Deliver Us From Evil (A. Shaw 2)

“You kill him and stuff him in some crypt, no one knows what happened to the guy. That creates uncertainty. The enterprise can’t go forward under new leadership because everyone’s waiting for the boss to come back. Or other guys make a grab for it. It’s not clean. If Rice is there and tries to save his boss, he earns big creds from the troops. And then you have closure. The king is dead. Rice can step in as the logical successor.”

“That hardly sounds logical,” sniffed Mallory.

“I was in those catacombs,” rejoined Shaw. “I saw Rice take a shot at Kuchin. He was trying to kill his boss.”

“Could your informant be Rice?” said Reggie.

The professor shrugged. “It’s possible, I suppose. As I said, he remained anonymous.”

Liza spoke up. “And if what you say is true, Shaw, how does that further our goal of getting to Kuchin?”

“If Rice is the inside guy we can use that against him to get to the boss. He’s got to be a little nervous already. Kuchin is alive, after all.” He looked at Reggie. “You guys said his real name that night. Rice had to hear it. I doubt Kuchin is thrilled about that. Rice may think his days are numbered anyway.”

“But how do we get to Alan Rice?”

“Kuchin has a string of legit businesses. Presumably Rice has a hand in running them. Kuchin’s headquarters are in Montreal. He has a downtown penthouse there. I say I go to Canada and start pushing some buttons.”

“You?” asked Reggie.

He looked at her. “Yeah, me.”

Reggie automatically glanced at the professor. “What do you think?”

“What about Whit going too?” he said, but Shaw was already shaking his head.

“We don’t play well together. And he’s a hothead who probably won’t follow my lead.”

“I’ll go,” said Reggie.

“Not a good idea,” shot back Shaw.

“Why?”

“Just not, trust me.”

“I disagree,” said Mallory. “I think she should go.”

“I don’t think you’re calling the shots,” said Shaw. “I am.”

“We have a vested interest in bringing this all together,” said Mallory. “And more to the point, keep in mind that while I concede that you can bring us down, that sword can cut both ways.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning, it seems, that you also work for a highly secret organization. If our existence comes to public light, I can assure you that so will yours.”

Shaw considered this, keeping his true feelings behind a mask of inscrutability. “I’ll think about it.”

“Don’t think too long,” said Mallory. “As you said, Kuchin is coming for us.”

Shaw and Reggie drove back to London. She dropped him off at the Savoy.

“Do you want me to come up?” she asked. “Just to talk,” she added quickly.

“Not tonight. I’ve got a lot to think about. Maybe another night.”

Clearly disappointed, she drove off.

Shaw rode the elevator to his room. He opened the door, flicked on the light.