Chapter 9: Baiting the Hook
The knowledge that Scarelli's men were actively probing his Rue Sainte-Catherine property settled in Elias's mind like a cold stone. It wasn't fear he felt, but a sharpened, predatory focus. This was an opportunity, not just a threat. He could use Scarelli's predictable aggression to his advantage.
He met with Thomas later that evening, not in his apartment, but during a quiet stroll through Parc Lafontaine as dusk bled purple and grey across the sky. The autumn leaves crunched underfoot.
"Anya's observations were astute," Elias began, relaying the essence of her report. "Scarelli's looking for 'Thorne.' Moretti has instructed his men to start with the Sainte-Catherine building, apply pressure."
Thomas's jaw tightened. His Barbarian-enhanced form, even under a thick wool coat, radiated a barely suppressed power. "Let them come. I'll be waiting."
"No, Thomas," Elias said calmly. "Direct confrontation there plays into their hands. They expect you. They expect muscle. We offer them something else."
The Scotsman looked at him, questioning.
"They want information about me, about my connection to you," Elias continued. "We'll give them a trail to follow, but one of our own making. We need to draw out their investigators, identify them, understand their methods."
He outlined his plan. Mickey O'Halloran would be the key.
The next morning, Elias discreetly "let slip" to one of his more gossip-prone tenants in the Sainte-Catherine building – a woman named Mrs. Perrault who supplemented her meager income by cleaning for wealthier families – that he, Mr. Thorne, had recently hired a "new assistant" to help with errands and collections, a wiry fellow named O'Halloran. He emphasized Mickey's... slipperiness, his ability to be "everywhere and nowhere." He painted Mickey as a confidential aide, someone who knew Elias's movements. A perfect target for Scarelli's men if they wanted information about the elusive Thorne.