by C J Schnier
On the galley counter, I saw Kelly’s cell phone. I had long ago given up on owning a phone, but I had promised Detective Loury that I would give him a call. Stuffing it in my pocket, I grabbed my foul weather jacket and headed for the restaurant.
Sarah was wiping down the oak-topped bar when I came in. Southern rock was playing on the jukebox, Green Grass and High Tides by the Outlaws. Some locals were seated at a couple of tables under the large picture windows overlooking the water, enjoying a pitcher of beer. Sarah saw me enter and beckoned me over to have a seat at the bar.
“What can I get you hun?” she asked with a pitying smile. “A beer maybe?”
“I think I want something a little stronger than that to start with. How about a shot of Jameson and then a Yuengling?”
“One shot and one beer coming up,” she replied. Sarah fished the beer out of the cooler and then slapped two shot glasses down on the bar and filled them.
She pushed one over to me and raised the other in her hand. “To Kelly, may she forever have fair winds and calm seas.”
“To Kelly,” I agreed.
We fired our shots back and replaced the glasses on the bar. Sarah cleared them instantly and then excused herself to go check on her tables. Taking a sip of the beer to wash down the whiskey, I took the opportunity to look around the place.
The marina restaurant was a lovely mix of tourist trap and down-home authenticity. Old fishing gear and boat hardware littered the rough-cut Cyprus planked walls. Pictures of old shrimping captains and a slower way of life filled in the holes. Here and there an old ship’s navigation lights had been converted to red or green electric lamps, but the crowning jewel was the ten foot stuffed alligator hanging from the ceiling rafters.
The seats and tables were dull, utilitarian almost. Nothing fancy, just functional. A true bristle dartboard hung in a back corner, not one of those cheap looking electronic consoles that have become so popular. Taking another sip of beer, I noticed the smell of cooking shrimp and Old Bay seasoning wafting out from the kitchen. I was willing to bet that the food was tasty as well. If only I had an appetite to eat it with.
Sarah returned a moment later, pouring another pitcher of beer.
“So what’s the story with that guy?” I asked, hooking my thumb in the direction of the stuffed gator.
“Oh him? He didn't pay his tab,” she joked.
“Point taken.”
“Oh don’t be silly, you’re not paying for anything today honey,” she smiled. “I know it doesn’t seem like it now, but you’re going to be ok. It may take a while, but life does go on. Jim and I are here for you if you need us.”
My pants pocket started vibrating, and I pulled the phone from it as Sarah continued trying to make me feel better. Trying not to be rude I chanced a discreet glance down at the screen and saw one name.
‘Uncle Raul’
“I’m sorry Sarah, I don’t mean to cut you off, but I need to take this phone call,” I said getting up from my stool.
“Of course sweetie. I’ll save your seat.”
“Thanks,” I muttered as I stepped outside.
Chapter Thirty Four
“Raul?” I asked into the receiver.
“Chase? I was expecting Kelly, she was supposed to call me this morning,” came Raul’s accented reply.
“I’m afraid that just isn’t going to be possible,” I said.
“Why? What has happened? You do still have the money correct?”
Could it be that he didn’t know? Surely Alonzo had kept his employer informed. But Raul made it clear that he was no longer their concern when I told him the killer tried to rape his niece.
“We should meet. Today. Are you in town?” I asked, ignoring his questions.
“Tell me what has happened, where is Kelly?” he demanded.
There was real concern in his voice. Maybe he didn’t know yet. But this man had let that animal loose on us. It was his fault that Kelly was dead. Did he allow that asshole to kill her when he knew we had the money? I had to know.
“Are you in town or not?” I asked, sterner this time.
“Yes, we are. We are staying at a hotel on King Street, but today is short notice.”
It was apparent that Raul and his partners had not done their homework. Staying in downtown Charleston for a rain event was not smart. The whole area would be underwater by tomorrow. They better hope their cars are parked in a garage and not on the street. The rain had started falling steady an hour earlier, and the winds were increasing in intensity. Nothing to worry about yet, but it would only get worse. If this exchange was going to happen, it had to happen before things got nasty. Today was the only option.
“If you’re staying downtown we better conclude our business today before the flooding starts.”
“Flooding? Do you think we will get much here? I thought we would be safe,” Raul said, concern leaking through his calm lilting voice.
“Raul,” I explained with my last ounce of patience, “this storm is over four hundred miles wide. It could run up the middle of Alabama, and we would still get rain. When it rains in Charleston, it floods. So if you would like your money and to know where Kelly is, we need to meet. Sooner rather than later.”
“Well, we do want our money. Why don’t you come by our hotel and we can finish this?” Acosta suggested.
“Do you think I’m that stupid? Meet me at the northwest corner of the outdoor market. Somewhere public and preferably crowded would suit me better.”
“How will you find us? You’ve never met us. The hotel would be much easier.”
“I’m not going to that hotel damnit. I’m sure you’ll have no problem finding me, just make sure you’re at The Market, Raul. Northwest corner, three this afternoon.”
“Where is this market? As you pointed out yourself, we do not know this city,” he complied with a sigh.
“Ask a local,” I said and hung up.
Putting the phone back in my jeans pocket I went back inside and reclaimed my seat at the bar.
“Everything alright sweetie?” Sarah asked.
“Not really. Do you think it would be alright if I borrowed that loaner car again? Some of Kelly’s family is staying in the city, and I owe it to them to meet in person,” I explained.
“Sure hun. Shouldn’t you get a nap first though, you’ve been through a hell of an ordeal.”
“I’ll sleep when I get back, this is something that I have to do first,” I told her.
“I understand. In fact, I think you still have the keys from last night, just make sure to let Jim know you’re using it. He should be up in the office by now.”
“Thanks,” I said, finishing my bottle of beer and snatching my foul weather jacket off the back of the bar stool. “If you’re still open when I get back I might have to take you up on that free dinner.”
“Of course hun, I’ll set aside an order of our famous Lowcountry boil for you.”
I thanked her and left in search of her husband Jim, who wasn’t hard to find. He was where she said he would be, sitting at his desk in the office, with both of his labs laying at his feet. I popped my head in and let him know that I needed to use the car. He didn’t bother with any questions, he just waved me off and told me to be careful.
Checking the time on the cell phone, I saw that it was already 12:30, plenty of time to get to the meeting place and scope it out before the Acosta gang showed up. I walked back down to the boat, careful on the slippery wet dock, boarded Paramour and went straight to the V-berth. Underneath Kelly’s side of the bed was a large hidden compartment. Lifting up the mattress I worked the hidden latch and lifted the plywood cover out of the way. Reaching in I pulled out the suitcase that Valentine’s man had given us.
The suitcase had remained unopened ever since we received it and the irrational fear that the money would be gone crept into my mind. What if this was some sort of trick? Or what if Alonzo had stolen it before attacking us? I never even thought to check on the money, and
I didn’t want to think about what would happen to me if it wasn’t here. The beginnings of panic were fighting to take over my rational mind.
Hefting the suitcase on to the opposite bunk, I worked the little brass dials, entering 214, Valentine's Day, before pushing the two catches in towards each other. The spring-loaded clasps snapped free, and I threw the lid open. Two hundred stacks of $10,000 lay precisely as we had left them. Leaning back against the mainmast I allowed myself to relax as the panicked thoughts dissipated.
A suitcase wouldn’t draw much attention in a tourist city like Charleston, but any attention was too much. I opened up the adjacent hanging locker and pulled an old water-resistant gym bag from the bottom. Brushing the dust and mildew off of it, I opened it up and transferred the money into it. Slinging it over my shoulder, I took one last good look around. If this deal went south, I would never see Paramour again.
The drive into Charleston took longer than expected. Nearly every hotel was booked to capacity with Florida evacuees, and the resulting traffic was dense. Taking my exit after crossing the Cooper River Bridge, I turned left onto Meeting Street and drove deep into the heart of the city. The puddles in the streets were already growing alarmingly large, yet crowds of pedestrians navigated the roads. An abnormal amount of tourists and evacuees clogged the sidewalks despite the rains. All of them trying to see the sights and many of them desperate to take their mind off the killer storm raging through their home state.
Parking was non-existent. I had to bribe a parking lot attendant off of West St with a $100 bill to get a spot anywhere near The Market. Glancing at the phone, I realized that leaving early had been a wise choice. The short drive and finding a parking spot had taken me over an hour. I still had a while until my meeting with Acosta, and I planned to use that time to scope out an agreeable and public meeting place.
Trudging through the crowds, I made my way several blocks east. Crossing King Street I glanced at the fancy hotels, wondering which one Raul was staying in. A block later I could see The Market, bustling with throngs of tourists browsing through the many stalls and tables. Working my way around the perimeter, I found an empty courtyard dining area to the north of the market itself. I seated myself under an umbrella where I could see the whole west entrance of the market. A waiter approached after a few moments offering me a seat inside out of the rain which I declined. Ordering two fingers of Laphroaig whisky for myself, I settled in and waited. Nothing like good scotch to take the edge off a rainy day.
While waiting and scanning the crowds, my mind went back to Alonzo and how he had found us. Even if he had put another tracking device on Paramour, with the traffic jams and airport closures due to the storm it seemed extremely unlikely that he would have followed us to South Carolina. It seemed even less likely considering he never found us while we were in South Florida. No, it was much more likely that he was already here, waiting on us to arrive. Someone must have told him where we would be, and the only person that knew was Raul.
The longer I thought it through, the more convinced I became that Raul had set us up. He would have told Alonzo approximately where we would be, relying on the assassin to use his exceptional tracking skills to hunt us down to whichever marina we chose. Killing us and getting the money back would make him look strong and capable, someone worth having in charge. A thought hit me, and more pieces of the puzzle fell into place.
Raul Acosta was looking to take over sole leadership of the cartel now that his brother Santiago was facing a lengthy prison sentence. And worse, he was willing to commit the greatest sin against the organization. Acosta was willing to kill family for nothing more than greed. If he was willing to go to those lengths, I had to be extremely cautious.
The rains started to fall harder while I waited. Some of the tourists began to call it quits on the sightseeing and returned to the dry security of their hotel rooms. As I watched one family of five scamper across the street for shelter, my eyes lingered on a small group of men heading for the western entrance of the market. A total of six men walked together. Four of them were overdressed, even for a city as pretentious and flamboyant as Charleston could be. The other two were dressed more casually but carried themselves as rough-and-tumble thugs. Protection for the others.
I pulled out my phone, looking for the call history and dialed the number labeled “Uncle Raul.” One of the well-dressed dandies reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a phone. The man was short and lean like he had lived a hard life to get to the top. Only a hint of hair remained above his ears, his bare head shiny with rainwater.
“Chase?” a Cuban accented voice answered.
“You and your little entourage can stop.”
The man held up his hand; all six of them stopped on the sidewalk. The two goons looked around, scanning the crowd.
“Look to your left. Do you see a little courtyard next to a restaurant?”
Raul’s head turned and fixated on me. “Yes, and now I think that I see you sitting there by yourself.”
“Why don't you fellas come join me then?” I replied and hung up the phone.
Acosta nodded his head towards me and led the group down the street. All four well-dressed men held back as they approached the table while the two guards approached me.
“Get up,” one of them ordered.
I stayed seated, staring at the man who had spoken.
“I said get up!” the man barked.
“You didn’t say the magic word.”
Both goons looked back at the other four, unsure on how to proceed. It was Acosta however that diffused the situation.
“He’s quite right, where are your manners?” he admonished the two guards, then turned to me, “Will you please stand up Captain Hawkins? My associates and I would feel much safer if we knew you were unarmed.”
I scoffed and stood up, “There are six of you and only one of me. I’m not sure you’re the ones that should feel unsafe.”
“Protocol Captain Hawkins, just protocol.”
Both of the guards approached me and patted me down, pulling my keys and cell phone from my pockets before declaring that I had no weapons. I forced myself not to wince in pain as they ran their hands over my freshly closed wounds. Showing any weakness in front of these people would be a mistake.
“Now that the unpleasantness is over, I, as you have probably guessed, am Raul Acosta. And these are my associates,” he made a sweeping hand gesture taking in the other three men who stood silent behind him. “May I have a seat?”
“Before you do,” I said reaching down and picking up the gym bag, “Let’s take care of my little debt shall we?”
I dropped the bag on the table in front of Acosta. He unzipped the top and peered in. I could hear him rifling through some of the bundles. A moment later he zipped the bag shut again and passed it off to one of his lackeys with a satisfied smirk.
“You see, gentlemen, I told you all was well. My niece wouldn’t lie to us. She said they had the money and here it is. Chase Hawkins, it looks like you’re a free man. I only wish I knew how you managed to get your hands on this kind of money. You would have been a good asset for our organization.”
“No offense Acosta, but I would never willingly work for your organization.”
“Perhaps not. Where is my niece Hawkins? You were very cryptic on the phone. I have not heard from her, and she is not here. Yet, you are here without her, and you look like you’ve been mugged.”
“Funny you should mention that. Kelly and I had an unpleasant evening last night. A certain friend of yours by the name of Alonzo paid us a visit,” I started, watching his smug expression turn tense. “I’m sure you remember him. He’s the guy you hired to hunt us down and kill us both. He nearly got us in the Bahamas too as you’ll recall. He also tried to rape your niece. Instead of killing us though he managed to hijack my boat, knock me overboard and take Kelly with him. I couldn’t figure out why he hadn’t killed her. Now I realize it had to be on your orders. He’d already shot at
us and missed, something must have changed.”
“I’m sure I don’t know what you are talking about.”
“No? Well, let me explain, for the benefit of your associates who may not know the whole story. There was no two million dollar debt was there? No, that was just you making the most of an embarrassing situation. Your assassin, the man you had hired to kill or kidnap your own blood, screwed up and managed to get captured by his prey. Now, I’m willing to assume that this hitman, Alonzo, has worked for the cartel in the past, possibly even kept him on retainer or however that works? Am I wrong in that?”
“What is he talking about Raul? How does he know about Alonzo?” asked one of Raul’s associates, an evil looking man in a gray suit.
“I’ll tell you how I know about him. He has been stalking Kelly and me for months on what we assumed were cartel orders.”
“We gave no such orders, we haven’t contracted him lately,” the gray-suited man stated, glaring down at Acosta. The other two were shaking their heads in agreement.
“I suspected as much but was unsure until now. Kelly is dead Raul. Alonzo ambushed us last night, but you knew he would. He shot her without warning, and then he tried to shoot me, but I managed to escape and overpower him. Now, the only people that knew where we would be was you.”
“Santiago’s daughter is dead?” another cohort asked, this one in a navy blue suit.
“She died in my arms early this morning,” I said, my voice nearly as cold as the glare I fixed on Acosta.
“Gentlemen, I don’t know what he’s talking about, but I assure you, I know nothing about it! I’m just as shocked as you are. I loved Kelly,” Acosta pleaded.
“No, I’m sure you knew about it. You’re nothing but a snake. With your brother imprisoned his share of the profits would have gone to Kelly. But if she were dead or missing, you would get Santiago’s money as the next of kin. The combined wealth would make you the sole leader of the cartel, at least in monetary terms. The only problem was that your hired gun failed. When you called for a status update, and I answered Alonzo’s phone, you saw a chance to make yourself look even more powerful by possibly recovering the lost money and still having a chance to kill your niece off later. So, you put a two million dollar debt on us, an amount of money we couldn’t hope to come up with and left Alonzo in our captivity. I’m sure you were hoping that we would kill him, keeping your plans secret.”
