Declan ignored Linc's questions, as did Malachy. Declan's eyes were locked on Malachy, pools of swirling gray mist of the storm of emotions he had barely contained beneath the surface. "How did you find me Malachy?"
Malachy was more interested in learning Declan had an accent than in anything else going on at the moment, including answering Declan's question about how they tracked him to Houston. "Wait, really? Those pussy Feds got you speaking in an Irish accent as part of your cover? Gave you an Irish name too I learned. What the hell man? That is some funny shit considering everything. What else did those WITSEC pricks add to your story? I didn't take the time to dig too far into your life once we figured out where to find you so I don't know what you've been up to the past few years." Malachy waited for an answer, still refusing to engage in any type of conversation with the Dixon Brothers. I could see Lincoln becoming more enraged with each passing moment. He would blow soon, of that I was sure, and the consequences would impact us all.
Malachy confirmed our worst fears. They had recovered Declan's records from Hayes and knew Declan was in WITSEC. It also meant they were responsible for Hayes's death. I had hoped they only found Declan by chance. Declan tensed. "We found you because of your dumbass Boy Scout behavior, Mikey. You just had to be the big hero and save your old lady neighbor from that fire. In the process, you got your ugly face on the news. You always had to be the hero, didn't you?" He paused a moment and I knew there was more to that statement than the obvious.
"And just your luck it was Paddy who was watching the news one night when the story about your heroics flashed on the screen. Of course we didn't know it was you for sure at the time because they kept calling you something else in the news story. But then Paddy saw that goddamn tattoo on your chest. The one dedicated to your mom. He knew that tattoo had to be a one-of-a-kind. So we started digging and found some interesting things." He smirked at Declan and waited for a response.
Declan never spoke the entire time Malachy explained how the O'Bannion boys ended up in Houston. Declan had been right to be worried after the news story broke about his rescue of Ms. Thelma. And now his worst fears had come true.
Malachy continued. "Paddy sent us down here to Texas when we finally had something solid. By chance we got a lead on your handler Hayes from one of our contacts at the Federal Prosecutor's Office. Oh and I guess I should tell you, your buddy Hayes put up a hell of a fight keeping the details of your case a secret. It took some persuasion that Orin," he stopped to gesture to the biggest of the thugs behind him who grinned sadistically back at us, "really enjoyed delivering. In the end, Hayes didn't give us much. Eventually, we found a hidden file in his house though, and it listed some of your information including that you were banging a local attorney. He seemed really concerned that this relationship might have consequences for you. Looks like he may have been more astute than he realized." He winked at me.
I heard Declan suck in his breath and then exhale slowly. The pain and anger he felt for what had happened to Hayes left him raw and raging inside, I could see, from the flush of his cheeks.
Malachy looked me over. For not the first time in the past few days, my skin crawled with revulsion caused by the gaze of a sadistic asshole invading my life. "Not bad Mikey. Not bad at all. When I read in the file she was a few years past her prime, I was a bit worried about you. But then, you always had good taste in the ladies. It was your pecker-head father who made the piss poor choices when it came to the women he fucked." He looked me up and down once more before turning back to Declan.
Declan could barely speak he was so angry. He spit the words into the room through clenched teeth. "Fuck you Malachy. Don't look at her like that and don't talk about my father ever again."
Malachy smiled but I could see he was starting to seethe a bit as well. It was clear Declan could rub him the wrong way. "Mighty brave talk from a man tied to a chair, facing the shit-storm you find yourself smack in the middle of right now. Better watch your mouth, Mikey. Things can get a whole lot worse very fast and I wouldn't mind starting the party with your lady there. Maybe I could give you a taste of the pain you have in store once we get back to Boston and you face the old man." His threat was clear. Why the hell did so many people suddenly want to kill me?
Linc was getting more and more confused as Declan and Malachy continued talking. Linc's eyes were wide and annoyed as they darted back and forth between Declan and Malachy.
His eyes were back on Malachy when he barked his questions again. "What the fuck are you two talking about? What does he have to do with WITSEC?" He jerked his head in Declan's direction. Lincoln was breathing heavier now, his anger and bewilderment at what was happening growing with each new exchange between the men. He may not have understood exactly what was happening but he knew it was bad and would likely threaten the future of his red race car dreams. "And what the hell do you fuckers want with pretty boy anyway?" Linc worked his jaw waiting impatiently for an answer.
Malachy swung his gaze at Linc as though he was just then noticing there was someone else in the room besides Declan. As his eyes fully focused on Linc the irritation at having to address him overflowed into his speech.
"Maybe the question should be what the fuck do you want with him and his lady friend? It seems you may have less than honorable intentions with them tied up and all. What exactly is going on here?"
Linc and Rose exchanged brief looks. They were silent while they contemplated their answer. "None of your fucking business." Linc finally hissed, the waning of his confidence evident in his voice. Maybe he wasn't as stupid as he appeared and the full weight of the situation was starting to finally become clear to him.
Malachy rubbed the end of his gun against his forehead, his exasperation growing with each interaction he had with these Kentucky idiots. "Now see, that is where you are wrong." He gestured to the men behind him, "I appear to have you outgunned, and from this brief conversation, outsmarted too. So it might be in your best interest to start talking before things get, shall we say, complicated." Another implied threat, made all the more terrifying by the calmness with which it was delivered.
"Hey man. Did you just call us dumb? Did he call us dumb, Linc?" Rose bellowed from the other room, his face contorted in anger and confusion. I was surprised he had caught the insult from Malachy at all.
Ignoring the outburst, Malachy raised his gun, starting towards Linc as he continued talking," So why don't you wanna-be hillbilly bad-asses put those guns down before someone gets hurt, okay? My patience is running very thin and I have some business with Mikey over there I need to finish and I have no time to be dealing with you."
Time froze for a moment as the room stopped all motion. The six men slowly pointed their guns a little more forcefully at each other. No one was willing to back down yet no one was willing to take the next step and act on the threats they had been lobbing back and forth. Less than hour had passed since Malachy and his men entered my house and it felt like a lifetime of life had been lived. I felt my body fluctuating, in rapid turns, between exhaustion from the emotionally intense moment and an intense pulsing of energy fed by my fear and adrenaline. And then the world exploded again and I wondered for a split second if I really was just caught in some bad dream I couldn't wake from.
We all heard the cocking of a gun at the same time and simultaneously turned to the sound that emanated from the direction of the kitchen just as a Latin infused voice spoke to the room. "Or perhaps, all of you should discard your weapons so we can have a more civilized conversation."
Holy hell. Was there really another group of fully armed men in my house? How the hell could this day get any worse or any weirder for that matter?
The man who had drawn our attention spoke again while nearly everyone sat in shocked silence, except Malachy of course, who looked just slightly more annoyed than before. The man was a machine.
"As I was saying, perhaps it would be best if we reduced the number of weapons in the room." His suggestion sounded m
ore like an order.
Malachy finally moved his weapon off of Linc for the first time since entering my house. He started across the room, his gun now angled at the newest guest to our deranged get-together, who in turn returned the favor. Malachy was well into the room before he stopped.
"Now who the fuck are you, Amigo?" He shook his head, "This party already had enough assholes without you trying to add a few more."
The man looked at Malachy. "Yes, that is clear. However, I have some business here. My name is Emiliano Ortiz, and I work for the Lazcano Cartel." He let the information do its work on the room before continuing. Declan and I exchanged another look while Linc turned pale and nervous. Poor Roosevelt simply looked confused. Malachy remained nearly unfazed as I had come to learn was his near constant state of being.
Again, Rose failed to read the situation to know when to keep his mouth shut. He burst out "Hey, weren't we supposed to meet you guys at that bar? What the fuck man? This really screws things up." Captain Obvious he was not.
Ortiz had identified the power structure of the room, quickly, and he recognized Malachy as his biggest threat. After Rose spoke, Ortiz turned his head only slightly from focusing on Malachy to look at the snorting man.
I had seen people give a cockroach a better look than the one Ortiz bestowed on Rose in that moment. "And who are you exactly?"
His question deflated Rose's bravado a bit. He frowned. "I'm Roosevelt Dixon and that's my brother Lincoln. We're the ones who were making the deal with you for these two." He finished with a gesture at Declan and me.
The situation was proving to be too out of control for Lincoln. He chose to remain silent as his angry eyes darted between his imbecile brother and the newest threat in the room. Things couldn't have been going much worse for them right now and I knew from experience he was overwhelmed to the point of being immobile.
Malachy laughed, the harsh sound crashing around the room, drawing everyone's attention back to him. "Now this all makes sense. I know who the hell you two are and now I know exactly what it was you were hoping to do with those two." He shook his head, in amusement. "I read about you boys in that file we got from Hayes. You guys are the ones from the lovely lady's past who she got in all that trouble with back in some shit kicker state when she was a kid." His goons laughed at the snide comment. Rose and Linc glared at him from across the room. Their Kentucky pride ran deep even at a time like this.
Malachy shrugged in indifference before he returned his attention to Ortiz. "Now let me make sure I understand the situation we find ourselves in at this particular moment in time. The shit kickers over there were planning to do what? Sell you guys the love birds? But then we interrupted their day and for some reason you all showed up here. Now big boy over there" he gestured dismissively at Rose "mentioned something about a pre-arranged meeting at a bar. So what changed your plan and brought you here instead?" He perched on the edge of a chair, his gun still leveled at Ortiz. He had also recognized the most pressing enemy was the drug cartel lieutenant and hadn't moved his gun once from pointing at Ortiz. He appeared genuinely curious about what the Cartel had planned. Just one criminal asshole sharing tips with another.
"Yes I believe your assessment of the situation is correct. We had planned to exchange some money for a chance at a private conversation with Mrs. McCallister. We needed some information to rectify some problems we unfortunately encountered with our business dealings with her late husband. We planned to use her friend, Mr. O'Shea as, how do you say, an insurance policy in order to guarantee her complete cooperation during questioning." Of course. Thanks Thad for continuing to mess up my life even from the grave.
Ortiz never wavered his gun from Malachy as he continued. "As to why we changed the meeting and showed up here without an invitation that is another problem. Let us just say it is a complicated matter and it involves discovering Mr. O'Shea is not who we believed he was when we made the original plans with the Brothers Dixon." Ortiz was matching Malachy in maintaining his cool. These two should have been lawyers. They would have killed it in court.
Malachy nodded, his demeanor becoming more shrewd business man than cold blooded gun for hire. He seemed to appreciate the decision Ortiz had made and was not at all upset at the change to his own plans. This meeting was just becoming stranger and stranger by the passing second. "That seems fair enough. So what is it you found out about, I'm sorry, what was the name you used? Oh yes, Mr. O'Shea." Using the name made him smirk again. I wondered why.
Ortiz seemed as confused by the amusement the name brought to Malachy as I was and stared at him for a brief moment but didn't ask Malachy to explain. "We discovered Mr. O'Shea is actually a man named Michael Donnelly from Boston and that he is currently in the United Stated Witness Protection Program. However, as I tell you this, I am quickly realizing this is likely not shocking news to you, based of course only on your own interesting accent. I can only assume you are also from Boston and also have some business with Mr. O'Shea?"
Malachy looked at Ortiz again, a mutual respect growing between the two men as their negotiation continued. Malachy appeared to appreciate the precise nature with which Ortiz conducted business. "I do believe you have a good ear for accents, my amigo. Yes, I'm here on behalf of Paddy O'Bannion to collect some long overdue justice from Mr. O'Shea." He stood and started to pace, less concerned now with keeping the gun trained on Ortiz than with making his feelings known to the room.
Ortiz nodded. "I see. I have heard of your boss, Mr. O'Bannion, and I know vaguely of the incident with his son. I trust this is why you would like to speak with Mr. O'Shea?"
Malachy stopped abruptly and looked at Ortiz. "Exactly. You see Paddy feels, and justifiably so I would argue, that Mr. O'Shea should receive some very harsh consequences for his deplorable behavior and his disloyalty to his community." Malachy looked at Declan but Declan only stared right through him.
Ortiz considered this for a moment and then offered one nod of his head. Apparently he found the justification Malachy had for why he was planning to kill Declan to be acceptable. "And our business with Mrs. McCallister has to do with her husband also being less than honorable. Though all the details are not necessary at this time, we shall say Mr. McCallister made some business promises to my employer which he failed to fulfill and which caused Mr. Lazcano to lose a great deal of money." This was all news to me. But also not as surprising as it should have been.
"Alas, as you know, we had to deal with Mr. McCallister in a more timely manner." Oh my god. They were the ones who killed Thad. "And thanks to a mutual friend of the McCallisters, we were able to turn all attention to Mrs. McCallister for the murder." He smiled and my blood ran cold.
A mutual friend? What the hell was he talking about? Before I could stop myself, I blurted the same question aloud. "Who helped you frame me?"
All male eyes in the room turned to me. I stared straight at Ortiz. I didn't care what happened now. I needed to know the answer before I died.
"I think I have a right to know, especially because you are planning to kill me as well. Who helped you?" My voice shook with more anger than fear now.
Ortiz turned so his body faced me instead of Malachy now, a small smile warming the chiseled features of his cold face. "I must say, your husband always said you were a spirited woman and I see now he was correct. I do believe you do have a right to demand to know who you can offer thanks to for your current predicament." The smile became more sinister. "Although I may have misspoke when I said this individual was a friend of both you and your husband. I believe the reality was she was much closer with Thad. Much, much closer."
And then I knew. "Amberly Jones." I whispered the name but everyone heard it. How could I have been so blind to that conniving little bitch?
The mention of her name brought a new glint to Ortiz's eyes and I had to wonder who she was to him? "Very good, Mrs. McCallister. Yes, Ms. Jones has worked for our organization for some time now through a connection we have with her father.
" I knew Amberly's dad had been a lawyer in Houston for many years but had no idea he worked with the Lazcanos. "Ms. Jones volunteered to get close to Mr. McCallister for us, to keep an eye on our investment as it were. Your husband was far more eager for her company than we had anticipated, though, and so things became somewhat complicated very fast."
I was trying to understand everything he was saying but my head was spinning with all the new information. Amberly was responsible for my nightmare of a life. Not only had she broken up my marriage she had helped frame me for murder too. How had I not seen this coming?
Ortiz paused, studying me for a few moments before continuing with his explanation. "I must say, I was somewhat surprised at the success Ms. Jones had in seducing your husband. Although a pretty young lady, I do believe, you are a far superior woman in brains and beauty. Your husband should have felt very lucky to have you in his bed. What is that American saying though? Ah yes, there is no accounting for taste sometimes."
I felt sick, and angry, and so stupid. I had let Amberly take everything from me, and I had no way of retaliating. I could not believe this was where things would end.
"Let me understand exactly what happened. Amberly stole my knife at some point so you could use it to kill Thad and leave it at the murder scene as evidence. Did she also write the emails the police recovered which supposedly linked me to your organization?"
He smiled again and if he had not been a cold-blooded killer who conducted nefarious activities for a notorious crime family, I would have found him strikingly handsome. As it was he scared the living hell out of me. "You see, as I said, brains and beauty. Yes, Mrs. McCallister, again your assessment is absolutely correct. We instructed Ms. Jones to create those emails, to further secure your role as suspect number one for the police. We knew if they suspected you were working with our organization, it wouldn't have taken very much for you to commit murder. Of course, we also assumed she would be able to recover the other information we needed from your husband but that has proven harder than we first thought. As time is of the essence, we realized we had to rework our strategy and come at our problem with a different approach, which brings us to being here today. We have some questions we believe only you can answer and we would very much appreciate if you cooperated." He took a seat on a chair one of his men had just brought in from my kitchen. He crossed his legs, letting his gun hang casually at his knee. He was confident I understood his veiled threats and the reputation his organization's name carried.. He knew I would cooperate because I had no choice in the matter.
Heart Lies & Alibis Page 22