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“It was insured for fifteen million ten years ago,” I reply as I glance into the trunk of the hatchback we stole yesterday, to make sure the painting is okay. “It’s probably worth more now.”
“Damn. Why don’twetry to sell the thing then instead of going through Alessandro?”
“We don’t have the connections. Plus, ‘Raging in the Mountains’ is a well-known piece. Now that it’s been stolen, no legitimate person is going to buy it.”
“This is a commissioned job,” adds Peter as he navigates the narrow, winding road. “Alessandro said not to fuck it up or pull any funny stuff or we’re dead men.”
I sit up sharply. “What?”
“I didn’t give you the whole spiel because I didn’t want you to get scared. The buyer’s a member of theJing San Triad.”
I don’t know what theJing San Triadis, but organized crime is nothing to take lightly. I look into the rearview mirror to see if my brother’s serious. He’s my twin, so I know him inside-out.
His gaze meets mine in the mirror. Even though it’s dark, I can tell he’s serious.
“I’ve heard of theJing San Triad,” Jack says. “They shot up half of Chinatown back in the ‘70’s. They don’t do turf wars anymore, though. They’ve moved on to higher-level crimes.”
“How do you know this?”
“Last year I dated a homicide detective who thinks the triad is behind the murder of a local state assembly member and his family, but there’s no proof.”
“Family?” I echo.
“Wife, a kid, and a dog. How bloodthirsty do you have to be to kill a dog? It was such a cute little terrier, too.”
I sink into the seat. I don’t like what I’m hearing at all. I’d had a feeling Peter was holding something back when he first told me that Alessandro had contacted him about lifting a Morelli from some rich couple’s home.
“Let’s get the painting to Alessandro as soon as we can,” I say.
I look back at Orithyia. The moonlight casts a bright and eerie glow upon her. She stares at me, saying, “I told you so.”
CHAPTER TWO
My blood pressure ticksup.
“What do you mean you don’t have the Morelli?” I ask the man who stands behind the counter of the pawn shop in San Francisco’s Tenderloin District.
