“And with my father being dead,” Rona interrupted. “Eisenbraun naturally assumed that you were merely my representative.”
Although she respected and trusted AD, she had lost patience with him and him constantly reminding her of the way her father used to do things. In her mind, AD had become a reminder of the failed ways that got her father and brother killed.
“I’m sure that’s what it was,” AD said.
Although he loved Rona like she was his own daughter, he had grown tired of the way she talked to him.
“I need you to clean up anything that ties him to us.”
“I contacted him with a burner, and I paid him in Bitcoin like he wanted. There is nothing to tie us to him.”
“I know that,” Rona said impatiently. “Otherwise, they wouldn’t have released me. His statement was all they had. But Kirk won’t let this go,” she said, knowing that she made it worse.
Haven’t you harassed my family enough? Haven’t you caused me enough pain?
“He’ll be back.”
“I’ll make sure that there is nothing that ties him to us,” he said. As she had lost patience with him, he had gotten tired of her shit.
AD was running a nice quiet program for her, as he had done for her father for years and everybody was making money. Then Rona decided to take that money, money that he worked hard for, and invest it in revenge.
Revenge never has earned anybody a nickel.
“Thank you.” She smiled. “I don’t know what I’d do without you,” Rona said, but didn’t mean. “Now, if there’s nothing else —”
“There is. I finally caught up with Hawkins. He’s on the run and has no soldiers.”
“Terminate him.” Rona stood up. “And please see to that quickly. I’m going to eat. You enjoy your evening,” she said as she went out in the restaurant and Erica showed her to a table.
“Good evening, Paul,” Rona said as he pushed his cart to her table.
“How are you this evening, Ms. King?”
“Everything is wonderful.” She smiled her bright smile. “Excited to see what you have for me tonight,” she said with an almost childlike enthusiasm.
“I’ll be preparing steak and shrimp flambé for you this evening.”
She rubbed her hands together as he got ready to cook. “Now that does sound delicious.”
“And I promise that it will be, Ms. King. We’ll start with an eight-ounce filet mignon, which I am going to flambé with cognac. And then I will sauté six giant tiger shrimp with smoked paprika, shallots, garlic and cherry tomatoes, flambéed in cognac with butter and a drizzle of creme fraiche, served over Yukon Gold mashed potatoes with a medley of wild mushrooms and brandy truffle sauce just the way you like it.”
“And what is for dessert?”
“Crêpes Suzette, of course, Ms. King.”
“Thank you, Paul,” she said and happily watched as Paul, in a dazzling display of culinary showmanship, prepared and then served Rona’s meal.
“Would you like wine with your food, Ms. King?” Erica smiled and asked.
“Stop calling me that,” she laughed. “How about a kind of tropical Sauvignon blanc?”
“I think you should try the Cordier Labottiere Prestige 2016.”
“Excellent choice, Erica, thank you.”
“No worries, cuz,” she said and signaled for a waitress to handle it as she walked away from the table.
Once Rona finished her flambé, and believe me, it was absolutely delicious, she asked Erica to have Garon join her at the table.