Adrian's mind churned. “Are you saying that you and Faith talked this guy into helping you get Rosita to admit to setting us up?”
“In so many words, yes,” Cliff said. “Turns out the rich boy resents his step-momma for making his future inheritance smaller by marrying his old man and having a baby by him. But, they have a good relationship just the same. They hang out sometimes. As we talked to the rich boy, he admitted that Rosita enjoys white sugar from time to time. Long story short, Faith wouldn’t press charges against the rich boy in exchange for his help.”
Adrian closed his eyes as he let out a long low breath. Why didn’t she tell me? She didn’t have to do this. “What was the plan?”
“Faith has been working on it all week,” Cliff said. “A connection hooked her up with some guy on vice in Dallas. The cop was willing to help her out as long as he got a lead or two on drug dealers. Faith and the rich boy are working with vice to set up a sting to catch Rosita with coke. If Rosita gives up her drug connection and fesses-up to the DEA that she set you guys up, they will let her slide.”
“It doesn’t sound that dangerous,” Joey said.
“I didn’t think so either until last night,” Cliff said. “Turns out the hacker that turned you in is involved, too. He and Rosita like hanging out with each other and party sometimes. The rich boy tricked Rosita and the hacker into meeting him at his condo in Dallas for a private party. The hacker…he doesn’t sound like good people. Lost his job in Silicon Valley because of drugs. The way Faith talked, he sounded a little sketchy. The original plan was for her to be with vice when they caught Rosita red-handed so Faith could talk to Rosita herself. But, I told her to sit it out because I didn’t like the sound of the hacker. She said she would, but…”
“But?” Adrian asked with urgency.
“After I got off the phone with her, I kept getting a nagging feeling she was lying to me. I couldn’t sleep half the night. I got up early this morning and tried calling her several times. Her cell phone kept going straight to voicemail. I left a message that said that if she didn’t call me back in thirty minutes, I was coming out here. Either she didn’t get the message or she didn’t think I was serious - I don’t know. But, what I do know is that I closed the shop for a few days, kissed my wife goodbye, got on a plane, and flew out here.”
“How did you know where the ranch was?” Aunt Bea asked.
“Faith gave me the address when she asked me to send the rest of her things,” Cliff answered. “When I got off the plane, I got a rental car and plugged the address in my GPS.”
“Surely, the police wouldn’t let anything happen to her,” Aunt Bea said with a shaky tone.
“Maybe,” Cliff said with a shrug and worry in his tone. “But, dirty cops, a hacker with drug ties, a rich hit-and-run driver, and a triflin’ ho is a nasty combination. Something could go wrong, and Faith could get caught in the crossfire. And in her condition?” Cliff shook his head. “I told her she had to take care of herself, now.”
“What do you mean in her condition?” Adrian asked.
“I was right,” Aunt Bea said in a low tone and leaned back on the sofa.
Joey blew out.
Cliff shook his head. “She still hadn’t told you. Yo man, she’s preggers.”
Adrian’s brows furrowed. “What?”
“Preggers is another word for pregnant, Adrian,” Joey explained. “I just learned that term watching a reality show this week.”
Adrian grabbed the edge of the bar. “Pregnant! Faith’s pregnant!”
“Faith’s pregnant,” Steve repeated as he walked into the den.
“You said the sting was going down in Dallas at the guy’s condo?” Adrian asked.
“What sting?” Steve asked with confusion. “Now, we’re talking about a sting?”
“Yeah, but I don’t know where the condo is,” Cliff said. “Hell, I didn’t even know it was going to go down today. But, I think I know someone that does know where the condo is.”
“Who?” Adrian asked with desperation.
“Your legal counsel, Scully,” Cliff answered.
“Mike helped Faith with this behind our back?” Adrian asked.
“If it makes you feel any better, legal counsel wasn’t comfortable keeping it from you at first, but Faith made him realize that you guys couldn’t be directly involved with a scheme that could affect your problems with the DEA and baby boy’s hacking case.”
“Mike did something behind our back?” Steve asked.
“What are you going to do, Adrian?” Aunt Bea asked.
“It’s Saturday, Mike’s office is closed, but I bet he’s at home,” Adrian said as he adjusted his Stetson. “I’m going to find out where Faith is and lock her in the house until the baby’s born. Hell, I might keep her locked up after that.” Adrian was shocked and angry. How could she not tell him she was pregnant? How could she keep all this from him? Adrian shook his head. He had to focus. The first priority was to find Faith and keep her safe. Faith had a way of getting in life or death situations. She was a lucky woman, but people couldn’t always depend on lady luck.
“All right,” Cliff said. “We’ll take my ride.”
Adrian nodded. He looked at his brothers. “Come on guys, let’s go.”
Adrian and Cliff walked out the den. Aunt Bea, Joey, and Steve followed behind him.
“Go where?” Steve asked. “Will someone please tell me what the hell is going on?”
“We’ll fill you in on the way,” Adrian said. He didn’t want to waste time standing around the ranch filling Steve in. They had no idea what time the sting was going down, and something could go wrong if the hacker was as shady as Cliff thought he was.
They got outside and started heading for the black SUV.
“Where do you think you’re going, Joey?” Aunt Bea asked as she stood on the front porch. “You can’t go with them.”
Everyone turned to look at Joey, and then down at his ankle monitor.
Adrian couldn’t believe he had forgotten about it.
“She right, dude,” Cliff said. “You’re under house arrest.”
“Fuck,” Joey hissed under his breath. “She’s doing this for me, too. I can’t just sit here-”
“You ain’t gotta choice, Joey,” Adrian said as he walked to him. “You can’t go past the driveway without that thing goin’ off.”
“We’ll call you and let you know what we find out, man,” Cliff said and opened the driver’s side door of the SUV.
Chapter 41
Adrian had filled Steve in on the way to Mike Scully’s house. They stood in Mike’s living room demanding to know where the sting was taking place.
“Look, we know that it’s at Richard Lewis’s condo in Dallas,” Steve said. “We just don’t know where the condo is in Dallas.”
“If you boys go barreling in like bulls in a china shop, you could blow the whole thing,” Mike said. “Plus, it can be seen as obstruction of justice, possibly witness tampering. Faith is a big girl, she can take care of herself, and the cops aren’t going to let anything happen to her. They’ll keep her out of harm’s way if something goes wrong.”
Adrian wasn’t trying to hear all this right now. The woman he loved had put herself in the middle of his family’s problems, and in the process put herself in a possible conflict.
“If that’s the case, what harm would it do to tell us?” Steve said.
Mike scoffed. “I know you boys. You’re going to run right in there and ruin everything.”
“No, we won’t,” Steve said. “We’ll call the Dallas PD and let them know we want in.”
Mike quickly stood up. “You can’t do that. It could jeopardize Joey’s case. The hacker is expected to show up. It could be seen as witness tampering, and as far as the DA’s office is concerned, Joey has a history of that.”
“All right, fine,” Adrian said. “We won’t call the Dallas cops, but for my peace of mind, tell me where she is.”
“Adrian-”
Mike began.
“Damn it, Mike, she’s pregnant,” Adrian spat out. “I have the right to know where the mother of my unborn child is!”
Mike was speechless. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know. I-” Mike stopped talking and took a deep breath. He looked up at the ceiling. “All right, I have the address written down, but for the love of God, don’t interfere.”
After Mike gave them the address and door number of Richard Lewis’s condo in Dallas, they thanked him and walked out the door.
All three of them stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of Joey leaning against the SUV with his arms crossed over his chest. “So, where are we goin’?” he asked nonchalantly.
“What the fuck?” Steve said with wide eyes.
Adrian looked down at Joey’s ankle. The monitor was gone. “I don’t know what you did to get that thing off, but go back to the house.”
“I’m not a kid anymore, Adrian,” Joey said. “You can’t send me back home when you and Steve are about to get into some mess.”
“I have to say I’m impressed,” Cliff said with awe on his face. “How did you get it off?”
“And where is it now?” Steve asked.
“I can’t divulge all my secrets, but I put the monitor on Hagar,” Joey said. “As long as the dog stays in the house, the authorities won’t even know that I’m gone.”
“What did Aunt Bea say?” Adrian said.
“She wasn’t happy about it, but she knows how to let a man be a man,” Joey said. “Let me be a man today, Adrian.”
Adrian didn’t have time to argue with him. “Just get in the car before Mike sees you and has a heart attack,” he said with exasperation.
The men climbed into the SUV.
“How did you get to Mike’s house?” Steve asked. “Faith has your jeep.”
“One of the ranch hands gave me a ride,” Joey said as he put his seatbelt on.
“I’m going to try and call Faith again,” Adrian said as he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket.
Cliff plugged Richard Lewis’s address in the GPS.
Adrian got Faith’s voicemail again. He clicked off. He prayed that whatever guardian angel that looked after Faith in the past would do it one more time until he got to her.
Dallas was a two-hour drive. The sun was setting by the time they got there. Traffic was horrible. It took them an additional thirty minutes to get to the condo building. They cursed when they saw it was guarded by a gate and a security guard.
Cliff parked a block away from the entrance. “Now what?”
“We need to be in the parking lot at least,” Steve said. “From there, we’ll be able to see when Faith and the cops will show up.”
“What if they are already in there?” Adrian asked with worry. “We gotta come up with a way to get the guard to let us in.”
“Hey, I think I got an idea. It’s a little questionable, but it might work,” Cliff said.
“What is it?” Adrian asked.
“We’ll bribe him” Cliff answered. “Security guards don’t get paid that much. How much cash do you guys got on you?”
Chapter 42
Faith sat in Richard’s living room with three vice cops. She watched them do a mic check on Richard. He was going to wear a wire. Vice had also set up a mini camera on the TV. You could hardly see it.
“All right, Richard,” Detective Chambers said. “You’re all set. Remember, be casual -relaxed. Don’t let on that something is amiss.” Detective Chambers had dark curly hair and pale skin. His eyes were a strange blue-violet, but they were attractive.
“I understand. I’m not going to screw this up,” Richard said. “Rosita and I have drinks and…recreational activities together all the time. She didn’t suspect a thing when I invited her here to hang out tonight and to see if she can help me out with my problem. That’s why she’s bringing the hacker.”
“What else do you know about this hacker?” Chambers asked.
“Not much. Rosita said that Andy was an expert hacker, but he ran into some bad luck in Silicon Valley and lost his job. She said he might be able to help me with my problem. Oh, and he loves snorting coke.”
“All right,” Chambers said. “Try not to get high with them, but if they press, you’ll have no choice. Just do enough to make them feel comfortable. Don’t get high as fuck, you got it?”
“Yeah, I got it,” Richard said.
“Chambers,” Officer Murphy said as he came out of the bedroom. “Everything is set. We heard every word you two said and the camera is working perfectly.” Officer Murphy was a black man with dreadlocks. He mostly worked undercover for the vice squad.
“Great,” Chambers said.
“They’ll be here in a few minutes,” Richard said. “She’s pretty punctual.”
“Let’s go in the back, Faith,” Chambers said.
Faith stood up. “Thanks for doing this,” she said to Richard.
“It’s the least I can do,” Richard said. “I know you think I’m doing this to save my own ass, and technically, I am. But, I’m also hoping this will make us even.”
Faith looked at the skinny blonde-headed young man. “If this goes the way I hope, we will be.” With that, Faith walked with Chambers to the master bedroom where the equipment was set up. Faith was mad as hell at Richard, but this wasn’t about her. This was about Adrian and his family. If she had to sacrifice justice for herself to get justice for them, she would do it. Besides, it’s not like Faith died in the accident or got life-altering injuries from it.
Chambers let her walk in first, and then he closed the door behind them. “So, what kind of excuse did you tell them?” he asked Faith.
“I told them that I had a lot of errands to run and I wanted to go shopping,” Faith answered.
Chambers nodded. “So, you really love this guy, huh?” he said.
Faith smiled. “I do.”
“That’s too bad,” Chambers said with a grin. “You’re a good-lookin’ woman. If it doesn’t work out, give me a call.”
Faith shyly looked to the side and looked back up at him. “All right, but it’s going to work out. I don’t care if I have to tie him to a chair and lock him in a room.”
Chambers laughed. “All right, but the offer is there.”
“Hey, lover boy,” Detective Williams said as he approached them with two headsets. He handed one to Chambers and the other to Faith.
As they were getting settled in, the doorbell rang.
“Here we go,” Chambers said.
They watched Richard walk to the door on a laptop computer screen.
Chapter 43
Richard Lewis opened the door. Rosita stood in the hallway in a shiny blue wrap with a matching dress with two slits in the front. She had two guys with her. Not one.
“Rich,” Rosita purred and kissed him on the cheek.
“Hey, Rosita. Come in,” he said with an easy smile.
Rosita and the two guys filed into the vast living room.
“Who are your friends?” Richard asked as he closed the door.
“This is Duke,” Rosita said and glided her hand down the man’s strong chest. Duke had green eyes and dark reddish-brown hair.
“Nice to meet you,” Duke said and offered his hand.
Richard shook it. “And you.”
“I hope you don’t mind me letting Duke tag along. He lives here in Texas, so we don’t get to see each other much,” Rosita said as she continued to rub the man’s chest.
Duke put his arm around Rosita’s waist.
“This is Andy. My friend I told you about,” Rosita said with a big smile.
“Hi,” Andy said.
Richard shook hands with the goofy looking four-eyed guy that was carrying a laptop case.
“Sit down,” Richard said with a big smile. “You guys want a drink?”
“Absolutely,” Rosita said. “I’ll help you fix the drinks.
“You guys sit down and make yourselves at home,” Richard said.
“Much oblige,” Duke said.
Andy walked to a black leather chair and sat down. Duke sat down on the sofa.
“What do you boys want to drink?” Richard asked as he and Rosita walked to the bar.
“I take a beer if you got one,” Duke said.
“Jack Daniels and coke, please,” Andy said.
“Coming right up,” Richard said.
As they fixed the drinks, Richard whispered to Rosita, “So, who’s the cowboy? I thought the hacker was the only person you were bringing along.”
Rosita gave him a sultry smile as she put ice in the glasses. “Oh, I met Duke four years ago when I lived in Elliot. He’s just an old playmate.”
Richard rolled his eyes.
“You’re not going to tell your daddy, are you? Not that he would care,” Rosita said.
“No,” Richard said. “But, you know I invited you over here to…help me with a problem.”
“Duke is cool,” Rosita said as she grabbed a bottle of Jack Daniels. “He’s tried to help me in the past. Maybe he can help you, too.”
Richard didn’t have a choice, but to go with it. Richard had felt ill when Sheriff Langford had told him that the woman in that old four-door car would have burned to death if someone hadn't stopped to help her. He wanted this done, and the slate wiped clean so he and Faith Roberts could go on with their lives. Richard had learned his lesson this time. No more drinking and driving.
Once they got everyone a drink, Rosita sat down on the floor, stretching her legs under the coffee table next to Duke’s legs. Richard sat down in the other leather armchair.
“I brought something to help ease your mind,” Rosita said to Richard. She pulled a bag of coke and a razor blade out of her purse. She reached for the vase on the glass coffee table and sat it to the side. She grabbed the flat mirror plate that was under it, and emptied the bag of white powder on it.
Duke pulled a dollar bill out of his pocket and started rolling it up.
Rosita started chopping at the white powder with the blade.
“Maybe in a few minutes,” Richard said. “I’m hoping we can discuss this, and then if something can be done, I’ll celebrate.”
The Rancher Page 19
