Fast Money: A Shelby Nichols Adventure

by Colleen Helme

  The CIA was working with an arms dealer in Mexico? “Is this about the drug dealers in Mexico?” I blurted. “I can’t imagine Uncle Joey getting involved in that. He must be in a lot of trouble if that’s what you think.”

  “I never said anything about drugs,” Bristow’s voice was deceptively calm. And why had I called him Uncle Joey?

  “Oh…I know that. I just assumed that since the CIA was involved that something big was happening. And Mexico is a hotbed for drugs and murders right now. It’s in the paper. So I just put two and two together, but I’m probably wrong. I know sometimes my imagination gets the best of me. Too much TV I guess.” Agent Shaw was thinking I talked too much for someone who didn’t know what was going on.

  This was not going well. “I have no idea what’s going on with Unc…a…Joey. But if there’s anything I can do to help…” What was wrong with me? I should tell them about the money, but something held me back. Probably that it would implicate me somehow, and I would get arrested. I mean…if I hadn’t checked my account balance, I wouldn’t know the money was there. So pretending I didn’t know was okay. I would wait until I could tell Chris about them, and he would know how to handle this.

  Bristow sighed and stood. “Thanks. Here’s my card with my number. If he contacts you for any reason, will you please let me know?”

  “Of course,” I said.

  Bristow gave me a tight-lipped smile and ushered Shaw to the door. There was something about me that bothered him, and he didn’t trust me. Hopefully Shaw had been able to plant the bug in a safe place. He didn’t understand how someone like me could be involved. I was a simple housewife, and with no ties to Mexico, I did not fit the normal profile. But they had to check up on all their leads.

  My eyes widened and Bristow glanced at me sharply. I covered it with a quick smile and gave a little wave. As soon as they were out I shut the door and leaned against it, my heart racing. I glanced out the window and watched them drive away. My shoulders slumped and I let out a big breath. This did not look good. And they’d planted a bug.

  I had to get rid of it fast before it started working so they’d think it was broken or something. I sat on the couch where Shaw had been and ran my fingers under the edge. Nothing, but then again, I didn’t know what a bug looked like in real life. It had to be somewhere close since this was the only place he’d been in the house.

  The end table with the lamp was within easy reach. I checked the entire surface of the table and lamp but found nothing. Next, I checked the lampshade and everything in between. Still nothing. I ran my fingers under the table and my breath caught. On the inside curve was a small round object. I pulled it off and examined it closely. It was black with a little wire sticking out of it. This was it! Now what to do?

  I ran into the bathroom, ready to flush it down the toilet, but hesitated. This little device was probably worth a pretty penny. Would I get in trouble if I destroyed it? Wait a minute. This was my house, and the fact that they could listen to my private conversations made me a little angry. Before I could change my mind, I threw it in and flushed.

  Bristow had only thought about one bug, so I was pretty sure it was the only one, but I went over every inch of where Shaw had been just to make sure. I found nothing else, but was mentally exhausted by the time I finished.

  I decided to take a shower and go straight to Chris’ office and tell him what had happened. With the CIA involved, this was getting too serious for me to handle by myself. If they could plant a bug, they could probably get away with just about anything, and that made me nervous.

  An hour later, I walked into Chris’ office. “Hi,” I greeted his secretary.

  “Hi Shelby. How are you?” She was wondering what I was doing there since Chris was in court.

  “Dang, he’s not here…is he?” I quickly added.

  “No. He’s in court for most of the day. You might be able to catch him, if you go over. If it’s really important.” She was thinking that he wouldn’t like the disruption, especially since this case was pretty involved. But with my big eyes and pale face, I was looking desperate.

  “I guess I could take a chance. Whose court is he in?”

  She looked up the schedule. “Courtroom 400, Judge Benson.”

  “Okay, thanks.” The courthouse was within walking distance, and I figured since I was already downtown, it wouldn’t hurt to try, especially since I’d come all this way.

  I made it through security and walked toward the elevators. Waves of violence and anger, along with determination to escape, hit me like a ton of bricks. A man with chains on his arms and legs, and dressed in an orange jumpsuit, entered from the back with an armed escort. He was thinking that if his partner didn’t get him out of there, he’d be sorry. He wasn’t going down alone. He’d tell them everything, including where the money was hidden.

  I caught a quick flash of an open lid, like a casket in a dark room, and the word, ‘underwear.’ Then it was gone. What the heck did that mean? It didn’t make any sense. Was the money hidden in someone’s underwear? That couldn’t be right.

  Everyone within a short distance gave him and the escort plenty of room. The elevator opened and they disappeared inside, taking a mountain of rage with them. The anger and rage emanating from him was the single most awful thing I had ever experienced.

  The woman beside me took a deep breath and glanced my way. “That was creepy,” she said, hoping that guy rotted in hell. She turned her attention back to me, taking in my white face. “Honey, are you all right?”

  “Who was that?”

  She pursed her lips. “Keith Bishop, the bank robber who stole all that money and killed a hostage. Or I should say ‘allegedly’ killed her, since they haven’t proven it. Hopefully the jury will today.”

  “He was seething with anger and determined to escape.”

  She glanced at me sharply. “Do you have ESP or something?”

  I swallowed, realizing I’d spoken my thoughts out loud. “Something like that. Not that you needed ESP to feel the bad vibes he was giving off. You felt it too, right?”

  “Yes, I suppose I did.” She was thinking that she had a plan in place to keep him from escaping, but decided to put everyone on alert, just to make sure. She pulled a radio transmitter out of her pocket and talked into it. That was when I noticed her ID badge with SECURITY in capital letters.

  A woman brushed past me, and I wouldn’t have thought anything of it except she nearly lost her balance on her high heels. The string of expletives coming from her mind shocked me so much I couldn’t take my eyes off her. She had huge ugly legs and walked with an awkward gait. Then it hit me what was wrong. The voice I heard was too low and deep for a woman. She was a he.

  “Excuse me,” I tapped the security woman’s arm and pointed him out. “That woman is a man. I don’t know if that means anything to you, but I just thought I’d mention it.” She looked him over, and noting his hairy legs and the way he walked, knew I was right.

  This was just the kind of thing the security agent was expecting, and she took off after him. “Miss, I need you to stop,” she yelled. At that, the guy took off down the hall. Several security officers converged on him at once, and with those high heels, he didn’t stand a chance to outrun them.

  His loud shouts of protest caught everyone’s attention and I decided I’d seen enough. I hurried over to the elevator’s closing doors, and managed to get my arm inside before it shut all the way. The doors jerked back open, and I stepped in to find another occupant who frowned with displeasure that I had stopped his ride.

  I averted my eyes as he let out a few expletives only I could hear. Good grief! Did everyone have to swear so much? He was hoping I hadn’t gotten a good look at him, otherwise he’d have to whack me right there. He could probably do it if he had to. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, and I managed to stick my arms into the door before it closed all the way.

  I lunged out of the elevator and hurried back to the lobby, glancing
over my shoulder. The man stuck his head out with narrowed eyes to watch me, but pulled back in when the doors started to close. Yikes! Did that guy have something to do with the bank robber? I inched back to the elevator and my heart dropped when it stopped on the fourth floor. That’s where Chris was.

  I had to go up there and make sure he was all right. When the elevator doors slid back open, I almost expected the man to still be there. Relieved it was empty, I stepped inside on pure adrenalin and pushed the button for the fourth floor. My legs were shaking as I got out and checked the hallway.

  Several policemen were standing guard outside the courtroom doors, with no sign of the man from the elevator. What had happened to him? From the policemen’s thoughts, I realized this was where the bank robber’s trial was.

  Oh no! Was Chris handling this case? My breath caught with shock. How come I didn’t know about it? How had this happened? Above the courtroom doors was the number 401. I glanced at the other side of the hallway and realized there were two smaller courtrooms with the numbers 400 and 402 on that side. Now it made sense.

  With relief, I backtracked to the courtroom with 400 on it, and pushed open the door. Slipping inside, I took a seat on the back row. Chris was talking to the judge about his client, and I realized this was the messy divorce case. I sighed and the tension left my shoulders. At least Chris was safe. I glanced around the room to make sure the elevator guy wasn’t there. So where was he? Was he planting a bomb somewhere so he could spring the bank robber?

  I knew he was up to no good from the vibes he gave off, and I struggled to remember just exactly what thoughts and feelings I’d heard from him. The man dressed as a woman could have been a diversion for this guy to get in without anyone paying attention to him. That was probably why he was upset I got into the elevator with him. But he still had to get past security, so that didn’t add up. Plus, there were security cameras all over the building, so why would he think he had to whack me for seeing him?

  Maybe I was making too much out of it, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that he was dangerous. So where was he now?

  A loud crack jolted me from my thoughts and my heart nearly burst. The judge put down his gavel, adjourning court for one hour. My heart was still pounding when Chris spotted me. He finished talking to his client and excused himself.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, his eyes narrowed with concern.

  “I think a dangerous person is in the building,” I said. “That sounds stupid, but from what I could pick up, I’m worried something bad’s going to happen.”

  “Like what? What are you talking about?”

  “I saw that man come in…the bank robber whose trial is across the hall? Keith Bishop? He was thinking about escaping and hoping his partner would get him out of here. Then someone else came in after that, and when I got into the elevator with this guy, he was thinking he’d have to whack me if I got a good look at his face. I got out of the elevator before the doors closed, but it stopped on this floor. So he must be here somewhere. Just before that, the security lady was thinking someone might help the bank robber escape.”

  Chris could hardly take it all in. He was thinking it sounded nuts, but since it was me, he had to believe it. “All right,” he said. “It may not be anything, but we can alert the police in the hall. I just don’t know how to do it without sounding...”

  “Crazy?” I finished.

  “Yeah.” He smiled and shrugged.

  “Hey Chris?” His client came toward us. “Were we going to go over my testimony during the break?” The guy was nervous because he wanted to get everything settled before his wife found out about all the extra money he’d taken from their savings account.

  “Yes. Just give me a minute.” Chris was torn. He needed to help his client, but this was more important.

  The ex-wife walked past with her lawyer and smirked. She was thinking that it wouldn’t matter how much he prepared since she had found the money he’d siphoned from their savings account and had the proof to show the judge. He wasn’t going to get away with anything if she could help it. The jerk.

  The door swished closed behind her, blocking her thoughts, and I was glad I was sitting down. Being in court with all these stray thoughts was giving me a headache.

  “You’ve got that dazed look in your eyes. Are you okay?” Chris asked.

  “Umm…sure, just a headache coming on…” Chris’ client was standing behind him and I didn’t know if I should tell him what his wife was thinking or not. This was probably one time it was better to keep those thoughts to myself. “Maybe I should just go talk to the police in the hall about the man in the elevator and let them worry about it.”

  “Sounds like the best way to handle it to me,” Chris agreed. “I’ll come with you.” He turned to his client. “I’ll be right back.”

  The client huffed and reluctantly agreed, thinking he was going to keep track of the time Chris was gone and make sure it was deducted from his fee. I raised my brows at him, but turned away before he noticed. That clinched it for me. No way was I going to tell Chris about the money. I hoped his wife got to keep it.

  We hustled out the doors and toward the policemen standing outside the courtroom. As we approached, I tried to figure out what I was going to tell them. How could I warn them about someone who hadn’t said a word to me?

  The officer glanced at me and I smiled. “Excuse me, but I was in the elevator with a man coming to this floor that seemed suspicious. He was hiding something in his jacket, and I just wanted to let you know to be extra watchful.” I was improvising, but it was the only thing I could think of to make my story seem more plausible.

  “Like what? Did you see anything?”

  “No. But he turned his face away from me, like he didn’t want me to see it, and it made me nervous. That’s when I noticed his hand under his jacket, and I wondered what he was holding under there. I just wanted to let you know.”

  “Could you identify this man?”

  He was actually taking me seriously. I’d only caught a glimpse of his face, but I was pretty sure I could spot him again. “I think so.”

  “And you’re sure he got off on this floor?”

  “Yes.”

  “Would you mind coming inside the courtroom to see if he’s in there?”

  I glanced at Chris who nodded his agreement. “Sure, if you think it would help.” The policeman opened the door and I slipped inside with him. He ushered me to the side of the courtroom where I could look over most of the people. I focused on them individually, keeping my mind open for thoughts that would help me in my search.

  Nothing popped out at me, and I pursed my lips in defeat. Then a trickle of awareness touched my senses. Glancing up, I noticed the elevator guy sitting just behind the bank robber. He was sitting forward and it looked like he was whispering something into the robber’s ear while he leaned over to tie his shoe.

  I concentrated on his thoughts and caught that he hoped Bishop went along with his plan because it was only a few more minutes before the alarm went off. That didn’t give him much time to take care of the guy.

  I nodded to the policeman and hurried out the door. In the hallway, I could hardly keep my composure. “The guy is sitting right behind the robber. He was whispering something to him.” I blurted. “Is there some kind of an alarm in this building? Like a fire alarm? I think that’s when he’s going to make his move and break the guy out.”

  The policeman glanced at the other officer on duty. He was thinking that this was getting weird, and wondered how in hell I could figure all that out from just looking at the guy. Maybe it was me they should watch out for.

  “I can read lips, and he was whispering something about an alarm, so I just put two and two together.”

  “Oh,” the officer said, not really convinced, but going along in case I made any desperate moves.

  I turned to Chris and explained. “He must have an accomplice who’s going to pull the alarm. Are there any on this floor?”r />
  “There should be,” Chris said. “Down that way, I think.” He motioned toward the end of the hall, but someone was standing in the way and I couldn’t see the little red box. The officers glanced at each other, then looked down the hall. The person standing there had his back to us. He was wearing a baseball cap with a jacket, jeans and sneakers, all in dark colors. I focused on his thoughts, but just then, an ear splitting bell sounded and I cringed, automatically hunching my shoulders, and covering my ears.

  The officers jerked in surprise. The person standing in the hallway was running toward us with his head down and shoulders hunched. The side door where the prisoners were escorted in and out burst open with the elevator guy pulling the bank robber into the hall. Both officers took off toward the side door. The guy in the baseball cap veered into one of the officers, shoving him into the other, and kept on running.

  With both officers down, the elevator guy and the bank robber hustled into the courtroom across the hall. The fallen officers got to their feet and rushed to the door, but it wouldn’t open. One of them pulled out his gun to shoot open the lock, but stopped as people began to exit the large courtroom. Chris pulled me out of the way and we flattened ourselves against the wall. A shot rang out, and everyone scattered. Yelling came from inside the courtroom. The doors crashed open and Chris’ client ran out, followed by another man whose thoughts were focused on getting away.

  Was that the elevator guy? I stuck out my foot and tripped him. “That’s him!” I shouted. Chris pounced on him and managed to pull his arm behind his back in a lock.

  “Officer!” I shouted and waved my arms. “We caught him!” One of the officers in the hall hurried to my side. “This is the guy,” I said. The officer cuffed the elevator guy, and turned him around. A look of confusion came over the officer, and I glanced at the guy, realizing that he looked different from just a few moments ago. Oh no! Had I made a mistake?