Chapter Twenty-Four
Andy ran up the staircase at the back of the hotel and walked down the corridor to his room. He couldn’t be bothered with the afternoon writing session; watching the idiot teacher gush all over Kate was beyond boring.
Putting his key in the lock, he flung the door open and threw himself down on a chair.
He couldn’t wait to get cracking on his plans.
It had taken all night to access Kate’s accounts and he’d had to go heavy on sleeping medication to ensure that she didn’t wake and find him hacking into her laptop.
Once he’d cracked the codes he needed, it wasn’t hard to work out her passwords.
To make things even easier, she had a list of all her accounts neatly stored in one file.
He’d copied everything on an external back-up and now he could download it to his own computer and decide when and where he would move her money.
Andy rubbed his hands together and reached out to pour a large malt whisky and, as he took a slug and let the fiery liquid slide down his throat, he felt a contented glow.
He was going to enjoy this.
But there was no hurry. Kate was eating out of his hands and he might even suggest they get engaged to keep her infatuated until the end. When he was ready, and the timing right, he would sneak away and set off in the Porsche to head for the nearest airport.
He put his drink down and went to the wardrobe, where a locked briefcase sat beside a neat rail of polished shoes. He pulled it out and placed it on the desk, then flicked the combination until the lock opened. Several passports lay in rows beside a selection of driving licences and identity cards.
Who should he be next?
He picked each one up and glanced at the photographs.
He was a master at disguise and could easily reinvent himself.
A wad of cash, bound in neat bundles, was fast diminishing but there was enough left to help him on his way.
Once he reached his destination, the money he transferred from Kate, after being processed through his tangled web of untraceable accounts, would be sufficient to set him up for many years to come.
He may even buy a property somewhere warm, with a steady stream of young women to brighten up his days.
Andy unwrapped a cigar.
He peeled the cellophane back and rolled the smooth dark tobacco between his fingers.
Cutting one end, he lit the other and wandered over to the window to look out.
A man in a long dark coat was walking around the building.
He seemed to be shaking an object in one hand whilst waving a handful of smouldering twigs in the other.
The man looked up and their eyes locked.
For the first time in many years, Andy felt fear ripple through his body.
The last time he’d had that feeling had been when he’d heard the sound of a lock closing on a thick metal door, isolating him in a cold police cell to await his fate.
He’d vowed then that he would serve his time, learn as much as he could and never return to that lonely hostile place. He wouldn’t be put behind bars again.
No woman would ever have power over him.
As he stared at the man, he began to smile. Everyone in this place was barmy. There were too many nutcases wandering around and paying top dollar to do so. Gullible people who believed in all this claptrap. Andy shook his head then turned his back and went to pour another drink.
Revenge, for all the wrongs against him, was a dish best served cold and he was ready to put his latest scams into action.