Page 21 of Catch Me
I shrugged, “The Hildago’s, the Abromov group, my sister. I’m a very popular girl at the moment.”
He frowned and his fingers that hadn’t left my thigh tightened. “This isn’t funny, Hannah. Your sister is at the center of two international criminal organizations and is gunning for you. We already know her obsession with you goes beyond the norm. She’s setting you up.”
I leaned forward. “You don’t think I know that? There’s something my Memaw told me years ago, and I didn’t realize how right she was until now. What’s the one thing Sybil loves more than anything? It’s not me. It was never about me. It’s all about control.”
When the pieces had clicked into place, a picture of Sybil I’d never realized came into clear view. The taunting, the teasing, the manipulation. All of it was about control. She never hated me so much as that she just wanted to control me. And not just me, everyone around her. When we were kids, she used fear to control and get her way. When that stopped working, she played mind and emotional games.
It made sense that working with Abromov's group would appeal to her. To control and manipulate a whole population? Right up her alley. That kind of power was something only a true narcissist would want. And that’s why she was so willing to walk away from me with her fake death. She’d found something that gave her a greater sense of control and fed that addiction in a way that I never could. But she had to play one last game with me, pull one last string, and so that’s why she’d stolen the evidence in the Hidalgo case. It’s why she’d orchestrated to plant Javier Sanchez as an informant. It’s why she taunted me even now with her fake warnings and text messages.
He looked at me, searching and assessing for a moment, before he nodded. “Ok. So, what do you plan to do?”
I smiled and couldn’t help the little thrill that went through me that he acknowledged that I had a plan already. “It’s pretty simple. I’m going to do what I’ve always done. I’m going to let Sybil get her way.”
One dark brow arched in a curious expression, but he waited for me to elaborate. Abrams wasn’t so patient, however, as he tapped the table and looked between the two of us, confusion settling between his brows. “I’m sorry, Ms. Kelly. Would you care to elaborate on that plan?”
I turned towards Abrams. “What would you do if I told you I could get you the head of not one, but two international criminal organizations and none of it would be tied back to you, the U.S. government, or anyone else?”
Abrams cocked his head, those ice-blue eyes darkening slightly and I could see the gears in his mind turning over my words, assessing and weighing them. “I’d say I would have no idea what you’re talking about, Ms. Kelly. That criminal operations are a matter for the federal government and as I understand it, you no longer work in any official capacity for the Department of Justice. Now, if you’ll excuse me. I feel like this meeting has officially ended and I have other matters to see about.”
I grinned. “That sounds fantastic, Jonathan. But before you leave, we need to discuss one more thing.”
His jaw flexed, and he eyed me with suspicion. “And what’s that?”
“I’m going to need a better dental plan.”
CHAPTERNINETEEN
Hannah
Before Jonathan Abrams had slipped away into the night to make whatever secret deals he had in the works, he asked Simon for a private word. And with a frustrated glance back to me that told me just how little interest he had in whatever conversation they were about to have, Simon followed him out onto the street. I sat there in the booth by myself for a long a moment, the events of the past few days play over and over in my head.
I knew I’d promised Abrams that I could hand him the head of both the Hildago’s and the Abromovs, but what I hadn’t said was that I still wasn’t sure how to pull it off. Something nagged at the back of mind like a broken record. For as much as I’d learned today from Javier and Abrams, there were still so many unanswered questions. I thought about the pictures I’d found hanging in Sybil’s townhome. Maybe at the beginning of all of this I would have been disturbed, scared even. But now that I understood what and who my sister was, I could see the cycle she was repeating. Text me and warn me about a potential threat. Love bomb me into thinking we were the best of friends and my entire world revolved around only her. Bombard me with fear and use my worst nightmares against me. Then laugh and call me crazy when I’d run and tattle to Mom and Dad. Only this time, there was no running to Mom and Dad.
I sat up, a sudden thought taking root. A cycle. It was a cycle. Where had she’d said she’d gone before she was to leave for Stockholm? I replayed the memory of our last night before my entire world flipped upside down. And then it hit me like a ton of bricks. The last missing piece of my plan clicked into place and I pulled out the phone Michael had given me, shooting off a quick text. Then I stood up and slipped out into the night, not bothering to flag down Simon or Abrams. This was something that they couldn’t help me with and if I was right, I was the only person who knew what Sybil’s next move would be and I didn’t have time to waste with all the logistics and planning those two would want to do.
Like clockwork, a text message appeared in my notifications as I made my way through the streets of the village district to the penthouse garage.
Unknown Number: I got your message.
Me: We need to talk.
Unknown Number: There’s nothing to discuss. You interfered where you shouldn’t have. Now you’re paying the price.
Me: Sissy, please. I’ll do whatever you want. Please, just help me.
Unknown Number: Can’t your new friends help you? Or your new boyfriend? You don’t need me.
Me: Simon and the team can’t do anything about it. Their hands are tied. These people are going to kill me. I need you, Sybil.
I watched as bubbles appeared and disappeared on my screen. My stomach was doing somersaults as I waited for her response. Then finally it came.
Unknown Number: You never could fix your own problems. Meet me at the coordinates I’m sending now.
Me: Thank you, Sissy! I’m so scared.
Unknown Number: Just be there and come alone. I’ll take care of it Hannah - just like I always do. I’m glad you finally realized that I wasn’t the enemy.
Me: You were right, Sybil. I’ve been so selfish.
