James Patterson - Blindside

Son of a bitch, Henry had already made me feel stupid.

This was not the first impression I had wanted to make.

CHAPTER 68

STARING UP ATthe master cybercriminal standing on the catwalk, my mind raced. Even with the surprises Henry was throwing at me, I tried not to show what I was thinking. It was time to get some answers. I decided to treat our conversation like any other interview: start with easy questions, then move on to the hard ones. Simple.

I said, “How’d you know I was in Estonia?”

Henry gave me a laugh that sounded fake. Practiced. “We break corporate security systems. Did you really think we couldn’t clone the mayor’s phone and hack his email? I’ve known everything you were going to do. I even know the nasty name the NYPD calls the mayor. And, by the way, so does he. Shame on you. LFP indeed.” He wagged his finger at me.

I no longer thought of the mayor as a little fat prick . Now I realized there were too many people fitting that description. Take out the fat and Henry was at the top of the list at the moment.

I said, “I’m impressed you could hack the mayor of New York’s phone without being detected. It’s really quite clever.” I chose my words carefully. To Henry, clever would be an insult.

Henry said, “It seems I can do whatever I want and the authorities will never catch me. It’s almost not fun anymore.” He flexed his arms when he moved. It must’ve impressed someone at some time.

I laughed aloud. And it wasn’t practiced. It was a sincere chuckle.

“And what’s so amusing?”

I made sure to look Henry in the eye. “If I had a dollar for every half-assed crook who said something like that, I could retire.”

“I can assure you, there is nothing half-assed about me.”

“If you have to tell people, that means you probably are half-assed. It’s sort of like when you have to tell people you’re in charge. That means you’re probably not.” That little comment would get under his skin, too.

Henry was silent for a moment. Finally he said, “I’ve read about the great homicide detective. The newspapers say you never give up.”

I didn’t know where this conversation was leading, but it wasn’t going anywhere good. I stole a quick look at the men on either side of me. They were both young and fit. They didn’t look like computer programmers. One of the men had a blue teardrop tattoo near his right eye. The other was tall and sleek. His shirt almost looked like a uniform with his broad shoulders and narrow waist. He was ready for action right now. I also knew if I went for one, the other would be able to strike me from behind. I didn’t think it was time to pull my pistol.

I looked up at Henry and said, “It’s true I’m not known for giving up. But I’ll make you a deal right now.” I noticed how our voices echoed in the wide, open room.

“I’m intrigued. Please, go ahead.”

“If you give me Natalie right now, I’ll leave and you’ll never hear from me again. I won’t say a word to any law enforcement entity. All I want is to bring the girl back to her parents.”

“And you leave Estonia?”

“Tonight. I already have a flight.”

Henry chuckled and clapped his hands together. I was starting to wonder if this asswipe believed he was some sort of super villain from a James Bond movie.

Henry said, “Ah, the great savior. I’m afraid you’re too late to save Natalie from a life of crime and return her to her loving parents.”

My heart sank. Had this asshole killed her? I stood there in stunned silence. I considered pulling my pistol right then.

It would’ve been a pleasure to show this arrogant prick how smart he really was.

CHAPTER 69

I STILL HADN’Tsaid another word, but the way I’d turned my body must’ve alerted Henry’s hired thugs. Gunnar and the other two changed positions slightly and looked like they were ready to jump me.

The one with the teardrop tattoo worried me. At least in the US you had to earn that particular tattoo. And it wasn’t from winning a softball tournament. He wouldn’t hesitate to pull the trigger.

Then a thought flashed through my head. If I was going to die anyway, maybe I really should dispense a little street justice . I wasn’t sure what my grandfather would say about something like that. And I knew it wasn’t what Jesus would’ve done, but he was a pretty high standard to live up to.

I calculated the shot. There would be no time to aim carefully with the pistol. And it was a pistol I was unfamiliar with. But I reckoned it could be done. I’d have to tune out all the others. That meant I’d be plugged a dozen times before I fired five shots.

The alternative was to do nothing and get plugged only once later, while kneeling. Either way, the outcome wasn’t what I would have preferred. But by shooting Henry now, I might help another girl in the future.

I said a silent prayer. I said to Maeve: Keep watching over the kids .

Then a door on the catwalk, to the right of Henry, opened. A young woman walked out. She was in a simple dress with a heavy wool sweater. Her light-brown hair was now cut short. She wore stylish, wide-framed glasses.

It was a new look, but after a moment I recognized her: Natalie Lunden.

I turned my attention back to Henry and said, “What kind of asshole plays a game like that?”

He grinned.

Natalie spoke up. “I wasn’t forced here. No one made me leave New York and come to Tallinn. I even paid for my own airline ticket. There’s no reason for you to worry about me or cause problems here.”

Her voice was steady and calm. She still sounded like a young person, but she didn’t sound nervous or under duress.

I thought of the photo her father had on the wall of his office. She wore a little dress and was about five or six years old, smiling from ear to ear, holding the mayor’s hand. What had happened?

I said, “Your dad and mom are worried sick about you.” That had the effect I wanted. She looked stricken. Then I threw in, “Why haven’t you called them?”

She took a moment, then her brown eyes settled on me. “I wouldn’t bother my father about anything. He’s too tied up trying to save the world and raise his new sons. But I don’t want my mom to worry. I’ve thought about calling her, but I can’t risk exposing our operation. We still have a lot of work to do. I’ll figure a way to get a message to her tonight.”

Damned if she didn’t sound sincere. I was starting to think I’d wasted a trip. I hoped I hadn’t wasted my life. I wasn’t here to compel someone to return to the US. I was here to save a girl I thought had been forced into doing something she didn’t want to do. I knew she was smart, but I’d still been worried about her.

When she put her arm around Henry’s waist, then dropped her head to his shoulder, I understood the situation.

The door behind me opened and closed again. I turned and watched an odd pair of men strut toward the center of the room. One was tall with neat, blond hair. The other looked like a character actor in a cheap stoner movie. His stringy, dark hair spread out over his shoulders. The T-shirt from an AC/DC concert drooped over his belly like an awning.

Henry stepped up to the railing and leaned over it. He was clearly annoyed. He said, “Finally Ollie and Christoph have decided to grace us with their presence. And they never completed their assignment. I had to do it for them.”

The slovenly man smiled and said, “Thanks, Henry. It’s nice to get a little help once in a while.”

I didn’t try to hide my smile. I liked a radical, no matter who he worked for. Radicals tended to make life more interesting. It was the kind of comment I might have made. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that I knew this guy. At least I knew I’d seen him.