Ernie and I both nodded, but said nothing.
“Then they got another break,” said Jack. “A big white Lincoln showed up.”
“Let me guess, I said, “Arturo?”
“Yep, and he had Gus with him. The surveillance team sat tight, kept an eye on the two cars. Damned things never moved. So, after five hours, knowing that two of them were last seen on foot, a couple of guys from the crew went in with hard hats and lunch buckets, like they were heading for a shift at the mill. They had a good sniff around.”
“And?” I prompted.
“And, we’re going over to have a look at what they found.”
Ernie was fidgety. “Quick jerking us around, Jack. What the fuck did they find?”
“Let’s just say body bags have been ordered,” Jack said.
Ernie sat back in the seat. “And you think we’ve caught a bloody break. Maybe...but Christ almighty, who knows what we’ve got, Jack?”
“Our crew couldn’t a close look until Hamilton Homicide had the scene sewn up. Let’s wait and see,” said Jack. “My guess is that somebody from Sure Clean or Lustre, and maybe even Marco, got whacked. Jacobs has arranged for Hamilton Homicide to let us take a peak. But we have to stay outside the tapes.”
I sat back, digesting the information. I wasn’t as optimistic as Jack.
Little chance Marco went down. Whatever happened here, that prick would have dealt the cards, and given himself the best hand.
Emergency lights flashed all along Wilcox, and along the railway tracks. We slipped through a big tear in a high chain link fence. Roy Jacobs was standing by a taped-off area deep inside the lot. He turned and waved us over.
“Come on, I’ll give you the tour.”
He walked us along the outside of a circular taped off area and pointed out several large pieces of cardboard, laid flat like soggy brown rugs. “Under those,” Roy said. “Four bodies. Lots of casings scattered around.
“Apparently, a sergeant from your surveillance crew approached a Hamilton uniform at the fence. The uniform called over a Homicide guy. He let your sergeant in long enough for preliminary identifications. It was Paulo, Vince, Arturo, and Gus. Homicide wants you to back up the identifications.”
We watched a body bag being loaded onto a stretcher. I turned and pointed to the other end of the lot. “Their cars were found a block or so that way, so all four of them came in through that other tear in the fence, where that uniform is standing. Is that right, Roy?”
“That would be my guess.”
“And we know that Vince and Paulo got here first. So Ranez likely took them down before the other two,” said Ernie.
Jacobs took us around to another taped off area.
“Casings were found in this area as well. Ident is raking through, looking for more.”
“It was a perfect setup for Marco,” I said. “He called in Vince and Paulo on some pretext, took them out, and waited in the weeds for the big guys. Then he whacked Gus and Artie. Took whatever cash they’d brought.”
Jacobs held up an evidence bag. “This could point to the pretext that brought them here. I borrowed this from one of the Homicide guys to show you. I had to initial the label and sign their evidence log to get it, just in case there are challenges to continuity.”
A small object glittered inside the bag. “This was in Paulo’s pocket,” said Jacobs.
Duggan moved closer. “Roy, hold it up in the light for us. Something’s a little off about that.”
We all had a look. It was pretty obvious to us. We’d all seen this material before. Duggan smirked. “What do you guy’s think?”
Ernie chuckled. “Beautiful. A falsie.”
“Cubic Zirconia,” I said. “Would have looked convincing at night, especially out here. I think you’re onto something, Roy. Vince and Paulo called Arturo and Gus in after checking something out, probably a scam delivery from Marco. Paulo got greedy and slipped this into his pocket...Shit!”
The grin disappeared off Ernie’s face when he looked at me.
Something had dawned on me too. My stomach dropped, my mouth dried up. The time I thought I had before telling Sue was suddenly gone. Marco would be going on fast track now. I never figured he could take out all four of these assholes at once. This changed everything.
If Jack or Roy noticed anything, they didn’t let on. But they were smart enough to step away for a bit to let me figure things out. Ernie stayed with me.
“Phil, he must have a small fortune stashed somewhere. Now, he wants the bigger one, and he thinks Sue knows where it is. Marco’s free to make his move. He’ll likely do it fast.”
My gut did another bounce. I had to get to Sue’s place. Jack came back and put his hand on my shoulder.
“I’ve got two additional surveillance teams heading into this area from Toronto. They should be here within the hour. We’ve got the Zephyr project crews that were already here, and every cop from Oshawa to Windsor will see Marco’s mug before they hit the streets.
“Phil, we know Marco’s still around the Hammer. Somebody will get onto the prick and we can get surveillance on him. Then Hamilton, the Provincials, or our guys will take him down. You go and do what you’ve got to do.”
Chapter 27
Ernie dropped me at the Stoney Creek police station. I picked up the bike and took it up the mountain access road to Sue’s place. Her car wasn’t there. I’d known it might not be. It was Thursday night, a night when she often worked late and went out with a few friends. Marco’s efficiency and speed of attack had shaken me. I’d screwed up, thinking I had more time. Now I had to get Sue into a safe place, and do it quickly. I parked the bike in a spot where it could be seen easily from the road. That would at least let Marco know that somebody other than Sue was around, and going by what I’d heard on the tape in Jack’s office, he’d likely figure it was her cop boyfriend.
I went in the back door and flew up the stairs to her desk. I looked around for her Day-Timer. It wasn’t there. She’d worked today, why the hell would she leave it home? So, I grabbed her Rolodex file instead.
Before I started working Rolodex numbers, I made a call to her direct line at the university. No answer...Shit.
Her Rolodex contained the names of some people I’d met or heard her mention in connection with the university. I pulled a dozen cards and separated them: eight women, four men. I called the home numbers of the women first. There was no answer at six of them.
On the seventh, a girl who sounded about fifteen answered. She told me her mom wouldn’t be home until around ten. She had no idea where she was. A guy answered at the next number. He said his wife was at a baby shower for someone at the university, but he didn’t know where it was being held. I made a call to what I thought would be a likely spot, the Jordan House. I drew a blank: no baby shower, and no Brock University people.
My next call was to Charles. He didn’t know where the shower was being held, but he thought it likely that Sue was attending. I was prepared to work through the entire Rolodex if I had to. But Charles stepped up to the plate. After I’d explained how important it was that I find her, he offered to call every Brock contact he knew to help track her down.
I couldn’t give Charles any of the real details, so I told him that her ex-boyfriend might be sending some jerks around to harass her, and maybe damage the property. I gave him the emergency dispatch number for the Hamilton PD. Then I told him to ask for Constable Carver, he was the person on the dispatch desk who had been clued in to our search for Sue. Charles said he would leave a message for me the minute he knew where Sue was, and would give the dispatcher her location and a number where I could reach her.
I also told Charles if he connected with Sue, to tell her not to go home under any circumstances. Maybe she could spend the night at Gloria’s. He was all over it. Good man, Charles.
I went down to the kitchen, looked around for any notes or a shower invitation. Nothing. I looked out the window to gather my thoughts.
I
figured Marco could be making some kind of move within hours. I hoped he’d sense the increasing coverage and back off. I started pacing around the house.
Why the hell hadn’t I filled her in on the real threat earlier? Screw the career consequences. If anything happened to her because of my stupid sense of timing, I’d never forgive myself. I prayed I could keep Marco away. If that required him walking into a wall of flying lead, it needed to happen soon. If it happened too late, how the hell could I live with that?
Chapter 28
Back roads were Sue’s usual routes home from St. Catharines. The Queen Elizabeth Highway was faster, but wasn’t as relaxing, or as interesting as driving through the towns and villages of the wine district. She loved looking at the stately old homes, warm and inviting with their interior lights cutting through the darkness, and the farmhouses, almost forgotten in a landscape now dominated by vineyards.
It was after nine, and dark. She drove south from the roadhouse towards Queenston Road. The weather had been clear all day, and into the evening, but a few miles after she turned onto Queenston, many of the properties along the old road were blanketed by a thick fog rolling off the lake. It filled most of the low-lying areas. There had been no fog when the baby shower ended; if there had been, she would have taken the highway. Now, the well-maintained, two-lane road that she knew well, was giving her fits. In some places, she could barely see the center line. White knuckling, she leaned forward in the seat, her foot light on the accelerator. Feeling that the fog would be lighter, or non-existent at the top of the escarpment, she planned to continue to Victoria, where she would turn south and drive to a level well above the lake.
Sue rounded a curve slowly. A set of headlights appeared in the rear-view mirror, shrouded yellow orbs floating through the fog behind her. They closed on her quickly, became clear. A vehicle was directly behind her. It tapped her bumper twice. A deliberate act. Sue had no doubt that if she didn’t do something, the bumping would intensify. Her right leg felt like jelly when she applied it to the brake, and her arms shook as she desperately gripped the wheel.
She glanced at the door locks. Down, they were locked. She braked fully and pulled onto the shoulder, praying the vehicle would pass her by. It didn’t. The vehicle braked and swerved with her. It rolled in behind her and gave the back of her car a solid bump. Sue’s head whipped back, and then forward onto the steering wheel, hurting her chin.
The driver of the other car jumped out. He wore a baseball cap and a dark hoodie. She saw him coming up the side of her car. She checked the locks again, put the car in gear, and hit the gas to get away from the man. Too late. Out of the fog in front of her, a tow truck cut onto the road’s shoulder, blocking her way. She bumped into the side of the heavy truck and the hood of her car buckled. Sue was boxed in by two vehicles. She pushed both palms onto the horn rings repeatedly. A frantic call for help.
The tow truck guy was dressed like a biker, but wore a balaclava. He shattered the passenger-side window with a tire iron. Sue kept the pressure on the horn, a constant blast. The man opened the door, reached over to the driver’s side, and grabbed her by the arm.
“No more horn, lady. And don’t scream or I’ll mess you up. Get out of this damned car.”
The two men pulled her out. She was held against the side of her car and gagged with an old dishtowel. Her stomach heaved at the rancid, greasy taste. She tried desperately not to gag. Sue’s heels dragged over the ground as each man seized a shoulder, pulling her backwards to the vehicle that had bumped her. It was a beat-up green Volkswagen mini-bus.
The tow-truck driver left her with the other man and hooked her car up to the truck. He covered it quickly with a tarp, and came back. They blindfolded her and tied her hands, then placed her face down on the floor, directly behind the driver’s seat. Shaking uncontrollably and sobbing, Sue listened as best she could for any clue as to where she was going.
Something heavy, long and round was placed on her back, pinning her from feet to shoulders. It left her neck free, she could move her head and she could breathe. From the feel of fabric against her calves, she guessed that it was a rolled-up piece of carpet. She screamed as loudly as she could, but the gag worked well. Her cries could only be heard inside the mini-bus, and then only faintly.
The mini-bus started to move off. Sue heard the tow truck motor kick to life. Her mind raced. Now, it was just her and the creep who had banged into her vehicle, heading in this crap can...to who knows where? What did these men want with her? If it was sexual, they had her trapped in the mini-bus, and there would have been some groping and touching already. Why would they take her car? This was more than lust; they had something else planned.
Could it have something to do with Nathan? Her house?
Her mind raced through the possibilities until she remembered the hiding places that Nathan had built into the stairwell. She didn’t think he’s ever used them, but maybe it had something to do with those? After all the shit Nathan had already put her through, she thought this might be his doing.
Tonight, the guy in the tow truck was calling the shots. He’d barked at the mini-bus driver when he’d ordered him to watch her while he hooked up the car. Yes, right now, the tow truck driver, a damned biker, held her life in his hands; not the creep who’d bumped her from behind. Nothing more would happen to her, and she would learn nothing about her fate, until he arrived at wherever she was going.
She screamed into the putrid gag. “Nathan. You asshole!”
Chapter 29
Ernie picked me up at Sue’s and took me back to the motel. Just as we arrived, there was a message that Roy Jacobs wanted me to call him at home, and another that Charles had called the Hamilton PD dispatch contact. The baby shower was held at Gulliver’s Roadhouse in St. Catherines. Sue had already left the location.
Most of our team were out on observation points near Sue’s house, but two Mobile Support guys, recovering from a double shift, were napping in the room we used for meetings. One of them was on a chair and the other on a bed. They were scheduled to be going back out at three a.m. The one in the chair woke up. I shook the other guy awake. They got their gear together as they listened.
“Sue is late, real late,” I said. “I want you to take separate cars and head towards St. Catherines. Check out her usual routes. Look for anything out of place, and stay in touch through the Metro dispatcher. You might lose range on the handsets, except with each other. One of you has a Metro radio, right?”
“I do, Phil.” It was the guy I’d woken up.
Both of these men were experienced in supporting high-risk takedowns, and with the one having a police-band, extra help could be called in if needed.
“One of you check out the Brock campus for her car on the way down, the other go to the location of the baby shower. It’s a place called Gulliver’s Roadhouse. If you see her, stop her and call me. If you don’t find her, advise us, then head back to this area. Keep rolling when you get here, stay within handset range.”
I made a call to Charles next. He answered immediately.
“Charles, Sue hasn’t arrived at her house, is there any way you can find out what time that baby shower broke up? It’s really important.”
“Give me a few minutes.”
I gave him the room phone number. I stewed about Sue as I waited. I couldn’t believe we hadn’t found Marco yet. This guy was the most elusive bastard I’d ever worked on. Even a visual on him would enable us to set up a tail. As it was, we sat on our asses waiting for him to trip over us.
Sue was somewhere out there. Christ...where was she? My throat tightened, my hands trembled. I slammed my fist down on the little desk. I hated the waiting. Most of all, I hated the procession of dark thoughts.
The phone rang. It was Charles.
“That shower was pretty well over by eight. Apparently, a few of them hung around for a while, maybe Sue was one of them.”
Either way, Sue should have been home by now. I heard the concern in
Charles’s voice, and sensed an implied and obvious question. I’m glad he didn’t ask it. My answer would have sounded really lame.
I gave him something to do. “Charles, check with every one of her friends, just in case she went to one of their places for some reason. Let me know as soon as you hear anything, all right?”
“Of course,” he replied.
The phone clicked in my ear. I sat for a few seconds, listening to the dial tone, reluctant to cut it off. Before that last call from Charles, there was some hope that Sue would turn up. After it, I knew she was in serious trouble.
One more call to make and then Ernie and I would get on the road. Being at the motel room was driving me nuts. I had to get moving, do something...anything.
I sat on a bed and dialed the number Roy had left. He answered. I heard a television program going in the background.
“Hang on, Phil. I’ll turn this off.”
Roy mumbled something to his wife. A door closed softly. He cleared his throat. “Thanks for calling...and thanks for waiting.”
“No problem.”
“I filled my wife in on the nature of this call. She didn’t want to be in the room when we talked. Hates hearing gory details.”
“Kotch?” I asked.
“Yeah, I got a call from the Special Squad at TIA. It was pretty much as described by your source. Kotch was in the trunk of his car. Apparently, there wasn’t much of a stink until they opened it, but then it was pretty ripe. Another day or so, and people in the vicinity would have caught some pretty strong whiffs.”
This was a bit of surprise. I’ve got to admit, I’d thought the info I got from Gloria was loony. But hell, she’d really nailed it. I sat at the little hotel room desk, shaking my head, recalling how she’d described the way we’d find Kotch.
“Are you still there?”
“Yeah, I’m right here with you, Roy. Just making some notes.” I was stalling, trying to prepare for the next question Roy would ask.
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