Allyson would never turn on Frank. The older man knew that much. If she got pinched somewhere, she knew the protocol. She’d be on her own, and there would be no connection made to him or his empire whatsoever. He’d brought her out of the gutter and made her a very wealthy woman. For that, he’d earned her respect and her loyalty. But shooting a Dutch policeman? That was getting too sloppy. There must have been extenuating circumstances.
“The other woman,” Frank said suddenly, “you said she was hurt. How badly?”
“I couldn’t say. I sped out of there, but I know she hit the windshield fairly hard. Then she rolled over the top and hit the ground. If I had to guess, likely struck her head on the road. She was probably unconscious.”
Frank considered criticizing his employee, but the man had done exactly as told. An outright murder of the other thief was completely against the rules, and he knew that his peer would abide by the same standards. Killing other people who happened to get in the way was fine. But not the pawns who were in play. As he’d said before, though, accidents do happen. If Evan hurt the other thief, that would certainly play to Allyson’s advantage. If she were to be arrested, however, that would change everything.
He spoke quickly and directly. “I need you to make sure she didn’t get picked up by the authorities, and if she did, get her out.”
“What about the other pawn?”
“You’ll have to let her go for now. Make sure our girl is okay first.”
“And if she fails?”
“She won’t. But if she does, it might just be time to cut her loose. That’s a long way off, though. There are still two more paintings left. If she’s able to get one of them, I’ll be happy.”
Evan knew the older man had a weird father-daughter kind of relationship with Allyson, so he bit his tongue. “Very well. I’ll hang back and observe.”
“Yes, but slow down the other girl if she shows her face again.”
“Of course.”
Frank ended the call. He’d treated the conversation coolly just like he did with pretty much everything. One of his mantras was to never let your enemies see you flinch. More importantly, never let the people in your employ see it. That could be far worse.
In the world of organized crime, it wasn’t only commonplace, it was basically standard for underlings to rise up and overthrow their masters. Things had gone that way for thousands of years. Frank liked to think that in England, things were different. The harsh reality was that it was the same everywhere. Anywhere power was to be had, people would try to take it. It was partially about the money, but power was the thing that people craved.
He pondered the conundrum as he stepped back into the boardroom and returned to his seat. The accountant was going over a slide featuring a pie chart for the company’s earnings during the previous quarter.
Despite being a corrupt businessman, Frank knew the best way to suppress a potential mutiny was to treat his employees well, give them enough responsibility to make them feel important, and at the same time keep them under control.
He let out a sigh and looked over at the blond-haired man across from him. The man was in a navy blue pinstripe suit, pressed tighter than Frank believed humanly possible. Frank smirked. The man was pretending to be enthralled by the presentation, but Frank knew better. Deep down inside, he knew the man was wondering what the phone call had been about. Or was that what the Belgian wanted him to think? Either way, the game was on, and at least his asset was still in play.
15
Adriana stepped out of the clothing boutique and onto the sidewalk. She’d been in the salon for nearly fifty minutes and the clothier for fifteen. She desperately wanted to run back to the hotel but resisted the temptation, knowing that doing such a thing would draw the gaze of too many people.
She casually ran a hand through her hair. It had been transformed to a look that would make her almost unrecognizable. Her dark brown hair had been colored a dark auburn and cut shorter in the back. In the front, it dangled down to her chin on both sides. It was a striking look and a sharp contrast to her previous style. She briefly worried that it could cause problems when going through the airport, but people changed their hair all the time these days. It might result in a few extra glances from airport security, but inevitably, they would let her through. The light blue sundress was something she normally wouldn’t wear, but in this case it helped her blend in with the other women trying to look their best while staying cool in the warmth of the summer sun. The skirt cut off just above the knees, showing off her toned and slightly tanned legs.
After a quick glance in both directions, Adriana turned right and walked quickly down the sidewalk, passing a coffee shop and a cafe full of patrons enjoying an early lunch. No one paid her any mind, save for a few young men who gave longing gazes. She ignored them and kept walking at a brisk pace. She’d bought a small clutch,as the dress didn’t have pockets, and as she rounded the corner she unzipped the black leather bag and pulled out her phone. Adriana’s memory wasn’t quite photographic, but it was close. And when it came to numbers, she had no trouble remembering sequences, even European ones.
She tapped out the numbers Monique had given her earlier. After three rings, the woman answered. “Yes?”
“I’m going to have to leave Holland a little sooner than planned.”
Four seconds of silence preceded Monique’s response. “That is unfortunate. What will happen to your father?”
“Ran into a little trouble. Need to change plans. There’s another thief after the same painting. She was waiting outside your home. I saw her and started after her, but someone hit me with their car.”
“So that was the noise I heard outside.”
“Yes. I’m okay, thank you for asking.”
“My apologies.”
Adriana walked steadily. Three blocks away, her hotel rose above the residential buildings and shops. “I’m fine. A little banged up,but I’ll be okay. I chased her down and cornered her, but she shot a police officer. Now they’re after both of us.”
The Dutch woman thought silently for a moment before speaking again. “I thought I heard some sirens going by. They’ll be looking for you.”
“Not a problem. I’ve taken care of that. No one will recognize me.”
“I can get you a plane out of the country in the next two hours.”
Adriana appreciated the offer but didn’t need it. “I’m good. I have my own,and my pilot is on standby. You can reach me at this number. I’ll meet you in Mexico. Just give me the rendezvous point, and I’ll be there when you say.”
“I knew you were the right person for the job. You won’t let a little problem with the police get in your way. Very well. I will send you the details about when and where to meet me. If you are late, I will go to the party without you.”
Adriana couldn’t help but feel like the woman was trying to shake her a little. Without her, Monique wouldn’t be able to get the painting she wanted. And if it wasn’t important, she wouldn’t have even brought it up. She had an investment in this too. Monique wouldn’t leave her. At least not without waiting a little while. But this whole thing also relied on good timing.
“When I meet you in Mexico, we’ll need to go over every single detail,” Adriana said. “I want to know the whole layout of the house, the kind of security system Espinoza has in place, how many armed guards, what their rotations and patrols look like, the whole nine yards. Understand?” Her tone was direct,but she wanted the Dutch woman to know she wasn’t screwing around. This wasn’t some shoot-from-the-hip operation. It was real. And the consequences of failure would be painful to say the least.