“But-2′
“But somebody did. I know that.” He swallowed most of his drink. Russell
thought about mixing herself one, but decided against it.
He looked at her. “Walter Sullivan. That sonofabitch.
Richmond told him, right?”
Russell nodded. “You think Sullivan was behind this?”
“Who the fuck else could it be? He thinks the guy killed his wife. He
has the money to hire the best shooters in the world. He was the only
other person who knew exactly where it was going down.” He looked at her
and shook his head in disgust. “Don’t be stupid, lady, we don’t have
time for stupid.”
Burton stood up and paced.
Russell’s thoughts went back to the TV. “But the man’s in custody. He’ll
tell the police everything. I thought it was them at the door.”
Burton stopped pacing. “The guy’s going to say nothing to the police. At
least for now.”
“What are you talking about911
“I’m talking about a man who will do anything so his little girl can
keep on living.”
“You, you threatened him?”
“I got my message across real clear.”
“How do you know?”
“Eyes don’t lie, lady. He knows the game. Talk and his daughter goes
bye-bye.”
“You, you wouldn’t really–2′
Burton reached down and grabbed the Chief of Staff, effortlessly lifting
her off the floor and holding her in midair so she was eye-level.
“I will kill any fucking person who is in a position to fuck with me, do
youunderstand that?” His tone was chilling. He threw her back into the
chair.
She stared up at him, the blood gone from her face, her eyes filled with
terror.
Burton’s face was crimson with fury. “You were the one who got me into
this. I wanted to call the cops right from the get-go. I did my job.
Maybe I killed the woman, but there ain’t a jury in the world that
would’ve found me guilty. But you sucker- . punched me, lady, with all
your global disaster talk and bullshit concern for the President, and
stupid me, I fell for it. And right now I’m about one step away from
pissing away twenty years of my life and I’m not happy about it.
If you can’t understand that, tough.”
They sat without speaking for several minutes. Burton cradled his glass
and studied the carpet, thinking intently. Russell kept one eye on him
as she tried to stop shaking. She could not bring herself to tell Burton
about the note she had received. What good would it do? For all she
knew Bill Burton would pull out his gun and shoot her on the spot. The
thought of violent death so close to her made her blood turn to ice.
Russell managed to sit back in her chair. A clock ticked in the
background; it seemed to be counting down the last remaining moments of
her life.
“You’re sure he won’t say anything?” She looked at Burton.
“I’m not sure of anything.”
“But you said–2′
“I said the guy will do anything to make sure his little girl doesn’t
get herself killed. If he takes that threat away, then we’ll be waking
up the next few years staring at the bottom of a bunk bed.”
“But how can he take that threat away?”
“If I knew the answer to that, I wouldn’t be so worried.
But I can guarantee you that Luther Whitney is sitting in his cell block
right now thinking of precisely how to do that.”
“What can we do?”
He grabbed his coat and pulled her up roughly. “Come on, it’s time to
talk to Richmond.”
JACK SHUFFLED THROUGH HIS NOTES AND THEN LOOKED around the conference
table. His transaction team consisted of four associates, three
paralegals and two partners. Jack’s coup with Sullivan had spread
throughout the firm. Each of them looked at Jack with a mixture of awe,
respect and a little fear.
“Sam, you’ll coordinate the raw materials sales through Kiev. Our guy
over there is a real hustler, plays close to the edge; keep an eye on
him, but let him run with things.”
Sam, a ten-year partner, snapped his briefcase shut. “You got it.”
“Ben, I checked your report on the lobbying efforts. I agree, I think we