by R Weir
Blood Brothers
A Jarvis Mann Detective Novel
By
R Weir
Copyright © R Weir 2015
The right of R Weir to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved; no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written permission of the Publisher. This book may not be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise disposed of by way of trade in any form of binding or cover other than in which it is published, without the prior written consent of the Publisher. No responsibility for loss occasioned to any person or corporate body acting or refraining to act as a result of reading material in this book can be accepted by the Publisher, by the Author, or by the employer(s) of the Author. Certain images copyright.
R Weir. Blood Brothers.
This book is a work of fiction. All characters in this novel are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyediting by:
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To Family:
The blood and sweat
we’ve shared
Thanks to all of my beta readers,
who helped make Blood Brothers
the best it could be.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Chapter 1
Damn my ass hurt!
I was running as fast as I could, chasing after a suspect fifteen years younger than me. He was extremely quick. I was holding my own, yet not gaining on him. My fresh New Balance track shoes, loose fitting jeans and T-shirt kept me light on my six-foot frame. My rear cheek, where I’d been shot several months earlier by an angry former female client, was feeling the strain of the chase. The teenager was a breaking-and-entering suspect I’d been hired to catch in Highlands Ranch by a community watch group. There had been a lot of B&Es in the area. Residents were tired of coming home to missing jewelry and small electronic devices, and demanded action. I’d been working for about two weeks when I finally caught a break on surveillance and spotted him trolling the neighborhood. He popped a sliding glass door with a pry bar, quickly grabbed what he could easily carry in a white bag and took off. I took several snapshots for proof and got out of my car. When he saw me, the chase was on. I cut him off from his approaching escape vehicle driven by his partner.
My stamina was good, but the leg was holding me back. I’d rehabbed for two months, first hobbling with crutches, then limping without them, and finally walking normally. I had pushed myself hard to get back in form, but running on a treadmill is much different from sprinting full bore after a suspect. It wouldn’t be long before I’d have to stop as fatigue grabbed at me, and my butt was throbbing.
Down several streets, cutting through a few backyards after hopping fences, and into some open fields we ran. He looked back at times, but I still was there. In full gallop, I saw him grab his cell from a pocket, punch some numbers, and yell into the phone. I couldn’t hear what he was saying over my own heavy breathing, but I doubted he was calling for a cab or the police. He cut back down another street and I heard a car moving in, its wheels screeching. He leapt into the open window of the speeding Camaro and off the car went, his legs and feet sticking out as it drove away. There was no plate, and I stood there trying to catch my breath and soon had to sit down from exhaustion. In the distance, there was laughing, and I wondered who was making fun of me. Before me in the field, I saw several prairie dogs barking away with their chirp-like noises filling the air. Apparently, they thought I was funny. I was a joke to them too!
“Oh shut up,” I yelled while flipping them off. That would show them.
If I’d been carrying my .38 I could have shot the driver or taken out the tires as they do on TV. Of course, Hollywood made life more dramatic than it actually was and I was trying to cut down my bullet usage after the pre-Christmas bloodbath. Besides, firing my gun in this case was overkill, though my clients might disagree.
“How did they get away again?”
“You let some kid out-run you!”
“Give us back our retainer!”
While sitting down, I felt the vibration of my cell phone. Noticing the number and name on the caller ID was from someone I’d not heard from in some time, I pressed the answer button, curious about what she wanted.
“Jarvis,” said the voice on the other side.
“Hi, Helen,” I said. “Haven’t spoken to you in some time.”
“I know. Do you have a minute to talk?”
“Can I call you back? I’m in the middle of something right now. Give me thirty minutes or so.”
“Sure. It’s fairly urgent. So as soon as you can.”
The call ended and I sat there wondering what she was needing from me. It had been a few years since I’d talked to anyone back in my hometown. From her tone, it wasn’t for some idle chitchat to see how I was doing. My danger senses activated, a tingle down my spine I’d felt before. I dreaded what my sister-in-law needed, full-well knowing what it was about. I shook my head to clear those thoughts, humming to myself the last tune I’d heard on the radio, to pass the time and calm my nerves. My phone rang again.
“We have a speeding car which rolled over,” said the voice on the other side. “Appears to be a blue Camaro. Sound familiar?”
“Where is it?”
With the location, I dragged myself off the ground and hot-footed back to my car and drove over. The car, on its side, was the same car which had peeled off with my suspect. Both occupants had been pulled from the vehicle by the community security guards with minor injuries. I strolled over and glared down upon the young man who had run from me. His face was bloody from a few scrapes.
“I hope you got your
seat belt on before crashing,” I joked.
“They were going too fast, came upon another car, tried to avoid smashing into it and lost control,” said one of the guards, an older fifty-something male. “Figured you’d want to see them since they got away from you.”
I ignored the criticism.
“Do they still have the bag of merchandise they took?”
“Yep, inside. I left it there for the police. We called 911 and they should be here shortly. Appears you’ve apprehended our thieves.”
“More like they apprehended themselves. But I get an assist.”
That would show those prairie dogs who was boss!
Chapter 2
Once done at the scene, I contacted Helen. It had been more than thirty minutes and she was a bit perturbed, which was not unusual; many people are grumpy with me much of the time. I seemed to have a knack for pissing the world around me off. A refined skill.
“I need your help,” she said, after getting over her anger. “I think your brother is into something, and I need to know what it is.”
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“He is distant and won’t talk,” Helen said. “Working late nights and weekends. Lots of overtime, but I don’t see him bringing in any additional money. Our bank account has been shrinking. We are almost broke.”
There could be a lot of explanations for what she was seeing. At least there would be no bartering on my fee, since they had no money.
“There must be something more?” I asked.
“You know his past. What more do I need?”
“How long has this been going on?”
“A couple of months.”
“What does Flynn say when you ask him about it?”
“He brushes me off and says not to be concerned. He is working hard trying to bring in more money. I ask him what money and he says it’s coming.”
“Odd,” I said.
Though with my brother, not necessarily, as he had a history of getting himself into situations, whether it be money or women. Loose with money, and the wandering eye had been his kryptonite. Which was it this time?
“He also says there is a big deal in the works which will pay off soon. This worries me, as he doesn’t have the best financial sense. His investments in the past have rarely paid off. I was under the impression we had a fair amount tucked away, but when I checked a few days ago it was gone.”
“What would you like me to do?”
“Can you fly out here and talk with him? Look around and see what is going on.”
“We haven’t talked in a while. I’m not his favorite person these days.”
This had been true since we were kids.
“Jarvis, you know how he can be sometimes. I think he’ll listen to you. He certainly isn’t listening to me. At the very least, you might follow him around and see what he is doing. Isn’t that what a PI does?”
“He won’t like me following him around, either.”
“He doesn’t have to know. Please Jarvis, I’m scared for Jolene and me. I want the best for her, and we know this takes money. College is not that far off. We are family and need your help.”
The magic words “please” and “family” always worked on me. I liked Helen and loved their little girl, Jolene, who wasn’t little anymore. Heading back home wasn’t at the top of my to-do list, but with this latest case wrapping up, I could spare a week to stick my nose into my brother’s business. This thought actually pleased me.
“Give me a few days to wrap up some things and I’ll fly out. Once I know what day, I’ll call you. Do I need to sneak into town or can you come pick me up?”
“Would it be better he not know you’re in the city?”
“Probably. That way I can snoop around without him discovering.”
“Yes, you know how he gets sometimes. This way you can keep an eye on him without him suspecting.”
“I’m good at being sneaky. Part of my business qualifications. I’ll text you when I arrive.”
“Thank you, Jarvis.”
It would be like the old days when we were kids. Me following Flynn around and seeing what trouble he was getting himself into. So this might be fun, at least for me. Though with late spring looming, a trip to the wet and humid Midwest was not thrilling me any, and was balancing out the enthusiasm index.
Chapter 3
A pair of shooting incidents right before Christmas had placed a strain on my relationship with Melissa, and lately she wasn’t the most pleasant person to be around. Our trip to Hawaii had to be cancelled, because I couldn’t walk without assistance for a couple of weeks. With her plans of studying to become a lawyer, we couldn’t reschedule, and I insisted she not delay her dreams any more. Now she was back in night school, so between studies and work duties, there was little time for us. If we were lucky we’d get an evening together on the weekend. I’d been warned it would be difficult, and she had been right. I was doing my best to be supportive, though it was challenging. With me being laid up, I was pretty stir-crazy and, to put it bluntly, all the free time left me moments to fantasize freely, leaving me lascivious. Of course, with a patched up hole in my butt I couldn’t do a whole lot for a month or more without lying there and letting her do all the work. Not so bad at first, although I enjoyed completely participating in our sex life and not lying there disabled.
As I became ambulatory, time still was an issue. On the one weekend night on which we managed to squeeze in moments together, mental fatigue gave her little energy to do much other than snuggle. Some weekends she didn’t want to be together at all. We were drifting, and blame fell mostly on my shoulders. The shooting by Emily not only left a hole in my ass but also one in her heart. She was uneasy about the whole situation, as I explained to her in detail those minutes before the attack. I had been honest, though more so than I should have been. She said outwardly I wasn’t completely to blame, although deep down, there was a sense she felt differently. And she was right. This was my fault.
Once the B&E case was settled, I made arrangements to fly home. I called Melissa to let her know I was leaving late morning Sunday, with the hope I could spend Saturday night with her. We had not seen each other for a couple of weeks and, though begging might have been too strong a word to use, I was figuratively on my knees before she agreed.
I grabbed a sandwich on the way, as she had already eaten. Upon arrival, I walked into her townhome and found her sitting at her desk, writing on her notebook computer. She was in old blue sweats, a CU sweatshirt and barefoot. Her hair was tied into a ponytail and didn’t appear to have been washed. I wasn’t holding out much hope of passion in her current attire. I sat quietly on the sofa, leafing through a magazine, allowing her to finish. About twenty minutes later, she closed up her notebook and spun her chair around.
“Thanks for letting me complete my work,” she said.
“How are you doing?” I asked.
She looked tired, with bloodshot eyes behind her reading glasses, which I’d rarely seen her use.
“I’m worn out and feel dirty and bloated,” Melissa stated. “I’d like to take a long hot bath and soak.”
I got up from the sofa, tossing the magazine on the end table.
“Let’s get the water started.”
“You do know my tub is not big enough for both of us?” she stated.
“I’ll sit on the toilet and we can talk. I’ll try not to leer at your naked body too much.”
With a weak grin she came over and I put my arm around her, kissing her dirty head of hair. I got the water running while she stripped. Her nude body looked marvelous even though it appeared she had gained a few pounds from the work and personal stress. Being a smart man I kept those thoughts to myself. I added the bath oil she liked, and down into the hot water she went. The air filled with the sounds of the tension sizzling out of her pores with the steam.
“So, what is going on where your sister-in-law needs you?” Melissa asked.
“I’m not certa
in. She says Flynn is working a lot but not making any more money, and they are broke. Her intuition says he is into something. Not unusual for him to get into a pickle. She wants me to come into town unnoticed and follow him around and see what I find.”
“How do you feel about that?”
“Just another case. If he is doing something to jeopardize his marriage and family, she has a right to know.”
“How will he feel if he finds out?”
“He’ll be pissed, but he’ll get over it. Won’t be the first time he’s been mad at me. I’m used to it.”
“You haven’t mentioned your brother much since we’ve been together.”
“Been a few years since we talked. He wasn’t happy about Mom and Dad helping me out financially. Being the oldest, he felt he deserved more of their help. That and a long brotherly competitiveness created a wedge between us which has been challenging to overcome.”
“Sounds complicated.”
“Aren’t all families?”
“Certainly true of mine. Well at least with my mother. What does your brother do?”
“He is a CPA and has his own business. He got the brains and I got the looks.”
“Gee, he must be really ugly,” Melissa said with a smile.
I had to laugh. Nice to know she still had her sense of humor, even when tired.
“Wow, my neck and shoulders are stiff,” Melissa said. “Too much time staring at the notebook screen.”
“Sit up.”
I squatted on my knees placed my hands on her shoulders and began to rub them firmly. Stress filled her skin and more of it floated away with each squeeze. The water was rolling off her breasts. I wanted to run my fingers over them, but resisted, for now. I grabbed a wash cloth and some soap and started washing her back. The tense pressure in her whole body was going away.
“Oh, I love your hands on me.”
She turned and kissed me with tenderness on the lips.
“Stand up,” I said.
She did and I proceeded to bathe her by hand from head to toe. I grabbed the showerhead, rinsing her off as the water drained. Once she stepped out of the tub, I took a towel and dried her, wrapping the plush fabric and my arms around her, the heat of her body warming mine. I looked her straight in the eye and kissed her passionately.