Raphael sat in his father’s office at the bank Geneva Trust and tried not to fear what was happening to Flickaand his child back at his family’s house.
The Geneva Trust building was located in the downtown section of Geneva, naturally, in an area near the financial district. Geneva Trust had been located in this crenellated building for over a century. When the other banks and financial services companies had moved their locations to the mirrored behemoths a few miles away, Geneva Trust stood on traditionand retained its lovely, antique building in the heart of the city.
The bank had upgraded its security to be on par with Fort Knox, however. The building was laced with steel, alarms, cameras, and motion-detecting laser beams. Dieter Schwarz would never have tried to break into it.
The ground floor of the Geneva Trust building was rented to a florist and a coffee shop, one of which suppliedthe bank’s office with fresh flowers, while the other was critical to Geneva Trust’s daily operations. Outside, pedestrian chatter drifted through the open window from the wide sidewalks below on this unseasonably warm autumn day. A tramzingeddown the cables on the street.
Other offices and meeting rooms comprised the top four floors of the building, plus one well-secured room for safety-depositboxes. The windows had balconies with teeming flower boxes affixed to the black, wrought-iron railing. The Swiss breeze ruffled the late-autumn blooms of pink and peach dahlias, daisies, and sage, and it carried just a bite of the alpine snow beyond the city.
Raphael’s father, Valerian Mirabaud, controlled the board of trustees and the majority of the voting shares, and his office spanned thetop floor of the building. He sat with his hands steepled on his desk, scrutinizing Raphael with his cold, gray eyes.
Raphael crossed his legs and stared back at his father. He didn’t worry about blinking, but he didn’t look away.
“This time,” his father said, “things will be different.”
Raphael prepared himself to listen.
“You, Friederike, and Alina will remain in the guest suite of our house.”
Under Valerian’s control, always in danger.
“If any of you go out, you will take our security with you.”
So they could guarantee Raphael’s abject loyalty by threatening Flicka and Alina and making sure they couldn’t escape or be rescued.
“You will be assigned the title of a Vice President of Geneva Trust.”
So he would be implicated in all business dealings.
“You will be given a chance toatone, to come back into the fold.”
Folds were for sheep.
“If you don’t, I cannot guarantee any of your safety. The Ilyin account—”
Not the Ilyin Bratva, not the Ilyin crime syndicate, but the Ilyin account. The Mirabauds were financiers, after all.
“—has indicated that they would be willing to reconsider their former position, if you were sufficiently contrite, if you apologized, and if youproved you had integrated yourself into the business.”
If Raphael groveled, and if he committed crimes and allowed Flicka and Alina to be held hostage for his good behavior.
“Then, the Ilyin account would cease their concern with you.”
The death sentence they had made sure every Bratva member knew about.
Valerian’s gray eyes softened. “Raphael, I’m trying to save your life. If the Ilyins hadfound you first, you would be dead in the sun on a Las Vegas street. If we reintegrate you into the bank and the business, you’ll be safe. Flicka and Alina will be safe.”
He meant that if Raphael gave up everything he believed, everything he had become, Flicka and Alina would be safe from Valerian’s and the Ilyins’ revenge.
“They will be safe from everything,” Valerian continued. “Even PierreGrimaldi won’t be able to touch Flicka, if certain people make it known that he should stop that pursuit.”
This was actually true, that Valerian and the Ilyin Bratva could protect Flicka even from Pierre. After all, the Russian crime syndicates were more powerful than most governments. Maybe all governments.
“It will take some time to make sure that everyone understands that you’re to be trustednow, but after a suitable amount of time has elapsed, Flicka could resume her usual social life. She could manage her charities and chair the Shooting Star Cotillion.”
Bribery in addition to threats. Raphael would have done the same thing.
“You could have your life back, Raphael. You could take your place in the family and in the bank. It’s really best for all involved.”
