by Lauren Wood
“Why don’t I stay the night with you Danny?”
She smiled at me and then disagreed. “No way Mack. I’m sorry, but if you stay the night, we both know that I’m not going to get any sleep and I can’t go into work dragging ass like I did last time. Not twice in a week anyways. I will get in trouble.”
I wanted to tell her that her job brought home peanuts from what she told me and she didn’t need to work anymore. I wanted to take care of her and even with everything up in the air, I knew that I still wanted to be with her.
“Are you turning me down Danny?”
I was a bit incredulous because I couldn’t remember a time when she had told me no. Just the one time when she had taken off and to be fair, I didn’t technically ask her to stay. I wanted her to, truly, but I had too much pride back then. It appeared that it wasn’t too big of a problem anymore.
“No, I said yes to you many times tonight, but it’s late and you promised that I would be home at a decent time.”
I looked out the car window and gestured to her house. “This is a decent time and you are home. I have done what I said I was going to do. But I don’t want this to end, so I was hoping that maybe you would want to keep the party going a little bit longer.”
My voice was sounding a little desperate and I didn’t like the sound of it one bit. I wanted to just grab her up, haul her in the house caveman style and remind her who was in charge. I liked to think it was me, but Danny was making it clear that everything was the same as before.
She leaned in for a kiss on the cheek and I pulled her in for a proper one.
“I don’t know when I will be able to see you again Danny. I have a lot going on right now, but don’t think for a second it is because I don’t want to be with you. I do. Just know that I will call you and see you as soon as I can.”
“Is something going on?”
Now I had her attention and she looked concerned.
“No, nothing to worry about. I just don’t want you thinking that I don’t want you. Don’t ever think that because I’ve never stopped wanting you.”
“Now you make it so I don’t want to leave.”
I gave her another kiss and asked her to stay. She looked like she was going to go along with it, but then she stopped and shook her head like she was trying to shake me out of it. I thought to give her good luck, because I had been trying to do the same with her and I hadn’t gotten very far at all with it.
I watched her walk up to her door and then go in. The light went on in the foyer as she moved into her house. I wanted to go in behind her, take what I wanted and in truth needed from her, but I was not in the right position to do so.
I knew that it was not the time to bring Danny back into my life. But it also wasn’t the time to press pause either. I don’t know if I could. I was going to have to figure something out soon, but for now I was going to take every chance I could to see Danny, no matter the risk. It was selfish, maybe, but I didn’t care. I didn’t want to walk away again. I’d done it once before and I didn’t want to do it again.
“Take me to the meeting place. Tony is going to be happy with the price I was able to get for him. I will get my cut and then we will be on our way. I think I will be staying in the city tonight. It’s going to be too late to drive back and I don’t think she will entertain me again tonight.”
I was talking more to myself, but I had that smile on my face. Danny was just as amazing as she had been before. She was the kind of girl that I was always asking myself how I deserved her. I’d been with all types, but Danny was the only real one that I’d ever known. I knew at some point, I was going to have to be just as real with her, no matter how hard it was going to be and how much she wasn’t going to want to hear it.
We rode in silence as we pulled up twenty miles away on the river bank. This time it was open water he wanted to meet at, his paranoia up since I saw him last. I wanted to tell him that everything was okay, but like him, I could feel a change in the air. Maybe he was right. I did need to take some time off and enjoy the proceeds of all of my hard work. It’d been a long time since I was interested in anything beyond making money and making deals. I wanted to run away with Danny and the sooner I got everything wrapped up, the sooner I could do just that.
All I had to do was get through this meeting and then I could move on to greener pastures and a little time off. I certainly had the money to take a break and with the cops onto me, it was best that I moved on from my current occupation for a while. It wasn’t the first time that I had to disappear for a while until it calmed down.
Chapter 18
Danny
When I got in, everything seemed to be okay. I already missed Mack and I was tempted to call him back out and see if he wanted to stay the night. I knew that I would stay up all night and drag ass all day, but maybe it was worth it. My hand was on the knob of the door, about to go out before he left and I heard my name being said behind me in the dark living room.
I jumped literally and screamed a little bit. It was all that I could do because I was frozen in place in fear. I had enough wherewithal to turn the light on and the foyer flooded with light as a result. Where was Mariss? Who were these guys?
“Don’t think about going back outside Danielle. It wouldn’t be good for you because the deal we are going to offer you only stands for this moment. If you walk away, it’s off the table.”
I had no idea what the hell this guy was talking about, but he kept saying we and I finally caught sight of the man that was coming up from the side of me that I hadn’t seen before. Now I was even more nervous, but I wanted to know what was going on. My curiosity was stronger than fear and I asked them that very thing.
“Who are you?”
“We are with the FBI Ma’am.”
“I need to see some kind of ID or something. Even if you are who you say you are, you can’t just come in here like this while I’m away. It’s illegal. You’re not supposed to be here.”
The man that was standing beside me agreed. “You’re right. I’m not supposed to be here because my bosses are convinced that you’re in on it with your old boyfriend. I like to think that you were put into a bad position and you don’t know anything about it. I assured them that I would get you on board and give you immunity so a pretty little girl like you doesn’t have to find out how rough prison is for princesses like you.”
I was shocked and still a bit confused. It was obvious that I was being threatened, but I wasn’t sure what exactly he was threatening. It seemed like there was more to the story.
“I don’t know what you think I’ve done, but I have done nothing wrong. Me and Mack just started talking again and I don’t see how this has anything to do with him. What has he done?”
It wasn’t a question of them having the wrong guy. If they said that Mack was doing something illegal, I had to believe it because I knew him well and he really never was to worry about the legalities of everything. He was far more worried about getting what he wanted out of life and from the looks of things; he had done very well in that department. I still wondered how and it felt like I was finally going to get a straight answer about it.
“Mack is in the business of receiving and selling stolen goods.”
My mind went to stereos and televisions, but the detective informed me that it was rare photography and paintings, antiques, anything worth a lot, he sold. It made sense what he had said earlier about what he did for a living. I had known that he was doing something illegal and I had to know by his possessions and money that he had done well. I just couldn’t believe that the FBI was in my house asking about him. I hadn’t seen this coming and I was afraid for myself, but also for Mack. I didn’t want anything to happen to him.
“Are you sure that you have the right person? That doesn’t sound like something Mack would do.”
I was assured by detective Brock that it was Mack that they were looking for and it showed some pictures of me and Mack getting off the plane in New Orleans. T
here was another picture from just a little while ago, as well as a couple that showed more than I would have liked.
“You’ve been following us? Isn’t that against the law?”
Detective Brock just smiled and I had the feeling that even if it was illegal, it wouldn’t have stopped him from doing what he was doing. Now the dark vehicles with tinted windows lurking around made sense. I wondered then if Mack knew about this. He had seemed strange today in the beginning, but he had relaxed quickly so I hadn’t thought anymore about it. Now I wondered what all he knew about this. If he did know what was going on, why hadn’t he warned me?
They told me some of his major dealings, trying to convince me that Mack was a bad guy. I didn’t say it out loud, but the fact of the matter was that I knew him better than these two did and I knew what kind of a man he was. Maybe he wasn’t making the best decisions, I couldn’t argue that, at the same time he wasn’t hurting anyone. It was rich things being taken from rich people. It wasn’t like…who was I kidding, Mack was a criminal.
“Well as I said before detective. I don’t know what this has to do with me because I didn’t know anything about it and I’m not sure that I believe you. That doesn’t sound like the man I’ve known for all these years.”
“I assure you that it is. People change and like you said, you haven’t seen him in ten years. You just recently got back together with him. Don’t you wonder where he gets his money from?”
I had of course wondered that very thing, but it was another thing that wasn’t to be said out loud. I wasn’t here to add any more fuel to the fire. I wanted out of the situation.
“So what do you want from me? Why are you here, lurking in my house in the middle of the night?”
“We want you to wear a wire and catch Mack admitting what he does and any specifics you can about any paintings that he has sold recently.”
I wasn’t sure that I heard them right, but I didn’t want them to repeat, just in case it was true.
“I don’t see him that much and I don’t know when I’m going to see him again.”
“Oh, he’ll come back for you Danny. All you have to do is record it when you see him next, get him to confess his crimes to you on record and then you’ll be off the hook and we won’t have to tell your employer that you’re being investigated. It wouldn’t look good for a school teacher, don’t you agree?
I sighed and shook my head. “No, I guess that it wouldn’t.”
Now I wasn’t confused, the two detective’s threats were quite clear. I was going to have to cooperate or they were going to make my life even more complicated than it already was.
Chapter 19
Mack
It had been a crazy week and I’d found out the information that I was looking for, even if in the end I didn’t actually want to know about it. It wasn’t good news and I would have rather been out of the loop a little bit more.
My worst fears were realized and instead of it being local or state cops that were looking for me, it was the feds. I moved around a lot and I made sure to never do too much work anywhere, especially at home. The deal with Tony was one that I had done because it was quick and too easy money to say no to. That was my problem half of the time, I couldn’t say no to a good opportunity. I could see them coming and I wanted to take advantage of them. This usually ended up meaning that I was going to have to go away for a bit.
I should have been worried about my freedom. That was what was in jeopardy, as well as some of my money. I always had enough put up for a rainy day, so really my only true worry was what was going to happen with Danny. She hadn’t been brought into it yet, but that didn’t mean that if we kept seeing each other it wouldn’t happen that way. I knew that eventually they would come for her and try to use her against me. I had to be the one to tell her first, though I didn’t want to and I didn’t know how. I’d never confessed my sins before.
It was a hard pill to swallow, but one that I had to come to grips with. I was going to have to leave and the straight-laced woman was not going to go along with it. I had a feeling that if she knew what I did for a living and how I made my money, she wouldn’t talk to me. She was always on the right side of the law and even when I tried, I found myself falling back to the bad side. It just seemed to be where I was supposed to be, no matter how much I tried to do the right thing. The downward slide was inevitable for me. It wasn’t that way with Danny. She always did the right thing.
So I decided that I had to see her. Danny and I had a lot to talk about and the longer I put it off, the more dangerous it was all going to become. I had to get out of here quickly and she was either going to have to come with me or not. Either way, whatever happened, it had to happen soon.
I tried calling her on one of my burner phones and she didn’t answer. I reasoned that maybe she didn’t know who it was and that’s why she wasn’t answering. I didn’t like to use my regular phone all that much anymore because I was sure that it had a tap on it, but I risked it because I had to see her. I wanted her to meet me somewhere because I didn’t want to lead them back to her house. But none of this could happen if I didn’t get ahold of her and get a chance to talk to her in the first place.
She didn’t answer the next five times I called her and I have to admit that I was getting a bit upset about it all. I don’t know if she was paying me back for not answering hers. But I’d told her what was going on with that. I thought she’d understood. Never did I think that the FBI had gotten to her. For one reason or another, it just wasn’t on my radar for some reason.
Finally she picked up after I’d been calling for hours, but she sounded strange right off the bat. I don’t know what it was exactly, she didn’t really say anything, but Danny wasn’t acting like herself.
“I don’t think I can see you tonight and I think I’m going to be busy the next couple of weeks. There is a lot of testing going on at work and I have to stay later than usual.”
“So you don’t want to see me at all for a couple of weeks?”
“Maybe longer, sorry Mack it was good catching up with you though. Maybe when my schedule is a little clearer, we’ll be able to get together again.”
I couldn’t believe what she was saying. Was she really that quick to get rid of me? After everything we’d been through and what I was going through currently, I couldn’t believe that she was ready to walk away. She didn’t even know any of my troubles and she was already ready to walk away. Maybe it was a good thing that I didn’t tell her what was really going on.
“I don’t know what’s going on Danny. What happened since I saw you last?”
“It was just a little fun Mack. You know that it wasn’t supposed to be more than that. Last time it ended much the same way, we just drifted apart. Let’s not make it any more complicated and harder than it has to be. Okay?”
I didn’t know what to say and I just kind of nodded my head to no one in particular. I was in the back of the car by myself and Ernest was looking at me with concern. I suppose it was all across my face. I’d never been so gutted in all of my life. All of the fantasies I had of me and her running off together were quickly getting squashed. She didn’t even want to take the time to see me now. How had I been so wrong?
“I hope you get to that paradise you used to talk about when we were younger Mack. You deserve that.”
She hung up and I was left far more confused than when I started. I didn’t know what it was that she was talking about. It was like Danny had been talking in riddles and she was always the straight forward type so I had to think that something was off.
I wanted to go to her and have her tell me all of that to my face. She was always second guessing us now, but I was sure if she was in front of me, she wouldn’t be able to feel that way. All I had to do was get my hands on her and I would convince her. But then what? How was I going to convince her to come run away with me? I wouldn’t do it for her and now I was expecting her to do it for me? It didn’t seem like I had much choice about how it wa
s all going to go down, but I didn’t think that it was going to end well. Everything was up in the air and that made me nervous.
With or without Danny, I still had to make a plan to get out of here. I don’t know where I was going to go yet, but I thought about the small islands off the coast of Hawaii that we’d always talked about going to. She wanted to see the black sand and I always argued that paradise wouldn’t have black sand. Was she giving me a sign and if she was, that meant that someone had gotten to her.
I was assured by my guys for the third time that no one had been able to get to her, so maybe her telling me that was just her way of saying goodbye.
Now I didn’t know what the hell to do and I was running out of time to do it. The feds would be on my back soon enough and I were going to have to figure something out.
Chapter 20
Danny
He just wasn’t getting it and I was so afraid of him saying something to incriminate himself that I had to get him off of the phone before he did just that. Mack was never one to hide what he was doing, but he did now. I knew what it was and since my phone was tapped, I had to be careful what I said.
Then I got a call from the detectives because I wasn’t answering his calls and wasn’t cooperating. Now they were going to be mad because I told him that I wasn’t going to be able to see him. They wanted me to help them take him to jail, but I would never do that. I would rather never see Mack again then to let that happen. Mack meant too much to me and they had nothing on me. I wasn’t going to take my chances and see how it all worked out.
Mack was going to ruin it if he didn’t let us go. He had to stop calling and I hoped that he got the hint and stopped calling now. It wasn’t going to do any good because I wasn’t going to answer anymore. The feds could do what they wanted, because I knew that I had nothing to do with anything. My only crime was for loving the wrong man and since this had been my problem all along, I wasn’t going to worry about it all that much.