I don’t want to tip my hand around other people after that unpleasantness with Francis. The Savage Kings think they can round up Sizemore for us tonight. They’ll let me know late tonight or early tomorrow and we will go from there. Salvatore Bianchi came to see me. Irina Volkov kidnapped his youngest son, Gregory, yesterday. Irina demanded he lure me into a trap to get his son back.
Constance’s eyes widen as she reads through the text. She turns to me as if she’ll ask me a question, but I point to her phone, signaling for her to reply there. A moment later I read,Why would Bianchi come to you if Irina has his son?
He’s practical,I reply.He knows he stands to lose much more than a son if he makes a direct move against me. Irina underestimated you, and now she’s done the same with me.
Are you sure Bianchi didn’t come to you today to lure you into something? Maybe gave you part of the truth to put your guard down?
I turn to her with a grin at the question. “I already thought of that,” I tell her. “But I’m glad to see that you did as well. If I can find a way to help, I will. But it’s not my main concern. If heturns up while we’re…let’s say, making our moves, then that is all well and good. Otherwise, it’s not my problem.”
She opens her mouth as if to say something else, but then with a glance at the front seat thinks better of it. I nod to her and delete the messages between us, then read the other text I just received. “Leonard says the caterer is setting up a Mexican spread. If you have any specific requests, Trenton, text him what you want. Joey, tell me what you like, and I’ll make sure it’s prepared.”
“Chimichangas, chicken, fried,” Joey replies. “Thanks,” he adds as an afterthought.
“How about you, firefly?” I ask Constance. “You don’t have his number, do you? I’ll text him your order, too.”
“Let me get two hard-shell beef tacos and a chicken quesadilla. Oh, and some beans and rice, please,” she tells me just as her stomach lets out a rumble.
I can’t help but laugh as she blushes and puts a hand on her belly. “Are you sure that’ll be enough?” I ask. “I’ll tell him to have them bring some extra queso and chips just in case.” I add my own order and then relax as the buildings slide by outside the window.
We’re almost out of the city when I receive another phone call. “It’s Detective Tillman,” I announce to the car as a warning before I accept and greet him. I motion with my hand to Trenton to turn down the radio while talking. “Good afternoon, Detective.”
“Mr. Luciani? Are you and Ms. Monroe all right? You haven’t had any further issues today?”
“We’re doing well, Detective. To what do I owe the pleasure of your call? Do you have any updates for us?”
“Yes and no, Mr. Luciani. Is Ms. Monroe there with you? We’d like to find a time when the two of you might be able to stop by and answer a few more questions.”
I glance over at Constance, then say, “She’s with me now, Detective. You’re welcome to ask any questions you may have, but I’m afraid we’ve left the city for the day.”
“Ah, well, I suppose we can discuss this over the phone. As I said yesterday, our working theory right now is that the attempted abduction of Ms. Monroe was a retaliatory act by the Volkov family in response to your funding of a police crackdown on their enterprises.”
“Yes, I remember, and that certainly makes sense,” I agree. “Do you have some new information that refutes that theory?”
“No, in fact, what we’ve discovered so far only seems to reinforce it. We haven’t been able to locate our third suspect, this Jacob Sizemore fellow, just yet. What we have done is research his background, however. Jacob Sizemore is Kirill Volkov’s half brother. They have different fathers, but both are the children of Irina Volkov.”
“Jacob Sizemore is the half-brother to Kirill Volkov?” I repeat for everyone riding with me. “And he’s another son of Irina Volkov? Well, that certainly explains his involvement, doesn’t it? You mentioned that you haven’t apprehended him yet. Is there an issue with locating him, Detective?”
“We’ve secured a warrant for his arrest, Mr. Luciani, but we don’t have any information on where he resides. We’ve discovered that he’s an associate, or I guess it’s more accurate to call him a prospect, of a motorcycle gang over in Jersey called the Gargoyles. We’re going to loop in our Jersey counterparts to help track him down, but it may take some time. While we’re doing that, I wanted to ask you and Ms. Monroe if you’ve had any further contact with the Volkovs or any of their representatives. Have you received any other threats or demands since yesterday?”
“No, nothing, Detective. If we have any contact at all with them, you’ll be the first call I make,” I lie. “I appreciate youkeeping us updated on your progress and look forward to hearing from you when you arrest Sizemore. I’m hopeful that he will be able to provide you the information you need to track down who is ultimately behind Constance’s abduction and bring them to justice. Did you have any other questions for us?”
There is a long pause, and I think I hear the detective taking a drink. “Mr. Luciani, I want to ask directly, respectfully, if there’s anything you aren’t telling me? I can’t shake the suspicion that you and Ms. Monroe may know more about this incident than you’re willing to admit. In the interest of her safety and well-being…”
“Her safety and well-being are my paramount interests,” I interrupt him. “I assure you, Detective, if we had any information that might clarify what has led us to this situation, I would let you know. I would be eager to do it, in fact. The truth is that we know just as much as you do. I attempted to use my wealth and connections to help clean up a criminal element in our city, and unfortunately Ms. Monroe and I are now paying the price for my philanthropy.”
“Of course, Mr. Luciani. I didn’t mean to imply that I doubted you. I only wanted to reiterate that any detail, even something you may think is unimportant, could make a difference in our investigation. If you do think of anything, or God forbid have any issues, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Otherwise, I’ll be in touch once we’ve rounded up Jacob Sizemore and had a chance to question him.”
“Thank you, Detective Tillman. I look forward to hearing from you.”
“Take care, Mr. Luciani. Please update Ms. Monroe on our conversation. Goodbye, sir.”
“Goodbye, Detective.” I look at the phone to make sure the call disconnects, then turn my attention to Constance. “Well, that certainly helps.” I smile at her.
“Of course she has more kids,” Constance mutters with a sigh. “How many do you think there are in total? This could go on forever if we have to snip entire branches of their family tree.”
“I’m sure the detective is looking into that as well. He’ll let us know as he finds out more information. In the meantime, this is good news, considering what I have planned.”
“And what is that, exactly?” Constance asks me. “Or is that what you wanted to talk about later?”
