Swimming with Sharks (22 page)

Alex remembered how disdainfully Sergio had spoken about this man and how much he hated him. He called him a fanatic, an idiot, the plague. While Madeleine and Mary Kostidis talked about the horses, she wondered what the mayor was doing at seven thirty on Christmas morning on a deserted beach at the tip of Long Island.

“Is Christopher with you at your sister’s place?” Madeleine asked the mayor’s wife.

“No,” she said and laughed. “He’s spending Christmas with his future in-laws in the Hudson Valley.”

Alex noticed that Kostidis watched her with steadfast eyes the entire time. She wasn’t sure why, but his searching, serious gaze disturbed and
irritated her. If he knew who she was, then he would also know about her relationship with Sergio Vitali. Did she detect contempt in his stare? She tried to appear relaxed and indifferent. Madeleine and Mary were chatting, but Alex didn’t catch a single word of their conversation. Her eyes met those of Nick Kostidis. Their gazes interlocked for a few seconds. She felt a hot blush rising to her cheeks and turned away.

“We need to keep going, Maddy,” she said. “The horses are sweating. They’ll catch a cold.”

“Of course!” Madeleine made a guilty face. “I really lack horse sense sometimes!”

“Enjoy your ride!” Nick Kostidis called to them. “See you later!”

Madeleine smiled and waved. Alex cantered next to her without saying a word. Why did Kostidis look at her in such a strange way? The expression in his eyes was hard to read. He was probably saying to his wife at this second, “Did you see her? She’s Vitali’s lover.
A gangster’s whore!
” She hated to feel so insecure, and the prospect of Kostidis attending the Downeys’ party ruined her excitement. She felt like packing her suitcase and disappearing to avoid running into him again.

Alex was still sitting in her room when the first guests arrived at Lands End House, and she contemplated whether she should go downstairs at all. She wasn’t in the mood for small talk. The horseback ride had shaken off her tense mood for a moment, but the unexpected encounter with Nick Kostidis abruptly destroyed her feeling of happiness. Alex didn’t feel comfortable in Kostidis’s presence, but then she also had the urge to see him. She couldn’t explain these conflicting emotions—this mixture of attraction and aversion. There was something in his eyes, an expression that she couldn’t interpret. Was it ridicule or contempt? Or was she just imagining all of this?

She heard Christmas music and laughter from downstairs. She knew that Trevor and Madeleine would be disappointed if she didn’t join the party, so she finally slipped into her Ferragamo cocktail dress, checked herself out in the mirror, and with a sigh opened the door to go downstairs.

The party was already in full swing. The Christmas gathering was as “small” as Sergio’s birthday party had been. Everyone who was anyone on the East Coast was invited. But in contrast to Sergio’s party, old money mingled here—the real upper class, America’s aristocrats. Northern Long Island was once called the “Gold Coast.” This name did not refer to the color of its sandy beaches, but to the wealth of its inhabitants. But it had been some time since bold-faced names or conspicuous wealth impressed Alex. She’d had to deal with gigantic amounts of money, and she knew the richest people in America. Somewhere in this crowd, she found Madeleine, who looked enchanting and girlish in her burgundy dress, her cheeks red with excitement.

“How do you like it?” she called out with glowing eyes. “Isn’t it magnificent? I’m always nervous before, but once everyone is here, then it’s simply wonderful! The president and the first lady just arrived.”

Madeleine hugged her and rushed on. Alex took a glass of champagne and strolled through the large house filled with unfamiliar people. In the blue salon she caught sight of the president talking to Trevor, Senator Hoffman, Governor Rhodes, Congressman James Vaillant III, and Nick Kostidis—who had changed from his jeans into a dark-gray suit and a red tie. She was just about to leave the room when Trevor saw her and waved her toward him. He pulled her into his circle with a smile.

“Cliff,” he said to the president, “may I introduce Alex Sontheim? She’s a good friend of Maddy’s and mine.”

Cliff Gordon offered her a friendly smile and reached out his hand.

“I’m delighted to meet you, Ms. Sontheim.”

“The pleasure is mine, Mr. President.” Alex’s heart was racing in excitement. Trevor also introduced her to the other gentlemen, and it occurred to Alex that she had seen the senator and Governor Rhodes at Sergio’s birthday party. She was curious what they would say if she mentioned that now. Trevor was describing the unusual circumstances in which Madeleine and Alex met about six months ago to the president, and he was impressed. The president asked about her work and—to her amazement—gave Alex his undivided attention.

“You have an exceptional reputation on Wall Street,” he said. “Our country needs more people like you, Ms. Sontheim. Intelligent young people with civic courage.”

She smiled in embarrassment. Cliff Gordon invited her to the White House, and she trembled with excitement and pride. But then she met eyes with Nick Kostidis, and she thought that she sensed a hint of mockery. The pride that she’d felt a second ago vanished instantly. She was relieved that others crowded around the president, and she excused herself. She escaped the crowd and went into an adjacent room and sat down in an armchair at the window.

She could just kill Kostidis! He’d not only ruined her encounter with Cliff Gordon, but also her entire day! Alex Sontheim—the star of Wall Street, the selfless rescuer of the opera singer Madeleine Ross-Downey—was actually nothing but a girl from Germany who had gotten involved with a dubious social climber, Sergio Vitali, the godfather of New York City! What would President Gordon say if he found out she was the lover of a man who ordered murders?

With tears welling up she searched for a cigarette in her purse. Someone cleared his throat behind her and she turned quickly around. She could hardly believe her eyes when Nick Kostidis of all people, whom she’d just escaped from, appeared in the doorway.

“Hello,” she said in a discouraging tone, “if you’re looking for the restrooms, they’re two doors further down.”

Kostidis smiled.

“Thanks, I know,” he said and entered the room. “But I was actually looking for you.”

“Really?” Alex took a drag from her cigarette. “Why?”

She was mad about her teary eyes.

“May I sit down with you for a moment?”

She was about to tell him to go to hell, but she managed to keep her composure.

He sat down in the armchair across from her. There was a tense moment of silence between them.

“What can I do for you, Mayor Kostidis?”

“Call me Nick,” he responded. “‘Mayor’ sounds so formal.”

“Okay,” Alex said with a shrug. “Nick. So, what can I do for you?”

“I’m not sure whether you can help me.” Nick crossed his legs and gave her another piercing look. She longed to get up and run away.

“I hardly know you,” Kostidis continued. “Well, as a matter of fact, I don’t know you at all. But I’ve been following your professional career with great interest for quite some time now. And my friends Trevor and Madeleine speak very highly of you.”

“Aha.” Alex was at the edge of her seat.

“You’re a successful woman. Intelligent, ambitious, and courageous.”

“And now you ask yourself why I’m involved with Vitali,” she interrupted him coolly. “That’s what you’re trying to get at, isn’t it?”

If he was surprised, Kostidis didn’t let it show, but then he nodded slowly.

“I know what you think of him,” Alex said, “and probably you think the same of me.”

She jumped up and stepped toward the window.

“No!” Kostidis shook his head. “That’s not true. Like I said, I don’t know you, Alex. I only know what the newspapers write about you and what my friends, the Downeys, say about you, and that’s why…”

Alex turned around again and looked at the man who both impressed and intimidated her.

“Yes?” She tried to regain her usual self-confidence, but to her chagrin, her voice sounded thin.

“Alex,” Kostidis said, leaning forward, “it’s not my intention to interfere with your private life.”

“It’s none of your business anyway,” she countered brusquely. Kostidis stopped smiling.

“Sergio Vitali,” he said with a calm voice, “is a very dangerous man. Many people think that I’m obsessed because I’ve been trying for years to bring him to justice for his criminal dealings. I know a great deal about him and his business, but unfortunately, I’ve never been able to prove anything against him. Vitali doesn’t hesitate to defend his position of power by using violence. We’ve had evidence against him many times, but key witnesses suddenly lost their memory overnight or simply disappeared. Some of them were found again as corpses.”

Alex felt weak in the knees.
It is done. Zuckerman won’t utter another word
…She felt the horror and nausea all over again. She knew all too well that Kostidis was aware of the truth.

“Why are you telling me all of this?”

“I want you to understand my situation,” he replied in a quiet voice. “It’s not a personal thing between me and Vitali, like the media keeps insisting. The stakes are much higher. One of my predecessors called New York ‘ungovernable.’ I work very hard to get a grip on the public debt, the poor infrastructure, and the disastrous social disparities. But the worst of all evils is the corruption. The reason that Vitali is so untouchable is because he bribes many influential politicians and judges. I can live with corruption to a certain extent, but now I’m afraid that Vitali has an informer within my inner circle.”

He paused for a moment and rubbed his chin. He looked tired.

“A man was shot dead on August fifteenth,” Nick Kostidis said. “He was still young; he had a wife who is now a widow, and two little children lost their father because of this killer.”

Alex swallowed. She knew who Zuckerman’s killer was. Strictly speaking, she was obligated to tell the police what she knew, but she was frightened Sergio would find out, and then she would lose everything. Even if she wanted to, she couldn’t help Kostidis.

“This man,” the mayor continued, “could have hurt Vitali significantly by testifying in front of the investigation committee. We were aware of that, so we brought him to a hotel under utmost secrecy to keep him completely protected until he gave his testimony. Very few people were informed about this. And still someone found out and silenced the man.”

His words triggered a black, empty feeling inside of Alex, and she simultaneously felt a raging, helpless anger. What did Kostidis expect from her? He didn’t care one bit about what would happen to her. He wanted to get to Sergio by any means, and he had taken a clever approach by appealing to her conscience. Her nausea intensified.

“I don’t know anything about Vitali’s business,” she said. Did Kostidis know that she was lying?

“I want to be very frank,” Nick Kostidis said, locking his eyes on her. “Based on Madeleine’s and Trevor’s descriptions of you, I had the impression that you would have the courage to do the right thing.”

Alex stared at him in silence. Courage! What did this man know about how cruel Sergio could be? Everything had been so easy for her in the past—people were clearly good or bad—but now her entire world was in turmoil. Nothing was clear anymore. Her future, her career, even her life was at stake! David Zuckerman was dead, and even if she told the mayor who the killer was, it wouldn’t bring this man back to life.

“This has nothing to do with courage.” She had the feeling that Kostidis was able to read her mind.

“Then what?”

Alex couldn’t bear Kostidis’s gaze any longer. He’d succeeded in rattling her. She felt like pouncing on him, yelling at him to leave her alone. What in the world had she done to get into this situation?

“Listen, Nick”—Alex hoped she appeared relaxed and composed—“I’m not indifferent to your worries by any means, and if I could, I would certainly help you. But I can’t. Do you understand that?”

Nick Kostidis nodded slowly and sighed.

“Of course,” he said and smiled again, but there was an alert expression in his eyes. “I understand you very well. Forget what I just said.”

Their eyes locked.

“You know where to reach me.”

“Thanks, but that won’t be necessary,” she replied coolly. Kostidis threw her one last inquiring glance.

“But maybe it will,” he said with a mysterious smile; then he turned around and left the room.