CHAPTER SIXTEEN #2
“Come on,” Rocko said as he ran up to the car. “Hey, need some help, guys?”
He didn’t wait for an answer before taking the opportunity of placing his palms on the trunk and pushing.
He felt Apollo at his side as the visions came.
As soon as they got it into the bay, Rocko removed his hands and stepped back.
His head was spinning; if this kept up, he’d be wearing gloves soon.
“Hey, guys,” a large man wearing dark blue overalls said as he walked over. This had to be Jonesy.
Rocko now understood why Apollo said what he had. Jonesy was checking Griffin out from top to bottom. The hunger was unmistakable, and even though Rocko was still processing the visions from touching the car, he could see the attraction wasn’t only one-sided.
“Hello, Jonesy, how are you?” Apollo said, holding out his hand for the man to shake.
“Doing good. Thanks for the help. How are you?”
“Can’t complain. Looking for a part.”
He spent an extra moment when he shook Griffin’s hand before turning to Rocko.
“Jonesy, I’d like you to meet our friend, Rocko. He’s visiting from Florida.”
“Florida. Man, you’re at the other end of the country now,” he joked as he shook Rocko’s hand. “Welcome.”
“It’s good to get away from your everyday on occasion.”
The read he got from Jonesy brought up no red flags and confirmed his interest in Griffin.
“True enough,” he chuckled.
Rocko got a good impression from the mechanic, but the other two men staring at them from across the service bay gave him the creeps. Both stood stone-faced and hadn’t even thanked them for helping to push their car inside.
“We’re in a hurry,” one of them stated.
Jonesy didn’t break his smile. “Aren’t we all, but ’round here we stop to talk to our neighbors, especially the ones who helped you out.”
“Thanks,” the second man said. “Now, will you take a look at our car? We’re going to be late for a meeting.”
“Go ahead, Jonesy. We’ve got time,” Griffin said.
“Thanks. Okay, pop the hood and let’s have a look,” Jonesy said to Levy’s men before heading toward the front of their car. “If you guys want to hang out in my office, I’ll be with you in a few minutes.”
“Thanks, man,” Apollo said.
Rocko followed Apollo and Griffin to Jonesy’s office and left the door open so they could hear what the strangers were saying.
“Assholes,” Griffin growled softly, not wanting to be overheard.
“Did you get the tracker placed?” Apollo asked.
“Yes, when we were pushing it in,” Griffin confirmed. “It’s on the inner curve of their back bumper.”
“Good. Jonesy isn’t likely to notice that, considering Hendrix replaced one of their spark plugs with a dead one, he should find it fairly quickly,” Apollo said. “What did you get out of the car, Rocko? Any visions?”
“They work for Levy, that’s for sure. They aren’t Noah Group flunkies. They’re here to take Mary and Asher and are willing to kill Frank to accomplish it.” The words left a sour taste in Rocko’s mouth.
“Fuckers,” Griffin growled.
“Yeah. I don’t know what it is, but every time I read about anyone associated with Levy Construction, my head spins. The dump of information is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It feels as if the information is purging. If it were a person, they’d be standing up, shouting ‘look at me!’”
“Purging?” Griffin asked.
“Forced out. Like something inside this case is pushing it out, almost desperate for someone to discover it,” Rocko explained.
“Tom’s mutation involves telekinesis, like Asher’s. Do you think there might be someone else being held by them, causing it?” Apollo asked.
“It’s possible, depending on their ability,” Rocko said, considering there might be more survivors having been kidnapped since the first time. He wasn’t sure why it had taken so long to consider that option. If they were after anyone with mutations, it was highly possible.
“What…”
Whatever Griffin was going to say was cut off by the shouting coming from inside the shop. Griffin shot up and out of the office, leaving Rocko and Apollo trailing behind. Shit.
“What the fuck are you doing?” Griffin growled, and Rocko saw one of the men pushing Jonesy away from the open passenger door.
The guy backed away as Griffin shoved his way in between them to protect Jonesy. Jonesy wasn’t a small man, and Griffin coming to his protection seemed odd to most who didn’t know Griffin’s nature. Jonesy looked shocked.
“Stay out of the glove box,” Levy’s man said.
“I was accessing your fuses. They’re behind the glove box in this model. I wasn’t expecting to find a gun,” Jonesy stated. “You’d better have a permit for that.”
“I do,” he huffed.
“Why are you carrying?” Jonesy asked. “It’s not like you’re in a high crime area.”
“Protection. It’s America, I’m within my legal right,” the stranger stated, daring anyone to argue.
Rocko looked inside the car and saw the Glock lying on some paperwork inside the open glove box. He had to de-escalate this, or the whole mission would be screwed. They needed them to lead the team to where Gerald Levy was holed up.
“How about we move the firearm to the trunk so the man can finish fixing your car and get you on your way? You have a meeting, right?” Rocko suggested as he intentionally brushed past the angry man. A simple act raising no suspicions in the other man, but the read Rocko received was telling.
“Are there any more surprises in the areas Jonesy’ll be working we need to be concerned about?” Apollo asked. “Now would be the time to let us know.”
“No, and why is this any of your business? Who the fuck are you guys?”
Rocko almost laughed. Wrong guys to ask.
“Jonesy is our friend, and this is our home, so I’m making it my business,” Griffin growled. “We could as easily give the cops a call to explain how things work around here.”
“Just move it to the trunk, Ed,” the second guy said.
Rocko already knew the guy’s name was Edward Yarker from the moment he read him, and so much more. He was even more positive that something or someone was amplifying anything connected to Levy.
“Fine,” Ed said as he reached for the gun. “Fuckin’ hillbillies can drive around with shotguns hanging in their back window, and it’s no problem.”
They all went on alert until the guy placed the Glock into the trunk and shut the lid.
“Can we figure out what’s wrong so we can get back on the road, please?” the second man asked.
Jonesy placed his hand on Griffin’s shoulder and nodded as the protective man moved out of the way.
“I wanted to check your fuses and spark plugs because your ignition isn’t getting power. Your battery is fine, so once I’m done checking those two other things, I can narrow it down for you,” Jonesy explained.
“Thank you.” The second guy led Ed away to the other side of the garage.
“Thanks,” Jonesy said. “I’ll get back to work and get these guys out of here. You guys sure you have time to wait?”
“We’re not going anywhere,” Griffin said, loud enough for Levy’s men to hear.
“Okay, I’ll get to it then.” Jonesy couldn’t hide his smile; he was well and truly smitten with Griffin.
Rocko could feel the tension in the air.
This wasn’t going as smoothly as they’d hoped, but at least they’d managed to get a read and put a tracker on the car, the main things they wanted to accomplish.
Now he’d have to wait until they were alone before spilling what he’d seen and running a background check on Ed Yarker and his friend.
However, he already knew what type of person they were dealing with, and it wasn’t getting better.