The Detachment

pressure. It’s the way it’s done.”
    “Yeah. I get it.”
    “And even if it were true the CIA did have the tapes, they don’t give a shit about you, not as long as you don’t get in their business. Get rid of Hort and you don’t have to worry about anyone using those tapes against you, regardless of who’s holding them.”
    “Get rid of him?”
    “Come on. You’re telling me you’ve never considered it? How stupid do you think I am?”
    Treven shook his head. “You don’t need me for that. You can make Hort dead on your own.”
    “But there’s something else I want.”
    There was a pause. Treven said, “The diamonds.”
    “Correct. And that’s not a one-man job. It’ll take two, minimum.”
    “But you’re thinking four would be more like it.”
    Larison smiled. No, Treven wasn’t stupid at all.
    “We’re talking about a hundred million dollars,” Larison said. “Rain and Dox could have a quarter each. So could you. Once we have the diamonds, I’ll take care of Hort gratis.”
    Treven didn’t answer, and Larison couldn’t tell what he was thinking. But he could guess. Twenty-five million and the removal of the man who was blackmailing him? Who wouldn’t jump at the chance?
    “Well?” Larison said. “Are you in?”
    There was a long pause. Larison waited, letting the silence do its work.
    Finally, Treven said, “You’d have to tell me the plan first.”
    Larison smiled. Treven was in. Now all he had to do was dangle the diamonds in front of Rain and Dox, too.

I called Horton as Dox drove us past Pasadena. There are those who would suggest I’m paranoid, or they would if they were still alive, anyway, but I didn’t want anyone triangulating on the position of our rental car while we were on some deserted stretch of Route 15, with no alternate routes possible and nowhere to run or hide.
    “It’s done,” I told him.
    “I heard,” he said, pleasure in his rich baritone.
    That was pretty fast—Dox and I had left Las Vegas less than four hours earlier. Ordinarily, a body can sit for a long time in a closed restroom stall without anyone noticing anything amiss. Usually it’ll be discovered by a cleaning person, trying to clear and close the bathroom before getting to work. Maybe an early morning crew had found Shorrock. More likely, the bodyguards went looking for him when he didn’t come back from his mysterious solo errand. I realized I should have foreseen they’d find him sooner than normal. But it didn’t really matter.
    “You hear about any problems?” I asked.
    “None at all. Glad to see your reputation is well deserved.”
    “We were lucky.”
    “I doubt it. You used what I gave you?”
    “Yes.”
    “Good. Now, to save you from asking the obvious question, your remuneration has already been distributed per your instructions. You can each confirm receipt.”
    The conversation was so familiar I might have been having déjà vu. It was appalling, how natural it felt to be doing this again. How…normal. As though I’d been forced to use only my weak hand for the last few years, and was at last again able to use my strong one.
    “I’ll tell the others.”
    “Good. And if you’re heading back to the area where we previously met, I’d like to see you again.”
    Alarm bells went off in my head. “Why?”
    “To brief you on the next one.”
    “Why do we have to meet for that?”
    “Because I’m not going to put the details in writing or say them over the phone. Look, under the circumstances, I completely understand your hesitation. So, needless to say, we can meet anywhere or anyway that’s comfortable for you.”
    I didn’t like it. Ordinarily, the probable quality and quantity of the opposition were such that I could implement satisfactory countermeasures. But Horton could bring some exceptionally heavy firepower into play if he wanted to. I imagined a SWAT team, briefed about the presence of Shorrock’s armed-and-dangerous killer, surrounding a restaurant with me inside it.
    “The guy who just left the project isn’t enough?” I said, stalling for time.
    “Not quite. I need two more personnel changes to make sure the project doesn’t get off the ground. If it does, it’s going to cost the company a lot of money. You’ve proven you’re the man for this. Finish the job and there’s a hell of a bonus.”
    I didn’t know if I wanted this. But what did I want?
    “Where are you now?” I said, improvising.
    “In the city.”
    “Close to where