An Aegean Prophecy - Jeffrey Siger [95]
Zacharias smiled. ‘No, that’s not my concern. If you were foolish enough to defraud me, I’d hunt you down and every member of your family. And destroy you all.’ He almost hissed the last words and his eyes seemed to glow. ‘But as I said, that’s not my concern, that is yours. My only fear is that when I open the canister, there will be another surprise. One that will end my life. So, my friend, you open the canister.’
‘Fuck you.’
Zacharias held out the bucket. ‘Don’t you want this?’
‘Yeah, and I’m going to take it.’
Zacharias reached inside as the Russian grabbed for the bucket. The Russian came away with the bucket and Zacharias with the small pistol he’d hidden under the money belt. ‘Now, open the canister.’ Zacharias kept the gun trained on the center of the Russian’s chest.
The Russian paused, then let go of the bucket, reached into the backpack, and pulled out the canister. ‘Fine, if you want the whole world to see, here.’ He twisted off the cap. Nothing happened, and he held the canister out in front of him. ‘Well, do you want to look or should I ask some cop to take it out for you?’
Zacharias kept his eye and the gun on the Russian, but leaned in to take a quick, sideways peek at what was in the canister. It was a package bearing all the markings of dioxin. Zacharias smiled. ‘Good, we have a deal.’ At that moment, Zacharias heard a pop and his world suddenly went very dark and quiet.
23
‘How much longer are you going to take? Your daddy and I have things to do. We can’t keep waiting on you to show up. Come on out and see the world already.’ Lila was sitting in the passenger’s seat, talking to her belly.
Andreas smiled and patted the object of Lila’s conversation with his right hand, never taking his eyes off the road or his left hand off the steering wheel. ‘I like spending this time together.’
‘Try strapping a bowling ball to your belly and lugging it around 24/7 and see how much you like it.’
Andreas laughed. ‘Hey, the doctor just told us everything is perfect, the baby should be here by the weekend, and not to worry. Besides, I’m sticking to you like glue until it’s time.’
Lila smiled. ‘I’m glad you are.’ She leaned over and kissed his cheek. ‘So, do you want to go dancing? I mean, it’s only Thursday. We have at least a day or so.’
He knew she was teasing. ‘Yeah, sure. But why don’t we start out with lunch in Kolonaki? After all, it’s the fashionable place to be in Athens, and who’s more fashionable than my baby’s mommy?’
‘Oh you sweet-talking guy, if you hadn’t already knocked me up I’d let you do it all over again.’
‘I think I still remember how.’
‘Glad one of us does.’
He laughed. ‘Okay, where to?’
‘Our usual hangout.’
‘Home?’
‘Just not up for the social scene.’
‘No problem. I’ll drop you off in front and park the car in the garage.’
‘Thanks, I’m not up for the walk.’
Andreas patted her hand. He knew she wouldn’t want to go out. They hadn’t been out since Easter Sunday and probably wouldn’t have gone out today if it weren’t for her doctor’s appointment. Lila described what they were doing as ‘nesting.’ Whatever it was, he liked it. And home also was the safest possible place for them to be. Their street running past the Presidential Palace was filled with police and military types protecting the powerful in and out of government who lived there. Their building itself was a modern-day fortress with automatic shut-downs and security devices designed to foil even the most aggressive kidnappers, today’s scourge of the wealthy.
The K-garage was only a few blocks from the apartment. It was where you parked when you couldn’t find a place on the street. If Andreas were in a police car he’d park anywhere, but this was Lila’s car and she kept it safely parked in the garage in a reserved space. He pulled up in front of the apartment building. It was on the left side of a one-way street, so he had to park with the driver’s side at the curb. A black, American-made Chevrolet Suburban with deeply tinted windows was parked just beyond the building