Stolen Heat Part 28

"Nothing. I just..." His brow lowered. He seemed to be thinking something through. He glanced to the stairs, then back to the painting. But when he looked her way, the confusion was gone, and there was a clarity to his eyes she hadn't seen before.

"The details aren't really important right now, Maria. The bottom line is, without that evidence, she's the prime suspect in that crime she witnessed. That's why we need to get it back."

Maria let out a sigh and rose to take her gla.s.s back to the sideboard. "I'm afraid that might be a bit of a problem then."

"Why?"

"Because," she said as she set her gla.s.s down, "I wasn't entirely honest with you earlier about the status of my warehouse."

His eyes narrowed, completely clear and very focused. "I'm listening."

"Someone broke into the warehouse early this morning. The vault was breached. Several of the pieces I purchased from your auction are missing."

"And the pendant?"

"I don't know. It's completely possible it was already sent to Athens. It's also possible it's still in the vault. We haven't finished sifting through the mess that was left behind yet."

"And it's possible it was stolen," he finished for her.

She pursed her lips. "Yes. This was a professional hit. The FBI was collecting evidence all day. INTERPOL has already uploaded a list of known missing pieces from the theft to their Web site."

"You have no idea who was responsible?"

"No." She tipped her head. "But something tells me you do."

He ran a hand over his mouth and was silent for so long, she wasn't sure he would answer. Then he dropped his hand, and the urgency she saw in his eyes verified her a.s.sumption.

"I want to go down there tomorrow and take a look around."

"I can probably arrange that, though it'll likely ruffle some feathers."

"Not like I've never done that before."

She smiled a little, happy some of the lighthearted humor she liked most about him had entered his voice again. "You look exhausted, Peter. There's nothing we can do tonight regarding any of this. You'd be better off taking a shower and getting a good night's sleep. You left some clothes here. The rest of this can be dealt with tomorrow."

He glanced toward the stairs with the same longing in his eyes she'd seen when he'd walked in the door, and the bitterness she'd felt toward him for ditching her after the auction slipped away.

No matter that she didn't have much of a heart left herself. Someone else did. She wasn't about to stand in his way. "Why don't you just go ask her?" she said softly.

Surprised, smoky eyes turned to look her way. "Ask her what?"

"Whatever it is that's got you so confused about her motives." When he frowned, her smile widened. "While you're at it, you might try telling her how you feel. A woman always likes to hear she's exactly what a man wants."

His frown deepened. "I don't have a clue what you're talking about."

Maria laughed. "Yes. You do." She turned for the hallway that led to the master bedroom on the first floor. "You might also mention I'm not quite as b.i.t.c.hy as I come across."

"But you are," he said to her back.

Maria couldn't stop the chuckle that slipped from her mouth as she walked away. "I'll have Mabel bring you something clean to wear. Good night, Peter."

"G'night, Maria."

In her own room, Maria closed the door and listened. The floor outside creaked ever so slightly. She looked across the plush room, decorated in shades of red and gold, and figured that counted as her one good deed for the year. Sure, she'd lost a lover, but she hoped she'd kept a friend.

Lovers were a dime a dozen. Someone you could count on when you were down on your luck? That was hard to find.

And she of all people should know.

Pete showered and changed in the guest bathroom downstairs. Hot water had never felt so good, and for once he was happy he'd had the foresight to leave a few things here, even if at the time it'd seemed wrong.

Maria's words skipped around in his brain as he dressed, and questions he hadn't thought to ask Kat over the past two days fired off like bottle rockets, one after another. More than anything he wanted to barge upstairs to Kat's room and find out if what he suddenly suspected was true, but he couldn't. Not yet. There were two things he had to do first.

The apartment was eerily quiet as he made his way into the office Maria kept on the main level. Floor-to-ceiling windows looked out over trees and gra.s.s and a black void that was the park. Dark cherry bookcases spanned an entire wall, decorated with leather tomes and bronze sculptures and expensive art she'd no doubt collected over the years.

He'd always liked this room. While the rest of her penthouse was frilly and delicate, this room had the dark colors and bold woods he found peaceful. He shut the door behind him, moved around the antique French desk and sank into the plush leather chair. The immaculately clean surface held only a small lamp, a phone and a lone pen.

He sat in the dark, just staring at the smooth desktop softly illuminated by the city lights outside, thinking through everything Maria had told him. Thinking back over everything that had happened in the last two days. Man, had it only been two days since his life had been turned upside down because of Kat? It felt like longer.

Some small part of him wanted it to be longer.

Odds were pretty good Maria's break-in was related to the auction and Kat. Someone wanted to know if Maria had the pendant, and they were willing to do just about anything to get it. Odds were even better it was already long gone.

Which meant Kat was in deep s.h.i.t.

No matter how Pete worked it in his head, Kat was going to take the heat for what had happened all those years ago in Cairo. If she turned herself in to the Feds without proof there'd been anyone else in the tomb with her the night Ramirez had been killed, there was a good chance she could do time. Maybe even be extradited back to Egypt.

A searing pain slit his chest at just the thought. Would Slade stand up for her? And if he did, would his pull have any weight?

Pete doubted it. One, no matter what, there was no proof. And two, Pete seriously doubted Slade would put himself on the line for her like that, regardless of how much he may still care for her.

Which left only one option. She'd have to stay in hiding. But, s.h.i.t, from the way things had gone down the past few days, that wasn't much of an option, was it? How long until Minyawi or whoever the h.e.l.l he worked for tracked her down? They knew she was alive now. They knew she could bury them. They couldn't let her live.

Pete ran his hand over the glossy surface of the desk and thought about his life in comparison to hers. About how smooth it had been. He'd been like his buddy Rafe's big fancy boat really, sailing along, a few waves here and there, but no major storms that had jarred him or flipped him around. Losing his parents had been hard, but he'd just been a kid then, and he'd quickly adapted. Burying his grandparents had stung, but he'd been in college by then and had his own life that didn't include them. And though it was selfish, he knew the deaths of the role models in his life had helped him build Odyssey. He'd taken his inheritance and put it all into the gallery, plodded along with ease and never looked back. Things had always come effortlessly for him. Until the moment he'd met Kat. And lost her.

Then his life had changed forever.

For nearly three days he'd been blaming her for that. Reasoning he could be so much further ahead if he hadn't gone on the straight and narrow after he thought she'd died. No question his life had been harder since that point. Emotionally as he tried to get himself on track, mentally as he came up with ways to make Odyssey profitable on the right side of the law, physically as he worked himself to the bone so he didn't have the energy to think of her or dream of her or wish things could have been different.

He remembered how he'd felt when he'd found out she was alive. Beat to h.e.l.l and so utterly betrayed. Because everything he'd done because of her had been for s.h.i.t.

Then he thought of what Maria had said: If this evidence could have cleared her of any wrongdoing on her part, she could have come out of hiding at any time. There's something else going on here, Peter. She's protecting someone. If this evidence could have cleared her of any wrongdoing on her part, she could have come out of hiding at any time. There's something else going on here, Peter. She's protecting someone.

Followed by Kat's voice at that park in Philadelphia just before she'd left him: If I lied to you, it was for a very good reason. Maybe someday you'll understand that. If I lied to you, it was for a very good reason. Maybe someday you'll understand that.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath and knew, if given the chance, he'd do it all over again the exact same way. No matter how any of it had played out, she'd been the one person to change his life for the better.

His heart was pounding a mile a minute as he leaned forward and flipped on the small tabletop lamp, then reached for the phone. A quick glance at the clock on the wall told him it was almost midnight, but he didn't care. He paid his lawyer in Miami an insanely embarra.s.sing retainer for moments just like this. The guy could get his a.s.s out of bed for all Pete cared.

Twenty minutes later, with the weight of his decision on his shoulders and no thought of turning back, he clicked off the cordless phone, turned it on again and dialed the number his lawyer had grudgingly dug up for him.

He was routed all over h.e.l.l and back, then told to hang tight. He clicked off the phone one more time, sat back and waited.

Minutes pa.s.sed before the d.a.m.n thing rang. He picked it up on the second shrill note. "That was fast, even for you."

"Where's Kat?" Martin Slade's voice had that same superior clip Pete remembered from the one time he'd met the guy in Cairo. And it sure the h.e.l.l didn't endear the SOB to Pete any now.

"She's fine," Pete said, working to keep his tone even and calm. "Sleeping. I don't have to tell you she's been through the wringer the past few days. No thanks to you."

"I had no idea Halloway was in contact with Bertrand or that he'd pa.s.s on the info I gave him about Kat's location. Surely Kat doesn't believe-"

"She's not sure what to believe right now," Pete snapped. "Any way you look at it, the government's f.u.c.ked her twice now. Why the h.e.l.l should she trust you?"

"Because she doesn't have many other options, does she? It's only a matter of time before Minyawi finds you both. Neither of you have any idea what you're dealing with here. This goes deeper than she could imagine."

"She already knows."

"How-"

"I've got contacts, too, Slade. And the how isn't really important. What is important is keeping Kat safe. I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make sure she stays out of harm's way and that this finally ends for her because I know I played a part in it from the beginning. But what about you? She gave up six years of her life because you convinced her it was the only way. And now she's right back where she was before. Only this time there's no easy way out. What are you willing to do to make things right for her?"

Silence.

Pete ground his teeth and though he knew it was useless, just couldn't quite keep the contempt from his voice. "You f.u.c.king owe her, you son of a b.i.t.c.h."

More silence, then finally when Pete was sure Slade wasn't going to answer, the man said, "She has to come in. I'll do whatever I can to make sure she gets a fair shake. If she cooperates, I'll make sure she doesn't get extradited back to Egypt. But there are going to be questions-even I can't get her around those."

"And what about you?" Pete asked. "You're just going to skate free like nothing happened?"

"No." For the first time, Pete heard regret in Slade's voice. "No. If she comes in, I'm going to have to fess up to what I did to help her. Christ, it'll probably make it worse, but I'll do whatever I can to make things easier on her. I swear it."

Pete realized in that moment that Slade was telling the truth. In his own way, he did care for Kat. Or felt guilty or maybe a little responsible. And in that same moment, Pete also realized the guy didn't know about the evidence Kat had stored in the pendant. If he did, he'd have convinced her to come out of hiding years ago.

He also sensed Slade didn't completely understand Minyawi's connection to Busir. Or know about Ramirez's involvement with the ELA. And those were two major bargaining chips Pete was willing to cultivate in any way he could.

Pete braced his hand on the desk and knew this was the jumping-off point for him. Once it was out, there was no turning back. "She'll come in. But on one condition."

"Are you trying to deal with me, Kauffman? You don't have a leg to stand o-"

"You bet your a.s.s I'm dealing. And if you're smart you'll take what I give you because it's the best d.a.m.n offer you're going to get. Kat will come in on one condition," he repeated. "She's cleared of all the charges against her. No questions about Ramirez's or Driscoll's deaths or any link back to her. You and I both know she didn't have a hand in either one."

"f.u.c.k," Slade exclaimed. "I know she didn't, but she's got no proof. She never had had any proof, which was one of the G.o.dd.a.m.n problems from the very beginning. The Egyptian government isn't as lenient on murder suspects as we are here in the States. And rogue Egyptologists who hook up with known felons linked to art theft and smuggling operations aren't people the U.S. is eager to get back in the country. The only thing she's got going for her right now is the fact she's on U.S. soil and she's willing to cooperate." any proof, which was one of the G.o.dd.a.m.n problems from the very beginning. The Egyptian government isn't as lenient on murder suspects as we are here in the States. And rogue Egyptologists who hook up with known felons linked to art theft and smuggling operations aren't people the U.S. is eager to get back in the country. The only thing she's got going for her right now is the fact she's on U.S. soil and she's willing to cooperate."

"That's not all she's got. She's got me."

"What the h.e.l.l does that me-"

"Here's the deal, Slade. Kat comes in for safety reasons only and is cleared of all the charges. In exchange, I'll turn myself in. You wanna know how Minyawi's linked to the smuggling ring? I'm your guy."

Silence.

Well, that got the man's f.u.c.king attention, didn't it?

"You're serious?" Slade asked skeptically.

Yeah, he was serious. Deadly-frickin'-serious. More serious about this than he'd been about anything in his life. "I'll tell you everything I know. Names, locations, contacts in half a dozen countries that trade on the black market. I know who the weak link was at Kat's tomb, I know who the man dealt with, and I know how the pieces got out of the country. You keep Kat out of this, make sure she's safe, and I'll give you everything I know."

"And what about you?" Slade asked warily.

Pete leaned back in his chair. He was making a deal with the devil himself, and this time, there was no turning back. "I guess that's the sixty-four-thousand-dollar question now, isn't it?"

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX.

He was surprisingly steady for a man who'd just cashed in his own go directly to jail, do not pa.s.s go, do not collect two hundred dollars go directly to jail, do not pa.s.s go, do not collect two hundred dollars ticket. After signing all the papers his lawyer had faxed over and stuffing them back into the fax machine, Pete picked up the phone one more time and dialed the one person he knew was going to s.h.i.t bricks when he heard the news. ticket. After signing all the papers his lawyer had faxed over and stuffing them back into the fax machine, Pete picked up the phone one more time and dialed the one person he knew was going to s.h.i.t bricks when he heard the news.

The line rang three times before Rafe Sullivan answered in Puerto Rico, sounding groggy as h.e.l.l and the slightest bit p.i.s.sed at being pulled out of bed at-Pete glanced at the clock-1:30 a.m.

"Que?" Rafe grumbled. Rafe grumbled.

Despite everything else, Pete cracked a wan smile. "I hope that beat-to-s.h.i.t voice of yours means you were asleep, not that you were about to get it on with your lady."

A soft chuckle came over the line, then a rasp of cloth, like Rafe was moving around in bed. "Already did the second. Was halfway into the first before you rudely interrupted me. Where are you, my man?"

Pete grinned. d.a.m.n, but he was seriously going to miss his best friend when all was said and done.

In the background he could just make out Lisa's voice ask, "Who the h.e.l.l is that?"

" 'S okay, querida, querida," Rafe said in a m.u.f.fled tone. "It's just Pete. Go back to sleep."

There was grunting, and more shifting around, then the sound of a door closing somewhere in the distance.

"I can talk now," Rafe said, his voice stronger. Footsteps echoed across the line, and Pete imagined Rafe walking through that big house he and Lisa had bought in Puerto Rico where they were getting the sister branch of Odyssey up and running in San Juan. He yawned as he said, "We've been at the hospital all day. Lisa's wiped."

Pete's chest tightened in a way that made his problems seem miniscule compared to what Rafe was going through. "How's Teresa?"

Rafe heaved out a heavy sigh, one that said the whole situation was pure s.h.i.t. "Holding on. Every time I think that's it, you know, something happens and she perks up. She's been asking about you."

Pete leaned forward and ran a hand over his hair. "You know I'd be there if I could, don't you? Man, I just..." He hesitated, unsure what to say. Losing his parents or his grandparents had never been like this, mainly because he hadn't been particularly close to them. Teresa had a way of drawing everyone to her. You couldn't help loving Rafe's mother. Everyone did.

"It's okay, buddy. I know. Means a lot you called, though. But I gotta say, if it weren't for everything happening with Mama, Mama, I'd be on the first plane up to New York. You know that, right?" I'd be on the first plane up to New York. You know that, right?"

Touched, Pete smiled again. "Hailey blabbed, huh?"