Chapter 5 - The Second 11:17

Antonio stood immediately.

“How long?”

Peter answered through the phone.

“Maybe an hour.”

Matteo’s voice went cold.

“Why are you telling me?”

Peter laughed quietly.

“Because Victor is going to kill me too.”

Matteo stared.

“You worked for him.”

“For seventeen years.”

“And now?”

“Now he thinks I know too much.”

Antonio whispered:

“He does.”

Peter heard him.

“Hello, Antonio.”

Antonio’s face hardened.

“You took the key.”

“Yes.”

“Where is it?”

Peter said:

“Safe.”

“Where?”

“Not over the phone.”

Matteo looked at his father.

Peter continued.

“Victor believes the original trust papers are in that box.”

“They are not?”

Antonio frowned.

Peter laughed.

“No.”

Antonio looked surprised.

Matteo said:

“What is?”

Peter answered:

“A recording.”

Silence.

“Of?”

“The river house.”

Harold stood.

“That night?”

“Yes.”

Matteo’s hand went to the broken watch in his pocket.

Peter continued.

“Antonio wore a recorder.”

Antonio closed his eyes.

“I forgot.”

Jonathan stared.

“You were wired?”

Antonio nodded slowly.

“I planned to meet the prosecutor the next morning.”

Matteo whispered:

“So 11:17 is recorded.”

Peter answered.

“Yes.”

“Do you have it?”

“No.”

“Where is it?”

“In the deposit box.”

“Where is the key?”

“With me.”

Matteo looked at Antonio.

“Where are you?”

Peter said:

“Halfway between Scottsdale and your father’s house.”

Then another voice entered the call.

Victor.

“Peter.”

Everything stopped.

Peter breathed once.

Then:

“Mr. DeMarco.”

Victor’s voice was calm.

“You have disappointed me.”

The phone moved.

A struggle.

Then the call ended.

Matteo grabbed his coat.

Antonio stopped him.

“No.”

Matteo looked at him.

“You hid for seventeen years.”

Antonio flinched.

“Do not ask me to hide now.”

“I am asking you not to run into Victor’s trap.”

Matteo stepped closer.

“He is coming here anyway.”

Jonathan pulled out his phone.

“I can call federal contacts.”

Antonio shook his head.

“No local office.”

Jonathan frowned.

“Why?”

“Victor has people everywhere he did seventeen years ago.”

Matteo looked at him.

“Then who do you trust?”

Antonio said:

“No one.”

Harold spoke.

“Trust the evidence.”

Everyone turned.

The old driver pointed at the watch.

“11:17.”

Matteo frowned.

Harold continued.

“You said the recording is in the box.”

Antonio nodded.

Harold looked at Jonathan.

“Where did you take Antonio after the river house?”

Jonathan answered.

“A private clinic.”

“Before Arizona?”

“Yes.”

Harold looked at Antonio.

“You changed clothes.”

Antonio stared.

“Yes.”

“The watch stayed behind.”

“Yes.”

Harold smiled faintly.

“No.”

Everyone looked at him.

“I picked it up.”

Matteo froze.

Harold continued.

“I thought it stopped because it hit the floor.”

“It did.”

“No.”

Harold shook his head.

“The glass cracked then.”

He looked at Matteo.

“But the mechanism stopped later.”

Matteo stared at the frozen hands.

“11:17.”

Harold nodded.

“I remember the shot happened after midnight.”

Antonio’s face changed.

Jonathan whispered:

“He is right.”

Matteo looked between them.

“What?”

Jonathan said:

“We reached the river house at ten-fifty.”

Antonio frowned.

“The argument lasted more than an hour.”

Matteo held up the watch.

“So why 11:17?”

Harold looked at Antonio.

“Because somebody reset it.”

Silence.

Antonio stared at the watch.

“I did not.”

Jonathan shook his head.

“Neither did I.”

Matteo whispered:

“Victor.”

Harold nodded.

“Or Peter.”

Matteo’s phone rang again.

Peter.

He answered.

Breathing.

Fast.

Peter whispered:

“I got away.”

Matteo looked at Jonathan.

“Where are you?”

Peter ignored it.

“Look inside the watch.”

Matteo froze.

“What?”

“The back plate.”

Antonio stared.

Peter continued.

“Antonio hid something there.”

Antonio’s face changed.

Then he remembered.

“Oh God.”

Matteo turned the watch over.

The engraving:

FOR MY SON — WHEN TIME STARTS AGAIN.

Antonio whispered:

“I put the microfilm inside.”

Matteo looked at him.

“When?”

“The river house.”

“What is on it?”

Antonio stared.

“The account numbers.”

Jonathan went pale.

“All of them?”

“Yes.”

Peter said through the phone:

“Victor knows.”

Matteo looked at the watch.

Peter continued.

“That is why he needed Harold gone.”

Harold stared.

Serena whispered:

“My father did not give Harold the watch.”

Everyone looked at her.

Harold frowned.

Serena looked at Jonathan.

“You said you did.”

Jonathan went pale.

“I did not.”

Matteo turned toward Harold.

“Who gave it to you?”

Harold’s face changed.

He looked ashamed.

“Peter.”

Silence.

Matteo stared.

Harold said:

“He told me Jonathan sent it.”

Peter whispered through the phone:

“I needed the watch back inside the house.”

Matteo’s expression hardened.

“Why?”

“To see who reacted.”

Matteo stopped.

Peter continued.

“Victor has a person close to you.”

Matteo looked around the desert house.

Peter whispered:

“Someone at the ball knew exactly what was inside that watch.”

Matteo’s eyes moved toward Serena.

She went pale.

Then toward Jonathan.

Then Harold.

Then me.

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Peter said:

“And that person texted Victor at 11:17 last night.”