Darby Stansfield Thriller Series (Books 1-3 & Bonus Novella)

by Ty Hutchinson

  “I don’t like him. I went tell him to go back home. Nothing illegal about that.”

  “But breaking into someone’s home, that’s illegal.”

  It was clear that Kalani was getting flustered. The pitch in his voice had risen and he became more animatic. “I don’t know what you stay talking about. It wasn’t me.”

  “You’re the only one that doesn’t like the couple.”

  Kalani rolled his eyes and snorted. “Brah, I’m sure there are plenty more like me who no like haoles taking their waves.”

  “So you don’t like them because they surf your spots.”

  “That’s right. The Black & Blue stay in charge of the waters.”

  Again, Balagot referred to his notes. “I was told they received permission to surf the waters from a… Kawika. Do you recognize his name? He’s the leader of the Black & Blue.”

  Kalani stared ahead, not saying a word. Balagot closed his notepad and tucked it away. “You know, now we’re watching you. Better not slip. No juvie this time.”

  Balagot got out of the truck and closed the door. He looked at Kalani once more to see if there was any reaction to his last statement. Nothing. The kid continued to stare ahead with his bony chest sticking out.

  Chapter 49

  Balagot watched Kalani pull out of the McDonald’s parking lot through his rearview mirror. The kid was certainly a punk, had a history of theft, and hated Darby and Izzy, but something wasn’t sitting right about this case. While there was still information to gather, Balagot was beginning to think the couple was holding out on him. Still, he would make his way over to Kalani’s house later tonight. That’s when the freaks come out, right?

  Since he was back in Haleiwa, Balagot decided to swing by Luau’s for a quick bite. He had liked what he had eaten earlier from there, but he also noticed they served Loco Moco—something he always craved.

  • • •

  “Darby!” the girl behind the counter of Luau’s shouted.

  I put down the paper I had been reading and picked up my order from the gum-chewing teenager. I ordered sweet shrimp for Izzy and a Loco Moco for me. In less than four minutes I would have been diving into a mixture of Hawaiian delight. That was until I heard a familiar voice.

  “Hello, Mr. Stansfield. I’m assuming an early dinner, yeah?”

  I turned around and saw Balagot entering the diner.

  “Mr. Balagot. Yeah, I was picking up dinner for Izzy and me. How’s the investigation coming along?”

  “I just got done talking to Kalani.”

  “Yeah, and?”

  “He admitted that he didn’t like you guys, but he also denies that he was involved in the break-in.”

  I motioned for him to follow me outside. I didn’t want anyone eavesdropping on our conversation. “So, what does that mean?”

  “It means what it means. He doesn’t like you two. That’s motive to harass you on your property but…”

  “What?”

  “Well, I’m thinking. Could there be another person you overlooked, someone you initially thought might not be relevant? Think hard. Now’s not the time to discount people—it’s best that I investigate it, yeah?”

  I didn’t understand why Balagot was asking for more names. Kalani was the guilty one. Everyone thought so, not just me. No one else had even looked at us with ill will. But that’s where I was mistaken. That’s when I remembered. There was someone else, and that someone was Roger Kwan.

  But why would he attack Izzy? Did I even know him at that time? I wracked my brain trying to think of the first time I met him. Was it at the chicken fight? The initial sit down with the NBB gang? The poker game? Everything was starting to blur. I couldn’t think straight. Calm down, Darby.

  I hadn’t realized how many times I had been in the same room with Roger, and each time he looked at me, well, let’s just say it wasn’t with a smile.

  “Darby,” Balagot said, waving his hand in front of my face, “did you remember something just now? You look like you did, yeah?”

  “Well, there is one other person, maybe two.” I blinked my eyes, trying to bring myself back into the now, but my mind was still racing as I tried to answer Balagot. I was trying to remember when I met Souza as well. If one, why not suspect both?

  I had to be careful of what I told him. The NBB was my client, but then again, this wasn’t a typical relationship and I’d come to learn that it’s just business. They wouldn’t think twice about fucking me over.

  I still wasn’t sure whether to let the names go. I was confused and wanted more time to think it through. Why did I have to run into him now? Why couldn’t this have been a question left on my cell?

  “Who are these people? Tell me their names,” he asked again.

  I was positive I hadn’t met Roger before Izzy got attacked, but I had met Mike Souza. He had known who I was and he did admit to wanting to talk to me. Could he have been following me? Could he have been the one who was sneaking around the house? Shit! Could it have been Souza all along? But why? Or was it Roger? The hooded figure looking into the house that night could fit either of their sizes.

  Balagot was looking at me intently. I had to tell him something.

  “Roger Kwan and Mike Souza. There are some names for you,” I said as fast as I could rationalize. Roger was the bigger threat. I still think he was the one who locked the door on us and left us for the pigs. I had to hope Rudi Balagot wouldn’t discover anything about my business with the gang.

  “Anything you can tell me about these guys?” he asked as he wrote down the names.

  I didn’t think it was a big deal to tell him about the cockfight, so I told him that’s where we met and described how Tav might have pissed Roger off. I also threw in my theory about him locking the door and the hungry pigs that had us on the run.

  When I was done, Balagot was speechless. He had stopped writing in his little notepad and just stared at me.

  “I know it sounds like a made-up story but it’s true. Shit like that happens to me.” He nodded and made a few more notes.

  I looked down at my watch. It was nearing six. “I have to go. Izzy has a fierce appetite and I learned not to antagonize it.”

  Balagot nodded and pocketed his pad and pen. “I’ll add these guys to my list of people to question, yeah?”

  Good luck with that one. I doubted it was going to happen. I knew I was setting him up for failure; there’s no way he would get close to Roger or Souza. I had no idea where they lived and I wasn’t about to give up the Kahuku house. But my mind started to spin. I had never considered Souza as the threat, but his admittance that he had wanted to talk to me for some time could mean he might have been following me, or worse, poking around the house. He’s a criminal. Maybe he thought to kill two birds with one stone: rob us and hire me. But why attack Izzy? Did he have something else on his mind? It made me sick just to think about that.

  Chapter 50

  The sun had set below the horizon, allowing the darkness to take over the North Shore. Balagot had parked his car under a large mango tree across the street from Kalani’s supposed residence. He wasn’t too worried about his proximity; the two street lamps charged with lighting the road were doing a wonderfully poor job.

  He had been observing the house for three hours now, one of which was spent napping. The house itself was more like a bungalow shack, what you would expect a bunch of surfers to be living in. The front of the house seemed relatively quiet compared to what was happening in the backyard. He could hear reggae music peppered with loud outbursts of laughter. They were having a good time all right.

  Four older model vehicles were parked outside in the driveway and in what used to be a front yard. It was reduced to dirt with patches of grass from the constant crush of tires. Two of the vehicles were identical black trucks. Balagot went ahead and punched in the makes and models along with the license plates in an e-mail to Danny Nobrega on his smartphone.

  Nobrega was a desk sergeant for HPD who work
ed in records. He was also a good friend. Every now and then he would pull information for Balagot; one of those favors recently included pulling Kalani’s rap sheet. Balagot knew this favor was going to be out of the ordinary, so he’d probably have to throw in a lunch and a couple of after-work Heinekens on top of his explanation. He hit send on his phone, emailing Nobrega the plate information. He then dialed and waited for the two rings. Nobrega never answered a phone before two rings.

  “Danny, it’s Balagot.”

  “Don’t tell me you’re back already.”

  “I just e-mailed plate information I need pulled.” Balagot could hear the faint clicking of a keyboard even though Nobrega was breathing heavily into the phone.

  “A rap sheet a few days ago and now plate information… I’m starting to think you’re working one real case here.”

  “I think so, Danny. I haven’t had action like this since leaving the force.”

  “What’s the situation?”

  “Young white couple decided to spend their vacation on the North Shore for a few months. They’re nice and get along with everyone except with that kid Kalani.”

  “This is the guy who’s associated with the Black & Blue?”

  “That’s the one. So someone breaks in and attacks the woman. A few weeks later they catch someone, who they think is the same person, looking into their house in the middle of the night.”

  “They think it’s this Kalani kid?”

  “He’s the only one with motive, yeah. But things don’t add up as it should. This kid has no history of violence, only theft. He fits the profile on all fronts except assault.”

  Nobrega took a moment before answering. “That’s your only lead right now?”

  “Yeah, but today I ran into the boyfriend and I pressed him for more information, yeah? He spit out two more names, Mike Souza and Roger Kwan. Says he had a run in with them when he attended a cockfight.”

  There was more faint clicking in the background as Nobrega went to work. “Ahh, looks like they both have priors,” he said. “Roger Kwan did a couple of years at State for involuntary manslaughter… Put one guy down in a bar. He has multiple priors for assault. It’s also noted that Kwan is a trained MMA fighter. I would say he’s got a history of violence.”

  “What about the Souza guy.”

  “I’m pulling him up right now… Okay, looks like Souza’s been picked up for theft and gambling. So far, he’s avoided jail time.”

  “This is getting interesting.”

  “Wait ‘til you hear this.” Nobrega chuckled. “They both are known associates of the North Beach Boys. What do you make of that?”

  NBB? Balagot didn’t see that coming, but the more he thought about it, the more it started to make sense. “I know all kinds of characters show up at cockfights, but I’m guessing if the NBB were there, they were probably running it.” He never understood why the police weren’t investigating the first incident better; it involved assault. Maybe there’s a connection.

  “Sounds like this might be more than a simple trespassing,” Nobrega said. “I’m pulling up the report on the break-ins. Says here a couple of leads were investigated but nothing came out of it. It was labeled as a random theft, and since nothing was taken, the case was closed. Nothing is mentioned about the assault. You sure you got the right couple?”

  “That’s what they told me.”

  Nobrega clucked his tongue. “You know, it could have been a domestic dispute that was then spun into an assault.”

  “I’m not ready to go there yet. They don’t seem like the type. I think they’re telling the truth. Maybe the case was buried.”

  “You think a dirty cop was involved?”

  “I’m not ruling it out. Local uniforms out here could be friendly with the gang, yeah? It would make sense if an NBB member broke into the house. They could have gotten the case squashed. Right now, I’m following up on every lead, trying to see where this shakes out.”

  “Be careful Balagot. You’re a PI now. Retired or not, some guys on the force will never see eye to eye with you, especially if they’re dirty.”

  “Thanks, Danny. I appreciate it. I owe you lunch, yeah?”

  “Why don’t we turn that lunch into beers and pupus?”

  “Okay, I’ll call you when I’m around.”

  Balagot hung up the phone. With two leads, the case was becoming bigger than it had seemed.

  Chapter 51

  It was near eleven at night and Balagot was close to shutting down his surveillance gig. It appeared that Kalani and his little band of merry men were in for the night. No sooner had this thought crossed Balagot’s mind then the front door opened and five casually dressed men exited the house. One of them was his suspect.

  They seemed to be a happy bunch as most of them piled into two vehicles. Kalani jumped into his truck. They were most likely heading someplace else to continue their evening. This would be the perfect opportunity to take a peek around the property. If he was going to rule the kid out entirely, Balagot wanted to make sure he had covered all the angles.

  Balagot sat tight for another ten minutes before exiting his car and walking to the house. Sidewalks didn’t exist in the country; properties ran right up to the road. It was only a few steps before he was back in the shadows again.

  It was quiet and most of the lights were off in the surrounding homes. A ten-foot hedge wall on the right side of the house separated the property from the neighbors. Balagot moved toward the hedge, disappeared against it, and followed it along the side of the house. The light on the back patio was still on but Balagot stopped short of turning the corner. It was times like this that he wished he carried a gun. In Imelda’s head, there was no need for him to carry a gun since he’d given up dangerous cases. They did compromise, however, on pepper spray. So he kept a big pistol-sized canister in his trunk and a key chain-sized one in his jacket pocket.

  Balagot listened for any stragglers that might have decided to stick behind but heard nothing. Slowly he leaned forward and peeked around the corner of the house. There he saw a covered patio. Green beer bottles and empty food containers littered a wooden picnic table. The centerpiece was a tall bong with a skull base. Buzzed and stoned leads to a mellow bunch, not a violent bunch.

  Not finding anything of interest, Balagot decided to check to see if the sliding glass door was open. If it was, he would be guilty of trespassing and anything he found wouldn’t be admissible in court, but he was on a fact-finding mission. The door was open and he entered.

  Inside it looked like a frat house. The furniture was a mix-and-match of Goodwill and the Salvation Army. Balagot moved around, careful not to step on anything that appeared to be old, decaying food or simply something gross.

  To his left was a hallway. Following it, he found three bedrooms. Each had two twin beds inside—one had three. There didn’t seem to be a whole lot of personal items in the rooms. Balagot was beginning to think this was nothing more than a crash pad.

  Returning to the living room, he peeked into the kitchen, making a quick assessment that a look was satisfactory enough. Nothing so far told him Kalani was guilty.

  While he pondered his next move, he heard the sound of a vehicle. Crap! Balagot moved quickly to a window and peeked outside. A black truck was back in the driveway and Kalani was climbing out of the driver’s side.

  Balagot high-stepped it across the living room, trying to limit the crunching under his feet, and slipped out the sliding glass door just as the front door opened and the living room light came on. He made his way back around to the side of the house where the tall hedge was. From there, he peeked in a window. He couldn’t see anyone. Where did he go?

  Suddenly Kalani appeared from one of the bedrooms dressed in a black hoodie. The PI noted this and made his way to the front of the house, where he watched Kalani drive off. By the time Balagot got into his car and back on Kamehameha Highway, Kalani’s truck was nowhere to be found.

  Chapter 52

  Ba
lagot drove down Kamehameha Highway with the windows down. The cool air felt refreshing against his skin, which helped the small headache that had developed at the back of his head. He had begun to rule out the kid while he walked the house, until he saw him dressed in the hoodie. Where were his friends? Why come all the way back home for a hoodie? It was cool outside, but a hoodie wasn’t necessary. Was leaving with his friends a way to set up an alibi? Was it pure coincidence?

  Since he lost sight of the truck, Balagot headed over to Kolohe’s Bar and Grill with the hopes of learning something new from Braddah Moku, especially with the two new names he had. For now, Balagot put Kalani on the back burner. His reasoning for this was that he simply didn’t think the initial attack was random. This person came back to the cottage to survey. They wanted something in that house. Couple that with the way the investigators handled the case, and it didn’t add up. Something was wrong. Balagot couldn’t pinpoint what it was, but a bit more information might be what he needed to turn the corner.

  He had a hunch that the NBB might be involved. It would make a lot of sense if they were. But why? Looking at someone the wrong way or having a mild argument wasn’t enough to have a gang come after one person. Or was it? Maybe it wasn’t the gang, but just that one person. What if it were Roger Kwan’s beef and not the gang’s? Still, it didn’t seem reasonable enough for a high-ranking gang member to waste his time on a tourist, especially one who now had a high degree of visibility because of the attack.

  Was Darby telling the entire truth? What exactly happened the night of the cockfight? The more Balagot could find out about Souza and Kwan, the more puzzle pieces he would have.

  When Balagot reached Kolohe’s, the parking lot was jam packed. He eventually found a spot on the side of the road about a two-minute walk away. It seemed like the entire North Shore had shown up to party. As he walked to the bar, the PI patted his jacket for two things: his business card and his pepper spray.