“You like it?” the bartender asked. “Corn is very, very good for you. It has a sweet taste, no?” When no one answered him, he shrugged. He looked behind him, scanning the room quickly. “You are here for work? Vacation?”
“We’re here to help out a buddy. We’re firefighters. He’s had some damage we’re helping him with. Clean up,” answered Tucker.
“Ah, I see. Very good. Well, if it is your first visit to our little island, let me introduce myself and make some suggestions, okay?”
Tucker decided to play along.
“First, may I suggest you be careful about the food? And watch for bandits. Your wallet, understand?”
They nodded.
“Only eat food in reputable establishments. No carts on the street, understand? It will make you sick. Watch out for the little children who pickpocket. And the gypsies. And also stay away from the police, you know, the Civil Guard. No not get into a traffic accident, at all costs.”
T.J. interrupted him. “Is there anything here we can do for fun?”
Diego’s face widened, his smile showing off several gold-rimmed teeth. “We are known for many things, but at the top of our list is our lovely ladies. I can arrange some introductions, if you like.”
Again, Tucker agreed to go along with Diego’s line of thinking.
“We might be interested. But we’re both, except Sven here, we’re married men.”
“The girls are very discrete. Very, very nice. We are a melting pot of Spain, Portugal, and Africa. Ladies from every country with very different tastes and talents.” His eyes were glowing, his fingers itching with anticipation for the money he was thinking he would make.
“Well, we probably need to finish our work for today. When should we check back with you?” Tucker asked.
“Tonight would be good. The ladies come later in the evening, when we have more customer, you understand?”
They nodded.
“And you are single, yes?” Diego asked Sven.
“I am.”
“So you can really play the field. You like experienced ladies?”
Sven, in spite of all his worldliness, was seriously embarrassed. He stumbled with his answer. “I like them pretty. But not too old.” He took a quick glance at Tucker, and it registered what Sven was doing.
“Oh, yes. Young. Perhaps you like them young, then?”
Tucker’s stomach lurched. Noticing the cell phone hitched to Diego’s belt, he reached into his inside shirt pocket and slid the hairnet switch to on. Diego was intent on listening to Sven’s answer and didn’t notice.
Sven acted like this was news to Tucker and T.J. “Sorry, fellas. But, yes, I like them on the young side. Not children, of course.” He scowled.
“No, no, never. But I understand completely. You like them fresh and untouched,” he enunciated like he was reading off a delicacy from a menu. “This is always more expensive, but not impossible. I can also arrange that she come cook for you, keep house? She can be your wife while you are here—working.”
Tucker could feel T.J.’s tension explode, noticing the veins in his neck protrude. He was also grinding his teeth.
Sven answered, “No. I don’t need a wife. I just want to have fun.”
Diego laughed, causing a couple of the bar patrons to turn around.
“Then fun you shall have, my friend. Your new friend, Diego, will see to it personally.”
Two men darkened the doorway, and Diego immediately disconnected to give the newcomers his complete attention. Both were dressed in slacks and long-sleeved shirts rolled up to their forearms due to the heat. One wore a loosened tie, as if he worked in a bank or was in business locally. They were lighter in skin tone than Diego, with a mixture of Creole and Indian features. Neither took their shades off as Diego brought them to the opposite side of the room where no one was sitting. While the three discussed something private, T.J. retrieved his cell and snapped photos of the group.
“You still on?” he asked of Tucker.
“I hope so.”
“I recognize one of those men from the photos,” said T.J. “I think we just widened the net.”
Chapter 14
The movie ended, and Keira wanted to go outside to watch the workmen, who were causing noise with their drilling and sawing. Brandy wrapped the baby tight and escorted the six-year-old out the sliding glass door and onto the patio. All of a sudden, she discovered what they were doing.
Bits of packing material and remnants of the original box lay on the ground off to the side. In the middle were several large pieces of painted plywood, bracing and a scattering of Joe’s tools, including a skill saw. Joe was studying a sheet of directions he’d laid out at his feet just beyond where Brandy and Keira stood.
He looked up. “Surprise. Bet you never would have guessed.”
To Brandy’s amazement, Joe and his friends were assembling a playhouse kit. As the walls were raised onto the flooring material, Keira turned to her, suddenly more excited than she’d been all afternoon.
“It’s a playhouse for Kimberly. Oh, you’re such a lucky!” she said, bouncing up and down to look at the sleeping baby.
Brandy sat on one of the patio chairs so Keira could watch the baby sleep.
“Joe, I can’t believe it. Where did you get all this?” she asked.
“Bought it from a friend I know who sold his toy store. I used to put them together for him, and he said he had a couple left over still in the box.”
“It’s pink,” shouted Keira.
“It sure is, little lady,” answered Joe. “We’re going to have it up here in about a half hour. You want to be the first one to play in it?”
Keira was bouncing, cheering, running back and forth on the patio. Brandy asked her to stay away from the tools and equipment.
The doorbell rang, so Brandy walked back to answer it.
“Oh hi, Brandy. I’m Gloria Benson. I don’t think you remember me, but I’m Joe’s wife. Charlotte’s grandmother.” The attractive woman held a shopping bag.
“Nice to see you again. Come on in.”
“I brought some sandwiches and iced tea for the boys. Joe was so excited to come over today, Brandy.” She wrinkled her nose and whispered, “It gives him something to do.”
Brandy took the bag offered, placing it on the kitchen counter. Mrs. Benson followed right behind her, focused on the baby.
“Well, hello there,” she greeted Kimberly, who had just opened her eyes. “She’s a perfectly beautiful baby.”
“Here,” Brandy said as she allowed Mrs. Benson to hold her.
“Oh, it was such a short time ago Charlotte was this small. I miss those days,” she said as she made faces with the stoic Kimberly.
“Did you bring her over? I’m watching Bryce and Geri Tanner’s youngest, Keira.”
“I’m afraid not today. My husband thinks he can arrange the world in a matter of seconds. They already had plans.” She looked back down at Kimberly. “Tucker must be over the moon with delight.”
“I don’t think he ever thought he’d have a child.”
“Oh, nonsense, men can have children at any age. We’re the ones with the expiration date.”
Brandy saw that Gloria Benson was someone she could trust and was easy to befriend.
“You have to go for more,” Gloria added.
“This is about all I can handle at the moment.” A shadow passed over her as she thought about Geri and her four daughters. Mrs. Benson returned the baby.
Keira opened the slider and announced, “Look, Kimberly, your house is almost finished!”
The men finished putting on the window shutters and the front door. They tightened the screws with Joe’s screw gun, while they cut extra trim pieces for the door frame and outside windows. They also created a ledge so that the kitchen window had a pass-through on either side. Joe held the door open, and Keira ran inside without fear, screaming in delight.
The work crew sat as Mrs. Benson brought them their iced tea and sa
ndwiches. She knew them and their dietary likes and dislikes well, flirting slightly with each one. She also brought out a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but hesitated.
“Can she have this?” Gloria asked.
“I think so.” Brandy asked Keira, “Honey, can you have peanut butter and jelly? Does your mommy let you eat those?”
“Only strawberry. I only like it with strawberry jam.”
“Well, what do you know. I got it right!” Gloria chuckled and handed it over. “Can I get you something, Brandy?”
“Water. I’d like a glass of water. The glasses are in the cabinet over the dishwasher.”
Kimberly was wiggling, so she propped her up to sitting position on her knee and burped her. Keira was fascinated with trying to catch the baby’s attention.
Minutes later, the men gathered up their tools and Joe took the leftover box remnants to his truck. Gloria said her good-byes, while Joe and his friends began discussing what should be done with the stairs to the upper great room. They measured, drew small sketches in a notebook, and looked for locations of studs in the walls bordering the stairwell. They went outside and measured the side of the house, called numbers to each other on sizes of windows both downstairs and upstairs, and measured the length of the side fence.
Keira was beginning to get in the way, running up and down the steps and weaving around the men. Brandy managed to get her attention, reading some of the books her mother had packed in the suitcase. She fell asleep on the couch.
Brandy put the baby down and then checked her phone for messages but found none. It had been nearly three hours, and she was hoping for an update. Then the phone rang.
“Geri, is that you?”
“Yes. Listen, it’s not going well here.”
“What’s happened?” Brandy whispered, moving into the kitchen.
“They took her phone away at school. She was caught texting.”
“Oh, dear.”
“She got it back when school was over, but then she dumped the phone in the drain, Brandy, before we could reach her.”
“Oh no. So now what?”
“Bryce’s friend says they want to interview Keira. Lynn argued that this boy is in love with her and wanted to meet her. That’s what she told us. She told us she didn’t want him to get in trouble, so she threw the phone away.”
“Wait a minute. You said he was one of her friends from school.” Brandy’s heart was racing.
“That’s the thing. Now she says she’s never met him. She says she found the pictures at her school and denies he ever sent them to her. Begged us to just throw them out. I know she’s lying, Brandy.”
“Of course she is. She’s protecting him. Boy, this guy must be good.”
“Well, Bryce’s friend says we don’t even know if it’s a guy or who he is. But she’s convinced he loves her.”
“I can’t imagine how you feel.”
“Have you ever heard anything so insane? My daughter—” Geri’s tears took hold.
Brandy let her cry. When Geri blew her nose and seemed ready to listen, she asked, “So what can I do?”
“They want to bring someone over to your house to question Keira, since she’s the only one who saw the cell phone pictures. They think it would be better to do it at your place, rather than our home. Keira might feel less self-conscious.”
“Whatever you want, Geri. I’m here for you guys.”
Okay, let me get back, and I’ll give you a call if we’re coming over. In the meantime, can you give her some dinner? Maybe get her ready for bed in case we’re late?”
“No problem. She had a sandwich late this afternoon, so I don’t think she’ll be hungry. I have chicken noodle soup. I have mac and cheese, tons of other things in the refrigerator.”
“Perfect. Thank you so much.”
“What about Lynn?” Brandy asked.
“I’m dropping her off at my mom’s. They’ve asked that I keep the girls separated for now until we can get them interviewed.”
Brandy dialed Tucker and got his message line. Her heart was banging so loud in her chest that she thought she might get sick.
“Tucker, I’m having one of those good and bad days all rolled up into one. Kimberly and I are fine. We have a new pink playhouse in the backyard, but the whole world around us is going crazy. God, I need to hear your voice, Tucker. I’m trying my best, but my world just isn’t the same without you. I realize that more and more every day. You should be here with me and the baby. Forgive me, because I know how selfish that sounds. I shouldn’t be telling you this, but I just have to get it off my chest. And I’m scared. I don’t feel safe.”
She watched the sleeping form of little Keira and realized how vulnerable they all were.
What would Tucker do?
“He’d stick it out, make it work,” she whispered to herself.
Of course. It was the obvious solution to a problem that couldn’t be solved, except with the passage of time, because it was impossible to control. He’d watch and look and wait for the opportunity to be a hero. He’d stay focused and alert to all the forces. He’d never give up.
He’d protect them all.
She decided to just focus on that.
Chapter 15
Tucker wished he’d asked more questions of Stuart Bonilla when he was getting the hairnet demonstration. He didn’t want to pick up meaningless information. There was no telling how many cell phones were located in the bar. He counted thirteen sitting on stools and bet every one of them had a device of some kind.
So he reached back inside his shirt and turned the switch off. If he caught either of the two newcomers answering their phone or making a call, well, he could reverse that.
“I think you need to get closer to them,” Sven whispered.
Tucker looked at the back part of the dance floor and located a men’s restroom. He again activated the device and announced, “Gotta take a leak.”
He grabbed his unfinished beer bottle by the neck and sauntered past the three gentlemen. Just before he reached their table, he stumbled, dropping the bottle and following its roll until it hit Diego’s shoe.
He didn’t have to work hard to feign being tipsy. He’d shared most of Sven’s beer with T.J.
“Gawd, I’m so sorry.” He pressed too familiarly into Diego’s side and didn’t make eye contact with the newcomers, who both stood up and backed away, moving like powerful cats. Tucker immediately assessed they’d had some serious martial arts training. Their stares were hostile.
“Hey, don’t touch me, friend,” Diego said, pushing Tucker hard. “You can’t just walk up to me in a meeting.”
“I’m sorry, man. I thought you could get us more beers, that’s all. I’m on my way to the head.”
“Sonja!” Diego barked, while his two other associates quietly slipped their hands into their pockets where Tucker was sure they carried some sort of weapon.
The waitress appeared from around the curtain and scurried over to take Sven and T.J.’s order. Tucker raised his hands with a wavering “don’t shoot” stance and sidestepped his way to the restroom.
The cracked mirror revealed what a hot mess he was. His nerves were on edge, and he had two days of stubble, which itched like crazy.
What the fuck am I doing here?
In case he was being watched, he used the John, leaning his elbows on his thighs and trying to calm himself. He rubbed his scalp vigorously, sighed, stood, and washed his hands. He swung the door open and nearly collided with one of the Creole gentlemen, who again backed up two steps to avoid having any contact with Tucker.
The man’s smooth skin was nearly feminine, and Tucker noticed he wore just a touch of eyeliner and blush, which was something he never expected to see here. His dark hair was plastered down flat on his head, every hair in place. His cold black eyes emanated pure evil.
He was grateful for the gap between them so there would be no chance the device would be detected, yet he moved slowly so there would be a better chan
ce for a signal to be captured at such a close proximity. Tucker eyed the ground, mumbled a, “Pardon,” and then returned to the bar.
Sven and T.J. were ready to leave. T.J. suggested they head over to the Tradewinds and try to rendezvous with Lt. Gridley and the other three men. Tucker was going to jump behind the steering wheel when Sven slapped him on the upper arm and pointed across the alley.
The Tradewinds was less than two blocks away. It had been a nice hotel at one time with ornate balconies in wrought iron like Tucker had seen in the French Quarter in NOLA. It looked to have been built in the late eighteen hundreds and was plaster over wood construction with stone retaining walls and fireplaces. It didn’t take much to envision Europeans from all over sitting on their balconies, sipping cool drinks and looking out at the blue Atlantic while the rest of the world went by. He felt the ghosts of escaped pirates and fugitives from government—perhaps several governments, as well as the dangerous liaisons and secret political meetings. This place was made for clandestine operations.
It always would be.
There was a quiet order to this place, he thought. Control was an illusion. He knew if he had to spend any time here, he’d wind up going native, which would mean one thing—he was back to a solitary life again where he didn’t have to worry about anyone but himself. And his Team buddies.
“Tucker, want me to call Fredo?” asked T.J.
“Sure, go ahead. Tell them where we are.”
A pile of crates was stacked just across the entrance to the hotel, nearly obstructing a narrow alley with clotheslines hanging from windows on the second and third floors facing the other stone and brick buildings across the small space. He imagined this was a natural form of air conditioning because very little light managed to carve out a spot.
He sat, swearing because he’d forgotten to turn off his device, and did so. T.J. had just hung up.
“They’re still in the lobby. Not much happening. Most the rooms are being used by rescue workers and some foreign press,” he said.
Sven checked his watch. “Should we gather up everyone and go back?”
SEALed Protection (Bone Frog Brotherhood Book 5) Page 9