Page 95 of The Nameless Ones

‘Scrupulous firms?’ suggested Frend.

‘I prefer the term “established”.’

‘You would. Where will we meet?’

‘Do you really have to ask?’

‘Let me guess,’ said Frend. ‘Among the nameless ones.’

‘Exactly. I’ll see you there at six a.m. Try not to be late.’

She hung up. Frend immediately emailed Radovan Vuksan, asking for a call back on his most recent number. It came within minutes.

‘I’ll be collecting the documents early tomorrow morning,’ said Frend.

‘Where?’ said Radovan.

‘Outside the city, but the price has gone up.’

‘How much?’

‘One million euros for all three passports, including the agent’s fee.’

The lie came easily to Frend, as all lies did, but he would have need of more money soon. Kauffmann had been right after all, for Frend’s time in Vienna was drawing to a close. Soon he might well have cause to seek her services for himself, and it would be for him to choose a sanctuary in which to live out the rest of his days.

‘Zivco will bring the money,’ said Radovan. ‘I’d also like him to be in attendance for the handover.’

This was a complication Frend would have preferred to avoid. With Zivco Ilic present, Frend’s deceit might be revealed. His intention had been to collect the cash from Ilic, skim the excess, and deliver the rest to Kauffmann as agreed. He couldn’t very well do that with Ilic hovering over him.

‘Why?’ said Frend.

‘While you may be a very good lawyer,’ said Radovan, ‘your experience as a cash-in-transit security guard is limited. This money was difficult to amass, as you’re surely aware, and will be impossible to replace should it be lost or stolen. Plus, Zivco can do the lifting. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen one million euros in fifties, but it equates to almost twenty kilos in a twenty-liter bag.’

Frend couldn’t row back now. He would have to call Kauffmann and inform her that she would be receiving more money than anticipated, some of which was his. If he was lucky, she might only impose a handling charge, or perhaps she might be convinced to take it in lieu of a fee for securing one further passport at a small discount.

‘Does this mean you’ve convinced your brother to leave?’

‘Spiridon’s future does not lie in Europe,’ said Radovan.

‘That’s all very well to say.’

‘Soon,’ said Radovan, ‘he’ll understand.’

Frend poured himself a drink from the minibar before making a call of his own. He was forced to leave a message, as always, but he made it clear that he wasn’t prepared to wait long for a reply or there would be repercussions. His phone rang just as he was making a second drink.

‘I’m not sure that I liked your tone,’ said Teodora Ciric.

Unbeknownst to the Vuksans, the channel of communication between their lawyer and the Serbian liaison officer in Vienna had been open for years, but the benefits to Frend had been minimal – unless one counted staying out of jail, which was, he had to admit, an undeniable boon. Back in 2006, Ciric had presented him with documentary evidence of activities upon which the Austrian authorities might have looked askance, all of them connected to the Vuksans. In return for her silence, Frend was required only to offer occasional updates on the Vuksans’ activities and plans. They were small betrayals, and had not damaged his clients, or so Frend had told himself. But they had accumulated until finally, he now believed, they might have led to the death of Nikola Musulin and the Vuksans’ relegation to the status of quarry.

‘I don’t care if my tone gave you hives,’ said Frend. ‘I’ve been trying to get in touch with you for twenty-four hours. Your actions have endangered my safety. You never told me you were planning to seize the Vuksans’ funds.’

‘If I had, what would you have done? Tried to move some of them, probably, which would have defeated the purpose of the exercise.’

‘I thought we both wanted the same outcome,’ said Frend, ‘which is a peaceful resolution of this crisis. That requires money.’

‘We may both want a resolution,’ said Ciric, ‘but I’ll take permanent over peaceful.’

‘What about Belgrade? I barely escaped from the city with my life.’

---