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Life just wanted to fuck with him. But he wasn’t going to let this opportunity pass him by. He’d have what he could while he could.
Monday. New Orleans, LA.
Daar stepped through the back door of the same musty building into a storeroom that had been taken over. Two blowup mattresses told him that Peter and Amaar were taking this trip seriously.
It was a piss poor time to be keeping up appearances. Daar wanted nothing more than to be back at work, doing his best to control what was going on. Instead he’d been forced to leave day-to-day operations in the hands of his subordinate, Saaina’s cousin. The young man had proved himself more than capable at carrying out orders. But that was where his skill ended. The young man couldn’t be expected to process incoming information, made decisions and execute plans apart from Daar.
Damn it.
Why had he ever agreed that a month a year was a good enough visit with his brother?
If it weren’t for the promises Daar had made on their parent’s death bed, he didn’t think he would be in Cassim’s life today. Cassim was American now. He lived a life of luxury off the money his first wife had made. He didn’t contribute to society beyond what he could gain. Cassim didn’t even attempt to improve his fortune beyond what dividends were paid to him. He was a cancer on society, his family, everything.
“Sir?”
Daar shook his head. Now was not the time to be getting lost in thought. What mattered was that Cassim was taken care of and Daar had done his duty.
“You have something for me?” he asked.
Peter glanced over his shoulder at Amaar. “He’s working on something still.”
“And you?”
“I, uh… I’m not sure.” Peter shoved his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his heels. “I was looking back through what Amaar gave you about this Gonzalez guy, right? And I noticed that a couple of guys he worked with happen to live outside of Miami. Last night I went to a bar they frequent, knocked some back with them, and we got to talking. I got an opening, and I asked them about your boy. This Harper Gonzalez? They all got real cagey. Didn’t want nothing to do with me after that. It was weird. Not at all like they were closing ranks, more like they seemed guilty. I don’t know if it’s anything at all, but…”
“Thank you. It tells us something at least, doesn’t it? They know the name at least.”
“Can I ask you a question, sir?”
“Of course.”
“I’m hearing things. Things about the council…?”
Daar nodded. “With Skilton disappearing like he did, people are either afraid or looking at this as an opportunity to make a move.”
“And us? What are we doing?”
He regarded Peter for a moment. It was a presumptuous question Daar had no intention of answering. Once a man began explaining himself to his subordinates, the power shifted. He would not act according to Peter’s whims.
Amaar took off his headset and looked up from the screen. He leveled a dark stare at Daar that created a weight in the pit of his stomach.
“What is it?” Daar asked.
“Someone’s pulled all the flight manifests from Paris to New Orleans the day we arrived,” Amaar announced.
Shit.
Daar crossed to the table. “How do we know that?”
“We pay a guy at the airport,” Amaar replied.
Daar nodded. This was why Amaar was worth every penny Daar paid him. Besides that, he was fiercely loyal.
“I’m working on finding out who. They didn’t go through legal channels otherwise I’d know by now. I messaged you as soon as I got word.” He gestured to the computer. “I’m working on a few leads right now.”
Nothing could be easy.
“Keep at it. And let me know what you find out.”
