Jeanne was speechless but managed a “Whoa.”
“Yes, my dear. Whoa is correct.”
On the way home, Frank used his Bluetooth to call a few of his friends. Three of them were on board to get to work the next day, provided Jeanne could get the truck and the storage space. By the time they got back to their house, they had the day lined up. Frank went to the Gaynors’ house to see if they could contribute the moving boxes. The Gaynors were more than happy to let them have them, saving them a trip to the recycling center.
Jeanne called Colleen’s cell phone and explained the situation. Colleen’s head was reeling. The day had started with the hearing, then Libby’s news, and now this. Was it a full moon?
Colleen called the janitor from the school and explained that they needed to clean a house the day after tomorrow. “Scrubbed ceiling to floor.” She admitted that she had no other information, but they should be prepared for the worst. Who knew what they would find?
Colleen explained to Libby what was going on. “What can I do to help out?” Libby asked, feeling helpless.
“Nothing right now, except figure out where that creepy ex-boyfriend is and stay safe.”
“I’ll do my best.” Libby signed off, determined to track that creep down. How she was going to do it she wasn’t sure, but she wanted to be able to know his every move until someone in authority could nail him.
Chapter Thirty-two
The following morning, Frank went to the U-Haul location and picked up the large box truck. He hoped it was big enough. If not, they’d have to make several trips. By 9:00, his buddies from the shooting range had arrived with tape and rope. No one had any idea what they were walking into.
Andy had let Frank take his keys from his jacket the day before. Frank stood at the front door and held his breath as he unlatched the key. “Jeez Louise.” The enormity of the undertaking was overwhelming.
He turned to his friends. “Guys, I don’t know where to start.” Removing the magazines, newspapers, and junk mail seemed to be the logical first step. Frank began giving the men assignments. “Hank, you take the magazines and tie them up. Lou, you bag the junk mail. Joe, you handle the newspapers. Once we get them out of the way, we’ll be able to see what else we need to do.”
The men worked feverishly to clear out the mountains of paper, handing Frank the bundles for him to load onto the truck. It took about three hours before they could see the furniture.
Hank was the first to speak. “I’ll head over to the storage place and drop this stuff off.”
“Good idea. I’ll tackle the kitchen to see if there’s anything salvageable in there. I’ll toss anything that looks like it could be a fire hazard or in disrepair. We can replace whatever small appliances he has. Frank went into the kitchen to find a hot plate with frayed wires. “Off you go.” He tossed it into a box marked TRASH. He wasn’t sure if throwing out old rusty appliances would upset Andy, but his ability to return to his home was uppermost. A coffeepot with a broken handle was next. He checked the stove to see if any of the burners worked. All were fine. Frank thought Andy probably used the hot plate because it was easier. But he didn’t have time to ruminate over what possessed people to do the things they do. An hour later, the countertops were clear of any dangerous items.
Hank returned shortly, and they began removing the dozens of bolts of fabric that sat on top of the two antique sofas. Once the furniture was clear, they had a better sense of what to leave and what to store. The master bedroom was piled high with hatboxes collected over the ages. Frank didn’t know if he should leave some or take all of them to storage. He’d better consult Jeanne about this, he decided, and rang her phone.
“Hey, hon, I have an aesthetic question for you. Can you come down here and help me out?”
“Sure thing. I’ll be right there.”
Libby watched from the loft as the piles of papers and bolts of fabric were removed from Andy’s. It was astonishing to see how much he had saved. It was also a little disconcerting and somewhat sad. She turned and went back to deal with her own situation. Kara called to let her know that the FedEx envelope had arrived and been picked up by Rick. He was probably on his way to the casino. In a few hours, he would have the cash. Was it blood money?
* * *
Rick was elated when he arrived at Denver International Airport and found an envelope waiting for him. He hopped back into his car and drove to the casino, praying they would cash the check for him.
When he pulled up, the valet greeted him. “Welcome, Mr. Barnes.” Rick felt like a celebrity. It was something he always enjoyed, feeling so incredibly important. The concierge was equally effusive. Rick leaned in to whisper in his ear.
“I have a check I need to cash. Who should I speak to?”
The concierge picked up the phone on the desk and dialed one of the floor managers. “Mr. Barnes wishes to cash a check.” He nodded and hung up. “Please go to one of the cashier windows and ask for Mr. Lafferty. He’ll take care of it for you. Enjoy your stay.”
“I certainly will,” Rick said, even though he knew it wasn’t going to be a very long stay. He walked over to the cashier, endorsed the check over to the casino, and headed to the front desk to check in.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Barnes. Nice to see you. Your room is ready and, of course, compliments of the house.”
Things were going exactly as he had planned. When he got to his room, he used his burner phone to call the man who was going to do the job for him. “Yes, I have all of it.”
“OK. Wire it to me.” The voice on the phone gave him instructions.
“How long will it take?” Rick asked.
“A day or two. Probably by Friday.”
“Great. Thanks.” Rick hung up, knowing his mission would finally be accomplished.
Chapter Thirty-three
Frank and his crew had removed what one might consider debris and arranged the furniture so it would be conducive to human habitation. Jeanne had decided they should leave a couple of hatboxes for style and décor.
Next was the big cleanup. The janitor from Colleen’s school sent a heavy-duty crew to Andy’s house. Hazmat suits were the only thing missing. Colleen had to teach school, so Jeanne and Brenda supervised the work.
Again, Libby watched from the window. She called the hotel to see if Rick had checked in. “One moment, please, while I put you through.” Libby immediately hung up. At least she knew he was there. If she could only get the Black Hawk police to track him, but how? She phoned the captain in New York. “I know you said it would take time, but I know his exact location now.”
The captain was very patient. “We can’t execute an arrest warrant and get extradition so quickly.”
“I understand.” She hung up and racked her brain for what to do next. Suddenly, she remembered another gamer in the Denver area.
She pinged his e-mail:
You busy?
He typed back:
Nah. What’s up?
How would you like to do a job for me?
What kind of job?
Tailing someone.
You mean like a private eye or something?
Yeah, kinda.
For how long?
Two days, maybe three. I’ll make it worth your while. 200 bucks a day plus expenses.
I’m in! Send details.
Libby sent him the casino information and the make and model of Rick’s car. At least the one she remembered. She didn’t imagine he would have given up his BMW roadster. She mentioned that Rick had hired and paid someone $5,000 to find her. Then she dug out an old photo of her, Rick, Kara, and Christian. She cropped the photo so only Rick’s face showed, scanned it in, and e-mailed it to her new partner. After she hit SEND, a sense of relief filled her.
Two days went by, and her new sleuthing pal reported no movement, but very early Saturday morning, he spotted Rick leaving the casino and heading east toward Denver. He followed the sports car for several hours until it made a pit stop in Co
lby, Kansas.
Libby thought that if Rick were heading to New York, he would take a more northern route. The hair on the back of her neck stood up. She felt he was coming for her. She texted her accomplice.
Stay on him.
Will do.
Five hours later, he sent her another text.
Kansas City.
Her heart was in her throat. He wasn’t far away. She decided to call Colleen and tell her what she feared.
Earlier that morning, she saw Frank and Jeanne bring Andy home. He stopped short at the front door. Like Frank a few days before, he didn’t know what he was walking into.
“Come on, Andy. You’ve made it this far,” Jeanne urged him.
The minute he stepped foot in his house, he began to cry.
“Andy, we did the best we could. Everything is in the storage unit next to where you keep your cars. We only wanted to make it comfortable and safe for you,” Jeanne continued.
Frank chimed in. “And you have a new coffeepot and a new toaster, and the refrigerator has a few staples for you.”
Andy was trembling. Neither Frank nor Jeanne knew what else to say, but then Andy spoke. “You are the kindest people I have ever known. This . . . this is more than I could ever have hoped for.” He looked around the room and spotted one of his favorite pieces, a cherry buffet cabinet. “My gosh. I haven’t seen that in years!” He continued to take in all the wonderful items he had collected over the years. “I must say, I have very good taste.” He smiled. Jeanne and Frank laughed.
“I don’t know how to thank you.” Andy moved toward the bedroom. “I have a Hepplewhite dresser! Whaddya know!” He was more than pleased.
“This is absolutely wonderful. Thank you again.” He pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed his eyes. “I want to sponsor some sort of celebration to thank everyone.”
“That’s not necessary,” Frank said.
“I don’t care what you say, Frank. I’m going to do it anyway. So there.” End of discussion.
“We’ll let you get settled,” Jeanne said. “Let us know if you need anything.”
“I can’t think of a thing,” Andy replied.
Colleen watched from her window as Frank and Jeanne left Andy’s house. She was happy they had gotten the industrial-strength cleaning service. But once they were done shampooing the rugs and putting the furniture in place, it was a lovely and impressive collection of antiques.
Colleen felt a sense of satisfaction that they were able to pull off this herculean feat. As she was getting ready for her date with Officer Pedone, her phone rang.
“Hi, it’s Ellie. I mean Libby.”
“Everything all right?”
“I don’t think so.”
“What is it?” Colleen asked. She hoped it wasn’t serious, not only for Libby’s sake, but also because she had been looking forward to dinner with Bob.
“I think Rick is on his way here.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Rick. I had someone tail him from Black Hawk to Kansas City. If he’s on his way, he’ll be here soon.”
“OK. Don’t panic. Bob will be here shortly. We’ll stop by when he gets here, if that’s all right.”
“Colleen, I’m sorry to be bothering you with this, but you’re the only one who knows.”
“Don’t worry. As soon as he gets here, we’ll be there.”
“Thank you.” Libby was pacing the floor. A half hour later, the front gate signaled that someone was approaching the door.
She pulled out the pepper spray and had one finger poised above the alarm that went directly to the police station. She looked at the CCTV and saw that it was Colleen and Bob.
Libby let them in. “Tell Bob what you told me.”
The three of them sat down, and Libby related the entire story. Bob always had a small notepad with him, so he took copious notes. When she was finished, he called into the station and spoke to the desk sergeant. “Hey, Pedone here. I need a BOLO on a blue BMW roadster, New York plates. Driver’s name is Richard Barnes. Wanted in an assault case in New York City.” He paused. “Thanks.”
Pedone turned to Libby. “We put out a ‘Be On the Lookout’ for him. If anyone spots him, they’ll pull him over.”
“Then what?”
“We’ll take him in for questioning. We can hold him for up to twenty-four hours. After that, we’ll have to figure something out. Maybe you can file a report with us, even if it’s not our jurisdiction. That could extend his stay at the Crowbar Hotel.”
“The what?” Libby looked confused.
“That’s what we call jail.” Pedone chuckled. Libby followed suit.
“I know you have plans for tonight. I think I’ll be OK knowing there are other people looking for him.”
“I’ll have them send a patrol car around every half hour.”
“Thanks so much.” Libby gave Colleen a big hug, and the hug felt good.
She watched them walk to Pedone’s civilian car. He opened the door for Colleen. “Chivalry is not dead,” she said to Buddy and Percy. But before they could pull away, the sound of a sports car could be heard. She looked toward the end of her street and saw the blue BMW make a quick turn onto Birchwood Lane. The car slowed down to a crawl until it stopped in front of her house.
He got out and headed for the front door. Libby pushed all the alarm buttons.
“Libby! Libby! I need to talk to you. Turn off the damn alarm and come out here!” The man was screaming in order to be heard over the screeching sounds of the alarms.
Andy hobbled out of his house and watched as a strange man was yelling. Rick turned around and walked toward his car. Libby didn’t know what he was going to do next, but then the engine of the Lincoln started up and, instead of driving at his usual crawl, Andy stomped on the gas and hit Rick square in the middle, knocking him down. He tried to get up and run, but Pedone grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.
He threw Rick against Andy’s car and zip-tied his wrists behind his back. “Sorry, pal, but there’s just no way out.”
Libby turned off the alarms and finally had the courage to walk outside. Colleen ran over to her. “Are you all right?”
“Better now.”
“Libby. Libby. I came looking for you because I wanted to apologize.”
“For what? Trying to kill me?”
“No. For being such an ass. I should never have left you that night. I panicked.”
“Tell it to the judge,” Libby spat at him.
Andy got out of his car as the rest of the neighbors were congregating. “Who’s Libby?”
“I’m Libby. Libby Gannon. And I am standing outside for the first time in two years!”
Whistles, hoots, and applause came from the crowd.
“Welcome to the neighborhood, Libby Gannon,” Andy shouted.
Epilogue
Whether Rick was sincere about the apology was immaterial. He was being sent back to New York City to face assault charges. The downside was that Libby had to return to New York to file those charges. She had no problem doing that. It would give her a chance to visit her mother and Kara. But she planned on returning to Hibbing.
The casino also filed charges for the bad check. Rick would be up to his eyeballs in legal proceedings.
Andy was enjoying his daily trips to the storage unit and making lists of inventories. He discovered several fishing rods, which he turned over to Frank, Jackson, Mitchel, Randy, and Charlie, making them promise to bring him a large bass or two.
He also decided to give one of his cars to Hector in return for landscaping his yard.
Mitchel stayed sober and started remodeling his mother’s house, with Jackson as his helper.
Colleen continued to see Officer Bob Pedone.
When Libby returned from New York, she threw a grand party in her yard for the neighbors. She had made a home in the small hamlet of Hibbing. A home where she could finally come and go as she pleased. Even when you think there is no way out, if you try h
ard enough, you can usually find a way.
No Way Out Page 24