Page 32 of In Too Deep

Vidic glared back. “Maybe this whole thing with the Feds will be a false alarm. Maybe we’ll need this place again. And anyway, don’t tell me what to do.”

Paris held the door then Vidic led the way to the back of his Jeep. She opened the tailgate for him. He dropped the trash onto the load bed floor, checked that no one had followed them outside, and said,“I’ve been thinking about the house. Are you sure someone was watching it?”

Paris said, “Certain. Why?”

Vidic shrugged. “The timing seems off. It’s too soon for the Feds. And I can’t see who else it could be.”

“Too soon? How? If they have an agent missing…”

“Think about it. Gibson died yesterday. He could only have missed one contact, maximum. There could be all kinds of reasons for going dark like that. The Feds wouldn’t send backup immediately. What if Gibson changed his routine because he thought Fletcher was onto him? He could be lying low deliberately. And if Fletcher was already suspicious and then spotted a bunch of strangers running surveillance, that could blow Gibson’s cover. There must be some kind of emergency procedure they would go to. Alternative contact arrangements to try. No one would show up, physically, for a couple of days, surely.”

“I guess. Don’t ask me. How would I know? All I know is that the house was being watched.”

“How many people were watching it?”

“I didn’t see any people.”

“What kind of vehicle were they using? Or was there more than one?”

“I didn’t see a vehicle.”

“I don’t understand. If you didn’t see any people, and you didn’t see any vehicles, how can you be certain anyone was watching?”

“I could feel it.”

“Are you serious? That’s all you have? A feeling?”

“Don’t question me. I know what I felt. Someone was watching. It’s a fact.”

Vidic couldn’t keep a smile from spreading across his face. “If you say so.”

“Don’t laugh at me. This is serious. What if they do more than watch? What if they break in? Find the ledger?”

“The ledger’s hidden, right?”

“Right.”

“And you wrote it in code.”

“I did.”

“So if somebody broke in, they wouldn’t find it. And even if they did find it, they couldn’t read it.”

“I guess. And by the end of the afternoon Fletcher’s going to burn the place down, right? So I’m probably worrying over nothing.”

Vidic looked away. The house was going to burn. That was for sure. Only the fire wasn’t going to be set by Fletcher. He said, “You are worrying over nothing. And there’s something more important than the ledger, anyway. The phosphorus. Did you get it?”

Paris covered her mouth with her hand. “Oh my God. I totally forgot. I did get it. Yes. But I left it at the house, too.”

“Whereabouts?”

“In its container. It’s full of water. I checked. But the container is glass so I left the thing in its crate full of sand to make sure it didn’t break.”

“Where’s the crate?”

“In the closet in my bathroom. Under a bunch of towels.”

Vidic smiled. “Excellent. Then we have no problem at all. Trust me. By the end of the afternoon we’ll be free and clear. And we won’t be leaving empty-handed. We’re taking Fletcher’s two mil.”

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