by Ann Simas
“He drew a reticle on her face.”
Goddammit.
Andi briefly contemplated Clem taking the Lord’s name in vain, given that he was already treading on thin ice where sins were concerned. Since he had enough problems, she moved the conversation along to his wife’s newest problem. “Your partners converged on Denise yesterday and informed her they’re going to force her to sell your share of the partnership to them.”
What? They can’t do that!
“Denise and your mom went over partnership contract and couldn’t find any clauses saying Gus and Vince could force the issue. In fact, they couldn’t find anything about buyouts at all.”
That’s because we never intended to buy each other out! We deliberately left out any mention of it.
“It gets worse. They only want to pay her five million.”
You’re shitting me! The business is easily worth twenty times that! What are those assholes trying to do? Wait! Five million? That’s the payout for my company life insurance! Goddammit! Those pricks don’t have thirty-three million between them to make the buy. They’re trying to intimidate Denise and they’re using my frigging death benefit to pull it off. Fucking assholes! Tell her not to do it.
Andi envisioned the air around her turning blue from all the profanities. “Your partners informed Denise she has to sell. She told them to go to hell. Vaughn gave her the names of both a contracts attorney and a forensic accountant, and she’s talking to them today.”
That’ll make those stupid chickenshits back off. They’ve both been giving me a lot of grief lately, but I had no idea they’d turned on me so bad. So much for friendship, huh?
“What do you mean, they’ve turned on you?”
Gus wants faster expansion by adding properties to our inventory. Vince wants to move into foreign markets, like Central America and Dubai. They’re both freaking nuts. Do they not know the economy is in the toilet right now? Even commercial properties are in jeopardy this time through.
Not for the first time in her life, Andi wished she had a better handle on economics, beyond how her weekly paycheck and her debts interrelated. “Were they at loggerheads with each other, or only with you?”
Mostly just me, because adding more properties could be done in foreign markets.
“Did you ever mention any of this to Denise?”
Nah, she didn’t need to hear me bitching about my partners. Besides, she didn’t want me to go in with them to begin with. She always said I have more savvy and common sense than the two of them put together.
Andi found herself slightly disturbed by Clem words, but she didn’t know why. “Why did you partner with them?”
He made a sound of disgust. Gus and Vince were both trust-fund babies. I had the know-how, they had the cash. Three amigos. We thought it was an opportunity made in Heaven. Fuck me for trusting them as friends! I’d like to go beat the shit out of both of them, right now, but I guess that’ll have to wait until they die.
“I don’t think God allows fighting in Heaven.”
He actually snorted. That won’t affect me.
“Once this thing with your hitman gets resolved, you do know that you’ll be able to pass on, right?”
To what? Hell? Not exactly where I want to spend eternity.
“It’s not like that,” Andi said. “God welcomes anyone into Heaven who truly repents his or her sins.”
Who gave you that load of malarkey?
“Father Riley. He’s the priest at St. Gemma’s, but then you already know that, don’t you?”
Why would I know that?
“You said you met The Liquidator there.”
That doesn’t mean I know the priest there. Hell, that’s not even my church and I didn’t suggest it, the hitman did.
That gave Andi more food for thought. “Father Riley kind of works with me concerning the Smokies.”
Smokies? That’s what you call us lost souls, isn’t it?
“That’s what I call the souls who are cremated and who pass by and speak to me on their journey to the afterlife. I wouldn’t necessarily say they’re lost.”
I sure as hell feel lost.
“That’s only because you did something you shouldn’t have done. Now you regret it and you don’t think it can be reversed.”
You got that right.
And just like that, he was gone again.
Andi was so frustrated, if she could have spit nails, she would have.
. . .
An hour after Clem’s voice and his smoky essence vanished, Andi remained in a bit of a funk.
Bunnicula took a dark turn as a result. She tried to work around the shadows for a while, then decided she needed some fresh air to clear her brain. She saved her work and headed outside, bundled up because the temperature insisted on hovering right around freezing.
She walked six blocks in one direction, then six in another, and repeated herself twice more until she arrived back at the Belt. She didn’t even get her hand on the front door handle when the smoke came.
I did something bad, Andi, and I don’t know how to fix it.
Several seconds passed while she waited.
Sorry I’m being such a prick.
And just that quick, he was gone again.
Andi shook her head, baffled. Just what she needed, a temperamental Smokie who popped in for a quick apology, but couldn’t bother to hang around and finish a conversation.
Hadn’t Denise mentioned that Clem’s behavior had been somewhat erratic in real life, too? His impulsive decision to kill his wife most likely had exacerbated that quirk and turned him topsy-turvy. Andi decided to cut him a little slack. After all, he had only her, and a limited number of others she trusted, to rely on to resolve the situation he’d created. Dumb ass.
She entered the building and ran into Gerd.
“Andi! Just the person I was looking for! Come have a coffee with me!”
What the heck, she only had thirty minutes left on the clock anyway and it wasn’t likely they’d be productive all of a sudden. “Let me run up and turn off my Mac and get my purse, okay?”
Gerd grinned. “I’ll wait right here for you.”
Andi dashed up the stairs, wondering how long Gerd planned to stay in Edgerton. Her relationship with Orion certainly had taken a swift romantic trajectory, which reminded her that she’d neglected to mention to Jack that Gerd had extended her stay.
“Java Josie’s okay?” Andi asked.
“Perfect.” Gerd drew in a deep breath and blew out a little steam puff. “I love it here. Not nearly as cold as Dubuque.”
“I’ve never been there, but I hear your winters are harsh.”
“They can be.”
They entered the coffee shop and each ordered a latté and a chocolate chip cookie. Josie was working and delivered the order to their table personally.
“So, what do you do with your time while Orion’s at work?” Andi asked Gerd.
“I’ve been looking for a job.”
“You’re quitting Dubuque PD to move here?”
Gerd nodded, smiling. “Crazy, right? I didn’t believe in love at first sight, but Andi, I swear, it happened to both of us.”
Andi stared at her, stunned. Giving up a secure job, based on a relationship that was only a couple of days old? Wow, that was a huge decision, probably based on a dynamite sexual attraction, but hey, who was she to judge? “This sounds serious.”
Gerd gave her another grin and Andi could have sworn there was a sparkle-tooth involved. “It is.”
“Do you have family that might protest you moving here?”
“No, my parents live in Minnesota, but they’re never there during the cold season. One of my brothers and my sister live in California and the other brother is in Arizona. We usually see each other about once a year.” She shrugged. “Isn’t that what are airplanes for? Getting to one place from another to visit?”
“Can’t argue with that. Where’ve you been looking?”
“
Edgerton PD, for one. The county sheriff’s office, for another, but I also talked to people at the FBI and the U.S. Marshal’s Service today. I have options. I have a small pension built up at DPD, too, plus savings, and a deferred compensation account, so I can live comfortably while I explore all my options.”
“A hotel will eat up your savings,” Andi said.
“Well…I’m not actually at the hotel any longer.”
“You moved in with Orion?” Smooth, Andi. That’s not your business.
Gerd nodded, her sparkle-tooth appearing again. “I know it’s sudden, but it just feels so right. I’m thirty-two, Andi. Orion is thirty-eight. We’re both old enough to know what we want and we’ve both had enough bad relationships to recognize a stellar one when we experience it.”
Andi grinned. “You’re both fast, I’ll give you that.”
“I’d like you to be my maid of honor. Vaughn’s already said he’ll be the best man.”
Thinking Gerd was joking, Andi said, “When’s the wedding?”
“Sunday. Just a small affair. You and Jack, Vaughn, Stacy, Brent and his wife.”
Andi almost choked on her latté. “You’re serious!”
“Of course.”
“Sunday? Next Sunday? What about your family?”
Gerd shook her head in a way that Andi interpreted as meaning, You’re dense. “We Swedes are not sentimental people, Andi. My family doesn’t care about coming to my wedding.” She leaned forward, her tone almost conspiratorial. “I can guarantee you, though, when our first child comes, they’re going to change their tune.”
“I take it your siblings aren’t married and have no children.”
“You take it correctly.” She leaned back in her chair with a cat-that-ate-the-canary expression on her stunning face. “I’m looking forward to rocking everyone’s boat.”
“I just bet you are,” Andi said, amused. She raised her paper cup. “Let me be the first to congratulate you. I’d love to be your maid of honor and I can hardly wait to cuddle your first born.”
“It may be sooner than you think,” Gerd said, blushing. “Orion is….”
Andi put up her hand. “No need to fill me in on the intimate details. I get your drift.”
Gerd giggled and blushed again, like some pre-teen girl experiencing her first boy-crush.
Andi experienced a little niggle of envy and wondered what a child borne of her and Jack’s love would look like. A little girl with black hair and blue, blue eyes? A little boy with brown hair and green eyes?
Before she had a chance to ruminate further, the heavy sent of smoke surrounded her.
Oh, great. Clem sure knew how to pick his moments.
His opening salvo was standard, but the next words into her head blew her away.
I did something bad, Andi, and I don’t know how to fix it. I think I have a lead on Dex Moran.
Andi excused herself and headed to the restroom, hoping Gerd wouldn’t find her abrupt run to the ladies’ room odd.
“Talk fast, Clem. I can’t tell my friend about you and she might come looking for me.”
Dex Moran is an alias.
“We already figured that out. He has no criminal history and no other footprint that we can find. We’re not giving up, though.”
All I can say is, don’t hold your breath. This guy is more slippery than an eel, smarter than a wise old owl, faster than a locomotive.
Andi glowered at the air around her. “Can you ever just be serious? What’s his real name?”
Hunh. I guess I quit brainstorming with my dead peeps too soon. Even though he was dearly departed and invisible, his retort reeked of sarcasm.
“You’re starting to annoy me, Clem.”
I’m already annoyed with myself, so you might as well join the party. Look at the trouble I’ve caused, and now Denise is the target of not only a hitman, but my two asshole partners.
Andi couldn’t argue with that, but even if she’d wanted to, it didn’t matter. The smoke and Clem were gone, which made her wonder what the hell was going on. He’d shown up as if he had some earth-shaking to communicate, but he’d vanished without giving her a solitary thing.
Chapter 15
Despite Andi’s best intentions, she did not contact an attorney first thing. Clem, Bunnicula, and Gerd had effectively pushed the thought to the bottom of her mental to-do list.
Orion informed her the next day that they’d meet at the attorney’s office to sign the partnership agreement the following Monday. Vaughn would also be there.
Later, when she spoke with Denise, she learned the contracts attorney was the same one Vaughn had recommended to her.
Andi didn’t see anything unusual in the plan, but when she shared it with Jack later that evening, he found it debatable that a single independent contracts lawyer could represent the three parties fairly and equitably.
“It makes perfect sense to me,” Andi said. “We’re equal partners with different functions. All the terms should be the same for each of us.”
“When you put it that way, I guess it does make sense,” he said, though he was still frowning. “The thing is, shit does happen. Clem Naylor, case in point.”
She grinned at him. “I had no idea that you’re such a worry wart.”
“I’m not usually. I just don’t want to see you get screwed.”
She batted her eyelashes at him. “I wouldn’t mind getting screwed, if the right person was doing it.”
He stared at her in shocked silence for a moment, then laughed. “If that’s an invitation, I accept.”
“I thought you were hungry,” she said.
“I was, for food. Now I’m hungry for something else.” He stood and held out his hand to her, tugging her up off the sofa. “Sex first, then dinner.”
Andi willingly complied. Two hours later, they feasted on scrambled eggs and toast in front of the gas-log fireplace.
“Hey, I forgot to tell you some big news.”
“Oh, yeah? What?”
“Gerd didn’t go back to Iowa.”
“She didn’t?”
“Nope.”
“She’s taking a vacation, here?”
“Of sorts.”
“That doesn’t even make sense. She told me she was bucking for LT, and after that, captain. Last week, she told me it was essential that she get back to Dubuque right away to finish up her application.”
“Last week, she hadn’t met Orion.”
Jack gaped at her. “You’re kidding? They’ve only known each other for two days.”
“Three now, but who’s counting.”
“She’s putting her career advancement in jeopardy over a guy she just met? Man, that’s fast. Or suicidal.”
“You don’t know the half of it. She moved in with him on Monday and they’re getting married on Sunday. I’m the maid of honor and Vaughn’s the best man.”
Jack choked on the swallow he’d taken from his beer bottle.
Andi pounded him on the back.
“How do two people who’ve only known each other a couple of days decide to get married? That’s just plain nuts.”
Andi shrugged. “To hear Gerd explain it, it’s completely logical and the right decision.”
“Unbelievable. She’s giving up her job altogether?”
“Yep. She gave her notice and she’s looking for something in law enforcement here.”
Jack shook his head. “I don’t get it.”
“They’re both certain, and honestly, when you see them together, you just know it’s right.”
“I’ll take your word for it.”
“Don’t plan anything for Sunday. They’ve asked Father Riley to perform the nuptials in the chapel. He agreed.”
“How do they even know him?”
“Orion’s met Riley when he’s come over to the Belt and he and Gerd are both Catholic.”
Jack grunted. “Will her family have time to get here?”
She explained the Eriksson family logistics and lack of
sentimentality. “Even though they won’t be coming for the wedding, she expects them to show up en masse when the first child is born.”
Jack did a double-take. “She’s pregnant already?”
Andi gave him a look. “Really, Jack, I didn’t ask, but I gather the intimacy part of their relationship took off with an equal bang.”
He lifted an eyebrow at her unintentional pun. “God, kids. After only three days.”
“Don’t you like kids?”
“Sure I do, but I wouldn’t want to start making one after only knowing a woman for three days.”
“Hunh.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I don’t know. How long would you like to know a woman before you made a baby with her?”
Jack looked at her askance. “I feel like this is one of those how-long-have-you-been-beating-your-wife questions.”
She shrugged. “Just curious, that’s all.”
“FYI, curiosity killed the cat.”
“Yes, but the cat had nine lives.”
“You have a quick comeback for everything, don’t you?”
She shot him a cheeky grin. “If I’m lucky.”
He took her plate and stacked it with his on the hearth. “I’ll show you lucky.”
. . .
Wednesday was about a thousand hours long. Andi did her best to focus on Bunnicula, but her recalcitrant thoughts kept skipping to Denise. It was so unlike her brain’s usual MO that she didn’t quite to know what to make of it.
Nothing changed by the time she got home. Denise was still there, foremost in her mind.
Stacy had assigned extra patrols on Denise’s block, making the poor woman a prisoner in her own home. Not even Jack the Ripper could get to her, but Andi was quite certain, if this was the night The Liquidator planned to kill her, somehow he’d manage it.
Andi turned in an hour later than usual, but sleep eluded her. Midnight arrived and there she was, staring at the red LED numbers on her clock radio. 11:59 changed over to 12:00, then 12:01. She kept her eyes glued to the clock until the numbers changed to 12:15. If something had happened, she would’ve heard by now.
She breathed a sigh of relief and snugged in under the covers, willing the Sandman to pay her a visit.
Every day after that seemed like Groundhog Day. Bunnicula reared his fanged head and wouldn’t cooperate game-wise, but Denise was still alive. Andi was willing to forego success on the game-writing in exchange for Denise living through another twenty-four hours.
