Mike shook hands with Anthony and sat down across from him. “I understand you know Jelly from a couple of years ago and had a tough break-up.”
Anthony nodded, tapped his phone and commented, “You’re an impressive texter, Laura.”
“Thank you. I managed to pick up a few skills along the way and they come in handy now and again. It saves time when you’re interviewing people and I’m catching my partner up on where I am.” I smiled.
“I miss Jelly.” Anthony shut his eyes, dropped his head to his chest and pulled the hood of his sweatshirt up over his short, curly blond hair. He covered his brown eyes with a pair of Ray Bans and said, “We used to fly on days like this. She’d call and tell me to meet her at the airport and we’d fly off to wherever, have dinner and fly home, all on a whim. Jelly was like that, completely spontaneous.”
Mike tapped my foot under the table and asked Anthony, “Jelly had her own plane?”
Anthony answered, “I didn’t get it either. Maybe Kim Jong Un really is her uncle and he bought it for her? She was a great pilot, too. She had a special name painted on the side: Air Jelly.” He grinned and pulled the Ray Bans down to the end of his nose. “Jelly bought me these; she said I was her navigator when we were flying, so I had to look the part.”
I nodded. “They’re nice. Can you be specific as to where you flew?”
“She threatened me.” Anthony glared at me. “What if she’s the real deal and her uncle is who she claims? Are you going to protect me, a high school teacher?”
“We can. We have the resources,” Mike said.
“Against North Korea and Russia?” Anthony asked.
“Should we move this discussion elsewhere, Mike?” I suggested.
“No way, I’m safer out in public. They’re watching me. They were here, before I started talking to you, dressed up as old people. I know you saw them. You went around showing photos of them to vendors and shoppers, asking if they recognized them. They’re probably still here, hiding, waiting for me to leave so they can kill me for having spoken to you.” Anthony pulled the strings on his hood tight under his chin and rearranged his Ray Bans. He fidgeted with his phone and dropped his head forward.
“Can you give us any ideas as to where you went? Name one or two places and then go ahead and leave, it’s obvious this is making you too uncomfortable,” Mike said.
Anthony spun his phone around on the table a few times before acknowledging Mike. “Jelly ran the same route each time we flew—she called it a practice thing. She said she had to get it right, whatever that meant. We’d take off from New Haven Airport, fly up to Bradley, well, not right into it, because it’s an international airport and they don’t like it when you get too close. It’s what Jelly said, so we’d circle around until someone from the air traffic controller’s tower would radio us, and tell us to get out of the way. Jelly would laugh and say she’d love to see them make her, but she would bank the plane around and head off in a southwesterly direction, toward New York City. We’d fly out over the Statue of Liberty, turn and come back. Sometimes, we’d go out to Long Island and have dinner, and other times, we’d go to Martha’s Vineyard. But, it was always the same route. Any other questions?”
“I have one. You said Jelly had you do things. Can you please be more specific?” I asked.
Anthony barely lifted his head. “I never said what you said. I said she threatened me. You’re smart to have picked up on it.” He pointed to Mike. “You got yourself a smart partner here, don’t let her go. This is the last thing I’m going to tell you, than I’m out of here.” Anthony had kept his head in the same position the entire time he was speaking, and with the sunglasses on, it was impossible to tell who or what he was focused on. He went on, “Jelly reached out to me, recently, reminding me of old threats. She had me bring boxes and backpacks to different places and leave them there. She said if I looked inside, I would never complete my current internship. But, she went further; she said harm would come to my family if I didn’t obey her. My additional instructions were clear, to move the items with care and to leave the locations immediately after dropping the things off.”
Mike handed him his card. “If you ever want to talk, or you think you’re in trouble, call me. I don’t care what time it is. You’ve been a huge help to us, Anthony, got it?”
“I have a younger brother and mother, so I did as I was told. That’s it.” He pocketed his phone and Mike’s card and stood up. Then, he reached down and drank what was left of his coffee.
“He’s right, Anthony. If you need us, call and we’ll be there,” I agreed.
Anthony shoved his hands in his pockets. “I’m probably dead for having talked to you, but I think it was worth it.” He gestured in the direction of the bridge and said, “I unwittingly had a hand in what happened. I didn’t know. Please believe me.” He turned, hunched forward and walked away. Both Mike and I stood up and searched the crowd, but he was gone.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think the entire conversation didn’t even take place. Here one minute and gone the next. It’s as if the guy’s a ghost.” Mike took a bite of cold pizza crust.
“He’s completely rattled, for darn sure. Whatever Jelly did to him was very effective. Now we know how the-you-know-whats’ were transported to the various locations, and here I thought it was my buddies who have been texting me,” I said.
Mike laughed. “You speaking in code?”
“Hey, crowds have ears. I’m not taking any chances,” I responded.
“Right, and what about the conversation we just had?” Mike looked at me.
“I asked if we should go somewhere else and you said we were fine,” I answered.
“I didn’t, he did. I was going with what his comfort level was to get information. I was also hoping no one was listening,” Mike said.
“The entire exchange was weird.”
“No argument from me,” Mike agreed.
“Let’s finish shopping and get out of here,” I said.
“Works for me, because the sooner we catch up with, Grady, Greg and the gang, and exchange notes the better. I need to digest what our new friend Twist said, and try and figure out why she flew the same pattern,” Mike said.
“I’m intrigued by it, too,” I said, as I got up and headed over to the pasta lady.
We loaded up on several pounds of grain-free rigatoni, and pizza—which I sneaked in as a surprise for Mike, with all his favorite toppings, sans stinky fish. I’d also pre-ordered the notoriously delicious lasagna directly from Robin, Ehsto’s owner. We bought ourselves a bag of naturally roasted coffee beans, which Mike forgot to have ground. He ran back to have them put through the grinder and bumped into the masquerading elderly couple, who ducked in between the bread vendor and dessert vendor, and nearly knocked me down. Mike shouted at me to stop them. Everyone standing nearby gawked at Mike.
“They stole my wallet!” Mike yelled.
A few guys, including a couple of vendors, ran after the couple who jumped into an already running van and immediately took off. No one was able to get a complete license plate number. Everyone apologized to Mike. They thought he was harassing a couple of old folks. A few recognized him from his cop days and shook his hand.
Mike walked over to me. “Sorry partner, you’re gonna have to pay for the rest of the groceries. I’ll reimburse you later on. Hold on, I have some cash in my pocket. Here, take it.”
We finished up buying the rest of what was on our list and walked out to the car. I turned to Mike and stated, “They didn’t take your wallet.”
“Nope, but what else was I gonna do. Can’t let a bunch of people think I’m running after the elderly when it’s the same guys who have been following us. Gotta think on your feet, Jensen. The chase is on.” Mike grinned.
Chapter 24
We rode in silence, each deep in thought. I considered all Twist had let us in on until his paranoia had caused him to bolt. Mike and I began to speak at the same time.
&nbs
p; “You go first,” Mike offered.
“Okay. A couple things come to mind, aside from the fact Mr. Twist is an interesting guy, and I’m wondering if he’s an accomplice.”
“That’s a point for the prosecutor to take up, and I’m not one. He says he didn’t know what was in either the cases or backpacks. He also says both he and his family were being threatened, so for now we have to take him at his word,” Mike said.
“For now?”
“Until we get hold of Jelly and her friends and find out otherwise. What else is going on in your head?” Mike asked.
“I’m putting everything Twist said together with what we already know, matching it up to see if it jives and trying to figure out if there are any pieces missing.” I squinted from the afternoon sun.
Mike nodded. “A little busy in there.”
I smiled.
“Let’s see if I can add to it. How about, what Air Base was the surviving brother, Teddie Drango operating from? I suppose I can answer my own question—the Thunderbirds home base is Nellis in Las Vegas, Nevada,” Mike said.
I held up my hand. “Don’t be so quick to say it’s Nellis.”
“Why not?”
“Because the Stealth’s home is Whiteman, and my money’s there,” I replied.
“I suppose Reggie, with all his cozy contacts, already has the answer. Wanna bet on this?” Mike asked.
“Sure. What does the winner get? It has to be better than food.”
Mike put his head back, thought for a minute and said, “Okay, since dinner’s out, or lunch, how about tickets to a Broadway play of the winner’s choosing?”
I laughed. “You’re kidding. You want to do something involving culture?”
Mike put his hand on his heart. “You’re mocking me, I’m truly hurt, Laura. There’s more to me than my Harley and pizza. I love museums, you know, the place where they hang those things in frames,” he said with a chuckle.
“What, not the ones where the dinosaur bones are?” I asked.
“Oh, I love the Science Museum too, don’t get me wrong,” Mike countered.
“O’Malley, you’ve got a sensitive side. You ought to show it more often.”
“I’m going to blush, and it’s not good for my image. You didn’t ask what play I want to see.” Mike grinned.
“I know what I want to see. I’ll be brave and go first, The Lion King!” I inserted the CD to the musical and we both sang along on the rest of the drive to Adelaide’s.
We pulled into the driveway, with the music blasting. Reggie stood outside, waiting for us. He opened the door and both Kai and Koa ran out. “I don’t blame them, did you think of them having to listen to the music?”
Mike stepped out. “Hey, it’s great and besides we made a bet only you can settle?”
Reggie rolled his eyes. “Teddie was working out of Nellis.”
Mike looked at me. “How the hell does he do it, I didn’t ask the damned question. Reggie, you’re a pain in the ass.”
Reggie smiled. “Who won the bet?”
Mike shrugged. “I did.”
“Then why do you look so ticked off?” Reggie asked.
“Because, you didn’t give me a chance to ask the question, and because you always know the answers before I even get the chance to ask the question, that’s why. It’s annoying.” Mike threw his hands up in the air.
“That makes me happy.” Reggie smiled.
“You’re diabolical.” Mike pointed at him.
“What did you win?” Reggie asked.
“Tickets to the Broadway Musical, Lion King,” Mike answered.
“Sounds like fun, maybe we all should go,” Reggie said.
“Not a bad idea, kinda like a field trip,” Mike suggested.
“Exactly,” Reggie agreed.
“Alright then, now that we’ve gotten that settled, I suppose you figured some things out?” I asked.
“We certainly did, Laura. Going over to the deceased brother’s apartment revealed quite a few things, other than what I just told you. Greg’s waiting for Annie to arrive, he said he would give her an interview and he intends to stick with his plan. He wants to go over what we discovered prior to her arrival.”
“You’re telling me Greg doesn’t trust Annie, but he intends to use her to leak information to the public in order to draw Jelly and her friends out? Am I understanding you correctly, Reggie? Because if I am, he’s playing my friend.” I pushed past Reggie.
Reggie grabbed my arm. “I wouldn’t do it if I were you.”
I yanked my arm away. “Right, but you’re not me.” I turned and headed up the walkway.
Mike ran after me. “Laura, let’s talk for a minute before you go in and take Greg’s head off. Out of respect, hear me out.”
I pulled my sleeve back and checked my watch. “Two minutes, O’Malley.”
Mike looked upward. “I hate being timed, makes me feel like it’s a test, only not, but if it’s all I got then it’s what I got.”
“You know you’re wasting time.” I tapped my watch.
“You’re worse than Adelaide, but you don’t have a cane.” Mike rubbed his forehead.
I frowned. “You know she probably heard you. Where are you going with this zig zag argument anyway?”
“I am zigging, aren’t I?” Mike said.
“Yes. Why don’t you try zagging, you might be better at it,” I suggested.
“What the hell are you two talking about?” Reggie asked.
Mike put his hands in his pockets. “I’ve no idea.”
“If I were one of your clients, I’d beg for mercy,” Reggie said.
“We’re effective,” Mike said.
I smiled. “Look how much calmer I am.”
Mike put his hand on my shoulder. “Listen, we’re all a lot jumpy and want to catch these guys in a big way. I get you and Annie are best friends, and now Kai’s in the picture, and the three of you go way back, but you have to, and I mean have to completely trust in Greg’s judgement. He did indicate that leaking information to Annie might be part of his plan. The guy knows every aspect of this business, up one side and down the other. The other key part is, you’re still learning. He can take the emotional component entirely out of the equation and go for the jugular, the trio being the jugular. They’re our focus; we’re keyed in on how to get to them before they get to the Stealth, whatever those plans are, and we’re going to stop them. We’re a team and it’s what counts. Greg’s the leader.”
Reggie raised his hand. “I’m kind of the co-leader.”
Mike rolled his eyes. “We do need a field trip, and sooner rather than later.”
Reggie put his hand on my shoulder. “You’ve come a long way, young lady, a very long way.”
“On that note, let’s go inside and listen to what Greg has to say,” Mike said.
Chapter 25
Adelaide stood in her kitchen, her cane dangled from her arm. Mike and I placed our bags of goodies on the counter. She stepped forward to inspect them one by one to be certain they met her standards. Mike, Greg, Reggie and I stepped back and silently awaited the results. I wasn’t sure which was louder, the crunching of the paper packaging or my heartbeat. I wondered how Crosby, Grady and Kai had escaped this.
Reggie tapped his foot.
Adelaide peered around the edge of the counter. “You in a hurry, FBI Man?”
“Not really, but the last woman who made me stand here like this was my mother. Besides, we have to get ready for the game. I don’t wish to be rude, but we’re short on time.” Reggie bowed.
“You’re such a gentleman, and you’re absolutely correct about time. Mike, Laura, you did a fine job of choosing a dinner menu. Thank you.” Adelaide began to remove items and take them over to the sink.
Mike walked behind Reggie and sputtered, “Gentleman, my behind.”
“Watch it or she’ll cane you,” Reggie whispered.
“My ears work great and if you two keep it up, there will be no game or dessert
.” Adelaide kept her head down at the sink while she washed vegetables. “I can’t send you to your room, but I can send you to the barn, and there’s no TV out there. Hint, hint. I think you get the picture,” she said with a chuckle. “Laura, please set the table, and you two squabbling children, go get some logs. Busy hands will keep you out of trouble.”
I set the table while Mike and Reggie went out to the barn to get some extra firewood. They not only brought back a wheelbarrow full, which they stacked near the front door, the rest of the troop followed them inside minus Annie.
All of us stood in the kitchen holding a fresh cup of coffee, attentive to Greg’s every word. He wanted to fill us in prior to Annie’s arrival and no matter how hard I tried, the feeling of betrayal refused to leave. I knew some of the information he would give Annie would not be truthful, but it could potentially draw the trio out, long enough to make a mistake.
“Laura, I know this is going to be difficult for you, Annie is your closest friend.” Greg glanced at Kai and smiled before continuing, “This calls for you being a team player, are you on board?”
I stared at my coffee for a minute, took a sip, and raised my eyes. “I know it’s for the greater good, but it still doesn’t feel right to deceive a friend. At the same time, I know you’re the leader, Greg, so I have to abide by what you say and put personal feelings aside. When this is over with, would you mind explaining why this had to be done, if it’s necessary, to Annie?”
Greg nodded. “Happy too, Laura, and welcome. I’m glad you’re part of this, we need your smarts. Thank you for agreeing to stay on under the terms I’ve laid out. Okay, here we go with what’s known to date. Yes, the bombings were and are a diversion to what’s coming next. There very well could be more bombings, but I don’t think that’s in their plan. At least I hope not. In case we’re wrong, all the various agencies are on alert for suspicious packages, and we’ll have teams out checking bridges. Mike and Laura, the fellow you ran into at the farmers’ market proved to be rather interesting. We couldn’t find anything too remarkable on him, no trouble with the law other than a couple of speeding tickets. Who knows, could have been after he dropped off the explosives for all we know since the timing is around when he was bounced from the school enrollment. Jelly obviously kept in touch with him for her own use, and then afterwards, he goes off the radar until you run into him. I’m suspicious of him, because I believe he’s kept in touch with Jelly, Cho and Viktor and they’ve got some sort of hold over him for him to be so paranoid. I don’t think they’ve kept up their connection so Twist can impress them with his high school teaching skills.”
Case of the Mouse Trap Legend Page 12
