Wacki grunted and left the hotel.
Time to call Teacher.
***
Sergey stared at the door from inside his hotel room. He’d ignored Wacki because he could not stand him. He was always in his way. Never helping, just trying to make himself look important. Today the two men Teacher found for him would be in Athens. Now things would get done. And quickly.
***
“I hope you’ll be comfortable in the guest bedroom,” said Lila.
“Yes, thank you very much,” said Kouros.
“Good, and as soon as my husband gets off the phone I’ll leave the two of you alone to talk. Don’t forget, if you need anything, just ask Marietta.”
“Thank you.”
Andreas closed his mobile and hugged Lila. “Thanks, my love.”
“No problem. Yianni is like family. Besides I feel safer having two cops in the house.” She turned and left them alone in the library.
Kouros looked at Andreas. “Chief, that guest room is bigger than my whole apartment.”
Andreas laughed. “Tell me about it. It’s what comes from being an honest cop.”
“Does Lila happen to have a sister? Even an ugly cousin.”
Andreas shot him an open palm. “But Lila’s right about you staying here. Until we take down that bastard, things could get very nasty. No telling which of us he’ll come after next, but he will.”
“Me, me, me. I want him to pick me.”
“Don’t be a macho wise-ass. These guys aren’t brave. Just ruthless. Could be a bomb or grenade launcher. Dirty and distant is their trademark. Unless you’re an old man or a girl.”
“Thank God Tassos is off the critical list.”
Andreas crossed himself. “Maggie said they might let her in to see him tomorrow. She’ll tell him only what she thinks will make him feel better.”
“Five dead and three in jail should start him along the great yellow brick road to happiness.”
Andreas shook his head. “You sound like his clone.”
“How long do you think I’ll have to stay here?”
“Why? Do you have a cat to feed at home?”
This time the palm came from Kouros.
Andreas smiled. “That was the finance ministry on the phone. They received a fax from Mykonos police that their chief had spoken with Wacki about Sergey applying for a license and there was ‘nothing negative to report.’”
“Did Wacki take the bait?”
“Won’t know until it happens. All we can do is hope Wacki runs true to form.”
“And straight back to Teacher.”
Andreas nodded. “If he goes to Sergey, we’re fucked.”
“It’s a gamble.”
“This whole thing’s a gamble. Starting with my suggesting to the minister of finance there was something on him or his family in Christos’ files when as far as we could tell there wasn’t.”
“He could have hung us out to dry.”
“Nope, just me. I said I was the only one who knew what was in the files, then I watched as his mind ran to whatever painful moment in his past or his family’s past conceivably might be out there. Never ceases to amaze me how much more threatening imagined risks are than the known.”
“Whatever, it worked. So now what do we do?”
“Wait.”
“Want to watch a soccer match?” said Kouros.
Andreas turned on the television. “Whom are you rooting for?”
“The winner.”
***
“Hello, Teacher, it’s Wacki.”
“Yes, I know.”
“I’m sorry to call so late, but I was trying to reach Sergey and couldn’t find him so I thought I’d pass this information on to you. It might be important and I didn’t want to sit on it overnight.”
“Just tell me what it is, please.”
“This afternoon the Mykonos police chief questioned me about Sergey.”
“What did you tell him?”
“That he was a ‘model citizen.’”
“Why are you bothering me with this?”
Wacki began to stammer, but caught himself. “It wasn’t what he wanted to know that mattered it was why he wanted to know.”
“And ‘why’ was that?”
“Sergey applied for a license from the ministry of finance and the police were doing a mandatory background check at the request of the ministry.”
“Did the police say what sort of license?”
“No.”
“Did the police say it was for a license in Sergey’s name?”
“I, I can’t swear to that but the chief did say that with all the pressure coming down on him from the ministry to hurry along the background check it looked as though he would get his license.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome. I hope-”
“Wacki, for the time being I want you to keep this conversation and your conversation with the police chief just between us.”
“You mean don’t tell Sergey?”
“Do I have to repeat myself?”
“No, Teacher, no. Absolutely. I understand completely. Tell no one.”
“Very good. Good night.”
“Good night.”
Teacher hung up the phone and stared at the ceiling. Her eyes moved to the backs of her hands, and the black and blue marks along her arms.
She hadn’t been surprised when she’d received the news about her health. No one wanted to think such things were possible, at least not about yourself and not out of a past you’d put so far out of mind. But she’d been a prostitute, and this was to be expected. She’d battled her illness for years, but with no one to share her burdens she was growing weary of the war.
Then Sergey entered her life with what seemed the answer to her prayers.
Her eyes shifted to the photograph of the young girl. She dropped her head.
I must make inquiries.
Chapter Thirty
It was early morning when the email arrived from Teacher’s colleague in Athens. It read simply: ATTACHED ARE ALL FILES ON THE APPLICATION YOU REQUESTED.
The contact was thorough. The attachments included a copy of an application for a casino license on Mykonos. It was stamped as submitted to Greece’s ministry of finance the day after the hotel owner had agreed to sell his interest in the hotel lease. Listed as the applicant was “Sergey Tishchenko.”
That was not as they had planned. It would be foolish to hold a license in a single individual’s name because the license would lapse should anything happen to that person.
Why would he do this? He surely knew better than to steal from her. Perhaps he thought of it as insurance against her killing him should she become disenchanted with him, as the license would end with him?
She smiled. She admired that sense of self-preservation. Her smile faded. As long as he did not plan to steal from her.
She read on. The application was filled with the words of lawyers.
He couldn’t have done this on his own. He had help. But from whom? Wacki? Not a chance. But there had to be others involved in preparing this application, persons she did not know. She did not like that.
Teacher cleared her throat and finished reading the application. It contained financial representations and divulged sources of funds necessary to complete the project and bond the performance obligations of the casino. She knew the accounts, they were hers that she’d put in Sergey’s name for purposes of the application.
She looked for questions about the hotel lease, but there were none. The application focused on the applicant’s financial abilities and background, not on specific details of the facility to be operated within the approved venue. That would come later, after the ministry approved the license. She read on and lingered for a moment over the signature of Sergey Tishchenko.
The next document made her pause. It was a one-line memorandum from the minister of finance to the section chief responsible for casino licenses. Above the signature of the minister was typed, DO WHATEVER NECESSARY TO APPROVE THIS APPLICATION ASAP. The directive was dated the day after the cop was kidnapped.
That document could only mean one thing. But Sergey had never told her he had Christos’ files. He’d kept that from her. There was no way this minister would have given such firm instructions in writing other than in mortal fear of what was in those files. It would also explain how the kidnapped cop was found and rescued so quickly. The cops who had Christos’ files must have turned them over to Sergey in exchange for their friend’s release, and then killed his captors as a message to any others who might consider kidnapping cops. That’s what she would have done in their position.