but they were not heading toward the fire. Denborough wasn’t a high-priority neighborhood. By the time emergency crews arrived, the house would probably be nothing but ash.
“Why?” asked Kate, still not understanding what had happened.
“To avoid potential problems,” answered Feldman. “Going in there, we left footprints, hair, and God knows what else. Half a dozen junkies watched us go in, and even if their word isn’t worth shit, they could lead the police to us if they found any forensic evidence. Our license plates are fake, so that won’t be a problem, but I don’t want anything that might lead to a criminal investigation. Not now that we’re so close.” Feldman stopped as if he had said more than intended.
“So close to what?” asked Kate with a knot in her stomach, sensing the danger of the situation. Feldman’s sinister reputation took on a whole new meaning.
“Nothing you need to worry about, Miss Kilroy,” Feldman grunted hoarsely. “Nothing you need to worry about.”
“You mean that the house and the body were just loose ends that needed tending?”
Feldman confirmed her accusation with a single nod.
A long silence ensued between the two of them as the convoy merged onto the highway.
“Am I just another one of those loose ends?” she whispered, the knot in her stomach turning to ice.
Feldman’s blank expression slowly transformed into one of respect. He nodded. “It’s true. You’re another loose end, Kate.”
“Where does that leave us?”
“In a complex situation for the both of us. You’re a strange variable in my equation. I’m not sure what to do with you.”
Kate shrunk into her seat. She looked out the window and immediately discarded the possibility of jumping out of a moving vehicle. They were traveling well above the speed limit, weaving between heavy traffic. A man like this paid no mind to things like traffic tickets.
Feldman looked at Kate, and a sudden look of understanding crossed his face. He let out a thunderous guffaw. “Do you think I’m going to kill you? Who do you take me for?”
“You’re Isaac Feldman,” she said weakly. “You’re a gambling tycoon. They say you enjoy watching your enemies get slaughtered. You have your own private army at your disposal. You’re a man who just set fire to a crime scene without batting an eye.”
Feldman laughed harder than before. “Some of those things are certainly true, and others not so much. But rest assured. I do not intend to harm you.”
Kate noticed that when Feldman let himself smile, his face became calm and peaceful.
“So?”
“So we have a complex situation on our hands. You know too much about the Valkyrie, which is not good these days.” He motioned outside in reference to Carroll’s house. “And you know too much about me. Plus, you’re an accomplice to the destruction of a crime scene.”
Kate opened her mouth to protest the accusation, but Feldman raised a hand to silence her.
“On the other hand, you’re a smart woman who seems to ask the right questions. You want to write a story on the mysterious ghost ship that comes to life after seventy years.”
When he said the words ghost ship , Kate noticed that Feldman made an effort to utter them calmly, but his eyes betrayed him.
“We cannot forget that you were the last person to talk to the only survivor of the Pass of Ballaster . All of that makes you quite valuable.”
“I would like to go aboard your ship, Mr. Feldman. I want to tell that story.”
“You can’t do that until the voyage is over, and you will let me read your story before it’s published.”
Kate would rather die than allow Feldman to censor her report, but she agreed. She would cross that bridge when she came to it.
“All right, Mr. Feldman.” Kate extended her hand and, for the first time that day, felt like everything would be OK. “Do we have a deal?”
“Deal,” he said. “Welcome to the crew of the Valkyrie .”
XII
Hamburg,
“Why?” asked Kate, still not understanding what had happened.
“To avoid potential problems,” answered Feldman. “Going in there, we left footprints, hair, and God knows what else. Half a dozen junkies watched us go in, and even if their word isn’t worth shit, they could lead the police to us if they found any forensic evidence. Our license plates are fake, so that won’t be a problem, but I don’t want anything that might lead to a criminal investigation. Not now that we’re so close.” Feldman stopped as if he had said more than intended.
“So close to what?” asked Kate with a knot in her stomach, sensing the danger of the situation. Feldman’s sinister reputation took on a whole new meaning.
“Nothing you need to worry about, Miss Kilroy,” Feldman grunted hoarsely. “Nothing you need to worry about.”
“You mean that the house and the body were just loose ends that needed tending?”
Feldman confirmed her accusation with a single nod.
A long silence ensued between the two of them as the convoy merged onto the highway.
“Am I just another one of those loose ends?” she whispered, the knot in her stomach turning to ice.
Feldman’s blank expression slowly transformed into one of respect. He nodded. “It’s true. You’re another loose end, Kate.”
“Where does that leave us?”
“In a complex situation for the both of us. You’re a strange variable in my equation. I’m not sure what to do with you.”
Kate shrunk into her seat. She looked out the window and immediately discarded the possibility of jumping out of a moving vehicle. They were traveling well above the speed limit, weaving between heavy traffic. A man like this paid no mind to things like traffic tickets.
Feldman looked at Kate, and a sudden look of understanding crossed his face. He let out a thunderous guffaw. “Do you think I’m going to kill you? Who do you take me for?”
“You’re Isaac Feldman,” she said weakly. “You’re a gambling tycoon. They say you enjoy watching your enemies get slaughtered. You have your own private army at your disposal. You’re a man who just set fire to a crime scene without batting an eye.”
Feldman laughed harder than before. “Some of those things are certainly true, and others not so much. But rest assured. I do not intend to harm you.”
Kate noticed that when Feldman let himself smile, his face became calm and peaceful.
“So?”
“So we have a complex situation on our hands. You know too much about the Valkyrie, which is not good these days.” He motioned outside in reference to Carroll’s house. “And you know too much about me. Plus, you’re an accomplice to the destruction of a crime scene.”
Kate opened her mouth to protest the accusation, but Feldman raised a hand to silence her.
“On the other hand, you’re a smart woman who seems to ask the right questions. You want to write a story on the mysterious ghost ship that comes to life after seventy years.”
When he said the words ghost ship , Kate noticed that Feldman made an effort to utter them calmly, but his eyes betrayed him.
“We cannot forget that you were the last person to talk to the only survivor of the Pass of Ballaster . All of that makes you quite valuable.”
“I would like to go aboard your ship, Mr. Feldman. I want to tell that story.”
“You can’t do that until the voyage is over, and you will let me read your story before it’s published.”
Kate would rather die than allow Feldman to censor her report, but she agreed. She would cross that bridge when she came to it.
“All right, Mr. Feldman.” Kate extended her hand and, for the first time that day, felt like everything would be OK. “Do we have a deal?”
“Deal,” he said. “Welcome to the crew of the Valkyrie .”
XII
Hamburg,
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