The Mykonos Mob

by Jeffrey Siger

“Good,” said Yianni. “Now, we can concentrate on making Karavakis’ day miserable.”

  When they arrived at The Beach Club, two blue-and-whites sat parked by the entrance. Two uniformed cops sat in one car with Adina and Ion in the back. Telly and another uniform waited in the other cruiser.

  Telly stepped out of his cruiser when Andreas pulled in behind him.

  “I see you brought backup,” said Andreas.

  “Just in case.”

  “Ever wonder why the thought of that never makes you feel more comfortable?” said Andreas with a rueful smile.

  “Experience,” said Telly, handing him an envelope. “Here’s what you asked for. If it’s okay with you, I’ll leave my guys here with the girls.”

  “That makes sense. Let’s see how it goes.” Andreas checked his phone for messages, and shut it off. Yianni and Telly did the same. “Maybe we can avoid putting the girls through a face-to-face with their tormentor-in-chief.”

  Telly led the way into the bar and headed straight for Karavakis’ office. No one tried to stop them. Telly knocked on the door, but opened it without waiting for an answer.

  “Howdy, Angelos.”

  “What the hell are you doing here?”

  “I’ve brought company.” Telly nodded at Andreas and Yianni as they walked in, then he shut the door behind them.

  “So I see. I assume you’re not here to solicit a donation for the police-welfare fund.”

  Andreas dropped into one of two chairs in front of Karavakis’ desk. “Where were you from yesterday morning up until, let’s say, four in the afternoon?”

  “Why should I answer that question?”

  “You shouldn’t if you were taking a boat ride.”

  “Boat ride?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, if that’s all you want to know, I can assure you I was firmly on land.”

  “Can you prove it?”

  “Why should I have to?”

  “Let’s say because your life may depend upon it.”

  Karavakis leaned back in his chair. “Intriguing, Kaldis, but I won’t take the bait. Yes, I can prove it, but until the time comes that I know what’s behind it, I’m not about to compromise the good name of my companion during those hours by drawing her into whatever this is.”

  Andreas opened the envelope Telly had given him and pulled out a photograph. “Here’s a photo of someone you know.” He handed it to Karavakis.

  Karavakis appeared unsure of what he was looking at, then his eyes widened. “Is this Pepe?”

  “Recognize the shirt? I’ll admit, the face is hard to make out. A twelve-gauge blast of buckshot at close range tends to do that.”

  “I’ve never seen the shirt, but the cross around the neck is his. He’s worn it every day I’ve known him.” Karavakis kept staring at the photo. “When did this happen?”

  “Sometime yesterday. Before four in the afternoon.”

  “And you think I did this to my longtime friend?”

  “Spare me the violins. We’ve got a serious problem here, Angelos. A very serious one.”

  “I’m sure we can work it out.”

  “It’s not that kind of problem,” said Telly from behind Andreas.

  “It’s about the murder of three people.” Andreas leaned forward and tapped an index finger on the photograph. “All tied together through this guy.”

  “I don’t see how any of that involves me.”

  “For starters, everybody involved either worked for you or was tied into your new hotel project with Despotiko.”

  “Bullshit.”

  “No, fact.”

  “Prove it.”

  “You will concede that Pepe’s brother was your link to hooking you up with the hotel chain?”

  “Yeah, sure. But why would I kill him?”

  “What about the Colonel? He wanted a piece of your deal, didn’t he?”

  “Yes, but as I already told you and your sidekick over there, that was no problem.”

  “So you say,” said Yianni.

  “And then there’s this guy.” Andreas drew another photo out of the envelope. “He killed the Colonel. And he worked for you.”

  Andreas caught a twitch in Karavakis’ eye as he looked at the photo.

  “What else do you have?”

  “Isn’t that enough?”

  “What? Three dead guys with tenuous ties to me?”

  “Why do you call the ties tenuous?”

  Karavakis shrugged.

  “But, yes, Angelos, there’s more. Witnesses who can tie you directly into all of this.”

  “You’re bluffing. And I say that because I had absolutely nothing to do with any of this. Period. End of story.” He banged his fists on the table, though the rage seemed more staged than real.

  “One last thing to show you.” Andreas handed him a photo of three girls.

  “Do you recognize the girls in the picture?”

  He looked at the photo. Another twitch before he tossed it back at Andreas. “What if I do? What does it prove?”

  “Well, we happen to have another photo of the girl in the middle. Her name is Flora, and she works for you. We have her in a photo from a hospital security camera, catching her in the act of murdering this guy.” Andreas slammed his fist on of the photo of the motorcyclist. “Another of your employees.”

  “I don’t know anything about any of this, nor do I have anything to do with any alleged illegal activities on the part of any of my alleged employees.”

  “You sound like a lawyer. Sorry to tell you, but we have witnesses who disagree with you.”

  “Screw your witnesses. They’re lying.”

  “Why would they lie? If anything, they’d be afraid of you.”

  “Because they’re trying to frame me.”

  “For what purpose?”

  “To take over my operations.”

  Andreas laughed. “Poor boy…are you telling me that you’re being extorted?”

  Karavakis jumped up and thrust his fist in the direction of the door. “Get the hell out of here and take your cop buddies with you.”

  No one moved. “Perhaps you didn’t hear me correctly,” said Andreas. “I’m here to tell you that we have witnesses who can identify you as the person who sent your employee, Flora, off as an assassin. Aren’t you even slightly interested in what they have to say?”

  Karavakis drew in and let out a deep breath before dropping back into his chair. “Fine, so tell me.”

  “That’s better,” said Andreas. He repeated the two girls’ story about how their friend had been sent to do a favor for a friend of Karavakis. The favor being the assassination of the motorcyclist.

  “The storytellers are two miserable pieces of shit. Like I said before, someone put them up to it.” Karavakis started to stand.

  “Hold it right there,” said Telly. “We’re actually here to help you.”

  “Help me? Some bitches are accusing me of murder!”

  “Think about it: we’re trying to find out what you know, so that if you’re innocent, we have proof to debunk their story before it circulates. Who knows what someone as violent as Despotiko might do if he wrongly thinks you’ve been running rogue on a project involving him?”

  Nicely put, Telly.

  Andreas let Telly’s thought sink in. “So what is it, Angelos? Why did you send the girl off to meet Pepe? More importantly, where is she now?”

  Karavakis fixed his eyes on Andreas. “I repeat. I had nothing to do with any of this. I never told that girl to do or meet anyone, and I have no idea where she is.”

  “So, you’re calling the witnesses liars?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Andreas looked at Yianni. “Bring them in.”

  He hadn’t wanted things to go this way, but if Kara
vakis were involved, then Adina and Ino’s best chance at surviving the next twenty-four hours was to confront Karavakis now, in the presence of police.

  Or so Andreas hoped.

  Adina and Ino balked when Yianni told them they had to meet with Karavakis. Yianni understood; anyone with any sense would be afraid. That’s why he told them the truth: “The police want to protect you, but there’s nothing we can do other than let Karavakis go if you won’t cooperate. Then you’ll face the worst of all possible worlds. He’ll know who you are, that you’ve spoken to the police, and that you’re afraid to confront him. That gives him every reason to keep you fearing him for the rest of your lives—however long or short that might be.”

  Pale and nervous, the girls agreed to come with Yianni.

  When they reached the closed office door, Yianni put a hand on each girl’s shoulder. “Just tell the truth when you’re asked a question, and everything will be fine. Okay?” He didn’t say to trust him on that, because deep down in his heart he wasn’t sure it was true.

  Both girls nodded, and Ino shut her eyes. Perhaps to say a prayer.

  The moment the girls entered his office, Karavakis leaped up and shouted, “You miserable Balkan sluts. How dare you tell such lies about me? I’ll have your tongues cut out!”

  Andreas jumped up, shoved Karavakis back down into his chair, and with a finger pointed dead-center at Karavakis’ forehead: “That’s called intimidating witnesses. If you open your mouth like that again, I’ll drag you out of here in handcuffs.”

  Telly rattled the handcuffs on his belt. “And I’m not about to have this island turned into a war zone because of your macho bullshit temper. Shut up and do as you’re told.”

  Nice performance, Telly.

  Andreas turned to the girls standing by the door. “So, young ladies, is this the man who asked your friend, Flora, to do a favor for one of his friends?”

  The girls stood trembling uncontrollably, looking down at the floor.

  “No,” said one, then the other.

  “What?” said Andreas.

  “They said no!” shouted Karavakis.

  “You intimidated them,” Yianni said.

  “Fuck you. They’re telling the truth.”

  “What the hell’s going on here?” asked Telly.

  Andreas raised a hand. “Just a minute.” He faced Adina and gently lifted her chin up with his hand to look in her eyes. “I understand you’re afraid, but the only thing that will help you is telling the truth.”

  “I told the truth,” she said.

  “See, I told you so,” said Karavakis.

  Andreas shook his head and let go of Adina’s chin. She refocused on the floor.

  “I don’t understand. You told two witnesses that Flora said she was ordered by Karavakis to do a favor for a friend of his. Why are you saying now that this is not the man who told her to do that? This is Karavakis.” Andreas pointed across the desk.

  Adina looked up at Andreas. “This is the father. Flora was told to do the favor by the son.”

  “Yes,” said Ino quietly. “It was the son.”

  Boy-pimp.

  For an instant, you could hear a pin drop in the room. Then the father started calling the girls names again in what Andreas took to be the knee-jerk reaction of a father defending his son.

  Andreas let him vent for a bit before raising his hand. “Okay, now that most of that is out of your system, let’s get down to where we stand.” He looked at the girls. “I don’t think we need you in here any longer. Why don’t you go back and wait in the car.”

  Ino hesitated. “I didn’t do anything wrong, Mr. Karavakis. Honest.”

  Karavakis looked away.

  But Ino wasn’t finished. “I didn’t tell them anything about you or your son, and as soon as I got back I called and told him everything that had happened.”

  Andreas swung around to face her. “Told who? And got back from where?”

  Ino looked back and forth between Karavakis and Andreas.

  “Hey,” said Andreas, “I’m the one you better worry about.”

  Karavakis ignored her.

  “When I got back from your house, I called Mr. Karavakis’ son and told him everything.”

  “What did he say?”

  “Nothing. He just listened and hung up.”

  “Nothing?” said Telly.

  “That’s not good. Sounds psychotic,” said Yianni.

  Karavakis glanced up at Yianni but said nothing.

  “Okay, girls, please go back to the police car and wait for us there. Yianni, make sure they don’t lose their way.” Andreas waited until they’d left. “So, Angelos, what can you tell us about your son? Does this sound like the sort of thing he’d do? Murder three people?”

  Karavakis sat quietly.

  “Come on,” said Telly. “The whole island knows your kid’s a screw-up. He’s also a braggart. If he had anything to do with the murders, sooner or later he’ll tell somebody…assuming he hasn’t already. That means word will get back to Despotiko, and we both know how displeased he’ll be with your son’s efforts to link him to the hit on the Colonel. Next thing you know, your son’s involved in a terrible crash or boating accident and you’re getting flowers and sincere condolences from the Despotikos.”

  Karavakis spoke flatly, without emotion. “My son had nothing to do with any of that. He had no reason to be involved.”

  Andreas shook his head. “You sound like you’re trying to convince yourself more than us.”

  “Do you have a son?”

  Andreas nodded.

  “Then how would you feel if all your life you watched him make one stupid decision after another, never learning, always doubling down?”

  “I hope that won’t be my fate.”

  “For your sake, I hope so too.”

  “What are you telling us?” said Telly.

  Karavakis placed his massive forearms on the desk and dropped his forehead onto them. “I can’t believe he’d be so goddamned stupid.” He sat like that for half a minute before lifting his head, his eyes glazed with tears. “He’s my only son, and…” His words ran off into a sigh, and he wiped at his eyes. “You might have heard that I’d decided to get out of the club business, leave this sort of thing to others, and concentrate on my new project.”

  He reached for a bottle of water on his desk and took a gulp. “My son didn’t like my idea. He thought we should do just the opposite, and move aggressively toward wiping out our competitors in the club business. On top of all that, he said that instead of giving in to the Colonel’s demand for a piece of our operation, we should take over his operation and become the island’s true boss of bosses. I told him he’d been watching too many American gangster movies. He exploded, told me I’d lost my nerve, and stormed out. He never raised the subject with me again.”

  “Now we know why,” said Andreas. “He’s been busy setting you up to appear responsible for the Colonel’s assassination. Neat plan. Your son gets you and Despotiko fighting each other while he slides into taking over the Colonel’s business on his way to becoming the island’s ‘boss of bosses.’”

  “But what about Pepe?” said Yianni. “Why would he turn on you?”

  Karavakis rubbed his hand across his forehead. “Pepe was my son’s godfather. They were very close. I’m sure my son told him things about how I’d not been the best of friends to Pepe over the years, and that got him on my son’s side.”

  “But enough to be party to murder?” asked Telly.

  “Pepe was no angel. He’d done that sort of thing before. We all—” he caught himself in the midst of a confessional moment and sighed deeply instead. “So, where do we go from here?”

  “From what I’m hearing,” said Andreas, “this is one of those father-son rivalry situations gone terribly wrong. Despotiko will lik
ely see it the same way and not hold you to blame for your son’s actions. That is, if you act immediately. On the other hand, if you let things drag into a trial, there’s more than enough evidence for Despotiko to consider your son and you guilty, regardless of the verdict.”

  “Are you suggesting I have my son plead guilty to murder?”

  “If he did it, yes. This isn’t going away, and if he confesses, things will go easier for him.”

  Telly added, “We also know from the way our beloved system works, he’ll likely be out of prison in a few years.”

  Sad but true.

  “On the other hand, if he fights and is convicted, he’ll have a much longer and harder time in prison.”

  Andreas raised his hand. “And let’s not forget that if you come to Despotiko now with what you’ve learned and promise your son will go to jail, you’re behaving reasonably. For him not to accept that proposal means he’s the one destroying your joint project and potentially starting a war between your families. On the other hand, if you persist in protecting your son, despite knowing he’s guilty, you’ll be the one creating the mess and dooming the project. Care to guess how Despotiko might react to that?”

  “Like arranging for your son to be shanked in prison?” added Telly.

  Karavakis rubbed and squeezed at his cheeks with the fingers and thumb of his right hand. “I’ll talk to my son and see where we go from here. If I think he did it, I’ll make him turn himself in. But if he didn’t, I’ll die defending him.” He stared at Andreas. “And woe be unto those who try to harm my family.”

  “I’m completely on board with that concept,” said Andreas. “So, now that we’re agreed, where can we find your son?”

  “Out on his boat. With some of his friends.”

  “What friends?” said Telly.

  “Some of his ‘Special Forces.’ That’s what he calls the crew he hires for security around here. I’ve been letting him take care of that sort of thing. He seems to have a knack for operational planning and detail.”

  “I suspect three dead guys would agree,” said Telly.

  Andreas’ mind jumped to his family and Toni. Thank God for those SWAT guys.

  “We’ll wait around and keep you company until he returns,” said Andreas. “And please don’t screw things up by trying to warn your son. We want this to go down without anyone else getting hurt.”