23. Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Three
They were all gathered in the basement in the early daylight hours of the morning of the heist. No one was bantering, smiling, or even talking. Mims was on the computer, ensuring everything was set, and Liam was with Goldie as they laid out the things Liam would need.
“Okay, these are the fingerprints you’ll need to open the car,” he said as he handed Liam a shallow box. “My guy said they’re perfect, which is why they were pricey. I’ll distract the valet long enough for Abs to get into the box to get the keys. You’ll drive in with the box truck.”
Murphy came over to tell them, “I have the placard with the fake business name on it ready in the alley. And the paint covering. By the time we’re out of that alley, no one could pick us out of any other truck in the city.”
There was an alley without a camera in it at all a few blocks from the restaurant. They’d stop there and set the huge placard in place and get the sticky vinyl covering that would be placed on the hood, cab, and fenders and could be easily pulled off, revealing the real color of the truck below it.
They were like a well-oiled machine, but Liam worried about that. He wasn’t one of them yet. He was learning the moves for the weekend shows but working a new crew in a high-stakes theft, that was different.
Still, all he really had to do was drive the fucking car into the back of the box truck.
When they left, Murphy and Haze were in coveralls with the fake business name embroidered on the front. They all wore caps on their heads, and Liam wore glasses that were fake too. Anything to throw off anyone that might be a witness.
Hippy was already at the restaurant, ready to clog the toilets, when Murphy called to give him the okay. It was ten minutes of driving through the city, taking the long way around to avoid as many cameras as possible.
In the alley between a closed clothing store and a condemned former apartment building, Liam pulled in, getting to the center and then exiting the cab of the truck, heading to one end of the alley as Mims headed to the other to watch for cops or other cars that may want to turn into the alley.
It wasn’t a fast job, getting the vinyl on the cab of the truck or getting the big business logo on the box of the truck, but after half an hour, it was done, and Haze whistled for their watchers to head back into the truck.
They sat together quietly, waiting for the calls. Hippy to tell them the job was done and the next call to the prepaid phone for their fake business.
Liam worried the second call would never come. For all they knew, they had a plumbing contract with a real company and would call them in the event of an emergency. There were a million things that could go wrong, but Murphy had given them ways around all of them.
For instance, if they didn’t get the call for the plumbing job, they’d go in any way. The valets likely wouldn’t be the wiser as to the plumber’s company name. They’d have to work faster, but they didn’t plan to doddle in the first place.
Then, Hippy called, and Murphy told him, “We’re set to get over there.”
Liam’s hands were clammy, and he rubbed them over his jeans, but his nerves were welcome. The anxiety he’d recently experienced, friends that were turning into family, a guy that was really working into his heart, that kind of anxiety made him wish for meds or a drink to get through.
Working a job, however, was where he thrived. That anxiety was like waiting for a long-awaited orgasm, edging, edging and finally shooting a load that could make a person pass out cold.
“Ready, Cosmo?”
“Yup. Let’s do this.”
“We’re just waiting on the call.”
Sure enough, not two minutes later, the call came to the prepaid phone and Murphy answered with his best business voice. “Emergency Plumbing, open twenty-four hours a day. How can we help?”
Liam, Haze, and Mims waited for him to listen to the caller, then they each sighed silently when Murphy said, “We’ll be right there. Off Cedar and 18 th , right?”
Liam started the engine as soon as Murphy hung up the phone. “Damn, this is…insane.”
“We’re good, didn’t we tell you?” Mims asked, laughing.
Murphy had Haze get in the back of the box truck and as soon as the door was shut, they headed out of the alleyway and on toward the restaurant. Liam and Mims were both hyper, and Mims put on music from his phone.
“Thank goodness it’s you and not Hippy. I can’t say I’m a fan of the blues.”
The upbeat song he often heard during their shows matched his heart rate, fast, happy. He’d missed doing this. “I don’t either, but I love Hippy, so I deal with it. You’ll love him too, eventually. He’s not the kind of guy to take to others easily. He was standoffish with us, too.”
Too…which meant he’d been that way as well. “Sorry, uh, about that, Mims.”
“I don’t blame you. You’ll love us when you’re ready.”
He sounded so sure about it that Liam was convinced too. “I’m sure I will.”
They pulled up to the front of the restaurant, and Murphy jumped out of the back, speaking quickly to the valet, who told Murphy to have his guy drive around to the back of the restaurant. Murphy did and Mims was on the phone as soon as he spotted the Bentley in the valet parking area. “Goldie, it’s here. We’re here and you are about to be.”
As soon as he hung up the phone, Liam parked the truck and got out, speaking to Haze quickly. “While you’re helping Murphy, Mims will watch for me. If you see anything, call him.”
“The ramps coming out of the back of that truck are pretty telling, Cosmo. Work fast, brother.”
Brother . That shook him a bit, but he shrugged it off, unwilling to let anything get in his way. “I’m backing up over there as soon as Goldie gives us the word he’s got the keys.”
The waiting was the worst part of the entire process. Usually, when he stole a car, it was fast: in, driving, out. This was much more involved, but then again, the car was not some Subaru in someone’s driveway.
As he paced in tight circles beside the truck, Mims leaned back on the fender, watching him. “Sometimes, it takes a minute for all the cogs to work their way into place.”
“I get it, yeah, but the more time we’re here, the more I worry someone will catch onto what we’re doing.”
“We have a big plumber's truck. We’re here to unclog toilets.”
How he could be so calm, Liam would never understand. “You’re used to this?”
“No. I’ll never be used to it. What gets me through this is doing it with people I trust. They have as much to lose as I do, and more. Murphy has a lot more to lose. His entire family.”
“When the hell is Ryan showing up?”
“Ryan,” Mims laughed, “is…a normal kid his age. He wants to do what we do, but Murphy wants to protect him. So, they fight, and he goes and stays with his mom and on and on. You’ll meet him, eventually.”
“Weird to think of Murphy being married to a woman.”
“Right? Eazy and him, they’re like made to be together. Back when Murphy was a kid, though, it wasn’t like it is now. Can you imagine Mick as a young dad, and his kid confesses to being gay?”
Liam liked Mick, but he knew men like him, and no, he couldn’t imagine that. “Murphy would likely have been beaten the hell up by dad and uncles, if he had uncles.”
Mims’s phone rang, and he answered it immediately. “Right. Yeah, got it. I’ll go do the handoff while Cosmo gets into place.”
As the phone call ended, Mims nodded to Liam. “It’s time. I’ll get the keys and you drive to the cars. Watch out for the valets.”
“Sure thing, baby.”
Liam got into the truck and pulled away from the back of the restaurant. The valet parking lot wasn’t far, so he had less than a minute to get into it and park in front of the Bentley. Mims was running over to him just as Liam was hopping into the back of the box truck to pull out the ramps. “Are we clear?”
“Yeah, let’s get out the ramps and you can put on your new fingerprints.”
Much of the extra security measures was fingerprint style. Only one set of prints per person, so it was supposedly foolproof. That was sad, thankfully, because it was easy to get a set of prints and have latex copies made that stuck nicely to your own fingers.
After dropping the ramps, Liam hopped off the truck and went into the cab to get the fingerprints on his fingers. Mims handed him the fob and Liam pointed it at the car, wincing, worried something would go wrong.
The lock disengaged as the little beep could be heard and Liam smiled at Mims. “We’re in. Get in the passenger side.”
They climbed inside of the expensive luxury car, and it smelled like leather heaven. The seats were so comfortable that Mims moaned like he was getting a nice blow job. “This. My future husband better have one of these.”
“Jesus. You realize the guys that have these work all hours and are hardly ever around, right?”
“That’s fine with me.”
Liam laughed as they found the secure compartment. Liam used the fingerprint to open the compartment, and sure enough, like he’d researched, the fuse box was tucked nicely behind a panel. Liam grabbed the small needle nose pliers from his pocket and pulled out the fuse for the GPS. “Okay, that should do it, but just in case, get your scrambler going.”
Mims found the USM plug and got it into place, right as Liam pulled out the fuse for the alarm. “We should be fine now.”
“Don’t forget to keep the engine running. If it’s off, the scrambler might not work right.”
“Parking brake right here,” he said, slapping the little lever to his side.
Easily, and aiming perfectly, Liam got the Bentley up the ramp and into the box truck. There was just enough room on either side for them to get out of the car and head out of the back of the truck.
Once the ramps were back in place, they went to park behind the restaurant, and it wasn’t five minutes before Murphy and Haze were coming out of the doors, swearing. Mims called them once they were in the back of the truck to see what happened and place it on speaker. “That mother fucking Hippy used tampons to plug up the toilets. That was hard as fuck to get loose!”
Mims was giggling, and Liam joined him. “Good thinking, though.”
“It was, but let’s get out of here. Abs just called, and the owner is finishing up his drink. His clients already are headed out the front.
Liam was good at this. He gently left the restaurant, driving smoothly, though finally, Mims was fidgeting with nerves. “Can’t you go faster?”
“One thing you can always count on, Mims. People noticed vehicles going too fast or too slow. A big truck like this driving fast and Karens are out in force with their cellphones worried we could hit their BMWs and shit.”
“Smart. Okay. Just don’t go too slow, then.”
“Can I get off the block first? Mellow out.”
“Wait a minute. I was chill and now you are. So…you are into this part of it.”
Liam agreed, “Must be. Okay, so we all have our things.”
Liam watched Mims grab his computer. “Anything from the GPS?”
“Not a damn thing. We’re good.”
“We’re not there yet.”
Once Liam pulled into the alley, they both breathed sighs of relief. Liam and Mims hurried to let Murphy and Haze out of the back of the truck, then they got busy stripping off the colored panels and business logo, which took too long, in Liam’s opinion, but once it was done, Goldie and Abs pulled into the alley and picked up Mims and Haze, and Murphy crawled into the truck with Liam. “Okay, the fence is across the city. I’ve begged the fucker to get a location closer, but he said it’s too expensive anywhere near town and the motherfucker is cheap. He’s going to haggle with me for an hour, but I’ll get a good price.”
“I’m thinking of, uh…giving the proceeds, mine, that is…nah, you’ll think I’ve lost my mind.”
“Charity.”
Liam’s neck almost broke as he spun it to stare at him. “How’d you know?”
“You love that damn cat. Eazy said it, and I didn’t believe him, but the second you said that, I knew he was right. He’s always fucking right. He’s got a list of cat charities all ready for you.”
Liam smiled as he got on the highway. “I cannot believe it. I thought I was so mysterious.”
“Eazy is like that. He knows things with no way of knowing them.”
The sound of Murphy’s voice when he spoke about his husband made Liam long for that kind of connection. They knew each other inside and out, but they were amazed by one another.
That kind of relationship, the kind that kept the other guessing while still providing comfort and security. It was rare, and Liam found himself envious again of the kids. How wonderful it had to be for two parents that were so in love, so amazed with each other and so…together.
“I’m gonna need to find a way to thank your husband.”
“He loves Mercedes,” Murphy said flatly, then laughed with Liam.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Murphy’s phone went off and Murphy looked to see who was calling. “Speak of the devil.” He answered, “Hello, dear. Are they finding the car gone?”
The phone was on speaker, so Liam could hear him say, “The police are heading to the restaurant now. They have no APB out on any plumbing truck yet.”
“Thanks, baby. That’s great news.”
Liam switched lanes on I25 and asked Eazy, “Did they say anything?”
“Just that a car’s been stolen. You know, with the keys missing from the valet, I have a feeling they’re going to blame one of the valets.”
“They have no proof, and if they’re arrested, I’ll send the lawyers to defend them.”
“Well, four cars came in after you guys left, and both valets were there to take them, so they’d have to be magicians. They’ll figure out about the truck soon enough and have to rely on witness identification to even get you guys on the radar. We all know a witness testimony is iffy at best.”
“Okay, babe, well, we’ll be where we’re going soon. See you in a couple hours, we hope.”
After the call ended, Murphy was grinning. “You are so in love with him.”
“I am. And you?”
Liam thought to sidestep the question with a joke. “I’m not in love with Eazy, no.”
“Ass. Taran, he’s…very pretty. Seems like a sweet guy, when he’s not waving his badge around that is, if anyone is looking past the sex.”
There it was. He knew more than Liam wanted anyone to know. “But if you keep it sexual, the feelings can be kept where they belong.”
“Where is that?”
“Away.”
“God, for being a smart guy, you’re not.”
Liam expected that. “Oh?”
“The guy’s obviously falling for you, and I could venture to guess you’re liking him more than you wanted to. No one is throwing you an engagement party.” After a huffed groan, Murphy went on with, “I know what you lived through, and believe me, I’d probably be afraid to get close to people too, but at some point in your life, you either dive into being around people that care for you, or go live as a hermit in the desert.”
“Why the desert?”
“Mountain property is too expensive.”
Liam laughed, and he liked that Murphy had started out with fatherly advice but reined it in a little. “So, Paps, where do we get off this highway?”
“If you start that Paps shit like Mims, I’m gonna kick your ass.” He pointed ahead. “Third offramp now.”
“Yes, sir.”
When they wove through the streets, Murphy pointed him where to turn. Once they were in an industrial area, Murphy pointed to a tall brick building. “That’s a fetish club. Not that I ever suggest other clubs in town, but that’s a specialty place, if you are into that sort of shit.”
“Fetish like what?”
“If you like to get your butt spanked, and leather daddies and twinkies barely dressed.”
“Oh! I’ll have to check it out.”
Murphy laughed and told him to turn right and once he did, they were in front of a body shop and Murphy told him to stop. “I’ll be back when I can wrench a decent price from the guy.”
Liam’s phone rang, and he picked up, seeing it was Taran. “Hey. I’ll be off early. You want to get together?”
“We have to get together, and not for fun. I’ve got some information that you won’t be happy about.”
Chills went up his spine, and they only got more violent when he saw Murphy emerging from the shop, looking murderous. “Meet me at the pub in half an hour.”
“I’ll be there.”
When Murphy got into the truck, he growled, “The feds were right. The BBC is trying to take over the city.”
“What?”
“They’re already taking the top fences in the area. We need to stash this damn car.”
Liam knew of a place, but he hadn’t been there in years. “I got a guy, but he’s not big time, like this one. We’ll be lucky to get a hundred grand.”
“Better than getting busted. Let’s go.”