Chapter 511
Chapter 511:
The pressure in my skull was turning into a full-blown migraine. “Just say it. The money’s gone p>
“Ordinarily, yes. But there may be ways to shortcut the process p>
“HOW p>
He gestured to the empty chair.
I sat, shoulders stiff.
“Monsieur Marchetti has several personal accounts within our jurisdiction. We can freeze them. Once he’s convicted, those funds could be redistributed to victims. Who’s to say the money you gave him wasn’t part of what’s in those accounts p>
I narrowed my eyes. “You’re saying you can refund my five mil out of his personal stash p>
He nodded. “It’s unconventional. If the irregularity is discovered, there will be consequences. I could be reprimanded or suspended. Which is why I’d only consider it for someone who’s been significantly helpful to the case p>
“So if I don’t play ball, I can kiss my money goodbye. That’s what you’re saying p>
He leaned back, the barest twitch of a smirk appearing. “I believe the phrase is, ‘You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours p>
It didn’t take me long to decide.
“What do you need me to do p>
“Penny for your thoughts p>
I turned from the floor-to-ceiling window. “Nothing. Just thinking about work p>
Lea didn’t buy it. “Work doesn’t make you look like that p>
“Not my work. Mira’s p>
I glanced at the phone clenched in my hand. Mira had just texted to say she was extending her stay in Paris. She didn’t say how long. Just that work was piling up, they were short-staffed, and she needed to pull her weight. As if to prove the point, when I called, she barely got two sentences out before ending the call.
Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling there was something she wasn’t saying. It wasn’t what she said—it was how she said it. Something in her tone. A kind of evasiveness.
“Ah, yes, the famous jewelry designer,” Lea tilted her chin toward the safe in the corner of the office. “May I p>
I keyed in the code and unlocked it.
She removed the top box, opened a velvet case, and lifted out a necklace. “What’s this one called again p>
“Veyra p>
“Pretty name. Eliza Black wore it, didn’t she? I remember the red carpet photos.” She put the necklace away. “Wish I’d met your wife p>
We’d left Paris before dawn. Mira was still asleep then.
“You will. At the wedding,” I said. Though, with each day that passed, and now with this delay, I was starting to doubt whether there’d be one in June. Or at all.
“Not before that?” Lea asked. “I was hoping to order something custom. I saw her portfolio online. Exactly my taste p>
“I’ll let you know,” I said. “How’s the case going p>
Lea dropped into the chair in front of my desk and rubbed between her brows. “My lawyer just filed the divorce petition. We’re waiting on Pierre’s response. But knowing him, he’ll drag it out for years.” She waved her phone. “I changed my number. He’ll go ballistic once he gets served p>
“He can’t touch you here in Skyline. This city is mine.” In the meantime, you could start scoping out a Titanova office here p>