Page 94 of In Too Deep

She stopped. “What?”

“Your Walther. Drop it and kick it away.”

Chapter35

Paris returned a couple ofminutes later. She had a folded newspaper under her arm and she was carrying a tiny glass jar and a teaspoon. She said, “This had jam in it. From the snack counter. I washed it.”

Kane said, “Fill it.”

Paris took a deep breath, stooped down, scooped three spoonfuls of Vidic’s blood into the jar, then screwed on the lid. She handed it to Kane. “You say gross things but it’s an act, isn’t it? It has been all along.”

Kane shrugged. “You started it. I played along. You thought I was big and dumb. You were only half right.”

“Then be honest. You’re not taking me to Andros. You’re going to kill me here. No roll in the hay is worth twenty-eight million dollars.”

“I could take you there and have you and the money.”

Paris didn’t reply.

“But no, you’re right.” Kane raised his gun. “You’re not coming.”

“Wait.” Paris pointed to the crates in the cage. “What if I could get you double that? Maybe more?”

“I’m listening.”

Paris unbuttoned her blouse, lifted the hem, gripped it in her teeth, and pulled. She made a hole in the stitching and worked an object out through it. A memory stick. She passed it to Kane.

“What’s this?”

“A copy of the report. Exactly the same as the one Vidic had. I duplicated it in case the plan changed on the fly and I had to make the exchange.”

“You said it couldn’t be copied. Like NFTs, or whatever.”

“We lied. Techno bullshit. We just made it look that way. We were bound to get found out eventually. But people didn’t have to believe it forever. Just long enough to write the check. And with this report, exclusivity isn’t such a big deal. Loads of countries out there want it. I have Vidic’s contacts. You could sell it again. Multiple times, if you want.”

“So now I have the copy, why do I need you?”

“Because you can’t open it. So you need to let me go. When I’m safe, I’ll text you the password.”

“That could work, I guess. The file is the same as Vidic’s? Exactly the same?”

“It is.”

“In every way?”

Paris nodded her head.

“Including the password?”

Paris frowned.

Kane smiled. He raised Ivan’s phone and said, “Oops.”

—

Reacher spotted thelandscaping van the moment their Uber pulled up outside the hangar. He made it immediately as the FBI surveillance vehicle. But unlike Vidic, he made no effort to avoid being seen. The Bureau guys were going to get involved at some point. He saw no reason to stand in the way of the inevitable.

The reception area was deserted when Reacher stepped inside. Knight followed. She looped around and checked behind the desk. Reacher opened the door to the hangar and even before he went through he could smell the blood. He stepped inside. Saw the scale. The broken-down plane. The freight cages. And two bodies. Vidic’s. And Paris’s. He crossed to take a closer look and saw both of them had been shot in the head. Once each with a small-caliber weapon. Knight stayed in the doorway. She said, “Reacher. That’s a crime scene. Be careful. The agents from the van will be here any second.”

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