Chapter 12 - The ExtortionistThe steakhouse was dimly lit, reeking of expensive cigars and aged bourbon. I spotted him immediately. Richard Miller sat in a corner booth, swirling a glass of scotch. He was older than the polaroid, his hair silvering at the temples, but he still possessed that predatory, magnetic charm that con men use as a weapon.
I slid into the booth across from him. I didn't take off my jacket.
"Connor! Good to finally meet you," Richard beamed, extending a hand.
I stared at it until he slowly pulled it back, completely unbothered.
"Cut the crap, Richard. What do you want?" I demanded.
He sighed, taking a slow sip of his drink. "Straight to business. I respect that. You're a lot sharper than Amy's previous boyfriends. She always had a habit of picking losers. Glad to see she finally landed a whale."
"Don't talk about her."
"She's my daughter, Connor," Richard said, his eyes narrowing slightly. "I have a right to see her. To see my grandson."
"You lost that right the day you stole her college fund and left her to face the FBI by herself," I shot back. "You killed her mother. You left her with nothing. You are a biological donor, nothing more."
Richard leaned back, adjusting his tailored suit jacket. "The past is the past. I made mistakes. But I'm a changed man. I've been living abroad, keeping a low profile. Then, a few weeks ago, I turn on the television in my hotel in Costa Rica, and who do I see? My little girl, married to a hotshot engineer who just recovered a quarter of a million dollars from his treacherous mother."
He leaned forward, his elbows on the table, the charming mask slipping to reveal the cold calculus underneath.
"Here is the reality, Connor. My 'low profile' lifestyle is getting expensive. I have some associates who are very upset with me. They want money. If I don't pay them, they're going to hurt me. And if they hurt me..." He smiled faintly. "...I might just accidentally slip and tell them about my wealthy daughter and her successful husband in Nashville."
I clenched my fists under the table. Another leech. Another parasite trying to feed off my family.
"How much?" I asked, my voice flat.
"Five hundred thousand dollars," Richard said easily, as if asking for a piece of gum. "Wire transfer to an offshore account. You pay me, I disappear forever. Amy never has to see my face. You keep your perfect little life safe."
"I don't have five hundred thousand dollars in cash lying around," I said. "The money I recovered from my mother went into a trust for Frederick."
Richard shrugged. "Then take out a loan. Mortgage the house. Sell some stock. You have a week, Connor. If the money isn't in my account by next Friday, I'm coming to the house. And I won't be alone."
He stood up, tossing a fifty-dollar bill onto the table to cover his drink.
"It was a pleasure meeting you, son," Richard smiled. "Give my love to Amy."
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I sat in the booth long after he left, the anger boiling in my veins. He thought I was an easy mark. He thought because I wore a suit and worked in an office, I would just roll over and pay the ransom.
He didn't realize that dealing with my mother and the Volkov syndicate had changed me. I wasn't just a construction engineer anymore. I was a man who knew how to tear things down to their foundations.
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