“Why are you so certain that they’ll try to rob another of the jewelry stores owned by the girl’s father?” Rayne asked Carlson.
Carlson made a face of disgust.
“These aren’t master criminals. Emily knows the codes to her father’s alarm system. I’m certain they’ll try robbing him again. Peter hasn’t even bothered to change the alarm codes. He’s hoping Emily will return so that he can talk some sense into her.”
“He’s hired his own people, hasn’t he?” Sloan asked.
“Yeah,” Carlson said. “That’s my guess.”
“That means they’ll try to keep us from calling the cops,” Sloan said.
“Sure, but I’m betting you’ll get the cops there before Peter Llewellyn can show up and take his daughter away. By then, it won’t matter if he doesn’t want to press charges. I’m sure the insurance company will want their pound of flesh for the first robbery.”
“You realize Llewellyn may fire you after this?” Rayne said.
Carlson smiled. “I’m hoping for your discretion. Couldn’t you just consider me Client X?”
“We can do that,” Rayne said. “But Llewellyn may figure out who hired us anyway.”
“I don’t care what he does. Look at my face. I want payback.”
Rayne reached across the desk and shook Mike Carlson’s hand.
“You’ve just hired Pruitt/Carver. Expect results.”
Chapter Twenty
Jake Caliber lowered the binoculars he was using and called his brother. He was sitting in his vehicle outside one of Peter Llewellyn’s jewelry stores.
Chris was at another of the stores, while Velma was guarding a third location. Whoever spotted Llewellyn’s daughter first would call the others in for assistance. The stores were all less than a ten-minute drive from each other, given the late-night traffic. Help could arrive quickly if needed.
“What’s up?” Chris asked.
“I have a visitor,” Jake said.
“Llewellyn’s daughter and her boyfriend?”
“No, it’s Trace Pruitt. He just parked his van at the other end of the block.”
“What would he be doing there?”
“I’ll find out and call you back,” Jake said. “In the meantime, keep an eye out for Rayne or Sammy Sloan.”
“Rayne?”
“She’s Pruitt’s partner, remember?”
“Right, and be careful.”
“Of Trace Pruitt?”
“Maybe he’s more dangerous than he looks. I know I am.”
Jake laughed. “That you are, little brother, that you are.”
Chris was putting away his phone when someone knocked on his passenger window. When he turned his head to look in that direction, he saw Rayne Carver smiling at him.
Chris unlocked the door and Rayne slid into the car to take a seat beside him.
“What are you doing here?” They both said at the same time, causing Rayne to smile, but making Chris suspicious.
“Are you following me around, Rayne?”
“No, Christopher. I’m not stalking you. I’m here on a stakeout.”
“What are you staking out?”
When Rayne pointed across the street at Llewellyn Jewelers, Chris let loose a sigh.
Velma let out a small sound of shock as Sammy Sloan came up behind her in the alleyway she was standing in.
She had grown weary of sitting in her car and had walked over to the alley to stretch her legs.
“Sammy?”
“Hello, Velma. I didn’t expect to find you here, but I can’t say I mind it.”
Velma swallowed hard and turned to lean back against one of the alleyway walls.
“Did you follow me here?”
“No, honey. I was already in the alley when you left your car and started walking this way. What are you doing here?”
Velma looked to her left. When she spotted the front wheel of a motorcycle sticking out from the side of a dumpster, she broke out in a wide grin.
“Is that Big Bertha?”
“Of course, and she’s still the Queen of the Harleys”
“I’m amazed she’s even running.”
“Remember how much fun we used to have riding her?”
Velma nodded as a grin lit her face, but she ended the smile and turned serious.
“I can’t stand here reminiscing; I’m working a case.”
“So am I,” Sammy said, and as he spoke, he reached over and stroked Velma’s cheek. “Damn, honey, if you only knew how much I’ve missed you.”
“Really?”
“When I told you I loved you, that wasn’t a line.”
“I know, but I was married, Sammy.”
“You’re not married now, Velma.”
“No,” Velma said. “That’s true.”
Trace Pruitt jumped in his seat when Jake pounded on the side of his van.
“Caliber?”
“Open the door, Pruitt.”
After he heard a clicking sound, Jake opened the van’s front passenger door and climbed in.
“Why the hell are you here, Caliber?”
“I could ask you the same thing.”
“I’m on a big-time case to stop jewel thieves from robbing that store down the street.”
“Who hired you?”
“That’s a secret, but me and my partners are here to see that a couple of crooks go down.”
Jake tried to think of who would have hired Pruitt and his people, but he came up empty.
“Did Llewellyn hire you?”
“No, but I’m guessing he hired you.”
“Yeah, he wants us to stop his daughter before she gets caught by the cops.”
“Too bad, because my client wants to see her rot in jail.”
“Ah, you were hired by Llewellyn’s employee, the one that got beat up?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Cute, the man is going behind Llewellyn’s back. He thinks he can put Llewellyn’s daughter in jail and still keep his job.”
“The chick should go to jail. She stole from her old man.”
Jake opened the door on the van and stepped outside.
“I’d better call Chris and Velma and let them know we’re not alone.”
“Come back and talk to me after you make your calls.”
“Why?”
“There’s something I want to ask you about.”
Jake considered the request and nodded in agreement. If he sat in the van, he could keep an eye on Pruitt.
“I’ll sit with you after I call my partners.”
“Cool.”
A short time later, Jake was in a three-way call with Christopher and Velma. They had both informed Jake about Rayne and Sloan’s appearance at their respective stakeout locations.
“I don’t like Velma being alone around Sammy Sloan,” Chris said. “Why don’t you let us switch locations?”
“I’m not exactly pleased that you’ll be spending time with Rayne, Chris,” Velma said.
“I’m glad it worked out the way it did,” Jake said.
“Why is that?” Chris asked.
“Think about it. Rayne is in love with you. You should be able to talk her into letting you keep Llewellyn’s daughter out of the cops’ hands. And Velma, Sloan has a thing for you as well. Use that to get your way, but we are not letting the client down.”
“I don’t like it, but yeah, it makes sense to leave things this way,” Chris said.
“It does make sense,” Velma agreed. “But Chris, watch yourself around Rayne.”
“I’m done with Rayne, Velma. You know that. But Jake, what about you? What will you do if Pruitt insists on calling the police in on this?”
“I can handle Trace Pruitt.”
“I know, but don’t get too rough. After all, he is just doing his job.”
“I hear you, and the guy is growing on me.”
Jake ended the conference call and returned to Pruitt’s van.
“What was it you wanted to tal
k to me about?”
“Sex.”
“You want me to explain the birds and bees to you, Pruitt?”
“Ha-ha, no, I mean tell me about the sex you have with your fiancée.”
Jake glared at Pruitt.
“Say one more word about Kelli and I will knock you out and toss you in the back of the van.”
“Calm down. I’m not trying to be weird or pry into your sex life, it’s just that… I wonder if I could be faithful to just one woman, you know?”
Jake relaxed and leaned back in his seat.
“I know what you mean. But, things change once you’re really in love. I mean, I still find other women sexy, but I would never go after them.”
“Because you’re in love?”
Jake shrugged. “Yeah.”
“I’m in love with Rayne, but she thinks I’m lying about it. She also still has a thing for that damn brother of yours.”
“You really love Rayne Carver?”
“Hell yeah, and I don’t want to live without her.”
“Keep chipping away at her, Pruitt, and hey, at least she’s your business partner. That means she has to spend some time around you.”
“She’s also spending time around Sammy Sloan.”
“Sloan doesn’t want Rayne.”
“How do you know that?”
“Just trust me, Sammy Sloan has a thing for someone else.”
Sammy Sloan leaned back against the alleyway wall and looked across at Velma.
“You’ve gotten more beautiful since the last time I saw you.”
Velma smiled. “And that beard of yours has gotten shaggier.”
Sloan ran a hand over his beard.
“You used to like it a lot as I recall. You said it gave me a rugged look.”
“I’ve never seen you without it. Are you hiding a weak chin?”
Sammy left the wall and stepped closer to Velma.
“Do you still have feelings for me?”
“I, I was concerned when I heard that you were in a shootout with four men, which by the way, was a stupid thing to do.”
“It couldn’t be helped once they knew I had followed them. And I’m not talking about concern for a friend. I want to know if you still love me.”
“Getting emotionally close to you the way I did was one of the biggest mistakes I ever made.”
“Because you were married at the time?”
“Yes.”
“You didn’t have a choice, girl. The two of us belong together. I knew that the day I first laid eyes on you.”
Velma had been watching the store casually. She turned away from Sammy’s gaze to stare at the storefront intently.
“I’m with Christopher now. What we had was in the past.”
Sammy chuckled. “Christopher Caliber is nothing but a substitute for me. You’re only with him because he reminds you of me.”
Velma turned and gave Sammy a look of incredulity.
“Sammy, you and Chris are nearly exact opposites. He’s highly educated, passed his bar exam, and is as responsible as they come. Meanwhile, you never went to college, are often unpredictable, and you risk your life by insisting on riding that antique over there.”
Sammy’s look of unbelief mirrored Velma’s, as he spoke to her.
“You really don’t see it, do you?”
“See what?” Velma asked.
Sammy was about to answer her, but a car came to a hard stop outside the jewelry store. Sammy reached out to guide Velma by the arm and deeper into the shadows. That simple touch sent a shiver of pleasure through Velma.
“There’s a man and a woman in that car,” Sammy said.
“Yes,” Velma whispered, as she removed her gun from her purse.
Chapter Twenty-One
In Midtown Manhattan, Hector was fulfilling his first night of work as a bodyguard.
He was there to guard Leslie. Meanwhile, blocks away, a friend and partner of his was watching over Karen.
Although Hector wasn’t allowed to carry a firearm, he was an impressive figure with his great height and muscular frame.
He did have a stun gun, two knives, and a can of mace. He was also determined to protect anyone in his care with his life if necessary.
Hector was keeping an eye out for Stan Harper, whose face he had memorized from the newspaper photo he’d seen.
Leslie had attempted to press charges against Harper for harassment but dropped the matter when advised that the charge would be hard to prove in court. After all, Stan Harper had never laid a finger on her, although he had gone through her purse.
While his actions had convicted him of being a drunken jerk, they were debatable as a reason to jail him.
Still, Leslie was in the process of getting a restraining order against Harper, whom she feared might attempt to harm her someday.
Three barstools to Hector’s left, Leslie was talking with the man she had been paid to entice. The guy was talking to her in a casual manner and didn’t appear to be coming on to her. Hector hoped the guy stayed faithful and didn’t attempt to pick up Leslie.
Leslie was a beauty, there was no doubt about that, but in Hector’s mind, if you were serious about a woman then there was no way you would cheat on her. He knew there wasn’t a woman alive who could tempt him away from his lady, Shea O’Reilly. What Hector didn’t know, was that Shea was outside the bar watching him from a parked car.
Shea was worried about Hector.
As big as he was, she knew he would be at a disadvantage if he had to go up against someone who was armed and determined to hurt him.
She was no fan of the B-Girls. Shea thought that any woman who went around teasing men in order to trap them was asking for trouble. She also had no pity for the men who were trapped. If they kept their marriage vows or stayed faithful to their girlfriends, then they would have nothing to worry about.
Shea removed her gaze from Hector when she spotted the man standing outside the bar. He was peering in from a corner of a window and his eyes were locked on Leslie, the B-Girl that Hector was protecting.
It was Stan Harper.
Shea studied Harper’s face but couldn’t read his expression. Still, it looked as if Harper was stalking Leslie. Shea also knew from the newspaper story that Stan Harper knew where Leslie lived. He had read her driver’s license upon going through her purse.
Harper’s right hand was in the pocket of his jacket and he appeared to be clutching something. Shea couldn’t help wondering if it was a gun.
Inside the bar, Leslie’s target was smiling as he shook his head. Apparently, the guy wasn’t taking the bait and had decided to remain faithful to his wife.
As the man left the bar, Leslie sent Hector a signal and the two of them stood up to leave. Seeing this, Stan Harper turned and flagged down a cab.
Shea didn’t know Leslie’s address, but had heard Hector say that Leslie lived uptown somewhere. When Harper’s cab took off, Shea followed it.
The cab made a series of turns but was soon headed uptown. Shea kept following Harper. She had a growing certainty that the man had plans to harm Leslie.
Hector had been hired to protect the woman, and Shea knew he would do so even if he went up against a gun.
She couldn’t let that happen, wouldn’t let that happen. Although it would bruise Hector’s ego to know that Shea had been following him about to protect him, it was better than having him come to harm.
Shea followed the taxi ferrying Stan Harper uptown. As she did so, she removed her gun from her purse.
Rayne turned in her seat until she was facing Christopher fully.
“I’ve missed you.”
“You need to move on, Rayne.”
“I’m not coming on to you. I just want you to know that I haven’t given up on us. When the day comes that you realize Velma isn’t right for you, I’ll be waiting for you.”
“That day won’t come,” Chris said. “I was infatuated with you, Rayne, and I care about you as a friend, but I don’t t
hink I was ever in love with you.”
“You felt more than friendship toward me, Chris, and you know it.”
“Maybe, but whatever I felt for you is gone. I’m serious when I say you need to move on. Even if Velma and I were to break up I wouldn’t come back to you.”
“Why would you say that?”
“Because it’s true. We had our chance, Rayne. If we were meant to last, I’d never have gone back to Velma.”
Rayne leaned in until her face was only inches from Christopher’s.
“Don’t you miss me, just a little?”
“No, Rayne. I’m sorry, but I don’t.”
Rayne settled back in her seat to face front again, and although she tried to stop them, tears ran down her cheeks.
Velma and Sammy watched as a young man parked his car in front of the Llewellyn Jewelry store they were guarding. In the seat beside the man, a young woman pointed toward the front doors of the shop.
“Do what you want with the man, Sammy, but I’m taking the girl,” Velma said.
“We’ll see,” Sammy said.
Across the street, the man jumped out of the car with something in his hand and ran toward the shop. Sammy and Velma were about to close in when they realized the man’s true intention. The object in his hand was a letter, and he stuffed it in the mailbox that sat beside the shop.
Moments later, the man pulled back into traffic.
“Looks like it was a false alarm,” Velma said.
“Good. That means I get to spend more time with you alone.”
“I may not be married, Sammy, but I am seeing Chris.”
“I know all about it. Rayne Carver filled me in.”
Velma exhaled wearily.
“I should have known she would.”
“The man cheated on you, Velma. What more do you need to know about him?”
“I’ve forgiven Chris.”
“Why?”
“Because I love him.”
Sammy shook his head. “You don’t love him; you love me. Someday soon you’ll realize that.”
Caliber Detective Agency Box Set 3 Page 10