Chapter 49 - Into the Lion's Den
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"Evelyn was a very expensive asset," I noted, ignoring the coffee.
"Loyalty is simply a matter of price in this city," Thorne replied, taking a sip from his own cup. "But you aren't here to discuss my payroll. You are here to surrender the decryption password for the Zurich Ledger."
"Why do you want it so badly, Thorne?" I asked, leaning forward, resting my elbows on the plastic table. "You're a cleaner. The politicians on that list are already untouchable."
"No one is untouchable," Thorne corrected me, his voice dropping into a sinister, authoritative register. "The politicians on your little list have become entirely too independent recently. They are forgetting who funded their campaigns. They are forgetting who buried their bodies. I need that ledger to remind them that I hold the leash."
"So you want to use my insurance policy to enslave the federal government."
"I prefer the term 'manage'," Thorne smiled smoothly. "Now, David. Give me the password. You walk down those stairs, you return to your beautiful wife Amy and your son Frederick, and you go back to pretending you are an honest, upstanding citizen. We never cross paths again."
The mention of my family's names sent a spike of pure, violent adrenaline through my veins. He wasn't just threatening me; he was making it explicitly clear that he knew exactly how to hurt me the most.
"And if I refuse?" I challenged softly.
Thorne sighed, setting his coffee cup down with a look of profound disappointment.
He reached into his overcoat and casually pulled out a heavy, suppressed tactical pistol. He didn't point it at me. He simply rested it on the plastic table, his hand resting lightly over the grip.
"If you refuse, David, I will shoot you in both of your kneecaps," Thorne stated with chilling, conversational ease. "Then, my associates, who are currently waiting in the lobby of the highly secure hotel your wife is hiding in, will proceed to execute her. And then they will execute your son. And then, as you bleed out on this freezing concrete, I will simply ask you for the password again."
I stared at the gun, my heart hammering a frantic, terrifying rhythm against my ribs. He had bypassed my entire plan. He had found the hotel.
"You're bluffing," I said, my voice trembling slightly.
Thorne pulled out a sleek smartphone and slid it across the table. The screen displayed a live, high-definition video feed.
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It was the hallway outside Amy's hotel room. Two men in dark suits were standing silently by the door, waiting for a signal.
"I never bluff, David," Thorne whispered. "The password. Now."
