But Pembroke didn’t count on my uncle Endo taking Pembroke’s daughter as collateral and demanding Cass’s return. In the end, Pembroke lost Cass, Endo killed off all his associates,and then he married his daughter. But Pembroke escaped, and we’ve been looking for him.
Now, I know he wants revenge. A conviction in an international court. If the international authorities can get Cass, Endo would negotiate. He’d give up a lot for his brother as I would for mine.
I steady my heart and lick my lips so that I don’t drool over the bone Roy just threw to me. “Very few people can guarantee your daughter’s safety. Here I thought you were smart enough to know I was telling you the truth of what would happen to her.” I put my laptop away. “I’m curious. Why do you have dogs if they don’t bark at intruders?”
“They keep us company.”
“Can I keep you company tonight?” They know I’m not really asking.
“Renne’s room is empty,” Sidney says.
They miss her. Is this how normal parents behave when their child is gone? I can almost feel their love. Must have been nice to grow up like this, but my job isn’t finished here. I need more information, and I’ll get it if I’m nice. “I bet you taught her how to ride a bike.”
Roy chuckles. “She taught herself. Took the bicycle and rode it up and down the street. She fell, got back on, and did it until she learned. Renee is independent. Always has been.”
“I like that about her,” I say.
“You like more than that about her, Mr. Crossbow,” Sidney says.
I tilt my head. “You think so?”
She nods.
“You don’t know me.”
“But I know what love looks like.”
“You’re hoping I will protect your daughter from the wolf, but you have no idea what the wolf looks like. What if I’m the wolf? What if I’m the very person she’s hiding from?”
No answer. I almost feel sorry for them.
“What, then?” I push.
“Are you?” Roy asks, swallowing again.
I shrug. “I could be. I’ve killed people on yachts before. I’ve killed people off yachts. I feel no guilt. I feel nothing. Do you have scissors?”
“What?” Roy asks.
“Scissors.”
Sidney retrieves a pair of scissors for me. I take out the photobooth style row of photos of Renne and Hanna and cut the top one. I lay it on the table and push it toward Sidney because she will crack first.
The moment Renne’s parents see the image, they start crying. It would break my heart if I had one. But luckily for me, I don’t.
Sidney picks up the picture. “Look at my baby girl. Is that my grandbaby?”
“Her name is Hanna.”
“Oh my Lord. She’s so cute. Look at them, Roy. Oh God, we can’t… How did Renne manage with a baby? Who is the father?” She looks from me to the picture, then back at the picture. “Is it you?”
“I am not Hanna’s father. But if I were, I would protect them. I would use all my resources, which are many, to shelter them. I would not let them get on the witness stand because a witness is a snitch, and nobody loves a snitch, not even the cops. People don’t love them because they fear them, and they don’t trust them. If I can’t trust someone, I can’t have them around, because sooner or later, a snitch will betray me.”
“Unless they have a reason to keep quiet,” Roy says.
“Now you’re catching on.”
Roy stares at the photo. “Mr. Crossbow, can you… If you learned the name of the man she’s testifying against, could you protect her from him?”
