Two days ago, Ryan and I had gone on a quiet dinner date, and in between catching up on our lives and indulging in a delicious three-course-dinner, he’d told me everything that had happened after Brad and Chris had been arrested.
Brad had turned state's witness, and he was helping the police with their inquiries—not only had he turned on Chris, he'd also turned on Drago.
“He felt so guilty about everything,” said Ryan. “I believe him when he says he never wanted to get involved in money laundering at all—it was all Chris’s doing. Chris manipulated Brad into agreeing to this, and said they would stop after just a few transactions.
“But the transactions kept going, and then somehow, Charlene found out. She wanted money from them to keep quiet, and Brad said he didn't mind sharing some of the money with his sister, since he wanted to see her happy. But Chris wouldn't allow it, and then finally, when she got too insistent, he killed Charlene so as to shut her up forever. He convinced Brad that it was the only way, and that Brad needed to protect him and keep everything a secret.”
“So, Drago really never had anything to do with Charlene,” I mused out loud.
Ryan shook his head. “No, but Brad met a couple of his henchmen and has shared who they are. Now we can slowly circle round Drago’s operation, and with Brad’s info, we take him down once and for all.”
“So, that’s two criminals down in one go.”
“Hopefully. And I owe it mostly to a beautiful, meddling PI who doesn’t keep her nose where it belongs.”
I felt my cheeks growing hot. “Well… you know I can’t help that.”
Ryan laughed, a deep belly laugh that made my insides tingle. “I know. You can’t stop ‘til the truth’s out there, and I love that about you.”
I leaned forward and gazed into his sparkling gray eyes. “So you don’t mind that I’m a PI? And that we might cross paths at work every now and then?”
“No, I don’t. I only ask that you stay safe. Stop having to fight off people with guns. And maybe don’t break into people’s homes, or get Nanna to impersonate an officer.”
“I didn’t—I don’t—she was only impersonating a receptionist!”
Ryan’s body shook with laughter and took my hand in his. “Okay. But I’m only buying that logic because I can’t stay away from you.”
Before I knew it, my shift was over. I clapped my hands out, said goodbye to the gamblers, and let the new dealer take over my table. I headed out of the bright lights and feverish excitement of the casino pit and into the employee changing room.
As I changed out of my uniform and into jeans and a sweater, I fretted that I hadn’t seen Stone in the last few days. He’d come over to chat with Tariq earlier in the week, but I hadn't seen him since.
I felt sure that he and Tariq were hatching a plan to fix everything, and I didn't want to ask them about it. I'd seen no sign of Eli or any of his men, but I thought I could sense their presence.
Billy was still hanging around the casino, too. She'd only approached me one more time, asking me if I’d change my mind, but I told her I hadn't. I didn't need anyone else helping me out, and I especially didn't need an inexperienced blonde who’d seen too many spy movies trying to have some fun and getting herself hurt in the process.
I'm not sure if Billy had gotten the message or not—I still saw her every now and then, and I wasn't sure what she was up to—but I assumed she was harmless, and she'd soon get tired of trying to convince me to let her be my sidekick.
As I headed out of the casino, I noticed Ian waiting for me in the lobby. He was slouched down in one of the low, comfy armchairs, watching people coming and going, and when our eyes met, he jumped up and came over.
“You don't have to wait for me every night,” I said. “The case is over, and I'm sure Eli and his men have better things to do than follow me around.”
“I'm not about to take a chance,” Ian said. “Besides, meeting you at the casino gives me an excuse to get out of the house. Your next-door-neighbor, Mrs. Weebly, keeps telling me that I look like a bum. Maybe it's because I don't get out enough.”
I eyed Ian warily. Mrs. Weebly was a bit harsh with the truth, and though Ian's hair was slightly longer than what Mrs. Weebly would approve of, I didn't think his appearance merited such acrimony.
“Even if Eli wanted to have a word with me, I'm sure I could take care of myself,” I said. But for a moment, I felt a strange hesitation.
Eli wasn't a run-of-the-mill criminal; he was a mastermind who'd been involved in illegal arms dealing while working for the CIA, and he'd managed to hurt someone as capable and competent as Stone. I wasn't sure that a mere human like myself could take Eli down if I needed to.
Ian didn't say anything about my comment, but he did tell me that he'd won fifty dollars at the roulette table. “I guess that means I can buy some more cupcake supplies,” he said. “Now that we finally wrapped up the case, I'd like to try to make those fancy red velvet cupcakes. You know, with red velvet batter, and white icing, and fancy little heart-shaped sugar sprinkles on top.”
“That does sound delicious,” I agreed. “Maybe I could help you make them too. I did mean to practice my baking skills when I had a free moment.”
Ian and I chatted happily about baking for a few minutes, as we walked toward our apartment. But every now and then, I turned and looked over my shoulder.
“What's wrong?” Ian finally asked. “You keep looking behind yourself. Do you see someone?”
I shook my head, no. “It's just this feeling—I can't shake it. Like someone is following me.”
Ian frowned. “Let's go home a different way today,” he suggested, and I agreed.
“Everyone keeps saying I should avoid that dark alley behind the Cosmo hotel. Let's try finding somewhere that’s better lit.”
So Ian and I gave our usual route a miss, and instead, we turned onto a side street I'd never been down before. I made another turn, heading toward my apartment, and I was slightly disappointed when I found that this small side street wasn't as well-lit as I'd expected it to be. Sure, it had one working streetlight, but two of the streetlights were dark, and the one on the far end flickered, turning on and off and giving the whole place an eerie, horror movie like feeling.
“This is worse than the alley I usually go down,” I muttered under my breath.
I stopped suddenly. Next to me, Ian froze.
“Are those footsteps?” he said.
My heart raced wildly, and my palms felt sweaty. I glanced behind myself, but I couldn’t see anyone.
There were cars parked on either side of the street, and I peered at them, narrowing my eyes and taking deep breaths.
“I can't see anyone,” I said.
“There!” Ian pointed at the far end of the street.
Two large, hooded figures were walking toward us slowly.
“We can turn and run,” Ian said.
He spun around, and was about to race off. But then, my gaze sharpened, and I recognized the two people.
I grabbed Ian's arm. “No! It's just Stone and Tariq.”
Ian turned around, and let out a loud sigh of relief. “Tariq and Stone! What are they doing here?”
“I thought they would be hiding out in your apartment,” I grumbled, and we walked forward rapidly to meet them.
Tariq and Stone didn't look happy to see us.
“What are you doing here?” Stone said.
“Stone told me that you two take a different way home,” Tariq said. “We did not expect to see you here.”
“We thought we'd try a new route,” Ian said. “We thought someone might be following us.”
Stone narrowed his eyes at Ian. “Are you sure?”
“We might have been imagining it,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. “But what are you two doing here? I thought you would be in hiding.”
“It's taking too long,” Stone muttered.
“We thought we would try to draw out Eli and his men,” Tariq admitt
ed. “We cannot go to Washington DC unless we know that we are safe, and we will never know that until we talk to Eli.”
My heart leaped into my throat. “So you mean, we might run into Eli and his men right here?”
“Don't worry about it,” Ian said, his words a symphony of high-pitched fake enthusiasm. “I'm sure Eli and his men would be no match for the four of us. Besides,” he said, pointing at a button on his shirt, “I'm wearing that mini spy camera. Maybe we could trick him into saying something that would incriminate him.”
Stone and I exchanged a glance.
“This is a bad idea,” Stone said. “I don't want you two getting into trouble. You go ahead to the apartment, and Tariq and I will wait here a bit, before coming after you.”
I was about to protest, but Ian said, “Stone’s right. We don't want to mess up their grand plan.”
Tariq nodded. “It is better if it is just the two of us.”
I wondered if I should insist on staying, but I wanted to make Stone's life easier, not more difficult. I thought about Billy, and her insistence on trying to “help” me, and how much I disliked that. I didn’t want to turn into that.
In the end, I shrugged, said, “Good luck,” and started to walk away with Ian. I could feel Stone's eyes on me, as we headed away, and I told myself that I was doing the right thing. We had only gone a few feet forward, when a movement from behind one of the parked cars opposite where Stone and Tariq were standing caught my attention.
Ian and I whirled around at the same time. We were just in time to see Eli emerging from behind one of the parked cars.
I froze.
Eli was holding a deadly looking gun in his hand, his gray eyes glittered in the darkness, and a thin, amused smile was pasted on his face.
“Stone, Tariq,” he said, “how nice to have the gang back again.”
I stood there, unable to move, wondering if I should rush forward and try to save Stone and Tariq. But my legs seemed to be made of lead, and my voice dried up in my throat.
“Eli,” said Stone steadily. “What an unexpected surprise.”
Next to me, Ian let out a loud squeak.
Eli turned his gaze to Ian and twisted his lips. “And of course, you two are here.”
“Leave Tiffany and Ian out of this,” Stone said. “They've got nothing to do with it.”
“Oh, that’s not true,” Eli said. “I would’ve liked to not meddle with them, but you’re the one who dragged them into this. You had the brilliant idea of stowing Tariq with a civilian.”
A growl escaped from Stone, but he said nothing.
“I wanted to get to Tariq alone,” Eli went on, “But it seemed impossible. These two were always around. It’s a hassle, but I’ve decided to be efficient and deal with you all at once.”
“Come, now,” Tariq said in a mild voice, “There’s no need for this.”
Eli turned his stony eyes toward Tariq. “You,” he snarled. “Why couldn’t you just rot in Kabul with the rest of your friends?”
I saw Tariq stiffen. “And let my friend Stone also ‘rot?’”
Eli’s eyes glimmered. “You always did have a sense of humor. Too bad. After all we’ve been through, all that I did to shift the blame to Stone. You were the one to mess it up. Where’s the flash drive?”
“What flash drive?” Stone said.
“Don’t play dumb,” Eli warned, “I can get my files the easy way, or—” he swiveled the gun slightly so that it was facing me, not Tariq—”the hard way.”
I gulped. I wanted to say something, explain that I had no idea where these files were, that I had nothing to do with it all. But the air was heavy with silence.
And then Ian said, “You know, Tiff told me you got out of Kabul at just the right time.”
Ian sounded surprisingly calm, and Eli glanced at him curiously. “That’s more than you need to know. Once I’m done with you lot, and the files are destroyed, I can get back to my normal life.”
“As opposed to your previous life?” Ian asked. “When you supplied American guns to the Russians and the Taliban in Kabul? And God knows what other information?”
Eli’s eyes snapped angrily. “Enough! We don’t need to sit around chatting about my past.”
“Oh, come on,” Ian said cheerfully. “If you’re going to kill us, why not explain how you brokered all those deals and made your fortune?”
“Because I choose not to,” Eli said. “It’s in the past, and no-one needs to know. Now, where’s the flash drive?”
“At my place,” Stone said. “Let Tiff and Ian go, and I’ll get you the drive.”
Eli shook his head. “That’s not how it works. Tiffany comes with me. The rest of you, scram. I want to see you all walking backward slowly.” We did as he said and trudged slowly backward. “Now Tiffany, you walk forward slowly. I’m taking you with me as collateral until I get my drive.”
I took a few steps forward, and stopped a car-length away from Eli. Thoughts raced through my mind, but I couldn’t process them. I vaguely felt I shouldn’t have come this way. I wondered if Eli would kill me. He most likely would. A man like Eli wouldn’t want to leave behind evidence of his wrongdoings.
I wondered if my family would miss me. I wondered if my body would be found in the desert like Charlene’s. What would happen to Ian, Tariq and Stone? Eli probably had a plan to get rid of them. I couldn’t let that happen! I wondered what I could do to overpower Eli. If I tried to rush him he would shoot me, and then Stone—that’s why Stone had said the drive was at his house.
And then, my mind was bereft of all the conflicting thoughts. I felt clearheaded. I could breathe normally again. I saw Eli as he was: a calculating, ruthless man. He’d planned all this out. If I went with him, he’d kill me, and after that, everyone else.
But at least if I went with him, the others would have time to run away or go into hiding.
It was okay. It would all be worth it.
Eli smiled at me. I knew he’d read my mind. Except he had other plans for making sure he was safe.
“Good girl,” he said softly. “You don’t want me to shoot you, or your friends here.” He jerked his head toward a nondescript white van parked just behind him. “Get in here and we’ll go.”
Still pointing the gun at me, he slid open the door of the van. The inside of the van was a murky darkness, an empty space with a dusty-looking floor. A bundle of what looked like explosives sat in the far corner.
I shuddered and took a deep breath.
I turned around and glanced at my friends one last time. Tears were welling up in Ian’s eyes, and Stone and Tariq looked stoic. When I met Stone’s dark eyes, he nodded slightly.
Hope surged in me. He had a plan! He must have a plan. Maybe he’d follow the van after we drove off. He’d track Eli somehow. He’d do something to make sure we were all safe.
I smiled at the trio bravely, and stepped up into the van.
Eli raised one hand to close the van’s sliding door, and then we all heard it.
A blood-curdling scream. From right behind us.
Eli froze for a second, not moving. And then, pointing the gun steadily at me, he twisted his head just for a moment to glance back. But he was too late.
A bundle of purple clothes and purple-streaked blond hair flung itself on top of him, and a shot rang out. I heard it ricocheting against the van, and I leaped out and straight onto Eli’s back.
I grabbed hold of his wrist. I was twisted instinctively, pulling, trying to angle the gun away from my friends. Billy landed a swift kick somewhere in Eli’s nether regions. Eli toppled over, with me anchoring him face-down on the ground.
And then everyone was around us.
The gun was dislodged from Eli’s hand. Tariq and Stone cuffed Eli’s wrists and Stone appropriated the gun. Ian hauled me up and in for a teary-eyed embrace, and as we hugged, Billy sat on the ground near Eli, clasping her knees, and sobbing.
A few long minutes went by. The world seemed to whirl rou
nd too quickly, everything was in chaos and only Tariq and Stone were calm. Eli was ranting, struggling to get out of the cuffs. He hurled out threats and curses, until Stone pulled out a stun-gun, hit the button loudly, and Eli fell silent.
I took a deep breath, pulled away from Ian, and grabbed Stone for a big hug, tears suddenly streaming down my cheeks. Stone stroked my hair, and I noticed Ian and Tariq approaching Billy and trying to calm her down.
“You w-were going to let me go with him,” I sobbed, my fear and adrenaline suddenly replaced by an unexpected anger. “He was going to kill me and then he was going to kill you!”
Stone continued to stroke my hair and held me close. “Nothing of the sort. Johnson’s parked a street over. We’d have called Ryan straight away, to make sure he’d pull Eli over in a squad car and get you out.”
My tears stopped and I stared up into Stone’s dark eyes in surprise. “You were—Johnson was right here?”
“A street over. He didn’t see Eli coming, but we’ve texted him to get here now.”
“So… you would’ve told Johnson to follow the van. And then Ryan to stop him.”
“We’d need to involve a cop. Eli wouldn’t mess with an officer.”
I felt the tears streaming down again, this time from relief. I leaned in to Stone. His chest was strong, and his arms warm as they wrapped around me.
In my silence, I heard Billy sniffling, telling Ian and Tariq that she was okay now. She’d followed us, she explained, and until Eli pulled the gun, she’d thought we were all friends. And then she’d crept up behind him and attacked. “I wanted to help you guys,” she said, looking up at Ian, “I didn’t mean for anyone to get hurt.”
“Nobody got hurt,” Tariq reassured her. “We are grateful for your help.”
A sleek black car drove up silently, and Stone let go of me as Johnson parked and stepped out.
“We’ve got Eli right there,” Stone said, jerking his head toward the prone body. “He’ll come to in a few minutes.”
“I’ll take care of him,” Johnson said. “I know some folk who’d like a word with him. What exactly happened?”
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