“It'll be about an hour or so.”
“Why so long?”
“I have to eat my dinner first.”
“What! Where are you? Are you at a restaurant?”
“Well, it's a bar and grill.”
“You're something else,” said Maggie disgustedly. “I'm sitting here starving to death, and you're out at a restaurant. Just get me something to eat as soon as possible, or I'll go get something myself.”
“Don't you leave that hous—”
Maggie hung up.
“Dammit.”
“What's the matter?” Gene asked.
“Maggie's hungry.”
“Isn't there any food in that house?”
“Yes. She's just being over-dramatic. There's dry pasta and soup in the cupboard.”
“Sounds like Thanksgiving dinner when I was a kid,” said Red, shaking his head sadly.
“What are we gonna do next?” Richard asked.
“I'll just order her some take out,” Dan replied.
“I mean about Harrison!”
“I don't know,” Dan said. “I think better on a full stomach. Let's eat.”
“Amen,” said Gene.
“Yeah, I'm starving,” Red agreed.
“Well then, by all means,” Richard said, “let's go eat rather than figure out what to do about the guy who wants us all dead.”
“My thoughts exactly,” said Red.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
After dinner Maxine and Peg returned home in the Porsche and Dan, Gene, and Richard stayed behind at Red's for another drink. Dan and Gene both assured their wives that they wouldn't be out late. They both knew they were probably stretching the truth a little. Like father, like son.
It was another half hour before Skip finally showed up. When he arrived, the other four filled him in on the situation.
Dan ordered a burger and fries to go for Maggie. With the promise of a hefty tip, he even talked Cindy into delivering the food.
Skip, Dan, Red, and Richard all sat at the bar, with Red tending it. Everyone had a drink in front of them. Skip's drink was a ginger ale. He explained that he wasn't supposed to drink alcohol while on his medication.
“What do we do next?” Skip asked.
“I say we give Joey P a call and tell him we have Harrison's thumb drive, and that his name is on a list in a file on that thumb drive,” Dan answered.
“What will that do?” Red asked.
“Let's just see if it makes him nervous. If he's nervous, that would mean everybody on that list might be nervous.”
“And maybe we can convince them to get Harrison off our backs.”
“Convince them?” Gene barked. “I think you mean blackmail them.”
“Blackmailing them might convince them,” Dan agreed.
“Yeah, it might convince them all that we should be dead,” moaned Richard.
“That's a possibility,” Dan said. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed.
“Danny Boy!” Joey Pantucco shouted into the phone. “You send Harrison's little girl home yet?”
“Not yet, Joey,” Dan answered.
“Why?”
“I hid her.”
“Hid her where?”
“I'd rather not say.”
“Whatsamatta, Coast, you don't trust me?”
“I don't trust anybody right now, Joey. No offense.”
“None taken.”
“One more thing.”
“What is it?”
“When Maggie showed up this afternoon, she had a thumb drive.”
“A thumb drive?”
“Yeah. She had downloaded a bunch of files off her father's home office computer.”
“Rambunctious little turd, ain't she?”
“Yeah. And there's one more thing.”
“How many one more things are there, Coast?”
“Just one more one more thing.”
“Let's hear it.”
“You're name is on a list in one of those files.”
There was a pause. Not a long pause, but long enough to tell Dan that Joey was contemplating his next words.
“What kind of list?” Joey asked.
“It's a list of names. Most of the names are Hispanic, Italian, and Russian.” Dan covered the cell phone with the palm of his hand and looked to Richard. “Is that racist?” he whispered.
Richard shook his head. “You're an asshole.”
“I never said I wasn't,” whispered Dan.
Red and Skip chuckled quietly.
“Does it happen to mention why I'm on the list?” Joey asked.
“No, it just has your name, address, a phone number, and a little bit about you. It tells where and when Harrison first met you. There's mention of your businesses: strip clubs, restaurants, et cetera.”
“Anything else on that thumb drive?”
“There's a file that contains names of cops and judges, and other city officials who have been paid off. It says who paid who, and for what. There's dates and meeting sites.”
“Huh.”
There was another pause, this one noticeably longer. “Why would Harrison have a file like this, Joey?” Dan asked, breaking the silence. “I realize many of the names in these files are his clients, but why would he be keeping a record of who they have paid off, and for what?”
“Well, Coast,” Joey replied, “I'm gonna have to get back to you on this one. Where are you at?”
“We're at Red's.”
“Stay put until you hear back from me. Is Maggie in a safe place?”
“Yes.”
“Keep her there.” Joey hung up.
“What did he say?” asked Red.
“He said to stay right here until I hear from him.”
“Sounds like a good plan to me,” Gene said. He slid his empty rocks glass across the bar. “Fill'er up, barkeep.”
Dan pushed his glass to Red as well. “Me too,” he said.
“We told Maxine and Peg we wouldn't be out that late,” said Richard.
“'We told Maxine and Peg we wouldn't be out that late,'” Dan aped. “Don't be such a wuss, Rich.”
“Yeah, Dick Bong,” Skip joined in. “Don't be such a wuss.”
“Wow,” Richard said. He handed his empty glass to Red. “If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.”
Red placed Gene's fresh drink in front of him.
“That's the spirit, Rich,” said Gene, raising his glass into the air. “You'll be a Coast before you know it.”
“Your liver will be the first to know it,” said Red.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The last four customers left Red's around ten o'clock that night, so Red decided to go ahead and lock the doors. Cindy had returned from her burger delivery to Maggie Harrison and was behind the bar with Red washing and drying bar glasses. Abby was busing the last two tables, and Jocko was shutting down the kitchen. It had been over three hours since Dan had spoken with Joey Pantucco.
Dan saw Richard look down at his wristwatch, which prompted Dan to look up at the clock over the bar.
“What do you think is taking Joey so long to call back?” Richard asked.
Dan shrugged. “Who knows,” he replied. “Maybe he's doing some mobster shit.”
“Should I make a pot of coffee?” Red asked.
“Good idea,” Richard answered for the group.
Abby walked past the bar with a gray plastic tub filled with dishes, glasses, and silverware. Skip watched her as she walked by, and passed through the kitchen door.
“Who's the new girl?” Skip asked.
“Don't get any ideas,” Dan said.
“I just asked her name,” Skip said defensively.
“Her name's Abby,” Red said. “She's Dan's contractor's girlfriend.”
“And he hasn't painted my ceiling yet, so let's not piss him off by hitting on his girlfriend,” Dan said.
“Let me know when he gets that ceiling painted,” said Skip.
“Just you never mind.”
Skip laughed. “I'm just yankin' your crank, Dan the Man.”
Abby returned from the kitchen empty-handed.
“Everything all cleaned up in there?” Red asked. He scooped coffee out of a metal can and dumped it into the filter.
“All done,” Abby said.
“You can take off if you want,” Red told her.
“Abby looked at the clock. “Colton is picking me up,” she said. “He should be here in a few minutes.”
“Cup of coffee?”
“I'd rather have a bottle of beer.”
Red stopped what he was doing and opened the cooler. “What can I get ya?”
“LandShark,” she replied.
Red grabbed a bottle and twisted off the top. He started to set the bottle next to Skip, but then thought better of it. He sat it next to Gene.
Gene patted the seat of the bar stool next to him. “Jump right up here, kitten, I won't bite,” he said.
“Don't believe him,” Dan warned.
Abby smiled. “Just don't bite too hard.”
The coffee maker quit dripping and Red asked who wanted a cup. Dan, Gene, Skip, Richard, and Cindy all took a cup. After pouring their mugs full of coffee he stared at the empty pot. “Why is it, a twelve cup coffee pot only fills five cups of coffee?” he griped.
“Why is it the window wash reservoir in your car only holds three and a half quarts of water?” Richard responded.
“How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?” asked Skip.
“The world may never know,” Dan offered. “Someone play something on that jukebox. It's too quiet in here.”
Even with the door shut the sound of tires rolling over the crushed stone parking lot could be heard inside.
“That must be Colton,” said Abby. She took another swig of her drink and hopped off the stool. “I'm taking this beer with me. Goodnight, everybody. See y'all tomorrow.”
Red walked around the bar and followed Abby to the door. “Let me get that door for ya,” he said, “and I'll lock it behind you.”
When he reached the door, Red spun the lock and pulled it open. There ya go. See ya tomor—”
Something whizzed past Red's face, and glasses on the shelf behind the bar shattered. He flinched, and so did everyone else in the room.
There was another whizzing sound and Abby's head snapped back.
Red watched as the young woman stumbled backwards. Her bottle of LandShark slipped from her finger tips and crashed to the floor. She toppled over backwards hit the wooden plank floor on her butt, and fell over onto her back. Her eyes were open and she stared up at the ceiling. A hole the size of a dime now decorated her forehead. A trail of blood ran from the hole, to her left eye, and dripped to the floor. Red stared down at the lifeless girl with confusion and horror.
“Shut that door!” Skip screamed. “Everybody get down!”
Red shoved the door closed and locked it. He dropped to his belly, and like a chubby anaconda, wiggled and crawled back toward the bar.
“Hit the lights!” Gene shouted.
“Where's the light switch?” Dan hollered.
Red looked toward the light switches behind the bar. He pointed. “There!”
Dan started in the direction of the switches, but Cindy was quicker. She reached up from her hiding spot behind the bar, and slapped the three switches into the off position. The room went dark, and the hum of the ceiling fan motors faded.
The kitchen door swung open. Jocko stood in the doorway, the light from the kitchen casting his long shadow on the bar room floor. “What the hell is going on in here?” he asked angrily.
The front plate glass window to the right of the entrance door shattered.
“Holy shit!” Jocko shouted. “What the—”
The sound of lead slicing through the air seemed eerily harsh in the silence of the dark bar and grill. More glasses shattered. Shards of glass hit the side of Jocko's face. He dove to the floor. The kitchen door swung shut behind him. Bullets smacked the wall five or six more times.
“Could you see who it was?” Dan asked in a loud whispering.
“I didn't see anyone,” Red replied. He was still dragging himself along the floor.
“Are you hit?” Dan reached into his pocket for his cell phone. He dialed 911.
“I don't think so. But … Abby—”
“I know.” Dan took the cell away from his ear and looked at the screen. “I'm not getting any service.”
“Me neither,” Cindy called out from behind the bar.
“Nothing here,” Richard said.
“Whoever is out there is jamming the signal,” said Skip.
“Isn't that against the law?” Red asked.
Dan glared at his friend. “Let's be sure to report them for that,” he said. He threw his phone at Red. It bounced off the big guy's back and slid across the floor.
“Hey! What was that for?”
“Sorry, it slipped out of my hand.”
“Sure it did.”
“Where's the bar phone?” Skip asked.
“Behind the bar,” Red answered.
No sooner did Red finish his sentence than the bar phone rang.
Cindy's hand reached up once again and lifted the receiver. She cautiously put the phone to her ear. “Red's Bar and Grill,” she announced. “How can I help you? Okay. Dan? It's for you.”
“Is it Maxine?” Dan asked.
“No. It's the guy out front.”
“Tell him I'm not here.”
“What?”
“Just kidding. Hold on.” Dan duck-walked behind the bar and took the phone from Cindy. “Hello?”
“Mr. Coast?” a voice asked.
“Speaking,” Dan replied.
“Mr. Coast, Mr. Harrison has sent us to retrieve his daughter. Send her out, and everyone in there lives.”
“Someone in here is already dead.”
“That was just to let you know that we will kill everyone inside that building.”
“What if I don't send her out?” Dan asked.
“Then everyone in there dies, of course.”
“We have guns in here,” Dan warned. “We could fight.”
“In that case, the first two to die will be your girlfriend Maxine and your mother. Two of my men are inside your home as we speak.”
“Son of a bitch,” Dan whispered. “There's one problem.”
“What would that be?”
“Maggie isn't here. I have her in a safe location.”
“Give me the address, and one of my men will pick her up.”
“I'll call you right back,” Dan said, and hung up the phone.
“What do they want?” Richard asked.
“They want us to give up Maggie,” Dan replied. “If we do, they'll let us live.”
“I say we fight,” Gene said sternly.
“He has two men at the house, Dad,” said Dan. “He said they'll kill Maxine and Mom if we try anything.”
“I say we don't fight then,” Gene responded.
“How long do we have?” Skip asked.
“Until he calls back, I guess.”
“That old pump action shotgun is in my office,” said Red.
“Get it,” Dan ordered.
Red was on his hands and knees and crawling as fast as he could toward the kitchen door.
“I've got a 9mm, a .38, and a sawed-off twelve gauge in my go bag,” Skip said.
“Of course you do,” Dan responded. “Where's your car parked?”
“On the side of the building, next to Red's pink Bug.”
Richard cocked his head. “Pink Bug?”
“It's a long story,” said Dan. He looked back at Skip. “You think you can get to your car?”
“If you fire Red's shotgun out that window, I can,” Skip replied.
“Why the hell hasn't Joey called back yet?” Richard asked.
“We have to assume Joey is the one who told Harrison we were here,” said Dan. “No
one else knew we were here.”
Red crawled back through the kitchen door and slid the shotgun across the floor to Dan. “There ya go, pal,” he said.
“Shells?” Dan asked.
“Just the seven that are in there.”
“Crap.”
“What's the plan?” Jocko asked.
Every head turned toward the shattered front window when they heard the sound of another vehicle crossing the crushed stone parking lot.
“Shit,” Dan said. “It's probably Colton.” He jumped up and ran, stooping, over to the window. He watched as Colton's truck came to a stop right in front. For the first time Dan could see the shooter's vehicle on the other side of the parking lot, two spaces over from Gene's rental. It was a black Lincoln Navigator; there was no sign of the shooters.
Colton shut off his engine and opened his door.
“Get back in your truck!” Dan shouted.
Colton stopped and looked around.
“Get back in your truck!” Dan shouted again.
Colton squinted to see through the window into the darkness. “What?” he asked. He started walking toward the front door and made it up two steps before a single pop rang out. Colton arched his back and tumbled forward. He was dead before he hit the porch floor.
“God dammit!” Dan screamed. Two more bullets hit the front door and shattered some of the remaining glass in the window. Dan ducked back behind the wall. Another shot cut through the air.
Richard let out a gasp, and a loud moan. “I'm hit,” he cried out. “Jesus Christ, I'm hit! Dan!”
Gene, Skip, and Dan all moved toward Richard as quickly as they could. Skip got to him first.
“Where are you hit?” Skip asked.
“My shoulder!”
Skip pulled off his T-shirt and pressed it against the wound. “Gene, keep pressure on this.”
Gene complied. “It's gonna be okay, Rich,” he said.
The bar phone rang again.
Dan crawled around the bar on his knees and one hand. He carried the shotgun in the other.
“What happened out there?” Red asked.
“They shot Colton.”
“Son of a bitch.”
Dan got behind the bar and reached up and grabbed the phone. “You didn't have to kill him, you piece of shit!” he hollered into the phone.
“That's all on you,” said the caller. “The longer we stay here, more people will die.”
“I'll take you to Maggie,” Dan said defeatedly.
Another Mother Page 13