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mumbled. "You're going to leave and never speak to me again." |
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Cyrus stroked her hair and ran his hand down the back of her neck, feeling the muscle there corded like piano wire. "That's silly." |
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"No. You don't understand. I . . . I've lied to you about everything! About my job, my family . . . everything!" |
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She broke down again. Between sobs Kyna said, "It started out so simple. Bryan asked me to run a few special discount diamonds to some friends of his in New York. I knew they were stolenany idiot would have known they were stolen. But he paid me five thousand dollars and I had to go to New York anyway." |
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By this time Kyna was sitting with her head down, staring at the floor between her feet. |
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"Before I knew it, I was running hot diamonds to Miami, Caracas, Brussels, everywhere the IDB did businesseven South Africa, and God only knows why they needed more diamonds down there. After a few months Bryan took me off regular deliveries and I worked exclusively as his mule. At first, I was so paranoid about getting ripped off that I wouldn't meet anybody face-to-face, especially his special customers like"she glanced toward the door and lowered her voice"like Dessotti. |
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"After a while, I got tired of all the cloak-and-dagger bullshit and thought, What the hell? But there are still one or two sleezoids I won't go near under any circumstances. With those guys I set up drops." |
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"Didn't you ever want to quit?" |
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Kyna's tears were all spent and now her voice sounded like a computer animation. "Yes . . . Well, no. Aw hell, I wish I could say yes, that I was appalled at the whole thing. But the truth is, the money was too good. I was pulling down over a hundred and fifty grand a year." |
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Cyrus was quiet for a moment, thinking. Were his hands so clean? Was he so pure? There had been times in his life when a hundred and fifty large would have looked like a million. |
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