by Robin Mahle
“I’m good. I’ll keep in touch.” Ethan ended the call. “Shit. I can’t just sit here and wait.” Maybe this was his opportunity to show the captain that he didn’t need Riley holding his hand. He was a damn good cop, and right now, a man was missing. And whoever that guy inside was had something to do with it, he was sure. One thing Riley was right about, the man would recognize Ethan from the diner. So what was the plan? How could he get what he needed without jeopardizing the case?
A knowing grin surfaced as he recalled the bag he kept in the trunk of his patrol car. Civilian clothes. He rarely needed them and they’d probably been in that bag for weeks, but he could change out of uniform, go inside, and the man would probably not even look twice at him.
Ethan pulled his car around to the alleyway behind the row of stores and retrieved the clothes. A quick change and he looked like any other guy on the street. A ball cap would’ve been nice, but he didn’t have one in his bag. “This will have to do.” He locked up his car and started on foot to the bar.
He made it to the door and stood poised to enter but stopped short before opening it. “Go inside, sit at the bar, and listen. That’s all you have to do.” Ethan had slightly less experience than Riley had under her belt. While he’d been faced with troubling situations, he mostly had Riley to fall back on. Not this time. And maybe it was about time.
Ethan opened the door and casually walked inside, keeping his head down just a little to avoid direct eye contact with anyone. He didn’t know where the man would be or if he would be engaged in conversation. The idea was to blend. At six feet one inch, that was a little hard, but if he didn’t, it could mean putting himself in danger. The captain would definitely be pissed then and so would Riley.
The bar was just ahead, and as he briefly peered up, he spotted the man in question. It was the peculiar stranger Riley was sure was after Silas Levin. Only there was no Levin, not at the bar, at least. Meaning any significant conversation might’ve already occurred. Regardless, Ethan pressed on and sat down at the bar.
The bartender approached. “What can I get you?”
The look on his face suggested he was about to ID Ethan. He needed to think fast. “Bud Light, please.” He widened his eyes and faintly shook his head.
The bartender creased his brow with confusion. “Sure, man. I’ll get that for you right away.”
It was a small town and this place was one of only two bars. The other one was generally frequented by the older crowd. Ethan was here just the other night with Jacob. He feared the bartender would recognize him. But he narrowly avoided the situation.
The bartender returned. “Here you go—sir. Start a tab?”
Ethan retrieved his wallet and handed him a credit card. “Thanks.” The look on his face conveyed his heart-felt gratitude and the bartender nodded and smiled in reply. It seemed he’d figured it out.
As Ethan tossed back a swig of beer, a booming laugh sounded. He turned to his right and realized it was the stranger and his raucous laughter.
“Did you see that?” Gage Parker raised his bottle of beer toward the TV mounted above the bar. “He missed the shot! How much are they paying that guy anyway, am I right?” He nudged the man next to him.
“Sure buddy.”
“Boy, what a shitty team you people got here. Now the Bulls, they were something back in the day. They aren’t shit now, but you can’t beat what old Phil Jackson did for them.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” the man next to him piped up. “The Pacers are a respectable fifth in the conference. What are your Bulls at? Like 15th?”
“13th.” Gage regarded the man with empty eyes.
“Whatever.”
Ethan could tell the Camaro man had had a few already. What he didn’t know was what kind of drunk he was. However, that question might be resolved soon. Silas Levin was making his way behind the bar. This was why he was here, and he needed something. Things were about to get interesting.
“Hey, man, maybe it’s time for you to head out. We can catch up tomorrow.” Levin’s silky, placid tone would’ve convinced anyone to concede.
“I bet you’d like that, wouldn’t you, Silas? I have my orders. I’m supposed to keep my eye on you.” Gage pulled down the bottom lid of his right eye and leaned over the bar.
They know each other, Ethan thought.
“Eli thinks you got something going and maybe he wants in on it,” Gage pressed on.
“Okay, I think you’ve had enough.” Silas reached for the beer bottle.
Gage’s hand clamped down on it. “I’ll tell you when I’ve had enough. You think you’re the one giving orders here?”
“I think this is my bar and my responsibility to cut off anyone who’s had too much to drink. Why don’t you go sleep it off, Gage, and come back tomorrow, when you’ve had time to recover.”
Now Ethan had two names. Eli and Gage. What were the odds he’d get a last name out of either of these guys?
Gage stood from his stool, swaying a little. “Fine. Your beer is too warm anyway. But I’ll catch you on the flip side, Silas.” He started to leave and fired off a look at Ethan.
“What the hell you looking at?”
Ethan’s stomach dropped and his heart raced. “Nothing, man. Have a good night.” He kept his head low but could feel Gage’s stare. He sipped on his beer and waited, not looking back.
“Buncha assholes around here.” Gage pushed through the doors.
Ethan released the breath he’d held on to and peered up again.
“What are you doing here, Officer Pruitt?” Silas walked toward him. “Took me a minute to recognize you since you’re not in uniform.”
“Just enjoying a beer, man. Is that all right?”
“Hey, it’s fine by me. You’re the ones who’ve been harassing me for weeks. You know who that guy was?” He nodded toward the exit.
“Nope.” Ethan tossed back another swig, doing his best to appear aloof.
“Me neither.” Silas held his gaze for another moment before returning to the bartender.
Ethan had managed to avoid detection by the Camaro man, but Silas had figured it out. Right now, though, maybe that didn’t matter, because he had two names.
20
The bullpen of the stationhouse was littered with files, reports; any leads they could track down to find Alex Laughlin. And still—nothing.
“We’re running out of time.” Riley pushed off the chair and paced the room. “We ran the names and found the relationship between Ackerman and Levin, but we’re no closer to finding Alex than we were this morning. What if they kill him?”
“You’re the one with the power,” Abrams began. “Why the hell can’t you find him?”
She whipped around. “Because it doesn’t work that way, okay? I wish it did, but it doesn’t.”
“Back off, man,” Decker said. “We’re all tired, but there’s no need to lash out. If Riley could do something, don’t you think she would?”
“Okay, we’re not getting anywhere here,” Ward interjected. “Riley, sit down. Abrams, cool your jets. Getting pissed off isn’t going to help us find Laughlin.”
Ethan pushed through the doors. “I have names.”
Riley spun around. “What? Why aren’t you in uniform? You’re supposed to be tailing the Camaro guy. Don’t tell me you lost him.”
“He’s staying at the Ramada. The manager confirmed it with me. And his name is Gage.”
Ward approached him. “How do you know that?”
“Because Silas Levin called him that.”
Ward raised his hands. “Okay, you’re going to have to back up and start again. What the hell is going on and why are you in plain clothes? You were in uniform when you left to take Gracie to the bus.”
“I was. I changed. Look, that’s not the important part. What’s important is that Gage is the Camaro guy and he’s working for someone named Eli. I don’t have any last names.”
Ward moved toward him, standing inches f
rom Ethan’s face, and placed his hands on his hips. “Did you engage this man? You had orders to follow him. That’s all. Boy, you’d better have a good explanation for this.”
“I’m sorry, Captain. I—I didn’t want to sit there and follow the guy. I knew he’d be going to the hotel, so what was the point?”
“The point was to see if he was meeting anyone,” Riley said. “Jesus, Ethan, do you know what could’ve happened?”
“Last I checked, Riley, I was a cop. I had a hunch and I followed through. Kinda thought that was my job.”
“What went down, Pruitt?” Ward demanded.
“I called Riley to tell her the guy was at the Crooked Horse.”
“Which was when I told you Captain said to stay put,” Riley replied.
“Based on what you said at the diner, Riley, I knew he was there to see Silas Levin. I had to know what their conversation would entail. So I changed into the plain clothes I keep in a bag in my cruiser and went inside. I wasn’t going in there in uniform, that was certain. Levin already thinks we’re harassing him.”
Ward folded his arms and spread his stance. “Continue.”
“I sat at the bar, saw the man, and ordered a beer. He didn’t recognize me. I was fine. He’s something else, though, I’ll tell you. Loud, obnoxious, and a little drunk. Anyway, he drew the attention of Silas, who I guess had been in the back or something. So Silas came out and told the guy he’d had enough and asked him to leave, basically. And he said his name—Gage. So Gage starts putting up a fuss. He then mentions a man by the name of Eli and how Eli told him to keep tabs on Silas.”
“And then what?” Abrams asked.
“Nothing. Gage spouted off a few more things and even approached me for a hot minute, but he didn’t recognize me. Unfortunately, Silas did, after Gage took off. I smoothed things over. It’s fine.”
“I doubt that.” Ward started toward Abrams’ desk. “Do we have anything with those names on them? Eli or Gage?” Ward shot a glance to Ethan. “You took an unnecessary risk tonight, Pruitt.”
“I know I did, Captain, and…”
“And it’s a good thing you did. This could be the break we needed.”
Riley shook her head. “If this Gage hadn’t been drinking, he would’ve realized who you were. We’d seen him only hours earlier.”
“I’m okay, Riley. Everything turned out the way it was supposed to.”
“This time.” Riley approached Abrams’ desk. “If Gage is working for a man named Eli, we should cross-reference the name with any of Silas’ known associates. Same as we did for Ackerman.”
“Ackerman had a record,” Decker began. “And we don’t have a last name.”
Ethan advanced and placed his hand on Riley’s shoulders. She inhaled a quick breath in response.
“What?” He took his hand away. “What is it? Are you okay?”
The team stared at her like she was a circus freak. “I’m fine. I just—saw something. A piece of something.” She turned to him. “You said Silas knew who you were.”
“That’s right. He said we’ve been harassing him.”
“I saw him looking at you just now. His eyes. Ethan, he owes money and he’s scared.”
“Scared of who?” Decker asked.
“Eli, maybe? I don’t know. But he must be pretty afraid for me to pick it up from Ethan. He fears for his life.”
Ward nodded. “Okay, here’s what we’re going to do. I know it’s late. I know you’re all tired and want to go home.”
“Not me, Cap. I got plenty of shut-eye earlier.” Abrams smoothed back his hair and wore arrogance on his face.
“Besides Abrams. We’re all exhausted. But I think the way we find out what Levin is afraid of is to search records on his bar. Riley, if he owes someone money, it’s likely to be this Eli character. Why else send someone to keep an eye on him?”
“But this doesn’t seem to have anything to do with finding Alex,” Riley pressed on.
“It might, in a round-about way. I don’t know yet. What I do know is that we have to determine how Silas paid for the bar, the renovations, the whole shebang. He’s a gambler, at least, he was. He must know a lot of shady people. People who lend money and break legs if they don’t get it back.”
“Or worse,” Abrams replied.
“Exactly.” Ward eyed the team. “We find out how he got the money for his bar and I’ll bet we’ll find out who Eli is.”
“Then what? How do we get to Alex?” Riley asked. “He has to remain our focus or else…”
“I know. But this will all tie together. I’m sure of it, based on what you’re seeing. So let’s dig into his finances and see what we can turn up.”
Alex remained bound in the chair, bobbing his head as he tried to stop himself from drifting off to sleep. He had no idea of the time, only that it was pitch black outside. They’d fed him and had given him water. He wasn’t suffering, though his family must’ve been. If only he could get word to his wife. She must have been beside herself, not knowing what to tell the kids. The notion that they were scared and worried made his eyes sting with tears. The whole thing had gone sour so quickly and he didn’t know if there was a way out. Right now, it seemed no one was looking for him.
But they’d told him after tomorrow that things would change. The game was tomorrow night. They wanted to keep him far away from Silas Levin, but to what end? None of this was making sense.
A light flickered on and Alex squinted until his vision adjusted. The man who had been tasked with looking after Alex had returned. “What time is it?”
“It’s late,” the man replied.
“Why are you here?” Alex asked.
He continued his approach and walked around the back of Alex’s chair.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m untying you.” With a pocket knife, he cut the ropes and freed Alex’s hands. He continued around the front and cut the zip ties from his ankles.
“I don’t understand. I thought I was going home in a day or two.”
“Going home?” The man shook his head. “That’s the last place you’re going.”
Adrenaline exploded inside him. “What are you talking about?” This was it. They weren’t going to let him leave.
“Stand up,” the man said.
He hesitated.
“Stand up. Now.”
Alex took in a deep breath and rose from the chair. “I had to do what he said. I didn’t have a choice.”
“We know. Look, here’s the deal. Things have changed. We’ve been made aware of developments that will impact our plans.”
His heart began to slow again. Thinking he might be shot at any moment apparently wasn’t going to be the case.
“You’re going to be taken back to town. And you and your buddy will be in that game tomorrow. But here’s the deal: you’re going to go against Silas’s demands. You won’t lose and, in fact, you have to win. You have to take all of it.”
“I don’t know what kind of poker player you think I am. I’m average at best.”
“Really? Is that how you want to play this? You think we don’t know that you’ve played online poker for the past six years and have raked in a couple hundred thousand dollars? You only stopped because the Feds made it too hard to get access to the sites. You used that money to help buy your perfect little house in that backwater town. And you moved there to stay under the radar because the Feds wanted you to help them find other players. Rat them out.”
“I wasn’t going to rat anyone out.”
“Wise decision. Point being, you’re better than you’ve let on. And you’re going to take everything from Silas Levin. There are people who want more from him than even we do. We hadn’t anticipated their arrival. You’ll be the catalyst; they’ll finish the task.”
“How do I explain my absence?”
“You can contact your wife, but if you go home, you’ll be putting your entire family at risk. The people who are there already will be watching, make no m
istake about that. My suggestion is to tell her you’re safe, and in a day or two, you’ll be able to explain everything. Tell her to keep her mouth shut. That’s the best thing for her to do right now. As far as the cops are concerned, because we know they’re looking for you, you’ll tell them you had to leave town for a short while.”
“What about my car? Don’t you think they’re going to wonder why I left my car and my cell phone?”
“Hey, people disappear for all sorts of reasons. Family life, financial troubles. Dude, I don’t care what you say, but you sure as hell better make it believable.”
“If I can’t go home, where am I supposed to go?”
“You have friends, don’t you?”
Alex thought of the friends who would let him crash on their sofas and he couldn’t think of more than one or two. “I don’t see how this is going to work. I’ve been gone for how many days?”
“You’ve been gone for less than 48 hours. The cops won’t do shit so long as you give them a reasonable explanation. If they start sticking their nose into this, you can kiss your family goodbye, do you understand what I’m telling you?”
Alex nodded. “So I go back to town, make up some bullshit story I took off for personal reasons. Marital trouble or some shit. Then I take Silas Levin for everything at the game tomorrow night. What about my friend? The one who was with me when you people decided to turn my life upside down.”
“You’re going to convince him to do the same thing.”
“Christ. Are you shitting me?” Alex replied.
“Look, he’s got a cop for a girlfriend. Dumbass should’ve gone to her at the first sign of the shady deal with Levin, but he didn’t.”
“Because I asked him not to. I knew Levin wasn’t screwing around.”
“Well, at least you got that right. The people who’ve come to town wanting something from Levin aren’t going to get it. And they’ll handle it from there. My boss’s hands will be clean. And after that, you can go about your merry way.” He started to leave. “Find yourself a place to hole up for the night. I’ll dump you back into that shithole town.” He stopped and turned squarely to Alex. “You fuck this up, there won’t be any second chances.”
