I raised my eyebrows at him. “You’re leaving it to me to organize? Is that because I’m a girl?”
He laughed. “You’re not a girl.”
I giggled at that. Max and I had a great relationship, and I knew that going away with him on vacation would be nothing more than two friends out to have a good time. There was no sexual tension between us, and that was something I was grateful for. I could think of nothing worse than being in a relationship with a guy who did what Max did. I would be on edge all the time worrying about something happening to him. It was hard enough having to worry about myself. Apparently, in a drunken state, I’d told one of my friends that I found Max attractive, but I didn’t remember doing so. I wasn’t exactly a lie, though. Max was incredibly good looking. But he was too tough and too serious for me. With the sort of job, we had, I needed someone with more of a sense of humor. Although, he did have a sense of humor with me. It was only with the rest of the world that he was so serious. Sometimes I felt it was because we were the only two people who really understood what we went through each day. It was nice to have that sort of friendship. When I talked to him, it sometimes just felt like I was talking to myself.
“Okay, here we are,” I said as we arrived two blocks away from the den.
“Another day. Another den,” Max said and made sure that his microphone was completely hidden. It was a routine we always went through even when we felt sure that everything was fine. The reason that we made such a good team was that we both believed in triple checking everything.
“Good luck, Max. You’re almost done with this. Now, make sure you don’t get shot,” I said. It was the same line I always said before he went out.
“I never do,” he said just as he always did.
As he walked away, I heard him mumble to me, “You just love the sound of my voice.”
I thought Max was hilarious, but everyone I spoke to told me that he was the most serious man that they had ever met. Why was he so different with me? Maybe, just maybe, if the situation were different, there was a chance that we would be together. But we were partners now, and there was no way I wanted to get involved with him. I chuckled to myself and got ready for another hour of listening in. The laughter had subsided the moment I heard him walk inside. There was nothing funny about this situation. Maybe the reason that we joked around so much with each other was because we knew how serious it really was.
Chapter Three
Max
The week was going by faster than I had imagined. I’d met up with Shell again on Monday, and things were still going according to plan. This was good. I had to make sure that absolutely nothing went wrong. I’d been worried that I’d betray myself by sounding nervous, but Madison had assured me that I had sounded exactly the way that I always did. The closer it got to the big day, the more excited I got. But with every bit of excitement came the inevitable feeling of dread. I was starting to lie in bed at night and consider all the possible scenarios. The problem was that there seemed to be one good scenario and a million bad ones.
“What if it all goes wrong?” I said to Madison. It wasn’t like me to be negative. I was usually the one telling everyone that everything was fine even when it clearly wasn’t. But the lack of sleep was starting to get to me. I just wanted Friday to be over and for everything to have gone by smoothly. I knew I wouldn’t be able to relax until that moment. And while Friday seemed close, it also seemed so far away.
We were sitting in the conference room about to have a meeting with the team. As usual, I met up with Madison at least half an hour before so that the two of us could discuss how the meeting was going to go. We always wanted to make sure that we were on the same page so that the meetings ran as smoothly as possible. And, for the most part, our decision to do this had always worked for us in the past.
“It’s not going to go wrong. Why are you suddenly getting all nervous on me? You’ve been telling me all year that we’re going to get these guys. For an entire year I’ve had to listen to your cockiness, so don’t go getting all scared on me now. The time has finally come, and you should be excited for this.”
“Yeah, I guess so,” I said as I took a sip of my coffee and grimaced. “Gross. I still can’t believe how disgusting the coffee is in this place. It’s some of the worst coffee I’ve ever had in my life.”
“And yet you continue to drink it,” she said and took a sip of her own. She pulled a face. “And so, do I. I think we need to get ourselves a good coffee from down the road after this. I’m in need of some seriously good caffeine.”
“Good idea. So, before everyone comes in, I wanted to talk to you about finally coming clean to them about Friday.”
Madison looked at me in shock. “What? You want to tell everyone? Why on earth would you want to do that? Have we not been through this before? This is a bad idea, Max.”
I sighed. It was not the first time we were having this argument. I didn’t see what the big deal was. I had handpicked the five people in the team, and I knew that they were trustworthy. They all knew what we were doing, but they didn’t know that we had finally organized the big bust. As far as they were concerned, everything was as it normally was. But I was itching to tell them. The way I saw it was that the more people I had on my side, the better.
“Oh, come on, Madison; it’s not a bad idea. I don’t know why you continue to think so. They’re not going to say anything to anyone, and they’re certainly not going to turn me in after all this time. I don’t know why you’re so worried. They’re trustworthy, and I think we owe it to them to tell them. They’ve been there with us for so much of this. It’s good to have a solid team.”
“We’re a solid team. You and me. We don’t need anyone else. Anyway, we are going to tell them. I thought the plan was to tell them on Friday, just before it happens. That way there is absolutely no chance of anything going wrong.”
“I thought you said nothing could go wrong,” I said.
“Yes, but that’s if we stick to the plan. Nothing will go wrong if we just stick to the plan that we had from the start. Why tell them and take the chance of ruining everything for us? I just don’t understand. It’s only not worth it.”
“Take the chance? You’re acting like they’re going to go in and ruin things for us. They’ve had plenty of chances to wreck things in the past year, so I don’t see why they would do something like that now. They’re good people, Madison. They’re not just work colleagues to me; they’re our friends.” It wasn’t entirely true, but I was trying to prove a point, and I was hoping to appeal to her emotional side.
She groaned. “Yes, I know they’re good people. I’m not saying that they’re bad. I don’t think they’re going to do something on purpose. But all it takes is one person telling someone else who tells someone else for the whole thing to come crumbling down around us. That’s just how it works. People talk. We have to be smart about all of this. And anyway, we’ve been fooled before. Some people are damn good liars. For all we know someone in our team could be a spy. Or, they could just be human beings who like to talk. Either way, it could mean word getting out.”
I thought that Madison was exaggerating and being completely unreasonable. These were our friends. But I didn’t get the chance to say anything further to her because it was time for our meeting to begin and everyone was filtering in.
I smiled at the group around me and tried to imagine any one of them doing something harmful, but I just couldn’t. I was so sure that I was the one in the right with all of this.
“Does everyone have a cup of coffee? This stuff is amazing,” I said, and everyone burst out laughing. Nevertheless, everyone held up a cup. It seemed that bad coffee was better than no coffee at all. After this, I was going to have to have a serious talk with the chief about getting some proper coffee. Although, I’d been telling myself to say something all year and I still hadn’t said a word.
I began the meeting by updating them on what had been happening with the drug ring and asking th
em all for suggestions and comments. And near the end I was ready to announce the upcoming bust.
“Now, before you go, there’s something I wanted to tell you all,” I started, and I literally saw Madison stiffen in her seat. I tried to ignore her and hoped that she would see that I was doing the right thing. “I’m only telling you this because you’re a part of my elite team, but I need you to all promise that what gets discussed in here doesn’t get mentioned once you leave the room. Nobody can find out about this: not your mother, your brother, or your partner.” I then went on to tell them how I was going to meet with the leader of the drug ring on Friday and about the bust that was set to take place.
“I need you to all be prepared for the worst since we have no idea what is going to happen. Of course, we’re going to be on high alert, and we’re going to make sure that we all come out of this unscathed. I’ll be in the firing line, but I have every intention of walking out of there alive with proof that these guys need to go to jail. For the first time, we’re going to have them all together, and because they are preparing for one of their biggest drug hauls, it’s going to be huge.”
I looked at the shocked faces of the people around me and was startled to see the look of hatred that was clearly written all over Madison’s face. I knew she’d be angry with me but I hadn’t expected her to be that angry. Before I had a chance to wrap things up, she had walked out the room. Everyone seemed too entranced by what I had said to even notice. I gulped and carried on. I didn’t want the team to know that she was upset.
“So, do I have it on good authority that you won’t say anything?” I said to everyone in what I hoped was the voice of someone in charge. If there was anything I had learned in the past year, it was that it was easy to get people to listen to you. You just had to have the confidence, the right demeanor, and you always had to look at someone directly in the eyes. The moment your voice wavered, or you lost eye contact, was the moment that bit of authority lessened.
“Of course not,” they replied. And, despite what Madison had to say about everything, I believed them when they told me this. They weren’t going to do anything stupid. If anything, I felt safer knowing that they were all on my side.
“You’ve done well, Max. The fact that you’re in on such a big bust is a true testament to how hard you have worked on this case,” one of the team members said to me, and I beamed at him. It was nice knowing that other people thought that way. I had considered the same thing myself. We had told ourselves that it could take up to two years for them to let me into their circle, but it had taken a lot less time than we had initially thought. I had been a part of the inner circle for some time now and was now about to meet the big boss and be involved in one of their big hauls. I was proud of how much I had done in such a short space of time. I was also grateful because the thought of doing it all for another year was terrifying to me.
“I’m looking forward to it being over,” I said and thanked them. “And, that’s a wrap for today. Thank you all for coming. Please let me know if you have any concerns or questions.”
As they stood up to go, Peter, one of the older men in the team, looked at me and smiled.
“We’re going to going to get this guy, Max. I just know it.”
“Thanks, Peter. I sure hope so.”
Everyone except Blake had walked out the room. Blake was one of my best friends on the team and someone that I knew I could trust. We didn’t have the same relationship than I did with Madison, but we were still close. Another than the chief and Madison, he knew the most about the bust.
“What’s wrong?” I asked him. “Aren’t you excited about any of this?”
“I am. Well, I’m not sure if excited is the right word, but I’m definitely ready for it to be over. I’m just not sure if you should’ve told everyone so soon about the bust.”
I groaned. “Not you too. Why not?”
“Because if any of the team is involved with the bad guys, then they have time to tell the boss to call it off. Or at least to bust you before you get a chance to bust them. I know you trust them, but surely your years of working on the force have taught you that you can never truly trust anyone? Whenever something goes wrong, it’s always because of some inside thing that’s gone wrong. You’ve got to have eyes on everyone, even those that you assume you can trust.”
“Madison said the same thing to me.”
“I’m assuming that’s why she stormed off?”
I sighed. “Yeah. She’d literally just warned me not to do it. We had talked about it before everyone came in and she’d asked me not to say anything.”
“Well, I hate to tell you this buddy, but—Madison was right.”
I was surprised that Blake was on Madison’s side. I had been so sure that I was doing the right thing. Blake had been a good friend of mine since our police academy days, and I’d brought him onto the team to help advance his career. I wanted to see him do well, and I knew he felt the same about me. His words carried a lot of weight, and I couldn’t help but worry that I had done the wrong thing. The two people I was closest to couldn’t be wrong.
“I’ve messed up. I just really wanted to let them in on what was happening. I thought I was doing a good thing. I’m still not sure if I did anything wrong, to be honest, but I hate the fact that the two of you seem to think that I have.”
Blake smiled and patted me on the back. “Don’t worry, man. We’re just trying to be extra careful, but we’re probably paranoid for nothing. You’re more than likely right about the team. I’m sure they are fine. They’re good guys, and I honestly don’t see anyone of them doing something against us. But, I’ll tell you what: I’ll just keep an extra eye on the team throughout this week and on Friday to make sure that everything is fine. We’re in seriously close quarters here, so I’m sure it will be obvious if someone is acting cagey. I’ll make sure to let you know.”
“Thanks, Blake. I’d really appreciate it. I think that’s a great idea. Hopefully, everything will be fine, though. It’s only a few days away, and then we can finally rid ourselves of all this.”
“And don’t worry about Madison. She’ll forgive you once you bust this guy on Friday. She’s just being protective of you. I know she doesn’t like to admit it, but she obviously cares for you.”
“Yeah,” I said. “I guess you’re right.”
I made my way out the conference room to look for Madison, but she had gone out. I quickly sprawled a message for her and left it on her desk telling her to call me when she was ready for some real coffee. I wasn’t surprised when I didn’t hear back from her.
Chapter Four
Madison
Another day had passed since Max had gone against my warning and told the team about the bust. I’d walked out of the meeting in anger and had not come back for the rest of the day. The following day I saw a message on my desk from Max asking if I wanted to go for coffee. I scrunched it up and threw it away. I was still mad at him, and it was going to take me a lot to get over what he had done. The following day he went straight to the den while I sat and listened to him through the surveillance set up. He’d sent me a message telling me that he would meet me once he was done.
I was sitting in the van now, listening to him and wondering how many times I’d done this over the past year. It had been strange at first, listening in on Max, but now it felt normal. This time, though, the more he spoke, the more annoyed I got at the fact that he had put himself in a dangerous position. After everything we had been through to get to this point, it seemed crazy to me that he would endanger himself this way. For a man who portrayed himself to be such a tough guy to the world, he certainly hadn’t shown it in this situation. Why on earth did he want to tell the team? I still couldn’t believe it. I’d gone into the office that morning and already heard a few team members talking about it. They were talking to each other, but anyone could’ve overheard.
Max was talking to Shell and some of the other guys, and I marveled at how different he was whe
n he was with them. I couldn’t help but be impressed with how he had managed to fool them. He seemed just like one of them and nothing he said ever betrayed who he really was. I listened closely for any signs that they might be on to him, but I couldn’t find any. According to Shell, everything was still set for Friday.
It was late when Max finally came back. I’d gotten into the van in the afternoon, but it was almost nightfall when he climbed in. I was starving, and desperate for something to drink. I’d wanted coffee all afternoon, but I wouldn’t have said no if someone handed me a bottle of whiskey instead.
“That was long,” I said to Max. “You were in there forever. It’s already starting to get dark outside.”
I quickly drove down the road before anyone could see, and made my way back to the office where Max’s car was waiting.
“Yeah, longer than usual. I couldn’t wait to get out of there. Obviously, I couldn’t rush out, though. I cannot believe that this whole thing is happening tomorrow already. This week has gone both fast and slow at the same time, if that makes sense.”
“Yep,” I said. I kept my eyes on the road so that I didn’t have to look at him.
“Yep? What do you mean by that?”
“I don’t know mean anything by that. I’m just agreeing with you. That’s what yep means, in case you didn’t already know that.”
“Wow, you’re in a good mood today,” he said.
I glared at him. “Did you honestly expect me to be in a good mood?”
“What’s going on with you?”
I sighed. “For goodness’ sake, Max, don’t you know me at all? I’m annoyed that you told the whole damn team about tomorrow. Surely you know that. I didn’t exactly storm out of the conference room for nothing. What was the point in asking for my opinion in the first place if you weren’t going to listen to me? In fact, the very act of asking me what you should do and then going against what I said was a complete slap in the face. Don’t you care at all about what I think?” I felt annoyed at myself for showing him how upset I was, but I didn’t know what else to do. I’d been holding all of this in since the meeting.
Dirty Maverick (The Maxwell Family) Page 2