Blindside. Wilna Adriaanse
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in Cape Town, and why didn’t you let me know you were coming? I could have had you picked up at the airport.”
“I wasn’t sure what time my flight was. I took a taxi. And the Range Rover was at the apartment.”
“Well, what a surprise.” He looked over Nick’s shoulder. “Don’t tell me the old man is here too.”
“No, I’m alone.”
Allegretti took Nick’s arm and led him deeper into the room. “In that case, you’re most welcome. I’ve just poured myself a drink.” They went across to the long bar counter, and Allegretti stepped behind it. “What will it be?”
“Beer.”
“No, dammit, man, look what I’ve got here.” He pointed at the bottles against the wall.
“I see you’re stocked, but a beer would go down well right now.”
In the mirror on the wall Nick saw a man enter behind him. He turned and held out his hand.
“Patrice, how are you?
“Very well, sir.”
“Tell him you like Cape Town.”
“I like Cape Town, sir.”
“Tell him it’s much better than Zimbabwe.”
Patrice touched his head. “Zimbabwe is not so bad, sir. It’s bad at the moment, but maybe it will be good again one day.”
Allegretti shook his head. “Don’t hold your breath, my man. That place is fucked.”
Patrice looked at Nick. “Do you have luggage, sir?”
“Thanks, Patrice, but I’m staying at the apartment.”
Patrice nodded and left the room.
“How long will you be staying?” Allegretti asked.
Nick noticed the hint of a frown between his eyes. So brief that he might have imagined it. He sipped his beer while Allegretti sat down on the other side of the counter.
“I haven’t decided.”
“The old man sent you?”
“He’s worried about last week’s incident.”
“I told him it was nothing I couldn’t handle. What rumours did he hear?”
“They’re more than rumours. Shots were fired at your car.”
The cellphone on the counter rang. Allegretti picked it up and answered.
“What’s up? No, I’m busy. I’ll call you back.” He put the phone down. “There’s no evidence that I was the target. It could have been an ordinary hijacking.”
“Or not. What do you know about the shooting at Barkov’s place? Were you involved? Are the two incidents connected? Was it your way of getting back at him?”
“The shooting at Barkov’s house wasn’t my doing.” He looked past Nick. “Anyway, if they wanted to get me, do you really think anyone’s going to stop them?”
The phone rang again, but this time Allegretti didn’t answer. He just rejected the call.
“No, but your father doesn’t want to blame himself later. I’m here to check on your security and make sure you don’t take unnecessary risks.”
“Does my father realise I’m thirty-six years old?” His voice rose and he refilled his glass. “It pisses me off when he treats me like a child.”
Nick held up his hands. “Don’t shoot the messenger.”
“If you wanted to, you could convince him I’m old enough to fight my own battles. Hell, the older he gets the more paranoid he becomes.”
“There’s also the other matter.”
“What matter?”
“Nazeem Williams’s niece. Of all the women in Cape Town, Enzio! Was that really necessary?”
Allegretti swept the glass from the counter. It shattered on the floor. Patrice appeared as if he had been summoned, but Allegretti waved him away.
Patrice disappeared and Nick heard a door close.
“How did he find out?”
“You haven’t exactly been discreet. Your girlfriend likes Twitter and Facebook. We live in the twenty-first century, Enzio. There are very few secrets in the world.”
“My personal life has fuck-all to do with him.”
“If you get into bed with a Williams, it’s his business. The two of them have a history.”
“She’s not a Williams. Her mother is a sister of Williams’s wife.”
“It doesn’t matter what her last name is. She’s part of his clan, and that makes it complicated.”
“At times like these I wish I was an orphan. Can’t he just die like other old people? How hard can it be?”
Nick swung his chair around and looked through the window at the view. The Allegretti heirs always made him grateful that he had no children.
“I won’t stop seeing her. To tell you the truth, I asked her to move in with me.”
Nick swung back to face him. “You can’t be serious. Sex is one thing, but why would you want to do that?”
“Have you seen her?”
“In photos.”
“She’s the sexiest girl I’ve ever seen, and I’ve dated a few in my life. And she’s nice. I’m fed up with bitches.”
“Has she moved in yet?”
“No. After last week’s incident, Williams has all kinds of objections, but we’re working on him. Don’t ask me how he got to know about it.”
“Jesus, Enzio. You can really be an idiot when you want to be.”
“Wait till you see her.”
“How’s Gabi?”
“She’ll have an orgasm when she hears you’re in town.”
“She’s a married woman now.”
Allegretti threw back his head and laughed. “As if that would stop her. Don’t be so bloody naïve.”
“While I’m here I’ll take a look at her security as well.”
“Good luck with that. You know she does exactly as she pleases. And isn’t it her husband’s duty to look after her?”
“You and Gabi tend to forget that your father still picks up most of your tabs. Surely it gives him the right to make certain demands? He could easily decide to cut you loose, and where would you be then?”
Allegretti jumped up, opened a drawer and took out a packet of white powder and a small mirror. He shook some of the powder out onto the mirror and cut two lines with a small silver card. He produced a two-hundred-rand note from his pocket, rolled it into a tube and gave Nick an inquiring look. When Nick shook his head, both lines vanished up his nose. He threw the packet, mirror and card back into the drawer, and started pacing up and down.
“What do you mean, cut us loose? What’s he busy with?”
“If one of you is a danger to yourself, or is damaging the business, he could decide to bring other people in to help manage it. He could even order you to return to Joburg.”
“You must be fucking joking!”
“I’m not saying he’ll do it. I just want you to understand how serious he is. He’s not going to let you become a risk. Not to yourself or the business.”
Nick saw Allegretti’s