by Ali Vali
They were sitting in the corner of the back of the place, with Lou and a couple of guys at the next table enjoying iced tea. “You look like you could use a drink,” Cain said when Muriel sat down. “Rough day?”
“Tied up loose ends and some more unraveled—typical.” Muriel quickly drained the glass Cain pushed toward her. “Expecting someone else?” She pointed to the other empty chair.
“Remi called and invited us, and I thought it was a good night to go out. To be seen, as it were.” Cain signaled the waiter for another round and another place setting and glanced at her watch; it was a minute to eight.
They continued to chitchat until Remi arrived with her date. The room quieted for a moment as Dallas followed Remi to their table, but just as quickly the other diners went back to their own conversations.
“It’s great to meet you, Dallas,” Emma said.
“I figured she’d like having dinner with all of you since she thinks I’m only interested in sleeping with her,” Remi said, clearly teasing.
“Then come to the restroom with me and I’ll give you some pointers,” Emma said to Dallas, making the others laugh.
“I’d find a hobby,” Cain told Remi once the two left. “If Emma’s persuasive, and she is, then sex is a long way off, if that is what you had in mind.”
“And I thought this was a good idea,” Remi said.
Cain looked at her watch and the second hand was sweeping past the two, on its way to mark nine o’clock. In her mind’s eye she could see the armored van leaving the underground parking facility. The drive wouldn’t take very long, and that’s why it was being done at night. Less traffic meant fewer hassles from point a to point b.
She looked up as Emma and Dallas headed back, walking closely together and already appearing to be best friends. Cain loved seeing Emma like this, alive and happy, and she was willing to do anything to keep her that way. Even if it meant crossing a line considered taboo for so very long, no matter what city you did business in.
Chapter Fifteen
“Comfortable back there?” Agent Martin Chesterfield asked through the open porthole between the front seat and the back section.
“Just drive, asshole. And shut the fuck up.” Barney Kyle stretched his hands upward but found that the shackles would stretch only an inch past his knees.
“I can see you’re going to charm everyone in court tomorrow, but don’t get too comfortable with the accommodations. Once you plead to the state charges against you, we’ll pick you up for your next court appearance. It’s a good thing you look so good in that federal gray, since you’ll be wearing it for years to come.” Martin laughed as they drove under the interstate. “Just ten more blocks now. How’s it feel to be so popular?”
“Fuck off.”
“Be nice or I’ll tell our brethren over at central lockup to put you in with the general population. You know how those local guys feel about us. Then I’ll ask them to pin a note to your back so everyone knows what you used to do for a living. I bet those guys won’t care that you don’t work for us anymore.”
The driver pulled up to the gate on Broad Street and handed over the necessary papers. After a glance the guard pressed the button and the gate rolled slowly back, powered by a motor that sounded like it was on its last breath.
“Wait here, I’ll be right back,” Martin told the driver, getting out and walking to the back with the key. “Come on, Mr. Kyle.” He unlocked the chain looped through his cuffs and put his hand under his arm to help Kyle down. “We’ll be back for you tomorrow around ten.” Martin let him go as the sheriff’s officers responsible for the jail population walked toward them.
Merrick waited until Kyle was standing between the two groups before she set up her shot. The night-vision scope on the rifle she was using clearly outlined his head in the crosshairs. She took a breath and had started to put pressure on the trigger when he looked up at her as if he knew she was there. The last thing she saw as she squeezed all the way was his brows going up in what appeared to be confusion.
“Cover,” more than one of the police around Kyle screamed as the back of his head sprayed into the rear of the van he’d been transported in.
Merrick took advantage of the chaos to remove the scope and lean the rifle on the half wall surrounding the old Jax Beer brewery. The rear fire escape looked rickety, but she took the steps at an alarming rate, not wanting to get caught anywhere in the vicinity when the cavalry started streaming out of the jail yard. Only Cain knew where she was and why she was there, and she had every intention of keeping it that way.
Once she was on the ground, she headed toward the downtown area at a normal pace, until she got to the convenience store where she’d parked the car she’d picked up for the job. As she drove toward Jarvis’s, she kept under the speed limit, not that the police cars with their lights and sirens blaring would have noticed her.
“Now it’s a matter of waiting,” she said as she turned into the used-car lot. She slid the keys under the front seat and took her scope before walking to her own car parked behind the office. “Because it’s only a matter of time before the feebies come a-knocking.”
*
“So you live in the city?” Emma asked Dallas as the entrées were brought out. “I’m shocked we haven’t run into you, since Cain has a business down there.”
“We’ve probably crossed paths, but I’m not famous enough for you to recognize me.” Dallas nodded her thanks to the waiter and took a sip of wine.
“Hopefully this next film will take care of that,” Remi said. “Then you can tell us if being noticed is more a curse than a blessing.” She picked up her fork and used it to point at Cain. “What’s your opinion?”
“It’s a curse, but I think Dallas will handle the fame a little easier than we do. We’re more apt to end up on the cover of some rag, but the public won’t see it unless they mail lots of packages at the post office. After tonight I’m sure Emma agrees with me that we made a wise investment choice.”
“I’m not sure what you mean by your fame, and the investment choice isn’t registering either,” Dallas said.
Remi smiled at her. “You’ll understand the first part soon enough if we have more than a couple of minutes together, and the second one’s easy. Meet the forty-nine percent owner of the studio.”
“You all are a well-kept secret then, because I haven’t heard of you either,” Dallas told Cain. She was about to say something else but stopped when the smile fell away from Cain’s face as she stared at the front of the restaurant. “Friend of yours?”
Emma reached for Cain’s hand. “She’s more like a termite. Hidden away most of the time and swarms only every so often, but just as destructive.”
“Finish dinner and I’ll be right back.” Cain rubbed Emma’s hand between hers, then stood. She waved off Lou and Muriel as she strode toward an agitated-appearing woman, who stood at the door. “Are you here for the crab cakes?”
“Cut the shit, Cain. You know exactly why I’m here,” Shelby said in a harsh whisper. “I want you to come in for questioning.”
“If it’s about the crab cakes I’ll be happy to, but I’d rather finish dinner first.” People were seated near the door waiting for tables so their chatter was loud enough to cover Cain’s conversation. “But if it’s about something else, then you’re going to have to fill me in since I’m sure you think I did it, and I’m sure I know nothing about it.”
“Cain, your food’s getting cold,” Muriel said as she walked up. “And, Agent Philips, unless you have a warrant handy, then I suggest you scuttle back to your little cocoon outside.”
“So your client knows nothing about…never mind.” She pulled her hair back in apparent frustration. “I’m going to central lockup on Tulane Avenue, and if I find one thing tying you to tonight, pack your toothbrush in the morning, because I’m taking you in, Cain. As for you, this is what you really want?” She looked at Muriel. “If it is, then I don’t know what to think of you anymore. A
nd I’m not sure I’ll spend any time worrying about it. Cain, expect me in the morning.”
“I’ll have coffee and biscuits ready,” she responded, laughing when Shelby came close to saying something else but instead chose to storm out.
“Stop antagonizing the help,” Muriel said.
“I’m just trying to figure out if she’s more pissed at me or at you.”
“Are you going to tell me what she’s so upset about or do I have to guess?”
Cain put her arm around Muriel’s shoulders and started back to the table. “What am I always telling you about time and place, cousin? The time right now is for crab cakes. When we get home I’ll tell you a bedtime story.”
“Everything all right?” Remi asked.
“What were we saying about fame? Or should I say notoriety?” Cain cocked her head in the direction of the door. “Something obviously happened tonight, and for some reason I’m the first person they blame.”
“A Girl Scout like you? Hard to believe,” Remi said as they all laughed.
Cain picked up her fork and took a bite of her crab cakes. She hoped whatever they’d served Kyle that night before shipping him off to hell was something he halfway enjoyed. Because if Father Andrew was right, he’d be up to his neck in pig shit for the whole of eternity, a fantasy that would let her sleep better at night.
*
“You have nothing?” Shelby asked Martin after leaving the French Quarter and arriving at the jail.
“If you want to call the remodel job on the transport van and Kyle’s new hairdo nothing, then I’m sure I can’t talk you out of it. But if you’re talking having someone in custody, then you’re on the money. We have nothing.”
A member of the FBI’s forensic team walked up with a rifle in his hand. “We found this across the street on the roof, ma’am. We started there since it was the only logical spot after we figured the trajectory of the shot.”
“Take it in and find out what tree the stock came from by morning,” Annabel said. She’d left her house in jeans and a sweatshirt after Shelby’s call. “Shit,” she said, after taking a look under the sheet covering Kyle. “I didn’t agree with what he did, but he deserved better than this.”
“I hate to say this,” Shelby said, squatting down next to Annabel, “but for once I have to agree with Anthony. This has Cain written all over it, and we need to find the connection that leads back to her. No one but a handful of people knew we were transporting tonight, and one of them had to have talked. Find that link and we finally find our way to a warrant with the name Casey on it.”
“Make your list then, and keep me in the loop. If Casey is involved she went too far this time. Kyle wasn’t on the right side of the law, but he was our responsibility until the process had run its course. I don’t like being made a fool of.”
“If it’s there, we’ll find it.”
Chapter Sixteen
“If you check around, Mr. Luis, you won’t find anyone who can help you deal with problems better than me.” Anthony Curtis had forgone the dark suit for a pair of khakis and a black leather jacket. He’d made it into the Luis suite at the Piquant, but Rodolfo still appeared wary.
“Tell me how a member of the FBI can help me except maybe try and bring me down.” Rodolfo flicked his cigar in the direction of the ashtray but missed. The fat ash that landed on the light-colored carpet didn’t seem to concern him, though, like a man used to others cleaning up after him. “And please don’t try to deny who your employer is. One of my associates in the city pointed you out.”
“I’m not going to deny that the FBI was my employer, but not anymore. I was dismissed recently, so I’m looking for something new to keep my interest. You and your nephew came to mind when I figured we have a common problem.”
“Sounds interesting. Let’s hear it.”
Rodolfo crossed his legs and started puffing on his cigar again, so Anthony felt comfortable enough to sit down. Behind Rodolfo’s head was a perfect view of the city’s night skyline. “Derby Cain Casey.”
“That’s it?” Rodolfo laughed. “I met Ms. Casey on my last trip. She’s rather abrupt in her conversation, but I doubt she’s a problem to me.”
“Really?” He mirrored Rodolfo’s relaxed pose by crossing his legs. “Your business hasn’t suffered any setbacks recently?” Rodolfo flinched and tried to hide his reaction, but Anthony saw it. His fish had taken the bait, so he stood up and shrugged. “Sorry I bothered you. I must have you confused with someone else.”
Rodolfo shrugged as well. “You have to see it from where I’m sitting, Mr. Curtis. If I admit to having a business problem, as it were, then if you’re just on temporary leave I might have a problem when you decide to return to work. A man like me stays in business by making sure of his moves before he makes them.”
“I agree you have no reason to trust me, but you also would be a fool to turn me down. I’m no longer with the Bureau because of that bitch, so if the only way to bring her down is by working on the other side of the law, I’m willing to take my chances.”
“Let me think about it and I’ll get back to you.” As soon as Rodolfo finished speaking, one of his men stepped up and stood behind Anthony, ready to escort him out of the room. “If I do agree to your offer, there’s one thing you should keep in mind.”
“What’s that?” Anthony could see himself starting to reel in slowly because he knew the hook was now in place.
“If I’m disappointed in your job performance, I’ll handle things differently than your previous employers. I’m not a man who tolerates disappointment well.”
“Understood.” Standing in the hall, Anthony felt his confidence crack a little, but he knew he could work around it. He was doing this to prove a point, and because he wasn’t about to spend his leave in his apartment sulking until Annabel felt he was ready to come back. When Cain was out of the picture and Rodolfo was sharing her fate, he’d give Annabel her wish and transfer somewhere else, but so would she when he proved just how incompetent she was.
“We’re going to use him, right?” Juan asked, coming into the room when he heard the front door close.
“What we’re going to do, or at least what you’re going to do, is everything I tell you to. I haven’t been thrilled with your behavior lately, so unless you’re ready to let me know what’s on your mind that’s made you lose your control, consider yourself on a short leash.” Juan was dressed as if he was going out for the evening. “If you choose to disobey me, then take what I told Curtis to heart. I won’t allow you to bring this family down for whatever it’ll take to satisfy you.”
“Papa, I may be many things, but I’ll never turn against you or disappoint you. You have my word on that.”
“If you’re so loyal, tell me what’s bothering you.”
Juan stared at him for awhile without saying anything, just rocking in place. He reminded Rodolfo of when he was a little boy thinking of the best way to put something so Rodolfo wouldn’t get angry.
“The last time we were here…” Juan said, sitting next to Rodolfo on the sofa so he could keep his eyes on his shoes. He told Rodolfo of his attempts to talk to Emma and how she’d laughed and humiliated him. The more he spoke the more venomous his tone became, and Rodolfo could easily read between the lines.
Juan had found something he wanted, and for once in the privileged life Rodolfo had given him, he couldn’t have it. The realization was making Juan crazy, and crazy men were dangerous, in Rodolfo’s opinion.
“You’re my son, no matter who fathered you,” he said, putting his hand behind Juan’s neck, “and I love you. But get that woman out of your head. Cain Casey may be a woman, but she’s a viper I’d rather leave alone. If you do anything to Emma, Cain won’t stop coming until she’s destroyed all of us. You bring that down on us, and you won’t have to worry about her. I’ll take care of you myself, no matter how much I love you.”
“You’d take her side over mine?” Juan tried pulling away from Rodolfo but couldn�
��t break his grasp.
“If you see it that way, we’re going to have a problem. If you respect nothing, then you’ll live your life without honor. In this case you have to respect Emma Casey’s wishes and her commitments to someone else. So promise me you’ll do that.” Juan tried to pull away from him again. “I said promise me.”
“I promise, Papa.”
Rodolfo let him go and did nothing as Juan bolted from the room, followed by the men assigned to him. When they came back, he’d have to talk with the men guarding his nephew. He hoped he wasn’t too late, because when a man made a promise he looked you in the eye. Juan had said the words, but they had no truth in them.
“No matter how hard I tried, I guess I couldn’t knock your father’s influence out of you. He was the same type of man when it came to women, and look what happened to him.” Rodolfo spoke aloud as he gazed out at the city. “Even from the grave he has more of a hold over you than I do.”
The glow of his cigar reflected in the glass, and he considered his next move since he hadn’t been able to contact anyone in the Bracato organization. His business was important, but the smartest first move he could make was to contact Cain. They would never be friends, but he could prevent her from becoming an enemy.
*
“What are you still doing up, sweet pea?” Cain asked Hannah when they got home and she found Carmen holding her in the den.
“I miss you and Mama,” Hannah said as she did her best to wriggle away from Carmen.
“We missed you too, but it’s way past your bedtime,” Emma said, not sounding amused as she scooped Hannah up before she got to Cain. “Time for bed, and you,” she pointed at Cain, “don’t start without me.”