Jackpot

by Mairsile Leabhair

  “That sounds perfect. What’s our next step?”

  “I’ve already ordered several computers and printers. They will be here this afternoon,” Kenny said as she led her downstairs. “I do have my laptop set up and connected to the Internet and a desktop printer. We can order your equipment and have it delivered overnight.”

  The game room, with its colorful checker-board carpet, was empty save for the wet bar, three bar stools, and a mini-fridge behind the bar. The bar was at one end of the oblong room across from the entrance. It had a laptop sitting on it with a laser jet printer and an empty soda can beside it. The carpet was new and gave off that new carpet smell. Except for her bedroom and the theater room, this was the only other room Kenny had claimed as her own. She had plans to mount TV monitors in the center of the ceiling over the pool table she planned to buy. She also wanted a foosball table, which she would place at the back of the room, and a couple of pinball machines. Not the fancy electronic ones. The antique ones with metal balls.

  “You understand, the equipment I might need won’t be cheap,” Chelsey stated as they walked into the room.

  “I figured as much. But when it comes to getting my grandmother back, I’ll spend every dime I have.”

  “Okay, well, the first thing I need to do is dust the ransom note for fingerprint analysis, so I’ll need a fingerprint kit and microscope, and—”

  Kenny’s cell phone rang, and she reached into her pocket. “Sorry,” she said as she hit the message app. “Son of a bitch!”

  “What’s wrong?” Chelsey asked, walking around so she could see the text message. “Oh, my God!

  Chapter Five

  “That’s me!” Chelsey exclaimed.

  “I wasn’t expecting this,” Kenny said as she stared at the picture of her kissing Chelsey at the recycling plant.

  She felt like she was being watched, but she wasn’t expecting them to chronologize her every move. How could they have known where she was?

  “Can you print that out and blow it up so we can get a better look at it?” Chelsey asked.

  “You’re not upset?”

  “No, you said you were being watched, this just confirms it. The question is, how did they get your phone number?”

  Kenny shrugged. “I kind of gave out my number to anyone who asked for it and a few who didn’t. You know, in the excitement of it all.”

  “Uh huh. Might be time to get an unlisted number.”

  “I think you’re right. The other question is, how did they know where I’d be?”

  “Anybody hungry?” Sophie asked as she walked down the stairs carrying a tray of sandwiches, potato chips, and sodas.

  “I’m starved,” Chelsey exclaimed. “Somebody made me miss lunch today.” She winked at Kenny as she helped Sophie with the food.

  “Damn. I’m sorry. I completely forgot.”

  “Don’t worry about it,” Chelsey said, handing Kenny a sandwich. “You’ve got a lot on your mind.”

  Kenny took the sandwich and set it on the bar. She plugged her phone into the laptop and sent the photo to the small printer setting beside it.

  “What’s that?” Sophie asked as Kenny retrieved the printout.

  “Someone was following me,” Kenny explained and then felt compelled to clarify the kiss. “The note said they were watching me, and I didn’t want them to suspect why I was really at the plant, so I kissed Chelsey.”

  “Of course,” Sophie said with a grin.

  Kenny picked up the printout, tore off a piece of tape, grabbed a magic marker, and walked to the end of the room. She taped the photo to the wall and wrote the date the picture was taken above it. There were no windows in the game room and the lighting was minimal, but there was a row of ceiling-mounted accent lights where the previous owners must have had a painting displayed. It would be perfect for an evidence board.

  “I need a hacker,” Kenny said as she walked back to the others.

  “A hacker? What on earth for?” Sophie asked.

  “I need someone who can trace that text back to its owner.”

  Sophie’s eyes lit up and she beamed with pride as she said, “My son, Tobías, can help you.”

  “Really, Soph? Tobias knows how to do that?”

  “Well, he’s about to graduate summa cum laude in computer science. He is muy bien with a computer. He can do anything with one, including teach his old mother how to use one.”

  “All right then. Will you ask him if he wants to help us? I’ll pay him, of course.”

  “No, you won’t pay him. He will help out of gratitude for all you’ve done for us.”

  “I, uh… thank you, Sophie,” Kenny stammered. She took a sip of her soda as she thought about her next move. “Okay, Chelsey, after you’re finished eating, why don’t you…”

  Chelsey looked up from the laptop and pointed at the monitor. “This is what I would like to order. A fingerprinting kit with brushes, chemical supplies, cyanoacrylate, forensic light source, lift cards and tapes, and a one-to-one camera. The best part is that they are right here in the city and can deliver this evening. It costs though—”

  “I told you. I don’t care what it costs. If you need it, order it.”

  “Well, all righty then,” Chelsey retorted and turned back to the laptop.

  “Sorry. Didn’t mean to snap at you. Here, use this,” Kenny said as she pulled a credit card from her wallet and handed it to her. “It’s just that I’ve got a nagging feeling that I’m missing something.”

  “What you’re missing is food, Kenny,” Sophie admonished. “You can’t think straight if you’re malnourished, comprende?”

  “Yes, Mother,” Kenny shrugged and picked up her sandwich. “Okay, so what have we got so far?”

  Chelsey hit the submit button and turned back to her sandwich. “I’ve got a scrumptious pimento and cheese sandwich.”

  Shaking her head, Kenny said, “No, I mean on the case. I do best if I can go down the list of facts. Grandma was kidnapped at the hospital, right? So that tells me that the kidnapper knew their way around the building in order to take her out without us seeing them.”

  “Are you thinking it might have been a hospital employee?” Chelsey asked.

  Kenny nodded. “Possibly. Not ruling out anything at this early stage.”

  “And you said she signed an AMA, the against medical advice form, right?” Sophie asked.

  “Yes, I’ve got a copy right here,” Kenny said, putting down her sandwich and picking up a folder. She pulled out the papers inside. “Here, this is the ransom note.” She handed Chelsey a plastic zip bag with an 8x10 piece of paper inside.

  “Excellent, thank you.” Chelsey held it up and examined it like a doctor would an X-ray.

  “And this is a copy of the AMA form that Grandma signed,” Kenny continued, holding it up.

  “Since it’s a copy of the original, I wouldn’t be able to pull any usable prints from it,” Chelsey stated.

  “Yeah, that’s what I figured.”

  Sophie pointed at the note. “And you’re sure that’s her handwriting?”

  “Yes, same curl at the bottom of the D and everything.” Kenny tore off another piece of tape and walked over to the evidence wall. “I used to try and fake her signature in high school. Never could.” She taped the copy of the AMA next to the photograph of her and Chelsey at the plant on the wall. Picking up the marker, she wrote day one above the photo and medical form. Walking back to the bar, she continued her list of possibilities. “Grandma would never take off like that. She had to have been threatened.”

  “Or someone threatened your life if she didn’t cooperate,” Chelsey elaborated. “After all, you are worth millions, and that’s what they’re asking for.”

  Kenny nodded. “True, but they seem more interested in playing games than getting the money.”

  Chelsey shrugged. “A test?”

  “Or a grudge,” Sophie speculated.

  Shrugging, Kenny smirked. “Who would have a grudge against
me? I’m the nicest person I know.”

  “Ha!” Chelsey blurted. “You weren’t very nice to me. You were in the process of asking me out on a date the day you won the lottery. You forgot all about me.”

  “I know. I know, and I’m really sorry.”

  Chelsey crinkled her nose and sneered at her. “After we get your grandmother back, I fully expect you to finish what you started.”

  “Already been working on that in my head,” Kenny said with a sly smile.

  Sophie winked at her. “Nice save.”

  Chelsey nodded. “I agree.”

  “All right then,” Kenny said, clapping her hands together. “If I weren’t motivated enough, now I’m doubly determined to get Grandma back ASAP.”

  “Kenny, what about that girl in my class I was telling you about? She had a grudge against you, remember? Her name was Eloise Osborne?”

  “I guess, but like I said, I don’t remember her. I don’t think I’ve even spoken with her before. Still, it might be a good idea to start a list and include anyone who might have a grudge against me or my grandmother.”

  “Oh, can I write the list on the wall?” Chelsey asked excitedly.

  “Uh, sure. Knock yourself out,” Kenny replied with a grin. “Okay, so... Sophie, if you would, call your son and see if he’s willing to help. If he is, ask him to come over here.”

  Sophie walked to the foot of the stairs. “Tobías, ven aquí, por favor.”

  “Si, Mamá,” Tobias yelled from upstairs.

  “Oh, cool. I didn’t know he was here,” Kenny admitted.

  Sophie nodded. “He stopped by before you returned just to see where I lived now. I hope you don’t mind.”

  “No, of course not. How long can he stay?”

  “I’ll ask him.”

  A thunderous roar of feet sounded on the stairs and a moment later, Tobias walked in. “Que pasa?”

  “Son, this is Kenny Whitt, my employer. And this is Chelsey Kendrick, a friend and college student like you.”

  Chelsey turned around from the wall she had been writing on and waved at him.

  “Muy hermosa,” he said to his mother.

  “Yes, she is,” Kenny inserted, warning him with a glare. She might not speak the language but she understood the inflection. Her protective instinct and a sudden surge of jealousy spoke volumes to Tobias.

  “Uh, oh, um. Nice to meet you both,” Tobias said by way of an apology.

  “Kenny, I didn’t know you spoke that much Spanish,” Sophie said.

  “I don’t.”

  Sophie did a double take but Kenny didn’t elaborate.

  “So, Tobias. Your mother tells us that you’re a genius with a computer. I need a text traced back to its sender and also ding my grandmother’s cell phone and see if you can tap into its GPS. Would you be interested? I’ll pay you, of course.”

  “Hell, yeah, I’d be interested.” Tobias was only three years younger than Kenny, but at twenty-one, he still had the mannerisms of a teenager. Short, like his mother, he was skinny, with acne scars on his cheeks and virgin stubble on his chin. He wasn’t a momma’s boy, but he loved his mother. “Mamá filled me in on your abuela. I’d like to help. And you have already done more than enough for our family. Getting Mamá out of that garbage dump is all the payment I need.”

  Sophie looked over at Kenny. “I told you so,” she said with pride. She had sat her children down and told them how grateful she was to Kenny. The day she agreed to work for her, Kenny drove her to the bank and transferred a million dollars into her account. Sophie was dumbstruck. One minute she was working two jobs and living month to month, the next she was a millionaire. But unlike Kenny, Sophie wouldn’t touch the money save for an emergency or college expenses. She was saving that for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Her new salary was more than enough to live comfortably, especially since rent and groceries were free. “What about school?” Sophie asked.

  “I just have two classes in the mornings this semester. I can come by here in the afternoons, no problem.”

  “You’re welcome to stay here. I have an extra room. Several extra rooms, in fact.”

  “Thanks, but I have a dorm room that is… uh…” He looked at his mother.

  “Not in the vicinity of your madre?” Sophie asked.

  They all laughed. Grinning like the Cheshire cat, Tobias wrapped his arm across his mother’s shoulders and replied, “Something like that, yes.”

  Kenny watched the loving exchange between mother and son and was reminded of how she would tease her grandmother. And like Sophie, her grandma liked to say ‘I told you so.’ Would that she was there now to say it.

  Tobias looked around the room and wandered down to the end of it. “Is this an evidence board, like on those cop shows?”

  Kenny walked up beside him. “Yes, it helps to have the clues lined out in front of you.”

  He looked closer at the photograph. “Ah, okay. I get it.”

  They looked at each other with an unspoken understanding.

  Kenny studied the very short timeline and shook her head. “The part I don’t get is how they could kidnap Grandma this morning and follow me this afternoon. Seems like a pretty quick turn-around.”

  Tobias leaned close and whispered, “What do you think about sweeping the house for bugs? They might have gotten one planted in here, somehow.”

  “Good idea,” Kenney whispered back. “Do you know how to do that?”

  “Yes, I interned with the police department last summer, mostly computer stuff, but they let me learn in other areas, too. That’s where I want to work when I graduate.”

  “How cool is that. I was getting my degree in criminal justice, and I took some classes at Quantico. Up to that point, I hadn’t decided where I wanted to go yet.” Kenny looked over at Chelsey. What was it she called it? Fate. It was fate that these people came into Kenny’s life when they did. They were there for a reason and that reason was to get her grandmother back. She had an overwhelming feeling of gratitude that she wasn’t alone in all this.

  “What are the odds, right?” Tobias asked.

  “Yeah, right,” Kenny replied.

  “Anyway, you can just hire a team to come in here and sweep for audio and video bugs.”

  “No, I can’t,” Kenny whispered, tapping on the photograph. “I’m being watched and the ransom note said no outside help. If they are watching this house, then they already know about Sophie living here and most likely saw you when you came in.”

  “Man, this is so cool,” he said.

  “I think it’s creepy.”

  “What’s creepy?” Chelsey asked in a whisper from behind them, startling Kenny and Tobias.

  “You are,” Kenny yelped. “Don’t sneak up on people like that, jeez.”

  “Well, now I’ll have to do that all the time, won’t I?” Chelsey retorted mischievously.

  Kenny poked her in the ribs and she giggled. “Aha, ticklish, are you? I’ll have to do that all the time now.”

  “Children, behave,” Sophie admonished with a smile. “Get back here and finish your lunch.”

  “Yes, Mother,” all three of them responded in unison.

  “Kenny.” Tobias pulled on Kenny’s arm as Chelsey walked back to the bar. “If you trust me, I can go pick up some of the equipment needed to check for bugs.”

  Kenny didn’t hesitate. “I trust you.” From what his mother had bragged on him and the way he was ready to take responsibility when he thought he had gotten a girl pregnant, she knew the young man was an honorable one.

  “Eventually, considering your wealth, you might think about getting a technical surveillance countermeasure system put in.”

  “That’s a mouthful, but yeah, I’ll think about it. Right now, I just need to get my grandma back.”

  “Totally get that. I’ll just pick up a scanner. It’ll cost a couple hundred bucks.”

  “Here.” Kenny pulled out her wallet and counted out five one-hundred-dollar bills. “Will th
is cover it?”

  “And then some,” he replied, “but a Hispanic man carrying around large bills like that will get him arrested or killed. Got anything smaller?”

  “That’s just stupid, but I get where you’re coming from.” Looking down at her wallet, Kenny spotted the answer. “What about a Visa gift card?” She pulled out a debit card and held it up. “I had planned to go back to Vegas so I picked up a few, but then Grandma was kidnapped.”

  “Yeah, that would work better. What’s the limit?”

  “A thousand dollars. Use what’s left over for anything else you think you might need, okay?”

  “Will do and thanks!”

  *

  Chelsey pulled her silky hair off her shoulders and tied it up in a bun. Then she opened the fingerprint kit case and pulled out the inkless inkpad and placed it on the counter. She unfolded the fingerprint station and then reached over to the ink-jet printer and picked up the fingerprint form she had downloaded from the FBI website. Slipping the paper into the cardholder with nonskid rubber feet, she opened the two-inch inkpad and put it beside the cardholder.

  “Kenny, I’m ready for you,” she said, writing Kenny’s name on the form. Tearing open an alcohol pad, she handed it to Kenny as she walked up. “Wash all your finger pads with this, okay?”

  “You’re the boss,” Kenny replied playfully as she prepped her fingers for printing.

  Chelsey held out her hand, and Kenny splatted the alcohol pad in it. “Uh, thanks,” she said and tossed the pad on the counter. “And now I need your right thumb.”

  Realizing that they would be holding hands, Kenny’s hand began to sweat as she plopped it in Chelsey’s hand.

  “No, I need your right thumb,” Chelsey repeated. Kenny did thumbs up and then held it out to Chelsey. “Now, I imagine this will be hard for you, but let me do the driving, okay?”

  “You cut me to the quick, woman,” Kenny retorted.

  “Am I lying?”

  “Well, no,” she admitted.

  Chelsey smiled as she pressed Kenny’s thumb on the inkpad and rolled it forward and backward. “I’m so glad you aren’t wearing those obnoxious rings right now.”