“You’ve got to be—” Skip stopped midway through his sentence, realizing he was hearing his voice from the speaker of Baldorf’s computer.
Baldorf winked and pressed another button. From across the room and from Baldorf’s laptop, Skip heard, “Fol-low me, Skip.”
“Are we good?” asked Baldorf.
Skip shrugged. “We’re good.” On the screen, the view shifted and he saw Roxy standing, holding two cups of coffee. He turned to her and said, “What are you laughing at?”
She approached the table, then sat with her back to the window. “I’m just wondering why I had to get the coffee.”
Baldorf said, “Here’s the extra laptop. Just start it up and use the desktop icon for AWB.”
“But you’re not really connecting to their bank’s web site, right?” Roxy said.
“The machine will look like it’s connecting to the bank’s server, but it will be connecting to itself. You’ll log in using the user name and password on the disk. The balance in the dummy account is approximate. I calculated based on the original amount of the transfer and adjusted for accrued interest using rates I got from the bank’s web site. If their posted rates are accurate, this should be good to within a few cents.”
Skip snorted. “You—you did all this between last night and now?”
Baldorf nodded. “Most of it was quite simple. And it was a nice little diversion from coding.”
Roxy laughed. “What do you have, like a 250 IQ?”
“Oh, no. The highest practical limit is about 201 on the Stanford-Binet scale. I’m only 162, so I plug along.”
“I hate to interrupt,” said Skip, “but there’s a chance he’ll come inside. If he does, you need to disappear.” He pointed at Roxy.
She jerked her head to one side. “Restroom is right there. I doubt he’ll be checking that out.” She flashed a smile, “I guarantee he can’t outlast me.”
Skip realized that he no longer had time to make his purchase, so he headed outside. In the front of the store, he sat at the table he’d staked out. To one side, he saw the robot take up a position next to a planter. The robot waved, then hopped from one foot to the other. Skip turned away, but couldn’t suppress a smile. That Baldorf, he thought, he’s just a big kid. The rumble of exhaust caught his attention and Skip’s gaze automatically went in the direction of the noise. A fire-engine red sports car with a Maserati emblem on the hood crept through the parking lot. Skip saw the pockmark on the man’s left cheek and said, “I think he’s here.”
The robot raised its right hand and saluted.
The car turned in to the next parking lane and disappeared. A man to Skip’s right shifted position. The man wore a leather jacket, a tan sports shirt, and khaki pants. Skip thought he detected the bulge of a gun on his right side. That would be one of the undercover cops, he thought. Where were the others? Was Grimes here also? Had Roxy spotted them? Probably. And she hadn’t run. What had he done?
Skip leaned back in his chair and watched the lane where the Maserati had disappeared. Soon, the man who had driven the Maserati appeared. Skip recognized Sonny Panaman from Roxy’s description and said, “He’s coming. Walking this way.” His pulse raced as he watched his mark stroll toward him, briefcase dangling from his right hand. As Sonny crossed the traffic lane, he glanced in both directions, but he also seemed to scan the area, as if looking for a trap.
Sonny stopped about twenty feet away and surveyed the scene. Creases lined the other man’s forehead as he nodded to himself. He moved forward.
Skip motioned for Sonny to sit. “I’m doing the exchange.” He pointed at the chair opposite his.
“Who are you?”
“The Wizard’s delegate.”
Sonny seemed to relax a degree at the mention of Sproutman’s nickname. “Why’d he send you?”
Skip licked his lips. He checked both directions and motioned with his index finger for Sonny to come closer. “Trust is a funny thing, you have to earn it. And quite frankly, he trusts me more than he trusts you.”
“So why should I trust you? I’ve never seen you before.”
Skip stood. “Fine. You don’t want the money, no problem. I’m here to fulfill an obligation to a friend. I got five million reasons to terminate this deal. Understand? You want me to go?”
Sonny grabbed Skip by the arm. “Wait!”
Skip glared at Sonny. “Maybe you want me to break your arm?”
Beads of sweat formed on Sonny’s forehead. “Sorry. Sorry. It’s just—you’re not the guy I started dealing with. Eugene, uh, the Wizard, he said that he liked to work alone.”
“And you went for that? For a kidnapping?” Skip exploded.
Sonny glanced at Skip as if he expected him to say something else. When Skip remained silent, Sonny said, “He told me he’d need help. I just—”
Skip lowered his voice, “The Wizard’s a hands-on manager, friend. He doesn’t leave things to chance. And as you probably know, two of the ‘team’ have met an untimely demise.” Skip made quotation marks in the air with his fingers when he said the word “team.”
“The news said the girl died. It didn’t say anything about a second person.”
Skip had already decided that he’d approach this as though the Wizard had killed Dane. If he was wrong, Panaman would bolt. Skip worked his jaw back and forth as if he were contemplating telling a major secret. “The other was the girl’s boyfriend.” Skip saw the color rise in Sonny’s cheeks, his breathing quickened and he shifted position. “Oh, you thought you were her boyfriend. Sorry, pal, but Stella liked sharing. Um, in fact, you may want to get yourself tested, if you know what I mean.”
Sonny’s anger drained from his face, good old fear replaced it. “Tested?”
“You two did, um—you know.” Skip nodded.
Sonny muttered. “Shit.”
Skip smiled. “Whatever. They got drugs to deal with all that these days. Anyway, the boyfriend, or, the other boyfriend, he got a little greedy and tried to rabbit. That’s when the Wizard asked me to, um, assist. Made the LA Times the other day. He took himself a last walk on the beach.” Skip twitched his cheeks for effect. “I got no more time for you. You either want the ransom money or you don’t. Decide, now.”
In Skip’s mind, it wasn’t much of a decision. Sonny had gone to the extent to seduce Stella, investigate a business, hire a kidnapper, and show up for his money. Skip had no doubts that Sonny’s greed would make him accept the deal.
“I have the money,” Sonny said.
Skip stared into Sonny’s eyes for a moment. He waited, silently counting to three. “Good. You want to see what you’re buying?”
The other man’s eyes got wide, a sly smile crept onto his face. Then, a sudden wariness appeared. He sat straighter. “Let me get some coffee first.”
“Suit yourself. Order one for me, too.”
As Sonny turned away and went into the store, Skip felt helpless. Had Roxy gotten the message? Had they heard? He glanced over at the robot. The robot saluted, then did something that resembled a dance. He seemed to hop from foot to foot and then returned to attention.
A few minutes later, Sonny returned with two cups. He set his briefcase on the ground.
“No. Money first—let me see it,” Skip said.
Sonny picked up the briefcase and opened it. Inside were bundles of cash. It was the most cash Skip had ever seen in one place in his life. He fought back a desire to ogle the money. Instead, he nodded. “Good. My turn.”
He opened the laptop and waited while it booted up. He clicked the icon labeled “AWB” and waited again. He glanced sideways at Sonny, who sat on the edge of his chair, practically drooling into his coffee. The screen opened Internet Explorer and there was a pause for a few seconds. Skip said, “Slow connection here.”
A page that perfectly resembled the AWB home page filled the screen. Skip turned the computer so that it faced Sonny.
Sonny blinked at Skip. “What?”
He handed So
nny the disk. “Put this in the drive. It’s got the account number and the login credentials. If you want, you can change the password when you give me the money.”
Sonny’s fingers quivered as he placed the CD into the drive on the side of the laptop. He mumbled, “This’ll show my old man.”
“What’s that mean?”
“He always said I’d never amount to anything. Well, I’m five million dollars richer. At my age, he was still selling used cars to jerk offs for peanuts. I don’t need his rules anymore. The old fart can die any day for all I care.”
Skip put both elbows on the table. “You want him to have an accident?”
Sonny waved the suggestion away. “He’s got all that covered in the will. Once he’s gone, I get shit. I’ve needed him till now, I don’t need him anymore.”
Skip pointed to the information from the disk that now appeared on the screen. “You should copy that so you don’t make a mistake.”
Sonny worked the mouse and copied the account number, then switched windows and pasted the copied text into the account number field. He clicked the login button.
Skip watched as the login field dropped down just as it had on the real site. Damn, Baldorf was good. “Before you go any further, hand me that briefcase.”
Sonny reached down and grabbed the case. He handed it across the table to Skip. Then he switched back to the login information from the CD. He copied and pasted the user name, then repeated the process for the password. After that, he clicked the submit button.
They waited in silence while the screen displayed a little “processing” message. After a few seconds, the account information displayed. “Holy shit,” said Sonny.
“Yeah, holy shit.”
Skip’s head snapped to the left. Sonny’s did too. There stood Roxy.
CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
Roxy
As Baldorf and I watched Skip in action, I had to admit that I felt a sense of pride in watching how easily he manipulated Sonny. This was my team getting payback; it was our turn to make the bad guys pay. I also felt a sense of professional jealousy.
Skip would have made a helluva con man. His timing was impeccable and the lies flowed like beer at a frat party. I desperately wanted him to succeed, but I didn’t want to be shown up at my own game, either.
And it was letting my emotions into the game that made it impossible for me to sit on the sidelines as a spectator. Skip had already gotten enough to put the worm away for a very long time when I realized that seeing him in jail just wouldn’t be enough. I owed him something else.
“Be right back,” I said to Baldorf.
Baldorf grunted some sort of male acknowledgement, but his focus was on playing with the robot. He’d maneuvered the little guy to within a few feet of Skip’s table. That’s where I wanted to be. Up close. Within striking distance. I slipped away and strode out the front door. After I nailed Sonny, I’d run. If I could get lost in the mall’s crowds, I might have a chance at escape.
I watched over his shoulder as Sonny copied and pasted the fake login codes into the laptop. He was so focused on his newfound wealth that he never even saw me. It was the look he’d had on his face when he told me about the Maserati. This jerk had messed with me one too many times.
Sonny gave Skip a sideways glance. “Holy shit,” he said.
I moved to within two feet of Sonny and stood. “Yeah, holy shit.”
It was like everything went into slow motion. Sonny freaked when he saw me. As did Skip. The look on Skip’s face was priceless. If possible, the look on Sonny’s was worth even more. Sonny stumbled to his feet, but as soon as he had his footing, I hit him. It was a sucker punch. It was a bad move on my part because I wasn’t thinking about the hit. It was pure revenge and it felt great.
My knuckles landed squarely on Sonny’s nose and sent him sprawling. Coffee and blood splattered in all directions as Sonny slammed into the table. He fell sideways and landed on Skip. The two men, the table, chairs, and the laptop all hit the ground in a mad crashing that sent everyone into shock-and-awe mode. Skip and Sonny were entangled like snakes in a basket. How perfect, I thought.
Chaos broke out around me, but I didn’t care. I’d nailed that bastard. My hand hurt like hell because I hadn’t paid attention to my form, but it still felt great. That’s when I saw Skip staring past me.
Had I been paying attention to anything other than enjoying the possibility that I might have broken Sonny’s nose, I wouldn’t have been surprised when two hands seized my arms and locked them behind me in handcuffs.
Over my shoulder, I heard, “Roxanne Tanner, you’re under arrest for—”
I reeled with astonishment as the woman who had cuffed me grabbed my arm. In that second, I realized just what Skip had done. Ahead of me, I saw another man pulling handcuffs from behind his waist as he ran toward Skip. The blood pounded in my head. I wanted to crumble to the ground and cry like a child. He’d turned me in. He really had turned me in. All I could think of was that I hated Skip Cosgrove almost as much as Sonny Panaman.
The female cop led me away from the scene. What had I been charged with? I hadn’t heard. Everyone stared at the spectacle I’d created and, for once in my life, I wasn’t pleased to be the center of attention. I’d been betrayed by the one man I thought I could almost trust.
I saw Baldorf in the doorway watching the cop haul me away. I glared at Skip and yelled, “Bastard! You bastard! You sold me out!”
The female officer shoved me into the back of a patrol car and slammed the door. I sat, isolated from the scene around me, for the second time this week. This time, I didn’t expect my release to come so quickly. The cop with Skip shook his hand and pointed in my direction. I could only imagine what he was saying, but I think I knew. No doubt, the cop was thanking him for his hard work in taking me as well as Sonny down in one operation.
I closed my eyes and waited until I heard the front door open and shut. I opened my eyes to find the world a blur. My cheeks were hot with my tears, but there was nothing I could do. I didn’t know what hurt more, the fact that I was about to go to jail for years—or that Skip had abandoned me when I needed him most.
CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
Skip
Skip heard Roxy’s accusation. At first, he thought she was referring to Sonny, but then realized she was looking straight at him when she said those words. “You sold me out.”
The words were like a red-hot poker searing his flesh as he realized what she thought. He watched the tears flow down her cheeks and felt her anguish. Anger surged through him and, when Sonny tried to move, Skip jabbed him into unconsciousness with his elbow.
He stood, unsteady, then took two steps in the direction of the patrol car where the female officer had placed Roxy. He stopped and leaned against the table, unsure of what to do next, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. To his right, he heard the male undercover officer.
“Are you okay?”
“Hell, no, I’m not okay! Why’d you take her away?”
“You mean, in addition to the assault?”
“What would you do if he kidnapped your father?”
The undercover cop said, “Maybe worse than she did. Look, we’re holding her on the assault charge for now. We also believe Miss Tanner may have embezzled the ransom from her clients. If she did that, there will be more charges.”
Skip saw Baldorf out of the corner of his eye. He was collecting the robot, which had been kicked to one side in the chaos. Skip felt like the robot, kicked aside by forces he couldn’t control. He’d had a deal with the cops—they got the evidence to prosecute Sonny in exchange for dropping the firearms charges against Roxy. He hadn’t wanted to disclose the embezzlement, so he hadn’t bargained for immunity on that. He stopped himself from speaking, knowing that he needed to be thinking clearly to avoid making things worse for Roxy. A few seconds later, he formulated a question. “What makes you think she embezzled? Who made that leap?”
“Grimes. He asked me to thank
you for the tip.” The officer reached out and took Skip’s hand.
Skip recalled the phone call with Grimes. How Grimes kept asking questions about where Roxy got the money. He suddenly realized what his shaking hands with the officer must look like to Roxy and jerked his hand away. The officer pointed at the patrol car where they held Roxy.
“There’s nothing concrete yet, but Grimes expects to get to the bottom of this within a day or two. Good work, Cosgrove, this ought to put you back in good standing with Carlsbad PD.”
Skip’s knees felt weak. He collapsed into the nearest chair and watched as the undercover officer read Sonny Panaman his rights. He stared, slack-jawed, at Baldorf, who returned his gaze with sympathetic eyes. In the parking lot, an officer got into the patrol car with Roxy and pulled away. In the backseat, Roxy cried. Seeing her like that was more than he could bear and nearly drove him into a blind rage.
Skip ground out the words, “Grimes lied to me.”
The officer said, “No. Miss Tanner assaulted the suspect. Your deal with Grimes was to drop previous charges, not to grant her immunity for future criminal acts. And there was no discussion of embezzlement.”
Skip felt a massive headache beginning in his temples and working its way to the back of his head. He glanced at Baldorf. “Get me out of here before I do any more damage.”
“I don’t think we can leave yet,” Baldorf said.
“Why’s that?”
“They’ll want a statement.”
“Screw their statement.”
Baldorf stepped to one side. “Too late, dude.”
Skip glanced up and saw the undercover officer still standing next to him.
“You want a statement, right?”
The man nodded and pulled out a small pad. “Since we didn’t have time to wire you, we need to know what happened.”
Skip pointed at Baldorf. “Give them the CD.”
License to Lie Page 25