My Beautiful

by J. M. La Rocca

  As I was walking down to check out some of the rooms, Paul appeared out of the third door. A guy in slacks and a button-up shirt came out behind him. He looked at Paul, nodded, and then walked past me, disregarding me completely.

  I couldn’t help but begin to ask myself some questions. Who the hell was that guy? Did Paul always meet with people like this? Did Frank know about it? Why was he meeting with people on his own? Frank told me from the beginning, we always worked in pairs just in case something happened. Maybe that was why he was looking at me with that surprised look on his face. Maybe he just got caught doing something he wasn’t supposed to be doing. I knew I needed to find out.

  “You’re here earlier than I thought you would be.”

  “It was closer than I thought.” I turned and watched the guy walk out the door, and then looked back at Paul. “He a friend of yours?”

  He squinted at me in irritation. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s go, we’ve got shit to do.”

  He walked past me without another word and I turned and followed behind him. This was the kind of activity I wanted to bring up to Kevin. He was up to something. I just didn’t know how to find out what he was up to.

  “We’re taking mine.” He pointed over to his SUV. “I’ll drop you back off when we’re done. Go get your piece, since I know you don’t have it on you.”

  I walked to my car with a scowl, wanting to tell him to fuck off. I didn’t drive around with that shit poking me in the back like he did. I opened the passenger door to get to the glove box. I pulled out my gun and stuffed it in the back of my pants, pulling my t-shirt over it before walking back to Paul’s truck.

  “What exactly are we doing tonight?” I asked as we pulled out of the parking lot.

  He lit up a cigarette and took a drag before answering me. “We’re heading over to the dock. We’ve had some discrepancies with our shipments. Our suppliers say we are getting one thing, but there are always supplies missing. Frank wants us to check it out and take care of the problem. He thinks we’ve got leeches.”

  He looked over at me as I furrowed my brow. I had no idea what he was talking about. “Leeches?”

  He shook his head at me. “Yeah, Nick, leeches. They are taking our shit. He’s not positive it’s our people, but that’s what we are going to find out.”

  We were quiet for the rest of the twenty-minute trip. Paul parked on the side of the road and turned his lights off. The dock was a fenced-off area and we had to check-in at the gate. We weren’t authorized to go in so we had to wait until whomever he was looking for came out.

  “How will you know what you’re looking for?”

  “The guy drives a blue truck with a white trailer attached. His instructions are to leave the dock and head over to the warehouse where the supplies are stored and documented. So we’ll see if our little friends are doing their job or taking a detour.”

  “What exactly are the shipments?”

  Paul looked at me with a sly grin. “Marijuana from South America.”

  I nodded my head at him and looked out the window as he lit another cigarette. How the fuck was Frank getting away with all these shipments. He had to have way more people working for him than I originally thought.

  “So what’s the plan in this operation? Do we just follow them and see what they do, or what?”

  He blew out a ring of smoke, and then turned to look at me. “Yes, we will follow them and see what they do. Let’s just say, if they are being leeches, things won’t end up well for them.”

  My heart rate picked up. That didn’t sound good.

  “There they are,” he said as the truck pulled out onto the road. We pulled out behind them, making sure to keep back so they didn’t know they were being tailed. I watched Paul as he stared straight ahead, watching with suspicious eyes at every turn they made. I wondered how many times he might have done something like this before. “Ha, motherfuckers.”

  “What?” I asked, looking over at him.

  “They aren’t going the right way.”

  We stayed far behind as the truck made turns down roads not leading to the warehouse. I had a bad feeling about what was going to happen.

  Paul pulled to the side of the road when he saw the truck coming to a stop, and parked. They had turned into a suburban neighborhood not too far from where Scarlett’s apartment was.

  “What do we do now?”

  “We wait and see what they do. If they open the back of the truck, it’s game on.” He smiled that evil smile at me. “Don’t clam up, rookie. Do what you have to do to subdue them. I need to question them.”

  I nodded, looking out the window at the truck. As quietly as I could, I took a deep breath and let it out to calm my nerves. I watched as the driver got out of the truck and headed to the back to open the latch. These guys must really be fucking stupid to be doing this shit out in the open.

  “Showtime.” Paul smiled at me as he opened his door.

  He really was a sadistic fuck. I opened my door and met him on the other side. We were five houses down from where they were so we had the advantage of a sneak attack.

  “I’ve got the driver. You get the passenger. Be on guard too because there are going to be people in the house waiting. They’re bound to have ammo.”

  I looked at him with wide eyes. I was freaking out. What the fuck did he drag me into? I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

  I will not die tonight!

  The guys were talking and laughing as they stood behind the truck, so we walked up quietly. Paul grabbed the driver by the shoulder, turning him in the process and punched him in the face. The other guy reached behind his back to grab his gun, but I took advantage of his hand being occupied and punched him in the face, followed by an upper cut in the stomach.

  The guys were not in shape, so getting them under control took no effort at all. They moaned in pain as Paul pulled zip ties out of his pants pocket and put their hands behind their back. Then he pulled them to the side of the house and we forced them to their knees.

  They started talking in Spanish; I couldn’t understand a word they were saying.

  Paul reached behind his back and pulled out his gun pointing it at the driver’s head. “Speak English, motherfucker.”

  We both continuously looked around to see if anyone was watching or if anyone had come out of the house.

  “Please don’t shoot,” the driver pleaded. “I have a family.”

  “We all have fucking families, asshole. You should have fucking thought about that before you decided to start taking shit that’s doesn’t belong to you.”

  I just stood there in shock, not knowing what to do. I kind of felt like it was all a dream. Out of everything that I had done in the past eight months of doing jobs, this had to be the scariest shit I’d been involved in.

  “What’s your name?” Paul asked the driver.

  “Marco.”

  Paul squatted down to be eye level with him. “Who the fuck is in the house, Marco?”

  He started shaking his head. The guy was sweating profusely. I knew he was scared out of his mind. “He would have had to run out the back or he’d be out here by now.”

  Paul stood up and kneed him in the face, knocking Marco to the ground. He rolled around moaning in pain, so Paul went to the other guy.

  “Who’s in the house?”

  The guy looked from me to Paul. “Jackson was supposed to meet us here. He’s the only one that ever meets us here.”

  “Does Jackson have a last name?” he asked, getting irritated.

  The guy diverted his head and looked at the ground. I had a feeling he was debating whether to give his friend’s last name up or not. But either way, Paul would get it out of him. I was sure he wouldn’t mind using his torturing techniques.

  “I don’t have all fucking night. Do you want to end up with a broken nose like your friend here?” Paul pointed to Marco, who was laying on the ground with blood all over his face. He wasn’t able to get back up because hi
s hands were zip tied behind his back.

  The guy looked at his friend before his shoulders slumped further in defeat.

  “It’s Sawyer. Jackson Sawyer.”

  Paul’s face looked immediately troubled as he turned to me. I wasn’t sure if he knew Jackson Sawyer or not, but the look on his face said he did. “Get your gun out and point it at them. If they move, you shoot. I’m going to check out the house.”

  I reached behind me and pulled out my gun as Paul walked toward the front door cautiously. My hands were shaking as I pointed the gun at the guy who was still on his knees. I didn’t care what Paul had told me to do. If the guys decided to run, I wouldn’t shoot them. There was no way. The guys didn’t know that though, so I didn’t expect them to take that chance. Although, their chances with me were far better than their chances were with Paul once he came back out here.

  Marco started talking to the other guy in Spanish. I was going to tell them to shut up, but didn’t see the point. Maybe they were saying their prayers.

  I heard the screen door open and leaned to the side to see Paul coming out of the house. He was only in there for about five minutes, so Marco must have been right. Jackson must have run away.

  “There’s no one in the house and the door leading out the back was wide open,” he said to me.

  He leaned down and picked Marco up, setting him back on his knees.

  “What happens to the weed after Jackson gets it?” he asked Marco.

  Marco shook his head. “I don’t know.”

  Paul raised his hand and hit him in the head with the butt of the gun. Marco yelled out in pain, but didn’t fall over. I looked around worried that someone would come out of their house to see what was going on, but I honestly didn’t think anyone would be that stupid. We needed to hurry up though before someone called the cops, if they hadn’t already.

  “We don’t know what he does with it,” the other guy said. “All we do is drop the merchandise off. We get paid, and then we leave. We don’t know what happens after that.”

  Paul nodded his head and seemed to accept that answer. He reached into the inside pocket of his leather jacket and pulled out a silencer and started screwing it onto his gun.

  My stomach dropped and my heart rate sped up. I tried to swallow the lump in my throat, but my body seemed to be frozen in place as I watched Paul point the gun.

  It all happened so fast.

  They both started crying and pleading for him not to kill them, but Paul just smiled and shot them each in the head. I watched as they both fell to the ground, their eyes staring out at nothing with blood oozing down their foreheads.

  I felt like I was going to be sick.

  “Let’s get the fuck out of here.” Paul walked away and I had to force myself to move. I couldn’t believe that just fucking happened.

  “What about the fucking bodies? Are you just going to leave them for someone to find?” I pointed over to the two dead bodies, not being able to turn and look at them.

  Paul kept walking without acknowledging my question, so I had no choice but to jog and catch up to him. I cursed under my breath as I opened the door to the SUV. How the fuck was I supposed to live day to day knowing that just fucking happened.

  I stuffed the gun in the back of my pants before getting in, and slammed the door closed. Turning my head, I stared out the window, breathing in through my nose and out through my mouth trying to calm my nerves. I couldn’t close my eyes. Every time I did, I would see the whole thing over again. I felt like I was being a pussy, but that shit was real. Lives had just been taken and Paul was over there smoking a cigarette like nothing fucking happened. I really needed to be careful around him. He was fucking insane. They were all fucking insane and I was stuck in the middle of it.

  “You alright over there, rookie? You look kind of pale.”

  He was laughing and that pissed me off.

  I looked over at him with a scowl. “Fuck off, Paul.”

  “Aw, I just popped your kill cherry, didn’t I?” He got that evil smile on his face. “Get used to it, Nick. Shit like this goes down all the time. You fuck up, you don’t get a second chance. They knew the consequences of their actions. They knew exactly what they were doing and their lives ended for being stupid.” He flicked his cigarette butt out the window. “People get greedy, Nick. In this business, if someone sees how much money you’re making and they aren’t getting a big piece of that pie, they get greedy. That’s what leads to doing something stupid.”

  I didn’t know what to say, so I didn’t say anything. He pulled out his phone and pressed a few numbers.

  “Yeah, they’re out … No, they met at 526 Clayton Road. Jackson Sawyer was their buyer. They said he was the only one who ever met them there … Yeah,” he said turning his head to look at me with a sly grin, “he’s alright. He’s taking it like a champ.” He looked back at the road. “The shipment is still at the house. It’s a nice neighborhood, so someone could have called the cops. I’m not sure if you want to send Tommy and Zac out there to get it? … Yeah, I’m going to drop him off at Joe’s so he can get his car … okay, I’ll see you in a little bit.”

  Paul ended his call and we were quiet all the way to Joe’s.

  He pulled into a parking spot in front of the shop and I was more than happy to finally get out. I had a quick thought of going back over to Scarlett’s, but there was no way I could go over there in the condition that I was in.

  As I opened the door and slipped out of the truck, I heard Paul give a slight chuckle, so I turned to look at him before closing the door. “What the fuck is so funny, Paul?”

  He shook his head and smiled at me. “I was just thinking about what your precious Scarlett would think about what you were a part of tonight.”

  That got my attention and I looked at him in disdain. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

  “Oh Nick, you can’t play me for a fool. I know that’s why you’ve been so occupied this past week. I knew the minute she arrived.”

  I did my best to keep my face blank. I would not give him the satisfaction of knowing he was hitting a nerve.

  “Is it just me or is she hotter than the last time I−”

  I slammed the door closed before he could finish the sentence. I could hear him laughing as I walked away. Getting into my car, I closed the door and rested my head on the back of the seat. “What the fuck,” I mumbled under my breath.

  When I got home, I went straight to my bathroom, stripped off my clothes, and got into a steaming hot shower. I leaned with my hands against the wall, letting the hot water spray over my head. I felt sick to my stomach, but Paul’s comment had added to it.

  After talking to Scarlett and telling her that we would work this out, I wasn’t so sure that was a good idea anymore. With them knowing she just moved here, it made a big difference, and with Paul and his sadistic ways, I knew he’d love to find a reason to use her against me.

  Fuck.

  I washed and got out of the shower, deciding it was time to go to bed. I’d had enough for the day. I lay there thinking about what I needed to do the next day. I didn’t want to have to talk to Kevin, but he was my only choice. Plus, I wanted to tell him about my suspicion of Paul and get his opinion.

  As I lay in bed, I thought about Scarlett. We were back together and it happened quicker than I thought it would. I was as happy as I ever was which I thought would have happened later, with Frank gone. But it didn’t end up that way, which meant that I was fucked.

  Rolling to my side, I closed my eyes and thought about Scarlett in hopes of replacing the images behind my eyes.

  I got up the next morning and spent a couple of hours out by the pond. I had plans for the day and I wasn’t looking forward to them. I had tossed and turned all night trying to decide the best course of action. I couldn’t let Scarlett be at risk because of me. I wasn’t worth it. She deserved better than that.

  I went back into the house after receiving a text from Kevin stating that he
was on his way over.

  He strutted into my office around an hour later and took a seat in front of my desk. “What’s on your mind, Kade that you had to see me right away?”

  I ran my hands through my hair. “They fucking know she’s here. I don’t know what the fuck to do, man. I feel like I keep getting the shit end of the stick. Not only is my career going down the drain, I can’t seem to figure out how to get out of this new fucking life.” I leaned back in my chair and closed my eyes. “Paul fucking shot two guys point blank in the head last night. Right in front of me.” I tilted my head down and looked at him. “How the fuck do I get past that? This isn’t my life.”

  Kevin studied me for a few minutes before he finally spoke. “This is your life, Kade. The sooner you realize that, the better. When something bad like that happens you need to brush it off. You can’t let what they are doing change you. Yes, it’s unfortunate that two people died last night, but there isn’t anything you can do about it.”

  That statement got me to sit up in my chair. “Why the fuck can’t you do anything about it? They are killing people and you just sit back and watch? You’re the fucking FBI. Shouldn’t you be doing something?”

  None of this made any sense. I didn’t know how his undercover status worked, but his superiors had to know what the fuck went on with Frank and his men.

  “If there aren’t any bodies, then there is nothing that can be done, Kade,” he sighed. “You need to understand that Frank is smart and he’s good at what he does. He’ll mess up eventually. And Paul, well, he’s too sure of himself. One day, he’s going to do something and fuck up to where Frank won’t overlook it.”

  I had doubts about Frank, but I could believe it when it came to Paul. “I’m glad you brought him up, because I think Paul is at that point already. I think something is going on and that he might be doing something he’s not supposed to be doing.”

  “Why do you say that?”