by Marc Jedel
Mace squeaked as he started speaking. He halted and cleared his throat. “That’s a past life. I’d appreciate it if you would let it stay in the past.” He shuffled the papers some more as he sought to regain his composure. Clearing his voice again, he asked, “Now, did someone threaten to kill your sister?” Self-control reasserted, he straightened his shoulders and set his papers aside.
His words brought Meghan and me back to reality. We needed to focus on the reason we called him in the first place. We eased down to our seats without speaking. Meghan kept sneaking glances at Mace and then tittering quietly to me. His past might be past but we hadn’t put it behind us. Meghan and I would need to laugh about Mace’s history again later. I liked the idea of seeing Meghan again.
Mace spoke again. “What’s going on?” The return of his police officer’s demeanor and command voice had the desired effect. We both snapped to attention. Meghan gave a quick summary of her harassment at work, the break-in at her house, Billy Bob and Spike’s conversation at the water agency and our daring escape.
Jackson leaned back in his chair to study us. His forehead wrinkled. He asked Meghan, “They admitted to murdering the old lady in the hospital and breaking into your house?”
“Well, no, not exactly, —”
I interrupted her. “It’s what he meant. He’d seen the story of her accident on Monday afternoon.”
Jackson ignored my explanation. He squinted at me, voice harsh. “And you deliberately set a fire in a public building that caused the fire department to respond?”
I flushed and babbled. “No, I didn’t … I mean yes, we did. Well, it wasn’t a real fire —”
Meghan interrupted, “I set off a small smoke bomb. We needed to escape so we could contact the police.”
“Hmmm.” Jackson still gave me the stink eye.
Why me? It was Meghan’s idea.
“Hold on a minute. Let me call dispatch and make sure the officer is still on your sister’s floor while we straighten this out.” He turned in his chair and made a quick, quiet call.
I was relieved that Laney was still protected. Did this mean I wouldn’t get arrested tonight? Well, at least, not yet. While he spoke, Meghan caught my attention with widened eyes that she shifted to indicate Mace and then back at me. She did this several times as if to make sure I remembered who sat next to us. Despite a mere shrug from me, she nearly burst into laughter on her own. She suppressed her giggles, nonetheless, a small snort escaped. She swallowed her laughter and took a deep breath to restrain herself.
Mace finished his call and turned back to Meghan before her giggles returned. “Tell me more about the CEO.”
Pulling herself together, Meghan said, “Billy Bob’s our CEO…”
“The CEO’s name is Billy Bob?” Jackson puffed out his lips in disbelief.
“His full name is William Robert Allen. Everyone calls him Billy Bob.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” said Jackson, still incredulous.
Why an underwear model turned cop, named Mace Jackson, would think anyone else had a ridiculous name struck me as entertaining. I swallowed my own laugh. Meghan might get away with it, but I didn’t want to consider the consequences that laughing outright at Sergeant Mace Jackson could mean to me. His glare and harsh voice were scary enough.
Meghan pulled up a picture of Billy Bob on her phone from a quick internet search and showed Mace. “He’s had like five different government or related industry jobs in the last ten years. Each time he stays for a year or two and then jumps to a new place with a promotion or bigger role.”
“He looks pretty young to run such a large agency,” said Jackson, peering at Meghan’s phone.
“Yeah, he must be good at sucking up to his bosses. Our board sure seems to like him and the governor does too. The office rumor mill says Billy Bob will get appointed to run the State Water Board.”
“Impressive. So why would a guy like that harass you?” asked Jackson.
Meghan opened up the folder from her office and took out the report we had just snuck out of the office. “Because of this.” She handed it over.
Jackson scanned it briefly before looking back at her. “Why is this important?”
“It’s the initial environmental analysis done on the site where Billy Bob plans to build NorCal’s big, new water desalination plant.”
“It looks like a map with a bunch of numbers and symbols on it. What does it mean?”
Meghan looked smug. “That he can’t build the plant at their planned location. They’ll need to move it to another part of the parcel. Not a disaster, but it will delay the project by at least six months.”
“So?” Jackson looked puzzled.
That had been my reaction too. Now, proud that I knew the answer, I chimed in. “This means a publicity black eye right as the governor is making his final decision about who will get the vacant position to run the State Water Resources Control Board. If Billy Bob’s first big project is delayed, the governor is likely to pick someone else.”
“That’s why he has his goons pressuring me to sign off on the project as it is. But I won’t let them use my license like that. I won’t do it,” said Meghan, her voice grown louder with each statement, ended with her thumping the table with a righteous fist.
Mace paused to give her passion its due, before asking a follow-up question. “Ok. I can see, maybe, that he might want to lean on you to go along. But, what does that have to do with Laney Tran?”
The question seemed to deflate both of us. We had no answer for that. Our shoulders sagged as we sat in silence. Meghan excused herself to the restroom.
Mace glanced down at my hands. He noticed the pink Band-Aid on my finger and scoffed, “Princess?”
I shrugged. I couldn’t see telling him I’d had an owie and found the first Band-Aid available in Laney’s house to cover my paper cut.
Now we sat in uncomfortable silence. I considered telling him about Fernando’s gang threatening me and Laney. I couldn’t come up with a good way to bring it up without him yelling at me again. I almost asked him to tell me more about his modeling career. However, in a rare moment of discretion, I looked around the Starbucks instead. The place had emptied except for us and the two baristas. One mopped while Brody manipulated the beeping, hissing machines. My phone buzzed with a text and I gratefully took it out to engage with someone who did want to talk to me.
GROUP TEXT TO AMANDA, ELI
AMANDA: How’d rest of your date go?
MARTY: Interesting. Isn’t it late for you?
AMANDA: It’s Saturday night. What does that mean?
MARTY: Can’t talk now
AMANDA: You’re still with her???
MARTY: Yes
ELI: Whoa!
MARTY: It’s not like that. Gotta go. Talk tomorrow
AMANDA: Wait! Tell us more
I put away the phone as Brody walked up with our drinks. He nodded at Mace while he set down a steaming cup of green tea at Meghan’s spot. With a flourish, he set mine down in front of me. “Here is your super-duper drink. Have a wonderful night!”
Mace looked up at his enthusiastic energy. Caffeine fumes must power Brody through his workday. I nodded my appreciation for his service and passion. “Thanks, Brody. Are you almost off work?”
Brody’s eyes sparkled with delight. “Totally. Tonight’s an extra shift so I can go surfing tomorrow. I’m pooped now, but the waves will be totally radical tomorrow.”
His throwback language made me chuckle. “Well, then, you have a wonderful day tomorrow.”
“Most definitely, dude.” Brody exchanged smiles with Meghan as she returned to her seat.
Before Brody left our table, Mace waved one hand in the general direction of my drink. “What on earth is that?” Mace used a much more pleasant tone than he ever used to me.
Brody responded with a wink to Mace and a sing-song voice, “It’s a Triple, Venti, Half Sweet, Non-Fat, Extra-Hot, Caramel Macchiato.”
“Y
ou’re kidding.” Mace first looked at Brody to figure out if I’d truly placed such a ridiculous order. He shifted his eyes to Meghan. “He’s kidding, right?”
Brody caught his eye. “No. It’s totally righteous, dude. Do you want one too?” A smile flashed across Brody’s face as he leaned forward for Mace’s decision.
I waited for Mace to make a snide comment. He surprised me again. Looking at Brody, Mace gave a half-smile and shook his head. “No. Thanks though.”
“Cool, dude. Well, you all have a wonderful night! Don’t forget, we close in fifteen minutes.” Brody left us to finish cleaning.
Mace turned his full attention back to Meghan.
“I can stop by the water agency to talk to Spike on Monday and try to scare him away from bothering you. But, I’d need more to go after Mr. Allen. It doesn’t even make sense that a successful CEO would be involved in break-ins and attempted murder.”
Meghan gritted her teeth. “Monday!?”
I jumped in before they started arguing. “It is weird to think of Billy Bob as a bad guy.”
Jackson switched his focus to me. “Why?”
“In college, he was some kind of big man on campus. Laney has some old newspaper articles in her bag that she got from Gonzaga. He was the editor of the school paper. He even saved a girl from a fire in the newspaper building.”
“They didn’t start the fire, did they?” said Jackson, evidently still peeved at us.
“No. Some printing equipment caught fire. There was a big picture of him on the cover and a long article that made him out to be the hero.”
Jackson snorted. “He was the editor, so of course the paper made him sound good.”
I agreed. “They did go overboard. They interviewed his roommate, his brother — even called a next-door neighbor from his hometown. I’m not sure how it was newsworthy that Billy Bob walked the neighbor’s dog during high school while the neighbors were on vacation, but even that tidbit made the article.”
“They didn’t interview his parents to find out how he slept as a baby?”
I answered despite Mace’s sarcasm. “No, his parents died when he was in high school. His grandparents raised him but they passed away during his junior year in college.”
“Geez, what a sob story.” Jackson didn’t have a soft heart.
Meghan shot the detective a hard look. The real-world version of her cover model didn’t match up to her expectations.
I jumped in. “I think he told Spike to murder Laney in the hospital. A story about her crash was on his computer. You know how the saying goes, where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”
Meghan groaned, but Jackson responded, “Unless it’s a ping-pong ball.”
“Or popcorn,” I said.
“What?”
“Never mind, work joke.”
Mace moved to stand up, “My shift ends soon and I’m heading home. Maybe I could get Spike to talk. But, I’ll have to talk to my captain before going after Mr. Allen. Picking up the CEO of a major public agency isn’t something to do lightly. Basically, we just have you overhearing some vague statements and breaking into his computer. I should probably arrest you both.”
Discounting Mace’s halfhearted threat, Meghan clenched her fist. “How can you not believe me? What about this file? They’re trying to coerce me.”
Responding to Meghan’s anger, Jackson sat back down. “Look, I believe you. We’ll do what we can to protect you and Laney. I understand it’s frustrating. But I can’t rush in to arrest someone without more solid proof, let alone the CEO of a major public agency. There’s nothing to link the burglaries of yours and Laney’s houses.”
“What if Billy Bob admits to doing something illegal?” I asked.
Jackson gave me a dismissive blink that made me feel like an insect. “Sure. I’ll call him up and ask him if he’s done anything illegal recently.” With a derisive sneer, he turned back to Meghan.
Before he could speak, I said, “No. I mean what if we get him to say something to us and you record it?”
“You want to do a sting on Billy Bob?” Meghan asked me, with both excitement and nervousness competing for attention in her voice.
Jackson interjected, “Not Marty.” His eyes flicked to Meghan. “It would have to be you. Billy Bob’s never met Marty.”
Meghan’s voice caught in her throat. “You want me to do a sting on Billy Bob?”
“It actually isn’t a terrible idea,” admitted Mace, reluctant to credit something I’d proposed. “We can be in the next room. If you could get him to confess to directing Spike to kill Laney or telling his people to hurt you, then we’d have it in his own voice and could charge him with conspiracy to commit murder.”
“I don’t know.” Meghan hesitated. “This seems dangerous.”
“We can keep you safe. We’d have a few cops nearby in case he tries anything. It’s not like you’d be talking to a gang leader.”
I reddened, but my luck held as no one noticed. This wasn’t the time to discuss my experiences last night.
Jackson continued, “You said yourself that he could be on his way to becoming governor. Maybe he only wants your file back. Top executives typically don’t get violent.”
Meghan still didn’t appear enthusiastic about the idea, but she agreed. If nothing else, it might stop the harassment.
I leaned forward, eager now to turn my idea into reality. “What do we do next?”
“You. Don’t. Do. Anything.” Jackson almost jabbed me with his words. “Meghan should contact Billy Bob and get him to meet her.”
“What should I say to him?” Meghan’s voice turned timorous as the idea of confronting Billy Bob sunk in.
“Make it as short as possible. You want to sound scared and desperate,” advised Jackson.
“I am scared and desperate.”
In command mode, Jackson didn’t stop to console her. He continued with his instructions, “Since we don’t know exactly what he wants, don’t make any guesses. If you get it wrong, he’ll know you’re lying.”
“Do you think he’ll be suspicious if I don’t ask him for something, like money?”
Mace shrugged. “I don’t know. You don’t want to scare him off, but we should have a believable reason why you’re suddenly willing to help him.”
They paused and Meghan took another sip of her tea while we all pondered.
I broke the tense silence, blurting out, “How about ‘I have what you’re looking for. I’ll give it to you if you’ll just leave me alone.’ ”
Both Meghan and Mace looked up, startled. With eyes widening, they stared at me for a moment, absorbing my suggestion.
After a long enough pause that made me wonder if they’d forgotten, Meghan said, “That’s pretty good.”
With a quiet grunt, Mace agreed.
I wasn’t sure if I should feel pleased with the compliment or bothered because they were both so surprised I had a sensible idea.
Meghan pulled out her phone. She wrote and sent the quick text to Billy Bob. “So, now what? Do we wait?”
“Once he responds, we can pick a time and place. I’ll set up the rest,” said Jackson.
We fell into silence, considering our next steps.
“Oh!” The buzzing of her phone surprised Meghan. “He answered already.”
“What did he say?” I asked.
“It says, ‘You better. Your house tomorrow at 10.’ ”
Mace gave us a sinister smile. “Maybe he is part of this after all. He just screwed up. Notice he didn’t ask where you lived? How would he know unless he was involved in your burglary?”
An equally sinister smile spread across Meghan’s face as well before quickly fading. “Maybe he got it from HR since I work there?” Then, the color drained out of her face. “If he knows where I live, what’s to stop him from coming after me tonight?”
Mace pursed his lips in concern. “Hmm. Probably best if you aren’t there. Just to be safe. Can you stay with a friend tonight?”
Meghan thought out loud, “I don’t know many people here and it’s really late.”
“You could come home with me,” I said without thinking. I blushed as they both looked suspiciously at me. “I meant you could stay at my apartment tonight. My nieces are already staying with me. My home office has a futon. The girls are sleeping in the guest room.” At least they’re supposed to.
Meghan paused briefly, considering as she rubbed her face. “Ok, thank you. I’m beat. Even the thought of trying to figure out somewhere else is exhausting.”
Jackson eyed me distrustfully before asking her, “Are you sure?” His eyes narrowed.
I avoided any sudden movements so he wouldn’t draw his gun.
“Yes, it’s ok,” pronounced Meghan, raising her chin as she looked me over one more time.
I’d made great strides. Yesterday she’d insisted on meeting me here at Starbucks because she worried I might be dangerous. Now, I had cleared the hurdle of being barely better than staying in her own, hazardous house.
Decision made, Mace shifted into gear. “Ok. Make sure you get back to your house by nine. I’ll bring a few officers and we’ll set up before Billy Bob arrives.”
Meghan and I left Starbucks in her car while Mace stayed behind to make calls to prepare tomorrow morning’s sting.
After leaving her car parked outside my apartment building, Meghan and I walked in silence along the hallway to my apartment. It was after midnight and I was wiped. With all of tonight’s excitement, I’d forgotten to check in with Mrs. Kim about the girls. Meghan looked drained from the stress of her house break-in, the escape from the Water Agency and the decision to attempt a sting on Billy Bob.
As we approached my apartment, Mrs. Kim opened the door. I nearly jumped back into Meghan, who gasped.
“Good evening, Mr. Marty.” Mrs. Kim reached out a hand to Meghan. “Hello dear, I’m Mrs. Kim. Nice to meet you.”
Recovering, Meghan introduced herself.
We stepped inside and spoke in hushed tones so we wouldn’t wake the girls.
“I’m so sorry I’m back so late. We had a little trouble …” I ran out of steam. I didn’t want to explain the last hour with the smoke bomb and Sergeant Jackson. I didn’t have the energy to explain the whole crazy situation.
