Chapter Seven #2
“Hopefully, you’ll be able to identify Castillion through the scope of your rifle, so we get confirmation on who to grab as he exits the vehicle.
If he goes for a gun, you have my permission to take him out.
You’ll be our eyes and ears because we feel putting up a drone in that neighborhood is risky.
It’s too easily spotted. People who live in that neighborhood are very conscientious about their privacy and most households have Ring doorbell cameras, so keep that in mind. ”
I sat up. “That’s gonna be tough.”
“Which is why you’re going now, Monroe,” Candy said. “It’s less likely that you’ll be noticed at this time of the morning on a Sunday. The rest of us will follow after we discuss where we’ll be setting up.” He looked at Mars. “You go with him, Clifford.”
“Aye, sir,” Mars said, sliding out of his chair.
“Yes, sir.” I stood.
“Good luck, Monroe,” Lincoln said, staring hard at me. “This is important. Don’t come back and tell me it’s not doable. Agent Wise was most likely murdered on the orders of this maggot. We need him arrested…like yesterday.”
I nodded sharply and then glanced at Mars. “You ready, buddy?”
“You bet.”
The two of us walked out of the room, heading straight for the elevators.
As soon as we got in and started heading for the lobby to take one of our personal vehicles instead of a BearCat which would stand out in a gated community, I turned to Mars.
“You’d think they’d just once give us a day or two notice when a job like this comes up. ”
Mars snorted. “What ya mean, mate? The ‘ole definition of a Tac Team is to be tactical support for an operation. We mostly get bugger all advance notice.”
“I understand, it’s just…well, you heard them. They’ve known this guy was comin’ to town for a few weeks and why. Why didn’t they let us do recon in advance rather than sendin’ us out there at butt crack in the mornin’ o’clock so we can find a perch?”
When he didn’t say anything, I glanced over. He was eyeballing me. “What’s really going on with ya, Reeses? Ya not typically like this.”
“Like what? Sensible?”
“Prickly.”
I let out a whoosh of air and then rubbed both hands over my face to try to wake up. I stretched my arms up over my head and bumped the roof of the elevator. Dust motes floated down into my face and Mars wheezed.
“Fuck me, Rex!”
“Sorry, man. Didn’t realize the damned ceilin’ was so low.”
He chuckled. “It’s ya bloody long arms, you’re a big, long streak of weasel piss.”
I laughed. “Sorry,” I said, yawning. “Guess I got up on the wrong side of the bed this mornin’.”
He chuckled, kicking an invisible dust ball across the carpeted floor of the elevator. “I ‘eard Candy made you stay and clean the BearCats.”
I gave him a sideways glance. “Yeah. I was here until a little after midnight.”
“Blimey.” He visibly winced then cocked his head to the side before reaching out to squeeze my bicep. “Something wrong? Ya seem a bit off, even for you.”
I smirked at the jibe then shook my head, looking down at my feet as we reached the lobby level and the elevator doors swished open. We stepped out and headed for the parking lot. “It’s nothin’. I just had a date and missed it because I had to stay late to wash the fuckin’ vehicles.”
“Sexy, Rexy. I feel for ya, brother. The next time that ‘appens, give me a bell. I would’ve taken ya place. I’m so used to washing the trucks, I could’ve knocked them both out in a jiffy.”
“Really?”
He laughed. “Fuck no! I’m bloody glad it was you.”
I grinned, glancing over at him. “Asshole.”
He chuckled as I pulled out the keys to my Hornet. “Put those away. I wouldn’t drive in that old bomb of a car it you paid me, lad.”
“You’re a total snob. Just because you get a new car every two months, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t appreciate the classics.”
He laughed that time, muttering something under his breath about classics. He pulled out his key fob and pointed to a black Camaro, sitting at the back of the lot where we usually parked. “I’ll drive.”
“Is that another new car?”
“Yeah.”
“What’s that? The fourth this year?”
“Sixth.” We reached the car as he clicked open the locks. We got inside. It smelled brand new.
“Sixth? You’ve bought six new cars this year?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“Oh, I don’t know. You’re an FBI agent on a government salary. So, unless you’re on the take, it’s just damned hard to understand how you do that.”
He frowned at me. “I buy them at the Vegas auction now we live so close to Sin City. Then, I sell them, make a bit of extra lolly. If you want to replace that shitbox you drive, you can come with me next time.”
I shook my head. “I love the Hornet, though maybe getting somethin’ better for the environment, might be good.” I looked at him and smiled slyly. “You know…you change cars like I change underwear.”
He snorted. “I ‘ave news for you, mate. If you only change underpants six times a year, I’m gobsmacked you get dates at all.”
I laughed. “Shut up.” He started the car as I fastened my seatbelt.
“So, tell me about ya date,” he said, driving out of the parking lot. “Didn’t know ya were seeing someone.”
I smiled, picturing Cachi’s sweet face in my mind. “It’s kinda new but this guy is really special, you know?”
“Not really, no. You know I’m the love ‘em and leave ‘em type of bloke. Can’t remember when I last met a guy I wanted to keep.” He gave his chin a bit of a stroke. “Oh, I know…never!”
I chuckled because that seemed to be a common thread throughout our team.
With the captain, there were eight of us, all confirmed bachelors except for Nash and Patsy who’d found the loves of their lives.
Nash had been living with Joshua for nine months.
They were raising Joshua’s three siblings together.
Patsy and Wes had met and fallen in love three months ago, moving in together after buying a house.
None of the rest of us even really dated, and I would have counted myself, had I not been seriously crazy about Cachi.
“So, like I said, tell me about this fella,” he prodded.
“I met him at Dance Hall Boys and—”
“The gay club?” he asked in surprise.
I turned to look at him. His eyes were on the road as we drove.
“Yeah. I was there Friday night, you know, just checkin’ the place out and I saw this go-go dancer and—” I stopped when he burst into laughter and started pounding on the steering wheel.
I frowned, scrunching up my face in disgust. “Shut up! Cachi’s gorgeous. ”
Mars laughed so hard, he sounded like he was about to go into convulsions. “Oh, my God, ya can’t be serious?” He glanced over at me and then sobered as he turned his attention back to the road. “Ya bloody are serious! Ya picked up a rent boy.”
“He’s not a rent boy,” I said. “He’s a dancer.”
“They’re all rent boys, mate.”
I shook my head. “Cachi isn’t. He lives with his mom. She gave me chile rellenos and—”
“What?” He turned to look at me, shock written all over his face.
“What, what?” I waved at the road. “Watch the fuckin’ road.” He looked away.
“You met ‘is mum?”
“Yeah.”
“And she cooked for you?”
“Yeah.”
“But ya only met him Friday night. When was this cooking going on…were you screwing him in the other room or…”
I shook my head. “No, idiot. I took him back to my place.” I knew it sounded bad. I wasn’t the kind of guy who took guys home. “And it wasn’t Friday night, it was yesterday. Friday night, I helped get him away from a mob of assholes who were trying to kill him and—”
He held up a hand. “Wait…what’d ya do?”
I sighed and then started at the very beginning, telling him everything from start to finish.
“And now, because Candy made me stay late and clean the damned vehicles, I missed pickin’ him up from the club after he got off work last night.
I guess he’s pissed about it because now he won’t return my calls.
No one told me about there bein’ no service down in the fuckin’ garage. ”
“There’s never been any service down there, only a bloody landline.”
“Well, I never tried calling from there before. The only time I’m ever in the garage is when we’re gettin’ into the BearCat.”
“If ya date was so important, you should’ve just stopped for a few minutes and called your man.”
“Yeah, well, I’m an idiot. All I was thinkin’ was finishin’ the cleanin’ so I could go pick him up…like every second counted, you know.”
He shook his head. “Ya still an idiot.”
“You’re makin’ me feel worse and trust me, I didn’t think that was even possible.” He got silent and I turned to look. He was watching where he was driving. “What?”
He glanced at me before looking back at the road, shaking his head. “Ya really worked up about missing a date with this guy.”
“That’s what I’ve been tellin’ you.”
“And you’re absolutely sure ‘e’s not a rent boy?”
“NO!” I bellowed. The very idea of it was ludicrous.
“Keep your ‘air on, Grandad. It’s just ‘ard to believe. Milky told me Dance ‘All Boys is a meat market which is why Twizz liked it. ‘E’d go there to pick up guys all the time before meeting ‘is Joshua.”
I knew that was true. Nash had been the biggest player on the team before meeting and falling in love with Joshua Calder during a case nine months ago. “Well, if it can happen for Nash, it can happen for all of us, Clifford.”
He reached up and rubbed a hand over his face as he pulled off the freeway. “Please tell me ya not, like, falling in love with a man you’ve taken to bed one bloody time, Rex.”
“No, it’s not like that. I just feel different about this guy, even if he is a lot younger.”
He shook his head. “This just gets better and better. ‘Ow old is ‘e?”
“Twenty-five.”
“Jay-sus! Rex, ya cradle snatcher.”
“This conversation is really pickin’ me riiight up on a Sunday mornin’. Thanks, brother.”