Renee leaned back in her seat, suddenly looking over at him. “Does this have to do with the people who tried to steal your truck?”
“Sort of.”
“Remi told me what happened. I’m surprised Hank wasn’t insistent on you taking him back right then. I swear, he’s afraid of his own shadow.”
“Considering one of the men put a gun to his head, he did surprisingly well.”
“They did what?”
He looked over at her and back at the road. “Remi didn’t mention that part?”
“Apparently not.” Quiet descended for several minutes and then she sighed. “Look, Sam—”
“We don’t have to talk about that now. It can wait. Really.”
“No, it can’t,” she said. “And maybe it’s better Remi’s not here. I know we should’ve said something earlier, but Hank was hopeful we’d figure out where the money went. He did. It turned out Warren had a gambling problem—and, well, it wasn’t like we could’ve returned the money.”
“No word to anyone?”
“A note. Apologizing and saying it was his fault.”
“To think I actually liked that guy.”
“Really?” Renee said. “He was so unassuming and quiet.”
“That’s what I liked about him.” He glanced in the rearview mirror, then at her, curious. “Excavations of that nature aren’t cheap. How’re you getting by?”
“Let half the crew go, utilize graduate students, like Amal, and tapped into my retirement. We’re not exactly in a position to complain. Nor were we about to ask for more money until we knew what happened to it.”
He slowed for a truck that turned in front of him. “I had Selma hire an investigator to find him,” he said as his phone rang. He picked it up from the console, not recognizing the number except that the area code was Tunisia. He angled the screen toward Renee. “Someone you know?”
“That’s Amal’s number.”
No doubt she was calling to see what he’d found on Nasha, he thought. “Hello.”
“I have your wife.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
The tiger that prowls quietly doesn’t mean it’s intimidated.
– AFRICAN PROVERB –
Sam felt as if someone had gut-punched him. Unable to breathe as he processed the words, he let his foot off the gas.
“Sam,” Renee whispered. “What’s wrong?”
He shook his head at her, checked the mirror and pulled over, hoping, praying, he’d misunderstood. He put a finger to his lips, signaling for Renee to remain quiet. “Who is this?” he demanded.
“Makao.”
“Put my wife on the phone.”
The man gave a cynical laugh. “In case there’s any confusion, I’m the one who gives the orders. I’ll decide when and if you get to talk to her.”
“What is it you want?”
“Aren’t you the least bit interested in who else I have?”
Sam forced himself to take deliberate, even breaths, quelling the fear and anger coursing through him. “Who else?”
“Some very scared girls. How much would that be worth to a man of your means?”
“That depends on the proof that my wife and the others aren’t hurt.”
“She mentioned that might be an issue.” Sam heard Makao’s voice, muffled, then saying, “Your husband wants to talk to you.”
“Sam?”
“Remi. Are you okay?”
“I’m . . . we’re fine. There’s si—”
The sound of the phone being moved quickly, air hitting the mic, then Makao saying, “Satisfied?”
“Let’s cut right to it,” Sam said. “What is it you want?”
“One million.”
“Naira?” he asked.
“Dollars. U.S.”
“If I find out you’ve harmed my wife or anyone else at that school, not only won’t you see the money, I’ll kill you and everyone involved.”
“You have twenty-four hours. If you involve the police, we’ll kill them all.”
The line went dead. Sam immediately called Selma, listening to the line ring.
“Sam?” Renee said, watching him. “What’s going on?”
“Someone’s kidnapped Remi and the girls.”
“Amal?”
“I’m assuming so since it was her phone.”
Renee’s hand went to her mouth, shocked. “Now I know why Remi never answered my texts.”
He wanted to tell her it would be fine, but Selma answered and he briefed her on what he knew. “No one’s called you?” he asked, thinking that surely if Pete or Wendy were safe they would have phoned him or Selma immediately.
“No one,” Selma said. “What would you like me to do, Mr. Fargo?”
“Two things. First, go through the school contacts. Is there anyone there we can trust who might be able to get us intel?”
“Zara’s father’s the closest. I’ll see what I can find. What else?”
“I need a million dollars ready to go.” He’d do everything he could to save his wife and the girls with her. As much as he wanted to head straight to the school, taking the extra time to get Lazlo first was a wiser course of action. “I’m on my way to the airport now.”
“I’ll text Lazlo to let him know. The police—?”
“Can pick up the pieces when I’m done.”
“Understood. I’ll get on it right away, Mr. Fargo.”
Sam dropped the phone into the cupholder on the console, forgetting for a moment that Renee had been there listening the whole time. He looked at her. “We better get going.”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to cancel my flight?”
“Positive,” he said. “Lazlo’s already here. And you have your own emergency to handle.”
“Is that a polite way of saying I’ll only get in the way?”
He attempted a smile. “Sorry, but yes.”
“Don’t apologize for the truth.”
The rest of the trip was made in silence, Sam replaying the phone conversation in his mind, trying to determine if there was anything he’d missed, some bit of information that he could use.