Read Online A King's Ransom by James Grippando - Free Book Online
Authors: James Grippando
Ads: Link
word with Huitt.
Just out of curiosity, I said. Of all those times my father was stopped by U. S. customs, how many times was he found to have broken the law?
He said nothing.
That's what I thought. I turned and headed out the door, the other agent at my side.
Kid, said Huitt.
I was halfway down the hall with Agent Pintero. We stopped and looked back.
It only takes once, he said flatly, then stepped back into the conference room.
I wondered if that was some kind of warning that he'd continue to dog my family until he got something on us. Or was he implying that he already had the goods?
I continued toward the lobby in silence, more confused than when I'd arrived.
Chapter 9
Notice of Death were the three words that caught my attention. Alone at my desk, I read the caption on the pleading twice to make sense of it.
After the meeting with Agent Huitt, I'd driven straight down I-95 to my law firm. I quickly dismissed the idea of asking Duncan Fitz for advice on how to handle the government's accusations. My supervising partner would have been utterly unamused to hear that my father and his business partner were on the FBI's radar screen. Nevertheless, I rode up the elevator and went straight to my office, with no real purpose other than to be alone there. As my ex-fiancEe had finally come to realize, my career was my cocoon. Bad news, a crisis of any sort - retreating to my cubbyhole and immersing myself in work could make just about anything seem to disappear. Countless times Jenna had begged me to crawl out of my cave and talk out a problem with her. Eventually I would emerge, usually with the proud announcement that I'd figured out everything by myself and that there was nothing left to talk about. It used to make her crazy.
And here I was again, going through my stack of mail, as if that would fix everything with the FBI. It wouldn't, of course, and what made the whole exercise even more absurd was that I didn't even need to be there. Duncan had arranged for another associate to review my mail while I was on personal leave for the week. Anything that was deemed bland enough to remain in my in-box until my return was about as compelling as reading the phone book, with the exception of the latest pleading filed by the plaintiff's counsel in the Med-Fam Pharmaceuticals case. A simple one-page notice of death advised the court of the sad turn of events.
Gilbert Jones was dead.
He had died of respiratory failure the morning after Duncan talked him into playing Let's Make a Deal. We all knew he was going to die. No one expected it to happen this soon. He'd given up. Duncan had snatched away what little he had left to fight for in his life. Having met Gilbert, I felt bad enough. Dad's being kidnapped made me feel that much worse. Gilbert's death made me realize that everyone had a breaking point, maybe not the stomach to pull the trigger or jump off a bridge, but certainly the ability to act - or, more precisely, not act - on the realization that there was no escape and that pushing forward was utterly pointless. That Gilbert had reached his point of despair so soon after Duncan's ploy made me terribly depressed. The thought that Dad might someday follow had me downright distressed. Even the strong could snap at the hands of abusive kidnappers.
I pushed the mail aside. Being alone wasn't the answer. I needed to talk to someone.
I wasn't exactly sure why, but I found myself dialing Jenna's phone number. My mother had planted the seed in my head yesterday when she'd suggested that I tell her about the kidnapping. It had sounded like a bad idea then, and in some ways it didn't sound any better now. I was down in the dumps, however, and for some reason I wanted to hear her voice.
Hello, she answered.
I almost hung up, but I knew that her cell phone had Caller ID. She'd think I was stalking her.
Hi, it's me. Nick.
I know. I recognized the number. How are you?
I have some bad news, I'm afraid.
Your dad, I know. I'm
Just out of curiosity, I said. Of all those times my father was stopped by U. S. customs, how many times was he found to have broken the law?
He said nothing.
That's what I thought. I turned and headed out the door, the other agent at my side.
Kid, said Huitt.
I was halfway down the hall with Agent Pintero. We stopped and looked back.
It only takes once, he said flatly, then stepped back into the conference room.
I wondered if that was some kind of warning that he'd continue to dog my family until he got something on us. Or was he implying that he already had the goods?
I continued toward the lobby in silence, more confused than when I'd arrived.
Chapter 9
Notice of Death were the three words that caught my attention. Alone at my desk, I read the caption on the pleading twice to make sense of it.
After the meeting with Agent Huitt, I'd driven straight down I-95 to my law firm. I quickly dismissed the idea of asking Duncan Fitz for advice on how to handle the government's accusations. My supervising partner would have been utterly unamused to hear that my father and his business partner were on the FBI's radar screen. Nevertheless, I rode up the elevator and went straight to my office, with no real purpose other than to be alone there. As my ex-fiancEe had finally come to realize, my career was my cocoon. Bad news, a crisis of any sort - retreating to my cubbyhole and immersing myself in work could make just about anything seem to disappear. Countless times Jenna had begged me to crawl out of my cave and talk out a problem with her. Eventually I would emerge, usually with the proud announcement that I'd figured out everything by myself and that there was nothing left to talk about. It used to make her crazy.
And here I was again, going through my stack of mail, as if that would fix everything with the FBI. It wouldn't, of course, and what made the whole exercise even more absurd was that I didn't even need to be there. Duncan had arranged for another associate to review my mail while I was on personal leave for the week. Anything that was deemed bland enough to remain in my in-box until my return was about as compelling as reading the phone book, with the exception of the latest pleading filed by the plaintiff's counsel in the Med-Fam Pharmaceuticals case. A simple one-page notice of death advised the court of the sad turn of events.
Gilbert Jones was dead.
He had died of respiratory failure the morning after Duncan talked him into playing Let's Make a Deal. We all knew he was going to die. No one expected it to happen this soon. He'd given up. Duncan had snatched away what little he had left to fight for in his life. Having met Gilbert, I felt bad enough. Dad's being kidnapped made me feel that much worse. Gilbert's death made me realize that everyone had a breaking point, maybe not the stomach to pull the trigger or jump off a bridge, but certainly the ability to act - or, more precisely, not act - on the realization that there was no escape and that pushing forward was utterly pointless. That Gilbert had reached his point of despair so soon after Duncan's ploy made me terribly depressed. The thought that Dad might someday follow had me downright distressed. Even the strong could snap at the hands of abusive kidnappers.
I pushed the mail aside. Being alone wasn't the answer. I needed to talk to someone.
I wasn't exactly sure why, but I found myself dialing Jenna's phone number. My mother had planted the seed in my head yesterday when she'd suggested that I tell her about the kidnapping. It had sounded like a bad idea then, and in some ways it didn't sound any better now. I was down in the dumps, however, and for some reason I wanted to hear her voice.
Hello, she answered.
I almost hung up, but I knew that her cell phone had Caller ID. She'd think I was stalking her.
Hi, it's me. Nick.
I know. I recognized the number. How are you?
I have some bad news, I'm afraid.
Your dad, I know. I'm
Similar Books
![Blake, Abby - Keen Inclination [A Bride for Eight Brothers 4] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Forever)](https://fs.dianahicksbooks.com/546081/thumbs/152x264/blake-abby-keen-inclination-a-bride-for-eight-brothers-4-siren-publishing-lovextreme-forever.jpg)
