by Carolina Mac
“I’m not talking to the cops,” she hollered.
JoAnne opened the door wider. “Don’t get upset, Mary. We can handle it.” To Travis: “My sister has been under a doctor’s care for the past three years. She’s only recently been on her own. Please don’t upset her.”
“I’ll try not to, ma’am. My boss wants to talk to her downtown at police headquarters. Maybe it would be best if you came along with her.”
JoAnne pointed at the drop cloths covering the floor and the furniture, and at the half-painted wall in the living room. “I’m in the middle of repainting the condo.”
“I’m sorry if it’s not convenient, but I can’t come back later. I need to take your sister now.”
Marybeth came out of the kitchen with a gun pointed at Travis.
JoAnne sucked in a quick breath. “Where did you get that gun, Mary? Put it down.”
“Partner,” said Travis in a whisper to Farrell behind him.
“Uh huh.”
Marybeth let out a bloodcurdling war cry and charged Travis. He stepped to the side and at the same time made a grab for the gun.
Farrell covered off Marybeth, ready to shoot her if need be, but she tripped over the drop cloth on the floor and as she fell the gun went off.
JoAnne screamed and toppled sideways into the stepladder, knocking it crashing to the floor.
Farrell dropped down and straddled Marybeth. He rolled her onto her stomach, disarmed her and cuffed her hands behind her back. “You’re under arrest for resisting arrest, assaulting a police officer and shooting your sister.”
“No, no, I didn’t shoot Jo Jo. I love JoJo,” she screamed and thrashed about on the floor like a wild woman, tangling herself in the drop cloth.
Travis called 911 for an ambulance, then ran to help JoAnne. He dropped to his knees beside her and shoved the ladder out of the way. “I’m gonna push the leg of your jeans up, ma’am, high as I can.”
JoAnne nodded slightly, her eyes ready to roll back in her head.
With strong hands, Travis shoved the jeans up JoAnne’s slim leg as high as he could to look at the wound. He ripped a strip off the white floor cloth and wrapped it tightly around JoAnne’s calf. “I’m gonna press on it, ma’am, and it’s gonna hurt.”
“Okay, I’m ready.” She held her breath and her eyes welled up.
Travis pressed on the wound and held on trying to stop the bleeding.
“I thought she was okay,” JoAnne whispered, as tears trickled down her face. “I thought she was almost better.”
“Lay quietly, ma’am,” said Travis. “Help is on the way.”
BLAINE MET the boys at police headquarters. Travis and Farrell delivered a sobbing, hysterical Marybeth Lindstrom.
Travis gave his account of what went down and listed the charges. “I think we need to find out who her doctor is, boss.”
“There’s other problems afoot here.”
“Maybe there’s another family member who could come and calm her down,” said Blaine. “We need to question her, but she’s in no condition.”
“We’ll print her and give her a holding cell for now,” said Lopez. “See what the Loot wants to do.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Sunday, March 19th.
JESSE HADN’T slept well. He was restless. Annie was still bent on helping Race get out of whatever-the-fuck mess he was in this time, and bring him home from Canada for Jackson.
Why couldn’t she see that it will never be any different? Race is an outlaw.
After his shower, he ambled to the kitchen for coffee. Jackson was eating breakfast with Annie, Blaine and Farrell.
“Morning, boss,” said Farrell. “You doing anything exciting today?”
“Might work in the arena for a while. Helps me relax.” He leaned down and kissed Annie’s neck. “Morning, sweetheart.”
She patted his hand that rested on her shoulder. “Sit down, cowboy, I’ll get you a coffee.”
“My Daddy got too cold in an ice storm and he’s in the hospital,” said Jackson. “But not the one just for kids. A different one.”
“He’ll be better soon,” said Jesse. He nodded his thanks to Annie as she set a mug in front of him. Then to Jackson: “How’s your leg feeling, kiddo?”
“Pretty good. Dec said I was tough.”
Annie smiled at him. “You might as well know, Jesse, I talked to my firm of attorneys in Toronto, and Stan Coyne is driving up to Peterborough tomorrow to see Race.”
Blaine raised a dark eyebrow and gave Jesse a signal that he didn’t recognize.
“Did we find out what the charges were?”
“I called the OPP and asked them straight out,” said Annie. “California warrant for a traffic felony. Must have to do with my accident. I didn’t realize Race was charged at the time.” She shrugged. “How would I know? I was in a coma for six weeks.”
Blaine was saying nothing about the charges and Jesse thought it was unusual. Something was going on. He walked to the stove and refilled his coffee mug.
Did Blacky dig up an old warrant to get Race out of here? I wouldn’t be surprised. He hates the bastard as much as I do.
“I want to go with Mommy when she goes to get Daddy from the hospital,” said Jackson. “She’s thinking it over.”
Jesse let out a breath. “You’re not going to do that, are you Ace? Go back to Canada and get mixed up in his new mess. I wish you’d let Race work it out on his own.”
She pointed to Jackson. “He wants me to help his Daddy.”
Jesse shook his head. “Jacks is only a child and of course he wants his daddy to come home. There are other issues here, Ace. You know what they are and I’m asking you nicely, not to go.”
Blaine and Farrell looked from one to the other and neither was smiling.
“I have a flight booked for tomorrow morning.”
Jesse pushed his coffee away. “I’ve got work to do.” He grabbed his jacket and his hat off the rack and left.”
JESSE ARRIVED at his own ranch in time to have breakfast with his brothers. He walked into the dining room and sat down in his old spot at the long table.
“Hey,” hollered Tyler. “So happy to see you, bro.”
“Know what, Ty, I’m so fuckin happy to be here, you have no idea.”
Brian, the eldest, sitting at the head of the table raised an eyebrow. “Things not going well at Coulter-Ross? I believe I advised you to stay away from there for a while, at least until your heart was stronger.”
“You were right, Brian. I should not be there. Not until Race Ogilvie is under a stone marker in a cemetery.”
“Or his ashes are floating in the Colorado,” said Tyler.
Bobby nodded his head at the other side of the table and said nothing.
Jesse heaped his plate with ham and eggs feeling suddenly hungry. This was his home and where he belonged. He never imagined it would be so hard and so stressful, being married and living somewhere else.
Molly brought another basket of warm biscuits in from the kitchen and Jesse sighed.
Why had he been so intent on getting married and moving away from everything he loved so much?
“Got time for Corky today?” asked Tyler. “He’s missing you bad.”
“Sure do. I’ll ride him out to the trailer to see how Jacko is doing. Then I’ll brush him.”
“I don’t mind that guy,” said Ty. “Nice enough.”
“He can move around in the open now. The investigation into Markwood’s death is winding down.”
“Is that why he was staying out here?” asked Brian, “The police might have thought he killed Philip Markwood?”
“Possibly.”
“What would be his motive?” asked Bobby as he buttered another biscuit.
“Markwood’s actions or non-action resulted in Agent Flores losing her life.”
“And…?”
“And Jacko Enright and Fabiana Flores were a couple. They hooked up sometime during her assignment in Columbia.”
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“Fuck,” hollered Ty, “I didn’t know that. Did Blacky?”
“He does now,” said Jesse. “Good subject to avoid.”
AFTER BREAKFAST, Blaine tried in vain to talk Annie out of going to Canada on Race’s behalf. Frustrated, he headed to Quantrall to talk to Jesse.
I get him off the ranch. She brings him back.
He found Enright sitting alone at the kitchen table drinking coffee. The dogs greeted Blaine with gusto and he patted their large heads. “Hey, doggies, I missed you.”
Blaine grabbed a mug from the cupboard, poured himself a coffee and sat down opposite Enright. Jesse at the barn?”
“Guess so. I haven’t seen him.”
Blaine filled Enright in on everything that had happened in the past twenty-four.
“So the cops are happy with what they’ve got?”
“Not happy, exactly, but they can’t go much further with Marybeth Lindstrom without her psychiatrist. By end of day tomorrow, you should be clear,” said Blaine.
“Have they got anything on Jankovich?”
“He’s a liar. They have that, and on our audio surveillance tape, Sylvia says he was supplying her. That can’t be great news for the DEA bosses.”
“For sure not.”
The dogs kicked up a howl and Jesse came through the door. “Hey, Blacky.” He took off his hat, hung it on the rack and nodded to Enright. “How’s everything going out here?”
“Fantastic,” said Enright. “I need to bounce something off you guys. Maybe you should get a beer first.”
“Oh, yeah,” Jesse chuckled, “is it that bad?”
“Could be. I wondered if y’all would consider taking me on as a member of the team. I have hidden talents and I can be useful, now and then.”
“I was doing interviews a few days ago and coming up short,” said Blaine. “Something to think about.”
“Something else on my mind too,” said Enright. “I need to find a place to live now that I’m back here to stay. Used to have an apartment in the city, but I’m past that now. A little too mature for city life. Maybe something in a small town.”
“Uh huh,” said Jesse, “I can pass the word around and see what comes up.”
LATER THAT NIGHT they all went to Boots with Tyler and Paul. “Sunday night is dead here,” said Tyler. “No action whatever.”
“You want to get into a dust-up?” asked Blaine.
“Not so much, but I wouldn’t mind watching one or two.”
Blaine pointed and said, “We’ve got Paulie with us, shouldn’t be too long to wait.”
“Hey, I’m married. Wendy don’t like me getting dirty and ripping up my shirts. She said so.”
“Pussy-whipped,” hollered Tyler, and it was game on.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Monday, March 20th.
BLAINE GAVE Travis and Farrell the morning off and attended Sylvia Temple-Day’s autopsy with Lopez and Nielsen.
After three hours in the chilly morgue listening to the pathologist, Blaine was thoroughly pissed off. As soon as the door of the morgue closed behind him, he ranted, “That’s gonna be the ruling? Accidental death by drug overdose? You gotta be giving me one up the arse.” His Latino temper flared like a rocket and he stomped a Harley boot down hard. “No fuckin way, am I buying that.”
“Doesn’t matter if you’re buying or not,” said Nielsen. “The case is closed.”
“Why did Marybeth go there early in the morning?” Blaine paced the corridor outside the morgue. “Was Sylvia dead when Marybeth got there? If so, did she knock, get no answer and leave?”
“Those are questions that might never be answered,” said Lopez.
“What if someone else killed her after Jankovich left?”
“There’s nobody on the surveillance tape,” said Nielsen.
“Could Jankovich have slipped her something before he left?”
“Again, I don’t think we’ll find that out.”
As they went up in the elevator Blaine kept on. “What did you guys do with Marybeth?”
“She’s resting in the prison psyche ward at Austin State Hospital. We got a match on her gun for Markwood. There was a receipt for the gun in her purse. She bought it at a pawn shop the day she was released from the hospital. Pre-meditated. She planned it, bought the gun and iced her brother-in-law.”
“Shit,” said Blaine under his breath. “She should get the needle, but I bet she won’t go to trial.”
“Sometimes things don’t work out the way you want them to, Blacky,” said Lopez. “You gotta roll with it.”
Blaine looked up and shoved a Marlborough between his lips. “What if you don’t want to?”
FROM THE MORGUE, Blaine drove the few blocks to St. Mike’s hospital and dropped in on JoAnne Markwood. She was in a private room on the surgery floor looking paler than the last time he had seen her.
He stood behind the only guest chair and rested his hands on the back of it. “How are you feeling, Mrs. Markwood?”
“You’re the last person I expected to visit me, Mr. Blackmore. Why are you here?”
He shrugged. “I’m sorry about your sister, and what she put you through. I guess that’s why I’m here.”
“I wanted to believe she was better, but in hindsight, she never should have been released from the hospital. An obvious conclusion. Have you seen her?”
“No, I haven’t, but Detective Lopez told me she’s being cared for in the State Hospital.”
“That’s where she was before. Her doctor is there.”
“I’ll leave so you can rest. Hope you have a complete recovery.”
“Thanks, and would you thank Deputy Bristol for me? He gave me first aid before the paramedics came, and I’m grateful. Nice of you to come.”
ANNIE ARRIVED at Pearson and Stan Coyne was waiting for her in the lounge. “Nice of you to pick me up,” she shook his hand and he reached for her overnight bag.
“No problem. Can’t say we’d do the same thing for all our clients, but for the huge ones, okay.” He chuckled.
“How have you been, Stan. Haven’t had much business for you for a while.”
“I’m fine. Lots of crime in Toronto to keep me busy.”
“How’s Brian?”
“He’s well. Thinking about retirement if I’m reading him right. He bought a place in Aruba.”
“Aruba? Nice. Warm and breezy.”
He opened the door of his silver Lexus for her and stowed her luggage in the back. Once they were on the road away from the airport traffic snarl, he asked, “Do you want to fill me in on Race Ogilvie? Is he your better half or just a friend, or should I mind my own business?”
“He used to be my better half, long time ago, and as it turned out, he is the father of my son. So, despite all the bad things he’s done in the past as a gang leader, I’ve tried to help him settle down.”
“And… is that going well?”
She shook her long mane of black hair. “Not at all. In fact, I might lose my current husband over this. He implored me not to come to Canada and interfere this time. He wanted Race to handle his own mess.”
“Why didn’t you let him?”
“I guess I still love him, somewhere deep down.”
“Does your husband know that?”
“Probably. Jesse is no dummy.”
“I’ve done a bit of research into the charges, and I think we can get bail for Race as long as I insure the California court that he will appear on the specified date.”
“From what I read, I think these charges are stemming from my accident—when I rolled my Maserati.”
“You were hurt badly in that accident, were you not? I remember Brian being beyond upset when he heard about it.”
“I was in a coma for six weeks, and I have a permanent head injury. When I’m tired or stressed, I forget things and get wicked headaches.”
“Why don’t you lean back and relax. If you doze off, I’ll wake you when we get to the hospital in Peterborough.”
“Thanks, Stan, I could use a nap.
Annie woke when Stan turned off the engine. “We’re here. Bundle up, Peterborough’s colder than Toronto. There’s an icy wind off the Otonobee River.” He jogged around and opened her door for her. “Let’s go see what your man has gotten himself into.”
BLAINE STOPPED by the Governor’s office before he left the city and brought him up to speed on the case.
“I can’t believe Mrs. Markwood’s sister killed Phil, thinking she was helping her sister out.”
“She’s back in the hospital now. Maybe she’ll be able to stand trial and maybe she won’t.”
“I heard that Jankovich has been suspended without pay while he’s undergoing an internal investigation. I can’t see where he’d be suitable for leadership even if he’s exonerated. He’ll never be squeaky clean again.”
“I feel bad for Miss Temple-Day,” said Blaine. “I don’t want to believe she accidently overdosed and took her own life, but that’s what the ruling was.”
The Governor let out a heavy sigh. “People do crazy things. We try to do our best and sometimes it all feels useless in the end.”
RACE OPENED his eyes when he heard the nurse come in.
“You have visitors Mr. Ogilvie.”
He struggled to sit up and the nurse shoved a pillow behind his back. “Who is it? More cops?”
“Your attorney is here with your wife.”
He couldn’t help but smile when Annie was in the vicinity. “Okay, good.”
Annie crossed the room not returning Race’s smile and behind her was a tall thin man in a suit and an expensive looking overcoat. Possibly cashmere. She leaned down, and Race inhaled her perfume. He loved that smell and it always made him feel safe and loved. She brushed his long hair back from his face. “You’re pale.” Her voice had an edge to it. “What the hell were you doing in Canada? Explain it to me.”
She’s super pissed at me.
“I’ll explain it later.”
“It better be good.” She motioned for the guy to come closer. “This is Stan Coyne, Race. He’s a criminal attorney from the firm that handles my affairs in Toronto.”
