Page 39 of Greed
Lilo’s body shook in his arms as she gasped in shuddering breaths.
“It’s his ear,” she sobbed, gingerly pointing at a box on her desk. “It’s my father’s.”
The simple black glossy box looked like a gift. A red satin ribbon had secured the lid, but now lay in a discarded stream. Inside the box, sitting on white tissue paper stained with old blood was a jagged carved human ear. A single crystal animal hanging from it.
“Hun, are you sure? How can you tell?” An older woman with blue hair asked.
Lilo pulled back enough from Griffin so she could look at the blue-haired lady, but kept herself cocooned in his arms.
“It’s the figurine. It used to be mine, but I threw it at my father when I left them. Bev, it’s his, I know it.”
“Oy vey,” Bev replied under her breath. “Who would send that here?”
Even though it pinched his healing wound, Griffin’s grip around Lilo tightened, as if he could keep her from falling apart with the strength of his arms.
“There’s a note,” Griffin said, eyeing off the small hard square of card poking out from behind the tissue paper.
“What’s it say?” someone asked.
Increasingly aware of too many eyes watching, Griffin turned to the gawping co-workers. “Show’s over. Every one take a break,” he growled and made a shoo sign with his hand. “Go home early. We’ve got this.”
Most of the workers reluctantly left, slowly filtering back to their desks or leaving the office completely. Griffin wished Doppenger had followed suit, but he hung around like a bad smell. Bev was also there, clutching what looked like a dumb-bell as though it were a security blanket.
“Where’s Fred?” Griffin asked.
“Gone home for the day,” Bev replied. “Should I call him back?”
“No. I’ll sort it out.”
“I can’t.” Lilo clutched Griffin and refused to look back at the box. He moved to collect the note, but Doppenger got there first.
“If you want to see your father alive,” Doppenger read, “deliver the contents of his safe by seven Wednesday night. No police, or the next gift will be a head.”
Under the instructions was an address. Somewhere in the industrial center in the South-Side.
“This is my fault,” Lilo cried. “I should have tried to save them a long time ago, but I left. Instead I wanted nothing to do with them. If I had stayed and tried to make them see how bad their choices were, this wouldn’t be happening. I’m a coward. This is all my fault.”
“Someone else’s greed is never your fault, Lilo.” Griffin flexed his grip on Lilo.
“You should take the money to them, Lilo.” Doppenger pointed at the note. “It’s how these things work.”
“No. You should leave this to the authorities,” Griffin replied. It would also mean Liza could intercept and stall the investigation while he went to the rendezvous as Greed. He’d have better luck rescuing Lilo’s father on his own. Without the police, without rules, and without Lilo there to see if things went sideways.
Doppenger scoffed. “When do the police ever do anything on time?”
“I have to do it.” Lilo pulled away from Griffin and took the note. “Besides, it says no police. I know I can do this. I can get what they need, then give it to them. That’s all they want. It should be simple.”
“Dealing with criminals is never simple,” Griffin pointed out.
“I’ll go with you, Lilo.” Doppenger lifted the lid on the black box and reset it to cover the gruesome sight. “I’m not afraid of a little ransom situation.”
“I vote police,” Bev added.
“No. I have to do this,” Lilo insisted. “It’s the best option.”
“Lilo.” Griffin pulled Lilo a few meters from Doppenger to whisper, “It’s not safe.”
“I have my cattle prod. I have my spy camera. I’m doing this, I can blow the whistle on them,” she replied, wiping her eyes. “The pen is mightier than the sword. Thank you for your concern, really, I-I can’t tell you how much it means to me. But I need to do this. I have to see it through.”
