Blue Steele - Box Set - Captures 1-6

by Donald Wells

  The man went rigid as pain shot throughout his midsection. I counted four separate holes in his shirt and a large tear on his left side, where an exiting bullet caused most of his blood loss. As the light faded in his eyes, he got out his final words.

  “The money’s hidden... in car... three... near... the... brakes.”

  And then, he died.

  ***

  The cops arrested two men who were leaving the building via the garage’s exit ramp. Neither man was carrying a weapon or wearing a shirt with a number on it, but one of them turned out to be Joe Cordell, who the dead crook had named as an accomplice.

  Deke Thomas, a Texas Ranger, and family friend, arrived on the scene and laid one of his massive hands on my shoulder.

  “Hey Blue, how you doing, girl?”

  “I’m good Deke, but the guard that got shot, how is he?”

  “He’s hanging in there; the paramedic says he thinks he’ll make it.”

  He then gave me a good look and stared down his nose at me.

  “That’s some dress, Blue,”

  “I was just trying to blend in while I was playing bodyguard.”

  “Bodyguard?”

  I explained to Deke why I was there and how the robbery went down. When I was done, he told me something that shocked me.

  “Missing? How could the bags be missing?”

  “Not the bags, we found two blue duffle bags down in the garage. What we can’t locate is the wallets and jewelry that was in them.”

  It was then that I remembered the dying man’s last words.

  “The one that I shot in the leg, he said that the money was hidden in car three, near the brakes.”

  “Yeah, that feller you were guarding, Ernesto Roberts, he said the same thing. We figured car number three must belong to the one that had the number three on his chest. We found nothing, but the car they were using to get away is headed to the police lab. If the goods are stowed away in that car somewhere, they’ll find it; we’re also searching every inch of that parking garage.”

  Ernesto was driven home by an officer while I went to the station to make out a statement. By the time I got home, I was so drained that I took a quick shower and went right to bed.

  ***

  When I awoke the next morning, I got dressed and met my boyfriend Gary for breakfast at a local bistro. It was Saturday, and the weather was beautiful, so we sat outside and ate.

  Although Gary was twelve years older than I was, we still meshed well and were seeing more of each other. Besides being a lawyer, Gary was also a pilot, and last month he had flown us out to the ranch he owned along with his brother and sister. I got along well with the family and his ranch was beautiful, just the kind of spread I hoped to own one day. The one point of contention between us was my work.

  “So, once again you were shot at. There’s got to be a safer way to make a living Blue, no?”

  “The last time I was shot at it had nothing to do with my work as a bounty hunter and neither did this robbery. I can take care of myself Gary, believe me.”

  The last time I’d been fired at, I was attempting to get my best friend Becca’s young daughter back from a gang of bank robbers that had taken her as a hostage. With the help of a man named Ramón, I not only got little Amy back, but also captured the bank robbers.

  Gary reached across the table and took my hand.

  “I know you can take care of yourself, but I still worry.”

  I smiled.

  “It’s nice to know you care so much.”

  My phone rang; it was Deke.

  “We still haven’t found the loot and the lab boys stripped that car down to its frame. We’ve also gone over the parking garage three times and come up empty.”

  “That’s weird Deke, where could they have hidden it?”

  “We’re still questioning them, but they’re both playing dumb, which they’re not. They both came back positive as having gunshot residue on them, and they claimed it was because they went target shooting yesterday. Get this, they weren’t lying, the guys at the gun club confirmed that they were there yesterday afternoon.”

  “They thought of everything, but if they hid that money then you’ll find it eventually.”

  “We’re beginning to think that there was a fourth man, one that got away.”

  “I never saw a fourth man.”

  “One of the robbers, the one that died, has a younger brother with a record. We’ve brought him in for questioning and his apartment is being searched right now.”

  “Where does he say he was last night?”

  “At home, with his girlfriend, she confirms it, but then, she’s his girlfriend and six months pregnant. I’d think she’d say anything to keep him out of prison.”

  “What do you think; does he look good for it?”

  “He looks like a scared kid to me. He’s only twenty, got out of jail a year ago and has been working a straight job ever since, elevator repairman, same job his brother had before he started doing robberies.”

  “Elevator repairman to armed robber, that’s some career change.”

  “Chalk it up to drugs, the kid says his brother got hooked on meth and screwed up so much at work that they fired him, and then turned to crime to support his habit.”

  “That’s messed up Deke, but let me know if you learn anything from the brother.”

  “I will, and oh yeah, there’s a five thousand dollar reward being offered now. It seems one of the pieces of jewelry, a necklace, was worth big money. If we don’t locate it all soon, these fellers are gonna walk out of here with smiles on their faces.”

  I hung up with Deke and finished having breakfast with Gary. When we were done eating, we were going to the mall. My old laptop had died and I was thinking about switching to a tablet. I’m not much of a shopper, but I love gadgets.

  As he paid the check, Gary told me that he had to stop in at his office because he had left some papers behind that he needed to work on over the weekend. As we stood in the lobby of his office building, waiting to ride up, I had an epiphany, and I suddenly realized where the robbers had stashed the loot.

  ***

  Deke, along with two police department tech guys, met us at the scene of the crime.

  It was the first time that Deke and Gary had met, and Deke grilled Gary as if he were my father. After my daddy went missing years ago, Deke looked out for me, my mama and my sister as if we were his own flesh and blood.

  For his part, Gary took the interrogation well and apparently passed muster, because Deke gave him a friendly slap on the back when they finished talking.

  Yellow tape still stretched across the ballroom’s doorway, warning all not to enter. We had no intention of entering, what we wanted was in the hallway, or so I hoped.

  Deke pointed to the bank of elevators and told the lab boys to have at it.

  In less than five minutes, they had found not only the jewels and wallets, but also the two numbered T-shirts and the guns, hidden in a false control panel box on the roof of the car. All of it was atop the elevator car marked number three.

  Deke turned and smiled at me.

  “Your daddy would have been impressed Blue, I know I am.”

  “Thanks, but it only made sense once you told me about his former profession. An elevator repairman would think of an elevator as an elevator car, and I remembered reading somewhere that they had brakes, and so it was worth a look.”

  “The kids off the hook and you’re five grand richer.”

  I smiled as I reached over and took Gary’s hand.

  “Now we can go shopping.”

  When we left, we took the stairs.

  BLUE STEELE – CAPTURE #5

  I was seated across from Ron Tenney, my boss, and owner of the AAAAAAAAAA Bail Bonds Company.

  Ron was in his fifties, had a full head of white hair and a ready smile. The smile was quite a contrast to most people in this business. Dealing with criminals tended to make you sour on humanity, and a frown often
came easier than a grin.

  Yet, Ron seemed to always be in a good mood. I suspected it was because of his wife, but having never met the woman, it was only a guess.

  The AAAAAAAAAA Bail Bonds Company, or Ten A, as most people called it, was in a storefront on Lanchaster Avenue in Fort Worth. The building was old when Ron was born and the office was crowded with filing cabinets and desks.

  Ron handed me a flyer.

  “That’s Joe Harmody, a bank robber; he’s worth four grand if you catch him.”

  The man in the photo was handsome and beefy looking. If I hadn’t known he was a bank robber, I might have guessed pro wrestler instead.

  “Any known associates?”

  “He’s a mystery, but a buddy at the county jail told me that a woman stopped in to see Harmody once. My buddy said that he’s sure she was one of the waitresses at Bongo Bongo.”

  Bongo Bongo was a restaurant that served burgers, burgers brought to you by women in skimpy shorts and tops.

  “Do you have a description of her?”

  “Blonde, large breasts and leggy, but the name on the visitors log was Deanna Andrews,”

  I sat and stared at Harmody’s photo. Four thousand was good money, but bank robbers tended to be violent when confronted.

  Ron arched an eyebrow. “So Blue baby, do you want it?”

  I nodded.

  “I’ll give it a week. If Harmody doesn’t make contact with this Deanna Andrews by then, then I’ll assume he’s left her behind.”

  “Sounds like a good plan, now, what’s this I hear about you dating a defense lawyer?”

  “His name is Gary Dent.”

  “Dent? As in Goldman, Harper, Rogers & Dent?”

  “That’s him.”

  “I met him once; he seemed like an okay guy.”

  “He is,”

  “Well good, but I hope it’s not serious?”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “If you married a guy with his bucks you might quit, and you’re my best bounty hunter.”

  I shook my head.

  “Oh, we’re a long way from marriage,”

  “Not if Dent’s as smart as they say he is. A smart man would scoop you up quick.”

  I stood and waved Harmody’s picture.

  “Thanks for the compliment, but right now this is the only man I’m interested in being handcuffed to.”

  Ron laughed.

  “Good hunting, Blue, and hey, be careful,”

  ***

  Forty minutes later, I parked my pick-up truck in a back corner of Bongo Bongo’s parking lot. The restaurant was located in a shopping center and shared the lot with a supermarket, a sporting goods store and an electronics repair shop.

  I had binoculars hanging around my neck and whenever someone that could be Harmody walked toward the bar, I checked them out.

  I had been there for two hours when my phone rang. It was Ernesto Roberts, a man I’d been paid to bodyguard a week ago.

  “Mr. Roberts, how can I help you?”

  “Blue? Blue there’s a man here trying to get into my house. I called the police but they haven’t gotten here yet.”

  I started my engine as I answered him.

  “Is your door locked?”

  “Yes, but he’s kicking at it. I think he’ll soon kick it open.”

  I was only a few minutes from Ernesto’s house and I floored it as I got on the highway.

  “What’s the man look like?” I asked.

  “He’s Hispanic and very muscular. Oh God, I can see a gap in the door now.”

  “Stop looking at the door and run, go out a window if you have to, but get away from him and get to a neighbor’s house.”

  “But my nearest neighbor is a half mile away,”

  I could hear a banging noise in the background that was accompanied by the sound of wood splintering.

  “Run!” I shouted into the phone, even as I neared the exit on the highway.

  When I arrived at Ernesto’s, the front door was wide open. As I walked inside with my gun drawn, I heard the screaming. When I got to the back of the house, I could see Ernesto running away from a man. The back of his large property was fenced in, and once Ernesto reached the fence, he fell against it and cowered.

  I ran outside and headed straight for them. I didn’t need to be stealthy, Ernesto’s blubbering and begging covered the sound of my approach.

  Ernesto spotted me first however, and the look of relief on his face made his pursuer aware that they were no longer alone. The man turned and raised his gun at me, but a moment later, he dropped his weapon to his side and smiled, as I did the same.

  “Hey, Chica, what are you doing here?”

  “I was going to ask you the same thing, Ramón.”

  “Hold on a second Chica,” Ramón said, and then he turned and knocked Ernesto unconscious with one punch. Afterward, he threw him over his shoulder and started walking back toward the house.

  “Follow me Blue, you and I gotta do some catching up, eh?”

  I shook my head, let out a sigh, and followed Ramón into the house.

  ***

  When we went back inside, Ramón laid Ernesto on the sofa and then walked over to the door and closed it as best he could, considering that the wooden frame was splintered. When he was done, he turned and grinned at me.

  “It’s good to see you Blue, but we don’t have much time; there’s a man coming here to kill our friend on the couch there.”

  “He thought you were here to kill him.”

  Ramón looked offended.

  “I’m not a killer. I find people, same as you. I was asked to find this man and—”

  A motorcycle sped into the driveway. When its engine died, in the background, very faintly, I could hear the sound of an approaching siren.

  Movement caught my eye and I saw Ernesto sit up on the sofa with a dazed look on his face.

  The man outside got off the bike. He was dressed in black leather and wore a mirrored helmet. He took a gun out from behind his back and ran toward the door.

  Ramón stood to the left of the door and I took the right side. The man hit the door hard, expecting it to be locked. When the door flew open without any resistance, he tumbled into the foyer, lost his footing and slid across the hard wood flooring in the living room until he was five feet from the sofa, where Ernesto, now fully awake, let out a shriek of fright.

  Ramón got to the intruder first and wrest the gun from his hand, a second later, and I yanked the helmet from his head to reveal a young face with a mop of blond hair.

  Ramón stared down at the man and pointed his gun at his face.

  “Don’t move Chico, don’t even blink,”

  The once faint sirens now came screaming into the circular driveway and within seconds, the sound of the police car’s doors opening reached us.

  I pointed at Ramón while talking to Ernesto.

  “This man is your friend.” I then pointed at the man on the floor. “This man is not, understand?”

  Ernesto nodded his head wildly.

  “Yes, yes, thank you Blue, thank you for saving me.”

  Then Ramón placed a heavy boot on the back of the motorcyclist neck and stuck the guns in his belt. I placed my gun behind my back and we had just enough time to put our hands in the air, when the two cops entered with their weapons drawn and ready.

  ***

  It took over five hours and eight different cops to straighten things out, but when the dust settled Ramón and I were free and the motorcyclist was in custody. It turned out that he was hired by the fiancé of Ernesto’s niece.

  The fiancé learned that Ernesto had named his niece in his will and that Ernesto had also been in a land dispute with a reputed mobster.

  His plan was to kill Ernesto, frame the mobster, and when the wedding took place next month, he’d be sitting pretty. However, Chaney, the mobster, learned of the hit and hired Ramón to babysit Ernesto until he could have the hit cancelled.

  Needless to say
, the wedding was called off.

  ***

  Ramón and I were sitting in Bongo Bongo, and each eating one of their famed Bongo burgers. The interior of the place was brightly lit and there were TV’s everywhere with sporting events playing on them.

  And while the shorts and tops of the waitresses were revealing, they weren’t as skimpy as I imagined they would be.

  Ramón watched as a particularly well-endowed waitress walked by, and then he smiled at me.

  “I’m surprised you picked this place to grab a bite, but I have no complaints.”

  “I’m working. There’s a bail skip who might show here, and I figured why not kill two birds with one stone.”

  “How is my little Amy?”

  “She’s good; Becca says she still talks about you.”

  “Tell her I said hi when you see her.”

  “Actually, Becca’s been bugging me to bring you to dinner one night; she and her husband Richie want to thank you personally for saving Amy.”

  Ramón blanched.

  “What?” I said.

  “I’m not used to normal people wanting to spend time with me, that’s all.”

  “What do you mean normal? You’re not normal?”

  “Both my parents died before I was ten, and after that I was a gangbanger. I broke free from that life and have been on my own ever since.”

  “Don’t you have any other family?”

  “Yeah, but we never talk,”

  “What about friends?”

  He shook his head.

  “I consider myself your friend.” I said.

  “Thank you, Chica, Blue; that means a lot to me.”

  “So, when can I tell Becca to expect you?”

  “Never. Whenever I get around normal people, it makes me nervous. I can’t imagine working nine to five, coming home to the same woman night after night, and the kids, all that responsibility, it isn’t natural.”

  “I think you’re an adrenaline junkie, but I warn you, I promised Becca that I’d bring you by some day and I never break a promise.”

  He grinned. “This one might be your first.”

  “So how long have you worked for Chaney?”

  “I don’t. I’m freelance, if you want somebody found; I’ll find them. The bodyguard bit today was a one-time thing. So, who’s this guy you’re looking for?”