“Angry? Is that what I was to you?”
“At me, and yes. I’m just wondering if the angry came after she passed, or if you’ve always been this way.” I laid it out so there’s no confusion. He doesn’t take hints.
He shifted in his seat and checked the mirrors before replying, “No. Her death did me in. Taking our unborn child with her while screaming for me to save her over an over, fucked me up pretty bad.”
“I thought I’d seen some shit in my time with search and rescues. I hated the recoveries. I can’t even imagine what you went through.”
“A lot of hate, then guilt. She should have listened. I should have trained her better. Was it my fault, or hers, that our son never got a chance at life? All that shit took it’s toll. I built a wall against life, kind of like that Hate Cake of yours.”
“My Hate Cake is done. It was burned up the day I got you back after you went chasing rogue hunters.” I scolded. “Can you like, not do that again?”
“It’s unusual they shoot at me like that.”
I rolled my eyes and went back to finding a Wal-Mart. “I don’t want to sleep in the parking lot under the lights. We’ll shop then go somewhere else, like a rest stop.”
“Since when do you call the shots?” He asked reaching over to poke my thigh.
“Since I have the pussy.”
He shook his head, “A few days around the club and you’re already a vulgar biker bitch.”
“Feels good to have some confidence back.” I confided.
“You wear it well my dear. I have a question for you.” He led.
“What’s that?”
“Why is Quinton so hell bent on finding you? And before you say the reward money I already checked into it. He’s spent three times that trying to track you. What’s the real reason?”
I felt the left side of my lower lip drop. Busted. I took a deep breath and hit Map so he’d know where to go before sitting back to tell this part of my story.
“We owned a few companies together. He was stealing from a couple of them and stashing money in off shore accounts. I accidentally found his account numbers and passwords under his desk. He didn’t know I saw them, or that I have a photographic memory.”
“It took me two days to figure out what was going on. When I did I tracked the money he’s been stashing to a joint account we’d created for international travel. I promptly moved the money into an account nobody can find but me.”
He gripped the steering wheel a couple times before asking, “What were you doing under the desk?”
“Dusting for cobwebs? Don’t do that. I’ve been honest with you about my past, leave it in the past.”
He groaned then must have decided to do just that. “Where’s this money?”
I shook my head, “Nope, not gonna happen.”
He glanced over again, “What?”
“If you know where it is that makes you a target. This truck could be bugged for all I know. That money is long gone anyway, but Quinton doesn’t know that.” That’s a lie. The money is sitting in a safe deposit box on a small island in the Caribbean.
“Gone? You spent it?”
“I gave it away.”
He checked the mirrors again and pulled over to the side of the road, He put the Hazard lights on and turned to give me his full attention. “Lie to me again.” He dared with a look that told me he knows me better than I thought.
I sighed, “Sorry. I can’t get to the money, so I might as well have given it away.”
“Why not give it to Quinton and be out from under running from him?”
“Because once he gets the money he’ll have unlimited resources to send my ass straight to prison.”
“Why would he do that if he has the money?”
“Because I humiliated him by jumping off my Daddy’s boat and faking my death on his watch. I was out on bail. He’s a Federal Bondsman. You do the ego math.”
“Just out of curiosity, how much money are we talking about here?”
“Eighty million.”
“Are you shitting me?? You have eighty million dollars sitting in a safe deposit box somewhere in the Caribbean?”
“Yup, with a contingency clause that says if I don’t return to collect it in the next five years it’s to be used towards education in the neediest areas first. I have it all written out.” I waved it off.
“Why not keep the money? You could have donated it years ago.”
“Not being dead I couldn’t. I don’t want the money, it’s stolen. Quinton has the connections to track money via serial number. Every time a dollar hits a bank it’s recorded.”
“He knows the serial numbers of all this cash?”
“He can access the information, yes. The money was reported stolen, the investigators never tied him to being the one that stole it. Only I can prove he stole it, another reason he’ll kill me.”
“What do you mean ‘another reason’? Kill you? I thought you said he wanted you in prison?”
“I’m sure that’s where I’ll start. He’s a federal bondsman Troop, he can have me taken out in prison without much effort. One well placed lie and I’m sporting a shiv in my neck.”
“Why didn’t you tell me all this before?”
“Relevance, and that whole, ‘the less you know the better’ thing, but I guess the cat’s out of the bag now.” I complained looking over the new pre-paid cell phone his brother had given us. Gunner took our other phones to Joe for safekeeping.
He shook his head, “Eighty million dollars. That’s what he really wants, and to make sure you can’t send him to prison. Maybe I’ll find him first and make him disappear.”
“Trust me I’ve thought about it, but he’s a big dude, not as big as you, but I can’t move his body to hide it. I’ve already got one murder on my rap sheet, I don’t need two.”
“What you did wasn’t murder babe. You simply put a man you love out of his misery, with his blessing. I can’t imagine being in that position, and I admire you a great deal for being able to do it.”
“Did you just call me ‘babe’?” I heard all of what he said, but I can’t get past the term of endearment.
He shook his head, “No.”
“Liar.”
He exhaled slowly sounding frustrated, “We need a plan.”
“I need to die again is what needs to happen.” I complained. “But this time we need a body. Know any ME’s or coroners with extra Jane Doe’s lying around?”
He pointed at me, “That’s actually not a bad idea. If we can bait Quinton in the process even better. I’ll talk to Gunner, see what he thinks.”
“Why Gunner?” I asked just out of curiosity.
“Goat brings the bodies, Gunner makes them disappear. I’m going to see if he can turn around and make one appear.”
I laughed, “I tell you what, remind me never to get on Exiles bad side.”
“You don’t have it in you baby. Let me see that phone.”
I handed it over, “Okay, but only because you called me ‘baby’.”
“I did not.” He started dialing.
***
Of course I couldn’t talk to Gunner over the phone, at least not his phone anyway. He called me back later from a more secure line. Jasmine is sleeping soundly on the makeshift bed in the back of the van.
I went outside as to not disturb her, “Thanks for calling me back.”
“No problem. Tell me your plan.”
“It’s only a partial plan, I’ll need the club’s help to carry it out. First thing we need to do is find a body to make Karen’s death real this time. I want Quinton taken out.”
“You do realize I can’t convince a Medical Examiner to say it’s Karen without physical evidence, right?”
“What do you need?”
“Hair, teeth, some blood w
ould be helpful.”
“I can get you hair and blood, but no teeth.”
“You don’t understand, either I get all three, or this is a no-go. If you want this to be solid, it’s going to cost her.”
“I can’t pull my wife’s teeth Gunner.”
“No, that’s what we have Myk for. Two teeth, a few vials of blood, a fingernail or two, and some hair with the follicles still attached. I need all of those things before I procure a Jane Doe from the morgue.”
“Fuck. There’s no other way?”
“This is high profile case Troop, you tell me if you see another way out.” He challenged.
“Can we at least knock her out so she’s not in pain?”
“I’m sure Myk will hook you up. She’s the doctor.”
“That’s Cord’s crazy lesbian wife isn’t it?”
“Yup, her father was a serial killer. Remember Machete?”
“Oh yeah, I know this story. Aw man. I can’t believe I’m about to agree to this.”
“I’ll make contact with Myk and call you back with further instructions.”
“Thanks Gunner. I owe you one.”
“Family takes care of family bro.” He reminded me. “Although I do have some parking tickets that could use taking care of.”
“Done. Oh, do me a favor and have Zac on standby for a charter to the Caribbean.”
“Why?”
“I’ll explain another time, just forewarn him we might be needing his services in the next week or so.”
“No problem. Talk to you soon.”
“Okay, thanks.” I disconnected and put the phone in my back pocket. “Fuck.” How did this happen?
I went back and sat on the bed to watch her sleep. My beautiful wife. Technically we’re not married, but she’s my wife as far as I’m concerned. The thought of what has to be done to her in order to pull this off makes me sick to my stomach.
She sensed my presence like she always does and rolled over, “Hey. Everything okay?”
“No, it most certainly isn’t.” I lay down and pulled her under my arm so she can wrap around me.
She slid her hand under my shirt, “What did Gunner say?”
I relayed the conversation to her, gory details and all.
She didn’t say anything for a long time. I’m sure this is unsettling, but so is her silence.
“Jazz?”
She looked over quickly, “What did you just call me?”
“Jazz, Jasmine. I don’t know. Why?”
“My dad called me Jazz. My mother hated it.” She did some kind of weird frustrated dance and kicked her feet.
“Want to go for a run?” I’d offer sex, but I think she needs something else. She needs time to process. Time to think without interruptions.
She was off the bed and getting dressed before I could catch her.
We ran for a good hour then came back to take showers in the public facilities. I brought her into the men’s side and kept her close, and shielded. There’s no way I’m letting my wife shower alone in a public place.
She wrapped her hair up in a towel like women do and looked up at me, “I think we should bait Quinton with the money. Maybe if he has that he’ll leave me alone.”
“I thought you said he’d come after you.”
“If I can convince him the money is clean he won’t.”
“But it’s not clean.” I argued.
She finished packing our things in the bag. “He doesn’t know that though. I took the money out with the intention of laundering it, but never found someone to do it. That’s why I put it in a safe deposit box.”
I took the bag and pushed the door open for us to exit. “The first time he runs that money through a bank it’s going to start a trail for the Feds to follow.” I’m following her train of thought, but I’m not sure this is going to work.
“The money was reported stolen by the companies we both owned. If I’m dead for real this time the Feds will take Quinton and stop looking for me. The main problem right now is the fact that you’re tied up in this mess. I think you should go back to Alaska and pretend we parted ways a long time ago. Say I left after we stopped and the club so you went for a road trip. I don’t know. I just know you need to be disconnected from me for a while if Jasmine is ever going to find her way back to you without endangering your job or your life. You can pretend you had no idea who I was until the news hit.”
I almost laughed out loud. “Absolutely not. The day I leave your side to do anything besides fish or hunt, is the day you can bury my big ass up on Milford’s mountain.”
We climbed in the van where she started digging around in her purse. “You don’t understand. People are looking for both of us. If you go back now you can remove yourself from any criminal charges by saying you didn’t know who I was until I was gone. If you stay then none of this will work.”
“Then we come up with a new plan. I’m not leaving you Jasmine.”
“Yeah, I was afraid of that.” She complained then sat with a humph on the bed to look at her phone.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m going to tell Gunner about the money.”
I snatched the phone. “The hell you are. When the dust settles on this we’ll go get the money and do whatever you want with it. Right now your ass is staying glued to my hip until we figure this out.”
“Run my idea by Gunner and see if he’s got a better one.” She dared me boldly taking her hair down and picking up a hairbrush.
I found her leash and attached it to her collar. I pinched the clasp hard enough it bent over making it impossible for her to get it off without my help. Then I wrapped the leash around my hand and pulled her over to sit on my lap.
“I’m serious.” She’s trying to undo the leash. “What did you just do?”
“Crimped the clasps together. When you stop talking about me leaving you to deal with this bullshit alone I’ll remove it.” I tapped the wheel of the phone and called Gunner.
He picked up right away, “Hey bro, how’s it going?”
“Still alive, but my wife here is trying to get rid of me. Did you talk to Myk yet?”
“Yea, she’s ready when we are. So far the pictures circulating about Karen look like her old self before the girls gave her a makeover, so until we figure out how to make this as believable as possible you need to leave your wife.”
“What?? Fuck you. Fuck no.”
“I’m sending Joe and a couple other guys to your location now. If you come back and act like you had no idea who she was and where she went then that’s one less thing Georgia has to do in court later. If you stay, you’ll be charged with Aiding and Abetting. You’ll lose your job for sure, and probably do jail time.”
“Prison time, jail time is overnight bullshit. Goddammit!!” I hugged my wife tighter. “I can’t leave her Gunner.”
“Joe is going to see her safely to Myk’s place where we do what we discussed earlier. Once her body is discovered and identified you two can meet back up and live happily ever after. Probably a few months.”
“OH fuck that!”
“It’s the only way dude.” He argued.
“No, it’s not.” Jasmine interrupted. “I have a shit ton of money Quinton stole from me, well, rather us. I’m sure he’s convinced I’m alive by now, maybe I can bait him with the money.”
“Wait, he stole money from you, then you stole it back?”
“Ugh, yes. I was under his desk doing something I don’t normally do, and ended up seeing something taped underneath. I memorized the number and had a Private Investigator check into it. I found out he’d been funneling money from our joint companies.
“Since the companies were in both our names the account he opened had to be in both our names to, or the bank wouldn’t agree to transfer the funds. I’m not sure how he
pulled it off, but when I realized I could cash out, that’s what I did.”
“How much money are we talking here?” Gunner asked.
“Eighty million. I never got around to washing it, so it’s sitting in a safe deposit box.”
“Where?”
Jasmine shook her head, “I’m not going to give up the location of the bait until Troop goes home and acts like he has no idea who I really am.”
My temper is about to snap. “Don’t even think about it.”
“I have to agree with Jasmine. The longer you two stay together the higher the chance you end up in prison for harboring a fugitive. Slider won’t allow it.”
“You can’t force me to leave my wife.” I argued frustrated because I hate that they’re right.
“Actually we can. We’d rather not though bro. Let us help before this gets out of control and we lose both of you.” Gunner isn’t taking no for answer.
***
We have the perfect plan, if only His Highness would stop being so damn stubborn.
Joe is avidly trying to convince Fletcher that he’ll ensure my safety, and to trust him that our plan will work.
It took about an hour before my very pissed off Master walked over and cupped my face. He tilted my head back and searched my eyes for a moment before saying, “You have until July thirty-first. If you’re not back in my arms by midnight on that day I will hunt you down and drag you home.”
“Thank you.” Relief washed over me. “I promise I’ll be back. One way or another, I’ll come home to you.” Let’s just hope it’s not in a body bag.
“You better. You better be real fucking careful too Jasmine. I love you. You think I’m an asshole now?” He closed his eyes. “I can’t even think about losing you.”
“You won’t lose me. This is the only way Master. All other solutions point to me in prison, and possibly you back in prison.” I smiled, “I love you too.”
“You better after putting me through all this shit.” He complained then rested his forehead against mine. “I can’t lose you. Failing you like this is killing me.”
I pushed up to my tippy toes and kissed his lips, “You’re not failing me.”
The Ice King On My Hate Page 14