do you like your coffee, Mr. Weiler?” he asked.
“Hot.”
“Tony, why don’t you get him some coffee while we have a chat.”
We sat down at an unremarkable kitchen table. It was wood, had four legs, and four chairs. The entire house, at least the parts of it I could see, was decorated in like fashion: functional, not fancy. Tony Dee brought me a cup of coffee and told McDonald he was going to catch some sleep while he could. I took a sip of the coffee. It was hot. That was the best thing I could say about it.
“How is she?”
“She’s a little freaked and pissed, but that’s normal. She’s in the other bedroom resting.”
“Can I go see her?”
“In a minute,” he said. “First I want to know what happened that made you push the panic button. And before you answer, remember that if the danger to your ex-wife has increased, the danger to me and my partner has increased too.”
“I understand.” And I did, but I had to be careful not to say too much until I saw Amy. “I came across some information that led me to believe that the threats made against Amy were real.”
“Have you considered going to the authorities? Our firm can make that easier for you. We can hook you up with a top-notch lawyer, have someone meet you here if you’re afraid of being spotted contacting the law.”
“I’m thinking about it, but I can’t do it yet. I need to see Amy, okay? I need to discuss this with her first.”
“I see. Go ahead. Down the hallway to the right.”
“Thanks, Tom.”
“Wait until you get the bill before you thank me.”
I stood up from the table, taking the coffee with me. I didn’t want to drink it, but it made a good prop, made me seem more relaxed than I actually was. I walked down the hall past the bathroom and the bedroom Tony Dee was using. I knocked on Amy’s door, but didn’t wait for her answer. The time for acting cool and relaxed was over and I didn’t want to waste any more time than I had to.
Amy was sitting on the bed, head in her hands, an unwatched TV playing in the background. When I approached, she looked up. Her face was completely drained of color and her skin showed every wrinkle, line, and mark. It was as if she were aging before my eyes. As I opened my mouth to speak, she put her index finger across her lips to quiet me. She tapped in something on her BlackBerry, then handed it to me.
“Listen,” she whispered.
I put the phone to my ear. “Amy, this is Peter. Please do as I ask and do it the way I tell you to do it.” It was Peter Moreland. He spoke breathlessly, his voice was cracking, struggling to say the words. “You must get out of wherever you are and come with Kip or I’ll be killed. When you get on the road, start heading north on the New York State Thruway. When you get close to Stewart Airport, call this number. If you go to the police or are followed, he’ll kill me and he says to tell Kip he will also kill Renee. He’s serious, Amy.” Then there was some static.
