by CW Browning
Stephanie rolled her eyes and got up to go towards the kitchen.
“Ass,” she muttered to herself as he threw the deadbolt back and opened the door behind her.
She went into the kitchen to get plates, listening as he paid the driver. A feeling of contentment washed over her and she paused, pressing her lips together. She was enjoying his company, and the thought of him leaving at the end of the night almost seemed unbearable. While nothing would take away the oppressive feeling of grief overwhelming her, Blake's company made it more manageable. As ridiculous as it was, he was like a steady rock in the storm, and she wasn't ready to be left alone again.
“You don't have any beer, do you?” Blake called from the dining room, setting the large bag on the table.
“No,” Stephanie said, “but I have soda.”
“That'll work,” he agreed, opening the bag of food.
Stephanie grabbed two cans of soda from the fridge and went into the dining room with the plates and sodas.
“I was thinking,” he said as she came in, “I don't like the idea of your being alone right now. How do you feel about my staying here? I'll sleep on the couch.”
Stephanie set the plates down and looked up to find him watching her with those brown eyes of his that seemed to see right through her.
“You don't have to sleep on the couch,” she told him. “I have a spare room. It's part storage, but there's a bed in there if you don't mind boxes.”
“Not at all,” Blake assured her.
“I would appreciate it,” she admitted. “Lina offered her house, but I don't think I'd feel comfortable there. She's always been my best friend, but...”
“...you have reservations,” Blake finished for her. “I understand.”
“I wasn't looking forward to being alone when you left,” Stephanie said slowly, handing him a plate. “Last night I almost went out of my mind. As much as I hate to admit it, I think everyone is right. I shouldn't be alone right now.”
“That's normal,” he said gently. “You just lost your partner.”
“So they keep telling me,” she replied. She took a deep breath, looking at the bag of food. “Will you take out the food or are we just going to stand here and look at it?”
Blake grinned and reached into the bag.
“Say no more,” he said, pulling out a food container. “General Tso's cures all.”
“Not quite, but it's a start,” Stephanie said, accepting a box of rice. “Why are you so worried about Michael?” she asked suddenly.
“He's been poking around Trasker Pharmaceuticals, the firm distributing the antidote,” Blake told her. “He's trying to find out how one of the largest pharmaceutical distributors in the country ended up mixed up in all this. At the very least, he thinks he can find a money trail leading to someone.”
Stephanie was quiet as she began piling rice onto her plate.
“If the antidote really is the weapon, then someone's on the inside,” she said after a moment.
“That, or they honestly believe they've got a new and improved antidote for Anthrax,” Blake said, seating himself and preparing to dig into a huge mound of rice and General Tso's. “Either way, Mike needs to know the dangers.”
“I find it very hard to believe that a reputable firm like Trasker is manufacturing biological weapons,” Stephanie puzzled, shaking her head and reaching for an egg roll. “Not that this whole situation is believable, but that seems to be taking it to an even higher level.”
“I could make the argument that all drugs are weapons,” Blake said around a mouthful of chicken. “They're chemical compounds used to kill something. In the medical world, they kill disease. If Trasker thinks this is an antidote, they would manufacture and distribute it at will. That's their job.”
“But that's my point,” Stephanie replied. “Do you have any idea the amount of testing they would have done on it before they started manufacturing it? It's not like someone just hands them a formula, tells them what it does and they go off and make it.”
“You're right,” Blake said after a moment. “There has to be someone inside.”
“Which brings us back to Trasker jumping into the pond of biological weapons,” she muttered. “I don't buy it.”
“The firm itself doesn't necessarily have to be behind it,” he said slowly. “All it would take is one person with the ability to make the whole batch of the antidote something different than what was approved.”
Stephanie stared at him doubtfully.
“I don't know,” she said, shaking her head. “I just think it's reaching.”
“Then how do you explain the antidote coming from Trasker?” Blake asked bluntly.
Stephanie shrugged and looked at him sheepishly.
“I can't,” she admitted.
Blake nodded.
“That's where Michael will come in handy,” he told her grimly. “He's a wizard at deciphering corporate records and billing invoices. I have no doubt that, at the very least, he'll find a money trail. The only question is how many hornets will he stir up in the process?”
Chapter Forty-One
Viper watched as the black BMW pulled into the long, open driveway leading to the country club. She pulled the Jeep off the road, rolling to a stop in the deep shadows of the trees across from the club. Killing the engine, she reached over and picked up a receiver from the passenger seat. She tuned it to the correct frequency and the ear bud in her ear came alive.
“You can drop me at the door and go park the car,” Dominic was saying. “I'll call you when I'm finished with dinner.”
“Yes, sir.”
There was a moment of quiet, then a car door opened and shut. Alina waited for a few minutes, listening to the sound of the driver telling the valet he'd park himself. After she was confident the driver was, indeed, simply parking the car, she pulled out the ear bud and dropped it into the middle console along with the receiver. Glancing at her watch, she noted the time as she pulled the keys from the ignition. Zipping her jacket up, Alina climbed out of the Jeep and walked down the road, staying under the cover of the trees until she was about a hundred yards away. Then, with a quick glance around, she swiftly crossed the dark and deserted street, disappearing into the trees on the other side.
The country club Dominic frequented was located in a quiet neighborhood and the driveway fronted a road that was moderately trafficked during the day, but quiet after dark. The heavily wooded area gave the illusion of being out in the country, and Viper moved through the trees swiftly and silently, completely at ease in the darkness. Her heart settled down into a familiar, rapid tempo and Alina breathed in the musky smells of the underbrush deeply.
Within twenty minutes of leaving Frankie's fortress, Viper had addresses to Dominic's primary residence, office, gym, country club and favorite restaurant. By the time she reached his house to plant the bug in his car, she knew almost everything there was to know about him. If there was any reservation in her mind regarding the bargain she struck with the head of the Jersey mob, Viper ignored it. It was unfortunate Frankie's path had intersected with hers, but it couldn't be helped. The only way to ensure Solitto stayed out of it completely was to give him what he wanted, and it would be Viper's pleasure to do just that...after she got all the information that she needed out of Dominic.
After navigating the woods for a few minutes, Alina emerged onto a grass verge behind the valet parking lot. Staying in the shadows, she surveyed the cars. It was Friday night and the lot was almost full. With a slight frown, she began to move to her left, looking for Dominic's BMW. After a few minutes of searching, she spotted it on the end of a row, toward the outer edge of the lot. When the driver parked, he did so ensuring that he would be able to get out without worrying about being blocked in. She smiled. Perfect.
Viper remained in the shadows, watching as the valets hurried in and out of the lot, bringing cars in, parking, and running out again. It was the height of the dinner hour, and a sense of very efficient and
organized chaos reigned. Alina waited patiently until there was a moment when the lot was empty before darting out of the shadows and straight for the BMW. Dropping onto the pavement, she rolled under it just as another sports car rolled into the lot.
Exhaling, Viper grimaced as her left arm began throbbing from the impact of hitting the cement. She unzipped her jacket and reached into the inner pocket to extract a small box the size of a flash-drive. She pressed and held a button on the side until a tiny red light began flashing, then reached into the back wheel well. A second later, the box was secured and Viper lay still, listening as the sports car engine shut off on the other side of the parking lot. A door opened, then slammed shut and footsteps echoed out of the parking lot as the valet left.
A moment later, Viper was disappearing into the dark trees, leaving the tracker and BMW behind.
“Tell me again why we're doing this?”
Stephanie grimaced after asking the question as her jeans got caught on the wire fence she was climbing over. Blake stood on the other side, watching as she struggled over the fence he had scaled with ease.
“I want to take a look around,” he answered, grinning. “You're snagged there.”
“Yes, thank you,” Stephanie snapped, reaching down to pull her jeans free from the clinging piece of wire.
“Don't climb many fences, do you?”
“I don't have to. That's what the badge is for,” she retorted, landing beside him finally. “Alright. You got me in here. Now what?”
Blake reached out and plucked a leaf from her hair.
“Now we look around,” he said with a grin.
Stephanie made a face as he turned and began to move through the darkness inside the racetrack. They made it all the way through dinner before Blake returned to the subject of Dominic. One thing led to another and, before Stephanie knew what was happening, they were pulling up into the trees outside the dark, closed racetrack.
“There's nothing here,” she muttered, not for the first time since he hatched this hair-brained scheme. “It's a racetrack, not a factory.”
“There's always something,” Blake retorted, skirting around the racetrack and nodding in the distance. “See?”
“That's the garage the mechanic uses,” Stephanie told him. “Lina said Tito keeps his Camaro here.”
“That's something,” he replied, moving into the shadows of a trailer. “Why does he keep his car here? Does he live here?” he asked, lowering his voice.
“Oh, I have no idea,” she shrugged and stopped next to him. “John knows more...”
Stephanie stopped abruptly and Blake glanced at her sympathetically. He reached out and squeezed her hand, then released it.
“Well, we're not the first ones to come around,” he said conversationally.
“What do you mean?”
Blake pointed and she followed his finger to a camera fixed on the corner of the long building with bay doors. The casing was hanging downward, the camera shattered. Stephanie raised an eyebrow, then her lips curved into a grin.
“Viper,” she said. “I'll bet you fifty bucks that was her.”
“No bet,” he muttered, scanning the area for signs of life.
“She was here the night of John's accident,” Stephanie told him. “She followed Tito. I assume that's when she took the GPS chip from Dutch's car. She said she saw the compartment in the back of the trunk, where he hid whatever it was he was transporting.”
“All this and you didn't think it was worth looking around?” Blake demanded, looking at her incredulously.
Stephanie shrugged.
“It's nothing we don't already know,” she replied. “Why waste time with what we already know when we should be locating those bombs?”
“You and I really need to sit down and have a talk when this is all over,” he muttered, turning his attention back to the building ahead.
He started to move forward, but Stephanie grabbed his arm tightly and pulled him back into the shadows. She dropped down into a crouch, pulling him down with her.
“Sssh!” she hissed.
Blake opened his mouth to protest, then closed it as he heard what she had already seen. The gate behind the building was sliding open with a loud creaking noise of mechanical gears. They crouched in the darkness for a second, then the unmistakable sound of a diesel truck engine rumbled into the side road outside the gate.
“Quick,” Blake whispered, “over there.”
He nodded behind them and Stephanie looked. Four oil drums were stacked a few feet away from the end of the trailer, and behind them was what looked like the back of a vendor stand. Stephanie glanced over her shoulder and saw lights behind the building as the truck rumbled toward the open gate. Shaking her head, she moved swiftly toward the cover of the drums, ducking behind them as one of the bay doors began to slide open. Blake dropped down beside her and they watched as the bay door continued to open and light poured out of the garage. Blake let out a low whistle as the black back of a Camaro with dual chrome tailpipes became visible.
“Nice car,” he whispered.
Stephanie nodded.
“It is nice,” she admitted, “for a Chevy.”
Blake glanced at her, amused, before returning his attention to the garage. A tall shadow moved into sight, silhouetted against the light.
“Is that Tito?” he asked.
Stephanie shrugged.
“I've never seen him, aside from his mugshot and once while he was driving,” she whispered back. “It was night and Lina was scaring the crap out of me, so I wasn't really paying attention.”
They watched as a truck hauling a car trailer pulled around the side of the building. It pulled forward, the headlights illuminating the drums Blake and Stephanie crouched behind, before reversing until the back of the trailer was in front of the bay doors. The door to the driver's side opened and a man stepped out onto the running board, looking over the roof of the truck toward the open bay door.
“Hey man, is this OK?” he called.
“Yeah, you're good,” the shadow answered.
The man nodded and ducked back into the cab to shut the engine off before climbing out and walking to the back of the trailer, disappearing from view. Tito walked out of the open bay door and was lost from sight behind the trailer.
“They're either loading or unloading,” Blake murmured. “I wish I could get closer.”
He glanced behind them, then over to the edge of the long trailer-like building, gauging the distance.
“Don't even think about it,” Stephanie hissed.
Blake grinned.
“If I go now, they won't see me,” he pointed out. “I can go behind the building on the other side. I might be able to at least see what they're doing.”
“And what am I supposed to do? Just hide here?”
“Keep an eye out,” he answered, turning toward the long building. “If it looks like I'm in trouble, do something.”
“Do something? Like what?” she demanded.
“I'm sure you'll think of something,” Blake replied with a wink.
He took one last look at the truck before ducking out from their hiding spot and running for the cover of the building. Stephanie cursed under her breath and turned her attention to the truck. There was no movement or shouts of alarm from the back of the truck and a second later, Blake was behind the long trailer. He nodded to her, then disappeared around the back corner. Shaking her head, Stephanie watched as another bay door started to slide open.
She pursed her lips as a shiny black muscle car was slowly revealed. Stephanie frowned. Now whose car was that? She wasn't especially interested in cars, but between John and Alina, Stephanie was forced to learn a thing or two over the years. As the bay door finished opening, she squinted and tilted her head. It definitely wasn't Dutch's infamous Shelby.
Stephanie pulled out her phone and opened the camera. She zoomed in as far as the phone would zoom and snapped a picture. Looking down at her phone, she shook her head. It wa
sn't great, but it might be enough for Lina to identify the make and model. She tucked the phone back into her pocket and watched as Tito rolled a long dolly into view, piled high with boxes and tools. The man from the truck met him and took the dolly, rolling it out to the back of the trailer while Tito disappeared from view again. They were loading up.
Stephanie sighed. She sure hoped Blake was getting a better view than she was. She settled down to watch as Tito rolled two more fully-loaded dollies out over the next ten minutes. The two men worked quickly and, as far as Stephanie was concerned, silently. Once the dollies were empty, Tito turned and went into the bay with the mystery car. He got in the driver seat and, a moment later, the engine roared to life with a guttural growl, the sound echoing through the night. The engine settled into an idle and the chrome tailpipes vibrated for a minute before the reverse lights came on.
Stephanie watched as Tito backed the car out of the bay slowly. With a start, she realized he was backing it up into the car trailer.
“What are you up to?” she whispered.
The car slowly disappeared from her angle of view, but she listened to the engine as it continued to growl smoothly. Those old engines did sound awesome, Stephanie reflected. She could see why John was so passionate about them. They sounded like real cars, not the silly lawn mowers that passed for cars today. The sound of the engine changed slightly and Stephanie frowned before she realized it was because the powerful motor was no longer on the cement. A moment later, it was muffled completely by the car trailer. The car was on board and, after another moment, the engine shut down.
Tito appeared again, striding into the open bay door again.
“Am I taking the Mustang?” the driver yelled from inside the trailer, his voice echoing in the night.
“No,” Tito yelled back from deep in the garage. “That's Dominic's. He can deal with it. Secure it and close it up. That's it.”
Stephanie raised her eyebrows in surprise. Was Tito running out on Dominic?