Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 106090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 530(@200wpm)___ 424(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Liam
The interviews take forever. We tell our story three times each, to three different officers, in three different rooms that all smell like stale coffee and industrial cleaner. I stick to the edited version—kidnapped by Marlena Kade, held captive, escaped. I leave out certain details. The Snowflake Diamond currently tucked in Hailey’s pocket, for instance. The fact that we stole it in the first place. Minor omissions.
The RCMP are skeptical at first. Can’t blame them. A wealthy collector kidnapping three Americans in the Canadian wilderness sounds insane. Michelle backs us up with what she knows—the distress signal she flagged a week ago, three beaten strangers on her doorstep, armed mercenaries who followed them to her station and opened fire. She doesn’t know the full story, but she doesn’t need to. The avalanche site. The siege at her station. The bodies of Marlena’s guards scattered across the snow.
They start taking it seriously after that.
“We’ll issue warrants,” the lead investigator tells us. She’s a no-nonsense woman in her fifties with steel-gray hair and tired eyes. “But Ms. Kade has resources. Private jets, offshore accounts, properties in countries without extradition treaties. She could be anywhere by now.”
True. Marlena’s gone to ground, disappeared into whatever bolt-hole she prepared for exactly this scenario. A woman like her always has contingencies. I wonder if losing the diamond will eat at her, if she’ll come back to finish what she started. Part of me hopes she does. Part of me knows better than to feel safe yet.
During a break between interviews, I step outside to clear my head. My phone—recovered from the cabin, miraculously still functional despite everything—buzzes in my pocket.
Unknown number.
I answer cautiously. “Yes?”
“Mr. Calloway.” A man. Russian accent, soft but with an undercurrent that makes the hair on my neck stand up. “My name is Viktor Kedrov. But you already know that, don’t you? I believe you owe me a diamond.”
I freeze.
Viktor Kedrov. The original owner. The man we stole from five years ago. The reason Hailey and I have been running ever since.
“The Snowflake Diamond,” he continues, almost conversational. “My diamond. I’ve been tracking it for five years, Mr. Calloway. When Marlena Kade began her hunt for you and Ms. Parker, my people took notice. I’ve been watching this entire situation unfold with great interest.”
My mind races through the implications. He knows where we are. He knows what happened. He’s probably known every step of the way, was just waiting for the right moment to make contact.
“Hold on,” I say. “I’m putting you on speaker. My partners need to hear this.”
I head back inside and find Knox and Hailey in the station’s small cafeteria, sitting at a plastic table with cups of terrible coffee neither of them is drinking. Hailey looks up when I walk in, and something in my expression must tip her off because her whole body goes tense.
I set the phone on the table between us and tap the speaker icon. “Go ahead. They’re listening.”
“Excellent,” Viktor says. “Then I won’t have to repeat myself. I have a proposal for you. Give me back the diamond and I let the three of you live. But that’s not all I want. Marlena Kade has become a thorn in my side for reasons that don’t concern you. I want information. Tell me where she’ll go, who she’ll contact, how she’ll try to move the pieces she’s stolen. In exchange, I’ll ensure your safety. My people will deal with Ms. Kade, and you three will never hear from me again.”
Knox stiffens. Hailey’s gone very still.
“And if we refuse?” I ask.
His laugh is soft. Chilling. “Then I assume you’re working with Marlena. Accomplices. And I treat you accordingly.” A pause. “Mr. Calloway, I am not an unreasonable man. But I am also not a forgiving one. My diamond was stolen. I want it back. Other priceless items have been taken by Ms. Kade over the years—items that belonged to associates of mine. I want them back as well. Help me retrieve them all, and we part as . . . not friends, certainly. But not enemies either.”
“How do we know you’ll keep your word?” Knox cuts in.
“You don’t,” Viktor says. “But consider the alternative. Marlena has resources, but she cannot hide forever. Neither can you. Eventually, one of us will find you. I prefer we reach an accommodation now, while you still have something to offer.”
“We need a minute,” Hailey says.
“Five minutes,” Viktor agrees. “I’ll call again.”
The line goes dead.
We stare at each other across the table.
“It’s another trap,” Knox says immediately. He’s already positioning himself between me and the door.
“Maybe,” I say. “But Viktor’s different from Marlena. He’s old school. Russian mob ties going back decades. Men like him operate on a code. If he says he’ll let us go in exchange for information, he might actually mean it.”