Frost sat for a long moment, motionless: his mind active.
He thought, Jesus! She’s out of her mind! I don’t believe a word she is saying! What the hell have I walked into?
‘Mike!’ Her fingers moved inside his shirt. ‘You can have all the money in the world! Kill him for me! Free me! There’s so much money, Mike. I don’t care for money. All I want is freedom.’
To Frost, her fingers moving over his sweating chest, felt like spider’s legs. Firmly and gently, he pushed her away, shoved back his chair and stood up, looking down at her as she knelt before him.
‘Gina!’ He put a snap in his voice. ‘Pull yourself together! You can’t mean you are asking me to kill your own father!’
She sat back on her heels, and he felt a chill run down his spine as he looked into her eyes. He was now sure she was reefer high.
‘He is old, and utterly sick,’ she said. ‘I am young with my life before me. Kill him for me. Kill him and have whatever you want: all the money in the world.’
Frost moved away, turning his back on her. He had been planning to kidnap her for five million dollars! He needed time to think about this sudden change of scene. Just suppose Grandi died? Would this half-crazy girl really inherit her father’s enormous fortune? Suppose she did? Frost felt his heartbeat quicken. His mind switched to Silk. He was a professional killer. He could wipe Grandi out without complications, but he wouldn’t stay still once he knew he (Frost) could get all the money in the world from this girl.
This was something to think about.
Still, looking out of the window, his back to her, he said, ‘How long will your father stay here?’
‘A week.’
Well, in a week, he would have lots of time to think this thing out. He turned.
‘I don’t promise anything, baby,’ he said, ‘but you can hope.’
‘When?’ She got unsteadily to her feet.
‘Soon. Let me think about it. I go on day duty on Sunday. Can you come here next Thursday night?’
She shook her head.
‘Wednesday. My father and Amando are having a business conference with other men at nine. I can come then.’
‘Then Wednesday?’
‘Please, please free me, Mike,’ then turning, she left the cabin.
Frost felt cold sweat run down his face. He stood at the window and watched her dart into the shrubs.
After two hours on the beach, and after a swim, Frost got in the T.R.7 and drove to the Ace of Spades. He arrived at 17.20, the graveyard time when the staff took time off, the parking lot was empty and activity was down to zero.
As he walked into the deserted restaurant, Ross Umney, sitting at a table, checking the lunch receipts, stood up.
‘Hi, Mike!’ His wide, charming smile was in evidence. ‘Didn’t expect to see you so early.’
‘I’ve things to talk about,’ Frost said curtly. ‘Where’s Silk?’
‘Playing gin with Mitch. Let’s go.’
Umney led Frost to the room above the swimming pool.
Silk and Goble were at the table by the big window. There was a side table by Goble’s side containing cream buns and a big pot of tea. As Umney and Frost entered, Silk said, ‘Gin,’ and Goble threw down his cards, cursing.
Silk looked up, stared at Frost, and raised his eyebrows.
‘Let’s talk,’ Frost said, and took a lounging chair away from the table.
‘About what?’ Silk gathered up the cards, looked at Goble, said, ‘You owe me fifty bucks.’
‘As if you would forget,’ Goble said and stuffed a cream bun into his mouth.
‘Let’s talk,’ Frost said impatiently. ‘Cut the crap. We’re in business, aren’t we?’
Silk got to his feet, wandered over to an armchair near Frost and sat down.
‘So?’
Goble reached for another cream bun, hesitated, then got up, and sat in a chair by Silk. Umney took the remaining chair.
‘So, okay,’ Frost said. ‘I’ve got the problems fixed, so we snatch the girl.’
Silk smiled.
‘That’s good news.’ He looked at Goble, then at Umney. ‘I told you Mike was smart.’
‘That’s what you told us,’ Goble said, his hard little eyes on Frost. ‘So let’s hear how smart he is.’
Silk turned to Frost.
‘Go ahead. We want to know how you will dope Amando, Marvin and the girl. We want to know how you fix the dogs and neutralise the fence. Go ahead.’
Frost lit a cigarette as he stared at Silk.
‘You talk first. I’m telling you I have these problems fixed, but I’m not telling you until you tell me just how you guarantee me five million dollars. I don’t go further until I know.’
Goble said, ‘A real sonofabitch. I warned you, Lu.’
Frost moved swiftly out of his chair, caught hold of Goble’s shirtfront, heaved him to his feet, then giving him a violent shove, sent him staggering across the room.
‘Call me that again, you fat slob,’ Frost snarled in his cop voice, ‘and I’ll knock your teeth through the back of your larded neck!’
A gun jumped into Goble’s hand.
‘Mitch!’ Silk’s voice was quiet and deadly.
Goble glared at Frost, then put away the gun.
Silk went on, ‘You spoke out of turn, Mitch.’
Goble hesitated, then nodded. He walked slowly back to his chair and sat down.
‘I apologise, Mike,’ he said.
Frost smiled at him.
‘Fine. No problem,’ and he sat down. Then he looked at Silk. ‘Are we in business or do I walk out and forget the whole thing? I’m asking how you can guarantee — I repeat guarantee — that I get my rake off and it remains safe.’
‘If I tell you that,’ Silk said quietly, ‘are you in with us?’
‘I’m in with you if you convince me.’
‘Don’t rush it. I’ll convince you, but once I’ve told you, there is no way out. You come in with us or I’ll kill you.’
Unless I kill you first, Frost thought, his face expressionless. He said, ‘You don’t have to spell it out. You convince me my money is guaranteed, and I’m in.’
Silk nodded
‘Once we get the girl, this is the sweetest snatch you can imagine. There will be no blow back. Hear me? No possible blow back.’
Frost flicked ash off his cigarette.
‘Come on! You are going to murder Marvin. The cops here are smart. There is a chance of a blow back. Don’t kid yourself that as soon as Grandi gets his daughter back, he won’t turn on the heat.’
‘Marvin doesn’t get killed, and Grandi won’t turn on the heat,’ Silk said.
Frost stiffened, staring at Silk.
‘That’s why this snatch is so sweet,’ Silk said. ‘When I told you Marvin would disappear for good, I wanted to test your nerve. I wanted to be sure you would go along with a killing. There will be no killing, but I do know now that you would go along if there was a killing. That told me I had picked the right man. You can relax, Marvin will just be drugged.’
Frost slowly shook his head.
‘Then the heat comes back to me. You said the heat would be on Marvin.’
‘I said that, but it was a test. I wanted your reaction.’ Silk leaned forward, his one eye glittering. ‘There will be no heat... no heat at all. No cops... no nothing. The money will be paid, and the girl handed back. This I guarantee.’
Frost looked at Goble, then Umney, then back to Silk.
‘Keep talking,’ he said.
‘I told you Ross can get information out of an oyster, and he can. When that flat-footed attempt was made to snatch the girl in Rome, I thought I would have a try. Mitch said no way after casing the security, but I kept thinking. So I sent Ross to Rome. He came up with information, but Mitch said no way because the girl was too well guarded. So I thought around and Marcia came up with you... the inside man. You tell me you have solved the problems of getting at the girl. I tell you, with your information, plus Ross’s information, we have the sweetest snatch in the world.’