I hung up feeling conflicted. I was snooping around even more than Mother would’ve guessed.
“What the hell happened to your arm?” Zach yelled, stomping into the backyard.
I laid my notepad facedown and covered it slightly with my towel. “I’m guessing you’re not here for a swim.”
He had on black suit pants, a dress shirt, and a gorgeous pair of black leather loafers. I’d been in his closet, and he was clearly a shoe whore.
“One of my guys saw you get out of your car at the jail with a sling on. Visiting Dickhead? You still have a thing for him?”
“Could you lower your voice?” I wanted to add, ‘and mind your own business’. “We had business to discuss.”
“And your arm?” he demanded.
“Actually, it’s my shoulder. I’m fine, thanks for asking.”
“Where did this happen?”
His voice told me he wasn’t going to believe whatever I said. “The way you’re firing questions at me, do I need a lawyer?”
“What are you guilty of?”
“Paranoid much?”
“Stop stalling. What the hell happened?”
“I fell at Aventura Mall.”
“What’s Fab’s part in all of this?”
“She didn’t push me if that’s what you’re asking. We were there for lunch and shoe shopping.”
He gave me a scrutinizing stare, meant to scare me into confessing. I wanted to laugh and tell him he was wasting his time if he thought I’d spill. “This wouldn’t have happened if you were living with me.”
“How do you figure that? Is it because you’d lock me in your warehouse and never let me out?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I want to believe you, but I know you two.”
His suffocating attempt at control was giving me a headache. I realized if I did live with him, there’d be no spontaneous swims. I’d really miss my early morning laps. “You’re making too much out of a simple fall.”
“You give any thought to moving in with me?” Zach asked.
“When I said I wanted to spend more time together, I meant dinners out and late-night swims. I’m not ready for playing house. If you were honest, even you know this is too soon. Your motives are not about love, which, by the way, you’ve never said, but about protecting me.”
“I’ve got to get back to the office.” He leaned down and kissed my cheek.
“You look nice, by the way,” I called as he walked away.
His lack of response to the word “love” hadn’t gone unnoticed. Was I ready to say those three little words?
His goodbye kisses usually made me hot and tingly. The cheek kiss was disappointing. I knew one thing for sure; I wasn’t signing up to be controlled. It would be a constant battle to come and go without endless questions.
Once Zach found out Jax was getting released, one phone call later and he’d know I bailed him out. That would be another fight, or at the very least, snotty comments traded back and forth.
I’d arranged with Brick to post the bail, hoping to keep my identity a secret. He cut his exorbitant fee in exchange for an unspecified favor to be determined at his will. My only ground rule was he wouldn’t ask me to do anything illegal.
He had laughed in my face. “You’re one ballsy redhead.”
In the fine print spelled out by Brick, “If Jax takes off, you find his ass. No one skips on Brick.”
My phone rang, and I wanted to throw it in the pool and sail to the Bahamas, but I answered anyway.
“Jackson signed the dismissal,” Whit stated. “I took it over to the jail myself and everything went according to jail protocol. We had a long conversation, and I liked him. I was having trouble with my icemaker on the refrigerator, and he told me how to take it apart and fix it myself. Saved me a service call from the hack I had out the last time.”
“Thank you for doing this.”
“You’re now protected all legal-like. The witnesses were jail guards,” Whit said.
I called Brick and gave him the green light to post bail.
CHAPTER 32
My shoulder only hurt with sudden movements. I took two aspirin, got in my SUV, and drove straight to the Bakery Café for a caramel latte, with extra whipped cream, which I hoped would also lessen the pain. I sat at a table on the sidewalk, people-watching, shaking off the effects of a night with little sleep.
Fab screeched up in another new car – a black BMW. She slid into the parking space so fast, I thought she’d jump the sidewalk and end up at the table. “Always easy to find,” she said, crossing the sidewalk. She handed me a manila envelope. “Look at these while I get a double espresso.”
Before I could open the envelope, Sid Byce walked up to the table. “I know you think that piece of shit you married isn’t guilty, but you’re wrong.” He slammed his fist on the table. “Bad things happen to people who don’t mind their own business.” His face was red with anger. “Stop asking questions. Your husband’s in jail, where he’s going to stay.”
“Step back from the table,” Fab growled from behind Byce. “You want to fight? Pick on someone your own size.”
Byce snickered. “That someone would be you?”
“Yes.” Fab pulled up her top, showing the gun in her waistband.
“Are you threatening me?” His veins threatened to pop out of the side of his head.
“Madison wouldn’t shoot your nuts off, but I would.” Fab gave him a creepy, deranged-looking smile. “Don’t you ever speak to her again.”
“Both of you listen to me,” Byce said. “Stay off my property. We shoot trespassers.”
“You know what I think?” Fab asked. “I think you shot Pavel.”
Byce stared at her with pure hate. “You crazy bitch.” He turned and walked away.
“Yes, I am!” she yelled.
“Your part in that drama made my hair stand on end,” I said. “That’s my way of saying thank you.”
“What did he want?”
“Told me to stop asking questions and that Jax’s in jail where he belongs. What he doesn’t know is that all the arrangements have been made to bail Jax out,” I related. “He knew we’d been snooping around his property asking questions.”
“If he thought we knew about his drug import business, we wouldn’t be sitting here sucking down espresso,” Fab said.
“Do you really think Sid Byce is the shooter? What about Byce Junior?”
“My money’s on Sid,” Fab said. “Alexander does what he’s told.”
“Byce is a pillar of the community. Murder and running drugs is a stretch, isn’t it? If we told anyone what we thought, everyone in this town would laugh in our faces.”
“Jax’s screwed,” Fab stated.
I opened the manila envelope and pulled out photos of the dock area around Byce’s warehouse. “When did you shoot these?” Byce was lucky; if Fab had finished her espresso, he might’ve limped away minus a nut.
“Last night. And before you start whining about not going along, be serious. Your shoulder was almost amputated.” Fab smiled.
“Dramatic much?” I shook my head. “It’s not hurting now. What else went on down there that I missed?” I ran my finger through the whipped cream on my drink. I used to save it for last, but I didn’t like the runny lumps that were usually left.
“Exactly the same as what went down the other night,” Fab said. “Amateurs. Doing the same thing over and over is going to get you noticed. The boat even showed up at the same time. I got the bow number. Running drugs in that quantity usually makes the people involved nervous and paranoid. No signs of that with these guys. I put in a call to Patrick at the Coast Guard to find out who owns the boat.”
“These were shot at a different angle. Where were you when you took them?”
“I was across the channel on the north side. Good thing, too. Before the drop, two guys walked the property, including the boat yard.”
“Girlfriend, at some point we’re going to have to admit we’
re in over our heads,” I said.
“That time would be now. We’re in dangerous territory and should step back.”
“We just walk away?” I asked. “Pavel’s real for me. We haven’t found one person who’s had a bad thing to say. He’s a person who didn’t deserve to end up dead. His murderer doesn’t get to walk.”
“I agree. There are still a couple of missing pieces,” Fab said. “They get regular shipments of cocaine, then what happens to it? They’re not stupid enough to store it there for very long. Judging by the size of the shipments, they’ve got a major business going on.”
“I want to call in Zach and his guys, but our last encounter didn’t go well,” I said.
“What happened?”
“I hadn’t been wearing my sling and I wore it to the jail. I realized aspirin helped more and took it off, but not before one of Zach’s men saw me and reported back to him. He comes over and demands to know what happened. He didn’t believe the mall story at first, but I held my ground. Then he brought up living together, and I told him no thanks.”
Fab banged her coffee mug on the table. “Why does the good stuff happen when I’m not there to eavesdrop?”
“Do you have a plan?” I asked. “Zach doesn’t know about us snooping around Byce’s, or he might’ve cuffed me and dragged me to a guarded location.”
“I’ll tell Zach everything I found out last night,” Fab offered. “I’ll tell him I’m the one who’s been checking around.”
I raised my eyebrows. “How are you going to sell that I’ve been sitting back doing nothing?”
“You tell him you asked around, and everyone said the same thing: no one had a reason as to why Pavel would end up dead, blah, blah. You can think on your feet.”
“So I’m hanging you out to dry?”
“He expects this kind of behavior from me,” Fab said. “He’ll be fine if we convince him you’re not involved.”
“When are we doing this?”
“I have a bodyguard job tonight. I’m one of four who’re chaperoning sixteen-year-olds for a birthday party. Daddy’s paying for overpriced babysitting to make sure there’s no drunkenness or drugs and no one gets arrested. Let’s make it tomorrow night. We’ll get him to meet us at a restaurant; he’d never create a scene in public.”
“I like the way you think.”
CHAPTER 33
Since the last time I was at the jail to pick Jax up, they had renamed the main building the Welcome Center. There was nothing welcoming about the cold, sterile room with its gray walls and steel bars. I sat in the same plastic chair I did the last time, close to the exit, and fidgeted to get comfortable. I could look one way and see what was going on at the main desk, and the other way I could see when the inmates came out the door to their freedom. An interesting assortment of people filled half the chairs, I settled in for the wait, which felt like an eternity after the first five minutes.
I had stopped by Whit’s office and picked up the agreement. I noticed Whit notarized it himself. He laughed, saying it was his way of getting to meet Jax. I told him about the deal I’d made, and he told me as soon as Jax’s case was settled, I should go straight to the court clerk and file my documents.
The jail door opened and closed; chairs emptied and filled again. Finally, Jax walked through the door. He looked like a bone a dog had chewed on, dragged through the yard, and was no longer interested in.
He walked straight over and picked me up in a tight hug, crushing his lips to mine in an intense kiss. I kissed him back, taking me to a time when we had been happy. I had once loved my husband with everything I had to give.
“Thanks for getting me out of here.” He kissed me again.
“Were you on the beach when they arrested you?” I asked, noting that he wore bathing suit bottoms and a T-shirt.
“I came back for a beer, and two sheriffs were sitting on the couch, waiting for me. I told them they hadn’t been invited in and were breaking the law. They told me to prove it and laughed.”
“You’re out now.” I looked down. “Nice shoes.” He still had on his jail-issue slip-on orange tennis shoes.
“When they handcuffed me at the cottage, Robert’s flops were sitting by the door. I slid into them quickly after they told me I couldn’t get my tennis shoes out of the bedroom. I guess all flops look alike in this hole, even though they were XXXL bitch size. When the property room lost the cheap things, they tried to pass off someone else’s flops, but when my heels hung off the back, they had no choice but to let me wear these. They can’t discharge anyone barefoot, even if you come in that way. Assholes.” He shrugged. “Anyway, what did I do to deserve you?”
“I asked myself the same question in reverse. What did I do to deserve you?”
He pulled me into a hug, and we both laughed and walked to the parking lot. I breathed a sigh of relief when we passed the guard.
“Does Tucker know you’re getting out?” I asked.
“Hell no.” He opened the driver’s side door for me before going around to the other side. “I didn’t say a word when he showed up for an early morning visit. I worried every second, until the guard called my name, that somehow Tucker would find out and block my release. I honestly thought one of the guards would tell the bastard.”
I sped out of the parking lot. “How do they decide who goes first?”
“They get a list, and it depends on where your name comes up. My luck, mine must’ve been down at the bottom.”
“You need to watch your back with Tucker,” I said. “He’s a good lawyer, but if he thinks you’re standing in the way of him getting what he wants, you’re screwed.”
“What about the papers I signed?” Jax asked.
“Tucker won’t know about those until after your case is settled.”
Jax waved his middle finger out the passenger window. “That guy honked at you and flipped you off.”
“That happens on occasion.” I laughed.
He shook his head. “It’s no wonder. You drive like you’re ninety-nine. I could give you driving lessons.”
“You’re not funny. I’ll match my driving record to yours any day.”
“On second thought, don’t listen to me.” He laughed and tussled my hair. “Can I stay with you?”
“Stop with the hand gestures before someone shoots at us.”
“The next time someone honks at us, I get out at the signal and beat the hell out of them.” He flexed his muscle.
“You only act like that when you’re trying to make someone think you’re a tough guy.”
“Yeah, you’re right, so I guess I’ll calm down.”
We laughed and he took my hand holding it tightly. Images of many moments like this crept through my mind as I drove. It made me think about good times.
“I’m taking you to The Cottages, and you need to stay out of trouble. There are a few people who aren’t going to like that you’re out.”
“Tucker told me during the meeting this morning that he’s working on a plea where I’d get six months, out in four.”
“That’s a great deal,” I said.
“Would you visit if I agreed to four months?”
“I uh…” That was the last thing I wanted to agree to.
“I’m going to make this up to you. I’m going to start by paying back both you and Brad.”
I stared at him. “Does this mean you’re not going to run and leave me on the hook?”
“I don’t want to go to jail, but even I know this a good deal that won’t be offered again if I run.”
“I need something in return.”
He frowned. “I don’t have anything to give you.”
“I want you to get rid of Robert. And make it clear to Apple that she can never set foot on my property. Robert can stay until the day you go to jail, and then I want him out, same day. Agreed?”
“Robert’s already made plans to move out. He’s sticking around the area, got a job at a stripper bar.”
I raised my
eyebrows. “Doing what?”
“He’ll be working the door.”
“Wasn’t the first wife, the one he beat the crap out of, a stripper?”
“Only wife, or are you confusing her with the girlfriend who bashed his head in with one of those black frying pans, sending him to the hospital?”
I laughed. “I love these sweet family stories.”
“The only reason I helped Apple was because she was homeless. I have no illusions about her. She’ll go down to the Croc and hook up with the first guy who buys her a drink.”
“When is your next court hearing?” I asked.
“Next week, and if I accept the plea deal, they’ll take me into custody from the courtroom.”
“Seriously, watch yourself,” I said, pulling into the driveway.
“When I get out of jail, I’m going to put my life back together and show you why we should be together.”
“Don’t do anything stupid. If you think you’re going to, call me.”
He leaned over and kissed my cheek. “Harder told me you murdered someone and got off. I didn’t believe him, but he seemed sure of himself.”
“I killed someone,” I sighed. “It was self-defense, not murder. That’s an ugly memory I’ve tried to block out. Thanks for bringing it up again.”
“I knew he was full of shit. Did you know Harder and Tucker are friends?”
“Unfortunately. I try to avoid them both, and yet, here we are. I believe you didn’t murder anyone, either, Jackson Devereaux.”
“Watch your back. Harder wants to keep his distance from Tucker, but they’re in bed together on some business deal from what I could piece together.” He opened the car door.
“Thanks, Jax.” I leaned out the car window and yelled, “I call dibs on the shoes!”
He laughed. “You’re crazy.” He walked back, took them off, and handed them to me.
“I remember when it was psycho bitch.”
“I drove you to it.” He winked and walked barefoot down the driveway.
I looked down and smiled. It wasn’t every day a girl got her own pair of jail-issue orange shoes.
Madison Westin 02-Deception in Paradise Page 19