by Cindy Bell
By the time Eddy and Samantha walked up to Jo’s villa, she was waiting for them outside the door. She leaned one shoulder up against the doorway and had her arms folded over her chest. Eddy could see the arrogance in her expression. He knew that she had an idea about what he was going to ask her to do.
“What’s up guys?” She looked from Samantha to Eddy, then back to Samantha again. Eddy could already tell by the squint of her eyes that she wasn’t altogether pleased.
“Can we talk inside?” Eddy asked and gestured towards the door.
“I guess.” She opened the door and allowed them to walk through. Jo was not the type to invite people over too often. Once inside she turned to face them. “So, what is it?”
“Listen Jo, you know we’re looking into this bank robbery. I’m just wondering if you might be able to help us out.” He looked at her with a hint of remorse in his eyes.
“Ah, you need my skills do you?” She winked at Samantha. When she looked back at Eddy she tilted her head to the side. “It’s amazing that an old cop like you appreciates my talents now.” She smiled.
“All right, all right, don’t rub it in. Will you help us or not?”
“Hm. Yup.” She laughed a little. “I have nothing better to do. Where and what?”
“It’s a man’s house. His name is Derek Quinns. We suspect he is the one who actually robbed the bank. But with no proof whatsoever it’s going to be difficult to prove that.”
“Yes, we overheard him talking to the suspected mastermind of the crime. We’re sure he’s involved. But we need evidence.” Samantha frowned. “Maybe if we can get a look inside of his place, we’ll be able to find something.”
“I understand.” Jo nodded.
“I overheard him saying he’s working tonight,” Eddy explained.
“I just need a little time to get everything prepared.”
“I’ll go with you.” Eddy spoke with determination.
“Aw.” Jo patted Eddy’s cheek with a palm slightly roughened by her gardening. “That’s sweet, hon, but I work alone.”
Eddy narrowed his eyes. Jo was one of very few people that could easily make him feel like he had no ground to stand on. “It’s not safe. I’d rather be there to make sure that you’re okay.”
“I’ll be fine. I’ll let you know what I find when I find it.” She glanced over at Samantha. “You can keep him company until then, right?”
Samantha frowned. “Maybe Eddy’s right, Jo. You didn’t see this woman. She seemed pretty vicious and seemed to know exactly what she was doing.”
“Hmm. A vicious woman. Sounds like we would get along. I’m not concerned. You came to me to ask for help. If you want me to give it I will, but it’s going to be on my terms. I don’t want to have to worry about what you’re up to, or if you threw your back out, Eddy.” She pursed her lips with a hint of amusement in her eyes.
Eddy glared at her. “I’ll have you know I’ve done my fair share of clandestine searches.”
“I’m sure in your younger years.”
“My younger years?” Eddy took a step towards her. “We’re about the same age you know.”
“If you say so.” Jo’s eyes nearly glowed with repressed amusement.
“Jo, stop teasing the poor man.” Samantha shook her head. “He’s right about this one. This isn’t your average crime, this woman appears to be dangerous and cunning and we’re taking a big risk by crossing her.”
“Okay, okay. If it will make you both happy then fine. Eddy can come inside with me, but I call the shots. Understand?”
Eddy tried not to think that Jo sounded a bit similar to Charlie. “Understood.” Eddy nodded.
“Let me get some things together. We can go around eleven,” Jo said.
“I’ll get his address.” Samantha sent a text.
“In the meantime we should probably update Walt,” Eddy said.
“Yes please.”
All three turned to see Walt standing in Jo’s doorway.
“Walt, what are you doing here?” Eddy stepped aside to give him more room.
“I just came to see if Jo had heard anything from the two of you, since I am obviously not being kept up-to-date.” He chuckled.
“Hey, I was on my way.” Eddy clapped his shoulder. Walt shied away from him.
“Eddy,” Walt said reproachfully. “I’ve told you not to hit my shoulder, please.”
“Sorry,” Eddy frowned. “Thanks to your great work I think we may really be on to something.”
“I’m glad I could help.” Walt smiled. “Now, what’s this you’re planning for tonight?”
“I’m going to do a little old fashioned breaking and entering,” Jo said.
“What do you mean?” Walt looked directly at Eddy. “You’re asking her to break in somewhere?”
“Yes, the home of the man I believe is the actual bank robber and is possibly involved in the murder. She won’t be in there long, and she won’t be in there alone, I’m going in with her.”
“Against my better judgment,” Jo said.
“Well, I think it’s a terrible idea, does anybody care about that?” Walt glared between the group.
“Why do you think it’s a terrible idea?” Jo frowned.
“Because, for one we’re breaking into someone’s home, which is grounds for arrest. So, let’s just assume that Derek was involved in the robbery and possibly the murder. If he was then he is a dangerous man. How can we let Jo just break into someone’s home who is clearly a danger?” Walt shook his head. “It’s reckless. It’s ridiculous.”
“It’s my choice.” Jo narrowed her eyes. “I have no problem with breaking in. I am as invested in this community as all of you are, and I want this guy caught. The residents are going to be living in fear if they think these kinds of criminals are their neighbors.”
“Wait, wait. You guys are missing the point. All of this can be done safely if we work together. Eddy can go in with Jo, Walt and I can be lookouts, that way there will be plenty of warning if Derek is coming home. Let’s just work together instead of arguing with each other.” Samantha smiled with satisfaction. “It’s a team effort, right?”
“I don’t know.” Jo frowned. “In my experience the more people involved in a break-in, the bigger the risk of being caught.”
“Let’s not bring up your experience.” Eddy cleared his throat.
“And why not? It’s why I’m the one to go in and take a look, isn’t it?” Jo crossed her arms.
“Enough.” Samantha stepped between them. “We all do this together, or we don’t do it at all, okay? That way we all assume the risk, and we are all available to watch each other’s backs.”
Walt nodded. “I’m in.”
“It’s fine with me,” Eddy agreed.
Everyone looked at Jo. She pursed her lips but nodded. “Fine. But I am in charge inside the house, Eddy, don’t try to pull any of that cop stuff on me.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it, Jo.” Eddy smirked.
Samantha cringed at the banter between the two. Eddy offered a faint smile of reassurance. He gave Jo a harder time than he needed to. He knew that she had changed quite a bit since her days as a professional cat burglar.
“Let’s plan it out and make sure we have all of our angles covered.” Walt gestured to Jo. “You can help me figure it out.”
“I’ve got the address. We might be able to get some good information on how to get in if we search it on the internet.” As Samantha started to follow after them, Eddy shook his head. Samantha caught the movement out of the corner of her eye.
“What’s wrong?” She looked at him with some concern. “Did you think of something that will be a problem?”
“No, I was just thinking it’s a good thing we’re the good guys.”
Samantha laughed a little and nodded. “Just remember that, Eddy. We are the good guys, all of us.”
Eddy nodded. “I know.”
Chapter 11
Once the plans had been set the fo
ur gathered for a few more minutes in Jo’s living room.
“So, we’ll all meet here at around ten-thirty. By then everything should be ready to go.” Walt smoothed down his sweater. “I know that this is not normally something I would be involved in, but I’ll feel a lot more comfortable being part of it. I just want to make sure that everything goes off without a hitch.”
“So do I.” Jo smiled. “By tomorrow morning I should be enjoying my garden, and Derek, Charlie, and Karl, should all be enjoying a jail cell.”
“Let’s hope so.” Eddy rubbed his hands together. “If Detective Brunner still refuses to look into these guys even with evidence, then I’m going to have to give up on him.”
“Just be patient. He’s young.” Samantha patted his forearm. “I know that it’s hard to remember what it was like when you had to follow the rules, Eddy, but Detective Brunner still has to do that.”
“Rules are there for a reason,” Walt reminded them as he opened the door for Samantha. “Let’s all make sure that we only break the necessary ones.”
Eddy decided not to point out that it didn’t exactly work that way. Walt was showing a little more flexibility about things and he didn’t want him to backslide into being a stickler once more.
“I’ll take you home.” Eddy offered his arm to Samantha.
“That’s all right. I might take a walk down by the water and sort through some things first.”
“All right.” Eddy nodded. He tried not to be disappointed. He enjoyed hearing Samantha’s perspective on things.
He still wasn’t sure how the dead man was involved and most importantly who the murderer was, but he was almost completely sure that Derek was the robber. But that wouldn’t matter to Brunner. He would need cold, hard evidence, so that was where their focus needed to remain.
As Eddy walked to his villa he felt a sense of anxiety building within him. As usual he was the one tugging all of his friends into a risky situation. He wondered sometimes if his presence in their lives was more of a nuisance than a benefit. He pushed the thought out of his mind as he reached the walkway to his door. He froze at the bottom of it. Someone was standing by his front door. From behind he couldn’t tell exactly who it was.
“Hello?” He took a few steps closer. The man turned to face him with a faint smile.
“Hi. You probably don’t know who I am.”
Eddy’s heart skipped a beat. He knew exactly who he was. But he didn’t dare reveal that.
“Should I?” His heart pounded hard against his chest as he looked into Karl Connell’s eyes. Had they been caught?
“I was the security guard at the bank. Where the robbery took place.” He searched Eddy’s eyes intently. “I just had a couple of questions that I was hoping I could ask you.”
“Me?” Eddy cleared his throat. “Why?”
“Well, one of the officers mentioned that you were retired from the police force. I know that you chased after the robber. I just thought you might be able to help me with something.” He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ve had a hard time dealing with the robbery.”
“Oh?” Eddy did not move any closer.
“Yes. I mean, at the time, it was like I was numb. But ever since, I’ve just been having these flashes.” He shook his head. “You know what I mean?”
“Not exactly.” Eddy eyed him with suspicion. He doubted very much that Karl had found him by luck. Which meant that Karl had to be on to the fact that Eddy was on to him. “What are you really doing here, Karl?”
“Oh, so you do know who I am?” The frightened act faded fast and was replaced by a dark glare. “Amazing how you suddenly remember my name.”
Eddy realized his mistake, but it was far too late to correct it. “Karl, I don’t know what you think you’re going to gain by showing up at my door, but you should know that I have no problem with calling the police.”
“I know that.” Karl slid his hands deep into his pockets. “That’s why I’m here.”
“What do you mean?” Eddy was more confused than ever.
“I need your help. Well, more specifically, I need the help of the police. But you’re the closest I can get without being locked away.”
“How could I possibly help you?” Eddy shook his head. “I don’t understand.”
“Maybe we should take this conversation inside. I don’t know if I’ve been followed.” Karl turned towards the door. Eddy’s chest tightened as he realized the decision he had to make. He could invite Karl inside and risk being alone with him, or he could refuse and risk Derek or Charlie witnessing their conversation.
Eddy glanced over his shoulder towards the road. There wasn’t a soul in sight. But he knew that didn’t mean that Karl hadn’t been followed. He was far too curious not to hear the man out.
“We can step around back to the patio.” He gestured to the path that led around the side of the villa. Karl nodded and began walking around it. As the blades of grass brushed against his shoes, Eddy noticed his slightly off-kilter gait. He had never noticed it before. It wasn’t as if he was drunk, it was more like he was favoring one foot over the other.
“Are you hurt, Karl?” Eddy paused beside him as he reached the patio.
“No. Well.” Karl lifted his pant leg to reveal a stiff, white bandage around his ankle. “A little.”
“What happened?” Eddy raised an eyebrow. He didn’t recall Karl being hurt in any way in the robbery.
“When Derek, the robber, wants to get his point across, he has his ways.” Karl shook his head. “I didn’t want to do it, but I had no choice.”
“Do what, Karl?” Eddy leveled his gaze on the man. He didn’t want to miss any indication that Karl might be lying.
“I used to work at a prison, and when I worked there Derek would talk to me a lot. To be honest with you I ignored him for a long time. But he kept pushing. He was interested in some of the same things I was. So, we struck up conversations about it, and over time, he became less like an inmate to me, and more like a friend. I had no idea.”
“Why don’t you just tell me everything from the beginning, Karl? If you’re in some kind of trouble, of course I’ll do my best to help you.”
“Well, the situation was that Derek was going to be released. I thought it was great for him, that he’d have a fresh start, and so on. Then one day I had a visit from this stranger, Charlie.” He narrowed his eyes. “She came to my house. She knew who I was. She claimed to be Derek’s friend. She told me that she wanted me to quit my job and take one at a local bank.”
“She just showed up at your door and asked you to do this?” Eddy frowned. “That didn’t strike you as odd?”
“Are you kidding me? Of course it did.” He sighed and rubbed one hand across his cheek. “Her gun was pretty convincing. She told me that Derek would be the one doing all of the dirty work. All I had to do was make sure there weren’t any complications and give them a little bit of information about the opening and closing routines of the bank, what days the most money was in the bank, that kind of thing.” He closed his eyes. “I know it was wrong. I know it was. But I didn’t have a choice. She told me I had two options. I could cooperate, or she would kill me. Kill my family.”
“That’s not much of a choice.” Eddy feigned sympathy. He wanted to keep Karl talking, but he was still very skeptical.
“Exactly. So you know, I did what I had to do. I didn’t like it. But I didn’t have a choice.”
“Uh huh.” Eddy nodded. “I guess going to the police was out of the question?”
“I didn’t think I should risk it.” He frowned. He wrung his hands together tightly. “I mean, that’s why I came to you. If I walked into the police station right now and tried to tell them this they would just lock me up. I was hoping that maybe you could help me.”
Eddy narrowed his eyes. “How do you think I could help, Karl?”
“I don’t know. I guess I thought you would take the time to listen, and then maybe get me hooked up with someon
e who will work out a deal for me.” He squinted against the last of the evening light. “I know I’m not getting out of this. But I want someone to hear my side of the story. I didn’t have a choice.”
“And the man that took the fall? The man who was murdered? Did he have a choice?” Eddy positioned himself carefully between Karl and the exit of the patio. He didn’t want Karl to suddenly bolt on him.
“I don’t know anything about that,” Karl said with a shocked look. “I had nothing to do with any murder.”
“I don’t believe you, Karl.” Eddy believed that Karl must have some knowledge of the murder. “Someone was murdered because of this robbery.”
“I don’t know anything about that,” he repeated. “But it doesn’t surprise me. Charlie is ruthless.”
“So, you’re telling me that you don’t know about the murder and you had to help with the robbery.” Eddy tried not to sound too skeptical.
“It’s not like I don’t feel guilty enough about the robbery. Sometimes I can’t stop thinking about what might have been avoided if I had just resisted the friendship with Derek. But really, I never stood a chance. He knew things about me. I think Charlie was telling him things about me, in order to win my friendship. Then once he had me, it was easy to access me when he was out. I guess really, all of this is my fault, but I don’t know how to get out of it now.”
“Well, if you go to the police they will arrest you, there’s no question about that.” Eddy hesitated. He knew he should call Detective Brunner and tell him about Karl’s confession, but he was worried that he would just put all the blame on Karl and might not even pursue Derek and Charlie if there wasn’t enough evidence to support Karl’s story. In normal circumstances Eddy wouldn’t have doubted Detective Brunner’s ability to do his job, but these weren’t normal circumstances. He knew there was someone on the inside leaking information to Derek and trying to make sure that the spotlight stayed off Derek. So he needed to ensure that he had enough evidence so that would not be a possibility and ensure the safety of Karl while he was in police custody.
“I know I have to pay for my part in all of this.” Karl sniffled and blinked quickly. “I don’t want to have to go to jail, but I know my life is already ruined. I just don’t want to see anyone else get hurt.”
