by Carolina Mac
Annie scribbled on a notepad and passed it to Travis sitting behind the wheel of the rental Jeep. He jumped out to make a call.
“How do I know you won’t kill him before I get there?”
“Would I do that?”
“Damn right you would.”
“I give you my word.”
“Your word is worthless.”
“Enough.” The Dog’s voice had an edge to it Annie had never heard. This was the real Dog. “Do you want your kid or not?”
“Of course, I do. I can’t get the money until morning, and even then, it will take an hour or two to order an amount that large.”
“Do what you have to do. We’ll do the exchange at noon. High noon like in the old westerns.”
“Neil better be untouched, or you’ll get nothing from me but a bullet.”
“The kid will be fine.”
“Okay. I’ll see you at noon.”
TRAVIS JUMPED out of the Jeep and called Farrell. “He’s calling about a deal for Neil, partner. Don’t come up to Vegas. He’s changed his mind and turned off somewhere. He told Annie they’ll make the switch in the Blythe hospital parking lot tomorrow at noon.”
“Okay, I’m turning around. I’ll scout out the area down there and see if I can spot the Arizona squad car.”
“Annie told him she needs most of the morning to order the money, pick it up and drive down there. I’m not sure if she’s going for the money or has something else in mind. She’s still on the phone with him.”
“She probably has a plan of some kind shaping up. I’m heading to Blythe. Call me back as soon as you know.”
Travis opened the door of the Jeep and Annie had ended the call.
“Good thing we haven’t checked into the Nugget,” she said. “All our stuff is in the back of the Jeep. Let’s go.”
“We’re leaving the house?” Travis glanced back at the pile of rubble with the crime scene tape around it.
“It’s more important to get Neil. I can kill the Dog anytime.”
“The gang squad has a patrol on it,” said Travis. “They might catch him if he shows.”
Blythe. California.
NEIL pulled into the Super Six, one of many motels to choose from at the I-10 interchange outside of Blythe. His side ached where the Dog had cut the skin, and he was bone tired from all the hours of driving.
The Dog cocked the Beretta and pressed the barrel against his temple none too gently. The big ganger had a way of spitting out his words in a low growl that made Neil think of a talking bulldog with a spiked collar he’d seen in cartoons.
“We’re going inside. You’re getting us a room and we’re sleeping until morning. Once your Mommy brings the money she can take you home and I’ll be on my way. Until then, don’t give me any trouble or I’ll stick my knife in your eye.”
“I’m too tired to make trouble,” said Neil. “I’m ready to sleep. Never been so ready.”
FARRELL programmed Blythe into the GPS and hoped the nav system gave him the quickest route. He had no time to waste. Neil’s life was at stake.
His cell rang, and he grabbed for it. It almost slipped out of his hand he was in such a sweat. Fear sweat—he never had it. He had it now for Neil. “Annie, what’s the plan?”
“We’re coming now. I didn’t waste time getting the ransom together. It won’t help Neil. Dougie will do his best to kill Neil money or no money.”
Annie’s breathing was weird. Farrell could hear it as she spoke, and he tried to figure it out. She could always calm her breathing. She gave lessons on how to do it.
She’s scared for Neil.
“What are the chances of finding them?” Annie asked.
“I should have a locate on them by the time you catch up.”
“Let me know, sweetheart.”
“I will.”
Don’t fall apart on me, Mom. I need you.
CHAPTER TEN
Wednesday, February 18th.
Blythe. California.
IT WAS AFTER MIDNIGHT when Neil drove with half-closed eyes through the Super Six parking area looking for a spot.
“Park there, punk.” The Dog pointed. “Leave the pig machine for your pig brother to find and he’ll think we stayed in this fuckin dump.
“Don’t call Farrell a pig,” Neil hollered.
“Like you can stop me?” The Dog waved the gun at him, and Neil clenched his fist wanting more than anything to land one in the Dog’s face. But he held back not wishing to make things worse than they were. If the Dog beat him up, he wouldn’t be able to run or do what he needed to do when the time came. And the time would come. Farrell was out there looking for him.
Neil figured if the Dog was going to trade him for money he couldn’t kill him—at least not yet.
“Get us another ride. Something easier to get in and out of. My leg is fuckin killing me.”
The only vehicles Neil could see were the ones parked close to the poles with the security lights above. Most of the parking lot was in darkness. A couple of older pickups sat near the far fence. They’d be the easiest to boost. He jumped out and slammed his door, the Dog hollering at him.
“Wait for me, asshole,” growled the Dog. “I ain’t having you run off now that I’m this close to a payday.”
Neil turned as the Dog caught up to him.
He’s getting a bit better on the crutches.
“Mom will pay you off with a bullet between the eyes.”
The Dog laughed. “She’s good. But she ain’t as good at strategy as me. I’m a planner.”
Neil stopped and turned to face the miserable Dog. “What the hell happened to your big life plan when you got shot by the cartel and arrested?”
“Shut your filthy mouth and open the truck.”
It took Neil thirty seconds to flick the lock on a white Chevy pickup.
The Dog scrambled in, cursing the whole while because it was even higher than the SUV. “Thought I told you to get something easier for me. You deaf, you stupid asshole?”
“That would be a fuckin blessing, wouldn’t it?” Neil snapped. He hot-wired the engine and tuned the Dog out. The truck roared to life and Neil zoomed out of the parking lot. He braked at the road and asked, “Where to, Dog man?”
Noticeably out of breath from crossing the parking lot and the effort of climbing into the truck, the Dog pointed left. His words came out in a whisper. “Couple more hotels that way.”
Neil drove left for about a quarter mile and pulled into the second one—La Quinta. By then he didn’t care what the stupid fucking Dog wanted. He was getting a hotel—any hotel with beds—and sleeping.
“Park this piece of shit and get us a room.”
Neil was at the reservation desk before the Dog made it through the double glass doors. He used his school Visa Annie had provided and paid for the room. Key cards in hand and no luggage they took the elevator to the second floor.
Neil noticed the Dog slowing down. His walking was worse than it had been. Much worse.
At the door, the Dog grabbed the key card out of Neil’s hand and shoved it into the slot. The green light came on and they were in.
Neil let out a moan and crashed on the first bed inside the door. He closed his eyes and never moved.
The Dog leaned his crutches against the wall and limped towards Neil on the bed. “Found these in the pig machine.” He grinned down at Neil. “Thought they might come in handy.” He snapped a handcuff on Neil’s right wrist and snapped the other one around the shaft of the lamp that was screwed into the nightstand. “Don’t move,” he muttered, “or I’ll slit your throat the same way I did the cop.”
“I’m supposed to sleep with my arm up like this?” Neil landed a vicious kick to the Dog’s good leg and tried to knock him over.
The Dog retaliated with a fist to Neil’s gut that knocked the wind out of him. He grinned as Neil groaned, then limped into the ensuite and did his business with the door open.
Neil lay on the bed wondering if he�
��d ever breathe normally again.
The asshole is so fuckin strong.
The Dog emerged from the bathroom, shuffled over to the other bed and clicked off the light.
A prickly sensation began in his cuffed arm and Neil doubted he’d be able to sleep. He closed his eyes and laid perfectly still. Nothing else for it.
With a loud groan people in the next room could have heard, the Dog collapsed onto the other bed.
I’ll wait until he’s asleep.
Neil waited a long time until the Dog’s breathing was even, and he started to snore. Only then did he pull a burner phone out of the pocket of his jeans. He’d bought it earlier in the day when the mean Dog sent him into a convenience store for food and smokes and wasn’t watching him.
AT THREE A.M. Farrell cruised every hotel in Blythe. In and out of the parking lots, trying to spot the Arizona squad where Neil had parked it. He started at the lower end of the price range and worked his way up. When he arrived at the hotel with the red roof he hit pay dirt.
He parked and called Annie. “I found the patrol car.”
“Great, sugar. They didn’t try to hide it or anything? Was it too easy?”
“Wasn’t easy, Mom. I drove in and out of hotels and motels forever until I found it.”
“The Dog is devious, sugar. You can’t trust him.”
“What? Do think it’s a trick?”
“Are there other hotels close by?”
“Yeah, a few because of the I-10 interchange.”
“I’m not saying it’s a trick, sugar, but it could be,” said Annie. “We should be there in half an hour. Travis and I will help you find them.”
“Even if they are in this hotel, I can’t take the Dog myself from a locked room. He’ll kill Neil.”
“That’s a fact,” said Annie.
“Think I should ask for help from the locals?”
“Your call, honey. You’re the cop.”
“I’ll check the hotels within walking distance,” said Farrell. “The Dog is on crutches.”
“They might have taken another vehicle,” said Annie. “Dougie couldn’t cross the border in a stolen Arizona squad car.”
“That’s true.” Farrell was so tired he could hardly think. He ended the call to Annie, leaned back on the headrest and closed his eyes.
His phone signaled a text and startled him awake. He gave his head a shake, not realizing he’d dozed off. He picked up his cell and stared at the screen. Not a number he recognized. He read the message.
“La Quinta. 213. White Chevy pickup. N.”
“Holy fuck, Neil. Thank you, baby Jesus,” Farrell hollered though no one was listening to him.
What should he do? Wait for Annie? Wait for morning? Get more help? He couldn’t rush the room. That would have only one result—getting his brother killed.
But he could get ready.
He pressed Annie’s contact. “Somehow, Neil was able to text me, Mom. Don’t know how but he found a way. Write this down.”
Annie let go a big breath. “He’s okay, and now we can help him. I feel a lot better, sugar, and I’m sure you do too.”
“At least we know for sure where he is, and they’ll be coming out at some point. Gives us something to work with.”
“We’ll set up outside,” said Annie. “Cover off all the exits and keep an eye on the truck. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
NEIL WOKE when the first gray fingers of dawn poked through the hotel draperies. The Dog snored on, tired from his romp through Texas and Arizona and edging over the California line. He’d slit a cop’s throat and was still able to sleep like a baby.
Neil jerked on the handcuff. The lampshade rattled but the lamp held firm to the nightstand. “Unlock this,” he hollered over at the Dog. “I have to piss.”
“Shut up. I’m sleeping.”
Neil threw a pillow at the Dog. “Get up and undo this cuff, you piece of shit, asshole.” Neil screamed the words out as loud as he could, and the Dog sat up.
“Shut up, or I’ll shut you up.” The Dog stood on one leg, fished the key out of his jeans and undid the cuff.
Neil booked it to the bathroom and locked himself in. He used the facilities, then pulled the phone out of his pocket to see if Farrell had said anything.
“Mom’s here. All set outside.”
Neil nodded. He pulled his shirt up and checked the spot in his side where the Dog had knifed him. Crusty with blood and sore as hell, but he had nothing to put on the ugly looking gash. If he tried washing it, it might come open again. Better to leave it for now.
“Hurry up in there, punk,” said the Dog.
Neil unlocked the door and the Dog stood right in front of him. “Cuff yourself to the air conditioner. Do it. I’m watching.”
Neil walked across the room to the table in the corner. He sat down, clicked the cuff on his right wrist onto the air conditioner slats and waited. Nothing to do but wait for the Dog’s master plan to unfold.
The Dog stomped out of the bathroom, unlocked the cuff and pointed at the bed. “Go back to sleep. We ain’t getting up yet.”
“I’m up and I’m staying up,” said Neil. “I’m hungry.”
“Lie on your bed, kid so I can do up the fuckin cuff. I need to sleep for another hour.”
Shit, another hour to wait.
Neil laid on his bed and let the Dog cuff him to the lamp.
The Blackmore Agency. Austin.
BLAINE COULDN’T sleep for worrying about his family in peril from the filthy Doug Robertson. He should have killed him when he had the chance. Would have been best for all concerned. Now Neil was in mortal danger because of the goddam thug, and people in high places had caused the situation thinking they could manipulate information out of the dirty Dog.
Barely six a.m. He padded down the staircase and made a left turn into the kitchen. He needed coffee before his foul mood intensified and he began another day by pissing people off. The dogs bounced around his legs, wanting out before he made coffee. He made them wait.
“Y’all can wait a couple of minutes until I get this started.”
Lexi nudged his leg with her wet nose and Hoodoo gave a little bark of impatience.
Blaine pushed the button and both dogs raced for the back door. “I’ll have a quick smoke outside,” he said to the breeze as he stepped onto the porch in his bare feet. “Not too warm this morning.”
Wonder if it’s warm in California?
La Quinta Hotel. Blythe. California.
TRAVIS SPELLED Farrell off for a couple of hours watching the front door of the hotel, so Farrell could sleep in his truck. At daylight, they were pacing and planning and preparing for the difficult day ahead.
Annie drove down the road to the golden arches and brought back breakfast sandwiches and coffee for the three of them. “I wonder if Neil’s hungry?” she asked Farrell.
“Don’t know, Mom, but the Dog had to eat, so Neil probably ate at the same time.”
“ORDER FOOD,” were the first words Neil heard when he opened his eyes. His right arm had gone numb attached in an unnatural way to the lamp on the nightstand.
“Can’t. My fuckin arm is numb, thanks to you, asshole. I can’t even move my goddam shoulder.” Neil winced, reached across with his left hand and tried to rub circulation into the joint.
“Suck it up, mouthpiece. Be happy I ain’t killed you… yet.” The Dog grunted as he stood on one leg, reached over and undid the cuff. “Pick up that phone and dial room service and tell them to make it snappy. I’m fuckin on the edge.”
“You were on the edge before you were hungry,” Neil growled back at him. He picked up the handset, looked at the list and dialed eight. “What do you want?” he asked the Dog while he waited for them to pick up.
“Big breakfast. I might not get to eat until I get to Mexico.”
“Is there a menu over there on the table?” asked Neil.
“Fuck the menu. Tell them what we want.”
“Sure thing, bos
s.” Room service came on the line and Neil ordered off the top of his head. “Scrambled eggs, bacon, toast and coffee, times two. And could you put a rush on it, please? Thanks a lot.”
The Dog sat on the side of the bed and nodded his head. Three days of dark scruff on the Dog’s face made him look more intimidating, but Neil wasn’t scared. He had a secret weapon waiting outside.
Farrell.
The Blackmore Agency. Austin.
LILY buzzed into the kitchen with her coffee mug in one hand and a message slip in the other. “Pawn shop robbery yesterday. May or may not be related, but as you’ll see when you pull up the incident report, only weapons were taken.”
“Good catch, Lil,” said Blaine. “Fletch and I will run over there first thing before we check out the campground. Might be good to know if we’re up against a huge arsenal.”
Lily shook her head. “Don’t know if the store will be open, boss. The owner is in the hospital. The kids clobbered him and left him for dead.”
“Shit,” said Blaine. “See if Jesse has time to go to the hospital. I want to see if Teckford is in the RV at the campground with his gang of kids. If it’s them, I’m going to organize the tactical team and take the fuckers down.”
Lil picked up her coffee. “I’ll call Jesse.
Fogarty’s Buy and Sell Barn. East Austin.
WITHOUT FOOD and water for too long, Bart drifted in and out of consciousness. His dreams were of the farm and about his dog. He could see Biscuit running to him across the pasture field. “Here, boy,” he called, and Biscuit ran through the tall grass and jumped in the back of his truck.
La Quinta Hotel. Blythe. California.
NEIL SAT at the corner table in the hotel room cuffed to the air conditioner while the Dog enjoyed himself in the bathroom. The breakfast hadn’t been too bad, but Neil was racking up all kinds of charges for the Dog on his school Visa that Annie paid for. Wasn’t right and it was pissing him off. Everything about the Dog pissed him off. His whole reading week was going to hell in a handbasket and there wasn’t one fucking thing he could do about it.