Book Two: Yesterday Echoes
David Turner sat stunned in his penthouse suite. The cat purred quietly in his lap as he stroked it, closing its eyes in contentment.
The old man stared at the phone. He was torn. Should he go? Should he stay? He wished he could say that it was the first time in his life that his heart had been crushed and he just didn’t know what to do next. He closed his eyes and prayed silently to “Please God let this be the last.”
He remembered sitting in a hospital room once before thinking that it had all come tumbling down. He remembered staring at the body in the bed and being more paralyzed than the man hooked up to all the wires and tubes. It was the end of it all, and he knew it.
But something else happened. Someone else came along with a lifeline. He feared it. He was so ready for it all to be over, no matter what the consequences. What did happen? What was it that spared him the shame and kept the ball rolling?
“Oh yes…yes.” He said out loud.
The room had very little light. It must have been about this same time of night. David was so much younger then, and so much more worried about the consequences. The accident had been bad enough, but this? How did this happen?
He looked at the once handsome man in the bed, the one now with a face stitched back together like an old quilt. They could fix most of it eventually, but he’d never be the same, look the same. They could afford the best. Things had paid off. They had the money, plenty of money. Now they just didn’t have the handsome leading man. They didn't have anything anymore.
The man would live, but they both knew his fate. He didn’t say much; too much pain, too much in mourning for what was lost. The doctors could fix him, but who would to fix them?
He had to tell him. David had no choice. He had to know. The man’s face was gone, and now he had to be told his wife was gone as well.
The patient moaned. It was almost as if he could read his mind. David smiled bitterly. It had always been like that. It’s what had made them the perfect team. If they could just figure out what to do next, maybe they still could be. Without her was it even possible?
David hadn’t heard the other man come in the room. He barely remembered a small light flooding the gray and then going dark again. He felt a hand on his shoulder.
“Dave?”
It took a moment for his eyes to adjust and focus. David hoped the man could see his weak smile in the dark.
“How’s he doing?” He asked.
David just nodded his head.
“Does he know?”
Turner sighed. “About her?” The following silence answered both their questions.
“I almost didn’t find him. You weren’t in your room and I knew good and well he wasn’t using his real name. Then I remembered…Ernie Newcastle.”
“What better way to hide than to use the name nobody remembers or even knows.”
“Lucille knew all the tricks.”
David whipped his head around and stared him down in the dark. “Shhh!”
“You’re right.” David felt the apologetic pat on his shoulder. “Let’s step back to your room, where we can talk without disturbing him.”
David made sure the bedclothes were snug and pulled tight before they left and walked in silence to the nicer end of the hospital.
“They’re releasing me tomorrow.” David said as they shut his door.
“You should have been released a week ago.”
“Without Lucille here to make sure I stayed…”
The man shook his head. “I don’t understand. Why would she do something like this?”
David sighed and thumped down on the bed. “Jamey and I always used to joke about ‘Whose wife is crazier’. I always thought it was mine hands down, turns out it was his.”
“Are you sure that body is Lucille’s?”
“I’d give anything right now if it wasn’t. If it was my wife, I’d know that everything was under control.”
“You have no doubt?”
“There will always be doubt.” David looked up. “They made me identify her. There was no way to tell from the body, but the jewelry. The jewelry was hers, almost all of it.”
“All of it?”
“It was like she snapped, covered her self in every ring and necklace she ever owned, set fire to the house and then hung herself as the place burned down around her.” David looked at the floor. “It was her body, but the actions? That definitely wasn’t Lucille.”
The man sat down beside David on the bed. “And your wife?”
“Haven’t seen or heard from her, not since the phone call. Lucille said she was handling it. She always took care of the messy stuff.” David stood up and walked to the window, staring out into the dark. “Somewhere out there is my lunatic wife and my baby boy.”
“Maybe once she hears about Lucille she’ll come back.”
Turner almost laughed. “Not a chance. She wasn’t nearly as crazy as we thought. She’s gone, and no one’s going to find her.”
“We’ll find her.” He stood and walked over to where he’s friend forlornly gazed out the window. “I promise you David, some day, some how. We’ll find her.”
David turned around to face him. “It’s too late, the game’s over. This is the end. Without Lucille, the jig is up.”
His friend nodded and walked to a chair in the corner. He started to sit, but froze. He put his fingers to his lips and stood up. “Maybe.”
“Maybe?” David scoffed. “Lucille knew it was over. She took the chicken’s way out and left Jamey and I holding the bag.”
“Of course she knew, but you know as well as I do that Lucille would never take the easy way out.” He began to pace the room. “She never did anything, anything, unless it was the means to an end.”
“End is right.” David snorted.
“No.” Herman Elysian smiled. “Every end leads to a beginning, my friend. I’ve got an idea…”
It had come in a three fisted punch. He knew he was falling and for the first time in his life he didn’t care. It had happened so fast and so unexpectedly he was still reeling. The speed at which it all took place was the sucker punch he never saw coming.
The cold zip of a body bag drew his attention. He couldn’t help but stiffen up as the men picked up the body and placed it on another gurney. He watched it wheeled around the house out of sight. He shook his head. How many more body bags would he have to watch roll out of sight?
Reese Shores put his head in his hands and begged for it all to stop. He sat shivering in the cold night air, dressed in a towel on the steps of the balcony. Ralphie, wet and smelling like a dog sat quietly beside him, watching silently as men dressed in blue, men dressed in green and white and graying figures walked all around them.
It was a nightmare. The blood and the questions. The sirens and the questions. The needles and the wires. The condemning faces and the questions. The reporters trying to cross the police tape, the neighbors shouting what happened, and the questions.
Reese stared into the now pink water of the pool. How could something so wonderful turn so quickly into such a bloody mess? Would everything he touched always have such an unhappy ending?
“Thought you might could use these.” A disembodied hand shoved a bundle of clothes under his nose.
He looked up. “Thanks, Jess.”
His brother nodded as Reese stood and pulled on the sweat pants. He started to pull the tee over his head when he noticed the writing. He held it up for his brother to read, “It’s big and I’m not afraid to use it.”
“Sorry, dude. I just grabbed something from the drawer.” He apologized.
“Jerk.” Reese mumbled and put it on anyway. He sat back down beside Ralphie as he pulled on the sneakers. “Where’s Dad?”
“He found the cat, she tried to get in the ambulance with Ian. Dad took it over to the house.”
“Ronnie…oh God.” Reese started to panic. “Some one needs to tell Ronnie. He can’t just see this on the television.”
Jesse put his arm around his brother. “Calm down, we’ve already called Susan and Jeremy. They’re gonna go ahead and take him fishing at the crack of dawn, keep him away from anything and everything until we know something for sure.”
“But what if…” Reese started to ask.
“Don’t go there, Reese.” Jesse warned. “The little guy’s been through enough. Ian will pull through. There is no way God gave his son back to him just in time for…”
“Yeah…” Reese looked at the pool water again. “Mom?”
“Went in the ambulance with Ian. Dad and I will stay here until the police finish up. Are they through with you or do you have to go down to the station, too?”
“I have to go down in the morning and sign a statement.” Reese looked back at his brother. “I don’t understand why they carted Kellen off like that.”
“Dude, he’s a former cop. He fired a gun and killed somebody.”
“It was self defense.” Reese insisted.
“But you didn’t see the shots. The only one’s that did can’t verify it was self-defense. He’ll be cleared but until they get it all verified they’ll keep him in custody.”
The brothers were silent, watching the spectacle that had once been peace darting all around them.
“Reese?” Jesse finally asked. “What happened?”
Reese shook his head. “All I know is one minute it was heaven and the next bodies were falling out of the sky.”
“Man…”
“Been happening way too much for me.” Reese choked back the burning in his throat. “Afghanistan…Iraq…the funeral and now this.”
“None of that was your fault.”
“I know, bro, but how many times do I have to be in the right place at the wrong time?”
“Look, everything’s gonna work out. This will all be over with soon and things will get back to normal.”
Reese looked his brother in the eye. “Jesse, things are never going to be normal again.”
Jesse punched his brother as hard as he could in the shoulder. “Dammit, Reese, don’t you do that again! Don’t you go pulling yourself into that weird little ball. I swear Reese I will beat the ever living crap outta you.”
A man dressed in white and green came over to stand in front of them. “Which one of you is Reese?”
“I am.” Reese stood up.
The man read his tee shirt and smirked. “Figures.”
“I’m Reese Shores. Why?”
“He’s asking for you. Won’t let us take him to the hospital without you.”
Reece’s ears weren’t sure they heard correctly, “He’s awake?”
“And won’t talk to anyone but you…follow me.”
In a moment Reese was being helped into the back of an ambulance. The man got in behind him,shut the doors and banged on the windows, “Okay, let’s go…”
Reese lost his balance as the ambulance took off, siren beginning to blare. He looked at Billy, whiter than any human being should be, gauze stuffed into a hole in his shoulder, but smiling into his eyes.
“Reese…”
“Shhh…don’t talk. You’re going to be fine. We’re all gonna be fine.” Reese grabbed Billy’s hand.
“What a weekend…” Billy coughed.
“Yeah, this is one to talk about back home.”
“Reese…”
“Shh…be quiet now, just rest…”
“We’ve given him something for the pain. He’ll be out in a second.” An attendant said.
“No, no…” Billy struggled, “I gotta know…?”
“What? Billy, what?”
Billy’s eyes started to flutter, falling into the sedative drip. He slurred but Reese understood him fully, “Who the hell is Darla Hutton?”
She wished she had brought the baseball bat after all. No one seemed to recognize her, and no one cared. It had taken her an hour to just get from the parking lot to the Emergency Room entrance itself.
Fortunately the one person who did recognize her was that bulldozer of a guy from “Open Fields”. He stood in front of her and pushed through to the doors. Cops were lined across the entrance arm in arm to keep the pandemonium from breaking inside.
“No one gets through.” The cop stared down the bulldozer. The bulldozer huffed. “Sorry.”
She peered around him and pulled down the dark glasses, showing off her red, bloodshot eyes. The cop recognized her. It took him a second but he put two and two together. She heard him say clearly but softly. “Let her through.”
A small opening was made. She felt herself being shoved toward it. She grabbed the bulldozer’s hand. “Him, too.”
“Just you ma’am.” The cop said.
“He’s my brother.” She lied. “We’re like his family.”
The cop took a deep breath. “Fine.”
“Thank you.” They popped through the line of cops and found themselves standing inside in ER.
“You didn’t have to do that, Ms. Allen.” The bulldozer said.
“I’d still be in the parking lot if it weren’t for you.” She said. “I know you…from…”
“Yes, ma’am. Ripley, Ripley Gunther.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I got a call from Jeremy Tyson.” He said. “He told me what happened.”
“Ronnie.” Saxon blurted out. “Have they told Ronnie?”
Ripley shook his head. “No ma’am. They won’t say anything, sticking with the plan.”
“What plan?”
“At sun up, Mr. Tyson gets the boys on a boat away from everything. As soon as they know something definite they’ll come to shore.”
“He’s been through so much.” Saxon looked around to see if she could get some information.
“They’re worried ma’am. Kellen’s downtown, they asked me to keep Mr. Justyn safe.”
“Safe?”
“Some one tried to kill him, ma’am. I’m to stay as close as possible until we know what happened.”
Saxon nodded her head. A nurse came up to them. “Miss Allen, come this way.” The duo started to follow, but the nurse stopped. “Not him.”
“He’s Ian’s bodyguard.” Saxon insisted.
The nurse looked Ripley up and down. “Not doin’ a very good job so far.”
“I was on a coffee break.” He sneared. “It won’t happen again.”
“Whatever.” She turned and headed into the ER. “Follow me.”
They were ushered through a maze of doors and hallways. Finally Saxon heard her name called.
“Tippy?” She said softly as the women embraced. “What’s going on?”
“Oh, honey, I don’t know.” She dabbed her eyes with Kleenex. “He’s alive or was before they left me alone in the ambulance and took off with him.”
Saxon grabbed Tippy’s hand. “Tippy this is Ripley. Jeremy called him, to keep an eye on things.”
“Oh thanks, honey.” Tippy took Ripley’s hand and squeezed it.
“Mr. Tyson said to tell you the boys are asleep.”
She nodded. “I just talked to Susan. She said Jeremy was trying to get hold of somebody. Glad you came.”
“Mr. Justyn is a nice man.” Ripley smiled. “I’ll make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
“Oh God…” Tippy plopped in a chair. “I don’t even want to think about that. Why would anyone do this?”
“Excuse me…” a man in scrubs holding a clipboard said. “I’m looking for Ian Justyn’s family.”
Tippy stood and grabbed Saxon’s hand. “We’re his family.”
He looked at the paperwork. “Mr. Justyn’s insurance lists a William Jarvis as next of kin.” He looked up at Ripley. “Is that you?”
“No, sir.”
“Billy Jarvis is the other…victim.” Tippy trembled as she said it. “They brought Ian first. Billy should be arriving any moment.”
“Mr. Justyn is critical, ma’am. I need his next of kin’s consent to do surgery.”
“Ian doesn’t have any family, other than a ten year old son.” Tippy squeaked. “He’s like a son to me, does that count?”
“It has to be a blood relative.”
Ripley stepped forward. “Any of us will take responsibility.”
“That’s not the point.” The doctor said.
“I don’t care what the point is. If Ian needs surgery, do it or you will personally answer to me.” Ripley growled.
“Well, I guess I could…”
“Now!” Ripley snapped.
“Yes, sir.” The doctor stepped back. “We’ll just deal with all the paperwork later.” He was gone in an instant.
“This is an ER, surely all that is taken in to account.” Tippy said.
“It’s also California, Tippy, the sue me capitol of the world.” Saxon put her arm around the woman.
A man in a security guard came over to them “Which one of you is the hired goon?”
“Guess.” Ripley puffed out his chest.
The man jerked his head towards the desk. “Follow me.”
“I’ll be right back.” Ripley told the ladies softly.
“Tippy, what exactly happened?” Saxon had to ask.
“Oh, honey. I’m not really sure. We were sitting by the pool over at our house, having a cup of tea and all of a sudden we heard shots, and glass breaking. We ran over to Ian’s as quick as we could. Billy was floating face down in the pool, Ian was covered in blood with a dead man laying across him and Kellen was standing there with a gun in his hand.”
“Kellen?” Saxon helped Tippy sit down. “Kellen Jackson did this?”
Tippy shook her head. “No. He said he saw Ian and a man fighting, and then Billy joined in, and somehow they all fell over the balcony and before Kellen could do anything the man shot Billy.”
“He shot Billy?”
“Yes.” Tippy was almost breathless. “And Kellen fired at the man before he could shoot Ian. Kellen says the man was aiming for Ian’s head at almost point blank range.”
“But why?”
“Nobody knows.”
“Billy…is Billy alright?” Saxon asked, ashamed she hadn’t asked before.
“I think he will be.” Tippy said. “Colton and Jesse helped Reese pull him from the pool. They gave him mouth to mouth and Colton said it looked like he took the bullet in the shoulder. There was so much blood…”
Ripley came over and knealed before them. “Ladies, they’ve taken Ian to surgery. Someone will be over in a moment to take you up to a private waiting room on the surgical floor.”
“Do you know how he’s doing?” They both practically asked.
He put up his hand. “All I know is that they’ve rushed him to surgery, something about broken ribs puncturing his organs. Now, Mrs. Shores….”
“Tippy,” she tried to smile. “Call me Tippy, darlin’.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Ripley nodded. “I need a list of everyone that you called or might come to the hospital. No one gets in or around either Ian or anyone in the family without my say so.”
“Okay.”
“Now here’s my cell phone number. Let me have yours so we can stay in touch.” Ripley handed her a piece of paper.
“Yes, yes of course.” She gave him the number that he programmed immediately into his phone.
“Do not talk to anyone outside the family, but me.”
“What about the doctors?” Saxon asked.
“Check their I.D. of any medical personnel first.” He pointed to his chest. “They’ll all have little badges. Make a mental note of names and faces.”
Tippy nodded and began to make a list.
“Can you tell me if anything in the house is missing?” An officer asked.
Colton and Jesse looked at each other. “Maybe, Ian was pretty systematic. We could tell you if something was out of place.” Colton finally said.
“If that’s the best you can do.” The man said.
“Neither of us lived here officer, but we’ve been around enough to know about the basics.” Jesse wanted to deck the guy for his attitude alone.
“Let’s start with the first floor.” Two officers led the father and son on a meticulous search of the house. The first floor looked as always expected, nothing out of place and not a speck of dust. You couldn’t have guessed there was a party earlier that day, let alone an event that left one dead so far.
Colton walked past Jesse on the stairway landing. As he past, Jesse touched his father’s shoulder. “Does something look different about this painting to you?”
He stepped to the swirls of color, examining it closely. “No.”
Jesse cocked his head. “Are you sure? Something about it just looks odd to me.” He reached to touch it.
“Don’t touch anything!” The cop standing with them bellowed. Jesse snatched his hand back quickly. “You say there’s something odd about it, other than the fact that it’s ugly?”
The officer was given a dirty look in reply. “It’s not worth a fortune Detective, but its worth more donuts than you’ll eat in a year.” Jesse told him.
“I hate donuts.” The man said.
“Yeah, right.” Jesse started to move on after directing the comment toward the man’s waist.
“Wait, son.” Colton stopped him. “What’s odd about it?”
Jesse shrugged. “I don’t know. Something about the light, it just seems different.”
“Looks the same to me.” His father said.
“Could just be I’ve never noticed it with the bright lights coming from upstairs. Ian usually just has the landing lights on.”
“Now that we’ve discussed the gallery display can we move upstairs, please?” The detective moaned.
“Sorry.” Jesse looked at the man. “What did you say your name was again?”
“Balouche.” The man rolled his eyes and grunted.
“I apologize Detective Balouche, but two good friends and my brother were almost murdered in this house tonight. I thought you wanted to know every detail we could come up with.” Jesse looked him in the eyes.
“You watch too much television kid. I doubt light refraction on a really bad paint by number will tell us why a man was shot to death trying to rip the place off.”
“What if this turns out to be what he was after?” Colton asked.
Balouche looked at him. “Unless he changed the position of a light bulb, it sounds like the painting itself hasn’t been touched.”
“Fine.” Jesse stomped up the remaining stairs, Colton and Balouche closely behind.
Balouche took a step in front of them. “Do not touch anything.” He reminded. “The forensics team is still working. Don’t even step on the broken glass. Try to just look around and see if anything's missing.”
“This is the only room you know for sure the guy was in?” Colton asked.
“According to the statement from Kellen Jackson. He saw the man now identified as Blue Richards step out of the closet over there and fire at Justyn from about here. He said Justyn walked over to the glass and waved at him. He saw the perp step from the closet toward the door there, then turn around aim and fire.”
“Can we look in the closet?” Jesse asked.
The detective shrugged. “Just don’t…”
“…touch anything…got it.” Jesse said taking a precarious step toward the open closet door. He turned to his father. “Dad?”
“Something missing?” Balouche asked, hopefully.
Colton turned his head from the position he had taken behind Jesse. “Not missing, but definitely askew.”
Balouche pushed the men aside and looked in the closet, eyes scanning top to bottom. He saw a walk in closet that looked like it had just been cleaned and straightened. He turned to the men. “Blue Richards cleaned the man’s closet then tried to kill him?”
Jesse smiled. “No but it’s definitely been rifled through.” Colton nodded his head.
“You’re kidding?” Balouche said.
Colton pointed to a bureau drawer. “Detective, open that drawer.”
“Why?”
“Just open it. It will prove a point.”
He shook his head, grabbed a pen out of his pocket and slowly pulled a drawer open in the chest. The contents of the drawer were perfect; every sock, every pair of underwear was folded as though still on the store shelf and fit together like a jigsaw puzzle. Balouche whistled and slid the drawer shut with the pen.
Walking back to the closet, he scanned it again nodding his head. Boxes were piled neatly, but not perfectly. Clothes were hung but not even, and the shoes were matched but looked like they’d just been tossed side by side in a line.
Balouche turned to the men working in the bedroom. “Dust everything in that closet for prints, and I mean everything.”
“Especially that.” Jesse pointed.
He got the man’s attention. “What is it?”
“A jewelry box that belonged to Ian’s Aunt.” Colton said.
“Her jewels were in there?” Balouche’s ears perked up.
Colton laughed. “Nothing expensive. She was an old black woman who raised him. She passed away. I don’t know what the man would want in there, but he definitely went through it.”
“I’d say it was what he was going through just before he realized Ian was home.” Jesse added.
“Why?” Balouche got out his notebook.
“Look at it.” Jesse said. “There’s stuff sticking out of it, and it’s not anywhere near Ian put it.”
“You’re sure?”
“I watched Ian take it down before he went out.” Jesse recalled. “He got something out of it that he wanted to give to Saxon…”
“Saxon Allen?” Balouche clarified.
“Yeah. They went bowling this evening. He told me there was something he wanted her to have.”
“And he got it out of that box?”
“Yes. He took it off the top rack there, put it on the bed, got what he wanted and I put it back for him.” Jesse pointed to the rack above the suits. “See there’s the place where it fits exactly.”
“Have you boys taken shots of the closet?” Balouche asked one of the men. When the man confirmed. “Can we take this box out and examine the contents then?”
When the man nodded, Balouche put on some gloves he was handed. He carefully stepped in the closet and lifted the box taking it over to the bed and opening the lid. “Can you tell me if you notice anything missing?”
Jesse peered into the top. “He didn’t open the top. There’s a little compartment to the back. Push the back of it toward the bottom…” He instructed.
Balouche fumbled a minute, but finally a little bottom panel slid open.
“There. Ian got something wrapped in tissue paper from there. He said his Aunt Hil put it there years ago. He remembered just as he was leaving. He was excited it was still there.”
“It’s empty.” Balouche turned to him. “Must have been all that was in there.”
“No.” Jesse was sure. “I personally picked up some envelopes that were in there. I remember the look on his face. He turned to me and smiled, but Saxon was waiting on him downstairs. He went running and I put everything back for him.”
“You’re positive he put them back in this cubby hole?” Balouche asked.
“No, detective, I’m positive I put them back and shut the drawer myself. Then I put the whole box back on the rack exactly where it goes.”
“Any idea what was in the envelopes?”
“No. Just that Ian was excited about finding the little gift for Saxon that was in there. He said it was something he gave to his Aunt for safe keeping years ago.”
Colton looked at his son. “Detective, do you think this could be connected with what happened in Lost Mountain?”
“Lost Mountain?” Balouche said. “What happened in Lost Mountain?”
“I’m sorry to just leave a message like this, but I guess you heard what happened, and I just don’t think I’ll be in for a few days.” She said into the phone. “He didn’t have any family, so I’ve got to make all the arrangements. Thanks…Bye.”
She hit the end button and bit her lip. “This is a nightmare,” Was all she said out loud. She took a deep breath. She hating piling lies on top of lies, but at this point she had to buy time to save herself.
Looking around her apartment one last time, she threw the duffle bag over her shoulder. She opened her oversized purse and swept the contents of the table in, saving one envelope.
She shook it. “Please, please let this be the right place.” And then stuffed it into her purse with the others.
The police had already been there once. She was shocked to tears but Blue had already warned her. She begged him not to do anything stupid, but he’d gotten himself killed anyway.
He was stupid enough not to know he was being used by them and her. How could she be all that surprised he’d gotten himself killed? Too bad, she really, really liked him.
It might take them awhile to make the connection, but they didn’t know for sure that she knew anything. Unfortunately, she knew all they had to do was connect one dot and she’d be next on their list. The second ‘visit’ from the cops would be her last.
Ella turned off the lights in the apartment and peered out the window to the street below. There was only one place she could go. Hopefully she could get there and stay alive long enough to do the work she was hired to do.
They’d all stumbled into this mess blindly, both sides. She was just supposed to be on the sidelines. It got out of hand. Now there were too many directions she could go with what she knew.
One direction could make her a hero. One direction could make her rich. One direction could make her another one of the corpses that seemed to be piling up. Right now, the direction she wanted to go in would avoid that last one.
She quietly slipped out of her apartment and down the hallway. Looking both ways, she tried to look like she was only strolling along just in case some one was watching. She heard the plunk go down the mail shoot.
“One piece down.” She said in her head.
Hopefully, that would go to the right place and be found in enough time for her to get out of this mess. All she had to do is get all the puzzle pieces in one place. She just had to stay alive until she got them all, until then she would look like one of the bad guys.
She wasn’t, but no one knew that. Okay, so she wasn’t an innocent bystander but sometimes it takes a few crunches to get to the gooey chocolate center. Ella was pretty sure she’d gotten to the center, and she was pretty sure that no one else knew what it was.
It was a simple complicated scam. They thought they were going to take the money and run, leaving a couple of idiots behind with dirty fingers. She’d gotten out of the business, but she’d been trained too well. She had kept quiet and watched from the sidelines and this was one of those cases that took someone from the sidelines to put the puzzle together.
Damn but she was the cat, and it looked like curiosity was going to kill her after all. She should have made the phone call earlier. That’s all she would have had to do, but no she wanted to have it all but wrapped up first. Damn her ego and pride.
The cab pulled up. She stepped out of the shadows in the street and slipped in. Handing the cabbie a fifty and a sheet of paper. “There’s another fifty if you take me to that address and say you took me somewhere else, if you have to say anything at all.”
The man smiled. “For a hundred bucks, lady, you’re a drunk dude who stiffed me.” He turned the meter off and pulled away from the curb.
Ella smiled and sat back in the seat, scrunching down to make it hard to see her from the windows. She ran down what she had to get accomplished in her head as they drove. She knew it wasn’t safe for her to be out in the open. She had no desire to end up like Bambi, Max and Blue.
Bambi and Max were clueless. Bambi had no idea she could identify Bruno. Max was just dumb enough to be seen talking to Ian. Poor Blue, he probably would have been around awhile longer, but he was a dumb pretty boy, unfortunately heavy on the dumb part.
Well, he was dumb enough to fall for her and smart enough to tell her everything. He wasn’t supposed to do that, and they didn’t know he had. Ella wasn’t even sure Blue was smart enough to know she had figured out what was up. She was too good at what she did.
She was also smart enough to know that Bruno and partner weren’t about to leave a loose end. Ella knew that if nothing else, she was a loose end like Bambi, especially now that Blue had gotten himself killed. Maybe the smart thing for her do to was stay put, but she failed Sitting Duck 101.
The cab pulled up to the bus station. Ella slipped out and walked right in. It was practically empty. She told the sleepy surfer dude behind the counter she wanted a ticket for the next bus out of town. She plopped her cash down and slipped the ticket in her pocket.
Immediately walking back out the door, she strolled toward a dark corner. She pulled out her cell phone and checked to make sure there was a signal. She hit a few buttons and paced. She got voice mail.
“It’s Isabella. I’m in deep, buddy, too deep. This is big, bigger than what we thought. If you don’t hear from me in two days, come looking. I can’t say anything else. Just get here. Hopefully, even if I’m dead I’ve managed to get most of the pieces piled in the right place. Just get here and help Ian figure it out.”
After powering off the phone, she sat her duffel bag on the ground and pulled out a mirror and scissors. Within minutes her dark hair was short and punky, almost back to it’s natural color. Scissors and mirror went back in her purse, the cut hairs and the bus ticket went in a paper bag she set on fire and dropped to the ground.
While she watched it burn, she stripped off the top layer of clothes and buried them in the trashcan. She stood back until the bag was pretty much ashes, smoking three cigarettes at once to mask the odor. Spreading the remains with her feet she leaned over to see if anyone was around.
She saw the bus go by and looked at her watch. Yup, that was her bus. She waited for it to load and pull away. When it left for whatever city the dude said it was headed for, Ella stepped out of the alley wearing black jeans and a matching tee instead of the khakis and blue blouse she’d arrived wearing.
Ella ran a hand through her now spiky auburn hair, instead of her identifiable black tresses and headed for the one place Blue had stumbled on that even Bruno didn’t know about. As long as she wasn’t caught, she knew she’d be safe right under everyone’s nose.
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