“Stop screwing around, Gloria,” Edmund said, all lightness gone from his voice. “LifeDeals, as you know perfectly well.”

“Ah, the same charming Edmund Mathews I remember so well. If you want to talk, you’re welcome to come and see me at my office.”

This was a power move, and Edmund was making a vigorous throat-slashing gesture with his right hand. He didn’t want to go to her office and cede her the offensive.

“How about we meet for lunch?” Russell suggested. “You like Terrasini, I remember. And I haven’t been there in a while. Would that work for you?” He was suggesting the excellent midtown Italian restaurant, long a financiers’ favorite.

“Russell, I’m sorry, I’m booked solid. And I’m going out of town. It’s here or it’s nothing until next week.”

“Hold on, Gloria.”

Russell picked up the phone and quickly muted it, just in time.

“Jesus, who does she think she is?” The veins in Edmund’s neck were bulging. It was as if Gloria were still working for him, and she were talking back to him.

“Edmund, she’s got us over a barrel and she knows it. We need to know what she’s looking at. I’ll go, if you can’t stand it.”

“No, I’ll go. Like some damned supplicant. She’s going to pay for this. Somewhere down the road. And big-time.”

For once, Edmund’s curiosity had trumped his vanity. Russell got back on the line.

“Gloria, sorry about that. Any chance we can see you tomorrow?”

“How about nine o’clock?”

It was another raised middle finger as far as Edmund was concerned. Nine o’clock meant driving into Manhattan and battling all the commuters. Edmund had an aversion to public transportation so taking the train was out of the question. Edmund was making the throat-slashing motion again.

“Sorry, Gloria, I’ve got an appointment early on that I can’t break. How about ten-thirty?”

“Okay, Russell,” Gloria said with amusement. She could imagine how her request had been greeted by Edmund.

“See you tomorrow,” Russell said, ending the call. Edmund sighed, grateful for the one small concession.

9.

406 PARK AVENUE
NEW YORK CITY
MARCH 2, 2011, 10:37 A.M.

Edmund and Russell entered the midsize high-rise along Park Avenue in midtown Manhattan. Predictably, Edmund had been in a sour mood on the Town Car ride down from Greenwich. Russell had insisted on sharing the ride—he wanted to see if he could soften his partner’s mood before they met Gloria Croft. Edmund had been a bully all his life, and he felt uncomfortable in any situation where he wasn’t in charge. Not only was he not controlling events here, it seemed like he was being played, and by a woman, and by a woman who used to work for him. Russell doubted whether his calming words had had any effect.

When they arrived, Gloria used a script she had learned from Edmund, and Edmund knew it. The two men were buzzed into the suite and shown into a glass-walled conference room, where they were left to stew for fifteen minutes. The receptionist was very polite, and they were offered coffee or water. Outside the room, the office seemed calm and peaceful, with only the hum of the air-conditioning system breaking the silence. The image exuded was of quiet authority.