Page 126 of Forging Caine

“Parker can rot in jail.” Two stretchers wheeled into the Basquiat room beyond the garden room.

“He probably will. But there’s a lot of loyalty in that kid.”

“Kid?” I snorted. “He’s the same age as me.”

“We are what our experiences make us.” Cryptic answer. That was more like the Elliot I knew.

“How’d you know about the condo?”

“Foster Mutual’s other prodigy. She called and told me about the message you sent her. Said she was worried you were in danger, especially since the message disappeared almost as soon as it popped up. We assumed if you were contacting her instead of me directly, there was a good reason for it. We knew Fiori took you from the yacht club but didn’t get any information from the bodyguard we arrested. We spent far too much time mired in red tape to track the helicopter in time.”

“I wanted to call you sooner, but I was afraid someone might be listening. Calling the FBI was too much of a risk.” I ran my hands over my face, rubbing my eyes. “But Fiori killed one of the conservators after my message anyway, so that changed things.”

“He threatened your family?”

I nodded. “My sister and niece, along with Antonio’s sister and nephew.”

“Lucy and I went to your condo and saw the pictures.” He rubbed my upper arm, as though expecting me to share my feelings.

“What about Fiori’s son, Baptiste?”

“I’ve only heard the high-level details on my way here. It sounds like he’ll cooperate, as well as some of the other staff and security. The RCMP are preparing to take the yacht before it leaves the St. Lawrence. Interpol, the Carabinieri, and a half-dozen other organizations are digging in. Most of the worldwide effort over the coming months will be finding and seizing his properties. Like this one—we didn’t know about it. It’s going to take us a while to clean this up. I have a feeling the last few years we’ve been after him are just the start.”

“Kelsey?”

“In custody.”

“From the sounds of it, I’m guessing he has more people in place with the police here and elsewhere.”

“I assumed as much.” Elliot turned his chair to face me and leaned forward on his knees. “Three years, Sam. I’ve been trying to bring this thing down for three years, and you just step in and clear the decks like it was nothing.”

“Nothing?” I let out a weak laugh. “I’m pretty sure I was almost killed at least a half dozen times in the past year.”

“But if you rejoined the FBI, you would have had—”

“More red tape to deal with.”

He sighed and sat back. “Fair. And you’d have been working alongside Kelsey, who’d be feeding info right back to Fiori, making sure he stayed ahead of us.”

Footsteps approached, and we looked up at an FBI agent on his way with a tablet.

Elliot held up his hand and asked him to wait. “Once you and Antonio give your statements, you’ll be free to go. As you may expect, I’ll be in touch. Probably a lot.”

I nodded. “We’re going on our vacation for real this time.”

“Good.” He patted my knee. “Get some rest and when you get back, the contract position with Art Crime will be waiting.”

How did I feel about that? Excited? Relieved? Terrified? “Really?”

“I just got word about twenty minutes ago. Apparently, Kelsey was the one whispering in a few people’s ears about you.”

“Huh.” At least I’d been right about her on one count. “Rules?”

“Exactly the way you want it. The only catch is that you’ll be working for me. We’ll review cases and pick the right ones. You just need secure access from your home office, occasional visits to Detroit, and there may be some broader travel. This whole thing.” He waved his hands, as though he could encompass the entire mansion and all its chaos. “It bought you pretty free rein, at least for now. As many or as few cases as you want.”

“Elliot, good to see you.” Antonio’s rich voice soothed my tired nerves.

I looked up at Antonio and took his hand. “That was awfully fast. All the details taken care of?”

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