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The car filled with the sound of voices, muted butclear.
“Thank you,” the man said, followed by the rustle ofbags.
“You’re welcome,” the woman said in accented English. “Unfortunately, Mr. Ármannsson has asked me to pass along the message that we will not be able to continue such assistance. It poses too great arisk.”
“I’ll phone him. I need another month,” the mansaid.
Nick lifted his eyebrows at Declan. “Is it him?” hemouthed.
Declan held up a finger. He neededmore.
“You can try,” the woman said. “But it has been six months. Our exposure is too great, to say nothing of the burden. I’m sure youunderstand.”
“I do, of course. And I hope you know how much I appreciate your assistance.” Declan might have expected the man's voice to be pleading, but something cold and tight had crept into it instead. It was the voice of entitlement, a man who expected everything to go his way and always found someone to blame when it didn’t. “It’s taking longer than I’d expected to get everything in order, but I’m almost there, and I can promise Mr. Ármannsson that the payoff will be well worth thewait.
“It’s him,” Declansaid.
Nick looked at him. “Yousure?”
“I’m sure, but we’ll play the recording for Kateanyway.”
“Let’s wait,” Nicksaid.
Once Leifsson left the house, they’d be in the dark. They needed to see if anyone else was with Neil, if a reference was made to another person or if someone else spokeup.
But in the next five minutes there was no sign of anyone else. Just a bland exchange between Leifsson and Neil discussing the supplies purchased by Leifsson, a bundle of cash that was apparently part of the deal, courtesy of Gunnar Ármannsson, and a new track phone that had been requested byNeil.
Then Jóhanna Leifsson was on her way out of the house, wishing Neil well, seeming in a hurry to get away from him. They waited for the sounds of her leaving to play in reverse: her footsteps as she walked to the car, the ding of the door alarm, the slam as she closed the door, the soft rumble of the enginecatching.
Nick turned the audio down and stashed the receiver back in the console. “So either Beth isn’t there or she was in anotherroom.”
“Fuck.” Declan was hoping for something more definitive one way or the other. Any breach of the house would have to be executed carefully, with the possibility of Beth’s presence and the need to keep her alive looming over every move theymade.
Nick yawned. “Let’s go back to the house. I’m starving. At least we know Curran’s there, and we know he doesn’t have a team of security with him,” Nicksaid.
It should have been comforting. They wouldn’t be facing a swarm of armed men protecting Neil. But Declan couldn’t help feeling that would have been preferable. They knew how to deal with security, with mercenaries, with anyone intent on killingthem.
Keeping someone alive was a different kind ofburden.
