Free Kill Me if You Can by James Patterson

with? And if you lie to me, I’ll know it, and I’ll be on the first flight back to L.A. Or Hamburg.”
    “It’s not a competition,” Chukov said. “I got two local dickhead cops who work for me, and one professional.”
    “Who?”
    “The Ghost.”
    Marta kept her icy exterior, but inside she was roiling. She had never met the Ghost, but she despised him. People talked about him like he was a god.
    “The Ghost,” she said casually. “I’ve heard he’s pretty good.”
    Chukov laughed. “ Pretty good? They say he’s the only assassin who will go to heaven. Satan would be too nervous having him around.”
    “If he’s so good, why do you need me?”
    “Because my boss wants a backup.”
    She stood up. “I’m nobody’s backup. Get somebody else to suck hind tit.”
    Chukov knew he’d handled her wrong. He watched as she headed toward the door. Prince would kill him if he lost her.
    “Wait,” he said. “Forget about what my boss wants. I want you because I think the Ghost might know more about the missing diamonds than he lets on, and I’ll pay you double if you’ll do me the honor of killing him.”
    Krall looked surprised. Nothing would make her happier than to eliminate the Ghost. And now someone was willing to pay her to do it.
    She reached out and shook Chukov’s hand. “I accept.”
    Chukov had surprised himself by his impulsiveness. But then he lowered his eyes to his chest. He could still see the red dot boring into his skin, into his flesh, trying to tear a hole in his dignity.
    He had no regrets about his sudden decision. The Ghost must die.
    Vadim Chukov bows to no man.

Chapter 26
    Marta Krall took a cab to 42nd Street and Sixth Avenue and bought a turkey, avocado, and bacon sandwich at the ’wichcraft kiosk in Bryant Park. She found a quiet table under a London plane tree in the northern promenade and called Etienne Gravois in France.
    He wasn’t happy to hear from her. He never was. Marta had saved Etienne’s life, and he had been paying for it ever since.
    Etienne was a compulsive gambler who made the mistake of borrowing twenty thousand euros from an Algerian drug dealer and failing to pay it back. Marta was hired to kill him. Instead, she paid off his debt. Etienne was much more valuable to her alive. He worked in computer records for Interpol.
    “Bonjour, Etienne,” Marta said. “I e-mailed you a photo of a young man.”
    “I’ve left the office for the evening,” he said.
    “Then go back.”
    “I’m meeting my wife for dinner. It’s her birthday.”
    “Please give her my best. And tell her that in a few days I, too, will be meeting her. Only by then she’ll be your widow.”
    “I’ll go back to the office.”
    “The photo was taken at Grand Central Terminal in New York City a few days ago,” she said. “I want to know who the man is and where to find him.”
    “Do you know anything about this man?”
    “No. That’s your job, Monsieur Gravois. You sold your worthless soul to the devil. Now go back to your computer and get the devil what she wants.”
    “Yes.”
    She gave him a phone number. “How long?”
    “If he has a criminal record, maybe two hours. If I have to dig deeper, a little longer.”
    “Don’t waste time. I need it now.”
    “I understand.”
    “One more question, Etienne. Do you have anything new on the Ghost?”
    “No.” He laughed.
    “What’s funny?”
    “Nothing, nothing. It’s just that half the police agencies around the world are looking for the Ghost. Now you, too.”
    “Well, if you get anything on him, I hope you don’t make the mistake of calling any of them first. Comprenez-vous, Etienne?”
    “Oui.”
    She hung up.
    Marta Krall rarely smiled. All those years of posing for fashion photographers had drained the joy from her. Her eyes were cold and malevolent-looking. Her face could not hide the evil in her heart.
    But that was before Chukov hired her to kill the Ghost. She opened her bag and took out a pocket mirror.
    Just