Chapters (72)
- TITLE PAGE
- COPYRIGHT PAGE
- DEDICATION
- CONTENTS
- PROLOGUE
- PART I
- CHAPTER 1
- CHAPTER 2
- CHAPTER 3
- CHAPTER 4
- CHAPTER 5
- CHAPTER 6
- CHAPTER 7
- PART II
- CHAPTER 8
- CHAPTER 9
- CHAPTER 10
- CHAPTER 11
- CHAPTER 12
- CHAPTER 13
- CHAPTER 14
- CHAPTER 15
- CHAPTER 16
- CHAPTER 17
- CHAPTER 18
- PART III
- CHAPTER 19
- CHAPTER 20
- CHAPTER 21
- CHAPTER 22
- CHAPTER 23
- CHAPTER 24
- CHAPTER 25
- CHAPTER 26
- CHAPTER 27
- CHAPTER 28
- CHAPTER 29
- CHAPTER 30
- CHAPTER 31
- PART IV
- CHAPTER 32
- CHAPTER 33
- CHAPTER 34
- CHAPTER 35
- CHAPTER 36
- CHAPTER 37
- CHAPTER 38
- CHAPTER 39
- CHAPTER 40
- CHAPTER 41
- PART V
- CHAPTER 42
- CHAPTER 43
- CHAPTER 44
- CHAPTER 45
- CHAPTER 46
- CHAPTER 47
- CHAPTER 48
- CHAPTER 49
- CHAPTER 50
- CHAPTER 51
- CHAPTER 52
- CHAPTER 53
- CHAPTER 54
- CHAPTER 55
- CHAPTER 56
- PART VI
- CHAPTER 57
- CHAPTER 58
- CHAPTER 59
- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- ABOUT THE AUTHOR
“Heart attack food sounds about right,” said Berg. “I just need to use the bathroom.”
“Watch your head,” said Devin.
The bathroom had clearly been an afterthought. About the size of a modest walk-in closet, it featured a toilet, wall-mounted sink that you had to lean your head away from when sitting on the toilet, and the smallest shower stall Devin had ever seen.
When Berg emerged from the bathroom, he pointed a thumb over his shoulder.
“We’re down to a single roll of toilet paper,” said Berg. “Unless she has a hidden stash somewhere.”
Devin shook his head. “I already looked. I’ll make a run for some basics later.”
“We’re not moving in, so don’t go overboard,” said Berg. “Speaking of which, where do you think she slept?”
Devin shrugged. “I think she slept in the recliner. I found a few blankets folded on the floor under the TV.”
“Clothes?”
“French wardrobe in the armoire in the living room,” said Devin.
“What does that mean?”
“About ten pieces she could mix and match to go from casual to dressy. A few pairs of shoes. It’s a minimalist trick.”
“Jesus,” said Berg, shaking his head. “But she had another apartment?”
“The FBI said it didn’t look like she’d spent any significant time there over the past two months,” said Devin. “They were light on the details.”
“So they’re looking for this apartment, too.”
“That’s what I assumed,” said Devin.
“And there’s no way the apartment can be traced back to your mother?” said Berg, looking slightly concerned.
“The building was purchased by a Nevada LLC, which Helen formed anonymously. One of the benefits of a Nevada corporation filing. I got a look at how she set it up when I reviewed the documents transferring the title deed to Henrietta Silver.”
“That was very generous of her,” said Berg. “What are your plans for Ms. Silver while we camp out here?”
“The effective date of the title transfer is forty-five days after her recorded death, so that gives us thirty-four days to work out of this apartment. I’m going to put Henrietta and her family in an Airbnb within the city, but far enough away from here,” said Devin. “I’m hoping that will be enough time for us.”
“It should be,” said Berg. “How do you plan to pay for the Airbnb?”
“I’ll give them ten thousand in gift cards and five thousand in cash. That should be enough for them to arrange a nice Airbnb or two and pay for incidentals for up to a month.”
Helen had fifty thousand dollars in five-hundred-dollar Visa gift cards locked away in her safe, along with what looked like fifty thousand in cash. And that wasn’t all.
“That’ll be more than enough,” said Berg. “Make sure they understand the stakes.”
“I think they do,” said Devin.
“Not good enough,” said Berg. “Make sure they do.”