Who would you rather do business with, me or Leo?"
Tessa gripped Peter's arm. "I'd put my life in his hands without hesitation. You can trust him. My word of honor."
Peter gulped in a shuddery breath. "What do you want me to do?"
"What evidence have you got?" Gabe asked.
"Photocopies of the checks I passed to Leo, the dates and amounts, and some of his phonies. That and my testimony will sink him for counterfeiting. If you can link Carla's death to him, you'll have him on murder."
Gabe glanced at his watch. "We've barely got time to get to the bank before it closes for the weekend." He grabbed the notepad and pen beside the telephone and scribbled an address and some numbers. "Once we get the evidence, go to this safe house. Here are the codes for the door lock and alarm system. I'll follow you from a discreet distance and make sure you get there in one piece. You won't see me, but I'll be there. Stay put until you hear from me. I also wrote down my private cell number."
Peter tucked the paper inside his jacket. "I'm supposed to meet Leo sometime in the next few days. He's been on my back to replace Carla and get the operation moving again." He closed his eyes. "Poor Carla, she didn't deserve to die." His eyes flew open, dark with distress. "Should I stall him?"
"He doesn't suspect you're getting ready to turn on him?"
"If he did, I'd already be dead."
"If you can't get out of the meeting without arousing his suspicion, agree to it. I might bag him before then, anyway. I'll call you in twenty-four hours. Until then, sit tight." Gabe glanced at his watch again. "I'm not waiting until Monday to do this. We haven't got time for anything fancy, so this is how it will go down. Peter, I want you to access your safe-deposit box and get the goods. Is your box in the branch vault?"
"No, I have a private box downstairs in the main vault."
"I don't want you to have direct contact with Tessa, just in case. Take the evidence to your office and put it in an interoffice envelope. Have it sent immediately to her office. Tessa will stop in after being sick to pick up her mail. That's all you need to know. She and I will discuss the rest on the way over. Go ahead. We'll follow."
Casting a last anxious, apologetic look at her, Peter left.
First Lucille, then Dale, now Peter. Apparently, her ability to judge people's character was badly flawed. Who was next? Her stomach clenched. Gabe? Would he also turn into a stranger and let her down?
They walked silently downstairs to the car. Gabe swung open the passenger door. "You don't mind if I drive this time?" Though his tone was light, his trademark grin was noticeably absent.
He slid into the driver's seat. "We'll be in a public place. Even if Leo suspected Peter, he'd have to be the biggest idiot on the planet to pull something. And he hasn't kept his operation afloat by acting stupid. This has almost zero risk, or I wouldn't let you do it."
"I'm not afraid," she lied. She was terrified. But Carla's murder had strengthened her resolve to help catch the criminals responsible.
"I said almost zero. There's a small chance something could go wrong." He deftly maneuvered the car through snarled rush hour traffic. "So listen up. You say, hi, collect the package, then casually leave. I'll cover you from outside. If it goes to hell, hit the sidewalk. If anything happens to me, get inside, lock the doors and call this number." He recited a phone number and made her repeat it twice. "Say, 'Falcon Three,' tell them your location and that you need an extraction, code red-five. They'll rescue you and retrieve the evidence."
"Translation? I don't happen to speak spy."
"You don't have to understand. Just do it."
Gabe's pep talk eliminated her fear. For herself. Instead, her imagination conjured up gory images of the terrible "something" that could befall him. Her blood chilled. She rubbed her icy hands together. "Nothing—" her teeth chattered and she clamped them together "—will happen." She silently repeated the mantra. By the time they arrived at the bank, she almost had herself convinced.
Gabe stopped the car halfway up the block, but left the engine idling. He studied her, his expression grim. "Ready?"
She managed a jerky nod, and he squeezed her shoulder. "Okay, sweetheart, it's gonna be a walk in