[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
don't do bodyguard work, so "
"I want you to burn the place down."
Jack stared at her, trying to hide his shock. Not at the request itself lots
of people had come to him over the years looking for a torch job but at the
unexpectedness of it. He hadn't seen this one coming.
He made a show of cleaning out one of his ears. "I'm sorry. I thought you
just said you wanted to burn down a house for which you've already been
offered four million dollars."
"I did."
"Can I ask you why?"
"No."
"You're going to have to give me some kind of explanation."
Alicia shifted in her seat. "Why should you care?"
"It's the way I work."
She sighed. "All right. Maybe I'm just tired. I may be a doctor, but I don't
make a lot of money. I could be making more in private practice, but the
Center is what I want to do. Whatever I've managed to save after living
expenses and paying back my education loans, and believe me, I've got six
figures worth of those went to retainers for the investigator and the lawyer.
I'm just about tapped out, Jack. I don't want to start all over again with a
new lawyer. And frankly, I'm a little scared. I just want this over with."
Scared? Jack had a hard time buying this woman as scared. He had a feeling
she didn't run from anything.
"But the solution to all your financial problems can be solved by a simple
telephone call to your brother."
"Halfbrother. But I don't want to sell to Thomas. And he's preventing me from
selling to anyone else."
Jack was baffled. "But if, as you say, you don't want the house and don't
care about it, why not sell it to him?"
Alicia's eyes were suddenly ablaze as she spoke through her teeth.
"Because& he & wants it!"
And just as suddenly the fire was gone.
"And you don't get any explanation for that," she said evenly.
Jack leaned back and studied her. Where did he go from here? His instincts
told him that here was a lady with a few buttons missing from her remote
control, that he should make a beeline for the door and not look back.
Page 55
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
Good advice. She'd already told him she was almost tapped out, so no way she
could pay his fee. That meant there was nothing in this for him but trouble.
Easy to get out of it. Just tell her arson wasn't his thing the truth and
that would be that.
So why wasn't he saying it? Why hadn't he said it when she'd first mentioned
torching her dead father's house?
Because&
Truth was, he didn't have a goodbecause , other than the fact that he was
intrigued by Alicia and fascinated with the scenario she'd laid out. This lady
was turning down a fortune to keep a house that had belonged to a man she
wouldn't call "father" out of the hands of a half brother she hated. What was
it with the place? Had something happened to her there?
Things were slow and Jack's curiosity was piqued.
"Okay. Here's what I can do. I can't promise you anything now. The best I can
do is tell you I'll think about it. I'll have to check out a few things before
I decide."
"What's to decide?" she said, a note of irritation creeping into her voice.
"Either you will or you won't. You didn't have to check out anything with the
toys."
"That was a different story. Getting something back is a little bit different
from burning something to the ground, don't you think? You're talking about a
major fire in mid-town Manhattan."
Jack watched her face as she paused. Obviously she thought he'd simply
negotiate a fee and go do the job. But her face gave nothing away& until she
sort of smiled.Sort of because it didn't quite make it to her eyes.
"Oh, I get it," she said finally. "You need to checkme out."
"That's part of it. My gut says to believe you, but I've had some truly
excellent storytellers try to hire me from time to time in the past."
She nodded. "For all you know, the house belongs to an ex-lover who two-timed
me and I'm looking to get even."
"Wouldn't be the first time."
She gathered up her bag and rose. "Well, I can tell you this, Mr. Just Jack,"
she said coolly, "I don't have a lover. And I don't lie. You do what [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl aikidobyd.xlx.pl
don't do bodyguard work, so "
"I want you to burn the place down."
Jack stared at her, trying to hide his shock. Not at the request itself lots
of people had come to him over the years looking for a torch job but at the
unexpectedness of it. He hadn't seen this one coming.
He made a show of cleaning out one of his ears. "I'm sorry. I thought you
just said you wanted to burn down a house for which you've already been
offered four million dollars."
"I did."
"Can I ask you why?"
"No."
"You're going to have to give me some kind of explanation."
Alicia shifted in her seat. "Why should you care?"
"It's the way I work."
She sighed. "All right. Maybe I'm just tired. I may be a doctor, but I don't
make a lot of money. I could be making more in private practice, but the
Center is what I want to do. Whatever I've managed to save after living
expenses and paying back my education loans, and believe me, I've got six
figures worth of those went to retainers for the investigator and the lawyer.
I'm just about tapped out, Jack. I don't want to start all over again with a
new lawyer. And frankly, I'm a little scared. I just want this over with."
Scared? Jack had a hard time buying this woman as scared. He had a feeling
she didn't run from anything.
"But the solution to all your financial problems can be solved by a simple
telephone call to your brother."
"Halfbrother. But I don't want to sell to Thomas. And he's preventing me from
selling to anyone else."
Jack was baffled. "But if, as you say, you don't want the house and don't
care about it, why not sell it to him?"
Alicia's eyes were suddenly ablaze as she spoke through her teeth.
"Because& he & wants it!"
And just as suddenly the fire was gone.
"And you don't get any explanation for that," she said evenly.
Jack leaned back and studied her. Where did he go from here? His instincts
told him that here was a lady with a few buttons missing from her remote
control, that he should make a beeline for the door and not look back.
Page 55
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
Good advice. She'd already told him she was almost tapped out, so no way she
could pay his fee. That meant there was nothing in this for him but trouble.
Easy to get out of it. Just tell her arson wasn't his thing the truth and
that would be that.
So why wasn't he saying it? Why hadn't he said it when she'd first mentioned
torching her dead father's house?
Because&
Truth was, he didn't have a goodbecause , other than the fact that he was
intrigued by Alicia and fascinated with the scenario she'd laid out. This lady
was turning down a fortune to keep a house that had belonged to a man she
wouldn't call "father" out of the hands of a half brother she hated. What was
it with the place? Had something happened to her there?
Things were slow and Jack's curiosity was piqued.
"Okay. Here's what I can do. I can't promise you anything now. The best I can
do is tell you I'll think about it. I'll have to check out a few things before
I decide."
"What's to decide?" she said, a note of irritation creeping into her voice.
"Either you will or you won't. You didn't have to check out anything with the
toys."
"That was a different story. Getting something back is a little bit different
from burning something to the ground, don't you think? You're talking about a
major fire in mid-town Manhattan."
Jack watched her face as she paused. Obviously she thought he'd simply
negotiate a fee and go do the job. But her face gave nothing away& until she
sort of smiled.Sort of because it didn't quite make it to her eyes.
"Oh, I get it," she said finally. "You need to checkme out."
"That's part of it. My gut says to believe you, but I've had some truly
excellent storytellers try to hire me from time to time in the past."
She nodded. "For all you know, the house belongs to an ex-lover who two-timed
me and I'm looking to get even."
"Wouldn't be the first time."
She gathered up her bag and rose. "Well, I can tell you this, Mr. Just Jack,"
she said coolly, "I don't have a lover. And I don't lie. You do what [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]