Chapter 7 #2
“I really don’t know either,” I say. “Back to business. You know the Barlow family, of course.”
“Sadly.”
“You remember a Victoria who worked for them?” I ask.
Sophia’s eyes snap to mine. It’s plain to see that she doesn’t like another person knowing she’s alive, but I know Tucker’s not a talker… even if we butt heads a bit.
“Hmm… let me think here a moment. A proficient contract killer who was shot and killed during some raid many years back.”
“Yeah. Well, shocker, she’s alive and living her best life as a cranky soccer mom.”
“My kid doesn’t even play soccer,” she counters. “He’s so uncoordinated, he couldn’t kick a yoga ball rolled at him.”
“Ohhh, you don’t say?” Tucker says, responding to the fact that she’s alive, not the soccer bit.
“And now her kid is missing.”
“Interesting.”
“We need to find him.”
“Hmm. For free? Because I might do a job for you for free, but I owe some random woman nothing.”
I glance up at Sophia. “How much are you willing to pay for the return of your son?”
She gapes at me. “You’re putting a price on his head?”
“Oh yeah. Like I love Waylon enough that I’d put a couple mill on his head easily. Tavish? Maybe a dollar.”
Tavish throws up two middle fingers. “That’s how much I’d pay to save your ass.”
“Hon, maybe we’ll worry about money later?” Jackson asks. “Or… not at all? After all… her son is missing.”
“Tucker wants a cut,” I say. “Kid or not, this is his job. And look at Sophia. Doesn’t she look like someone you want to take money from?”
Sophia glowers at me.
“I wanna take money from her,” Tavish agrees.
“I just want to find Cam,” Waylon says. “He’s really nice and super na?ve, like this one time I was in chemistry class with him, and I was like ‘just add a dash of this and this and it’d be a bomb’ and he thought it was funny and a big joke and… I’m just saying.”
“We’ll get him back,” I assure him. “Tucker, get me the location on whichever Barlow is in the area. We were told there’s one not far from here.”
“That would be Teo Barlow. Leland, if you head over to scope out the area, just know that man is not one to be fucked with. He has eyes everywhere. That place is like a fortress. It’s about three hours from here and he’s got it locked down quite well.”
“Got it,” I say.
“And if you’re going in, I wouldn’t go in guns blazing. He’s got himself some damn fine bodyguards,” Tucker warns.
“It’s kind of disgusting how concerned about me you are. I… I’m married, Tucker.”
“Oh fuck off,” he snaps and hangs up on me.
“Jackson, Tucker was flirting with me.”
“You sure?” Jackson asks.
“How positive are you that they’re the ones looking into her?
” Everly questions. “I just feel like… especially now with the police involved, whoever took Cam would want to end this as quickly as possible, but no one’s reached out to Sophia.
And from what I’ve heard, this Barlow family seems like people you don’t want to fuck with.
But those guys in that car we stopped? They seemed… unpolished.”
“I was thinking about that too,” I say. “But while we’re waiting for Cassel to get us something else, it’s all we’ve got. Our main problem is that it’s three hours from here. If we’re wrong, that’s a long way to go to have to turn around and come back.”
“Where’s your husband?” Tavish asks Sophia.
“I told him to stay with the police, in case they need him for any questions or something comes up. I can’t have him wandering off and getting hurt… he can’t know… he can’t know what I’ve done.”
“What do you hope to gain by not telling him?” Jackson asks. “Lies cause issues. If Cam knew the danger you were in, would he be here right now instead of in their hands?”
I see a car pull up out front and watch as the man starts toward the door before I glance back at Sophia.
She looks away, seeming upset, but I know from experience that lies really don’t get us anywhere. It only got me Daddy Henry tied up… and yes, I got a Daddy for life out of that, but most people aren’t that lucky.
The door opens and Henry walks in, instantly making Sophia uncomfortable. She knows he’s the chief of police but doesn’t know Henry’s wild side. The man is a ball of spontaneity, of wildness… he’s like an untamable beast.
I catch his eyes and immediately convey to him, “I do not trust this woman but my new baby boy wants his friend back, so I will be a hero in his eyes, much as you’re a hero in mine.”
His eyes narrow in a very obvious, “No… you are my hero, Leland.”
I smile at him in a clear, “You shouldn’t have! But I will gladly wear that cape and come running when you call my name.”
“Nope,” Henry says as he turns around and begins to leave the office.
“Daddy, no!” I cry. “You called me a hero. You can’t take that back!”
“I did absolutely no such thing.”
“I think you did,” I mutter. “Everyone else could also sense that you were trying to convey that.”
“Naahhh, I didn’t see shit,” Tavish says, and I show off my phenomenal self-control when I don’t chuck a stapler at his head.
“What happened? Give it to me straight,” he says. “Jackson, Everly? Hell, Waylon? Just not Leland.”
“I oddly happened to notice my name was not mentioned. Did you forget it?” Tavish asks.
Henry stares at him for a second before going, “No.”
Tavish looks confused, like he could possibly not understand what he did to lose the amazing trust and love of Henry the Great.
“I got this. I can give it to you in a rap. Like how they catch you up to speed in Hamilton,” I offer.
“I would prefer you didn’t,” Henry says.
“Please stay focused. I need to find my son,” Sophia whines.
“Someone want to drop a beat?” I ask.
“Leland, I would like to find my friend somewhat soon,” Waylon says, and since he said it, I know I have to listen.
“Right, sorry, of course,” I say, afraid I will upset my new son.
“Sophia is an ex-contract killer for the Barlow family. After making a run for it, she started up a life here. Waylon and her son Cam were out for a walk when a group of people in two vehicles swooped in and took her son. She has received no contact from whoever took him. We, of course, speculate it was the Barlow family, but we agree that the fight was sloppy for them.”
Henry leans back against the wall and closes his eyes. “How can you guys get into so much shit?”
“Easily. So easily,” I assure him.
He sighs. “Alright. I need you all to be careful because Detective Patel is far too interested in you, Leland. I’ll let you know if we get anything from the four guys who we’ve taken into custody. Currently, they’re refusing to talk. I have my doubts they’ll spill much soon.”
“My guess is someone hired them,” I say. “It just feels weird that they’d be with the Barlow family. But this is Teo Barlow we’re talking about and not his father Raul. I know very little about Raul’s children.”
“But why hire someone so sloppy?” Sophia asks.
“Fuck if I know. I’m heading to scout out Teo’s estate. I will contact everyone if I see anything. Let me know if Cassel hears anything. Henry, can I bestow my very own child upon you for the evening?”
“My wife will watch Waylon. I don’t think you should go alone,” Henry says.
“And you’re going to go?” I ask. “Don’t you have shit happening here?”
“I do, but I trust my officers. They have this handled… and they won’t have to handle it at all if we get it fixed first.”
“Do you think we’re all okay going?” Jackson asks. “What if all of us are off three hours away and Cam’s still in the city?”
“Where’s Micah? He can stay here with Cassel and Jeremy,” Everly suggests.
“I have no idea what Micah is doing,” Jackson says. Neither do I, honestly. Micah is another person who was raised by Lucas to be a killer, going by the codename Chaos, though he eventually got away. He comes around and helps us occasionally, though usually for a price.
“Tavish can stay here too,” I offer.
“No, I think Tavish should go with us. Six of us to scout out the perimeter would be nice,” Jackson says.
I scowl a bit about that because is it really necessary? “I feel like he’s a liability. I’m confident our risk goes up when Tavish joins.”
“Reliability, you mean. Ha. Get it?” Tavish asks, as if anyone would want to “get” anything when it comes to him. “I’m fucking hilarious.”
I stare at the man who would dare try to make a joke when that is my thing. It’s just stomach churning whenever he tries.
I scowl at him but head upstairs to retrieve Veronica and Belmonte, my two guns.
Patting them to remind them that they’re good babies, I hurry out to the parking lot behind Wellstone and over to where the kidnapper van (or murder van depending on the day) is parked, since it’s the only vehicle that would hold all of us.
I could use some of my money for a more comfortable alternative that doesn’t look suspicious as fuck, but I highly doubt Sophia would have the patience for me to go pick out a new three-row SUV.
Not that I wouldn’t enjoy her discomfort, but I feel like I really should put a bit of speed into saving Waylon’s friend.
With the plan for Ellis to swoop by and pick Waylon up, we are left waiting a couple of minutes, and I use that time to stand uncomfortably close to Waylon so I can pet him a bit.
With each pet his scowl deepens. “Why are you petting me?”
“It might be affection or it might be a threat, you’ll never know,” I promise him.
“So fun,” he says.
Ellis pulls up and Waylon almost looks relieved to hurry over to his car.
“Thanks for taking him,” Jackson says.
“This is my kind of job,” Ellis replies. “Driving people around. No bullets, no airplanes, and no one after my head.”
I want to object to all of that, but the look Sophia is giving me tells me I don’t have time to. So instead, I turn to Waylon. “Please be careful. If you see anything you don’t like, just shiv it,” I instruct as I put a knife in his hand.
He stares at it and cocks his head. “No!”
“You know how to shiv them. Make me proud.”