now.’
Epstein tried his best not to look unhappy at this news.
Tried, but failed.
Outside, Adiv and Yonathan both found themselves with guns pressed against their sides just as the sun began to set. They could see each other clearly, so Adiv was privy to Yonathan’s situation, and vice versa. Adiv saw a tall black man with a shaved head and the graying beard of an aspiring Old Testament prophet, albeit a prophet wearing a thousand-dollar suit, materialize behind Yonathan, the gate opening silently as he emerged, his mouth whispering something softly into Yonathan’s ear, his left hand on Yonathan’s shoulder, his right driving the gun hard under Yonathan’s armpit. Adiv, whose father was a tailor, just had time to adjudge the suit as remarkably well cut before a small, unshaven white man resembling a bum with some access to laundry services was threatening to blow out his insides if he moved, and so Adiv stayed very still indeed while the man disarmed him. Louis was having a similar exchange with Yonathan, with similar consequences, although he took the trouble to add, ‘And none of that krav maga shit either. Trigger pull on this is so light a passing breeze could set it off.’
A huge, battered 4WD with smoked glass windows, and driven by a Japanese gentleman, pulled up outside the grocery store. Its rear doors opened to reveal a second Japanese man, and Yonathan and Adiv were bundled inside, Angel following. As the doors closed again, they were forced to the floor and their hands were secured behind their backs with cable ties. Their phones and wallets were taken from them, along with their spare change.
‘What are you going to do to the rabbi?’ asked Adiv, and Angel was impressed by the fact that the kid was more concerned about the rabbi’s safety than his own.
‘Nothing,’ he replied. ‘My friend is going to stay by the store to make sure the rabbi is safe, and we have another man inside, just in case.’
‘So what is this about?’ asked Yonathan.
‘It’s about not pointing guns at people who are on your side,’ said Angel, then poked Adiv hard in the ribs with the toe of his glitter-covered cowboy boots. ‘Oh, and not telling people on your side to go fuck themselves when they try to exchange pleasantries with you just because you’re sore about what they may or may not have done with your girl, especially if they didn’t know at the time you thought she was your girl, and more particularly when she isn’t even your girl to begin with because you’re just holding some hidden flame in your heart for her that only you can see. What are you, nine years old? A nice Jewish kid like you should be too smart to be that dumb.’
Yonathan shot a poisonous look at Adiv.
‘What?’ said Adiv. ‘You were the one who pointed the gun at him.’
‘Boys, boys,’ said Angel. ‘Recriminations will get you nowhere, although I will admit that it is entertaining from up here.’
‘The rabbi’s safety is above such concerns,’ said Yonathan, striking for the moral high ground. ‘We should be back there with him.’
‘You’d have thought, except for the fact that you were taken on a city street in daylight and are now lying in the back of a jeep heading for Jersey. I’m not in the personal protection industry as such, but it suggests to me that the rabbi ought to be contracting for better staff, if you don’t mind me saying so. And even if you do.’
‘What are you going to do with us?’ asked Adiv. His voice didn’t crack. Angel had to admit that the kid had balls; not much in the way of manners, but definitely carrying a pair.
‘You know what the Pine Barrens are?’
‘No.’
‘A million acres of trees, reptiles, bobcats, and the Jersey Devil, although I admit the Jersey Devil may not exist. It’s a long walk home, even without the devil on your tail.’
‘You’re going to abandon us in the wilderness?’
‘It could be worse: we could be dumping you in Camden County.’
‘The city invincible,’ said the Japanese driver, speaking for the first time.
‘What?’ said Angel.
‘“In a dream, I saw a city invincible”,’ said the driver. ‘Is the motto of the city of Camden. I learn it in citizenship class.’
‘You mean “city invisible”,’ said Angel. ‘Someone probably stole it while the cops weren’t looking. Fucking city is so violent even dead people are armed. Personally, I’d take my chances in the Pinelands.’
‘But—’ Adiv began to say, but Angel aimed another kick at him as he started to protest, silencing him quickly.
‘It’s a done deal,’ he said. ‘Quiet now. I do some of my best thinking in the backs of cars.’
We sipped our espressos. They were very, very good.
‘So let’s start again,’ I said to Epstein. ‘Tell me what you know about the woman who provided the list.’
‘Her name was Barbara Kelly.’
‘Was?’
‘She died last week.’
‘How?’
‘She was cut repeatedly with a blade, scourged with a belt of some kind, and partially blinded. Her killer or killers then set fire to the house, probably in an effort to hide the evidence of the attack. They were very careful in how they approached her torture. There were no broken bones, and she was still alive when the fire was started in the kitchen, although probably unconscious. She had quite a sophisticated alarm system, with recessed smoke and heat detectors independent of the main system but running parallel to it. It was also raining heavily, which helped arrest the progress of the conflagration. Nevertheless, by the time the fire department arrived, the blaze had consumed part of the kitchen and spread to the living room, but somehow Kelly had managed to crawl into the hallway. She was badly burned, and died on the way to the hospital. The post-mortem revealed the extent of the injuries she had received prior to burning.’
‘You learn anything more since then?’
‘She claimed to be an independent consultant. She had very little in her bank accounts, and appeared to be just about keeping her head above water. Her income came from a variety of sources, mostly small businesses. Appearances would suggest that she worked very hard for a modest return, barely enough to cover her mortgage and living expenses.’
‘Except?’
‘We’re looking into the companies, but already two have been revealed as no more than names on mailboxes. We believe there were other sources of income, and other accounts.’
‘Did the police find anything at the house?’
‘A laptop mentioned in her insurance submission is missing and has not been traced. The hard drive had been removed from her desktop, and her personal files seem to have been carefully harvested.’
‘A dead end.’
‘We’re still looking. And there is an added complication.’
‘Isn’t there always?’
‘We believe that we were not the only ones to whom she sent material. She had cancer, and she felt that she was running out of time. She wanted to make reparation for her sins. She needed to know that the process had begun, that her offer of information was being taken seriously.’
‘Who would she have sent it to? The newspapers? A DA somewhere?’
Epstein shook his head. ‘Don’t you understand? The whole point of this conspiracy was to acquire influence and favors, either now or for the future. From the two extracts we’ve seen, we know that they own politicians and reporters. Don’t you think that they’ve also wormed their way into the lives of police officers, lawmakers, prosecutors? She couldn’t send the list through the usual channels. She had to be more selective.’
‘Then how did she decide upon your lawyers?’
‘She knew of us because we were her enemies.’
‘And she gave no indication of the other recipients?’
‘Recipient. There was just one other. The only clue she gave was to warn us to act quickly, because if we did not another less scrupulous than ourselves would take vengeance into his own hands, and through him she would earn her salvation.’
