Chapter 10

Yuri shook his head. “Gregor placed an extra sensor on the door to the penthouse a few days ago. I thought someone had been in there a few other times. The only strange thing about those times is there was never anything missing then either. The alarm I set activates it when I’m not there. When it tripped last night, they knew it wasn’t me entering the apartment. We watched the monitors but didn’t see anyone in the apartment. When Kosta and I went up there, no one was in the penthouse and my wallet was on my dresser. We watched for a long time but no one came out.”

Sazon frowned. “You said this has happened before? Someone entering your apartment without leaving a trace?”

Yuri shrugged. “I’m not sure now. Once or twice before, I thought things had been moved around maybe but it could have been myself doing that. Once I found a shirt lying on the floor that I don’t remember dropping there. Another time, I found a damp soapy washrag in my sink.”

“Maybe you have a ghost?” Sazon hinted jokingly.

Yuri scoffed. “I don’t think it’s a ghost. Whoever it truly is, is very good. Nothing is ever missing that I know of, the items are just moved around.”

“And your wallet? Is anything missing from it?”

Yuri pulled out the wallet. Made of light brown soft leather he flipped it open and began taking stock of the contents. All his credit cards were accounted for, the cash he’d replaced this morning then suddenly he frowned and flipped open a hidden compartment. Yuri shot to his feet and growled immediately. “There is something missing.” 

“What?” Sazon asked, alarmed by his friend’s actions.

“I had a small brass key. It’s missing.” Yuri glared at the other man.

“Is this key important?”

“Very important but only to me,” Yuri explained. He stared at Sazon then smiled. “Come with me I want you to meet someone.”

Sazon got to his feet. “Who am I meeting?”

“Someone who knows a thief. Someone who needs a little help to cooperate.”

Sazon raised an eyebrow. “Someone you can’t intimidate? Color me surprised.”

Yuri shook his head. “She is protecting someone she cares about.”

“She?”

“Definitely a she.” Yuri chuckled. “She appears very young but I think she’s older than she looks. She is a tiny little thing but she shows signs of being abused by someone in her past. My manager tells me the thief may be her brother. I want to speak to him but Raven is protecting her secrets.”

“Raven?”

Yuri nodded. “She claims her name is Raven Casseni but I have a feeling even that is a lie.”

“Why would she lie about her name?”

Yuri shrugged. “I don’t know but I’m going to find out. She intrigues me for some reason. I find I want to learn all her secrets.”

Sazon smiled but didn’t say anything.

Within minutes, they greeted Stephanou and Yuri unlocked the door to his home office. Throwing open the door, all three men walked in.

The office was empty. Raven was gone and the only thing amiss was a stack of files on his desk. The files were messy, almost as if they had been dropped on the floor and picked up again. Yuri marched forward to look them over. He straightened them up and noticed the file for Andria Waterson was on the top. He had placed it in the middle of the stack to hide it from her. He narrowed his eyes and couldn’t help but wonder if she had read the file, then he wondered why it made a difference. Did she know Andria? Could she be the clue that would finally find the other woman? He had to find her and ask or at least find out why she would read through the file. It didn’t make sense to him. Yuri snapped his head at Stephanou and growled, “Where did she go?”

Stephanou swallowed hard. “I don’t know. She didn’t come through the door, it was locked. I haven’t heard a peep out of her.”

“How could she escape a locked room?” Sazon wanted to know.

“I don’t know but I intend to find out.” Yuri glared at his security man. “Search this room very carefully until you find her escape route. In fact, search the entire apartment. If she’s here I want her found, quickly and quietly.” Turning to Sazon, he ordered the other man, “You come with me. Nikoli is coming for his annual visit and we have work to do.”

Sazon shook his head. “I’ll put the word out again, to my contacts but after this long, it’s doubtful we’ll get any new information. She’s been in the wind for too long.”

“She has to be out there somewhere.” Yuri growled. “He can’t give up on his son. Until he finds out what happened to the boy he’ll never stop searching.”

“I don’t blame him,” Sazon stated quietly. “The boy is part of him and all he has left to remember the one person he loved more than life itself. You remember how they were together, don’t you?”

Yuri nodded. “Indeed I do. Someday, I want what they had but I doubt I’ll even find the right woman for me.”

Sazon chuckled. “There have been enough women in our pasts, both good but mostly bad women." He slapped him on the back. “I’ll get the word out on the streets while you work from here. Let me know when Nikoli gets into town and we’ll have a drink together.”

“And I have to find my missing employee,” Yuri muttered under his breath. His eyes narrowed as he scanned the empty office again. Turning to Stephanou he ordered, “Find her and when you do, bring her to me.”