James Patterson - Blindside

But I decided I had to take the chance. Sorry, Fiore .

CHAPTER 66

CHRISTOPH ALWAYS WOKEbefore his roommate and business partner, Ollie. Even if they were just taking a midday nap. Christoph wondered what would happen if he weren’t around. Would Ollie sleep twenty hours a day, like a house cat?

Often Christoph used the time to work out or run, to counter the effects of all the partying they did. Not today. He woke from his little nap with a brutal headache. He needed something to take the edge off and started to look through the apartment.

Christoph was astounded when he opened the medicine cabinet, looking for aspirin. The cabinet was a stoner’s dream. There were at least twenty ounces of pot organized by different strains. Even the strains were divided between indica and sativa so Ollie would know what would relax him and what would give him energy.

Ollie also had at least six eight-balls of heroin. They all looked to be from the same batch of Brown Sugar.

And on the bottom shelf, Ollie had bottles and bottles of pills.

Christoph smiled. Ollie was nothing like he appeared. He was organized and deliberate, even if he looked like he perpetually just woke up.

Their apartment in Tallinn was nothing special, a two-bedroom with a nice living room. Someone from Henry’s operation had managed to hack into the neighbors’ Wi-Fi and entertainment package so they could stream movies while they were high and watch Blauw-Wit Amsterdam football. The apartment, in Maakri, wasn’t far from either the Olympic Park or Grand Prix Rävala casino, with easy access to bars.

They’d stayed on the American cop after his discussion with the Estonian national policeman, following him with another man in the green Peugeot. They called the plates in to Henry’s people; the tag came back as from some holding company in Latvia. They wondered how to get a better fix on who could be driving the cop around.

Then the weirdest thing happened. They followed the Peugeot to St. Laszlo’s Church in Sikupilli. Bennett and the driver got out and greeted a priest who came out the main door. After a ten-minute wait, Christoph and Ollie saw the driver rush back out of the church, followed by the priest. The driver was clearly furious and jumped into the car. Where was the cop? Had Bennett escaped from this man? The way the man was dressed and acting made it seem like he was some kind of government official.

They had no way to figure out where Bennett had disappeared. They weren’t about to question a priest. Instead, they decided it was time to eat. And then they had come to the apartment. Christoph knew they’d find a way to follow the cop again later.

A text came in from Henry saying he’d need them shortly. With no aspirin in sight, Christoph downed some Vicodin instead. They had to show up to demonstrate to their boss that they were reliable. Even if sometimes they weren’t.

Christoph took a few minutes to gather his stuff. The pistol that had been provided, some extra cash, and a four-inch combat knife he always left at the apartment when they went back to Amsterdam. He liked the feel of a knife in his hand. He also liked the effect it had on people when he questioned them.

Now that he was ready, Christoph knocked on Ollie’s bedroom door. “C’mon, Ollie. We’ve got to earn our pay.”

A minute later, Ollie stepped out of his bedroom dressed in the same clothes he’d worn the day before: an AC/DC concert T-shirt with a hole in it and off-brand blue jeans.

Christoph said, “Why don’t you ever try to dress a little better? At least wear clean clothes.”

Ollie looked placidly at his partner. “It’s my image. I have to sell it. No one expects a sloppy, fat guy like me to be a killer. You, you look like a professional. Tall, handsome. You scare people. I’m an asset when I look like this.”

Christoph saw his point. He said, “Henry’s expecting us. I’m sure he wants us to do something with the cop.”

Ollie said, “I think the American is too risky. He doesn’t look like any kind of pushover. Henry hasn’t offered any bonus for this job, either.”

“Are you saying we should pass on the job?”

“I’m saying, as professionals, we need to evaluate the assignment, not just agree to everything Henry says. If you haven’t noticed, he’s become a little unhinged. He’s into feuds and grudges. He may not be our best choice of employer going forward.”

“Do you want to tell him that now?”

Ollie shook his head. “Let’s see how much trouble the American is first. If we even pick up on his trail again. We need to think about ourselves and our future.”

Christoph realized how much he’d underestimated his partner.

CHAPTER 67

I CROSSED THEstreet in front of the little café. There was no real traffic. Not by New York standards, anyway. A tiny Fiat, a Mini Cooper, and some odd eastern European car whizzed by. They made me feel like a giant.

The building I was walking to was more of an office than a warehouse. It was modern and stood three stories high. The windows were on the small side, making me think it was an older building. No doubt it was solid.

Inside the tiny lobby, I checked the directory. The only business officially listed was a web designer on the top floor. The five other nameplates were blank.

A ground-floor door to the left of the directory was ajar. I looked through the opening but couldn’t see much, so I tentatively touched it and pushed it open. I was trying not to give away my element of surprise, all I had in this situation.

The wide room was about fifty feet long with high ceilings. A catwalk ran around the edges of the room with a few office doors spaced along it. The space looked like it’d been a small factory floor where a boss could walk around and watch the workers below.

The place was empty except for a few desks and tables. I didn’t see anyone around. I slipped all the way inside. When I had stepped about twenty paces from the door, I heard a voice.

“Hello, Mr. Bennett. I’ve been expecting you.” The speaker had a slight accent. It almost sounded Russian, with a hint of Scandinavian.

A man stepped onto the catwalk. It was the same man I’d seen from the café, still in his blue T-shirt and casual slacks. “I thought you’d have been here sooner.”

I said, “You must be Endrik Laar.”

“Please, call me Henry.”

I wasn’t sure what I had expected. The file description had just said white and male. Jennifer Chang had mentioned he was about thirty, on the short side, and a workout buff, but I guess I hadn’t thought of all the variables.

He was shorter than I’d imagined. Maybe five six. He was definitely ripped. The veins in his arms told me he was serious about weights. His whole look screamed steroids. Add in the agitated pacing and I could see why people were afraid of him. Maybe he really was as smart as I’d heard. A mix of smart and crazy was rarely good.

I kept my composure when two men stepped through the doorway near me. They kept walking until they were positioned on either side of me, about a dozen feet away. They didn’t know I had a gun, and I thought I’d save that surprise. Maybe it would teach Henry something as well.

Then a man stepped through a doorway across the room from me. It was the janitor from the last warehouse, Gunnar. That surprised me.

Henry smiled and said, “I didn’t want to take any chances. We thought it would be easier for you to come to us than for us to find you. Gunnar was kind enough to wait for you at our last location and tell you where to go. But then you didn’t show up here right away.”

The gray-haired “janitor” smiled and said, “And by the way, mate, my English is pretty good. I was raised in North Hampton.”