by Roy Glenn
No, killin’ her was the only way she could come home.
Melinda almost lost them when Bobby made that U-turn, but she was able to keep up. When she saw that bitch Shy leading Pam out of the building, she knew something was up. When she followed them around to the alley and saw Black and Bobby put what she was sure was a body in the trunk, she not only knew she had something, but she knew where Black and Bobby were going next.
The parlor.
Mike and Bobby realized very early in their line of work that dead men do tell tales when you leave the bodies lying around for the cops to find. With that thought in mind, Mike bought a funeral parlor with a cremation furnace. It was a very efficient way to dispose of their enemies without a trace. The entire process usually takes about two hours. Melinda knew she had plenty of time.
With Pam resting comfortably, Shy went back downstairs. Even though it was late, she wasn’t tired, or maybe she was just too hyped over the events of the evening to sleep. So, she stretched out on the couch and turned on the television. While Shy flipped channels, her mind drifted to thoughts of Pam. There was still a part of her that couldn’t believe that Pam had killed that woman.
But why not? You killed somebody when they pushed you to your limit. Pam did the same thing. Imagine how many women wished that they could kill their man’s other woman? The line would be long.
As she flipped from channel to channel and tried to get comfortable, Shy thought about all the times she’d accused Mike of flirting too much, or having what she considered an inappropriate friendship with, or flat out accused him of cheating with another woman, it had never came to anything like this. No woman had ever called her or broke into their house.
“You might as well turn that off, ’cause there ain’t ever anything on at this hour.” A voice came from the shadows.
“Pam is that you?”
“Don’t you wish it was Pam?”
“Who’s there?”
Melinda stepped into the light, and her gun was pointed at Shy.
“You.”
She thought that she recognized the voice, it was her that wanted to kill her while she was kidnapped. Shy stood up.
“How did you get in here?”
“I used to live here until you came along, bitch,” Melinda said and took another step closer to Shy.
“What do you want?”
“I’m here to take back what you took from me.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about Black, you stupid bitch.”
“And you think —,”
“Shut up, bitch,” Melinda said calmly. “You ruined everything. I was happy; we were happy, happy with each other, bitch. Do you understand what that means? Do you understand how I felt?”
Shy remained quiet.
“No, I didn’t think so. You couldn’t possibly understand what this feels like.”
“Yes I can.”
“Then you shouldn’t have been fuckin’ with my man. My man! Not yours, mine!” Melinda took a step closer and Shy backed into a corner. “Look at you. What does he see in you? What do you have that I don’t? What the fuck is so special about you?”
Shy wanted to say, whatever it was, it was enough to take Michael away from you with ease, so you oughta check yourself.
Not wanting her smart mouth to get her killed, she looked around the room for a weapon or a way out.
Melinda looked at the clock on the wall and knew she had to get this over with and get back to the club to reestablish her alibi.
“Here’s what’s gonna happen now, bitch. I’m gonna kill you and that bitch upstairs. Black and Bobby are gonna think that D-Train’s boyz killed y’all in retaliation for Freeze killin’ D-Train and they’ll wipe them off the face of the earth. Once that’s over and Black starts to grieve over the loss of your bitch ass, I’ll be there to help him put it back together.”
“You don’t have to do this,” Shy pleaded with Melinda.
“Oh, yes I do. You don’t deserve to have him. You don’t deserve to have my man.”
“We can talk about this, can’t we?”
“Talk? Talk about what? How you snuck behind my back and stole my man? Is that what we should talk about bitch? I don’t think so. What do you think? If you keep me here talking that Black will come and save your worthless bitch ass? Well you can forget about that. I saw the body him and Bobby carried out. What, your girl Pam do, kill somebody?”
Shy didn’t answer.
“It doesn’t matter. You don’t have to answer me, bitch. I know they took that body to the parlor and if they did it’ll be at least two hours before they get finished, so nobody is coming to save you.”
If that was the case, Shy figured since she was going to die, that she might as well speak her mind and die with dignity. “You know what,” she paused. “Damn, I don’t even remember what your name is. Never was all that important. But I guess it doesn’t matter now. I guess nothing matters now. So let me tell you something. Mike Black is my man, bitch, not your man, my man.” Shy held up her left hand. “This big ass fuckin’ rock on my finger proves that he’s my man. He may have been your man, but you weren’t woman enough to hold him and that’s why he’s my man. And by the way, you never lived here. You may have got fucked here, but live here, in my house, no I don’t think so. So go ahead and kill me you dumb bitch, ’cause even if you kill me, Mike Black will always be my man!”
Melinda grabbed the gun with both hands and cocked the hammer. Shy heard the shot, closed her eyes, and prepared to die.
But nothing happened.
Shy opened her eyes in time to see Melinda drop the gun and fall to the floor.
Pam stepped out of the shadows with a gun in her hand. She stood over Melinda’s body. “These bitches got to learn to stop fuckin’ with somebody else’s man.”
Shy smiled. “Where’d you get the gun?” she asked as she kicked the gun away from Melinda.
“I know where Mike keeps his guns.”
“Well, wherever you got it, Pam, thank you. You saved my life.” Shy walked over to the phone and dialed Bobby’s cell phone number. “Hi, Bobby, it’s Shy. I know y’all are busy but it’s important. Can I speak to Michael?”
Bobby handed his phone to Mike. “Hello baby, what’s up?”
“Like I told Bobby, I know y’all are busy, but when you get finished with that one, Pam’s got another one ready for the parlor.”
After Shy called, Mike left Bobby to run the cremation furnace, while he went to see what Shy was talking about. When he got to his house Mike was more than surprised to see a woman’s body lying on his living room floor, and was shocked to see that it was Melinda. Mike turned as Shy walked up behind him.
“Friend of yours?” Shy mused. She wrapped her arms around his waist.
“What was she doing here?”
“I didn’t invite her, all of a sudden she was just there.” Shy handed him a blanket.
“What happened, baby?”
“She came to get her man back.”
Chapter Forty-five
Eight o’clock was fast approaching, and it found Diego Estabon sitting by the phone waiting for his father’s kidnappers to call. He took a moment to consider the fact that earlier today he had five million dollars deposited in his account and now he was waiting to pay five million for the safe return of his father. Just another one of life’s little ironies. It wasn’t about the money. He could and most likely would get the money back from Gomez.
He’ll probably insist on giving me back my money. He wouldn’t want me to have that type of power over him.
Finally the phone rang, and Diego quickly answered. “This is Diego.”
“Bring the money to the pier at Sag Harbor. Come alone or your father dies violently,” the same digitally disguised voice said and quickly disconnected the call.
Diego put out his cigar, finished his drink and thought one last time about not paying the ransom. Since he knew he had left himself no choice
to the matter, Diego picked up the briefcase with the money and drove out to Sag Harbor. Before he left, Diego instructed his men to give him a ten minute head start and then head out to the harbor, just in case.
When Diego arrived at the pier, he got out of his car and walked up and down the pier, with five million dollars, but his phone never rang. He never was a patient man and he hated being kept waiting. All he wanted to do is get this over with.
Then a very pretty Latino woman dressed in a very short skirt and a very tight tee-shirt began walking toward him. Diego’s smile widened as she got closer to him.
“Hello, Diego,” the woman said and stopped in front of him, but before he could speak to her, Diego felt the gun in his back.
“Hello, Diego,” the gun man said, while relieving Diego of his gun and handing it to the woman.
“You will come with me,” the woman said and led Diego to a small boat. Diego’s men got there in time to see the small boat sail away. While the man watched Diego, the woman piloted the boat out to sea. As they got closer to it, Diego could tell that he was being taken to his father’s boat.
“You are holding my father hostage on board his own boat?”
The man and woman looked at each other and laughed. Once they reached the boat, Diego was taken aboard and brought to the upper deck. When they got there, one man stood on deck waiting.
“Mike Black.”
“Hello, Diego, my friend,” Mike said.
“I should have known it was you, but I didn’t think you were this stupid. Of course you know that I am going to kill you for this?”
“That remains to be seen.”
“Kill you the way I should have a long time ago.”
Quickly becoming bored with Diego’s threats, Black said, “Whatever, Diego, just put the money on that table and back away from it.”
“Where is Gomez? I want to see that my father is safe first.”
“Diego you are in absolutely no position to even think about calling any shots.”
“Where is Gomez?” Diego shouted.
“Calm down and stop shouting, Diego. I’m right here.”
Diego turned quickly and saw his father, Gomez, coming out of the cabin with a drink in one hand and a woman on his arm.
“Papa?” a very confused Diego said as Gomez stood next to Mike.
“He was always very excitable as a boy,” Gomez said to Mike. “Don’t look so confused, Diego.”
“What is going on Papa?”
“It should be obvious, even to you, what is going on, Diego,” Gomez said and turned to Mike. “He was a slow learner as well. I would always have to explain things two or three times before he would understand me.”
“Why are you telling him these things, Papa?”
“A whiner, too,” Gomez whispered.
“Stop it!” Diego shouted. “Why do you always find a way to embarrass me?”
“See what did I tell you? Very excitable. You must learn to calm down and relax.”
“I am calm, Papa. Just tell me what is going on?”
“I was never kidnapped, Diego,” Gomez said and put his arm around his son. “I was never a hostage on board my own yacht. That would be embarrassing. Black came to see me. He came with respect, Diego. Respect, Diego, something else you must learn.”
“I must learn?” Diego jerked away from Gomez.
“When Black told me of the things you’ve done, I was ashamed to be called your father.”
“So you went along with this kidnapping idea?”
“No, Diego. The kidnapping was my idea,” Gomez told him. “Why do you treat this man with disrespect? We have no quarrel with this man. His business is not our business and he has not interfered with our business. You must make me understand why you chose to do this, Diego.”
“Papa, you are taking his side over mine, again.”
“Not his side, Diego, the right side. The honorable side. I blame myself for this. It was I who allowed his mother to spoil him as a boy. She breast feed him well past his second birthday.”
Everybody on deck laughed at Diego, who by this time was fed up. “Shut up! Shut up I said!”
“Diego,” Gomez said calmly. “Did you bring the money?”
“The money!” Diego yelled.
“Yes, Diego, the ransom money, did you bring it?”
“Yes, I have it.”
“Give it to me,” Gomez said
“You put me through this for nothing! Then you bring me out here and embarrass me in front of this dead man…and I am going to kill you Black.”
“Whatever Diego.” Mike said and smiled at him.
“Now you want the money. Well here is my answer!” Diego reached in the briefcase and pulled out a gun. He began walking toward Mike and Gomez and shooting wildly. Mike grabbed Gomez and they hit the deck. The man and woman both fired at Diego. He hit Diego in the back, but he didn’t go down. She hit him in the arm, and he dropped his gun. The man grabbed Diego around the neck.
“I’ll kill you!” he yelled and struggled to get free. The man hit Diego in the back of the head with his gun, and Diego slumped to the ground.
Mike helped Gomez get up from the deck. “Take Diego below,” Gomez said. “Have my doctor to give him something to make him sleep for a while.”
“What have I done, Black? I never meant for it to come to this.”
“I’m sorry, Gomez,” Mike said and put his hand on his gun just in case.
“Don’t be, it was not your fault.”
“I never thought that Diego would try to kill me. You should go now, Black. My people will take you back to shore.”
“What about Diego?” Mike asked.
“I’ll take him back to Peru. You have nothing to fear from Diego.”
Mike bowed slightly in a gesture of respect to Gomez and turned to walk away.
“Aren’t you forgetting something?” Gomez asked.
“What’s that?” Mike said and turned slowly with his hand still on his gun. He expected to see Gomez standing with a gun pointed at him, but was surprised to see him holding out Diego’s briefcase.
“The money, take it.”
“I can’t do that, Gomez. It wouldn’t be right. Diego took no money from me. I can’t take his money,” Mike lied, knowing that he had already taken some of Diego’s money.
“I insist Black,” Gomez said.
“Of course, Gomez,” Mike said and took the briefcase.
Gomez’s people took Mike ashore where Bobby was waiting. On the way, Mike thought about how things had turned out. Earlier that day he had Jackie and Vonda pay a visit to Frontier Pharmaceutical. Dressed in short dresses and showing plenty of cleavage, most of the men and quite a few of the women in the building were so distracted that nobody noticed Jackie when she attached a keystroke emulator to the computer in the main conference room where hours later Diego would complete his transaction.
At that point it was easy for Travis, with Monika’s help to hack into their network and get the password to Diego’s account. Once the money was transferred in, Travis transferred it out to another account. Mike got off the boat and walked toward Bobby’s car thinking that there was one other person he needed to see.
Chapter Forty-six
Mike was tired when Bobby dropped him off at his house. He got in bed with Shy, but he didn’t sleep long. A few hours later Mike was up and reaching for the phone. He paused a moment and looked at Shy. Maybe he shouldn’t do this. Maybe he should wake Shy up, get her dressed, head straight for the airport, and take her back to their quiet life on the island. Mike knew that if he didn’t take care of this now, then it would only come up over and over and he would have to deal with it sooner or later.
He started to get up and leave the room so Shy could sleep, but since it was about her anyway she might as well wake up. Mike ran his finger through Shy’s hair.
“Baby,” Mike said and touched her face. “Wake up.”
“Morning, baby. Is everything all right?”
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br /> “I gotta make a call.” Mike dialed a number.
“Okay and you woke me up because?”
“You’ll see,” Mike said as the phone rang.
“This is Kirk.”
“Good morning, Kirk, this is Mike Black.”
“Morning, Black. I knew sooner or later you’d be calling.”
“I’d like to talk to you, detective. Is there someplace I could meet you?”
“Castle Hill diner, say in an hour? You can buy me lunch,” Kirk said.
“See you there.”
A little over an hour later, Mike and Shy walked hand in hand into the Castle Hill diner. Kirk was already there when they got there. He rose to his feet when he saw them coming toward him.
“How’s it going, Kirk,” Mike said and extended his hand.
“Doing good,” Kirk replied and shook Mike’s hand.
“Kirk, this is my wife, Cassandra.”
Shy held out her hand. “Please call me Shy.”
“Mrs. Black, it is a pleasure to finally meet you. I was told that you were the most beautiful woman on the face of the earth. I see now that I was not deceived,” Kirk said graciously. “Please, have a seat.”
Once they were seated, the waitress brought out Kirk’s food. “I hope you don’t mind, I went ahead and ordered.”
“Not at all detective,” Mike said. “Go ahead and enjoy your meal.”
“So, Black, what did you want to see me about?”
“I wanted to talk to you about the DEA investigating me for drug trafficking. Kirk, you know I don’t do that kind of business.”
“I know. She does, or at least she used to.”
Shy fought off the urge to defend herself and remained quiet. She would have her chance later.
“You don’t have to worry about the DEA, at least for now, Black.”
Mike glanced at Shy. “Why is that detective?”
“The operation’s been terminated,” Kirk said as he ate. “After I talked to Simmons, and his story didn’t jive with the official version the DEA was putting out, I did some checking on my own.”
“What was the official version?” Mike asked.
