Page 44 of She Saw What He Did

The phone went dead, and Sparrow stared at it.

Maybe they’d refuse. What would he do then?

Keep a cool head, he told himself. Keep your nerve. He laughed mirthlessly. That was easier said than done.

*

Luke Herman stared at his vibrating phone and clenched his fist.

‘I have to take this call, Monica. Would you mind,’ he said, gesturing to the door.

His secretary nodded.

‘Of course,’ said Monica, rising from her seat.

He waited until the door closed before picking up the phone.

‘What the hell are you doing phoning me here?’ he demanded.

‘We’ve got a small hiccup,’ said Marcus, his breathing laboured.

‘Are you okay?’ asked Herman.

‘It’s my ulcer.’

‘You ought to get that seen to.’

‘Sparrow wants half up front.’

Herman gave a half smile. He’d been expecting that. The bastard wasn’t as dim as Herman had at first thought.

‘Do we pay him?’

‘Sure,’ said Herman, casually scrolling through his emails. ‘He wants cash I take it?’

‘That’s what he said. Mind you, he’s in no position to bargain.’

‘Give him twenty thousand,’ said Herman.

‘But …’

‘It’s not worth the hassle,’ said Herman.

‘Twenty thousand wasted,’ grumbled Marcus.

‘Cheap at the price,’ said Herman.

Marcus hung up and Herman ran his hands tiredly through his hair. It was all supposed to have been smooth. Sparrow should never have been involved. He was a fool who couldn’t even take care of a small box without stupidly hiding it in a rock where anyone could find it. Still, so far, they were clean. That’s how he intended it to stay. If it all went wrong, they’d never be able to trace any of it back to him.

*

They entered the cafeteria to sounds of laughter. Colin Weis led Ellen to a table.

‘Lasagne is the dish of the day,’ he said.

Ellen brushed some crumbs from the table and soaked up some spilt ketchup with a tissue.

‘Just a cup of tea for me,’ she said.

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