by J. T. Lewis
“Roger that!” Abby spouted off in cop lingo, jumping up and kissing me on the cheek. “I’d better go get ready. Be careful on your drive!”
I assured her I would as she left the kitchen. Pulling out my thermos, I filled it with the rest of the coffee from the pot and headed out to the garage.
At least I would be driving in relative luxury today, as I had planned on taking Betty’s old Mercedes for my jaunt. I had been using it more as of late, especially for any traveling I needed to do that didn’t involve transporting prisoners.
As the engine rattled to life, I closed my eyes and let the ambience of the car invade my senses, hoping for a gentle tug of a reminder of Betty. We had had some good times on the few trips we had taken with the car, and I let those experiences waft into my mind.
A smile crossed my lips at the memories as I moved the lever into drive and accelerated slowly down the driveway. Maybe Betty wasn’t exactly here, but I felt her essence as I turned onto the road and headed toward the Interstate.
Ready for a trip? I asked in my head, knowing how she would have answered had she been with me now.
You betcha!
Chapter 23
September 17, 1999
I pulled into the graveled driveway and shut off the car. I had visited here once soon after May and Tom had gotten married, and had been surprised that they had never moved.
Lying on the outskirts of the city, the home was a small single story bungalow. I noticed that they had added a room or two onto it at some point in the past, but it was still tiny. It was definitely not the typical housing of the successful executive that Tom had become.
I remembered that May had mentioned that the lot was the key feature that had swayed them to this property in the beginning. Looking to be at least a full acre, May had successfully filled it with shrubs and flowers of all types. Even this late in the year the yard was full of color.
Knowing May, I knew that she would have been driving force for staying in this location for all of these years. In my mind, it was truly a testament of the type of Man she had chosen for her mate. A man that would sacrifice the trappings of his status for his wife was an uncommon thing.
I knocked on the side door, inhaling the scent of the roses as I waited. Looking about at the multitude of flowers surrounding the entry, I heard the rattle of the doorknob behind me.
“Hi Gabe!”
Turning, I found my old friend smiling at me sincerely. Dressed in a baggy sweatshirt and jeans, her hair had been pulled up into a loose ponytail. Errant strands of brown hair on each side had escaped their bindings however, as if it was their lot in life to softly frame her face.
She still looked fantastic.
Taking a step and reaching out with her arms, she enveloped me in a hug.
“Hi yourself,” I muffled through the fabric of her sweatshirt as I squeezed her gently in return.
“Oh, sorry,” she giggled when she realized that she had buried my face into her shoulder.
Waving her off, I took another quick look around. “The old place still looks great May.”
She beamed at my compliment.
“Thank you Gabe! It’s a labor of love, and it has become quite therapeutic since the boys left for college years ago, and with Tom’s travel schedule…”
A look of sadness crossed her face, but only for a moment as she squared her shoulders and said, “How about some coffee?”
I followed her into the neatly apportioned kitchen and took the seat indicated. As May flittered around the room gathering items for coffee, I found myself watching her intently. Although mostly hidden by her bulky top, she still had quite an attractive figure, and she seemed to have the energy of someone half her age.
Realizing that I was staring, I dropped my eyes to the table a split second before she turned back toward me. I was mentally berating myself for ogling her, trying to fathom what was wrong with me lately.
“Gabe?”
“Yes May?”
“I asked if you would like any pastries with your coffee. You looked like you were miles away, is there anything wrong?”
Smiling at getting caught and hoping that my face wasn’t red, “No, it’s just that my mind seems to wander more as I get older. Lately, it seems to be getting much worse. I’m hoping it’s just temporary.”
May smiled knowingly. “Tell me about it, I swear I get more scatterbrained as the years go by.”
She placed a cup in front of me and sat down, holding her cup to her face and inhaling the aroma.
“So, what do you hope to find going through Tom’s things today?”
I sat up a little straighter as I got down to business.
“Truthfully, I’m not totally sure. I’m hoping of course that some of Tom’s information might tie into Calvin’s in some way. We are still trying to find any kind of a connection that would tie something together. If your theory is correct, there will have to be a connection somewhere.”
May nodded while staring down at her cup. “He was getting ready to retire you know,” she started with a sadness on her face. “We were finally going to get to spend some time together.”
Looking like she was going to loose it momentarily, she steeled herself quickly and jumped up. Walking across the room, she came back with a framed picture of an infant.
“I have a granddaughter now!”
She beamed with pride as she handed the picture of the infant across the table.
“Congratulations May!”
Having just found out that I had a grown daughter a little over a year ago, I was unprepared for the concept of grandchildren. I was however, pretty certain that I was not near ready mentally for such a thing.
“You don’t seem proud or anything.”
May laughed at that, and it was good to see her smile return.
“Yes, I guess I am. My boys are far flung from here now. I will be doing a lot of traveling in the years to come, that’s for sure.”
Sitting back down at her coffee, “But I’m looking forward to it.”
I remembered that May had become an attorney, and asked her if she still practiced.
“Not really,” she said, jumping up again to refill our cups. “I never did fall in love with it as a career. I worked at it when I could, but took a lot of time off here and there to be with my kids.”
She returned with the two steaming cups of coffee, and sat down once more before finishing her thought.
“I donate my services now to local charities and nonprofits. At least now I feel like I’m contributing to something important.”
I nodded, her charity work fit what I would have imagined May doing with her life.
Looking at my watch, “I’d better get at it May.”
“Oh, of course,” she said as she stood and walked around the table. Grabbing my hand, she said, “Follow me,” as she started down a short hallway.
Entering Tom Lassiter’s office was like night and day compared to Calvin Forrester’s. Although not exactly messy, it could better be described as organized chaos. While one desk sat against an outside wall, there was another facing the door in front of it. To the side of these stood a huge old drafting table, the wheeled desk chair able to traverse to either of the three easily.
The rest of the room was filled with bookcases, filing cabinets, and corkboards filled with papers. A whiteboard stood in front of the window to the side, both sides of it filled with drawings and mathematical equations that looked like Egyptian hieroglyphics to me.
“It’s rather a mess,” May admitted as she looked around overwhelmed. “I haven’t had the heart to tackle it yet I’m afraid.”
“As it turns out,” I started, “It’s probably a good thing you didn’t.”
May smiled, squeezing my hand quickly before releasing it. “I’ll let you get started then. I’ll have some lunch for you later if that’s ok.”
“Sure thing May, thanks!”
I went to the chair and sat down. Trying a few drawers, I found
that none of them were locked. Taking out my notebook, I set it on the first desk and started once more with the center drawer in front of me. This time, however, the drawer was filled to the brim with papers. Some were in folders, but most were loose stacks that filled the depth of the drawer to the top.
“This might take awhile,” I thought as I reached in for the first stack.
Chapter 24
September 17, 1999
By the time May returned to retrieve me for lunch, I had just started on the second desk. I had just determined that I needed to speed up my search or I would never get out of here. Assuming that anything to do with actual engineering would probably not be pertinent, I was hoping that scanning quickly through these would not adversely affect my case.
“Having any luck?” May asked cheerily when she entered the office.
“Not that I know of,” I answered truthfully as I stood and pocketed my notebook. Creaky joints again slowed me momentarily as they rebelled against my standing.
“I hope you don’t mind, I made ham sandwiches for lunch. It’s not very exciting I’m afraid.”
Smiling at the simplicity, my mind went momentarily to the fancy lunch of yesterday.
“Nope, sounds great to me.”
I caught myself once more glancing at May’s shapely figure as I followed her down the hallway.
“Dammit!” I thought as I reproached myself once again.
“Iced tea ok?”
“Hmm? Oh yeah, iced tea is fine.”
Thankfully she hadn’t seemed to notice my distraction as I quietly gave a sigh of relief.
Lunch was great as we too caught up on each other’s lives of the last thirty years. Surprisingly, she seemed to find stories of my exploits exciting as she asked pertinent questions about some of the details that I had glossed over. In turn, the stability of her life up to the point of Tom’s death made me somewhat wistful for a more ‘normal’ life.
“I’m so happy that Abby found you,” she gushed when the conversation had worked its way around to kids. “She seems like a fantastic girl!”
“She is!” I agreed wholeheartedly, “She’s an amazing young woman. Anybody would be lucky to have her as a daughter.”
May smiled knowingly. “Maybe so, but it seems that she has definitely found the right family in you!”
It was my turn to beam, and I did, brightly!
I couldn’t help but notice that I was more than relaxed around my old friend. Although I had totally enjoyed my visit with Raven the day before, I found that I could more easily be myself around May. There was a tension surrounding my time with Raven that I couldn’t quite put a finger on, besides the obvious sexual tension of course.
Whether it was connected to the way she unceremoniously dumped me all of those years ago, I couldn’t be certain. I would hope that I was a little better than that though.
“Would you like some coffee for your afternoon?” May asked. “I can bring it in to you.”
“You read my mind!” I said with a smile as I got up from the table.
“I always could Gabe,” she replied with a smile as she stood and made her way to the coffee maker.
I thought back on our time together decades ago as I started back to the office. I suddenly realized that she was right, I just hadn’t caught on to it back then I guess. There had been numerous times when we had been together that she had exhibited an uncanny knack of knowing what I was thinking. Whether it was finishing my sentences or just stating something before I could get it out of my mouth, it seemed that the connection was there.
I smiled at this as I made my way once again to the desk chair. Although I still had a long day ahead of me, it now didn’t seem quite so overwhelming.
Chapter 25
September 17, 1999
Hector eyed the pieces of Plexiglas in his hands with a discerning eye.
“Perfect!”
A skill he had obtained while in prison, he had refined shank making to an art. Even the scored line below the handle was the perfect depth, leaving the plastic strong enough to shove into the body yet easily broken off once inserted.
The plastic shanks had become his preferred method of executing his duties.
Hector giggled at the analogy.
Taking both of the weapons to his suitcase, he easily pulled up the Velcro attached lining, inserting one of the blades into the carved out foam interior.
Refastening the lining, he moved to the other side and repeated the process. He was as confident that they wouldn’t be detected as he had been the dozen times he had done it before.
Smiling at his ingenuity, he busied himself with the rest of the preparations. He wouldn’t need a lot of clothes, as everybody wore the same thing in Indonesia. Western clothing was typically worn for every day, and some sort of sarong outfit for more formal gatherings.
He was hoping to be able to find a setting where he could use the sarong outfit, as he would be better able to hide the weapons as he blended into his surroundings.
Checking his watch, he realized that the cab would be out front in five minutes to take him to the airport. Ready except for one item, he made his way to the mirror to fit the wig onto his head. Adding the longer dark hair brought his chosen identity swiftly to the fore.
“Beautiful,” he said as he quickly combed it out.
A horn sounded outside his apartment as he closed the lid to his suitcase. Thankfully, he had chosen a late flight. He should be able to make it to the cab without any of his neighbors noticing his current identity.
Taking another quick glance into the mirror, he stated simply, “You’re on!”
Instantly, his alter identity took over his thought process, allowing him to think as the second person would think, and react as the second person would react.
Smiling confidently into the mirror, the person formerly known as Hector picked up the suitcase and headed toward the door. There was nothing left to do but to execute the contract.
The new identity giggled at the analogy.
Chapter 26
September 17, 1999
Bill inhaled the aroma of the city as he walked up the steps to the courthouse. The familiar scent of Cincinnati chili reminded him that he was hungry, and he quickly decided to stop for a three-way after he finished his business.
Making his way to the Recorder’s office by memory, he mentally clicked off the names of a couple of the ladies there that he liked to use. It had been a while since he had been here last, three years to be exact.
Pushing through the glass door, he immediately spotted Elaine, his favorite.
“Hello Elaine,” he grinned as he stepped up to her window, “Remember me?”
The bored woman looked up with annoyance, taking a couple of moments to recognize the visitor. A smile finally spread across her face however when she identified her new customer.
“Bill! Long time no see.”
She had always liked Bill, even going to lunch with him a few years back. She had once hoped for a relationship with him when she was younger, but he had seemed immune to her advances. Just as well she thought now, he lived too far away and seemed to travel extensively.
“What brings you back to our fair city again?”
“Just need to record a Trust for my client Mr. Justin James,” he smiled as he flipped the latches of his attaché case and pulled out a document, “Transferring some real estate holdings, the usual.”
As Elaine turned to retrieve the relevant forms, Bill heard a name that sent a bone chilling tingle down his spine.
Glancing to his left, he observed a nice looking young woman in the next window. As she glanced around the room as she waited, their eyes met momentarily before he quickly forced his back down to the papers now in front of him. Flustered beyond belief, he concentrated on slowing his breathing as he pretended to read the documents.
She had asked about Larry Callestrano! Or more importantly, she had asked about any filings in regard to Larry Callestrano.
His heart was trying to beat out of his chest as he mentally strained to calm himself.
“You ok Bill?” Elaine asked with concern as she noticed his nervous demeanor.
Trying to slough off her concern with a smile, “Oh yeah, probably just my breakfast fighting me back. I’ll be fine in a moment.”
Glancing left once more, he had a few moments to observe the other woman again. She was Asian, but seemed to have some Caucasian features as well. Her light brown hair was pulled back in a loose bun, with those chopstick-looking things like you see in the movies somehow holding the whole thing together.
Why was she looking into Larry? She definitely wasn’t one of his kids; he had met all of them. Maybe she was a daughter-in-law?
“Here you go Bill,” Elaine interrupted his thoughts again, “just sign here.”
Bill signed where indicated, then watched as Elaine did a bunch of stamping and signing of her own. Paying her in cash, he nervously waited for his receipt.
“All done Bill, come back more often, we don’t get to see you much anymore.”
Bill nodded absently as he put the paperwork away and pushed the latches of the attaché closed. Disconcerted by the girl next to him, he was still unsure why as he quickly left the office and then the courthouse.
His previous hunger was forgotten as he passed the restaurant and headed quickly to his car.
Chapter 27
September 18, 1999
I was going over my notes of the two previous day’s investigations when I heard a knock on the door. A smiling Preacher greeted me when I pulled it open, offering his hand before entering.
“You look happy,” I smiled as he entered the kitchen.
“Just love my job,” he admitted as he took a seat. “It’s good to feel useful again.”
Setting his Bible down on the table beside him, he took my offered cup of coffee with thanks.
Abby reappeared from her bedroom and refilled her cup from the pot. As everyone got settled I gave some halfhearted thought to this “grownup” meeting we were about to start. When I had quit the Prosecutor’s office last year, I literally had no idea what I would do with the rest of my life.
