“If you don’t count getting kidnapped, almost killed a bunch of times, and losing my father.”
Drake had sighed. “I’m sorry I called, Allie. I… I just wanted you to be part of this. We worked really well together, and I can’t imagine going on another expedition without you.”
Her tone had softened. “Let me do some digging. I’ll call you later when I decide.”
“I miss you, Allie.”
“I miss you, too, Drake. It’s just that everything’s so complicated right now…”
“It doesn’t have to be. Between us.”
“Easy for you to say.”
That had been two hours ago, and Allie had just called back to say she reluctantly agreed and would be on the first flight out in the morning, arriving at nine at LAX.
“Take a charter flight, Allie,” he’d said. “I’ll have one waiting for whenever you want to take off. It’s on me.”
“If you think plying me with luxury is going to work, it might.”
“That’s my hope. I’ll arrange it and send you an email. You sure you don’t want to come out tonight?”
“It’ll be a miracle if I can get everything done by tomorrow. Have them at the airport at seven a.m. And if they have croissants and good coffee, that would definitely earn you some points.”
“I’ll ensure they do. As well as mimosas and anything else you want.”
“Coffee’s more than enough.” She paused. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“I’m glad. Thanks, Allie. You won’t regret this.”
“So you say.”
The sound of a high-performance exhaust was unmistakable, and Drake approached the entry with puzzlement. When he opened the door, he was surprised to see a canary yellow Lamborghini Aventador LP 750-4 Superveloce parked in the driveway.
“What the hell…” he whispered to himself, and then the V-12 motor shut off and the driver’s door rose.
Spencer’s tanned face grinned at him as he climbed from the car. “Hey, buddy. How’s it hanging?”
“Spencer! Haven’t seen you for… forever. Is this yours?”
“Yup. Thought I’d take it for a spin up the coast. Trying to be low key and all.”
Drake eyed him skeptically. It was a little too coincidental that Spencer would appear out of nowhere minutes after the CIA departed. His suspicions about Spencer immediately returned, but he didn’t voice them. “How many tickets did you get? It looks like it’s breaking about a dozen laws just sitting there.”
“None today. But don’t ask how many I’ve had since I took delivery.” Spencer neared and gave Drake a slap on the shoulder. “What are you driving?”
“Oh, I’ve got a lifted FJ Cruiser. Not quite on par with the space shuttle here.”
“Probably gets better gas mileage, though.”
“Yeah, and I can occasionally hear the radio.”
Spencer took in the exterior of the bungalow and shook his head at Drake. “Didn’t anyone tell you that you’re rich?”
Drake shrugged. “What? It does the job. It’s just me, so what do I need with a castle?” He grinned. “You want the tour? It takes about ten seconds.”
“Sure.”
Drake led him inside, showed him around, and then offered him a drink. Spencer opted for a diet soda, and Drake a bottle of water. Spencer admired the view from the deck, and then caught sight of Kyra going into her house. When Drake arrived with the drinks, Spencer gave him a knowing look.
“I see why you like the place. Nice view, huh?” he said, a leer in his voice.
“Oh, that’s just Kyra. The neighbor.”
“Damn. I knew I lived in the wrong area.”
“What? Last time we talked you were in escrow on a house down in Corona del Mar, weren’t you?”
Spencer grimaced. “Laguna Beach.”
“Right. Oceanfront, ritzy neighborhood, new development, mega-expensive?”
“That’s the one. I closed a little over a month ago. I’m suing the developer. It’s a piece of crap.”
“What? How can it be crap for twenty million bucks?”
“Twenty-seven all in. The soil isn’t compacted correctly, the foundation’s cracking, the sheetrock is buckling — it’s a nightmare.”
“But you’ll get out of it, right?”
“Turns out half the other owners are also suing him.”
“Didn’t they have to disclose that?”
“Sure. They just didn’t. So now it’s up to the courts. And the prick countersued me for damaging his good name.”
“That’s a nuisance suit.”
“Turns out the developer knows some judges, because they froze a bunch of my money as potential damages.”
“But you have a ton left.”
“Yeah, but I have a big burn.” Spencer took a long pull on his soda. “Did I tell you I bought a plane?”
“No. What kind?”
“A jet.”
“What do you need a jet for? Why not just lease one or something?”
“To get to my boat.”
“You bought a boat, too?”
“Yup. That’s what rich guys are supposed to do, right?”
“I suppose…”
Spencer withdrew his phone from his pocket and thumbed through the menu until he had a photograph on the screen. He handed it to Drake, who whistled.
“Wow. That’s sick. How big is it?”
“Hundred and eighty. You and Allie should use it sometime. It’s in the Mediterranean right now, at a boatyard. They’re doing maintenance. I bought it from a sheik for a song.”
“What’s a song these days?”
“Thirty.”
“Million?”
“Actually more like thirty-five, with the work they’re doing.”
“Easy come…” Drake grinned. “Do I even want to know how much the plane cost?”
“I got it from the bank. The guy who’d owned it went bankrupt. Another land developer. Crooks, all of them.”
“So a good buy?”
“For a Gulfstream, sure.”
Drake’s mouth fell open. “You bought a Gulfstream?”
“I know. But it sold new for fifty-eight. I got it for thirty-five, three years old, only four hundred hours on it.”
“Kind of like a car, huh? Depreciates thirty percent when you drive it off the showroom floor?”
“A little like that.” Spencer set his can down. “The problem is that it’s eating me alive. The boat crew is about three quarters of a million a month, including the mooring cost and the maintenance. The jet costs three mil a year. And the attorneys are burning cash like it’s going out of style.”
“At least you still have most of your money. That’s not terrible. It’s rich-people problems.”
Spencer frowned. “Well… I invested most of it with a hedge fund. The other day I asked for fifty mil back, but they only allow redemptions once a year, and I just put it in last month.”
“Ouch. That’s a lot of money to tie up with one group.”
“I know. And the front page of the Wall Street Journal last week broke that they’re being investigated by the SEC and the Justice Department.”
“But your money’s still there, right?”
“Oh, sure. They just can’t give it to me for a year.”
Drake tilted his head. “Can you at least verify they have it?”
“Well, they said yes, but when I asked for proof, they started shuffling. All about how they don’t divulge trading positions because it could jeopardize their moves, and that a lot of it’s in currency and derivatives and hedges and credit default swaps…”
“I’m getting a headache.”
“Yup. I have another attorney clipping me for five hundred bucks an hour working on that one.”
“Yikes.”
“And then there are the other lawsuits. A guy I used to hang out with is suing because he says he had a deal with me that I reneged on. A woman claims I gave her an incurable social disease. Another claims she’s my common-law wife from Peru. The cockroaches come out of the woodwork.” Spencer sighed. “And to top it all off, my gardener claims he tripped on my stairs and wrenched his back. Of course that’s my fault. I’m liable. But he only wants five million.”