Swimming with Sharks (81 page)

“Can I see your invitations, please?” one of the bodyguards asked.

“US Marshals Service.” Engels pulled out his badge.

“I can’t let you in if you don’t have an invitation.” The blond, broad-shouldered man shrugged apologetically.

“Step aside,” Lloyd Connors said, “I’m the US attorney for the Southern District of New York. I’m here on official business.”

“Sorry, but I have orders—”

“What’s going on here?” A brawny, grim-faced man with a walrus moustache appeared behind the blond giant, reinforced by an army of bodyguards.

“Who are you, and what do want here without an invitation?”

“We’re here to see Mr. Vitali,” Lloyd Connors countered.

“Mr. Vitali is busy at the moment,” snarled the fat guy—who wasn’t the least bit intimidated by the appearance of multiple US attorneys and US marshals. “Come to his office on Monday.”

“Fine, if you want trouble.” Connors smiled thinly. “Deputy, arrest these men for obstruction of justice.”

He pushed his way through the group of bodyguards, who watched with dropped jaws as handcuffs clicked around their boss’s wrists.

“Wow.” Deputy Spooner whistled through his teeth as he stepped into the ballroom. “So this is what a party for the upper crust looks like! Holy smokes!”

With fully loaded trays, liveried waiters made their way from one magnificently decorated table to another as ladies in the finest designer gowns and gentlemen in tuxedos with tails enjoyed lobster bisque, salmon mousse, filet mignon, and truffles.

“I prefer a comfortable barbecue,” Lloyd Connors answered dryly, looking around the gigantic ballroom.

A full orchestra played onstage, and the guests sitting at tables on various levels of the ballroom were in a splendid mood.

“I’d like to know how many insurance companies are sweating blood tonight that all this stuff gets returned safely,” Deputy Spooner observed with his usual sarcasm.

“Keep your eyes peeled for Vitali,” Connors said. “I don’t want anyone to warn him before we find him.”

The US attorney was trembling with excitement. If something went wrong and Vitali escaped, every effort of the recent weeks would be in vain—not to mention the fact that he might be forced to resign tomorrow.

“Over there!” Royce Shepard whispered. “The table at the very top of the gallery. That’s him.”

“I see him.” Connors nodded with grim determination. “Come on, let’s get him!”

They shoved their way through guests, who responded with indignant remarks and looks.

“The complete corrupt gang in one pile,” Deputy Spooner said with a grin. “A thousand years of prison time sitting here. It’s too bad that we can’t take all of them with us at once.”

The monastery’s guest room was slightly larger than the simple cells in which the Jesuit priests lived. It had its own shower and toilet, which was an unheard-of luxury for the priests. That morning, Frank Cohen
had brought Alex the suitcase she had left behind at the Portland Square Hotel. Alex stepped under the hot water of the shower. She still thought she smelled the sharp stench of men’s sweat on her skin. Just as she was drying herself off, someone knocked on the door. She wrapped the towel around her body and opened the door just a crack. Her heart jumped when she saw Nick in the dim of the hallway.

“Wait a second,” she said.

After she got dressed, he came inside.

Alex realized that she wasn’t the only one who had gone through hell in the past days. She could see the exhaustion in Nick’s face, his tired eyes and the dark circles beneath them.

“You look very tired,” Alex said quietly.

“I am,” Nick admitted. “I’m very tired. I’m longing for the days when I can get some sleep again.”

He sighed.

“Come and sit down for a moment,” Alex offered. Nick sat down on the edge of the bed. There was no other place to sit in the small room.

“I can handle it pretty well during the day because I’m distracted, but the loneliness sets in at night, and the nightmares full of explosions come with it.”

There was no bitterness in his voice, just resignation. Alex nodded slowly. She knew all too well what Nick was talking about because she felt the same way. The demons were faint during the day, but they came to life in the darkness and silence of the night. Then she heard the laughter of the men and their voices and saw their cruel, indifferent eyes.

“You’re freezing,” Nick sensed. It was cold in the small room because the heater gave off very little warmth. “I…I should leave now.”

“No,” Alex said and pleadingly put her hand on his arm, “please don’t. Stay awhile.”

Nick thought about Oliver Skerritt. It wasn’t right for him to be here.

“Alex,” he said, “I don’t want to—”

“Just wait a moment,” she interrupted him. “Please. I’ll be right back.”

“Okay.” Nick still hesitated, but then he nodded. Alex disappeared into the tiny bathroom and dried her wet hair. When she returned after a few minutes of primping, Nick was stretched out on the bed, sound asleep. Alex felt a deep tenderness for him. Should she wake him? No. He was so tired, so exhausted. She carefully took off his shoes, loosened his tie, and covered him with a blanket.

Then she sat on the floor, leaned against the wall, and wrapped her arms around her knees. So this is where they’d ended up. Nick Kostidis, one of the city’s most powerful and famous men, and Alex Sontheim, clever and intelligent Wall Street star. Like Icarus, they’d aimed too high and crashed. What was left of their former glory? Alex could hardly comprehend what had driven her to work those hundred-hour weeks. There wasn’t much left of the enticing feeling of success besides a bad aftertaste. Fueled by her ambition, she had refused to look beyond the shiny facades of material success. She had ignored every warning. Alex thought about Mark, Justin, and Oliver—who had confessed his love to her…Should she go to Maine with him?

Nick shifted a little. Asleep, he looked more relaxed and peaceful than she’d ever seen him before. He was no longer a stranger to her, but this had nothing to do with their night of passion. Their friendship had just gotten deeper that night. Alex felt safe and comfortable in Nick’s presence. She trusted him like she’d never trusted anyone before. She didn’t have to pretend around Nick; with him, she could be who she really was. And although Alex knew that she loved him, she was aware of the wide chasm that divided them. All of New York City stood between her and Nick Kostidis. She needed to turn her back on this city if she wanted to have a future, and that’s exactly what Nick couldn’t do. New York was his life, and Alex had accepted that long ago.

It was almost midnight, and Alex was so tired that she could barely keep her eyes open. She switched off the light, and the bright moonlight
cast a dim glow over the room. Alex lay on the bed next to Nick. She felt his body’s comforting warmth, and as he moved in his sleep, she wrapped an arm around him. She was determined to stay awake to enjoy these precious hours, but after a few minutes she fell asleep.

Sergio Vitali sat between a princess from Monaco and Cassandra Goldstein, billionaire Simon Goldstein’s widow. He was in a splendid mood. His table guests included New York construction tycoon Charlie Rosenbaum, the oil billionaire James Earl Freyberg III, Secretary of State Oliver Kravitz, Senators Ted Willings and Fred Hoffman, Governor Rhodes,
Time
magazine publisher Carey Newberg, and Hollywood diva Liza Gaynor.

Lloyd Connors wasn’t particularly surprised to see Tate Jenkins also sitting there. The deputy director of the FBI certainly was astonished to see the US attorney coming up the small stairs leading to the gallery. Jenkins turned pale. Connors stepped toward the table, and the orchestra stopped playing abruptly, as though it had been given a signal.

“Mr. Vitali?” Connors cleared his throat. He noticed that his nervousness had disappeared. He had imagined this scenario hundreds of times. He felt like an actor playing a well-rehearsed role at the premiere, but the play had become reality. Sergio Vitali looked up indignantly.

“Lloyd Connors from the US Attorney’s Office in Manhattan.”

“I know who you are,” Vitali replied, his smile failing to reach his cold eyes. “I don’t remember seeing your name on the guest list.”

“That’s right,” Lloyd Connors said, “I’m here on official business. I’d like to talk to you for a moment.”

From the corner of his eye, he saw the awkward faces of Governor Rhodes and Senator Hoffman—both of whom would have loved to crawl into a hole in the wall. Vitali didn’t seem to be particularly disturbed by the US attorney’s appearance. No one could have ratted him out.

“Can’t you see that I have guests?” he said condescendingly. “I’m busy now. But help yourself to the buffet. It would probably be a welcome change from the cafeteria at the US Attorney’s Office.”

Only Charlie Rosenbaum and James Earl Freyberg III laughed.

“I must insist that you—”

“Listen, Connors.” The mask of friendliness fell off of Vitali’s face. “I don’t have time right now.”

His eyes narrowed as he saw Gordon Engels coming up the stairs in the company of Spooner and Khazaeli. His gaze drifted to Tate Jenkins, but the man was staring down at the table looking petrified. All conversation around the table fell silent.

The US attorney shrugged his shoulders. “Fine, if you prefer it this way. Mr. Vitali, I have a warrant for your arrest.”

“Excuse me?” Sergio Vitali froze, his face flushed. “You’re joking, pal! Leave with your people before I have you thrown out!”

Unmoved, Connors unfolded the paper.

“Mr. Vitali,” he said in a businesslike voice, “you’re under arrest for the murder of Stefano Barelli.”

It was dead silent around the table.

“What the hell?” Vitali’s face turned a darker red.

His guests avoided looking directly at their host. Spooner and Khazaeli walked around the table and stood behind him.

“US Marshals Service.” Spooner held his badge under Vitali’s nose. “Would you stand up please?”

Vitali gesticulated as if chasing away an insect, but he stood up.

“How dare you?” he exclaimed. “This is absolutely ridiculous!”

His face alternated between red and pale, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

“Come with me, Mr. Vitali.” Connors said coldly. “You’re under arrest.”

Sergio Vitali turned toward his guests.

“This is a regrettable misunderstanding that will be cleared up very quickly.”

Spooner took advantage of the opportunity and clicked the handcuffs around Vitali’s wrists, causing him to turn around angrily.

“Come on, mister,” he said, “let’s go.”

“You have the right to remain silent…” Deputy Khazaeli started with the usual admonition, but Vitali interrupted him angrily.

“Save your breath,” he snapped. “I want to speak to my lawyer immediately!”

In the meantime, the news had gone around that something unusual was happening at the host’s table. A pin drop could have been heard in the gigantic ballroom.

“This will have consequences for you!” Sergio Vitali hissed as Spooner led him past Connors. The US attorney simply shrugged his shoulders. He was about to turn away, when Gordon Engels held him back.