Page 31 of Hard Luck (Blackstone House)

“Two hundred thousand plus in arrears, but we don’t have information on the principal yet. There’s no paperwork.”

“No kidding. Look, I’m flying back next week to do some work for a long-term client, and I can take a look at your case while I’m there. Does that work?”

“Can you come any sooner?”

Her voice took on an edge of suspicion. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”

It was a fair question, and I would have been disappointed if she hadn’t picked up on the issue. A simple loan-sharking problem could easily have waited a few more days.

“It’s possible Jimmy escalated out of threat territory.”

“As in, he sent a bunch of heavies over?”

“Four of them.”

“Is your ‘acquaintance’ okay?”

Her emphasis on the word “acquaintance” told me she was reading far more into the situation than was necessary, but I let it slide. Let her assumptions add a sense of urgency.

“He’s blissfully unaware. I assumed the heavies were there for me and took care of the problem.”

“Uh, are they likely to come back?”

“Those particular assholes? No. But I wouldn’t rule out a different bunch of thugs showing up. You’ll need to tread carefully. I just need a positive ID for Jimmy, and we can take care of the rest.”

A long moment ticked by, and I feared Ari would pass on the job. She had a new life in California now. Zach had fallen into the role of stepdad to her daughter, and I heard her grandma had moved to the West Coast too.

But finally, she spoke. “I’ll have to check with Zach and Nana, but I should be able to fly out on Thursday morning.”

The day after tomorrow. “I’ll reserve a room for you at the Galaxy. Alexa can help with research, and if you need any specialist support, we can facilitate that.”

“Specialist support?”

“Use your imagination.”

“I’m not sure I want to.”

“That’s up to you. I’ll send you an email address for the initial invoice, and we’ll pull together the information we have so far.”

“Did you identify any of the four, uh, visitors?”

“One was a local guy, ID’d through fingerprints. Shane Wallins. Used to work for the Sad Hatter.”

“The coke dealer?”

“Right. And one of the guns was reported stolen in Boise a couple of years ago, so there could be a connection there. Or possibly farther afield. We ran DNA on all four of the shitbirds, and we believe two of them are from out of town. Way out of town. As in, Russia.”

A hesitation. “Russia?”

“Don’t worry; I’m not asking you to go head-to-head with the Bratva. If there’s any confrontation required, I’ll handle that myself. All I want you to do is identify Jimmy and ideally find a location for him. Jimmy isn’t even a Russian name, so the Russians were probably rent-a-thugs.”

“Is there a starting point?”

“Cole mentioned that Jimmy’s first and second appearances were at the Galaxy, so maybe he’ll show up there again. And we’ll install cameras at his house.”

“When you say ‘we’…”

“I’ll do it.”

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