kill you.”
“Yes.” Gabby nods. “But tonight we’re partners.”
“I don’t understand.”
Gabby grabs the second glass from the coffee table and pours the scotch. “We made a deal, Jake.”
“A deal? As simple as that?”
Gabby hands me the glass, and this time I take it.
“Yes, as simple as that.”
“Can you trust them?”
“Nope.”
“Jesus.” I walk to the window. Down below, the trucks are loaded and closed. Briggs is standing in the lot talking to Hull. I look for Diane, but I don’t see her.
Gabby comes up behind me. “Do you have any idea how many diamonds are on those trucks?”
“I have to get down there, find Diane.”
“It’s hard to believe they were sitting in my warehouse this whole time.” He laughs. “Your old man, Jake.” He holds up his glass. “Here’s to him.”
I let him drink, then say, “Are you going to help me?”
Gabby looks at his empty glass, then turns back to the coffee table and the bottle. “I’m going to give you your father’s share. It’s a lot of money.”
“Keep it, but help me get her away from them before they find out what you just did.”
“Let them find out. It doesn’t matter.”
“They’ll kill her.”
Gabby laughs. “I doubt that.”
“Is this a joke to you?”
The smile drops, and the way Gabby looks at me makes my skin cold. “Use your head, kid. They’re not going to kill her. She’s helping them.”
“What?”
It’s not true, I know it’s not true, but hearing the words is like a punch in the chest.
“Diane fucked up and she’s been trying to save her own ass ever since.” He studies me for a moment, frowns. “You don’t think this is all a coincidence, do you? Her working with your old man, then jumping in bed with you right after he died?”
“She explained everything to me. She made a mistake, and I believe her.”
Gabby laughs, shakes his head.
“She thought I’d know where to find the statues. When she found out I didn’t, she stuck with me. She’s not lying.”
“Come on, Jake.”
“She married me. Do you really think she’d take it that far?”
“You were her best chance of finding them, her last chance. She rolled the dice on you, that’s it.”
I hesitate. “But she married me.”
“They’re worth millions.” He lifts the glass and drinks. “A lot of women marry for less, and you know it.”
I think back to the Diane I knew before the night I was attacked, before everything fell apart, and shake my head. “No, not her.”
Gabby takes a deep breath and puts a hand on my shoulder. “Think about it. They could’ve grabbed her anytime they wanted. You were the only chance she had of finding those statues and saving herself. She knew it, and they knew it, too. She had to get as close to you as possible, and they let her.”
“You’re wrong.”
Gabby shrugs. “No, you’re blind. But it doesn’t matter anymore. You’ve got your dad’s share and you can do anything you want, go anywhere in the world.”
“I’m not leaving without her.”
“I’m doing you a favor, Jake.”
I say it again, slower. “I’m not leaving her behind.”
Gabby turns away. “What do you know about this company of theirs? CDG Enterprises?”
“We don’t have time for this.”
“It’s not Briggs’s company,” Gabby says. “He wouldn’t be here if it was, too dangerous. Most likely he’s a field guy, someone who keeps things running smoothly.”
“So what?”
“So, all this, tonight, is just us cutting off the snake’s tail. They’ll send someone else in his place.” He pauses. “Unless we get lucky and he didn’t tell anyone he was coming.”
I can see where he’s going, so I stop him and say, “He called ahead. All those guys down there met us when we landed. Someone knows he’s here.”
Gabby nods. “But they didn’t know he was coming here.” He points to the ground. “You had to tell them where to go after you landed, am I right?”
I tell him he is, then add, “But you can’t be sure.”
“You can never be sure. It’s all a risk.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“I’ll move those SUVs out to the yard tonight,” he says. “They’ll be crushed and shipped away in the morning. One of the U-Haul trucks goes to the airport with me. We’ll unload the statues and fly them out.”
“What about the other one?”
The look on Gabby’s face changes, turns hard. “That one’s not my problem. That one goes to the Pavel brothers. Part of the deal. Fifty–fifty.”
“What about me and Diane?”
“You can come with me.”
“With Diane.”
“Jesus, Jake.” He shakes his head. “If you