Sympathy For the Devil Read Online Free

do you work for?”
    “I don’t see as how that makes a difference, either.”
    “Sure it does,” Russo said to the window. “If you were connected to one of my clients, I’d be dead already. If you were a cop, I’d be in a cell. So that means you’re either federal or some kind of intelligence guy.” He lolled his head back against the headrest of his chair. “So, you CIA? NSA?”
    “None of the above,” Hicks said. “All you need to know is that I know everything about you. I’ve been tapped into every corner of your life for months. I know everything there is to know about you, your company, your wife, your rotten marriage, your daughter who hates you and your son’s nasty heroin problem. I know about the hundred grand you keep in your safe at home, your whore on Fifty-third Street, and about that nice Dominican girl you met at the Campbell Apartment last week. You should keep it up, by the way. Those selfies you texted her of your junior partner down there really impressed the hell out of her.”
    Russo closed his eyes and faced Park Avenue again. “Jesus.”
    Hicks went on. “I know about your accounts in the Cayman’s and Belize and in Cuba. I’ve got all your email accounts, your cell phones, your passwords, your bank accounts, and every other secret you’ve kept from the world all these years. I know which clients you’ve stolen from, how much, and when. There’s nothing about you I don’t know.” He leaned forward in his chair. “And none of that will matter as long as you do exactly what I tell you to do.”
    “Which is what?”
    Hicks sat back in his seat. “Anything I know you can deliver.”
    Russo turned his chair to face him. “And what the hell is that supposed to mean?”
    “Exactly what I said. It might involve you giving me information on one of your clients. Or moving money for me. I might need to borrow your boat or one of your cars or vacation houses. I’ll never ask you to do anything you’re not qualified to do. Whatever it is, whenever I ask for it isn’t your concern. You do exactly what I tell you to do when I tell you to do it and your life goes on exactly as it has been until now.”
    “And if I don’t,” Russo said, “Vladic gets this file.”
    Hicks nodded. “So do all of the other clients you’ve scammed, but I think Vladic will get you first.”
    Russo drummed his fingers on the desk while he thought it over. “I know I’m no angel, but this is a damned dirty business you’re in. Doing this to people trying to make a living.”
    Hicks smiled. “But it’s fun. Especially when I get the chance to screw over a guy like you. But like you said earlier, you’re used to being your own boss so let me give you a valuable piece of advice. Don’t try to find a way out of our agreement.”
    Russo pointed at the file on his desk. “What can I do to you while you’ve got this?”
    “You’re thinking that now, but in a few hours after the dust settles, your ego will start eating at you. You might think you can actually do something about this, so I’m warning you now. If you hire someone to investigate me, I’ll know about it, and there will be a penalty. If you tell anyone about our arrangement—your priest or your shrink or your girlfriend—I’ll know about it, and there will be a penalty. You try to run, I’ll find you, and there will be a penalty. If you run, I’ll find you,” Hicks said, “and I’ll drop you off on Vladic’s doorstep with that file stapled to your chest. And don’t think about killing yourself, either. If you do, that file goes to Vladic and your business partners. Your partners will bankrupt your family and we both know what Vladic will do to your wife and children, especially your daughter. What he lacks in brains he more than makes up for in cruelty.”
    Russo stopped looking out the window. “Don’t threaten my family.”
    “I’m not threatening anyone, ace. I’m just informing you of what penalties will occur if you