Read Online Last to Fold by David Duffy - Free Book Online Page B

long ago.”
    “For real?”
    “Cheka honor.”
    “Cheka honor.” He shook his head. “That’s supposed to make me believe you?”
    I shrugged. “We didn’t have Boy Scouts.”
    He put his glasses on, stood, and went to the window and looked out, most likely without seeing anything. He was trying to make up his mind about something. I let him take his time.
    “I don’t think this has anything to do with you,” he said when he turned back to face me.
    “Because?”
    “What do you know about whaling?”
    “Phishing for big fish. Send bogus e-mail, try to get the recipient to open an attachment that installs a keyboarding bug, phisher can see everything on your computer. It’s one of Lachko’s businesses, but he’s got plenty of competition. Did Mulholland…”
    He nodded. “About three months ago. We’ve had other clients get scammed, too. Bait in his instance was a fake letter from the U.S. attorney, Southern District. Most people know better than to open unsolicited attachments, but since this looked exactly like the real deal, he didn’t think twice.”
    “He get keyboarded?”
    He nodded. “Didn’t tell us until ten days ago. Whoever it was copied a lot of computer activity. Of course, we informed Victoria right away, since it was her fake paper. Could be one reason she felt she had to move on Rory before anything else happened.”
    “You think there’s a connection?”
    “Don’t know. That’s why I bring it up. Could’ve been Barsukov.”
    “Could’ve been, but we don’t know enough.” I looked at my watch. “Still want me to make the drop?”
    He nodded. “I don’t have a lot of options, as you point out. But I want to be clear on priorities—girl, money, kidnappers, in that order.”
    “What about explanation?”
    “Girl, money, kidnappers, in that order.”
    “You don’t want to know what’s going on?”
    “I want to know your efforts are focused where they should be—especially, as you say, if you have to improvise.”
    He wasn’t in a mood to argue, and his priorities were the ones I’d focus on first in any event—then I’d find out what was going on.
    “Okay,” I said, “but here’s one more piece of information you may want to factor in. Mulholland’s been buying FTB stock with every dime he can raise for the last two months.”
    He’d started for the door, but his head whipped around. “Buying? You sure?”
    “Uh-huh. Basilisk told me.”
    “That monster ought to be illegal. I didn’t know. Thanks. I don’t know what it means, other than Rory’s a man of his convictions. He believes in himself and his bank.”
    “Knowing that changes everything I thought about him,” I said with a grin.
    “Keep your opinions to yourself. He’s your client.”
    “I know. I’m looking forward to collecting that six sixty-six. Plus—”
    “I know. Plus the goddamned expenses. Sometimes I wonder how we won the Cold War. I spent the better part of three decades analyzing Russians, and I still have no idea what makes you tick.”
    “You didn’t win.” He’d heard this speech before, too. Maybe it was national pride, but I never tired of making the point, especially to Americans. “We lost.”

 
    CHAPTER 8
    Girl, money, kidnappers.
    Bernie’s priorities were fine as far as they went, but they didn’t go far enough. I had a plan for the money. The same plan would lead me to the kidnappers, if there were any kidnappers, and I’d figure out what to do with them once I saw them in the flesh. Neither worried me much. The girl was a different issue. Priority one, of course, as she should be. Only problem was, she wouldn’t be anywhere near the drop site tonight, no matter what the supposed kidnappers said. That much I was reasonably certain of, and that moved explanation up on the priority list. No point in pushing the point now. Bernie’s hands were tied, as were mine, by the same client—or the same client’s wife.
    Bernie led me down the hall to a small