Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
The first slug of coffee hits my veins like a welcome drug. Sleep would be my preferred option, but I can’t. Not with the two women on my mind.
Now that I have the lights—which I haven’t paid for yet because the hardware store was closed after the quake—I need to go back to Marianna’s place.
I also need to find the guy I talked to because I never found him once the second quake hit and the store employees had to do a massive clean-up.
But a shower and change of clothes was in order to do all the above.
Sleep will have to wait.
I scrub my hand over my hair and water flies in every direction. Picking up the hotel coffee mug, I make my way into the bedroom to stand in front of the air conditioner spread eagle as my skin dries.
The window has a decent view of the street. But no one can see me. Watching the passing traffic, I dial Beast and set the phone on the windowsill with it on speaker.
“Mr. Goodlove, what’s up?” There’s an undertone of humor in his words. “How was that fancy party?”
I chuckle darkly. “A blast.”
“Oh? How so?”
“Fucking car bomb.”
He whistles and gets serious. “Okay, this is a turn I didn’t expect. What the hell is going on over there in Karma?”
My five o’clock shadow is now approaching a thirteen hour shadow. It’s rough as hell against my palms. “Good question. Bank robbery, weird elected official, police department that seems to be MIA, and a car bomb. Oh and get this: the mayor’s estate was crawling with guards who are highly trained, very well equipped, and most likely Russian.”
The line is pin-drop silent.
After a while, my Team Leader clears his throat. “I’m processing all that. It was a lot.”
Turning up the mug, I finish drinking the weak brew, wishing I had not only a man-sized mug, but also my French press with me. “Try being in my shoes. Did you guys feel the quakes this morning?”
“Earthquakes too? No we didn’t. But I’m wondering with all that’s going on, did you get any intel about MZ?”
I rub my jaw again. Tension making the muscles ache.
“I did get a confirmation she was in town when I was in the hardware store. But I inquired cautiously at the party. I didn’t want it getting around, not with my building suspicion that things aren’t right in this town. I’m not sure who I can trust.”
In the background, Beast’s woman shouts at me. “Smart man.”
That remains to be seen.
I’m a stressed out man.
“Thanks, Camile. So, did the two of you have any luck running down our primary’s credit card transactions?”
The former covert operative must have moved closer to the phone because her voice is louder now. “The last purchase on a card was in Santa Rosa five days before her father reported her missing. That coincides perfectly with the sighting of her at the fruit market with two unknown men. And then before that, there were two purchases in Karma and one in Solana.”
A few cars pass below my window. All of them hold my interest as I try to see who’s riding inside. “What businesses in Karma?”
“A restaurant called Bueno Sol, and some kind of retail business by the name of Rocks and Rolls.”
I straighten, hope making me feel lighter. The dots are connecting. “Go, Camile! This is great. I’ll hit them both up today.”
“What kind of business is Rocks and Rolls?” she asks as I rummage through my duffel for some casual clothes.
“An artifact shop—you know fossils and things like that.”
She laughs excitedly. “Oh my! That’s perfect. I bet they will know who she is.”
“That’s my hope. They were closed yesterday, so that’s my first stop today. I’m also going to stop at the police department again to try to log a report about the robbery. Weird, but they were closed yesterday.”
“Things sure are different in Vandemora.”
Like the rebels, fraud and violent attack Camile and Beast had to deal with.
I drop my towel and tug on my briefs. “You’re not kidding. It has a Wild-Wild-West air about it.”
Beast comes back on the line. “Watch your six. Did you ever talk to the woman you ran into at the bank?”
I fumble while pulling on my shorts, missing the leg hole and tumble into the wall. “Uh, yeah. I did.”
He grunts. “Hold on. Camile is punching me right now.”
“Good, someone needs to since I’m not around to do it.”
“Was she pretty?”
Uh…
“TL, there’s something I need to talk to you about.” Tilting my head back, I stare at the ceiling. “I have a problem.”
“The woman, I bet. Quit dragging your feet, Storm. Spit it out.”
I drop my chin to my chest. “I want to tell her why I’m here.”
“Oh, shit. Did you have sex with?—”
“No!” I interject. “But she’s caught up in some kind of danger and I do not feel good about lying to her?—”
He cuts me off this time. “You’re an honorable man for not leaving her swinging in the wind. But are you sure what you tell her won’t get leaked?”
“Negative, but I’m not okay with lying to her about my fucking name. Or pretending why I’m here. I’m between a rock and a monumental hard place here.”
His slow exhale rumbles in the phone. “I have complete trust in your judgment.”
Is that a good thing? Maybe I need someone to check me right now.
I squeeze the back of my neck. “There’s another problem.”
“Well, damn. You sure know how to ruin my morning. Two problems?”
“She’s the mayor’s daughter. The one who hosted the party where the car bomb blew up.”
First a silence. Then a low whistle pierces my ear. “Damn, brother. This is going to make things complicated in our search.”
“Don’t I know. She could be an ally, one with inside knowledge.”
“You’re talking about enlisting her to help?”
“Possibly, but I’ll admit, this is not going to be a clean, unbiased thing.” I clench my shirt as I stare sightlessly out the window. “I can’t stop thinking about her and that’s a dangerous thing.”