Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
Pacific Marine Supply
Tacoma, Washington
The shop’s weathered sign swung in the wind, its chains groaning against the mounting brackets.
Allie wasn’t sure she would ever get used to the smell of diesel fuel and brine.
This corner of Tacoma felt like it had been abandoned long ago, wedged between industrial warehouses and fishing operations that had seen better decades.
Bennett’s burner phone had been silent since Friday.
Scarlett had been the last person to hear from him, and since then, the digital trail had gone completely cold.
They had fragments of his movements but no way to predict where he might surface next, which left them with just one option: track down the people he might have contacted in person.
Allie studied the narrow exterior staircase that led to a door above the shop. The building’s paint had long since peeled away, exposing gray wood beneath. A single window glowed with dim light. “Bennett came here for money?”
“Bookies typically don’t want to flaunt what they’ve got.” Jason stepped away from the car.
They crossed the lot and climbed the stairs. The metal steps rang hollow under their feet. Jason knocked, and a moment later, the door cracked open. A heavyset man with thinning gray hair peered out and gave them a wary look. “Help you?”
“FBI. We’d like to ask you a few questions. Are you Vinny?”
The face became even more guarded. “Yeah, I’m Vinny. Questions about what?”
“Aris Bennett,” Allie said. “Can we come in?”
Vinny hesitated, then stepped back and opened the door wider. The office was cramped with just enough room for a desk piled with ledgers and a pair of mismatched chairs. A small space heater hummed in the corner, fighting the draft from the single window.
The bookie moved behind his desk but didn’t sit. His hands fidgeted with a pen. “I can’t say that I know anyone by that name.”
Jason made a show of puffing out a heavy sigh. “Let’s not do this, all right? We have good reason to believe he came to see you. We’re not interested in your business, Vinny. We’re only interested in finding Bennett.”
Vinny’s eyes darted between them. Finally, he exhaled and dropped into his chair. “What did he do?”
“We’re trying to locate him,” Allie said. “He may have information about a case we’re working.”
Vinny tapped his pen against the desk. “Not sure I can help you.”
“It’s probably better if you do, don’t you think?
” Jason pulled out one of the chairs and sat, settling into the posture of someone who had all the time in the world.
Allie remained standing near the door and let Jason take the lead.
“Bennett’s name came up in our investigation, and we’re trying to track his movements over the past week.
If he came to see you, it would help us narrow down where he might be now. ”
Vinny crossed his thick arms across his chest. “Look, I run a consulting business. I help people with financial planning.”
Allie watched him carefully. Washington state law prohibited independent bookmaking and sports betting outside of tribal casinos and the state lottery.
Vinny was clearly dancing around the specifics to avoid anything that could incriminate him.
She decided to let him keep his cover story.
“Did Bennett come to see you about financial planning?”
Vinny set the pen down. “Yes. He certainly did.”
“When?” Jason asked.
“Last Friday. Midmorning.”
Allie ran the timeline in her head. That lined up with the bail bondsman refusing to loan him money the day before. “What did he want?”
Vinny leaned back in his chair, the leather creaking under his weight. “He wanted to borrow some cash. Said he needed to get back on his feet.”
“Did you loan it to him?” Jason asked.
“Hell no.” Vinny huffed through his nose. His expression hardened. “He owed me a lot from before he went to prison. I told him he needed to make right with that debt first before I’d even consider helping him out.”
Allie crossed her arms. “How much did he owe you?”
Vinny hesitated. “Enough that it mattered.”
“And how did he react when you told him no?” Jason asked.
Before Vinny could answer, the sound of an approaching vehicle filtered through the window. A car door slammed, and footsteps started up the exterior stairs. Vinny shot to his feet, his face draining of color. “Wait here.”
He moved quickly to the door and slipped outside, pulling it nearly shut behind him. Allie could hear him speaking in a low, urgent voice. “Hey, now’s not a good time. Come back later, okay?”
A man’s voice responded, too muffled to make out the words.
“I know,” Vinny said. “Just give me an hour.”
More muffled protests, then retreating footsteps. The car door slammed again, and the engine started. Vinny waited until the sound faded before stepping back inside. He closed the door and leaned against it, exhaling slowly.
Jason didn’t comment on the interruption. “You were telling us how Bennett reacted when you refused to loan him money.”
Vinny returned to his desk. “He got mad. The man shows up after four years like nothing happened, asking for a favor. That’s some nerve. Started ranting about how the whole legal system was corrupt, how everyone had conspired to put him in prison in the first place.”
“Did he mention anyone specific?” Allie asked.
“Not by name,” Vinny said. “Just kept saying the lawyers and the judge and the prosecutors were all in on it. That they’d destroyed his life and stolen his career.”
Allie exchanged a glance with Jason. Bennett seemed eager to repeat the same grievances to anyone willing to listen.
Jason leaned forward slightly. “Did Bennett indicate that he wanted to harm anyone?”
Vinny rubbed his jaw, considering. “Not directly. He was ranting, you know? Going on about the conspiracy and how they all deserved to pay. But he didn’t name names or say he was going after anybody specific.”
“How did that conversation end?” Jason asked.
“He cursed me out,” Vinny said flatly. “Called me a vulture and a few other things I won’t repeat. Then he said he was done wasting his time and that he was going to find a way to get to the casino to get his life back.”
Allie straightened. “Which casino?”
“He didn’t say exactly, but I’m pretty sure he meant the Diamond Princess.” Vinny tapped the desk with his pen again, a nervous tic.
“Did he say anything else?” Jason pressed. “Mention where he was staying or who he’d been in contact with?”
“No,” Vinny said. “He just stormed out. I haven’t heard from him since. And hope I never do again unless he’s come back with what he owes me. But I’m not holding my breath.”
Allie pulled out her phone and checked the time. If Bennett had gone to the casino Friday and was still in the area, they might be able to pick up his trail.
“Is there anything else you can tell us about him?” Jason asked. “Friends he might stay with? Places he liked to go?”
Vinny shook his head. “People like Bennett don’t have friends. Most people who knew him back then wanted nothing to do with him after he went to prison. He burned a lot of bridges. Some people don’t seem to have the ability to see beyond the end of their own noses. Bennett’s one of them.”
Allie studied Vinny for a moment. His earlier defensiveness seemed to have been replaced by something close to resignation. “If Bennett contacts you again, we need you to call us immediately.”
Vinny nodded. “Yeah. I will.”
Jason stood and laid his card on the desk. “Day or night. It’s important.”
“I got it,” Vinny said quietly.
Allie followed Jason to the door. As she stepped outside, she glanced back at Vinny.
He sat slumped in his chair, staring at the business card in his hand.
Whatever business he ran, it clearly wasn’t lucrative enough to cover the risks.
She wondered how many men like Bennett he’d dealt with over the years, desperate and angry and looking for someone to blame.
Cold air hit her as they descended the stairs, a sign that winter would be making its appearance soon.
“It’s getting late,” Jason said as they reached the car. “I’m thinking we call it a night.”
Allie nodded. The casino would be crowded at this hour, packed with people looking for distraction or fortune. And trying to lasso the staff to help track him down would be like herding cats. “Let’s go in the morning. First thing.”
“Agreed,” Jason said. He moved toward the passenger side of Allie’s Nissan while she unlocked the car. “You think Bennett’s still around?”
Allie looked out at the dark water beyond the docks.
Bennett hadn’t even been free for a month, and everything they’d learned pointed to a man consumed by anger and a need to reclaim what he lost. Whether that meant money, vindication, or something darker, she couldn’t say yet.
But men like Bennett didn’t disappear quietly.
They either found what they were looking for or they imploded trying.
“He’s around,” she said. “We just need to figure out where.”