Change of Fortune

by Jana DeLeon

  Carter’s mother was exceedingly nice. “Uh-huh, and what would you call him?”

  “Batshit crazy.”

  “I’m still not buying him new shoes.”

  “I never thought you would. Anyway, I’ve got some real work to do, so if the drama is over, then I’m going to get back to it. In the meantime, maybe you could go inside and sit quietly in the living room until I get off.”

  “You think that will work?”

  “If Ida Belle and Gertie aren’t here, you stand a fighting chance. Try another nap, maybe on the couch. You can give me the blow-by-blow tonight over dinner.”

  “Do you plan on eating or laughing?”

  “Okay, after dinner.”

  “Fine, but I’m not cooking. I shouldn’t have to provide the meal and the entertainment.”

  “I’ll pick up something from the café. You can provide the entertainment…and the dessert.” He winked and headed across the yard.

  I blew out a breath. Just another steamy August afternoon in Sinful, Louisiana.

  Chapter Ten

  It took Carter several hours to wrap up his paperwork, mostly because he had Celia down at the sheriff’s department ranting. She claimed that the meat wasn’t intended for the alligator at all. She and Dorothy were going crabbing, and therefore, Carter had confiscated her bait illegally and she demanded that he return it. The entire mess had ended with Carter threatening to call Wildlife and Fisheries and have her arrested for poaching, which probably wouldn’t have been enough to get rid of her. But when he said he’d go one step further and ask the governor for a commendation for Gertie for catching her, that did it. She stomped out of the sheriff’s department, threatening to sue Carter, the sheriff, Deputy Breaux, the dispatcher, and even the janitor who had the misfortune of picking that time to wash the windows.

  I took pity on his awful day and fixed up some more roast beef sandwiches instead of having Carter stop for dinner. I figured he was probably worn out on people and even giving a food order was just one more conversation he wasn’t interested in having. Not to mention that word of the naked pool invasion had already started filtering through town, so everyone would be asking him to elaborate if he stopped at the café for a to-go order.

  I gave Carter the blow-by-blow of the hammock-alligator incident over dinner. He’d had a good laugh at both my and Ronald’s expenses, but I could tell he was concerned with the gator’s lack of fear of humans and guns. Ida Belle and Gertie had shown similar reactions when I’d relayed the story to them by phone that evening. Ida Belle’s friend had been delayed but had delivered the cage at dusk. We’d made tentative plans to have another go at Godzilla the next morning.

  Carter had early shift at the sheriff’s department, so he decided to go home, probably thinking we’d both get more rest that way. I didn’t figure it would work out for me, but I appreciated the thought. Plus, as much as I liked being with Carter, I wasn’t ready to be around him full time. I was still too much of a loner to adjust my entire lifestyle to accommodate another person in it 24-7.

  After a somewhat fitful start to sleep, I finally crashed in the wee hours of the morning. Despite the lack of quality rest, I awakened at six a.m. I looked over at the alarm clock and groaned. Of all the mornings to sleep late, this would have been a good one, but I knew it was pointless. Once my mind got going, it was impossible to go back under. And my mind was definitely going. Between Ahmad and trying to capture Godzilla, and now the case of the missing bacon, I had a million things to think about. And when I’d exhausted all ideas on those three subjects, my mind jumped to the future. The one where Ahmad was dead and I was free to do whatever I wanted.

  At one time, thoughts of that future would have concerned me more than the takedown or the gator, but now I found myself anxious to get started. I was ready. I wasn’t at all sure Sinful was ready for me, but it was happening.

  I flung the covers back and swung my legs over the side of the bed. There was no use lying there when there were chocolate chip cookies and coffee downstairs. If I felt really ambitious, I might cook up some eggs after the cookies. I gave my face a quick rinse, threw on yoga pants and a tee, and headed downstairs.

  When I stepped into the kitchen, I choked back a yelp.

  Mannie was sitting at my kitchen table, holding a cup of coffee and a newspaper. “I made a whole pot,” he said and gestured to the counter.

  “Thank you?” I wasn’t sure what the etiquette was when someone had broken into your house and then offered up your own coffee. I didn’t even bother asking him how he’d gotten in.

  Mannie grinned. “I was surprised you weren’t awake. You were more of a morning person at the beginning of summer.”

  I poured myself a cup of coffee, grabbed the container of cookies, and headed to the table. “I didn’t sleep all that well.”

  “I’m sure you’ve got a lot on your mind.” He pulled an envelope out from under the newspaper and slid it across the table to me. “That’s the list of properties and the keys to access them. I did reconnaissance on everything the Heberts own. The ones on this list will do what you need. It’s just a matter of you choosing which one is best for your arrangements.”

  “You know?”

  He nodded. “The Heberts don’t keep secrets from me, but you don’t have to worry. I don’t talk. And besides, I would have done the same thing in your situation.”

  I cocked my head to one side and studied him a couple seconds. “Who are you, exactly? Former military? Fed? Mercenary?”

  “My past is long and varied, but one day, I might tell you some of it.”

  “Superhero? One of those dark and tortured ones like Batman, but without the money and the cool gadgets.”

  “I don’t wear tights.”

  “I doubt anyone would give you grief if you did.”

  He grinned again and rose. “I have some other business to attend to, so I’ll vacate your kitchen. If you need anything else, please let us know. And if I can be of personal assistance, for recon or as an extra shooter, I would be happy to help.”

  “I appreciate it. I’m going to assume that if someone took a cursory look at the chain of ownership, Big’s and Little’s names are hidden in layers of corporations?”

  “Not planning on letting the boyfriend in on it, are you?”

  It bothered me, just a little, that he’d clued in to that so quickly. “No. I don’t talk either. Not when I give my word, and especially not when people are sticking their necks out for me.”

  “I can respect that. Hopefully, the good deputy can as well. The Heberts are well protected from general exposure. If someone at a state or federal level wanted to go digging, they could probably turn up something eventually, but it would take some work.”

  “Cool. Tell Big and Little I said thank you, again, and I’ll try not to destroy their property. I don’t make any promises, though.”

  “They’d probably be happy if you leveled one of them. They buy them depressed and insure them for more than they’re worth.”

  “Of course they do,” I said as Mannie slipped through the back door. The Heberts didn’t miss a trick.

  I opened the envelope and dumped the contents out on the table. Six keys and several folded sheets of paper lay in front of me. I picked up the papers and unfolded them, surprised to find not only the location of each building, but a satellite image of the property and surrounding area and notes on the nearby properties and their tenants, if occupied. Additional marks on the satellite images noted where security cameras were in place.

  I had no idea how many properties Mannie had scouted, but he’d done a very thorough job in very little time. And now that we had a list, the priorities for the day needed to change. Finding Godzilla was important but it would have to wait. I needed to pick a location before we could begin extensive planning on the coup. Everything was on hold until the location was set.

  I grabbed my phone off the kitchen table and sent a text to Ida Belle and Gertie.

&nb
sp; Change of plans for today. Got the list. Meet here at 9.

  They were probably already awake, or would be soon, but 9:00 a.m. gave them time to take care of anything minor they had outstanding or reschedule anything larger. Until then, I’d go over Mannie’s notes with a fine-tooth comb and put together a list of concerns to check on when we did our review of the properties. I popped open my laptop, shoved an entire cookie in my mouth, and started reading.

  At 9:00 a.m. I was dressed and ready to go—which meant I had put on tennis shoes and was armed. I packed a duffel bag with supplies and headed downstairs. I’d reviewed the property list and ruled out one based on the nearby occupants, leaving five for us to research. I had a list of items to cover for each of the remaining five, and I figured the best way to get it all down was to haul my laptop with us. My intention was to take a ton of pics with my phone and make very detailed notes about each property. Typing on a phone beyond a text message was limiting and annoying, and I planned on recording every observation I made.

  Then I’d take everything home and go over it again and again, running through every possible scenario in my head. Reviewing every potential problem. And ultimately narrowing down my choice to the one location that I thought would provide the best opportunity for success. Then I’d send the info to Harrison and he’d do the same thing I did but on the one property. Then he and Director Morrow would call and we’d all hash it out, hopefully ending the call with a set location and a plan.

  Ida Belle and Gertie arrived in Ida Belle’s SUV, and she insisted on driving to New Orleans. “My vehicle is a lot more comfortable than yours,” she said.

  “Got that right,” Gertie said. “Have you spent much time on the back seat of that Jeep? It could use one of those foam mattresses like you got for the boat.”

  Ida Belle nodded. “The passenger seat isn’t winning any awards. Besides, I could outrun that Jeep on foot. If we need to make a quick getaway, my SUV can handle it.”

  Ida Belle’s pride and joy, a Chevy Blazer that I’d nicknamed Warp Speed, had been hopped up by local engine genius, Hot Rod. I had no idea how fast it would go and didn’t want to know. At least, not firsthand. I’d already lost a couple of lives from riding in it before, and despite providing him with the good canned food, I hadn’t yet convinced Merlin to lend me any of his.

  “This is just recon,” I said. “No getaways required.”

  “You always say that,” Ida Belle said. “And then…”

  Yeah. “I’m fine with you driving. It allows me to pay more attention to the surrounding areas and make notes as we go. Besides, the SUV has better cupholders than my Jeep.”

  “Clear liquids only in my vehicle,” Ida Belle said.

  Gertie rolled her eyes. “You have one little mishap with a strawberry soda and you spend the rest of your life paying for it.”

  “I have bottled water and diet Sprite,” I said.

  “Got any Red Bull?” Gertie asked.

  “Red Bull is not clear,” Ida Belle said.

  “It’s almost clear,” Gertie argued.

  “The last thing Fortune and I need is to be locked in a car with you for hours, with you high on Red Bull. The last time you drank one, you were up for two days.”

  “I know,” Gertie said. “I repaired all my loose hems, baked twenty-six loafs of banana nut bread, and painted my back porch.”

  “Maybe save the Red Bull for when we get back,” I suggested. “Or even better, when I’m on vacation.”

  Gertie frowned. “That’s rather hypocritical coming from someone who ate two loaves of the bread.”

  “Can’t have perfectly good food going to waste.”

  “That’s exactly what I said when Walter was going to throw out all those overripe bananas,” Gertie said.

  “No Red Bull in the SUV,” Ida Belle said. “I’ll give a pass on the Sprite but only because it’s diet. Sugar attracts bugs.”

  Gertie grabbed three Sprites from the refrigerator, which I found amusing since I was pretty sure she didn’t even like Sprite. But she wasn’t about to give Ida Belle the pleasure of drinking water. I loaded up my duffel bag, my laptop, and Mannie’s notes, and we were off. I went over the properties with them on the way to New Orleans and covered my list of questions about each location. They surprised me by pointing out a couple of things I hadn’t considered, but then, they knew the city a lot better than I did. I’d originally asked them to do the property review with me so that they felt involved, but now I could see they were going to help give me every advantage. When we reached the city limits, Ida Belle asked which property we were looking at first.

  “The one she likes best, right?” Gertie asked.

  “No,” I said. “Actually, it makes more sense to start with the last on my list first. I have to see them all anyway, and starting at the bottom allows me to add other items to my list of undesirable attributes.”

  “Okay, then last it is,” Ida Belle said, and directed her vehicle off the interstate.

  We spent the next three hours reviewing the bottom four of the properties, then finally headed for the one I’d flagged as the best option. On paper, anyway. It was also Mannie’s favorite, and he’d made a couple comments as to why. Comments that read so much like military recon that it made me wonder again what his background was.

  “This is it,” Ida Belle said, pointing at a large industrial building at the end of the road. “Looks like one way in. That’s what you want?”

  “That means one way out, right?” Gertie said.

  “Not exactly one way,” I said. “There’s a canal behind the building.”

  “I would think that’s more problematic,” Ida Belle said.

  “Pursuit in a boat is more difficult, as we all know,” I said, “but insertion into the facility is improved. In this case anyway.” I pointed to a picture Mannie had taken. “See this? It’s an overflow grate that starts in the basement of the building and connects to the channel. Ahmad’s men will be watching the facility closely and using thermo-imaging equipment to do it. I don’t want to take the time to build out rooms to house operatives inside, so that means deploying them after Ahmad makes his move.”

  Ida Belle nodded. “And you’re thinking they can access the building through the tunnel and then they won’t be seen.”

  “I’ve checked everything available online and through the city,” I said. “There’s no way for Ahmad to find out about the water access unless he’s in the building. He’ll keep men on the outside, ready to alert him if operatives approach.”

  “But no one will be looking underwater,” Ida Belle said. “That’s genius.”

  “It’s only genius if it’s viable,” I said. “So let’s go check out that tunnel.”

  Gertie’s eyes widened. “You’re going in it?”

  “Someone has to,” I said. “I brought diving gear. Marge kept some in her secret closet.”

  “Marge had quite the haul in that closet,” Gertie said. “Anything else we should know about?”

  “You don’t need to know about any of it,” Ida Belle said as she parked in front of the warehouse. “You’re dangerous enough with eBay.”

  I grabbed my duffel bag out of the back of Ida Belle’s SUV and we headed inside. The first thing I wanted to locate was the water tunnel, so we found the basement access and we pulled out our flashlights and started down.

  The opening for the tunnel was covered with a metal door. It was rusted a bit, but I’d brought lube so we had it moving in no time. It took me and Ida Belle to twist it open, but finally we got it pulled back and I stared into the three-foot-square hole.

  “It’s kinda narrow,” Gertie said.

  “Not when you’re built like Fortune,” Ida Belle said.

  “I could be built like a stick figure and that would still be narrow,” Gertie said. “That coffin you stuffed me in was bigger.”

  “I didn’t stuff you in a coffin,” Ida Belle said. “We had to get out of Sinful secretly. That was the best way to do
it.”

  “That coffin rolled away and I almost died,” Gertie said.

  “Then you were in the right place for it,” Ida Belle said. “Besides, you got a hot dog out of the deal.”

  “It was a good hot dog,” Gertie conceded. “But that’s still narrow. Is it safe?” She looked at me.

  “I guess that depends on your definition of safe,” I said as I pulled a dry suit and small tank and mask out of the duffel bag. “It’s big enough for an operative to get through, and it should widen by a foot or so. Given that it’s got water in it and it’s not any more stagnant than what’s in the canal, I’m going to go with no blockage. Nothing major, anyway. If it’s clear all the way to the canal, then it’s enough room to maneuver in, at least for professionals.”

  “You certainly meet that requirement,” Ida Belle said as I pulled on the suit and equipment. “But wouldn’t it be better to enter from the canal and swim inside, like the operative will do?”

  “Yes, but there’s an occupied building on the other side of the canal. If someone sees a person in a dive suit jump into the canal, they’ll probably call the police. And since there’s no logical reason for me to be diving back there, the police will definitely suspect something nefarious and might flag the location for regular drive-bys.”

  “Which would eliminate it as a possibility,” Ida Belle said. “Makes sense. So what do you want us to do?”

  “Are you getting a cell phone signal in here?” I asked.

  “Not much of one,” Gertie said. “But it’s there off and on.”

  “That will have to do,” I said. “I want one of you to head out to the channel where the tunnel empties. You won’t be able to see the exit, as it’s several feet below the surface, but there should be a ladder or at least evidence that one was once there. I want the person who stays inside to start timing me when I leave. When I surface, I want the person outside to signal the inside person that I’m there and note the exact time I surfaced. I’ll need an estimate for Harrison.”

  “I’ll go outside,” Ida Belle said.