Biker Brigade

by Pierce, Nicolette

  Lil sat heavily beside me. “Why can’t he ever leave it to the professionals?”

  “He might argue that he is a professional.”

  “But he’s no longer in the force.”

  “True, but he and T have started a business together.”

  She straightened. “They did? When?”

  “I’m not sure. But not too long ago, I think.”

  “What kind of business?”

  “I think security of some sort.” I sighed. It was painfully obvious I didn’t know anything about Brett’s life. Those damn bobbleheads staring at me probably knew more than I did. From Lil’s stunned reaction, she didn’t know much more about Brett’s activities than the bobbleheads either. It made me feel a little better, but only slightly.

  “So, what do we do?” she asked.

  We?

  “Um, wait for Mrs. J. to call back. She’s going to try to hack into T’s phone.”

  “She can do that?”

  “We know someone who can.”

  “What about Brett’s phone?”

  I eyed her. “A mother’s curiosity?”

  She shook her head but then paused. “Well, maybe a little, but I want to know what he knows.”

  “Welcome to the club.”

  A sudden smile brightened her face, erasing worry lines. “I think I’m going to like this club. When will Mrs. J. call? I have a feeling I’m going to like her.”

  I had a bad feeling that she was right.

  * * *

  Over an hour later, Mrs. Janowski called. She must have twisted Kym’s arm to allow Aaron to help. I could hear his voice in the background and knew I wasn’t out of the woods with Kym quite yet. She had a tendency to spring on me when I least expected it. But for now, I was just grateful.

  “We’re all set,” Mrs. Janowski said. “I’ll put you on speaker so you can hear us. Aaron, how do I do that?”

  After a moment of mumblings, Aaron’s face popped up on my screen.

  “Hi, Mars,” he greeted with a smile, the corner of his mouth dusted with powdered sugar. “This is better than just speaker. Then you can see what’s going on.”

  “Hi, Aaron. I can see Mrs. J. bribed you with powdered-sugar doughnuts.”

  He wiped his mouth with his sleeve. “Actually, Kym bribed me so I wouldn’t tell Jim what we’re doing.”

  “Aaron!” Kym scolded.

  Lil chuckled.

  “Who is over there?” I asked.

  “Everyone,” he said, panning the room so could I see.

  Yep, all four of the ladies, plus Kym and Aaron. All were assembled. Turning my phone to face Lil, I introduced her to the band of mischief makers. All were enthusiastic to meet her, and I could tell she already felt like part of the group.

  “Aaron, will T know his phone has been hacked?” I asked.

  Aaron flipped open his laptop and settled in. “Not if I don’t want him to.”

  “How do you get into his phone?” Lil asked.

  “Well, I’m going to see if he has any apps on his phone that have Trojan backdoors. I’ll sneak in that way. There are a few common apps that people use and have no idea what they’re really for. Otherwise . . .” he paused.

  “Otherwise, what?” I asked.

  “Let’s just try this way first,” he said.

  The unknown second option left me a little concerned. Hopefully I’d never find out what that second option was.

  “Are you sure we should do this?” Although I couldn’t see who asked the question, I recognized Edna’s nervous titter.

  “Of course we should,” Mrs. Janowski stated. Her voice as strong as a drill sergeant’s compared to Edna’s. “We vowed to keep the city of Madison safe. There’s a dismembered victim, and we are going to find out who the killer is.”

  “No, we’re going to find out what Brett and T are up to and help them, if possible, and only if safe to do so,” I insisted.

  “Same difference,” Mrs. Janowski said. “We’re catching a killer.”

  I wanted to argue the point, but it wouldn’t really matter. Involving Mrs. Janowski had been my fault, and I was too far away to tether her to a leash.

  “I’ll need T’s phone number,” Aaron said. “And does anyone know what kind of device he uses?”

  “I have his number,” Mrs. Janowski said. “But I don’t know what device he has. I don’t even know what I have.”

  “Let me see.” Aaron took Mrs. J.’s phone, shifting the camera angle. “Has he called or texted you?”

  “Yes, but not recently.”

  “Oh, I found it,” Aaron said, laughing. “Why did he threaten to lock you up in a funny farm?”

  “Is that in there?” she tsked, leaning over Aaron to look at the phone. “I asked him for one favor and he wouldn’t do it.”

  Aaron giggled, scrolling through the phone. “You asked him to shoot you.”

  “Mrs. Janowski!” Kym scolded. “What were you thinking?”

  She waved off Kym. “I had just purchased a bullet-proof vest, and I wanted to test it out.”

  “You don’t test out vests,” Slyvia said. “You pray to God you never to have to use one.”

  “What’s the point of the vest if you don’t use it?” Mrs. Janowski countered.

  I cautiously peeked at Lil, wondering if we had frightened her off already. It’d probably be better if she wiped her hands clean of us before we proceeded. If history had taught me anything, it was that we’d only slide downhill from here. To my amazement, however, Lil seemed to be soaking in the conversation as if it was the most intriguing topic she’d ever heard. Her slippery slope down the path to the dark side had been carved.

  Brett was going to kill me.

  “Aaron, let’s get back to T’s phone,” I said. “We have to hurry.”

  Aaron nodded. “I’ll access his phone in a few seconds.”

  We watched as Aaron’s fingers flew over his keyboard, his lips twisting as though he was concentrating on an epic battle in a video game. He was in his element, and that was a bit unnerving. Aaron was too young to have as much knowledge as he did. Unguided, I had a feeling he could bring nations to their knees. Thankfully, he was normally guided by Kym and not Mrs. Janowski.

  “Bummer,” Aaron mumbled. “This might not work. T’s got none of the apps. It looks like he even installed safeguards. He definitely doesn’t want anyone snooping on his phone. There is another way, but it’ll take time.”

  “What about Brett’s phone?” I asked. “Try his. Mrs. J. has his information on her phone.”

  Aaron took her phone again, scrolling through and nodded. “This might work unless he installed the same things as T.” After a few moments of typing, Aaron said. “I’m in. Oh, wait.” Aaron looked up, slamming the laptop closed.

  “What’s wrong?” Mrs. Janowski asked.

  “Um, nothing,” he said, though I could sense his panic, even from a thousand miles away.

  “What do you mean, nothing?” Mrs. Janowski asked. “Did you get in?”

  “I . . . It won’t work. We’ll need to get T’s phone,” he said.

  “Steal T’s phone?” Edna asked. “We can’t do that.”

  “Yes, we can,” Mrs. Janowski stated. “If he’s going to pick up Brett at the airport, then we can intercept them.”

  “He’ll know we’re up to something if we show up at the airport,” Ida said.

  “He might not even be at the airport,” Kym said. “We don’t know for sure he’s picking up Brett or what flight Brett is on or what airport he’d arrive at.”

  “T’s at his office,” Aaron interrupted. When all eyes turned to him, he explained, “I wasn’t able to hack into his phone, but I was able to track it.”

  Mrs. Janowski ruffled Aaron’s moppy hair. “Kid, you’re a genius. Load up, ladies! We’re heading out.”

  “We need a plan first,” Ida stated.

  “First, you’ll stow that flask of yours, and then we’ll head over there,” Mrs. Janowski said. “I’l
l distract T while Sylvia manhandles him and gets the phone.”

  “I prefer the term seduce,” Sylvia corrected.

  “She’ll pass it off to Edna, who will give it to Aaron.” Mrs. Janowski peered into the phone, her nose large and distorted from the angle. “Mars, we’ll call you back as soon as we land the eagle. Over and out.” She poked at the screen. “How do you turn this damned thing off?”

  Aaron reached over and the video call ended.

  With a long exhale, I tossed the phone to the bed and rubbed my temples. It’s begun, and I was the one who started it.

  Crap.

  “You look worried,” Lil said. “It sounds like Mrs. J. has everything under control.”

  I laughed. “Control is the one thing she never has. But I’m not worried about them. Yet. I’m more worried about Brett and T’s reaction when they find out what they’re up to. And I’m even more worried that they won’t find out.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I’ve just unleashed Mrs. Janowski on the hunt for a murderer.”

  Lil reached over and patted my shoulder the way she had done with Emily. It pricked my pride a bid that I’d be soothed by the same coddling as Emily, but her touch was calming.

  “Nothing to do but wait for the call, right?” she asked, happy.

  “Right.” I took a sip of the lemonade she had brought, the sugar melting into my taste buds.

  “I wonder what happened to Brett’s phone?” she asked.

  “What do you mean?”

  “When Aaron said he had gotten in but then closed his laptop. It was odd. He had the most peculiar expression.”

  “I thought it was a little odd too, but Aaron knows what he’s doing.”

  She nodded, and we both fell silent.

  It was odd, though, him closing his laptop so suddenly. What had he seen on Brett’s phone? Maybe he ran into a security block and was afraid of being caught.

  “You don’t think Brett is mad at me, do you?” Lil asked, breaking the few moments of silence.

  “For what?”

  “Oh, you know. I do give him a hard time. He’s a grown man, and I still treat him as if . . .” She shrugged. “I guess I’ll always think of him as my baby boy. I forget that it’s not my job to look after him anymore.”

  “You’re his mom. If you don’t look after him, who will?”

  “You, of course.”

  “I don’t seem to be doing that great of a job.”

  She smiled. “You’re doing a great job. I’ll apologize to him when he gets back tomorrow.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t think that’s necessary. He was more irritated by—”

  “Lil,” Emily called up the stairs.

  Speak of the devil. I didn’t even have to speak her name and she materialized.

  “I have a headache,” she whined.

  Lil stood and walked to the door. “Yell for me as soon as Mrs. J. calls.”

  I nodded. “It’ll take them a while just to figure out who’s driving.”

  She smiled. “I want to meet these ladies in person one day.”

  “You’re welcome to visit me in Wisconsin any time you want.”

  “I’ll take you up—”

  “Lil, I think it’s turning into a migraine. Hurry!”

  “Coming,” Lil said, and with the barest shake of her head, she was gone.

  It wasn’t but a minute later that I heard footsteps on the staircase. When they fell close to the door, I said, “That was fast. I thought for sure Emily would keep you longer.”

  “She kept me long enough,” Rand said and leaned against the doorframe. His cold eyes scanned the room before settling on me.

  “What do you want?”

  He shrugged. “Nothing from you.”

  I’m sure I should have been offended, but I was too relieved.

  “Then why are you here?”

  “Where’s Brett?” he asked instead, ignoring my question.

  “I think he flew to Wisconsin.”

  “Why?”

  “How should I know? Why do you care, anyway?”

  “I don’t. I don’t give a damn about him.”

  “Why are you here, then?”

  “Just curious to know why Brett would drop you off here and leave.”

  A sliver of understanding dawned. “Emily put you up to this. She lured Lil away so you could question me.”

  He smiled, jagged and harsh. “Only half right. But I haven’t agreed to help her yet. I’m not sure if you’re worth it.”

  “What do you mean?” I didn’t like the tone in his voice or the slow perusal of his eyes.

  “Nothing much. Just a means to an end.” He pushed off against the doorframe. “Watch yourself around Emily. She will bite,” he warned.

  What in the world was that about? I wondered, listening intently to his retreating footsteps. Before I could dissect his words for meaning, a text came in from a five-digit number.

  The gatekeeper is angry. The contract must be fulfilled. Brett must kill you.

  “Who is this?” I replied, knowing full well I’d get a bounced-back response.

  Damn it!

  I had to talk to Brett now. This couldn’t wait any longer. It was creepy. There was no way Brett would kill me. And what contract?

  Dialing Brett, I waited, fingers curled into the bedspread. No answer. Of course there was no answer. He was off playing with T. I left a message saying I had received a creepy text and that he should call me back. The reply text I received a few minutes later was anything but helpful.

  Can’t talk. Stay put.

  Chapter 8

  “What are we looking at?” Lil whispered, peering at my phone.

  “I think Sylvia tucked us into her bra,” I answered in the same whispered tone.

  Light filtering through zebra stripes was my clue. Why Sylvia was in charge of the communication phone while she was feeling up T was beyond me. And I didn’t have to be an eyewitness to know she was doing just that.

  “Such strong arms you have,” Sylvia purred. “It’s like squeezing a ripe melon.”

  “Please don’t— Mrs. J., come down from there!” T barked.

  “Where’s the ammo? I know you hid it again.”

  “Again?” Lil raised a brow.

  “Look at the way your vein just pops along your neck,” Sylvia cooed. “It makes your tarantula tattoo dance.”

  “Stop touching my neck! Mrs. J., stop knocking on the walls. I moved everything the last time you snooped.”

  “I don’t snoop.”

  “Right, and I can fly!” he barked.

  “You can?” Mrs. Janowski asked, and the rapping on the walls ceased.

  “I bet you can make a woman soar,” Sylvia said.

  I shook my head, praying T would never know I was behind his accosting. I’d never hear the end of it.

  “What’s going on?”

  Lil and I looked at each other. That had to be Brett’s voice. Still flustered from his short text and the disturbing one before that, I closed my eyes and prayed for clarity or patience.

  “The ladies came to visit,” T grumbled.

  “Nice to see you all,” Brett said, pleasantly. “But I’ll need to cut this visit short. T and I have somewhere we need to be.”

  “Oh?” Mrs. Janowski pipped in. “And where would that be?”

  “Not here,” Brett said. “Sorry, ladies.”

  “Will you come to dinner tonight?” Mrs. Janowski asked.

  “Not tonight.”

  “Soon?”

  “Yes.”

  “How soon?” she pressed on. “When Mars returns home?”

  There was a short pause. “Sure. Then.”

  “As long as you promise.”

  “Of course,” he said.

  “All right,” Mrs. Janowski agreed quickly. “Let’s go, girls. Sylvia, stop harassing T. You need to switch the laundry before it gets wrinkled.”

  “Gotcha,” Sylvia said. “Bye, handsome.”

/>   A flash of light lit up the screen before it was smothered in darkness. T yelped.

  “T, ready?” Brett asked.

  “Y-yes. Let’s get out of here.”

  “Meet me at the car,” Brett said. “I’ll escort the girls out and lock the doors.”

  “Thanks,” he muttered. “Christ, they’re going to give me an ulcer. They need to be locked up.”

  Lil’s eyes widened. “Did he say that in front of them?” she asked, speaking in hushed tones.

  I shook my head warily. “I don’t think so.”

  Lil exhaled. “Oh, I was worried they’d overhear him.”

  “He’s told that to them before. But he’s normally louder and more direct.”

  “But if he’s not near Sylvia, where is the phone?”

  “I think in his pants.” I silently groaned. “Mrs. J. said something about switching the laundry. I bet that was a code to switch T’s and Mrs. J.’s phones.”

  “I thought Sylvia was just going to steal the phone for a few minutes.”

  “T wouldn’t leave the office without his phone. Mrs. J. probably knew that.”

  “But he doesn’t have his phone.”

  “If he pats his pocket, he’ll think he does.”

  “But he’ll notice eventually.”

  “Hopefully ‘eventually’ will be after we hear some helpful information.”

  She shook her head, smiling. “I should have had Mrs. Janowski around when Brett was a teenager.”

  “Ready?” Brett asked.

  “Yeah,” T replied. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

  A car engine started.

  “Seems you had your hands full,” Brett said.

  “More like Sylvia had her hands full.”

  “Yeah, I saw that grab. Thought you might be talking a couple of octaves higher.”

  “Damn near.”

  Brett laughed. It was good to hear him laugh. It made the world make sense again, if only briefly.

  “Just shut up and drive,” T barked.

  Silence. It seemed to stretch for an eternity. I kept checking my phone to make sure it was still on. Finally there was a rustling sound and a clearing of a throat.

  “Do you think she’ll be there?” Brett asked. His voice sounded rough.

  “I don’t know, man.”

  Silence.