Monty 16
“SARAH SCHLAY!” I look up from my post near the entertainment room.
Harper is walking with purpose down the hall, with her phone in her hand.
As she passes me, I hear an exaggerated voice say, “Gawrsh! Gawrsh! Yahooey!” I’m as nibby as the next person, so I position myself closer to the doorway and eavesdrop.
“My precious daughter-in-law—”
“Save it, woman! I expect this kind of behavior from Gertie, but from you? My own mother-in-law? How could you?”
Sarah’s voice loses the saccharine sweetness, dropping low. “I warned you what would happen if you referred to us as elderly.”
“Weeks, months, I’ve been losing my mind surrounded by Goofy and it was you the whole time!”
“No. That’s not true. I didn’t send you any of that.”
“I sent some of it.” That’s Gertie. “Did the underwear fit, Harp?”
“It did. And it’s super cute…that’s not the point!”
“What is going on?”
“Your mother had the sound changed on my videos. At least 10 of them on SSP’s website sound like this.” She plays the video over, turning the volume up. I bite into my fist, laughing so hard my stomach hurts. The others have no shame and laugh out loud at Harper’s humiliation.
“Mother!” Jonah exclaims, though if he’s aiming for supportive, the awed tone falls woefully short. “You had the soundtrack for her videos dubbed with Goofy’s voice? That’s…that’s genius.”
“I know it is!” Harper yells. “That’s the problem! I want to be mad, but it’s diabolical!”
“Hyuck. That’s quite a dilemma.”
“Serves you right.”
“You’re right, Sarah. I guess I had it coming. What’s so impressive is that someone of your advanced years was able to pull something like this off.” There is a long, pregnant pause, then Harper’s continues. “You wanna dance, monster-in-law, let’s fucking dance.”
“I was the Jewish Community Center’s dance-a-thon champion 5 years in a row.”
“Were you the only one competing?” Harper snaps back immediately, making Sarah growl in frustration.
Zeppo interrupts my snooping as he pats my shoulder and enters the entertainment room. “Jonah! What the fuck is up with your sister? She’s shirking.”
“How dare you, sir.” Jonah gasps theatrically. “Schlays do not shirk!”
“Well, your sister sent me a text saying she didn’t feel good, but she’d be in late. She didn’t show up for our meeting this morning and she isn’t answering her phone.” It feels as if the air has been sucked out of the room. “I called her security detail, they said she hasn’t left her condo.”
“Her condo?” Sarah takes a stumbling step back. Jonah and Harper reach out to steady her. “She stayed here last night. Didn’t she?”
I take off running toward Sophie’s suite.
I pull out my phone as I move through the hallways and call Yak.
He doesn’t answer, so I try Tev. He doesn’t answer either.
Fuck! I scan my print and open Sophie’s door.
Her suite is empty. Bed is unmade. I head back into the compound to the surveillance room.
Caleb pulls up the security feed and traces it back to the last sight of Sophie.
Dressed with her purse, she leaves through the front door, her security detail with her.
“Where did she go?” Zeppo and Jonah are at my back, watching the same footage. I access the vehicle tracking and find her assigned SUV parked at her condo. Her driver and bodyguards don’t answer my calls. I try Yak once more; he doesn’t pick up.
What the hell is going on?
An hour later, Sophie’s condo shows signs of struggle, her security detail is dead, her driver is barely alive, and she is nowhere to be found.
All her trackers are in her condo. The security footage around her condo does not show her leaving, nor does it show anyone approaching her condo after she steps inside.
Everyone has been called in, and the sitting room is full. Sobs disturb the silence every few moments. I hold Sophia in my arms, wondering where the hell Yak and Tev are.
Heavy footsteps pound on the tile. “AVINU!”
“YAK!” Moshe calls out, standing from the couch and handing Shon to Seril.
“Yak!” An out-of-breath Yakov stands in the doorway, bending over to catch his breath.
Tev appears behind him, both looking like they’ve been through the wringer.
“Where the fuck have you been? We’ve been calling you both for almost two fucking hours! ”
“Sorry! Sorry.” Yak’s frantic eyes find me and Sophia, and his pinched expression relaxes fractionally. “Cheaper by the Dozen.”
“NO!” Sarah screams, pushing away from Morris. “No. Do you know where Sophie is?” Yak waits for Moshe’s approving nod.
“Thijs Teuling and Hiram Goldman knew each other.” Sophia stiffens in my arms, her sisters huddling together next to us.
“Teuling was an investor in the Miami building Goldman spearheaded that collapsed. His connection was buried deeper than the bodies under the rubble. He doesn’t learn from his mistakes though because he invested in Goldman’s Cuban ‘real estate venture’. ”
“That died with Hiram.” Dottie’s voice is devoid of emotion.
“Teuling doesn’t want the women of the Kosher Nostra or Sophie.” Something about the tone of his voice sends a chill down my spine, curdling my stomach. I tighten my arms around Sophia.
“Well, what does he want? He took my daughter!” Morris screams when Yak pauses too long.
He’s not doing it for dramatic effect. I watch his soul wither right before my eyes. He reluctantly lifts his gaze to mine and I swallow hard at the devastation that dwells in his blue eyes. He looks at Sophia, her breath hitching, her heart pounding beneath my arm as his eyes well with tears.
“They took Sophie by mistake…he wants Sophia.”