Marcie put her cruiser in gear and drove back across the river to a convenience store. I hopped out and went inside in search of a new cell phone. I looked all around the store but wasn’t able to find a new phone. Stumped, I went back to the counter and waited in line behind a woman dressed in yoga pants and sports bra. Normally I loved the yoga pants look but with Marcie parked outside, I averted my gaze. After she had paid for her skittles and diet coke, I asked the clerk for a new phone.
“Sorry man, but the owner doesn’t believe in stocking the shelves with prepaid cell phones.”
“Where would I find a prepaid in Fruita?
“Try Valley Market.”
“Valley Market in Junction? Isn’t there anywhere else in town I could buy one?”
He wrinkled his brow in deep thought and then said, “Not that I know of.”
I stood there debating whether or not to argue the finer points, but ultimately decided I would be the only one hurt by the discussion. So I thanked him and went back outside to the car.
“No luck?” Marcie asked me.
“Nope, you know anywhere else I could get a phone?”
“I could let you use mine.”
I shook my head. “No, that’s a bad idea. When this thing starts to go down I wouldn’t want you implicated in what the prosecution will describe as prior bad acts.”
She laughed and said, “Well, I gave Gina a phone to use just in case her phone was on the fritz.”
Shaking my head again, I said, “Same argument. If I get arrested by the Feds, the first thing they’ll do is run a trace on the phone.”
“How about this: we go back to my house and you can get cleaned up and I’ll see if Paul will let me have the rest of the day off. That way we can go together.”
“Marice, you’re still a cop and I’ve already involved you way too much.”
She shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. The Feds and Paul have instructed me to keep tabs on you.”
“At some point, I will have to give you the slip. And when I do, you’ll have to come clean with what you know.”
“Relax, Walter. I promise not to tell them everything.”
“Marcie, please understand there are times when a cop has to keep things out of the report for the benefit of the case and then there are times when you’ve got to give it all up. This is most definitely one of those times when the best thing for you to do is tell them everything.”
“Tell you what, how about we leave it alone for the time being and concentrate on getting you cleaned up?”
“Let me see your phone.”
Marcie reached down and retrieved it from the driver side door. I checked the number Ronald gave me and dialed it. He answered on the first ring. “Why are you calling me from her number?”
“Looks like getting a burner will take me a while.”
“Walt, drop her off at her house and drive into Junction. Get a burner and then call me back.” He hung up.
“I don’t suppose you have a spare car do you?”
“My dad’s old Jeep Grand Cherokee still runs.”
“Well then, this is where I lose you. Take me back to your house. I’ll take his car into Junction.”
“Then what?”
“Then you call it in and go back to work.”
“I’m not just handing you the keys and then turning you in.”
I could feel the blood start to pulse through the knot on my forehead. Knowing a migraine was just around the corner, I pinched the bridge of my nose to ward it off. “Please just let this one go, Marse.”
She folded her arms across her chest in defiance and glared at me. I looked back at her with equal defiance. In the end, she won. Mostly because I let her win. After all, she did have what I needed and to my way of thinking, if I allowed her to go along for now, then later on, I would be able to give her the slip.
“Fine, you win,” I said.
Now it was her turn to shake her head at me. “If you think for one second you can placate me now just so you can run away later on, then you’re the one who’s in denial.”
Once again, I found myself wondering how I had allowed myself to get roped into such a manure-filled trash heap of a situation. “Marse, I’m not going to let you tag along just so you can get fired or worse.”
“Well, then it’s settled,” she said as she dropped the car into gear and headed toward downtown.
I was afraid she was taking me to the station to be locked up, but she drove on through town and down Aspen, until it was clear we were headed for her house.
We didn’t speak on the ride over, which I took as a good sign. When the time came for me to ditch her, I was pretty sure it would make it easier for her to turn me in. This would help to keep her insulated from whatever it was Ronald was planning.
Chapter 30
After Pete had given Jenny and Sam their orders, Sam had called the hospital to check on the ex-cop. He had identified himself as a reporter and after some back and forth, he was told Mr. Walker was due to be discharged that afternoon.
They both had walked downstairs to the parking lot and gotten into a navy blue Ford Taurus. The plates on it were registered to a Mr. and Mrs. Franklin Wabash from Tennessee. They both had ID that went along with the registration. Underneath the suitcases full of clothing in the trunk, they had a wide variety of handguns and automatic weapons.
Sam got behind the wheel and Jenny got in the passenger seat. Both of them were in their mid-twenties and white. Jenny had long flowing blonde hair while Sam’s hair was cut short against his scalp. Both of them had killed enough times to make them dangerous but to the casual observer, they were a young married couple on vacation.
Sam pointed the car West on I-70, keeping his speed right at the speed limit. They were pressed for time, but it wouldn’t do either of them any good if they got stopped for something stupid like speeding.
“You have any idea how we should do this?” Sam asked.
“We keep it simple.”
“Meaning what?” Sam wondered aloud.
“Meaning we sit in the hospital until he’s released. After that, we stay close by until we find a good spot to take him.”
“You have any ideas where a good spot is?”
“Well, if he goes back to the house he’s been staying at, we walk in on foot and take him there. If he’s with the girlfriend and they go to her house, then we wait until dark and do the deed there.”
“Shit Jenny, that’s pretty slim.”
“Well, right now that’s the best I have.”
Sam nodded but didn’t comment. Instead, he started to formulate his own plan, which definitely didn’t include a nighttime raid on a cop’s house or a daytime raid out in the boonies. In his opinion, the best way would be to wait until they were in a semi-private, public location where they would have a good exit strategy. Maybe a parking lot or on an empty stretch of roadway. Anywhere they could strike without having to leave the car. Raiding a house took time and planning, neither of which their boss had given them. Also, killing a cop was just plain stupid. Cops were vindictive pricks and they carried grudges all the way to the grave if you killed one of their own.
“Jenny, we need to avoid killing or even putting a scratch on the girlfriend.”
She sighed and said, “It’s not the best idea, but you heard what he said.”
“Not for nothing. He’s not the one looking at running for the rest of his life if we kill a cop.”
She turned in her seat to face him. “You getting cold feet Sam?” she asked with an edge.
Sam looked at her sideways and saw her hand disappear behind her back. He shrugged and said, “You know I’m not. I’m just saying it would be better for us and for CCO if we didn’t kill a cop. It draws unnecessary heat.”
“Pete was very clear.”
“I heard what he said. I’m just looking at it from all sides. Don’t go getting Dirty Harry on me. You pull that gun and neither of us are going to see this through.”
Sh
e glared at him and then said, “We have our orders.”
Sam shrugged and said, “Yeah, we do.”
“So we’re in agreement then?”
“Knock it off, Jenny. You know I’m right about this. I’m down for whatever.”
“Jesus, you’re killing me. You sound like your mouth is suffering from the bubonic plague.”
“Bubonic plague?”
She grinned at him. “Pretty good, huh?”
“How long you had that little ditty chambered?”
“A while. I heard Pete say it a while back.”
“You have to get your own insults. Stop plagiarizing, yo.”
“Oh my god, your ebonics are terrible.”
He grinned at her and said, “YOLO.” They both laughed until the tension was gone.
A half-hour later, Sam turned onto Kokopelli Drive. They could see a local news van and a Fruita PD cruiser parked outside of the hospital. He continued past the hospital, then turned onto Jurassic, then onto South Mesa Drive.
Jenny kept craning her neck as he drove past the hospital. When he turned on South Mesa she said, “Let’s set up across the street at that rib joint.”
He nodded and continued driving around the block. On their second pass, Sam pulled the Ford into the parking lot of the rib joint.
“You see anyone paying attention to us?” Sam asked.
“No, the cop was watching the front door and the media people seemed to be just hanging out.”
“I looked but didn’t see the Feds or any spotters. You see anything?”
Jenny craned her neck around, looking in all directions. “No, I think we’re safe.”
Sam put the car in park and they both watched the front of the building. They didn’t have to wait long. Jenny pointed to a man dressed in jeans and a flannel top exiting through a side door. “There! See the guy in the flannel shirt?”
“Got ‘em.”
They watched the man walk over to the cruiser and then get inside. Sam dropped the car in gear and waited for them to leave, but the car just sat there. “Get the glasses out. See if you can make out what they’re doing.”
Jenny turned around and reached into the back seat for a pair of small binoculars. She put them to her eyes and watched them.
He could see her moving from the cruiser to the media van. “Anything?”
“Nope, just talking.”
“Make out what they’re saying?”
“No, the angle’s all wrong.”
“Huh, well, I guess now we wait.”
Jenny handed him the glasses and then crawled into the back seat. He watched her pull down the back seat so she could get to the guns. “Little early, don’t you think?”
She retrieved a .40 caliber Glock and a small Uzi from under the luggage. Then she put the back seat in place before she turned around and kept her seat. “Just in case we get lucky.”
He nodded but didn’t comment. He watched her check the weapons over in the rearview mirror and his mind wandered for a bit as he thought through their assignment. If they got lucky and the couple isolated themselves, then they could do the job and retreat back to a safe location. By design, neither of them would be going back to CCO. Instead, they would head to a safe house until they knew they were in the clear. After that, Pete would make sure they had safe passage to a country without extradition if they were compromised. If they managed to get away clean, both of them would return to CCO and await their next assignment.
They sat there watching the police cruiser for a good half hour before it started to move. Sam dropped the transmission into drive and he started to back out of their parking space. Jenny moved into the passenger’s side of the back seat, the .40 resting in her lap. Sam followed the cruiser at a safe distance as they drove over the bridge. They watched them pull into the gas station at the bottom of the ramp. Sam continued past them. He turned right onto Aspen and then made a quick turn into the Valley Market parking lot. He chose a space near to the street, but far enough away to allow them to watch their targets without being seen.
Walter, the ex-cop, got out and went inside. A few minutes later he came back out empty-handed. When he got back in the car, Sam dropped into drive and waited for them to leave. Jenny checked the street in both directions for oncoming traffic and then announced he was clear to proceed.
A few minutes later, the police cruiser left the parking lot and drove past them. Sam waited until the cruiser was halfway around the roundabout in downtown Fruita before he pulled into the street. They had expected them to go to the police station, but instead they drove through town and continued east on Aspen.
Jenny said, “Pretty sure she’s going to her place.”
“If they are, can we take them there?”
She shook her head. “Maybe if it was dark, but not during the day. Too many people and no real way to approach them without us being made.”
“Any good places to set up and watch?”
“Not really, it’s residents.”
“What about an egress?”
“Lots, and there’s no way to predict how they’ll leave.”
“So, what about down the street?” Sam asked, looking at her in the rearview mirror.
“Yeah, we’re going to have to chance it.”
“Alright, so what’s the best approach?”
“The cop lives on a cul-de-sac off of Windsor Park Drive. Her house sits on the corner lot, so if I remember right, there’s a park across the street. On the north side of the park is another street that gives a clear view of her house, so we should be able to watch them from there.”
“This street have a name?”
“Can’t remember it off the top of my head, but it should be easy to find.”
He shrugged and kept driving. The cruiser continued east on Aspen. Sam thought about their assignment. Killing the ex-cop was fine with him, but he had a rule about killing on-duty cops. In every gangster movie he had ever watched, the bad guys always backed away from killing cops. He might have written it off as just another Hollywood movie, except in real life he knew guys in the trade who lived by the same credo; which only cemented the rule he had adopted.
Sam had known a hitter who worked for the cartels and even he steered clear of killing American policemen. Mexican cops – sure, they were no problem. But if you killed an American cop, that almost always brought in the Feds. Also, the American government didn’t forget and never forgave such transgressions. He had worked for Pete for almost three years and in that time he had never seen him this close to panic before. Sam thought about asking Jenny about his state of mind, but thought better of it.
Jenny too, had seemed more driven and committed than he could remember. He knew she had been there the night the contract hitter had missed the ex-cop. When he had asked her about it, she had simply glared. Sam wondered if the pillow talk between Pete and her had colored her judgment about the project, but he was smart enough not to pry.
The cop turned off East Aspen and onto South Pine. Jenny said, “Keep going, you should be able to turn on the next block.”
Sam did as he was told.
After he had made the turn, Jenny pointed, “Make the next left. The park is about halfway down.”
He saw the park up ahead and pulled the car up next to the curb. Jenny had been right, he could see the house where the cop lived through the passenger side window. They both watched as the cop pulled into the drive and they saw both of them get out and go inside.
Jenny said, “And now we wait.”
Sam put the car in park but didn’t turn off the engine. The sky was free from clouds and the sun warmed the front seat of the car, which made him sleepy. He rolled down the window and felt a cool breeze on his face and hands. He looked over his shoulder at Jenny. Sam wondered if the breeze would be too cool for her, but her focus was so intense that she seemed not to notice it. He wanted to turn the heat on if only for a minute, to banish the coolness from the car, but decided the warmth of the sun through the
window would only dull his senses. Instead, he pulled the collar of his jacket up and settled in to wait.
***
Walt and Marcie got out of her patrol car and went inside. He was struck again by how homey she had made the house. The last time he had been here, Gina had engaged him in conversation which had distracted him from appreciating the home and all it had to offer. Marcie hadn’t said anything when they had arrived and he took that as her tacit agreement about his taking the Jeep and seeking out Ronald. Walt again walked through the downstairs and admired the wood-paneled walls, as well as what he assumed to be faux wooden floors. The last time he had been here he had noticed the pictures of her and her father. Walt was again drawn to the photos over the fireplace. He plucked one off the mantle and stared at it.
She had to be no older than sixteen when it had been taken. She was on a swing with her father standing behind her. Walt could see the exuberant joy in her face. The picture had caught her on the upswing, her feet straight out in front of her, the auburn hair of her youth falling away behind her. Back in those days, her father had smoked a pipe. It was like a fixture or something that was a part of him. Walt couldn’t remember a time when he had ever seen him without it.
Mr. Reynolds was holding it in his right hand, a curious cryptic smile touching the side of his mouth. He wondered what he had been thinking at the time. He remembered the park. Walt had taken her there at her suggestion on their second date. He too, had stood behind her and pushed her on the swing. At the time he had felt it was a special place that only they shared, but now he realized it was really her place.
The counters in the house were white, as were the cupboards. Off to his left, a large bay window stood staring at the back yard. Curious, he walked over and looked through the window. In the back yard stood an old-time metal swing. He stood transfixed for a minute. His thoughts went back to the picture over the mantle.
He wondered if the swing was a reminder of her youth or if it had been meant for someone else. Blowing out his breath, Walt turned around and let his eyes sweep over the room again. He noticed a wooden bowl next to the doorway. He walked over and started to sift through the detritus of a life she had lived without him. Inside were some bills with her name on them. He took them out and set them on the counter. He also noticed some bobby pins and a pink comb. Curious, he picked it up and looked at it. He was surprised to see a little miss kitty on the side. Walt heard footsteps from upstairs and let his eyes drift upward. His eyes followed the steps as they seemed to pass over him. The sounds stopped and he waited to see if she was going to head back downstairs. When she didn’t move he went back to the bowl.
On The Devil's Side of Heaven Page 25
