by Nick James
“Let me ask you something. What if I wanted to put in some monitoring device, see if anyone got in here or prowled around?”
“You can do a lot better than what we just saw. Even though it’s only a few years old that stuffs antique compared to what’s available today.”
“Would it be hard to wire? I mean, I wouldn’t want anyone to know I was doing it.”
Earl nodded. “For a price I could get you a little sort of square block like thing. It could just sit on your mantel, a bookshelf, kitchen counter. It’s just about this big,” he said holding his thumb and index finger an inch or two apart. “No one would pay it any attention. The only problem is, well actually two problems, the file isn’t that large so it automatically erases and starts over every forty-eight hours and them batteries only last about twenty days. They say the batteries last a month, but just to be on the safe side, you know, keep it at twenty days.”
“And you sell these?”
“I can get ‘em,” he said sort of dodging the question. “Might take a few days, and they ain’t cheap.”
“I want one for every room and give me one extra.”
“Like I said, sir they ain’t cheap. You’re looking at a couple hundred bucks a piece. Course the other feature is you can access them online.”
“You mean to buy?”
“No, you can view what they’ve captured, the file, online. You just type in the security code and you can view however much is stored or, watch live if that’s your thing.” He raised his eyebrows and gave a bit of a grin at that last option.
“Sounds perfect, one for every room and an extra one.”
“Okay, sir be a couple of days and I’ll give you a call.”
“Appreciate all your help, Earl. Let’s settle up.”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
It was close to four before Bobby made it back to the office. He stepped off the elevator and waited for Marci to finish dealing with a caller. She raised her index finger indicating just one moment as he approached the reception counter.
“Thank you, Mr. Davis, let me connect you now.” she clicked a couple of keys on her keyboard then looked up at Bobby. “I’m sorry, I gave Mr. Hinz your message, but you just missed him. He left maybe fifteen minutes ago.”
“Is he going to be back?”
Marci looked at him like he was nuts then flashed her shark smile and said, “I think he had an appointment that will take him into the evening.” She emphasized the word appointment suggesting anything but, then handed him a pink message slip with the name Emily written across the top. Bobby glanced at the message on his way back to his office. It simply read ‘Call Emily’, he noted she hadn’t left a last name. Unfortunately there was nothing from Camila.
Emily answered after four or five rings, just as Bobby pulled her file of images back up on his screen.
“Hello.”
“Hey, party animal, have we recovered?”
“More or less, nothing that aspirin, a hot soak and a nap couldn’t take care of.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“Hey, Bobby I’ve got a rain check with your name on it sitting on my kitchen counter, right next to the worlds most delicious dinner and my thong. You interested?”
“Very. I’m trying to arrange a meeting with a client yet this afternoon, but it shouldn’t last more than about thirty minutes. Can I call you after that?”
“Oh yeah, sure. This just needs about forty-five minutes in the oven, I won’t put it in until you get here. We can get comfortable over a glass of wine, and don’t worry, I’m going to limit myself to just one glass tonight.”
“Can I bring something?”
“Just your horny old self and pick up a bottle of wine if you feel like it, a red. I’ve got plenty here if you don’t, so no pressure.”
“I’ll call you as soon as I talk to my client.”
“”I’m slipping my thong back on until I hear from you.”
His phone rang about forty-five minutes later, he barely got his hello out before Camila spoke.
“Mr. Custer, forgive me, it’s been a rather crazy day. I apologize for not returning your calls sooner.”
“It’s nice to hear your voice, Camila. Thanks for calling. I wondered if we might meet, it shouldn’t take more than a few minutes. I could meet you again near the fountain on Kellogg if that would work for you.”
“Meet today?”
“Well I was hoping to, but if you’re busy, perhaps tomorrow.”
“No, no I can do today. Let me call you back in a few minutes.”
“I’ll be here.”
Bobby hung up and returned to Googling the names on Emily’s list. Camila’s call came through an hour later although he’d been so involved in his research he hadn’t noticed the amount of time that had passed.
“Mr. Custer, would you be able to meet me within the next half hour?”
“Absolutely, same place?”
“No, I think a change would be better. Do you know the Cathedral?”
“I do,” he said then caught himself before he almost added the fact that he lived within sight of the structure, close enough to hear the bells chime.
“I’ll meet you on the front steps, shall we say in thirty minutes?”
“I’ll be there,” he said. Camila responded with a click terminating their conversation.
He was ten minutes early, standing at the base of the granite steps leading up to the three sets of massive double doors. Elegant wrought iron hinges scrolled across the front of the doors. He didn’t count them, but it looked like there were at least a hundred steps leading up to the doors. It was the tail end of the evening rush hour, but there was still plenty of traffic on the busy corner. Just a block north was the entrance and exit off the I-94 interstate, at this hour traffic was still barely crawling bumper to bumper. On the far side of the interstate sat the state capitol, wrapped in scaffolding in an apparent ongoing external renovation. A group of three Asian tourists, two young women and a man, possibly students, snapped a couple dozen pictures of one another on the steps.
After what felt like a long time he glanced at his watch, she was five minutes late. At ten minutes past he was about to call her on his cell when he heard his name being called.
“Mr. Custer.”
He glanced around and she called again. He followed the sound of her voice up the granite steps to the massive set of doors on the far left. One of the two doors was held open by muscular guy in a black t-shirt and jeans, not Ignacio.
“Up here, Mr. Custer please join me.”
Bobby gave a slight wave and started his climb up the steps, by the time he reached the top he had raised his estimate of the number of steps from a hundred to a thousand. The guy in the T-shirt was standing outside the door and he opened it without saying a word as Bobby approached.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
He stepped into the vestibule of the Cathedral and was met by Ignacio and another man. “We search,” Ignacio said then raised his hands as an example and nodded.
Bobby took the not so subtle hint and raised his hands over his head. Ignacio stood his ground and smiled, but his dark eyes remained lifeless. The other guy stepped behind Bobby and patted him down.
An old woman carrying a rosary shuffled past the three of them. Her lips were moving in a silent prayer and she paid no attention to them as she headed toward the rest room.
Once they finished searching him Ignacio gave a nod of his head indicating the baptismal area off to the side behind an elaborate flower patterned wrought iron fence. The entrance actually consisted of two gates, each close to twelve feet high, as Bobby walked in that direction his footsteps echoed off the polished marble walls.
Camila suddenly stepped out from behind the wall in front of the baptismal font and moved forward to open one of the massive gates. Ignacio and his friend positioned themselves just in front of the area, standing there with their massive arms folded over their chests. Their appearance more than enough in
centive to keep any too curious sightseers away.
“I must apologize for all of the,” she paused, and seemed to think for a moment. “For all of the difficulty, cloak and dagger I believe you would say.”
Bobby nodded.
“Safety is always a concern. Please, come sit,” she said and then extended a hand indicating Bobby should go ahead of her. He walked around the far side of the massive marble baptismal font with it’s elegant silver basin and over to the marble benches built into the wall. He sat and then Camila immediately took a seat, leaving enough distance for a comfortable space between the two of them. From where they sat they virtually were hidden from anyone else in the massive structure.
“So, I sense you wish to talk.” Although she whispered, the sound of her voice echoed off the marble walls making it sound like there was more than one person speaking.
“Yes, first I wanted to thank you for bringing me current, if I can use that term.”
For just a brief moment she had a confused look, but quickly recovered.
“I’m still not clear on exactly who was in charge of my release. Officially it was Agent Drake, but as you suggested that really appears to be Montcreff pulling the strings. I just can’t seem to figure out why. I can tell you that based on our discussion and a suspicion, I went through my condo and there are two devices in there.”
“Devices?”
“To eavesdrop, record whatever is being said as well as capture images.”
“And you think that Morris Montcreff has been recording you?”
“I honestly don’t know. Believe me, there is absolutely nothing happening there worth seeing. In fact, from what I can determine the devices are at least three or four years old. He may not have anything to do with them. Whoever installed the things may have been finished with them long before I ever arrived. I just don’t know, yet.”
“What would you like me to do?”
“Do? Oh nothing, I can easily make them virtually worthless and still not officially disturb them. I just wanted to let you know I had discovered them and maybe advise some caution on your part.”
Camila nodded in agreement.
“There is one thing I could use your help with.”
“Oh?”
“Yes, after the recent events, I feel unprotected, unsafe. I’d like to ask you to get me a weapon, a pistol, actually.”
“Really?” she said and smiled.
“Yes, really. To be honest, that afternoon in your dungeon as you called it, with Drake, I’d never even fired a gun before in my life. Certainly never thought I could be involved in shooting someone,” Bobby lied and tried his best to make his eyes water. “I’m really scared.”
“And here I was, thinking since you were so calm it couldn’t possibly be your first time,” she said and just let that sit there for a long moment while she seemed to study him, maybe making up her mind whether to believe him or not. “Why not just go and buy whatever you want? You’re a citizen of this country after all, correct?”
“Yes, but I’m a citizen who has served time in prison. A citizen with a record. By law, I’m not allowed to even shoot a gun, let alone own one. I’m really scared,” Bobby said, biting his lower lip, and staring at his feet in the hope he looked convincing. “I’m just afraid someone’s either going to break in, attack me or the FBI is going to come after me.”
“In which case a gun probably wouldn’t do you very much good.”
“Can you help me? Maybe something that couldn’t be traced,” he added.
“Let me think about it.”
“Thank you,” Bobby said.
“Is there anything else?” she asked placing both hands on her knees, signaling the conversation was over.
“Is there anything I can do for you?”
“No,” she smiled. “My niece will be here tomorrow, and I’m looking forward to that.”
“Valentina,” Bobby nodded. “I would love to see her. Please, call me if I can be of any assistance.”
She nodded, then stood. “So, back to work for the both of us.”
“To work,” Bobby said and at her direction walked out through the elaborate gates. Ignacio and his partner immediately escorted Camila into the main chapel and a moment or two later Bobby heard the side door banging closed. Something was up although he didn’t have the slightest idea what.
Chapter Forty
He phoned Emily as he leaned against his Mercedes across the street from the Cathedral. The rush hour traffic had begun to slack off. He glanced around, but saw nothing that suggested Camila and her entourage were still in the immediate area. Emily answered on the second ring. “Please tell me you can still make it.”
“Actually, I’m calling to say I’m on my way. I’m just going to stop and pick up that bottle of wine, I shouldn’t be more than thirty minutes.”
“You don’t have to get wine. I’ve got plenty here, really.”
“My pleasure, it’s the least I can do. A red you said?”
“That would be perfect, but don’t take too long, I want to see you.”
“I’ll be there in thirty minutes,” he said.
“I’m going to time you,” she said and hung up.
He thought about the names on her list and what he’d learned. It dawned on him that if you were in a relationship that had cooled, maybe lost it’s spark, or worse and you suddenly had an attractive woman like Emily, thirty years your junior who told you to hurry up because she wanted to see you, it wasn’t too far a leap to find yourself in a bubble bath and smiling for a selfie. At a cost of a thousand dollars a month, he reminded himself. Maybe that was it, that list of names, perhaps they were successful everywhere except in their own bedrooms.
He checked his watch as he pulled to the curb in front of her place, he’d made it in just under twenty-five minutes. He gave a quick glance at the fake rock in her front garden as he climbed the steps to her porch. There was a brass door knocker attached to the middle of the solid oak door, a lion’s head with a large, heavy ring hanging from it’s mouth. Bobby gave four sharp raps.
Emily answered the door a minute later. She was barefoot, wearing a short denim skirt, a white cotton top with spaghetti straps and no bra. “Perfect,” she said clutching the bottle of wine he handed her like a newborn. “I was going to give you thirty-one minutes and if you weren’t here by then I wasn’t going to answer the door. Glad you made it.” She sounded like she wasn’t joking. Then she stood up on her tiptoes and gave him a long firm kiss. “Yes, very glad, you’re here, thank you.”
“What would you do with the dinner you cooked?”
“I’d eat it all by myself, plus both desserts. Then, when people asked you where is that exciting, fabulous, gorgeous woman they’d all heard so much about you would have to point to me and I would just be this big fat blob,” she giggled. “Come on, I thought we’d be informal tonight and so we’re eating in the kitchen.”
He followed her back into the kitchen, the scent of something delicious grew stronger the closer they got. She pushed through the wood paneled swinging door on the far side of the dinning room and into her kitchen, the aroma was almost over powering. “I think I’ve died and gone to heaven, it smells delicious,” he said.
She had two places already set with white linen placemats and a folded linen napkin. The places were arranged at a right angle to one another at the end of the counter. The linen napkins were embroidered with an elegant ’S’. A sterling silver place setting rested on top of the napkins, two forks, a knife and a spoon. Two large crystal wineglasses sat just waiting to be filled and a small crystal vase, in the same pattern as the glasses held a bunch of pink carnations.
“If you’ll do the honors,” she said handing back the wine bottle. Then she opened a drawer and pulled out a corkscrew.
He smiled, set the corkscrew down on the counter and pulled the wine bottle out of the paper bag. “Glad to be of service, it’s a twist-off cap,” he smiled.
“Jesus, smart boy.”
“Can I fill the glasses?”
“No, I like to put out my best crystal and then drink from the bottle, reminds me of where I came from.”
He must have given a confused look.
“Just kidding, please fill them, but go easy on mine. I’d like to be conscious for the better part of the evening.”
“The head’s okay after last night?”
“God, I’m so sorry…”
“Forget it.”
“No, I mean it, I was really looking forward to coming home, you being here and passionate sex, I don’t know, it just hit me wrong.”
“We’ve all been there.”
“Oh, so you do that to all your girlfriends,” she said and for the first time he thought he had maybe picked up the slightest edge to her voice.
“I don’t have any girlfriends,” he said.
She crossed her left arm over her chest, tucking it beneath her breasts, maybe unintentionally pushing them up ever so slightly. She held the crystal glass in her right hand as he carefully filled it. She looked for all the world like she was waiting to make a toast. “No Girlfriends? What about me?”
“You’re getting there, if you can stay awake at night. Just kidding,” he quickly added in response to the flash in her eyes. He picked up his glass and clinked glasses with her in a toast. The crystal glasses made a bell-like sound. “To a lovely night with a very lovely woman.”
They both sipped then Emily directed, “You sit there and tell me about your day. I’ve got a couple of things to attend to.”
He pulled out the kitchen stool, black leather and what looked like cherry wood. “These glasses, are they Waterford? The Lismore pattern?”
“Whoa, impressive mister, very impressive,” Emily said then set a small silver platter on the counter with a wedge of cheese and some crackers. “Help yourself, we’re still probably a half hour away from dinner.”
Bobby ate most of the crackers and a good portion of the soft cheese, not a Camembert but something very much like one. They talked about everything and nothing. Emily finished her glass of wine and he talked her into another, but she insisted it only be filled part way. Then she sipped demurely through the beef stew dinner, setting her glass back down just about the time the wine touched her lips. She had baked some sort of apple thing for dessert, slathered it with whipped cream and served it with a sweet white wine in a smaller crystal glass. The wine was chilled, thick and too sweet for Bobby’s taste.
