destruction, he hoped.
Luther pulled the letter out of his pocket. He would arrange for her to
receive it right about the time she’d be expecting the last set of
instructions. The payoff. She would get her payoff. They all would. It
was worth it, letting her squirm like he knew she had all this time.
No matter how often he tried he couldn’t erase the memory of the woman’s
leisurely sexual encounter in the presence of a still warm body, as
though the dead woman was a pile of trash, not to be bothered with. And
then Richmond.
The drunken, slobbering bastard! Again the visions made Luther seethe.
He clenched his teeth, then abruptly smiled.
Whatever deal Jack could cut him he would take. Twenty years, ten years,
ten days. He didn’t care anymore. Fuck the President and everybody
around him. Fuck the whole town, he was taking them down.
But first he was going to spend some time with his daughter. After that
he really didn’t care anymore.
As he walked over to the bed, Luther’s body took a jolt.
Something else had just occurred to him. Something that hurt, but which
he could understand. He sat on the bed and sipped a glass of water. If
it were’true could he really blame her? And besides, he could just kill
two birds with one stone.
As he lay back on the bed, it occurred to him that things that looked
too good to be true usually were. Did he deserve any better from her?
The answer was absolutely clear. He did not.
WHEN THE MONEY TRANSFER HAD REACHED DisTRict BANK, automatic prewire
instructions kicked in and the funds were immediately transferred out of
the account to five different area banks, each in the amount of one
million dollars. From there the funds followed a circuitous route until
the total sum was once again assembled in one place.
Russell, who had put a tracer on the flow of money from her end, would
find out soon enough what had happened.
She would not be particularly pleased about it. She would be far less
pleased about the next message she received.
THE CAFt ALONZO HAD BEEN OPEN ABOUT A YEAR. IT HAD the usual array of
outdoor tables with colorful umbrellas in a small space on the sidewalk
enclosed by a waist-high black iron railing. The coffee was varied and
strong; the on-premises bakery was popular among the morning and lunch
crowds. At five minutes to four only one person sat at the outdoor
table. In the chilly air the umbrellas were collapsed down resembling a
column of giant drinking straws.
The cafe was located in the ground floor of a modern office building.
Two stories up hung a scaffolding. Three workers were replacing a glass
panel that had cracked. The entire facade of the building consisted of
mirrored panels that gave a complete image of the area directly opposite
it.
The panel was heavy and even the burly men struggled with the weight and
bulk.
Kate bundled her coat around her and sipped her coffee.
The afternoon sun was warming in spite of the chill, but it was fading
rapidly. Long shadows had commenced to creep over the tables. She felt
the rawness in her eyes as she squinted at the sun suspended directly
over the tops of a number of dilapidated row houses that sat diagonally
across the street from the caM. They were destined for demolition to
make room for the continued renovation of the area. She did not notice
that the upper-story window on one of the row houses was now open. The
row house next door had two windows smashed out. The front door on
another was partially caved in.
Kate looked at her watch. She had been sitting there for approximately
twenty minutes. Used to the frenetic pace of the prosecutor’s office,
the day had dragged interminably.
She had no doubt there were dozens of police officers in the vicinity
waiting to pounce once he walked up to her. Then she thought about it.
Would they even have a chance to say anything to each other? What the
hell could she say anyway?
Hi Dad, you’re busted? She rubbed her raw cheeks and waited. He would