“So, at this point,” Gage’s voice came back across the line, “we don’t know exactly how many groups of people are after this map.”
“I can take a guess,” Enzo replied. “So far, I think there are three very distinct groups: Carlotta, who hired Alex, Vitale, and another unnamed group. I’m going to say those are probably the people that Brad spoke to first. And then those people must have spoken to Vitale, or he had some connection to them.
Carlotta sighed. “This is just insane.”
“Who is being held hostage?” Gage asked.
“A friend of mine, Bianca Rinaldi.” Enzo supplied.
“Christ,” Logan commented. “That doesn’t help any. Does her brother know? Is he involved?”
Kathleen rubbed her forehead. It was her turn to be bewildered. How did Logan know who Bianca’s family was?Should she recognize the name? She was going to have to ask Enzo for more details.
“I don’t think her brother is aware, but even if he was, I’m not sure he would care. They aren’t that close.”
“Well, that’s something at least,” Logan said.
“So, what’s our next step?” asked Gage.
Enzo grunted. “There’s no next step for you all. I will take care of it on this end. Thanks for the information.” He leaned forward and killed the call.
“Hey!” Kathleen said, shooting to her feet. “What did you do that for?”
Enzo also stood up. “There are too many people involved as it is; any more, and someone will get hurt. And I don’t want that person to be you.”
Kathleen blinked. He was not wrong. Now what the hell were they going to do?
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Kathleen leaned back in the chair. “So now we have to find the treasure.”
Enzo cocked an eyebrow. “Now we have to get the map to Alessandro.”
Kathleen shook her head. “No, you’re wrong. We have to get the treasure?—”
“Stop.” Enzo cut her off before she could make another comment. He was losing patience. “Vitale is a killer. If I don’t do what he wants, he will kill Bianca. I will not be responsible for Bianca’s death.” He didn’t want to be responsible for Kathleen’s either, but that was another conversation.
“I get that,” Kathleen began quietly. “But the real power is in the treasure, not the map. You want to be able to negotiate from a place of power.”
Enzo ground out, “And what do you know about negotiating from a place of power?”
Kathleen’s face paled, and he instantly regretted letting his temper get away from him. The situation became more complex and frustrating with each new revelation, and he was strugglingto remain calm. What he wanted to do was hunt down Vitale and squash him like the cockroach that he was.
Kathleen straightened her shoulders, seeming to regroup. “You’re not thinking straight. Trust me, I know. I’ve been there. It’s hard to think straight when someone close to you is being held hostage. My son, Connor, was taken from me at one point. That fear clouds your thinking. It’s like you can’t breathe.”
“Kathleen, I am so sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped at you.” Now he really felt like a heel. Had he forgotten that Connor had been kidnapped? Had he ever known?
She waved off his apology. “But here’s the reality: the map is not a good bargaining chip. You give him the map, and he still doesn’t have the treasure. He still doesn’t have what he ultimately wants. In the end, once he has the map, he can do whatever he wants. What’s to stop him from turning around and saying, ‘Okay, now get me the treasure’? We get the treasure, and it’s the final bargaining chip—the ultimate bargaining chip. It’s the only thing he really wants.”
Enzo gave her an assessing look. She was right, of course. Well, wrong about who was clouding his judgment. It wasn’t Bianca being kidnapped that was screwing with his reasoning. Kathleen’s pale cheeks and the dark bruising under her eyes were what was getting to him. “I see where you’re going. Finding the treasure also heightens the danger, and I don’t want to put you?—”
“It’s too late for ‘I don’t want to put you in danger.’ We’re already there. It’s not going to change. Trust me, I have more regret than you can imagine. I should’ve just taken the statue to the cops regardless, or we should’ve left it in the square. Whatever.” Her hand flashed upward. “That’s all over and done with. We can’t change the past. We’re in this now, so this is what we have to do. The treasure is the ultimate bargaining chip. It’s what we need.”
“Say I agree with you,” Enzo commented as he got up from the sofa and walked toward the bar. “Say we do look for the treasure. What do you think he’s going to do? Vitale is not the most patient of souls. He’s violent and mean.” He went behind the bar and poured himself two fingers of scotch. He raised his glass toward Kathleen. At her nod, he poured her a glass too, then brought it over to her. He leaned his butt on the desk beside her and crossed his legs at the ankles.
“Here’s the thing, I don’t think we have a whole lot of time,” Kathleen continued. “I think we have to get the treasure, and we have to do it quickly, because he’s going to know. How much time did he give you to get to Mallorca?”
“He said he’d give me a ‘couple of days’.”
