“I have the October List,” she said. “But not the money.”
“Oh, you do have the money, Mac,” Daniel said.
Gabriela frowned.
Andrew explained, “Daniel’s providing the ransom and paying our fee.”
“What?” She spun to face him.
He nodded.
“I can’t accept that from you.”
Daniel said solemnly, “You can’t afford not to. Not at this point. There’re no options left. We’re not going to find your boss’s hidden treasure in time.”
“But...” She fell silent. Then turned and buried her face against his neck, sobbing. He gripped her hard. Even when she winced and gasped, he continued to hold her; in fact, he clutched her more tightly yet. Inhaled hard against her hair.
Andrew stirred and looked at the clock. “It’s four forty-five. We have an hour and fifteen minutes. How were you going to arrange to give him the list and money?”
“I was going to call him when I had the cash.”
“Okay. Here’s what I want you to do. You’ll call him and tell him you have everything he wants. But you’re not going to meet him. You have a friend who’s helping you with this.”
“You can tell him it’s the man he met yesterday,” Daniel said. “So he won’t think it’s a cop. Give him my name. He will’ve checked me out and knows I’m not a threat.”
Gabriela said firmly, “No. It’s my daughter who’s been kidnapped. I’ll do it.”
“Andrew and I’ll go. Andrew because this’s his business. Me because Joseph knows who I am, and that I’m connected with you.”
“It’s too dangerous. I can’t ask you to do that!”
Andrew added softly, “It’s not as dangerous as it seems. We have leverage. You’re in possession of this list he’s so desperate for, we have the money he wants.”
Daniel added, “And we’ve got that.” His gaze slipped to the plastic CVS pharmacy bag in the corner of the room. Small but impossible to ignore. The dark stains inside were obvious. “It’ll have some evidence that can be traced back to him. He knows that.”
Andrew continued, “Oh, yes, we’ve got some leverage. Not much, but enough, I think. Now, we’ll meet Joseph at six. As for the money... We’ll give him some of what he wants, a show of good faith. And part of the list — to prove we have it. And we’ll insist on seeing your daughter. Not a video or a recording. See her in person.” A broad smile. “Then we’ll agree to have the exchange tomorrow in some public place — the full October List, the rest of the money and the evidence.” He lifted his palms. “For your daughter.”
She nodded slowly.
Daniel said, “Could you call your friend Frank, and get a few names on the list? Or do you still remember the ones you saw?”
“I remember them. Not the addresses, but the cities they’re in.” She wrote these down and handed the slip to Daniel, who read and then pocketed it.
Andrew said, “That’s fine. Joseph’ll check them out, verify they’re real... Now, the money. We’ll give him a portion tonight. Half of what he’s asking is probably enough. It’ll show we’re willing to cooperate.”
Daniel said, “It’s easy enough to get two hundred fifty thousand together.”
Easy for some people, Gabriela reflected.
“Well, are we ready to give our friend Joseph a call?” Andrew asked.
Gabriela stared at the phone for a moment. Daniel leaned close. “You can do it, Mac.”
She looked at him, inhaled and then found the number and dialed.
“Put it on speaker,” the older man instructed.
She hit the button.
A moment later Joseph’s eerie voice came over the line. “Gabriela! Hello, hello! I was worried. The deadline’s getting closer, inching up. And I’m sure you remember what happens when you miss a deadline. Been on any good scavenger hunts recently? Found any good treasures behind Dumpsters?”
“That was the sickest thing anybody’s ever done,” she snapped.
“Oh, I’ll bet we can come up with a few nastier examples if we put our heads together, don’t you agree? But it was delicious, wasn’t it?” Another of his odd giggles.
Gabriela’s jaw trembled. “How’s my daughter?”
“Well, truth be told, she’s a little confused. ‘Where’s Mommy, why doesn’t Mommy call?’ If it’s any consolation she asks for you more than for Daddy Tim. Was he really that bad a husband?”
“Dammit! Answer my question! How’s Sarah?”
“She’s fine.”
“She isn’t fine, and she’ll never be fine thanks to you.”
Joseph said dismissively, “People handle all sorts of trauma and are none the worse for wear. I’m a case in point.”
“I hate you so much.”
“Pity,” he said, that singsong tone again infusing his voice. “If you got to know me, you’d feel different. Now, I notice we’re on speaker. I imagine your good friend Mr. Reardon’s in the room with you now, or somebody else, but not the police because after the excitement this afternoon you’re not going to be strolling into any station houses. At least not voluntarily. My, my, you sure made a name for yourself today, Gabriela. That was quite a mess... Glad you’re not my office manager. Now, who’s your avatar?” He laughed at this comment. “Is it Mr. Reardon?”
Daniel leaned forward. “That’s right.”
“Aka J. P. Morgan. You’re not a cowboy after all. You’re a hotshot venture capitalist. I checked you out. The Norwalk Fund. The article in front of the name’s a little pretentious, but it’s an impressive outfit. Assets of two billion? If I had a retirement account, I’d let you handle it. And still you avoid fracking and unsustainable energy investments? How admirable. Surprised I’d do my homework?”
“Not really.”
Joseph asked, “So, J. P., you’re representing our Gabriela?”
“That’s right.”
“Well, I guess the burden’s on you to deliver the goods then, in a little over an hour. You told me you have the list. How’re we coming with the cold, hard cash?”
Daniel explained their proposal, the partial payment and several entries from the October List so he could check them out, verify they were real. Then a public meeting for the complete exchange.
Joseph paused then said, “I like dealing with Gabriela better. Let me think, let me think... I’m coming down on the side of no.” Offered cheerfully.
Gabriela started to speak, but Andrew calmly gestured her silent. Daniel asked, “What’s your counterproposal?”
“All the money now. Five hundred K.”
“Impossible!” Gabriela blurted.
“Let’s ask little Sarah how she feels about impossibility, should we? Guess what I’ve been up to this afternoon? I’ve been trimming roses. Snip, snip. You know that it helps them grow to cut back nearly to the roots? Imagine that. It—”
“Stop it!” Gabriela turned to Daniel with terrified eyes. He nodded. Leaning forward slightly, he said into the speaker, “Okay. Full payment tonight. Five hundred K. But only three names from the October List. And we see Sarah in person.”
“That’ll work... Only, let me ask something first. Now, tell the truth, Gabriela, the list? You have it in your hot little hands?”